ZV Mag - Issue #11

CONTEMPORARY THINKING ON WILDLIFE & ZOO-BASED CONSERVATION

ISSUE #11 SPRING/SUMMER 2021

ZOOS VICTO RIA MAGAZINE

The future of frogs

Safeguarding our native species Positive news for Plains-wanderer Where there’s a will New addition to the adoption program

Together we can protect our natural world of wildlife Australia’s recent bushfires and drought have taken a toll on our already Vulnerable Platypus. Sadly, they are disappearing from our rivers and creeks at an alarming rate.

Photo by Amie Hindson

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CONTENTS

Hello!

The past year has been another challenging one, but our staff and volunteers’ commitment to the animals in our care and our conservation work has been stronger than ever. Their focus, resilience and teamwork buffered our organisation from the impacts of the closures and restrictions.

This work is only possible because of you, our donors. Thank you for your continued support, especially during challenges.

This edition of ZV Magazine highlights the wide range of ways we use your support to fight extinction, from captive-breeding programs to adopting one of our animals to leaving a financial gift for the future.

Our Fighting Extinction program saw the successful breeding of hundreds of critically endangered animals. We released four pairs of Plains-wanderers in April – a first for Australian conservation – and we have established insurance populations for our threatened frogs.

So many people wanted to help us care for koalas after the Black Summer Bushfires, and have been asking what else they can do, so these iconic marsupials are the latest addition to our Animal Adopters program.

We have also included the latest statistics on how your donations are being used for conservation.

If you would like to support our endof-year campaign, our focus is on the Platypus, now declared Vulnerable in Victoria. For information, visit zoo.org.au/end-of-year-donation.

Thank you, again, for your loyalty and support. We look forward to welcoming you back to our zoos soon.

04 The future of frogs

Protecting our native species

14

Veterinarians to the rescue Zoos Victoria’s wonderful team

08

Caring for koalas

10

Small but mighty

20

Where there’s a will

Plus Dr Jenny Gray /CEO, Zoos Victoria

18 Donation update 23 Partners and donors 3

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CONSERVATION

The future of frogs As global frog populations experience worrying declines, Zoos Victoria’s amphibian specialists are racing to safeguard Australia’s irreplaceable native frog species.

WORDS Jo ILLUSTRATIONS Phil

A

Stewart Constantinesco

mphibians play an essential role in maintaining balanced ecosystems, but despite helping to keep waterways and wetlands healthy and providing an important link in the food chain, amphibians don’t get much credit. Now that frogs are experiencing worrying population losses around the world, amphibians are in the conservation spotlight.

Many Australian native frog species are facing extinction due to the impacts of habitat loss, pollution, climate change and chytrid fungus. But although the population trends

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AMPHIBIANS

CONTRIBUTING FACTORS are concerning, many scientists are banding together to help save Australia’s vulnerable frog species.

Zoos Victoria Threatened Species Biologist, Deon Gilbert, is one of the scientists working to save our frogs.

“At one stage, the Corroboree Frog population accounted for the biggest biomass of any vertebrate in the Kosciuszko National Park. There would have been millions of these frogs and now there are less than 50 left in the wild,” Deon says.

Frogs are incredibly sensitive to their surroundings, so they thrive best in pollutionfree environments and stable, reliable climates.

Having porous skin means frogs absorb pollutants easily so anything that happens in the ecosystem impacts them rapidly.

Although the drastic decline in frog numbers represents a serious challenge, recovery programs offer a glimmer of hope. Deon believes the key to conservation can be summed up with this motto: think globally, act locally and respond personally. This is what he and the Zoos Victoria team are doing while working to save Victoria’s only endemic frog species, the alpine-dwelling Baw Baw Frog.

