UK zoo species reintroduced back into their native habitats

T

TriDV

Well-Known Member
Following Newquay Zoos recent media-cast that they are sending two Owstons Civets 'home' to Vietnam (actually to a centre they themselves have helped set up), it got me thinking which other species from UK zoos had been re-introduced, after all, this is one of the main modern justifications for keeping captive animals.

Newquay & Shaldon - Owstons Civet
London - Partula snail
Aspinall parks - Lowland Gorilla
Durrell - (Volcano rabbit)
Paignton/Edinburgh/Durrell - Soccoro Dove
Marwell - Sable antelope and Oryx
Paignton - Curl Bunting and Hazel Dormice

That's all I can do at present. There must be more?

Can you help?
 
Several Uk-moths, butterflies, spiders and grasshoppers have been bred/raised in captivity and then released. Have to look which species and at which zoos but m at the moment short in time.
 
This is from memory but I'm pretty sure Chester supplied Scimitar-horned Oryx for reintroduction - and certainly Sand Lizards.
 
TriDV said:
Aspinall parks - Lowland Gorilla
Durrell - (Volcano rabbit)
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Aspinall Parks have also reintroduced Black Rhinos and possibly supplied Prezwalski Horses for reintroduction programmes. If their publicity is anything to go by they are soon to attempt it with young African bull Elephants, plus Javan(?) Langurs have recently been returned too. There could be other species in the pipeline there.

Durrell- surely they must have reintroduced some reptiles, like Round Island Boas and/or Skinks, and then what about Mauritius kestrels and Pink Pigeons?

I think Marwell also must have contributed some Prezwalski Horses, as have other zoos/parks which kept them, such as Whipsnade mentioned below.

Twycross- the successful but ultimately ill-advised attempt to 'rewild' an Indian tiger in the 1970's, it turned out to have Siberian genes which have now appeared in the wild population.
 
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The Mauritius Pink Pigeon and Kestrel - of course!

Wow - I never knew that about Twycross's tiger, though it was not pure, that's still impressive given the it was decades ago!

I think this is an important discussion because it gives credibility to zoo trusts and the work they do.
 
Pertinax said:
Twycross- the successful but ultimately ill-advised attempt to 'rewild' an Indian tiger in the 1970's, it turned out to have Siberian genes which have now appeared in the wild population.
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Twycross Zoo attempted to reintroduce chimpanzees also.
 
TriDV said:
this is one of the main modern justifications for keeping captive animals.
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I'm not sure that this is a modern justification of keeping captive animals any more. If you look at the WZACS that was published in 2005 reintroductions of captive species are not considered as important a remit for zoos as they once were. The emphasis now is more on habitat and species conservation to include metapopulation management, blurring the boundaries of what is captive (ex-situ) and what is not (in-situ). The civet example if a good one, individuals moving between populations to boost the gene pool and increase sustainability of populations. Relying heavily on reintroductions for the justification of keeping animals is dangerous as so few species have been (or ever could be) reintroduced back to the wild.

Just my thoughts...
 
UK Zoo species......

Swinhoe's Pheasants to Taiwan -- Pheasant Trust 1960s
Eagle Owls to Sweden -- Norfolk Wildlife Park 1960s
Cheer Pheasants to Pakistan -- World Pheasant Association 1970s
Nene Geese to Hawaii -- Wildfowl Trust 1970s
Mountain Chickens to Dominica -- Durrell, ongoing
Mallorcan Midwife toads to Mallorca -- Durrell, recent years, now completed
Pere David Deer to China -- ZSL
Durrell I think only bred two Volcano Rabbits & were not able to put any back
 
Chester have reintroduced barn owl, harvest mice and water vole back into the wild in the UK. They also supplied Pere David's Deer for the late 1980s ZSL reintroduction project.
 
Pertinax said:
Durrell- surely they must have reintroduced some reptiles, like Round Island Boas and/or Skinks, and then what about Mauritius kestrels and Pink Pigeons?
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Jersey has a long list of species (reptiles, amphibians, birds, mammals too I'm sure, and I think also invertebrates) which they have reintroduced to wild situations.
 
Jersey some kind of native frog
Jersey and another british collection attemps to re-introduce chough
Red kites and red squirrel I guess also some collections
Was there no UK- participation in the Eagle owl re-introduction programm in Germany ?
Was there no UK-participation in the European lynx re-introduction in Central Europe ?
 
vogelcommando said:
Was there no UK-participation in the European lynx re-introduction in Central Europe ?
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Riber Castle participated in the re-introduction of European lynx. I think it's slipped through the net because it closed in (I think) the late nineties.
 
Blossom said:
I'm not sure that this is a modern justification of keeping captive animals any more. If you look at the WZACS that was published in 2005 reintroductions of captive species are not considered as important a remit for zoos as they once were. The emphasis now is more on habitat and species conservation to include metapopulation management, blurring the boundaries of what is captive (ex-situ) and what is not (in-situ). The civet example if a good one, individuals moving between populations to boost the gene pool and increase sustainability of populations. Relying heavily on reintroductions for the justification of keeping animals is dangerous as so few species have been (or ever could be) reintroduced back to the wild.

Just my thoughts...
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True, with the huge increases in habitat loss, zoo introductions will become less and less, zoos main roles today are education, to get the general public to care about the animals in the world, not only to give money, but to change people's views on conservation and understanding that a lot of products people buy effect countries all per the world.
They also help keep good gene pools of animals, to stop species becoming extinct and for future reintroduction s, if people change the way the planet is looked after.
 
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