The Future of Zoos

So what is the function of a zoo today?

I was reading an article on the Brevard Zoo taking delivery of a new zebra. It brings to mind a bigger conversation that is happen around zoos now -- what is the function of a zoo going forward? That function is changing quickly and it's interesting to speculate on what a zoo will look like in a few decades.

Lauren, New Zebra at Brevard Zoo

Only 50 years ago zoos were a very different place than today. There were thousands of little roadside zoos (many in Florida) that had a few animals to show. The large city zoos still displayed animals in the "box with bars" environment. Many animals didn't thrive in either of these environments.

Over time the roadside zoos have largely closed. They still exist across the country (including Florida) but they are mostly gone, victims of stricter animal welfare rules and rising insurance premiums. The very large have been able to keep up with rising costs and the smallest are able to survive by keeping fewer animals. But thousands that once existed are now gone.

Gatorland, King of the Roadside Zoo

The larger zoos have changed their outlook considerably. In addition to their education and entertainment functions they have also taken on the role of providing for the future of threatened species. Once there was little cooperation between zoos to monitor bloodlines of their animals, resulting in animals with some serious inbreeding. They do a much better job of this now. Essentially they're changing their function to being a species sanctuary.

In the age of the internet people don't go to zoos with the regularity they once did. Anybody can do a quick search and find a zebra cam to check out the zebras. The National Zoo never recovered its attendance levels after the financial crash of 2008 (that's the only zoo I could easily find good data for). Zoos that have to charge admission are doing even worse financially.

National Zoo (Washington DC) Visitors

So, where do zoos go from here? Here's my guess. I think the days of the big displays at zoos are over. The elephants, gorillas, giraffes and other animals that need lots of space are probably going to be phased out of zoos. They're really expensive to maintain. A few very large sanctuaries per species will exist in areas with a similar climate to their native one. Zoos will remain but with smaller, more easily maintained exhibits with almost no large mammals. Aquariums will follow a similar path.

Another reason to phase out large animals is the bad publicity they can cause. The Cincinnati Zoo had to kill a lowland gorilla when a boy fell in. The resultant publicity they got was really bad even to the point of death threats coming from the internet. Few care if a gray squirrel or rat snake dies.

I think it's a high percentage guess that zoos will change considerably in the next 50 years. In the last 50 years they've changed from an emphasis on showing the animal to showing the animal in its habitat to helping preserve the species. Where the next 50 years will take them is hard to say. But they will be very different than they are today.