Frankfurt Zoological Society

Frankfurt Zoological Society
Formation 1858
Type NGO
Purpose Environmental protection
Headquarters Frankfurt am Main
Region served
 Eastern Africa
President
 Gerhard Kittscher
Website www.zgf.de

The Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS) is an independent, non-profit conservation organisation based in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. The society is funded through membership fees, donations, bequests, grants and earnings from its endowment fund.[1]

History

The FZS was founded in 1858 by Frankfurt citizens to establish a zoo, the Frankfurt Zoological Garden, which it operated until the First World War. The city council then assumed responsibility for the zoo until 1950, when the society again became the zoo's development association. In the 1950s the society became involved in conservation in the Serengeti, and began supporting development of national parks in Africa. Since then the society has become increasingly involved in protecting and preserving endangered animals and their environments worldwide.[1]

Activities

The FZS continues to support the Frankfurt Zoological Garden. It also provides logistical support to conservation areas around the world, sponsors animal census surveys, provides conservation-related education and provides advice to organizations involved in establishing conservation areas. The FZS participates in programs to protect highly endangered species and to reintroduce endangered species, acquires land for conservation areas and helps protect and regenerate natural landscapes.[1]

For example, a long term study of the gray-shanked douc in the Gia Lai Province of Vietnam is currently being conducted as a part of the Frankfurt Zoological Society's Vietnam Primate Conservation Program.[2] The Frankfurt Zoological Society also works with the Endangered Primate Rescue Center which has an ongoing Captive Breeding program.[3] In November 2006, one of Perth Zoo’s female Sumatran Orangutans, Temara, was released into the Bukit Tigapuluh area as part of this reintroduction program – a world first for a zoo-born orangutan. Perth Zoo has plans to release more zoo-born orangutans. The FZS is working with Perth Zoo, the Indonesian Government and the Australian Orangutan Project on this program and on other conservation activities in Bukit Tigapuluh.[4]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "The Frankfurt Zoological Society". The Frankfurt Zoological Society. Retrieved 2011-10-14.
  2. ↑ Long, H. 2004. Distribution and status of the greyshanked douc langur (Pygathrix cinerea) in Vietnam. In Conservation of Primates in Vietnam, 22: 52-57.
  3. ↑ Ngoc Thanh, V., Lippold, L., Nadler, T. & Timmons, R. J. (2008). Pygathrix cinerea. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  4. ↑ "Save the Rainforest, Save the Orangutan". Perth Zoo. 18 July 2012. Retrieved 18 December 2012.