'You can't cut costs with animal welfare': The British zoos fighting for survival

""When John Miskelly heard about Jersey Zoo's cost-cutting plans to shut its colony of Livingstone's fruit bats last year, he was deeply concerned. "It's a very endangered species around the world," says Miskelly, who served for six years as a trustee for the zoo - famously founded by naturalist Gerald Durrell. "[The zoo] could and should be looking after a species like that... so that's just one of the signs that things have gone terribly, badly wrong," adds Miskelly.""

""It comes as new BBC research shows 40% of accredited zoos and aquariums in the UK and Ireland have publicly raised concerns about their finances since 2022. Andy Hall, from the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (Biaza), says while a lot of sectors are facing similar budget pressures, zoos have "unique challenges" as "you can't cut costs with animal welfare".""

Jersey's Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust and its Jersey Zoo have implemented cost-cutting that may include closing the Livingstone's fruit bat colony. Longtime trustee John Miskelly warns reserves are being depleted and could be exhausted within about three years without change. New research indicates 40% of accredited zoos and aquariums in the UK and Ireland have publicly raised financial concerns since 2022. The British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums emphasizes that zoos face unique challenges because animal welfare cannot be reduced to save money. The trust says it is focused on long-term sustainability and will publish a 10-year strategy in 2026.

Read at www.bbc.com