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As a member of the Toledo Zoo, your membership allows you 50% discounted admission to more than one hundred fifty zoos all through the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Zoos fluctuate in dimension and high quality—from drive-through parks to small roadside menageries with concrete slabs and iron bars. A PETA investigation of quite a few zoos throughout the nation found a number of bear species exhibiting neurotic, stereotypic behaviors. Zoos declare to wish to defend species from extinction, which sounds like a noble goal, however zoo officers normally favor exotic or widespread animals—who draw crowds and publicity—somewhat than threatened or endangered local wildlife. Zoos are also pressuring the federal authorities to weaken the Endangered Species Act to make it simpler for them to seize and import animals.

The Chinese authorities, for example, rents” pandas to zoos worldwide for fees of greater than $1 million per year, but some query whether or not the income are being directed toward panda-conservation efforts in any respect.(thirteen) Most animals housed in zoos aren't endangered, and those who are will seemingly by no means be released into natural habitats. Zoos are lined by the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA), which units minimal housing and upkeep standards for captive animals.

The Baltimore Zoo, Detroit Zoo, Level Defiance Zoo and Aquarium, North Carolina Zoo, and others have taken in polar bears who had been rescued from a tropical circus, however progressive zoos like these are the exception rather than the rule. The AWA requires that every one animal displays zoos be licensed with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which must examine zoos annually. Nevertheless, some zoos that have passed USDA inspections with flying colours have later been found by humane groups to have quite a few violations.

Report poor situations to the USDA, leaflet at the zoo, write letters to the editor, and pressure native officers to stop subsidizing zoos with taxpayer cash. However regardless of their historical past, as well as arguments from conservationists and educators that they're crucial, Exterior Magazine contributor Tim Zimmermann says it's time that zoos completely close their gates. Zimmermann says it's also unclear what people actually be taught from visiting zoos. Zoos are supposed to coach and promote conservation, but many of the studies done by the zoo industry on this topic actually ask people whether or not they thought they realized one thing fairly than whether they truly learned one thing,” he says.

The Chinese authorities, for example, rents” pandas to zoos worldwide for charges of more than $1 million per year, but some question whether the income are being directed toward panda-conservation efforts in any respect.(13) Most animals housed in zoos are not endangered, and people who are will probably by no means be launched into pure habitats. Zoos are covered by the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA), which units minimal housing and maintenance standards for captive animals.