There is a battle going on about whether zoos should or shouldn’t exist. One of the strongest opponents is from Great Britain and runs two zoos himself.
– I think that the zoos should be phased out within the next 25-30 years. If we have wild animals locked up, we must also do everything we can to make them wild again, says Damian Aspinall in The World of Science: The Zoo War.
Animals are euthanized
It is very costly to obtain permits, transport and protect animals to be released into the wild, therefore it is rarely a solution for zoos. Instead, many baby animals that do not fit in the zoo are euthanized.
Damian Aspinall runs two zoos himself but his goal is to return as many of his own animals to the wild as possible. Something that turned out to be much more difficult than he thought.
Bad genes
Research shows that animals in captivity change both physically and socially and may have trouble surviving outside the zoo. Genetic problems and inbreeding are common, which can make the animals unsuitable for release into the wild.
There is opposition to Damien Aspinall’s work in the zoo world, including from the European Association for the Cooperation of Zoos, EAZA.
– The first question is where is the wild for them, where they can have a good life, find the right food, find the right partners? The second question is whether the animals are ready to live in the wild? says EAZA CEO Myfanwy Griffith.
Gorillas have been released
This does not stop Damian Aspinall who runs a unique project in Congo-Brazzaville to bring out gorillas. So far, his organization has reintroduced 22 zoo gorillas and four more are on their way out into the wild.
Watch World of Science: Zoo Wars at SVT Play or on SVT2 Monday at 8 p.m.