Conservation

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Rockhampton Zoo donates 15% of all visitor donations and income from animal encounters to wildlife conservation programs.

Each year, different conservation programs are chosen to ensure a wide and varied distribution of support.

If you would like to donate directly to Rockhampton Zoo and wildlife conservation programs, please visit our Donate page.

 Financial Year        

Amount

 Conservation Charities       

 2023-2024 Fundraising in progress 

 Local: Bird Life Capricornia

International: Fauna & Flora Gibbon Project

 2022-2023

$ 6,133

$6,133

 Local: TBC

 International: International Otter Survival Fund     

 2021-2022

 $8,819

 $8,819

 Local: Koala Research CQ (KR-CQ)

 International: Flora and Fauna International

 2020-2021

  $30,756

 ZAA's Australian Drought and Bushfire Crisis

 Total

 $60,660

2022-2023

International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF)

Inspired by observing otters in the wild, the International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF) was set up to protect all 13 species of the world’s otters; and celebrates its 30th Anniversary in 2023.

IOSF holds otter conservation and training workshops which have taken place in Asia, Africa and South America.  The aim of the workshops is to create the next generation of researchers by bringing together scientists, university lecturers, students, rangers, and other similar stakeholders.  A network has been developed in each area to take the work forward, and raise awareness in local communities through education.

The illegal trade in otters for fur and as pets is something IOSF is passionately against and they also support centres that take in the otters rescued from being smuggled across borders.  Here in Scotland, IOSF has its own rescue and rehabilitation centre which has cared for over 240 injured and orphaned otters.

Education is an important means of raising awareness about our work and the fact that otters do need our (human) help.  It is never too early for children to learn about this too, and consequently Team Otter was set up to involve youngsters and motivate them to become the otter conservationists of the future.  So far, nine Team Otter clubs are in Europe, Africa, North America and South America.

You can find out much more on our web site www.otter.org

2021-2022

Koala Research CQ

In 2022, Rockhampton Zoo donated $8,819 to CQUniversity’s local koala research project.

This donation helped support a PhD project analysing local koala scat to determine how healthy populations are and where they are distributed.

To view the media release, click here.

Fauna & Flora International - Wild chimpanzees in Liberia

In 2022, Rockhampton Zoo also donated $8,819 to support Fauna & Flora International's wild chimpanzee program in Liberia. This program aims to strengthen Liberia’s law enforcement capacity by finalising and launching the collaborative Wildlife Crime Strategy in Liberia, which will directly support the regional and national action plans for the conservation of chimpanzees.

The strategy will also help combat the illegal trade of other animals that share the chimpanzee’s habitat, such as pangolins, parrots, elephants and pygmy hippos.

To view the media release, click here.

October 2022 Update:

FFI's team in Liberia is currently in the process of hiring a consultant to support the processes of developing the National Strategy to combat wildlife crime. They will then finalise the strategy and validation meetings with stakeholders over the following months.

 

2020-2021

ZAA Bushfire Relief Fund

In 2021, Rockhampton Zoo donated $30,756 to the Zoos and Aquariums Association’s Wildlife Conservation Fund (WCF) Australian Drought and Bushfire Crisis.

During this year, 100% of all zoo donations were given to the ZAA bushfire recovery projects. 

Donations made previously would go directly to the operation of Rockhampton Zoo, so this was Rockhampton Regional Council’s and the staff’s way of supporting our native wildlife following the bushfire crisis.

This money went directly to wildlife recovery projects, including the rescue and rehabilitation of drought and fire-affected Australian native wildlife, and medium and long-term recovery efforts to return healthy animals to regenerated habitats.

To view the media release, click here.

 

Ongoing

Rainforest Rescue's Save the Cassowary campaign

Rainforest Rescue has initiated the Save the Cassowary campaign in collaboration with Australian partner zoos, government departments, local councils, Aboriginal Corporations and business partners to highlight the future of the endangered ‘Rainforest Gardener’, the Southern Cassowary.

Rapid development has eliminated 85% of its habitat and current estimates fear fewer than 1,000 birds are left in the wild.

Rockhampton Zoo is proud to support with educational signage at our cassowary enclosure and our daily Keeper Talk about the Southern Cassowary.