Photo by
HUTAN/Dzulirwan @ Jolirwan bin Takasi
Zoos Unite to Save Endangered Apes
Dec 13, 2010Silver Spring, MD- The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Ape
Taxon Advisory Group (TAG) today announced a critical new campaign to sustain a
future for one of the planet’s most imperiled group of animals— apes.
For apes—bonobos, chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans, gibbons
and siamangs—the outlook in the wild is bleak. Given catastrophic population
declines, it is estimated that some ape species will be extinct within 20
years. The Ape TAG Conservation Initiative, supported by nearly 40 zoos, will
fund 8 field conservation projects, one for each of the great ape species and
two for gibbons and siamangs.
“As leaders in wildlife conservation, AZA-accredited zoos
are dedicated to the protection of these intelligent and charismatic animals,”
said Dr. Tara Stoinski, Ape TAG chair. “The Ape TAG Conservation Initiative
will elevate the role of zoos in the international conservation community.”
The Arcus Foundation, a leading great ape conservation
philanthropic organization, provided a generous matching grant to the funds contributed by zoos to the Initiative. Participating zoos have committed to a minimum of
three years of support, which is critical for conservation projects to be
effective in saving these species.
The 8 projects were selected by an international committee
of Ape TAG and AZA members as well as outside ape conservation experts. The
Initiative increases the number of zoos contributing to projects in the wild,
strengthens support for community education and local law enforcement in
countries with wild apes, and provides zoos with resources to demonstrate their
commitment to saving apes.
“We are pleased that the AZA community is supporting field
projects such as ours,” said Dr. Marc Ancrenaz, director of The Kinabatangan
Orang-utan Conservation Program, and principle investigator of one of the
projects awarded funds by the Initiative. “The problems faced by wild
populations of great apes are complex and because of this, zoos have an
increasingly important role to play.”
“We hope that AZA institutions will further support our
efforts in the field by helping zoo visitors and the general public
understand how our consumer choices are also essential to ensure the
long-term survival of great apes and to secure their habitat," Dr.
Ancrenaz added.
“Ape TAG Conservation Initiative will significantly
contribute to Uganda’s effort to establish a standardized chimpanzee health
monitoring protocol and build local veterinary capacity for disease management,”
said director of the Budongo Conservation Field Station (BCFS), Dr. Fred
Babweteera. “The support from the Initiative is a distinctive manifestation of
the strategic and critical role of zoos in promoting science and in-situ conservation.”
“We are absolutely honored to have been selected by the Ape
TAG Conservation Initiative, and incredibly pleased that our work in the
Ketambe region of northern Sumatra will be receiving funding assistance for at
least the next three years. This sort of sustained multiple year funding is
essential,” said Dr. Panut Hadisiswoyo, founding director of the Orangutan
Information Center, another grant recipient.
The following projects were funded by the Ape TAG Conservation
Initiative with a total of $411,250:
Establishment of a
National Chimpanzee Disease and Health Monitoring Programme based at Budongo
Conservation Field Station
Dr. Fred Babweteera, Dr. Fabian Leendertz and Dr. Tony
Kidega, Budongo Conservation Field Station; Uganda
The Bonobo and Congo
Biodiversity Initiative: Preserving the bonobo (Pan paniscus)
in the Salonga National Park through holistic
conservation
Gay Reinartz and Patrick Guislain, Bonobo & Congo
Biodiversity Initiative; Democratic Republic of Congo
Combating Illegal
Wildlife Trade in Central Africa
Ofir Drori, The Last Great Ape Organization (LAGA); Cameroon
Protection and
monitoring of Grauer’s gorillas, Gorilla
beringei graueri, in the lowland
sectors of Kahuzi Beiga National Park
Andrew Plumptre and Richard Tshombe, Wildlife Conservation
Society (WCS); Kahuzi Biega National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo
Assessing chances of
survival of the orang-utan in man-made landscape: the future of the species?
Dr. Isabelle Lackman, Dr. Marc Ancrenaz, and Ahbam Abulani,
HUTAN (Kinabatangan Orang-utan Conservation Program – KOCP); Sabah, Borneo,
Malaysia
Ketambe Reforestation
and Ecotourism Development Initiative (KREDI)
Panut Hadisiswoyo, Yayasan Orangutan Sumatera Lestari –
Orangutan Information Centre (OIC); Sumatra, Indonesia
Long-term
ecological research and conservation of Cao Vit gibbon in China
Fan Peng-Fei, Institute of
Eastern-Himalaya Biodiversity Research, Dali University; Bangliang Nature
Reserve, P.R. China
Population
mapping of gibbons Kalimantan, Indonesia: Correlates of gibbon density and
vegetation across the species range
Marie Hamard, Dr. Vincent Nijman and Dr. Susan Cheyne,
Busang River Initiative for Nature Conservation and Communities (BRINCC) and
School of Social Science and Law, Oxford Brookes University, Orangutan Tropical
Peatland Project and Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, University of Oxford;
Central Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo
In addition to the eight projects, a percentage of the Gold
and Platinum level funds are dedicated for ape sanctuaries in Africa and Asia.
Sanctuaries play an important role in ape conservation, particularly
through their efforts in law enforcement and conservation education.
Zoos supporting the Ape TAG Conservation Initiative include:
Platinum Supporter ($10,000
per year): Calgary Zoo, Botanical Garden & Prehistoric Park, Columbus Zoo
and Aquarium, Denver Zoological Gardens, Oklahoma City Zoological Park, San
Diego Zoo Global
Gold Supporter ($5,000
per year): Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, Dallas Zoo, Riverbanks Zoo and Garden,
Sedgwick County Zoo, Zoo Atlanta
Silver Supporter ($1,000
per year): Ape Conservation Effort, Audubon Institute, Bronx Zoo, Buffalo Zoo,
Cameron Park Zoo, Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, Disney's Animal Kingdom,
Ellen Trout Zoo, Fresno Chaffee Zoo, Gladys Porter Zoo, Gorilla SSP, Houston
Zoo, Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens, Knoxville Zoo, Lincoln Park Zoo, Little Rock
Zoo, Memphis Zoo, Milwaukee County Zoological Gardens, New England Chapter of American
Association of Zookeepers, North Carolina Zoo, Rolling Hills Wildlife
Adventure, Sacramento Zoo, San Antonio Zoo, Toledo Zoo, Toronto Zoo, Virginia
Zoological Society, Woodland Park Zoo, Zoo Miami/Zoological Society of Florida
Additional single year support for the Initiative was
received from: El Paso Zoo, Lion Country Safari, Zoo Boise, and a generous
matching grant from the Arcus Foundation.
Founded in 2000 by Jon Stryker, the Arcus Foundation
is a leading global foundation
advancing pressing social justice and conservation issues. Specifically, Arcus
works to advance LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) equality, as
well as to conserve and protect the great apes. The Arcus Foundation works
globally and has offices in Kalamazoo, Mich., New York City and Cambridge, UK.
To learn more, visit www.arcusfoundation.org.
Founded
in 1924, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums is a nonprofit organization
dedicated to the advancement of zoos and aquariums in the areas of
conservation, education, science, and recreation. Look for the AZA logo
whenever you visit a zoo or aquarium as your assurance that you are supporting
a facility dedicated to providing excellent care for animals, a great
experience for you, and a better future for all living things. The AZA is a
leader in global wildlife conservation, and your link to helping animals in
their native habitats. To learn more, visit www.aza.org.
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