Elephants' lifespans drastically cut short by poaching

Absent from my post below ("Zoos News") was a perspective that incorporates conservation and poaching — a glaring omission.

Six suspects stand accused in the US of working with "a trans-Atlantic ring that routinely sneaked ivory, much of it elaborately carved, out of three African countries — Uganda, Ivory Coast and Cameroon — that prohibit such exports and then slipped it past customs agents at Kennedy Airport..." according to the New York Times.

"Poaching elephants for their ivory is still the primary factor in the decline of their populations in Africa, wildlife officials say."

And in National Geographic is an article on the dizzying losses of elephants to poaching in Chad, a "massacre," in the words of one observer, that could wipe out the population within three years. The army helps guards and employees protect elephants in Zakouma National Park, but clashes with poachers can prove fatal.

A serious examination of these majestic megafauna's quality of life in our zoos should of course inquire into their lives at home, and their prospects for conservation there. Questions arise like how to shift priorities in impoverished countries where ordinary people have few options but to poach or starve.

And how do we reverse environmental degradations like global warming so that our friend Knut the polar bear won't be sent home to find all his ice melted?

Zoos News

Lots of news out recently to more or less condemn zoos to animal cruelty's shit list, alongside slaughterhouses, vivisections, and puppy mills. Plenty of controversy, too, of course.

The big seller was out today, under headlines like "Free Dumbo! Zoos are bad for elephants" and "How zoos kill elephants." The New York Times balances it out with "Critical Report on Health of Zoo Elephants Debated," although its two sides are the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

Findings from the study in question: "living in a zoo drastically shortens the lives of Asian and African elephants"; "bringing elephants into zoos profoundly impairs their viability." The numbers are hard to dispute, but the representative from AZA casts a smidgen of doubt on them.

There is also a warning out about weight problems affecting elephants' feet in British zoos.

More sadness as the economic downturn pressures the Berlin Zoo to try and send its polar bear superstar Knut packing:

"Like many zoos, the Berlin Zoo is caught in the economic downturn. Knut will need a mate but because of budget constraints, the Berlin Zoo cannot afford to expand his living enclosure. The place he has always called home will most likely have to sell him to another zoo." (I wrote here a little bit ago about the now official recession affecting puppies and kitties.)

There's a really compelling op-ed at the Guardian UK by Craig Redmond, the campaigns director for the Captive Animals' Protection Society. It puts Knut's story in the broader context of a "zoo industry" that "is happy to reap the benefits of money and publicity but not so keen to provide for the lifetime care of animals when they lose their appeal." Again, debatable. A look at the comments is pretty interesting. Redmond also weighs in today on the elephant lifespan study.

Other celebrity zoo critters:

"Colo, the first gorilla ever born in a zoological setting" – Columbia Zoo

New-born elephant baby, Samson, "plays with everything from sticks and leaves to big pumpkins and squash" – Maryland Zoo in Baltimore

Nipper, a dapper penguin from the Tennessee Aquarium, stars in his own commercials.

"Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in California has a White Bengal Tiger named Odin who dives for snacks of red meat...dazzles crowds," etc.

"At the National Aviary in Pittsburgh, Patrick the penguin paints. And, for a pretty penny, a piece can be commissioned."

- from ABC News