How do you reckon zoos will evolve in the future?

[Haliaeetus]

The Megafauna We Have is the Megafauna We'll Have​

While there are exceptions, the days of large importation of megafauna is largely behind us. While there will still be some swaps between continents, most SSPs should act as if the genes they have now are all they will ever have. If we operate with this assumption that there will be no imports (likely true in many cases), it paints a potentially grim picture for the future of many popular species in zoos. However, this future doesn't necessarily need to be this way with enough dedicated individuals properly planning population management along with institutions dedicated to breeding the species consistently. Of course there will always be an element of luck involved that can't be controlled. However, I'd take my chances with luck in a well-managed population way more than I would in a poorly managed one, and as we are seeing with many phase out species today, poor management can have detrimental effects on a population. By viewing the management and breeding as the important element of ensuring demographically healthy populations, I am acknowledging that in most cases which species continue to be kept, and which are phased out, is in direct control of those in charge, both at the association level and at specific zoos.

It is important to acknowledge, however, that by assuming no imports will occur, we are setting up a scenario in which a phase out becomes a permanent, irreversible decision (it usually is). While I am not one to lose sleep over an obscure species of antelope or bird being phased out, and neither is the general public, we face a reality where it is important to acknowledge that even some charismatic megafauna may become completely unavailable to zoos in the future if management of their respective programs don't improve. While there are some species I am very confident will be around in fifty years (e.g., African lions, lowland gorillas), there are many more that I am less than confident in. Some of the charismatic megafauna that I believe have rather uncertain futures in US zoos, and are dependent on the dedication of facilities and management, include: polar bears, Andean bears, sloth bears, jaguars, African and Asian elephants, Masai giraffes, okapi, bonobos, white-cheeked gibbons, spotted hyenas, African wild dogs, Eastern black rhinos, and Malayan tapirs. While all of these species have strong potential of being present in zoos in fifty years, all of them also are at risk of extinction in zoos unless managed properly. As sad as a future without these species in zoos may be, it goes to show how important proper management of populations and perfecting breeding techniques are.

I would add that intercontinental transfers remain a possibility, even if the imports of wild megafauna have largely ceased.
I would give a few recent examples : 2 Indian Rhinos have been sent from Beauval and La Flèche (France) to Guadalajara (Mexico) ; the recent imports of Brown Hyaenas from South African facilities in Europe (Germany and UK) ; I have many other examples from my "home zoo" Beauval, even if they aren't true megafauna species (Yellow Backed Duikers imported from the US, Harpy Eagles from Itaipu breeding center in Brazil...).

In exceptional cases there have been imports of wild animals from other continents, even if they are strictly regulated. I would mention a few years ago the import of wild Patagonian Pumas by Vincennes (France), these animals being captured in farms and unable to release in the wild without raising conflicts.

 

[15399]

I would add that intercontinental transfers remain a possibility, even if the imports of wild megafauna have largely ceased.
I would give a few recent examples : 2 Indian Rhinos have been sent from Beauval and La Flèche (France) to Guadalajara (Mexico) ; the recent imports of Brown Hyaenas from South African facilities in Europe (Germany and UK) ; I have many other examples from my "home zoo" Beauval, even if they aren't true megafauna species (Yellow Backed Duikers imported from the US, Harpy Eagles from Itaipu breeding center in Brazil...).

In exceptional cases there have been imports of wild animals from other continents, even if they are strictly regulated. I would mention a few years ago the import of wild Patagonian Pumas by Vincennes (France), these animals being captured in farms and unable to release in the wild without raising conflicts.

I agree that international transfers certainly still happen for some species. There have been elephants transferred to the US from Europe, for instance. For some other species, however, the bureaucracy involved makes the transfers very unrealistic, if not downright impossible. For instance, I'd be very surprised if any giraffes crossed the Atlantic anytime soon.

 

[StoppableSan]

I agree that international transfers certainly still happen for some species. There have been elephants transferred to the US from Europe, for instance. For some other species, however, the bureaucracy involved makes the transfers very unrealistic, if not downright impossible. For instance, I'd be very surprised if any giraffes crossed the Atlantic anytime soon.

