The Alabama Experience; Two Zoos

the pope landon campbell planning mobile routes to the cinema and you know when the evidence i like that part of the

story it's b this brings and the cute and cuddly to the wild and majestic the animals in zoos attract visitors will iran

traditionally scientists have collected animals from the wild create international entertainment of curious visitors modern sewers that are accredited by the american association of sawed apart and aquariums focus on wildlife conservation in public education through a program called the species' survival plan assumes coordinate their captive breeding programs to promote long term survival absurd an endangered animal at the birmingham suing the montgomery assume hundreds of animals are cared for each day in greece to accredited facilities are part of a global effort to protect that issue in wildlife and the threat of extinction the city owned and operated part over the chance to experience the animal world in a more personal way they're really doing well in which they can go about their business of being

whatever spaces they are they have certain names in certain outlets that they they have to realize we won't provide opportunities for them to be there were there no visitors we could do they do these gangs in other way but we also want to present the animal to the public as merely an unnatural way as we can so the public can see the animal not as an abstraction but is a part of this complex environment that's really the condemnation of the animal in the barricades because an animal in a bear traction it means no fun when you if it works you don't learn anything again and you don't see the animal's heart of the overall so the new wave if you will in new management is to provide extremely naturalistic exhibits and put family an unlucky animal just have a good time and an ngo utilize its exhibits

humans are having a devastating impact on nature water and air pollution take their toll the earth's rain forest or shrinking to wetlands were filled in some shopping malls conduct polanski human beings at the expense of nature are manipulating the environment and putting on cold stress on the populations of many animal and plant species if the balance is not achieving students may be the only defense which some animals will have against golden extinction <unk> incivility on the sabine the mines here as a metaphor for purpose in conservation of endangered species of all while i for that matter is a primary goal of educating the public about the needs of wildlife in the

environment and what's going on the world around us is an important mission we also are trying to do research and not the kind of research that that are the medical profession by dubai medical research where try to learn more about what they said that these animals are reproducing captivity are talking about temperatures in an environmental needs of the animals behavioral concerns as a lot of research going on what specifically benefits the animals that we're studying it sits or behavioral studies and then his ears are always wonderful places for family recreation and an entertaining in the community so actually were talking about conservation education research and entertainment is for purposes of the zoo and good zoo tries about all those you think they are you know

let's go some species have already been lost forever while others question the very edge of extinction around the world concerned groups committed to wildlife conservation an environmental issues are working to preserve habitat and rebuilding endangered populations coordinated efforts of sunni area and wildlife parks worldwide captive animal populations can be reproduced and managed for the preservation of the species that it hopes one day habitat destruction and be reversed and that would be sufficient natural areas for some creatures to be reintroduced are

man much of the focus of our conservation efforts have to do it for just a patient in programs on which are managed by a committee appears in the american association so logical parks koreans for endangered species or species were identified as problem cases we had species survival plans which collaborative we manage the entire population of the species within the country that is a management committee that elected by representatives from every xu works that the us population of each species and makes the

management decisions as to which at which particular individuals needed be paired with others to breed to maintain as diverse a genetic pool as possible the cutting edge these days is more of the ultra detail nutritional needs of these animals aren't and also propagate how to breed them were getting into embryo transfer is frozen embryos are there are a lot of groups that are starting a prison scene in storage frozen embryo storied tissue sample and alanna genetic studies to see what the diversity is news and what is not about subsidies to help us on the medical and some animals like the cheater there are so genetically pure sometimes difficult to stay he felt that they get one virus and then wipe them out as a race

medicine is very well integrated into the animal care programs in the birmingham and montgomery zones a total care approach is taken to maintaining health animals get everything from viruses to degenerative diseases just like humans get controlling diets climates and stressors are just a few of the considerations that go into caring for animals in captivity i mean confinement animals have an usual white even requirements some don't get sufficient exercise to simulate their appetites it's quite a problem with the reptiles that history long term confinement has stress affects us we can't always afford to get the best equipment but since we have a large number of hospitals around here some of their items become obsolete that we could still use several hospitals donated items are a lot of the small human clinics will donate on demands even so to me i'll use those by the dozens of animal skins a

