“The only word to describe this deal is obscene,” said PAWS President Ed Stewart. “By proposing to pay a record-setting two million dollars for two captive Asian elephants, the Fort Worth Zoo is putting an even higher price on the heads of elephants all over the world, captive and wild, Asian or African, and encouraging more trafficking in elephants."
Stewart continued, “The transaction proposed by the Fort Worth Zoo will create a perverse financial incentive for other countries to engage in poor management practices, disguising sales as ‘conservation.’ This is not what conservation is about.”
The zoo is pursuing this extraordinary purchase even as other zoos financially struggle and even face closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) reportedly is asking Congress for $30 million in COVID relief for its members. The Fort Worth Zoo is accredited by the AZA.
The Fort Worth Zoo appears on a list of forgivable loans distributed by the Small Business Administration as part of the Paycheck Protection Program. The list only provides a loan range, with the Fort Worth Zoo receiving between $2-5 million.
African Lion Safari, a theme park in Ontario, Canada, stands to profit from the two-million-dollar deal. This raises questions about whether the park is benefiting from the influence of its superintendent of elephants, Charlie Gray, a longtime higher-up in the zoo group that recommends elephant pairings for breeding and transfer to other zoos.
According to Gray’s LinkedIn profile, until June he had served for over 31 years on the AZA’s Elephant Taxon Advisory Group/Species Survival Program (TAG/SSP) – as both vice chair and vice coordinator, respectively. The elephant TAG/SSP makes breeding and transfer recommendations that zoos are expected to abide by. It is notable that African Lion Safari is neither an accredited AZA facility nor an AZA certified related facility.
“This deal is highly unusual in that zoos normally loan Asian elephants to each other at no cost,” said Stewart. “I hope the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will very closely scrutinize the Fort Worth Zoo’s permit application and proposed elephant purchase.”
Although the population of captive Asian elephants in North American zoos has been shown to be unsustainable, the Fort Worth Zoo plans to breed the elephants from Canada. “It appears that the zoo is banking on the imported elephants producing calves that will boost zoo attendance and revenue but do absolutely nothing to help elephants in the wild,” Stewart explained. “No elephant born in captivity will ever be released to the wild, even though reintroduction is a key part of legitimate conservation programs.
“If the Fort Worth Zoo truly wanted to help elephants, it would invest two million dollars in protecting wild elephant populations in Asia, instead of purchasing two captive elephants for display. Two million dollars could go a long way toward saving diminishing habitats and mitigating human-elephant conflict, which are the greatest risks for this highly endangered species,” said Stewart. “Now that would be real conservation.”
The Fort Worth Zoo currently displays seven elephants. If the importation is allowed to occur, it would hold nine elephants, plus any offspring, in a small exhibit currently undergoing renovation that, when complete, will offer only about four acres of space divided into multiple smaller yards.
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About the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) - Founded in 1984, the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) operates three sanctuaries in California – including the 2,300-acre ARK 2000 natural habitat sanctuary – and cares for elephants, bears, big cats and other wild animals rescued or retired from circuses, zoos and the exotic pet trade.
PAWS is licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and is accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries. It is rated a four-star charity by Charity Navigator and received an “A” rating from CharityWatch.