Zoos Victoria’s recovery program for this unique species has been running at Melbourne Zoo for more than 10 years. In 2020, the team released 50 captive-bred frogs fitted with tiny radio transmitters into the wild on the Baw Baw Plateau in eastern Victoria. With fewer than 1,000 Baw Baw Frogs estimated to be remaining in the wild, the team have been closely monitoring the first captive-bred Baw Baw Frogs to be released into the wild. The good news is they appear to be thriving.

The Baw Baw Plateau’s steep, muddy, alpine terrain makes field work tough and physically demanding, but Deon relishes the opportunity to be out in nature working to help conserve this Critically Endangered species.

Recovery programs are a collective effort, with universities and organisations such as the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) contributing to the program.

Many Australian native frog species are facing extinction due to impacts caused by humans. Here are some of the things our native frogs are up against:

Habitat loss from land clearing for housing and agriculture is detrimental to many native frog populations that rely on wetlands for breeding.

Chytrid fungus is caused by the fungal skin pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, which is deadly to frogs.

Climate change is worrying for an animal that relies on the environment to regulate its body temperature.

Pollution of waterways from chemicals such as petrol, detergents and insecticides can have devastating affects on native frogs.

At one stage, the Corroboree Frog population accounted for the biggest biomass of any vertebrate in the Kosciuszko National Park.

DEON GILBERT / ZOOS VICTORIA THREATENED SPECIES BIOLOGIST

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CONSERVATION

We wouldn’t be able to carry out this work without donations and help from supporters and partners.

DEON GILBERT / ZOOS VICTORIA THREATENED SPECIES BIOLOGIST

The pandemic limited the Zoo’s ability to fundraise in 2020; the Victorian State Government and the Garry White Foundation funded the Baw Baw Frog field program.

“We wouldn’t be able to carry out this work without donations and help from supporters and partners,” says Deon.“It’s really important to stay optimistic. If we hadn’t started the Baw Baw Frog program more than 10-years ago, we wouldn’t be in the position we are now. As well as being a vital part of the ecosystem, they’re also an important part of Australia’s natural history,” says Deon.

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Bushfires don’t just impact mammals; Victoria’s amphibians were also greatly affected by the devastating blazes that tore through parts of regional Victoria in 2020. In the wake of the bushfires, the Giant Burrowing Frog was identified as a species of concern.

A large, slow-moving frog that’s only found in Gippsland and parts of New South Wales, this elusive species had never been kept in captivity – until now.

In his role as a Specialist Keeper with the Amphibian Bushfire Recovery Program, Adam Lee is tasked with nurturing, rearing and breeding this threatened species.

“Funding from the Australian Government’s Bushfire Recovery Program for Wildlife and their Habitats and donations from the Bushfire Fund will be used to build a new frog facility at Melbourne Zoo to establish captivebreeding programs for vulnerable species like the Giant Burrowing Frog,” says Adam.

Another purpose-built facility, – generously funded by CADBURY DAIRY MILK Freddo – will be built at Healesville to split the program

IMAGES: JO HOWELL, DAMIAN GOODALL, RICK HAMMOND

Rearing rare breeds

AMPHIBIANS

across properties and spread the risk.

One hundred Giant Burrowing Frog tadpoles were collected from a newly-discovered population in East Gippsland in early 2021.

These tadpoles now form an insurance population that the team hopes to breed in the future.

“A crucial component of running a recovery program is having enough genetic diversity to maintain a wild population long-term,” Adam explains.

“Giant Burrowing Frog populations were severely impacted by the bushfires, so the pressure is on to get this program up and running before we lose genetic diversity from the wild population.”

Establishing a number of frogs as captive insurance to supplement the wild populations is a huge undertaking, considering so much is unknown about the species.

“Zoos Victoria has great experience running captive-breeding programs but looking after frogs that haven’t been kept in captivity before is complex,” says Adam.

Bringing wild-collected frogs and tadpoles into a breeding facility also comes with risk.

“Our facilities are completely bio-secure,” Adam explains. “Anything coming in gets quarantined and swabbed for chytrid fungus.