Vice versa elephantwise - Budi (Billy) went from Dublin to Denver, (similarly Yasmin, Anak, Sanjay and Kabir are heading from Dublin to Cincinnati), and Trong Nhi and Nhi Linh went from Rotterdam to National. Giraffewise, I doubt the US'd send generics over to Europe where they have generally pure reticulated giraffes/Baringo giraffes.

 

[tigris115]

Vice versa elephantwise - Budi (Billy) went from Dublin to Denver, (similarly Yasmin, Anak, Sanjay and Kabir are heading from Dublin to Cincinnati), and Trong Nhi and Nhi Linh went from Rotterdam to National. Giraffewise, I doubt the US'd send generics over to Europe where they have generally pure reticulated giraffes/Baringo giraffes.

What if we could get their giraffes as we slowly wean off generics?

Maybe just as an extension of the EEP

 

[StoppableSan]

What if we could get their giraffes as we slowly wean off generics?

Maybe just as an extension of the EEP

I don't want to speak too much about this as I'm not 100% sure on the status of both the generic and Masai populations, but in the case of the latter, there's been quite a bit of struggle as far as infant mortality rates, high injuries, etc. The generic population is doing much better given the further spread of genetics in that population vs the Masai population.

https://www.zoochat.com/community/threads/north-american-giraffe-species.479993/

This thread here's worth a read.

 

[tigris115]

I hope Frozen zoos and artificial reproduction is used more. It can make genetic exchange rly easy to do for various species.

 

[JVM]

With the AZA’s cooperation with animal rights organizations such as PETA I don’t think it is will be easy for US zoos. Say what you want about AZA and PETA having common ground on stopping roadside zoos, I think it is hazardous and naive to for AZA work with an organization years after it said on New York Times that zoos should act as a non breeding sanctuary without making a discrimination between accredited and unaccredited zoos. One might want to think through what will follow once both organizations reach the common goal of shutting down roadside zoos, confiscating their animals, further restricting the private trade and so on. Will PETA leave AZA alone just because they don’t do cub petting, or keep their animals in concrete pitts or corn crib cages? Definitely not. Animal rights activists will use any tactic against zoos, such as using records, paired with laymen’s lack of knowledge about zoo animal management to go against zoos. For example, I could see campaigns against using animal ambassadors, or PETA weighing more on campaigns such as the Non-human Rights Project and IDA’s. Zoos can barely afford defending themselves against smear campaigns and frivolous lawsuits and those that can end up using money that could have been going to improving the zoo or conservation projects.

To sum it all up, I see a bumpy road ahead for AZA zoos. And if (or when) that happens I wouldn’t be too shocked and go on with my day.

I'm not sure I am following this post correctly, perhaps it is my ignorance. Is the AZA collaborating with PETA at an organizational level? I was under the impression they only had limited collaboration on a case-by-case basis, but it sounds from this post as if there is a deeper collaboration than I have been made aware.

 

[Jurek7]

Personally I find it quite a bizarre read myself.I will say that the idea of 'domesticating' wild animals to make them better exhibits is a bit too much of a fantastical idea

Just to point, that article makes rather poor generalizations from few examples. While turkeys rapidly evolve in cages, many animals successfully adapted to the wild after generations in zoos - European bison and Pere David deer, among others. And zoos take steps to minimize adaptation - for example, EAZA deciding to get rid of domesticated color mutants of big cats. Enthusiasts of breeding animals in their home countries burned their fingers - these countries often have no political and economic stability which made animals endangered in the first place.

rotating habitats - will become standardized in the future.

Rotating habitats is one concept which did not catch up. Probably because the first attempts were flawed. 'We have 5 animals and space for about 3 and a half. Lets make 5 habitats - 1 excellent, 2 so-so and 2 poor, and rotate the animals so that every one spends few days in the best one'.

zoos continue to build on what they have and are constrained by their history

This is something not often realized. Zoos in cold climate build for durability. So 50 years in future, overwhelming majority of zoos and zoo buildings in Europe and North America will be still recognizable to a zoochatter who is 18 now and will be 68 then. Many will be renovated or repurposed, of course.

Asian zoos don't built to last, and tropical zoos often manage with small footprint, so it is relatively easy e.g. to demolish a whole bird park in Singapore and build anew.

