Conservation is at the heart of everything we do
at Wellington Zoo. Everyone at the Zoo is committed to the long term
conservation of animals and wildlife we share the planet with, and conservation
of the environment. We participate in regional and international breeding
programmes and contribute to conservation projects both at the Zoo and in the field, which you can read about below.
To make it easy for our
visitors to play their part for conservation we endorse three easily achievable
conservation actions. These are:
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Purchase sustainable wood and paper
products marked with the FSC (Forestry Stewardship Council)
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Responsible pet ownership - bring your cats
inside at night and keep your dogs on a lead.
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Reduce, reuse, recycle – think about your
stuff, where it has come from and where it will end up.
We believe that all of our Zoo
visitors (both at the Zoo and online) can implement at least one of these
actions in their daily lives, making small steps to help with the big picture.
Free the Bears
Free the Bears supports animal welfare projects in Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam; working with rescued and confiscated bears - including Sun Bears. As well as providing financial support to Free the Bears, Wellington Zoo staff have travelled to sanctuaries in Cambodia and Vietnam to assist with animal care, visitor experience, education, and graphic design.
Cheetah Outreach
Cheetah Outreach is a conservation project based in South Africa that advocates for, and protects, cheetah in the wild. Wellington Zoo’s cheetah brothers, Charlie and Delta were hand raised at Cheetah Outreach as ambassadors for their species. Wellington Zoo provides financial support to Cheetah Outreach through the Wellington Zoo Conservation Fund.
21st Century Tiger
21st Century Tiger supports conservation projects in Asia and Russia to help protect wild Tigers. 100% of the funds raised by 21st Century Tiger go directly to conservation projects in Asia and Russia. Wellington Zoo provides financial support to 21st Century Tiger through the Wellington Zoo Conservation Fund.
Places for Penguins
Wellington Zoo partner with Forest and Bird to support Places for Penguins, a local Wellington conservation project. Places for Penguins focuses on coastal restoration, pest control and nest-box building to help Little Blue Penguins (Kororā) along Wellington’s South Coast.
Kea Conservation Trust
Through the Wellington Zoo Conservation Fellowship, supported by the Holdsworth Family Trust, we are proud to support Kea Conservation Trust with nest monitoring and tracking of radio and satellite tagged Kea in Nelson Lakes and Arthur’s Pass.
Victoria University
Another Wellington Zoo Conservation Fellowship recipient is the Victoria University Centre for Biodiversity and Restoration Ecology with a project evaluating the success of community restoration: biodiversity and environmental action.