Assignment 2- Science at the Zoo
Introduction-
The different roles that can be done at the zoo are education, animal welfare, recreation, research and conservation. The zoo participates in captive breeding programmes and conservation projects in the wild. This allows a whole variety of sciences to be used. Ecology are veterinary are the two main ones and the science goes into a lot of depth when considering breeding programmes.
Conservation- is the preservation, protection, or restoration of the natural environment, natural ecosystems, vegetation, and wildlife.
In Situ- means that the conservation is taken place in a natural environment. For example, in a forest or in an ocean. There are many associations such as UmPhafa and Action for the Wild that do this effectively. They try and do methods that preserve species, which are endangered in the wild. The individuals who work there try and make sure they have minimal contact with the animals there. UmPhafa’s strategy is ‘less to do with the management of the wildlife, but more the rehabilitation of the habitat itself to facilitate the restoration of a natural balance.’
Ex Situ- Ex-situ conservation means literally, "off-site conservation". It is the process of protecting an endangered species of plant or animal outside its natural habitat. An example of this could be in a zoo. BIAZA (British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums) and EAZA (European Association of Zoos and Aquaria) are both charities that support zoos with the conservation of animals and educating others about them. Zoos take part in conservation to mimic species becoming extinct. Since 2007 it has become a legal obligation to take part in conservation of the animals.
Breeding programmes-
Why are they necessary? Breeding programmes avoid the extinction of certain species. Many species have decreased in population due to human activity and many think that it is only right if we put it right again.
EEP- The EEP (European Endangered species Programme) is the most intensive type of conservation that takes place. There is a leading coordinator who has a wide knowledge of the species concerned. The coordinator has many assigned tasks for example completing a studbook, doing genetical analyses on the species and producing a management plan for the future that will benefit the species.
ESB- This is the European Studbook, which is a computerised record of species and has specific genetic details of animals. This prevents inbreeding from occurring in the conservation projects. As if inbreeding were to occur it could cause undesirable characteristics. Examples of animals at Colchester Zoo involved with the Breeding Programmes- * Amur leopard * Red river hog * White rhinoceros

Fishers Estuarine Moth- Background: The Fisher's Estuarine Moth is a species that is a huge priority to conservationists because the current population at 25% below what it should be. Consequently, the moth is protected under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010 and is listed in the British Red Data Book and has an Essex Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP).
The moth is completely reliant on Hog's Fennel as its sole larval food plant; however, this species is also in danger. It is also reliant on long coarse grass species to fulfil its egg laying requirements. The species most favourable grasses for egg laying include Cock's-foot and False oat-grass.
In the UK Hog's Fennel is limited to two main localities; the north Essex coast and the north Kent coast. Due to rising sea levels and even dog walkers their habitat is becoming damaged and therefore there numbers are declining. Since 2006, over 20 hog fennel sights have been created for the Fishers Estuarine Moth. In 2008, Colchester Zoo teamed up with Tendring District Council, Natural England and Writtle College to initiate the captive breeding programme for the Fisher's Estuarine Moth at Colchester Zoo. This allowed the species to become established at the newly created sites of Hog's fennel. This helped raise the amount of the rare moth.
Initially, 40 breeding cages were built away from the view of visitors at Colchester Zoo. The eggs, which were laid, were then collected under licence from Skipper's Island Nature Reserve, an Essex Wildlife Trust site. The caterpillars subsequently hatch in April and are immediately placed onto a Hog's fennel plant, where they remain feeding throughout the summer months. Adult moths then emerge in September and Colchester Zoo keepers ensure unrelated pairs are mixed for mating. Thus therefore reduces the risk of inbreeding and undesirable characteristics. Any additional eggs are released into the newly created sites. To date, eggs have been released annually since 2009. This has had a significant affect on the population of the Fishers Estuarine Moth.
Amur Leopard:
The Amur Leopard is listed as critically endangered by IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature). There are only about 25 left in the world (2007) due to their much-wanted thick coats and bones for Traditional Chinese Medicine and therefore there has been much need to breed them in captivity. Colchester Zoo has got one male and one female Amur leopard at the moment and are hoping to successfully breed some new cubs with the pair over the next few years.