Zoos have never seen as many visitors in Europe and US as today so unless that abruptly changes I expect investment in zoos remaining high.

I expect that despite equal number of visitors, European zoos will shrink in terms of species and exhibits. Many old exhibits of elephants, rhinos, chimps, bears, sealions, crocodiles will not be replaced by equal number of modern exhibits for these species. They will be repurposed for smaller and cheaper animals - camels, small New World monkeys, lemurs, racoons, turtles, waterfowl etc.

The Future of Animal Rights May Include Shifting Targets

Animal rights movement is already weaker than 10 years ago, and zoos may wait it out. First, because zoos improve by themselves. Second, because the public become immune to fallacies used by animal rights propaganda.

Climate Matters

The biggest influence of climate change for now is shifting public interest away from direct conservation of animals and habitats. And increased costs in economy, which means less money for zoos and conservation projects. It looks like climate activists will kill lots of animal species faster than climate change might kick in.

 

[Enzo]

Worldwide:
More and more elands, less and less rare antelope species.

Brazil:
Many exotics (koalas, both African and Asian elephants, white rhinos, gemsbok, bears black crowned and demoiselle cranes, and saddle-billed storks) will be gone from Brazil in the next twenty years or so.

The majority of Brazilian zoos will become dumpsters for apprehended animals because our rehab centers are neglected and overcrowded. The remaining ones will most likely end up being closed.

China:
Living conditions may improve for most zoo animals in China.

However, I believe they still won't care about taxonomy and hybridize different subspecies and species like crazy.

Japan:
If nothing is done, many of their exotics will be gone, like Brazil's.

 

[Haliaeetus]

Worldwide:
More and more elands, less and less rare antelope species.

Brazil:
Many exotics (koalas, both African and Asian elephants, white rhinos, gemsbok, bears black crowned and demoiselle cranes, and saddle-billed storks) will be gone from Brazil in the next twenty years or so.

The majority of Brazilian zoos will become dumpsters for apprehended animals because our rehab centers are neglected and overcrowded. The remaining ones will most likely end up being closed.

I don't think that Elands are becoming an overabundant species in the zoos (Europe).
They remain quite popular but I haven't the impression to see them everywhere.
Giant Elands have nearly disappeared, not a single individual remains in Europe for decades, perhaps there are some remaining animals in the US.
The concept of "rare" antelope may also be questioned : there are rare species in the wild that are fortunately frequently bred in zoos (Scimitar-Horned Oryx, Addax...), some other ones are nearly absent (I think to many Gazelles) but I couldn't say "in bulk" that there are "less and less rare antelope species".

I'm not Brazilian so my point of view may be unaccurate, but this forum reported many "exotic" imports in Brazilian Zoos (Parque de Cotia). Moreover, the Latin American zoos (not only Brazilian) seem to keep importing animals from overseas, it may look a bit surprising for an European. It depends of the countries but imports from Africa (mostly from game farms and refuges, more than wild-sourced) seem to happen still, some countries like Cuba keep strong political ties with African nations that allow them to import some animals.
There are also more "classical" transfers from/to regular zoos, like a few months ago when two Indian Rhinos flew from France to Guadalajara Zoo in Mexico. It may be a profitable option for the two parts, because European zoos could get Latin American native species (I think to the Harpy Eagles imported by Beauval from the Itaipu breeding centre in Brazil, that happened in 2020, I may also think to extra species of cats, monkeys, herps, parrots...).

 

[Enzo]

Estimado Haliaeetus, I apologize for my generalization. I believe my point of view was based on the perception that this trend occurs in smaller zoos, in poorer areas, or in regions that lack a diverse supply of antelope species in the first place.
It seems that this is the case in much of Latin America, after all, except for Central American and Mexican zoos, our zoological gardens don't tend to do much intracontinental exchange.

Now, regarding exotic species in Brazil, I maintain my point of view regarding the imminent disappearance of some species. BioParque do Rio, São Paulo aquarium, Animália Park and ZooParque Itatiba are exceptions among the vast amount of Brazilians zoos. These four have the resources and desire to import new and exotic animals into their collections, especially because they wish to complete their "sticker album".

