Zoological parks and biodiversity conservation

Zoos play a relevant role in the conservation of wild species and in the environmental Education .

Many institutions and governments are advocating the increasingly important role of aquariums and zoos for biodiversity conservation. The 1999 European Directive on the keeping of wild animals in zoos (1999/22/EC) is particularly sensitive to the duty they have as conservation tools, from agreement "to the Community's obligation to take measures at subject for ex situ conservation, in accordance with article 9 of agreement on biological diversity".

The objectives of this Directive "are to protect wild fauna and conserve biodiversity through the adoption by the Member States of measures relating to the licensing and inspection of zoos in the Community, thereby enhancing their role in the conservation of biodiversity".

Along these lines, the Spanish law 31/2003 on the conservation of wildlife in zoos, a national instrument for the implementation of the European rules and regulations , establishes as its objective "to ensure the protection of wildlife in zoos and their contribution to the conservation of biodiversity".

The active and irreplaceable role of zoos in biodiversity conservation is evident in local, European and international regulations. The agreement on Biological Diversity (article 9) promotes the establishment of facilities for ex situ conservation as a necessary complement to conservation.

Therefore, the great challenge of the current parks is the conservation of the species. Everything seems to indicate that this is the appropriate and necessary way. Although in this line, both at national, European and international level, there has been significant progress in the role of zoos, there are critical voices that question the effectiveness and usefulness of zoos for conservation. Several global programs of study have been made on the role of zoos in conservation, although a general analysis of this role and the effectiveness of the conservation actions carried out by zoos has definitely not been addressed.

The goal of this study is to assess the role that aquariums and zoos are playing in conservation. To achieve this goal we intend to analyze the investment made and the effectiveness of the measures adopted for conservation. In this sense, we intend to weigh, species by species, the efficiency of the efforts (both economic and human) invested in their conservation. This will allow us to reach a third goal: the detection of those species that deserve special attention by aquariums and zoos from the conservation point of view, and a rationalized proposal of their ex situ conservation.

This project is funded by Loro Parque Fundación (LPF).