Species you hate to see in zoos

amur leopard said:
That is fair - there are almost no other subspecies of leopard in the USA. However, Maryland zoo holds Africans, and so does Zoo of Acadiana.

As for the AZA support, I believe that if they explained that they really wanted leopards and there are certainly other species than the amur leopard that need helping, they would be willing to make concessions and allow the import of North Persian leopards or Sri lankan leopards.
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Considering the aza population of Amur leopard is just 120 cats, I do not believe another subspecies is a good idea. First of all it may eat into the amur leopard population, and second of all any secondary population of leopard would not be sustainable without a massive increase in new exhibit space (if it were to not eat into other species spaces). Also it’s important to take into account it has taken the ssp many years to phase out generic leopards just to attain a sustainable amur leopard population.
 
amur leopard said:
That is fair - there are almost no other subspecies of leopard in the USA. However, Maryland zoo holds Africans, and so does Zoo of Acadiana.

As for the AZA support, I believe that if they explained that they really wanted leopards and there are certainly other species than the amur leopard that need helping, they would be willing to make concessions and allow the import of North Persian leopards or Sri lankan leopards.
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Maryland did have an African leopard, but she passed away away a few years back. The last confirmed African was at Columbus Zoo, but this individual has also since passed. A number of zoos label their leopards as African (including Columbus with its current pair) but there is no proof of such end it is likely that all are hybrid ssp. Others simply have Amur leopards in an African exhibit (Maryland now, San Diego, etc.).
 
amur leopard said:
As for the AZA support, I believe that if they explained that they really wanted leopards and there are certainly other species than the amur leopard that need helping, they would be willing to make concessions and allow the import of North Persian leopards or Sri lankan leopards.
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The AZA doesn't allow or disallow the import of any species. Any zoo, group of zoos, or SSP can pursue an importation of a species if they want to. The reasons why they have not done so are well outlined by @nczoofan above.
 
The leopard issue gets at the heart of what I perceive as issues with zoogeographic displays. If your okay having a subspecies or a closely related species occasionally filling an exhibit themed to an area where it does not naturally inhibit, then that allows more flexibility in how programs are managed and allows for more of a focus on species at risk. Yet if all you value if purity of the complex, then some species may be left out in the cold. I prescribe more to the first school of thought yet definitely find this to be a conundrum. Its for reasons such as this that I personally oppose complete conformity to zoogeographic displays in zoo master plans.

An example I read about is the wild cattle tag. American bison occupy more slots than all over cattle combined by far, often this in zoogeographic zones. Yet programs for species such as gaur and banteng are in need of new holders. The exhibits that hold bison can easily be adapted for either species (provided they have some winter housing), yet this has not happened at almost any institution to my knowledge. The tags document cited the need to conform to Zoo geography as one of the key reasons for this.
 
ZTL lists big cats as follows:
Leopard: No subspecies 68 collections, African 4, Amur 55, Arabian 3, Caucasus 1, Central African 1, Indian 1, Javan 4, North Chinese 29, North Persian 38, Sri Lankan 25
Jaguar: No subspecies 100, Amazon 1
Lion: No subspecies 247, Asiatic 45, Barbary 28, Kalahari 5, Somali 1, Southeast African 54, Southwest African 24
Indochinese clouded leopard 40
Tiger: No subspecies 175, Malayan 9, Siberian 179, Sumatran 54
Snow leopard 99

Big cats take up a lot of space in zoos and new enclosures often lead to a reduction in the number of species kept in a zoo. If the cats are not part of a reintroduction programme, then it probably doesn't matter to visitors whether there are pure subspecies. If they are part of a reintroduction programme, then too many zoos keep big cats that are not pure subspecies.
 
Wow thanks guys! I hadn't realised how quasi-impossible it was to do, so thanks for your insightful and thorough answers. So rip leopards in the Southern states :( .

Imma go on holiday in 5 hours to France for 3 weeks so... I will only be active for another 3 hours. If I don't get to speak to yall in that time - have a great summer and enjoy the nice weather while it lasts!
 
nczoofan said:
The leopard issue gets at the heart of what I perceive as issues with zoogeographic displays. If your okay having a subspecies or a closely related species occasionally filling an exhibit themed to an area where it does not naturally inhibit, then that allows more flexibility in how programs are managed and allows for more of a focus on species at risk. Yet if all you value if purity of the complex, then some species may be left out in the cold. I prescribe more to the first school of thought yet definitely find this to be a conundrum. Its for reasons such as this that I personally oppose complete conformity to zoogeographic displays in zoo master plans.

An example I read about is the wild cattle tag. American bison occupy more slots than all over cattle combined by far, often this in zoogeographic zones. Yet programs for species such as gaur and banteng are in need of new holders. The exhibits that hold bison can easily be adapted for either species (provided they have some winter housing), yet this has not happened at almost any institution to my knowledge. The tags document cited the need to conform to Zoo geography as one of the key reasons for this.
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The sad I got with these bison is that almost all of them likely have cattle genes and don't really have much conservation value.
 
elefante said:
The sad I got with these bison is that almost all of them likely have cattle genes and don't really have much conservation value.
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Zoos like Bronx and Oklahoma City have taken to keeping and breeding herds of pure bison, however. Bronx in particular is very committed to saving and increasing the pure populations.

~Thylo
 
ThylacineAlive said:
Zoos like Bronx and Oklahoma City have taken to keeping and breeding herds of pure bison, however. Bronx in particular is very committed to saving and increasing the pure populations.

~Thylo
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Do any zoos besides Bronx, Oklahoma City, and Minnesota keep pure American Bison?
 
ThylacineAlive said:
I don't know about European zoos. I would imagine they're all impure, though, considering the pure population is relatively new to captivity.
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There are pure about in Europe I believe - will check my notes when back home tonight.
 
I have a feeling that Australasian bison are probably pure, as they are all descended from animals gifted by the Canadian government in the early 1900s (1920s/1930s) - but I don't really know the history of hybridisation in American bison.
 
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