Should captive propagation be enforced against zoo animals?
When the topic of ‘zoos’ is presented, the first thing that crosses our minds is animals, housed within controlled enclosures, supervised and displayed to the public. Well, there is a lot that is not being communicated concerning the general zoo conditions, perhaps the lack of adequate space for animals? Or shortened animal lifespan, have I even mentioned the enforced captive breeding in zoos? I believe that humans do not have the right to capture, confine and breed animals. Captive breeding is an ethically questionable approach due to it violating individual freedom. Animals in captivity may suffer from confinement, boredom and stress. While some individuals may argue that some endangered animals require captive breeding, while it may be true that there are endangered animals, captive-breeding programs can increase the dangerously small population of species, they can be damaging to the long-term success of the species, (Wentz, 2018).
Why Animals Should Not Captive Breed
I think captivated animals should not be forced to breed because it causes alterations in the cycle of animal reproduction. One disadvantage of captive breeding is a reduction of genetic diversity (fewer breeding partners). Some species, born in captivity may not be released to the wild as they won’t be able to cope with an outside environment. The loss of genetic diversity increases the risk of extinction of a population through inbreeding depression, (Isagi, 2020). It sounds funny, doesn’t it? Zoo corporations using captive breeding to ‘prevent’ extinction ends up causing a threat of extinction of the endangered animals due to the loss of genetic diversity.
Another reason why animals should not be forced into captive breeding is that zoos do not provide any form of natural habitats, many animals are kept in cages like the tiger in figure 1, caging animals would deprive them of freedom.
Risks of Captive Breed
The original idea of captive breeding programs was to have an impact on species, either endangered or no longer found in natural habitats, to be reintroduced in the wild. Such programs had saved some species like the California condor, Guam Rail or the European Bison. However, many other species have never been reintroduced to the wild after captive breeding programs, (Malo, 2010).
The overall success of reintroducing the species that have been captive bred into the wild is low. There are multiple reasons for this low success, one explanation for this is that captive breeding programs cause genetic changes to the species that negatively impact its fitness-related traits. The program of captive breeding causes three types of genetic effects: genetic drift, inbreeding and genetic adaptation to the captivity, (Malo, 2010).
Another risk for captive breeding animals is immunity, captive breeding animals experience a substantial difference in environmental conditions compared to wild animals. Captivity is known to affect immunological responses in mammals, a study from springer link had showed that spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta), the concentrations of certain immunoglobulins (IgG, IgM, and natural and auto-antibodies) were significantly lower in captive than wild individuals, (Seeber, 2020). It is now evident that “captive breeding programs may cause genetic changes in animals with the addition of lower antibodies compared to other wild animals”.
Captive Breeding of Tigers and other Wildcat
In the Check republic, captive breeding of big cats requires a special permit where the environmental inspector records each tiger’s birth and death. The authorities in the Czech have managed to identify a crime ring that has been processing and selling tiger parts as Chinese medicine. Teeth, claws and bones were smuggled to Asia or used to supply domestic demands, the slaughtered tigers came from the country’s largest captive breeding facility for lions and tigers where, officially, these protected animals were bred from circuses, zoos and roadside attractions, (Earth Touch News, 2018). This story is a reminder of the cruelty endangered by captive breeding.
Following the story of the tiger slaughterhouse that was set in Prague, the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums issued a statement, urging the authorities to ensure that all captive tigers serve a non-commercial purpose. The tigers slaughtered in the Czech Republic were not bred in zoos but private facilities, yet their story should have captive breeding programs into question. Today, tigers are bred outside their natural habitats for a variety of purposes: for circuses, zoos or exhibitions.
Tiger clubs are displayed in petting zoos and are subjected to the cruel practice of declawing, adult tigers are drugged to pose in photos. To counter this cruelty, there have been set campaigns like the tiger campaign in 2017 that encourage people to post “tiger selfies”, (Earth Touch News, 2018).
The idea of protecting endangered animals through captive breeding programs is new but has a darker history. In the aftermath of decolonisation and the introduction of the convention on international trade in endangered species during 1973, the business of animal trade came to an end. Faced with specimen supply terminations, zoological parks had resorted to captive breeding, It was done to ensure they retained rare species in their collections.
Accredited zoos have collaborated since 1981 to breed endangered species and captive individuals of species to ensure genetic diversity. But even after this period, the research did not always drive captive breeding programs in zoos. Captive breeding programs should only be prioritised to the endangered species like the white tigers in figure 3.
