http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la...nes-california

Long story short, 48 year old elephant dies at LA zoo. Activists say elephants shouldn't be in zoos and call for the last 2 elephants to be moved to a sanctuary. Meanwhile LA city council approvwd building a nearly 40 million new elephant home at the zoo. Of course this further goes into the whole controversy of whether or not these big animals should even be in zoos at all.

Personally I am torn, I grew up going to zoos and loving them, My love for nature was built by watching Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom and going to Turtle Back zoo in NJ and the Bronx Zoo in NY. I will always remember my first time seeing a lion pae back and forth in the lion pen.

Now being older, I realize that lion was probably pacing because it was under stress and HATED being in that pen.

Once you have seen elephants march across the savannah, you REALLY appreciate that they don't belong in some tiny pen in a zoo. Yet zoos hve done a great amount of good for the animal world, and good for science and research.

At least some zoos have built bigger areas for animals that can more closely simulate their habitat. but this isn't good enough for the most virulent of activists. But let's be clear, these animals are never going to be returned to the wild.

While I worry about perfectly healthy animals snatched from the wild and brought to zoos. I do feel that zoos still accomplish a purpose.

I do wish larger animal sanctuaries could be built to give lions, elephants and other animals in captivity more space, but $$$ are also tight.

I could ramble, but any thoughts?

What percent of zoo goers actually go to Africa? How many inner-city children, or even middle class children will ever get a chance to see an elephant, lion or giraffe up close? Those of us who have seen them first hand are very fortunate. From my first memory of going to the Oakland Zoo and seeing elephants, I've always wanted to see them "for real" and finally 40+ years later I was able to, though throughout my adult years, I have contributed to many wildlife programs, probably from seeing the "unwild" creatures in the zoo. Hopefully by seeing these amazing animals, even in a zoo, something will click and these future adults will do what they can to protect and conserve throughout their lives. Some zoo's breeding programs are helping some species from becoming extinct in the wild. I'm for zoos, as long as they are well run and the animals are well taken care of (under the circumstances that they live in).

Hello,

I agree with Dennis -- animals in (good) zoos serve as ambassadors for their species and for wildlife in general, and inspire people who might never see an elephant, a rhino, a lion or a leopard in the wild to care about what happens to these animals. Zoos also do a lot for education about conservation and also in terms of breeding rare species. If the animals are well cared for and provided with as natural an environment as possible, zoos can be a good thing.

Cheers,
Julian

The Cincinnati Zoo just reported that one of their critically endangered Sumatran Rhinos was pregnant! It's her third pregnancy. Her first birth was the first captive rhino birth since the 19th century.

Here are some FAQ about elephants in captivity:
http://www.elephantvoices.org/index....captivity.html

the subject was discussed on my local Public Radio today. here is the link if you'd like to hear it

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/kp...ICLE_ID=930724

I'm in agreement that well run zoos offer access to animals to people who may never see them otherwise, may never develop an interest in them otherwise and may never understand the importance of conserving them (and their environment) otherwise.

And the contribution of some establishments to genetic diversity of endangered species is hugely important too.

I do hate seeing larger animals in small enclosures. Even ones that aren't teeny tiny are often very small to animals used to roaming huge ranges.

I prefer safari parks where the animals have much larger enclosures and the visitors are the ones shut into tiny spaces - their cars or shuttle buses.