We use full PPE gowns, gloves and sanitising gels to make sure pathogens don’t enter the facility.”

The good news is that the tadpoles have settled into their new home, consisting of tanks filled with substrate that Adam and the team collected from the wild.

“They’re developing well. We’ve had 15 metamorphose so far. It’s a bit nerve-wracking but I love the challenge. I enjoy troubleshooting and figuring out what does and doesn’t work.”

As someone who grew up looking for tadpoles in lakes and searching for lizards under his house, Adam has great empathy for the creatures in his care.

“We all have a responsibility to mitigate the impact that humans are having on the environment. I’m not comfortable with

letting any species become Threatened or Endangered. Frogs may not be as charismatic as some other species, but they are equally important.”

WANT MORE? Our amphibian experts talk about saving Victoria’s frogs in this webinar, visit bit.ly/30O6Y4N

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Left (clockwise from top left) Southern Corroboree Frog; Baw Baw Frog fitted with a tiny radio transmitter; Giant Burrowing Frog tadpole.

COMMUNITY

Caring for Koalas Australia’s iconic marsupials have been added to the Zoos Victoria Animal Adopters program. Find out how you can make a difference in the lives of one of our favourite native animals.

Colquhoun

A

mong the many heartbreaking scenes from the 2019–20 Black Summer Bushfires was the footage of koalas being rescued from charred landscapes with singed fur, burnt paws and scorched airways.

Responding to the widespread impact on the wild population, Zoos Victoria has added its resident koalas to the popular Animal Adopters program.

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Zoos Victoria Philanthropy Coordinator, Estelle Van Hoeydonck, explains the aim of this program is to allow anyone to become an ongoing sponsor, to provide care and support for a species. Donors can choose to donate as little as $15 a month to become an ‘Adopter’.

“Koalas are an iconic Australian species and, particularly during the bushfires, many animal lovers were really moved by seeing the injured koalas. We listened to our donors who asked for koalas to be included in the Animal Adopters program,” she says.

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Top Zoos Victoria Philanthropy Coordinator, Estelle Van Hoeydonck.

IMAGES: JO HOWELL

WORDS Steve

ANIMAL ADOPTERS

Another new addition is the Local Threatened Species category, encompassing the “Fighting Extinction 27” native animals under imminent threat, that Zoos Victoria is actively trying to save.

Zoos Victoria Associate Veterinarian, Dr Meg Curnick, says the Black Summer Bushfires were just the latest existential threat to koalas in the wild. The marsupials are listed as Vulnerable, due to the impacts of climate change-induced drought and fires, habitat loss caused by urban encroachment, diseases, and death or injury caused by predators and vehicle accidents.

“The problem with koalas is that when they feel threatened, their instinctive response is to climb a tree, which, during a bushfire is not a very good thing to do,” she says.

Dr Curnick was among a number of Zoos Victoria veterinarians sent to fire-ravaged areas of Gippsland to provide critical first aid to impacted animals, treating a large number of badly-injured koalas. Sadly, some were unable to be treated and had to be humanely euthanised.

“That work has given us a lot more information about how vulnerable koalas are to bushfires and other aspects of climate change – we are now specialists in their diet and habitat, but we still have koala conservation questions that need answers,” she says.

“For example, if we need to translocate koalas due to habitat loss, how will they and their new environment cope? Will there be issues with disease or food supply?”

The scale of devastation during Black Summer also revealed a need to purchase mobile triage centres that can be quickly set up at impacted sites, plus training for Zoos Victoria staff and local vets to provide critical first-responder care for injured animals.

Increasing staffing and capacity at Zoos Victoria properties is another key priority for treatment and rehabilitation,

There are so many reasons why people connect with koalas.

They’re a cultural icon and so distinctly Australian.

