Aquatic Zoos - Captive Animals Protection Society

4.7 The guidelines of the Reintroduction Specialist Group of the Species Survival Commission
of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) should be followed when considering or
undertaking the release of animals into the wild. Consideration should also be given to using
other recognised guidelines such as those of the British Wildlife Rehabilitation Council.
4.8 Animals intended for release present special challenges in comparison with those staying in
the zoo. For example, health care may need to be different and exposure to stressors may be
necessary, as care and facilities in recipient country may fall below standard in the UK. Zoos
involved in release programmes should make every effort to conform as closely as possible to
the IUCN standards and reconcile these as far as possible with the legitimate needs of the
project. Particular attention should be paid to the suitability of any temporary care facilities.
Therefore, a UK public aquarium that releases animals back to the wild for non conservation reasons and
not following the IUCN guidelines (which only authorise releases for conservation reasons) is effectively
in breach of the Secretary of State Standard’s of Modern Zoo Practice, and in consequence should loose
its zoo licence and close to the public. It would be a matter for the local authority to enforce this.
Despite having already established that there are no current ‘conservation reintroductions’ in UK public
aquaria, it is possible that ‘introductions’ or otherwise other non-conservation ‘releases’ take place
regularly throughout the UK. During this investigation the question of whether or not each public
aquarium ever releases animals back to the wild was asked to aquarium staff every time that opportunity
arose. The answer of this question was also sometimes available in either the collection signs/literature
or in news articles (figure 29). From all the 31 collections investigated an answer to the question was
found for the majority (61%), and it was video recorded when given by an aquarium staff member. The
remaining cases were mainly collections where not available staff was found to ask the questions at the
time of the visit and no information about it was found elsewhere. The results of the analysis of the
answers show that the majority of the public aquaria asked (74%, n=19) responded that they do indeed
release animals back to the wild (mostly back to the sea). In two of the answers the keepers said that
no releases take place, but that was in contradiction to published articles or the aquarium literature that
indicated otherwise, so in those particular cases it was considered that releases took place despite the
keepers’ answer. As far as the remaining cases are concerned, the staff answers were taken at face
value (since there was not any particular reason they would lie on that particular subject to a visitor).
Figure 29. Two signs displayed in two different UK public aquaria indicating that non-conservation releases of animals back to the
wild take place regularly.
Analysing the answers per type of public aquarium, table 13 shows the ‘release’ problem seems to take
place in all types of public aquaria except ‘Auxiliary’, although the most cases where staff members
denied that sea ‘releases’ take place –and no evidence was found to contradict them– were in ‘Chain’
public aquaria asked.
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