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Articles on Zoos

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An orang-utan playing with the interactive digital projector at the Melbourne Zoo. Microsoft Research Centre for Social Natural User Interfaces at the University of Melbourne

Orang-utans play video games too, and it can enrich their lives in the zoo

An experiment providing interactive games for orang-utans is showing the potential for digital technology to enrich the lives of zoo animals.
The debate on whether animals should be kept in captivity or not continues to rage on. Reuters/Muhammad Hamed

Carnivores in captivity: a question of motive and ethics

Some say that keeping wild animals in captivity is cruel. Others believe they promote conservation and give people a link to nature.
Name or number? EPA

Should scientists name their animal test subjects?

A mystery bidder recently paid US$50,000 to name Dallas zoo’s latest baby giraffe. As we humans know, your name significantly affects your life. It has been shown to influence your career choice, a phenomenon…
Zoos provide succor for species having a tough time of it in the wild. B. A. Minteer

Can zoos save the world?

Today, many zoos promote the protection of biodiversity as a significant part of their mission. As conservation “arks” for endangered species and, increasingly, as leaders in field conservation projects…
A star is born? LuLu and her still unnamed baby. Rob Young / Belo Horizonte Zoo

Star zoo animals draw crowds but they wont save their species

Brazilians head to the polls in October to decide on their new president. The country’s votes always produce surprises such as the election of a clown in 2010 and in 1959 the election of a rhinoceros named…
Shell shock? BBC/Big Talk/Robert Viglasky

BBC explores the therapeutic origins of a 1930s zoo

The history of zoos is eccentric, erratic; spotted with the spectacular as well as the cruel. But one of the more interesting beginnings of a zoo has to be that of Chester Zoo. And this is the story that…
The Amur tiger, like its cousin the Amur leopard, is among the world’s rarest cats. Appaloosa

Zoos have a vital role to play in ensuring survival of Amur tiger

The Amur tiger (Panthera tigris ssp. altaica), also known as the Siberian Tiger, is among the world’s rarest and most endangered cat species. The largest and northernmost tiger, it is believed only around…
Animals in circuses are kept in anything but natural surroundings. DirkJan Ranzijn

Runaway camels? It’s time to rethink animals as entertainment

The idea of animals as spectacle – in zoos, circuses, aquaria, tests of strength and even criminal proceedings – is an old one, dating back to at least ancient Greece and Rome. Similarly, the use of animals…
The royal touch - The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Catherine, meet Leuca the Koala during a visit to Taronga Zoo, in Sydney, last month. AAP/Dan Himbrechts

How many visitors can a koala bear? Not many, it seems

Everyone loves to get close to a koala. They are an Australian icon and a major ecotourism attraction. A photo with a koala is a holiday must for many overseas visitors. But how well do these celebrity…

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