Zoos have a long history. As early as 2500 BC, Egyptian aristocrats created menageries; in 1520, the Aztec Emperor Montezuma II maintained one of the earliest animal collections in the Western Hemisphere.
Today about 175 million people visit zoos across the globe every year. But despite their history, as well as arguments from conservationists and educators that they're necessary, Outside Magazine contributor Tim Zimmermann says it's time that zoos permanently close their gates.
“What we definitely know is that many animals suffer in zoos," Zimmermann says. "There are high mortality rates, there are injuries and there’s depression. The science and research also shows that wide-ranging animals — the animals that are most popular for people to see, like tigers and bears — are the animals that do worst in the zoos."
He argues there are plenty of other ways to see and learn about animals in the modern age, everything from visiting your own backyard to watching YouTube videos and televised nature specials. Zimmermann says it’s also unclear what people actually learn from visiting zoos.
“Zoos are intended to educate and promote conservation, but most of the studies done by the zoo industry on this topic really ask people whether they thought they learned something rather than whether they actually learned something,” he says.
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4 comments:
If they are privately funded, more power to them. If they receive tax payer funds in any way, CLOSE EM DOWN.
America as a country lives like a bunch of 10 cent millionaires. There are way too many Government programs that are a luxury we simply can not afford, the majority of which do not benefit ALL of the population.
The animals were not ment to
be caged for the pleasure of
man. Set them all free to
roam as they should.
close all zoos and some species will become extinct.
Where will the animals live then? Our cities are already full of wild, untamed beasts running around robbing, rapping, killing, and sleeping in doorways. There is not enough money to keep more of them in section 8 housing, and giving out food stamps.
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