Zoos

I went to the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium over the weekend.  It was exciting to see many exotic animals, despite my negative predisposition to zoos.  As I walked around the exhibits, I could not help but think about urban ecology and conservation.  Elephants always look sad in their small cages.  The large cats have a good amount of play area, and the fish in the aquarium are not fully aware they are on display.  However, when I came to the Arctic Exhibit, I thought about these animals interacting with this environment.  Urban ecology is, after all, the ways in which nature interacts with its urban environment.  These animals have been moved into a new environment: an urban landscape.  The Arctic foxes are blindingly white and beyond fluffy with a thick coat of fur, but how are they adapting to this urban Northwest landscape?  There is barely enough snowfall to stick for an hour out of the year, the landscape is mostly green and blue, and the weather stays at a fairly consistent temperature year-round.  These foxes were built to blend into their snowy surroundings, keeping warm with their thick blanket of fur.  I asked myself, are these poor animals over-heating?

Moving along to the Caribou and Muskoxen, I happen upon the same questions.  These animals are built for a very cold and remote climate.  How can they be living in such a drastically different environment?  This brings in conservation.  Part of the goal of zoos is to conserve endangered species in order to keep the populations alive.  Is this ruining the true nature and spirit of the wild?  Are zoos the best form of conservation?  In class, we have discussed the Core Design.  This design involves sectioning off zones to be undisturbed, surrounded by buffer zones.  As one travels to the center of these areas, human interaction decreases.  These designs are also said to be more effective as smaller areas placed in many different locations as opposed to one giant reserve.

With the question of zoos, I wonder if core reserves should be placed in areas only pertaining to those wild and native species.  Zoos would no longer be able to boast that they have an animal from every part of the world, but the conservation of the animals would improve due to them living in their natural environments or at least closer to them.  The ecology of zoos is quite interesting in an urban setting.  It sparks thought about studies that could test reproduction rates, moral, and mortality in different zoo environments.