lot tougher if they break over our ceo on a package of fluids they can't use it but we can still perfectly good hour we have oh a lot diagnostic similarities we use rate x ray machines i'd love to be with him or ultrasound work and our animals have a lot of work being done in those areas the montgomery in birmingham zoos are growing and changing to accommodate modern philosophies and zoo keeping in birmingham a new master plan has been developed it calls for expansion and renovation of the president's side to create a state of the art as a logical facility the reason for the master plan is that a lot of times have to sort of been added on or come into being in the zoo in the last ten or fifteen years and they don't necessarily fit within a comprehensive overall plan a large portion of our budget goes to trying to maintained buildings and facilities

which are many twenty to twenty five and thirty years old and so the state of the physical plant and is is so extreme importance and are you killed and utilities to support an organization the size are very important also that that includes electrical access that includes that includes appropriate grains for larger animals such as a hippopotamus and it includes a full range of things which when people come to see animals and they're not readily city it is but

to pay the peak the city of montgomery has already begun the process of making significant changes to exude has opened up in this area at this location like in seventy two and it was a little six acres in that that our boys from there within it was always a very queens new had a fairly nice collection of animals but the optics of a technology was was fairly well it was probably stated your from it seventy two has won a chain link in cages in bars in not very many open areas in the zoo any animals are usually just waiting like single species unit as well says like a seventy to zoos all across the country the whole profession has been going through significant changes in terms of philosophy new commitment to conservation education exhibit designed and while others use had been evolving and changing in approving the facilities the montgomery's russa said it was sort of a

standstill and a remarkable thing about what's happening here is we're other zoos change an exhibit at a time or maybe develop an african realm or per ten or fifteen years ago it has the moment when their has gotten six acres the forty acres less than a year both of your resume and the birmingham city or important institutions in their respective communities they are city parks operate with public funds but unlike most parks the zoo's can generate hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual revenue from the mission charges do shop in food sales and train rides around the park the expenses associated with running a zoo are considerable gate receipts alone do not begin to cover costs what people say when they come to visit with is the animals and things school lying anything has made everything is is done for them and there's a lot of people behind the scenes that are doing on these things to make it look so

nice and to make it so pleasant for people to come to so we came from sterile cages concrete prisons on to what you see today it cost a great deal of money to get it done and we really needed a modern was a lot of time to so i mean i we still had the old mansion right it was a nice i'm not saying that it was a nice night it just wasn't what it should've been suicidal thinking about and i was that nineteen eighty four a before we actually contract it with a still planning organization to come in and do a semester plan after that wasn't on these are watchful society had to decide how are we going to implement this plan the only way that we could implement it was to get the cooperation of the city in order to do it the mayor's really the driving force behind everything you see going on out here and he's recognized the

potential is due to a track towards the city increase revenue and economic stability three tours dollars and through his leadership the other city council has bought into the project and there were supportive of all the parts of the government everything that comes down from the mayor is helping the builders in we got several groups to yellow and i thought it was doable so act took to the city council a book proposal for a five million dollar bond issue for them it pressed the pool warmed then one on the way a lot of community to raise the bow which they have to date raised in kailash and pledges to and a half million are the other two and a half million dollars still out there we hope and we've only built what we had money fall we will head attractions as the money comes in here we have plans to immediately stored after the opening the championship which

was get the money was given to us about friends at the montgomery county commission that we will also build a paper in addition to the north american exhibit for our non lunch in a box here each show we've got planned to go as fast as the money for rats the growth from six to forty acres will result in a completely new look for the montgomery zoo the modern exhibits and expanded collection are expected to dramatically increase the zoo's popularity as a tourist attraction but the animals are the big winners in the wide open exhibits in the modern buildings for housing animals at new dimensions to the conservation efforts taking place in the memories of it we don't develop paging through love that reflects the best of aides they say is and isn't that work or a wide then the people who are working on stopping the habitat encroachment warhead any space a history populate where and that

is ultimately the goal was and that workers lose i mean before the new master plan can be realized at the birmingham zoo a decision will have to be made on how the growth will be finance birmingham mayor richard carrington has stated that the zoo needs financial support beyond what the city alone can provide i began to

