The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) announced that the Saint Louis Zoo received major national recognition for its wildlife conservation work, winning two of the AZA’s three awards recognizing top conservation initiatives.
The 2012 International Conservation Award went to the Zoo and its partners for the “Grevy’s Zebra Trust and AZA: A Model of Collaborative Endangered Species Conservation Program.” In addition, one of the AZA’s most historic awards, the 2012 Edward H. Bean Award went to the Zoo for its “Propagation, Head-start and Conservation Program for the Ozark Hellbender.”
The International Conservation Award recognizes exceptional efforts toward habitat preservation, species restoration, and support of biodiversity in the wild. The Edward H. Bean Award recognizes a truly significant captive propagation effort that clearly enhances the conservation of the species.
The Grevy’s zebra has undergone a catastrophic decline in numbers and range over the past 30 years and now is found only in northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia. “The Grevy’s Zebra Trust is well-known as the only conservation organization in the world devoted entirely to preserving the endangered Grevy’s zebra and its habitat,” said Dr. Eric Miller, Senior Vice President and Director of Zoological Operations and of the Zoo’s WildCare Institute.
Miller added that the fact that the Edward H. Bean Award recognized the need to save the Ozark hellbender also underscores the importance of an initiative that moves us toward a better understanding of the overall health of the aquatic ecosystem of native streams and rivers.
The Ozark hellbender – a large salamander — was historically abundant in the spring-fed rivers of southern Missouri. Surveys in the early 1990s indicated that populations had declined by 70% over the past 40 years and that only 590 individuals remained. “If there is something in the water that is causing the hellbender population to decline, it is likely to be affecting people who live near these rivers where the hellbender is languishing,” Miller added.