IndIanapolIs Zoo annual RepoRt 2011

ReMakInG tHe FutuRe
tHRouGH conseRvatIon
preserving the threatened and endangered animals
of the world is a large and tremendous challenge, but
conservationists like those supported by the Indianapolis
Zoo have dedicated their lives to developing strategies
and solutions that ultimately have a positive impact. In
2011, your support of the Zoo helped these pieces fall
into place for amur tigers in the Russian Far east, as well
as lions, elephants, and cheetahs in africa.
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For the Amur tigers that Dr. Linda Kerley and the other
members of the Amur Tiger Conservation Project study in
Lazovsky Preserve in Primorsky Krai, the Indianapolis Zoo’s
support paid for 15 vitally important tracking cameras
that give Linda long-distance insight into the lives of the
last few remaining wild Amur tigers on Earth. Camera
traps were also instrumental in establishing a deterrent
program for poachers called “forest eyes” that uses
hidden surveillance cameras to record illegal activity
in protected tiger habitat.
Dr. Bernard Kissui of the African Wildlife Foundation is
saving lions through literally mending fences. Not fences
that keep lions in but fences that protect livestock at night
from being eaten by lions. Lions killed in retaliation for
dead livestock are estimated to account for up to 20
percent of all lion deaths in the area. Small corrals or
“bomas” used by the local Maasai peoples to protect their
livestock at night are traditionally made from thorny
brush or poles, which are no match for lions. Support
provided by the Zoo in 2011 helped Kissui build 50
predator-proof bomas using chain-link fencing, providing
more economic security for families and a secure future
for the 170 lions that live in the area.
2011 marked the fifth year that the Zoo has provided
substantial support to Dr. Charles Foley and his amazing
work through the Tarangire Elephant Project to fit
together the puzzle of establishing corridors through
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rapidly expanding settlement areas so that elephants
and humans can live side by side. Agreements with villages
have resulted in the establishment of corridors through
village lands to allow the elephants to move out of the
Tarangire National Park into calving grounds vital to the
long-term survival of the population. The Zoo’s support
pays for the game scouts that track these elephants, as
well as travel and communication with the local villagers
to maintain these easements.
Meanwhile, our Race-a-Cheetah activity at the Zoo raised
more than $15,000 for the Cheetah Conservation Fund in
Namibia in 2011. There is really no other zoo activity like
this in the world, in which the tie between the activity
itself (testing your speed against that of the cheetah)
and contributing to saving the animals in the wild is
so entwined. In the two years since we began Race-a-
Cheetah, more than 60,000 young Zoo visitors have
participated, and their contributions––gathered 50 cents
at a time––add up to a total of almost $30,000 since 2010.
Their donations in 2011 paid for the care of two orphaned
cheetahs for a year, two litters of livestock-guarding
Kangal puppies, and the medical workup and release
of three wild cheetahs.
closeR to HoMe
luGaR eneRGy patRIot aWaRd
In 2011, the Indianapolis Zoo was named a Lugar Energy
Patriot, an honor bestowed on organizations that support
renewable energy sources and energy conservation, by
Indiana Senator Richard Lugar. We earned this prestigious
citation through a whole host of green practices that
support the concept of sustainability in our operations.
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