analyze the situation knowing first of all that the window was looser the ten county area there is but one government pays the bill known as the city of berlin and obviously the city of birmingham by itself cannot continue as it has now for some thirty us some obvious paying the total bill for the birmingham center that serves a ten county area we think that the beach should be support from other areas we think we should have some regional support job again looking at a couple of options one was the opportunity we might have to get the legislature to establish joe barton and have a city of birmingham to give those and to the authority and let the members of that party be drawn from the tenth of the reason that the zoo shirt and let us funded on it for capital bases and course a second alternative i thought of was

the alternative of looking at privatized in the zoo says there are several reasons in this country that have been privatized in recent years and most of them have been successful so we're looking for alternative ways to the body expresses necessary to upgrade and operate a force classes and facilitate your return whatever path is ultimately taken for financing to improvements primary mission of those who will remain wildlife conservation it's a very important job for for those of us who work in zoos to preserve animals that are disappearing in the wild and to help the visitor understand why preservation of habitat and preservation of those animals are so important to me feature of the whole art and on this is a hard concept to get across about bad when a person sees a tiger in front of them realizes the size and the majesty of the tiger and then it's pointed out to them that so many of these are

dying because of the value of their scans are because the loss of habitat they come away with a different perspective than if they read the same thing in madison and to zero is the only institution in most communities that is dedicated to convey that information to the public the case became adults who are interested in an animal's and have sometimes there can volunteer live different ways they don't have to commit to a certain number of hours every day or every week we have volunteers who come in sporadic way

ow who come in occasionally who comment regularly and sometime we asked them to come in if we have a special event another skunk just on a routine basis for an activity that they signed up for and i hate to talk to you about reptiles you know you can't down the brick can you tell me what a reptile years they may now or to me anything about om unit anything about it as somebody out there can tell me some one of the main responsibilities of our team volunteers is to be out around the zip accessible to the visitors with items to show them that will help them to understand the exhibit that they're adjacent to such as the tiger exhibit we have tiger skin that was confiscated at the port of entry into the united states which we used to help the visitor understand why killing tigers for their stances is inappropriate and detrimental to that population but

also to allow the visitor to get to touch and tiger skin right so it's like this is drying in the west and he's a couple of the bar grasses and with the light shadow playing across a delight an aggressive you never see we're in the business of stacy survival we are now looking at what is best for the space is not what is best for the name of the city we have gone from being a place of pure entertainment to be a place for education and conservation and they go hand in hand as conservation herds because of education the more people

know about it and it says the more they're going to want to serve obviously a major improvement was the the thing out of resenting animals in its nearly their natural habitat as possible grain the visser and at the zoo and making the visitor feel like that they are in fact the visitor to the animals home and if they have responsibilities and duties to the animals and animals have dignity and animals have as much right to be on earth as any other form a lot that's a major step forward and you and it's not banned investors fought in the past that that didn't happen it's been our fault

how we present the animals to the people will then determine how the people think of the animals after they leave is a the modern day isn't philosophy is geared i would say more in the flavor of the animal you know you get some of these bases had such level of jeopardy the displays are being designed or it may not be as comparable for the spectator in the zoo to just walk up like coming to a tv screen and see all the animals you may have a look you may have to work a little bit to say that what you like to say that those have the displays are arranged and designed to be more natural and now an end is a new design your walk a fine line you've got to give the patrons a certain element of satisfaction but then you've got to be very sensitive to

the needs of them on i believe are the people a design montgomery's so you have had tried to come up with the best of both worlds there isn't a large planet anymore travel distances shrinking man whatever happens in one part of the world has almost immediately in the other and for this reason says hard to reach their stated conservation goals it becomes absolutely necessary that there's a high degree of cooperation between suits in this state and this region in this country and around the world and we have to sometimes put aside our own goals and the things we immediately want for the good of individual species survive on but unless we're able to instill some wonder and perhaps some respect

for nature and children and try to reverse that nonexistent attitude an adult then maybe our chances are it's a good day for nature versus very far in the future thank you if you have a question or comment about this program or

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