How is Artificial Insemination and IVF treatment used at Colchester Zoo?
In 2009, Colchester Zoo welcomed its first artificial insemination success, a baby White Rhino named Zamba. White Rhinos are very endangered in the wild. Only roughly 25 still survive today due to many being used for traditional Chinese medicine and their horns for ornaments. The sperm of the father, Simba, was frozen and then given to the female where the pregnancy developed. Rhino’s gestation period lasts roughly 92-95 days. Zamba’s father died aged 41 due to some health related problems so the new addition has helped the population stay steady.
Scientific research carried out at Colchester Zoo:
Colchester Zoo has research teams of all ages. One thing that they have researched is how captivity affects animals in zoo. The researchers found out that many keepers use rewards (food) if they stop a certain habit and many individuals criticized the keepers as it makes their behavior unnatural. The researchers also found out that their breeding could be affected if they didn’t get along with the mate that the zoo had partnered them with. This information then helped keepers tackle the problems caused.

Environmental Enrichment:
Why do they do it?
The zoo enriches the animal’s environment to prevent the boredom and to maintain the animals’ welfare. It allows them to live as much of a natural life as possible. Examples of this could include putting peanuts in a closed bottle to a monkey; the monkey would try and figure ways of getting the peanuts out preventing boredom. During my trip to the zoo, I found a football and a plastic carrot in an otters’ enclosure. A keeper informed me that this was a way of providing environmental enrichment to the animal. It prevents the animal from getting bored as every time they are given it they become curious. Keepers are trained in ecology and therefore know what certain species are interested in and what environment suits each animal best. At Colchester Zoo, they have made certain species from different parts of the world in a designated section. A few include, the Africa Section and the Asia Section. All of their habitats are allocated their specific needs. The sea lion enclosure for example cost the zoo £1,000,000 simply due to all the machines that had to add sodium carbonate to the water and then the electrolysis equipment that changed the sodium carbonate into sodium chloride. This allows the water to be as close to seawater as possible. What the sea lions need.
In the wild, lions hunt for food. Therefore, because they cannot do it in a zoo the keepers have holes plotted around the lions’ enclosure where they hide chunks of meat. The lions then hunt it out and this is a great way of keeping the lions in their natural way. The lions are also given ice-lollies containing blood which they enjoy and this also prevents them from getting bored.
Enclosure Design:
Each enclosure is designed to meet the specific needs of the animal. For example: * Animals such as Iguanas and Tortoises that are cold blooded and cannot control their body temperatures have heated lamps to keep them warm. This allows them to maintain good body function and allow their bodily enzymes to not denature. They have materials in their enclosure that they would have if they were in the wild. The vegetation, the rocks and the turf on the ground (sand) is what they would have if they were living in their wild environment. * The lemur’s enclosure included lots of logs and built up wooden structures that they could climb up as in the wild they would do the same with trees. Wooden material would be similar to what they would have in the wild. Therefore, the keepers have thought about what the animals needs are and how to keep them happy in a comfortable environment. * Fish at the zoo have large fish tanks, some with salt water and some with non salty-water. Research is done of each animal to find which type suits it best. The filtration systems maintain the water keeping the enclosure in a correct condition for the animals. * The one I liked best was the flamingo enclosure, I liked how they knew that flamingo’s only breed when there are lots of others around and so they added mirrors to help the species feel like there was more of them than there actually was. There was plenty of room for them to walk around and there was plenty of them living in the enclosure. This therefore has shown to me that the keepers have thought carefully about what flamingos need to breed successfully.
On my trip to the zoo I felt that the rat enclosure wasn’t too good. I thought that the enclosure was too boring for the creatures. I know that rats enjoy climbing and hiding but I didn’t feel as though there was anything interesting for them to climbs and nothing apart from some toilet roll tubes to hide in. I also thought that the horse enclosure was too small. There wasn’t a lot of hay on the floor and not a lot of room for the horse to move around. It didn’t have any grass for it to chew on nor did it have any environmental enrichment activities. This could cause the horse to become bored. I would recommend putting it in a field with another couple of horses.