Wildlife charity the Born Free Foundation says zoos spend a disproportionately small amount on conservation. It commissioned an independent poll in 2006 to ask the public how much of a zoo’s turnover they thought was dedicated to conservation. The survey found most people assumed between a quarter to 40 per cent was dedicated to conservation when, in reality, Born Free says even the better zoos – of which the charity concedes Edinburgh Zoo is one – only commit five or six per cent. Born Free’s chief executive Will Travers says he would like to know how much money the zoo puts into its much-publicised sponsorship of the Budongo Conservation Field Station in Uganda.
Are zoos really wild about conservation?
Joanna Vallely
The Scotsman