Most good zoos, like Refúgio Biológico Bela Vista, which you have just mentioned, and Parque das Aves, focus on native species, which is why RBBV did not get any animals in exchange for the critters they have sent to Europe. The government actively dismantles the other great institutions in order to privatize them at a bargain price.

@David Matos Mendes might be able to tell you more about the problems zoos like Fundação Zoobotânica de Belo Horizonte face because of the greediness of our government officials.

 

[PantheraLeoMelanochaita]

Late to the party here, but I think in the coming years zoos will invest more in things like Philly's Zoo360, Omaha's Desert Dome, the National Zoo's Elephant Trails, and maybe even Monarto Safari Park's Lions 360, both for the sake of animal enrichment and the guest experience. As much as I wish that zoos could focus all their energy towards being scientific and educational centers, they also have to be successful businesses in order to have funding for their conservation work. Compared to ginormous and immersive theme parks and digital technology, a trip to the zoo may not be as exciting to tomorrow's families with kids, so larger zoos with more funding will have to adapt, while smaller zoos may just become local relics. I believe (and know from my own experiences) that small, local zoos can have just as much if not more educational value as huge touristy zoos, so I hope they can still find support.

 

[robustus]

I would like to see more zoos and aquaria involved in local conservation or habitat improvement projects. Emphasis on the importance of local biodiversity is as critical as protecting it worldwide. I think many institutions are doing well at this, with more conscious efforts to preserve and showcase local habitats on zoo grounds and in exhibits.

 

[dillotest0]

One idea I have been toying with -
One idea I think is residue from the times of 'stamp book' collections is that of segregating species. It is an idea which contributes to another I think - that these species exist in a vacuum. But of course they don't. They exist in an ecosystem. And this is much the case with grazing herbivores.
You have zebras which eat higher grasses, wildebeest who prefer their meals 'short and sweet', and impalas who are 'inbetweeners'. Gazelles who eat younger shoots, and warthogs who root for shorter, hardy grasses. And this is a sort of basic grazer ecosystem that at various points in time you could find all over the world - in Europe there were bison, aurochs, tarpan and wild-boar all in co-existance at a time - something that has seen attempted replication by a few sites, including a handful in the UK.
I think this could provide interesting ideas for how exhibits could use this co-existance - and perhaps provide also for native birds which, whilst not necessarily the species occurring in the wild situation, are ecologically similar.
And perhaps the idea of 'non-consequential carnivores' could be exploited too - in a natural state bat-eared foxes will often be close to grazing animals to find insects. I think it could be interesting if there was a bat-eared fox enclosure in such a manner that it could access a hoofstock paddock at later hours so to carry this out...
Though I suppose it would be at different times of year than in Africa proper

 

[Kalaw]

One idea I have been toying with -
One idea I think is residue from the times of 'stamp book' collections is that of segregating species. It is an idea which contributes to another I think - that these species exist in a vacuum. But of course they don't. They exist in an ecosystem. And this is much the case with grazing herbivores.
You have zebras which eat higher grasses, wildebeest who prefer their meals 'short and sweet', and impalas who are 'inbetweeners'. Gazelles who eat younger shoots, and warthogs who root for shorter, hardy grasses. And this is a sort of basic grazer ecosystem that at various points in time you could find all over the world - in Europe there were bison, aurochs, tarpan and wild-boar all in co-existance at a time - something that has seen attempted replication by a few sites, including a handful in the UK.
I think this could provide interesting ideas for how exhibits could use this co-existance - and perhaps provide also for native birds which, whilst not necessarily the species occurring in the wild situation, are ecologically similar.
And perhaps the idea of 'non-consequential carnivores' could be exploited too - in a natural state bat-eared foxes will often be close to grazing animals to find insects. I think it could be interesting if there was a bat-eared fox enclosure in such a manner that it could access a hoofstock paddock at later hours so to carry this out...
Though I suppose it would be at different times of year than in Africa proper

I really like the idea. Regarding the carnivores, they are few and far between, but a select few zoos are already doing it. Magdeburg even allow their Bat-eared Foxes access to the zoo’s African Elephant enclosure!