ESTELLE VAN HOEYDONCK / ZOOS VICTORIA PHILANTHROPY COORDINATOR

aimed at helping koalas to return to the wild. Estelle says koalas are perennially popular with members and visitors and they will be a favourite in the Animal Adopters program. “It’s amazing how an animal that sleeps for so many hours of the day attracts so much interest,” she says. “There are so many reasons why people connect with koalas. They’re a cultural icon and so distinctly Australian.”

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Left to right Southern Koala at Healesville Sanctuary; Koala being treated at Melbourne Zoo for injuries caused by the Black Summer Bushfires.

ADOPT A KOALA Visit donate.zoo.org.au/ animal-adopters to become an Animal Adopter.

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CONSERVATION

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PLAINS-WANDERERS

Small but mighty:

Plains-wanderers The Plains-wanderer, a tiny native bird, may have a future thanks to the work of Zoos Victoria and partners in the national captive-breeding program.

WORDS Stephanie

Convery

T

ILLUSTRATION Phil

Constantinesco

he Plains-wanderer is “a Goldilocks species”.

The little fawn-coloured, ground-dwelling bird needs its habitat – the semi-arid grasslands of north-western Victoria and the New South Wales Riverina – to be “just right”. In times of drought, when the grasslands become sparse and insect numbers drop off, cover, nesting materials and food become too scarce for the population to sustain itself. Too much rain is no good either.

“We think they are a boom-and-bust species, so the population can peak and collapse depending on conditions,” says Zoos Victoria’s Threatened Species Project Officer, Chris Hartnett. “When the biomass grows a lot and there are too many weeds, they just disappear.

We don’t know where they go.”

These unique, quail-like birds – about the height of an adult hand – were once found all along eastern Australia, but over the past decade their numbers have dramatically declined. The latest estimate suggests there are 1,000 Plainswanderers left in the wild, at best; the population may be as low as 500. Much of the birds’ habitat is enclosed on private land, making it difficult to manage, and the birds hard to track.

In 2015, the Australian Government declared the Plains-wanderer to be Critically Endangered and developed a recovery plan, which was released the following year. Zoos Victoria has been a partner in the effort to save the bird ever since. The story of saving the Plains-wanderer is one of solid collaboration, with project partners ranging from some of Australia’s biggest government authorities and conservation groups, to private landowners and generous individuals.

CR FAST FACTS

PLAINSWANDERERS

Fewer than

1,000 left in the wild today

In 2015

declared Critically Endangered

11

13 chicks successfully bred in captivity

First release

took place in April 2021

SPRING/SUMMER 2021

CONSERVATION

allocate meaning to a behaviour, based on those observations.”

The effort paid off extremely quickly. By the end of 2018, the Werribee facility had successfully bred Plains-wanderers in captivity, and by the end of that breeding season, 13 chicks were born. The next challenge was a successful release into the wild. External partnerships have been vital, and will continue to be in the coming years.

The first release of captive-bred Plainswanderers occurred in April 2021. It’s part of a three-year experimental trial involving six scheduled releases, one each autumn and one each spring. The birds are released wearing radio transmitters so they can be tracked. The objective is to collect data on dispersal, survival and reproduction, including whether the different release times alter how likely they are to settle into their habitat and whether they pair with wild birds. “This will help us develop a release strategy for the future,” says Chris.

The Plains-wanderer program has so far been entirely funded by donations from the public. Chris stresses that without partnerships across the community, the rescue work undertaken so far would have been impossible.

“The reason the program is so successful is because the partners work together so effectively – a model program for conservation collaboration,” she says. This collaboration goes all the way to the literal grassroots; Chris recounts installing receiver towers for the tracking transmitters in the birds’ grasslands habitat.

“We had groups coming out to help assemble the towers and that included farmers who owned the land, their families, workers from the local Parks Victoria office, Trust for Nature, Zoos Victoria and more – a real community effort,” says Chris.

MAKE YOUR MARK To become a Conservation Partner visit, zoo.org.au/donate/conservation-partners ZVMAG 12

KEY PARTNERS

Andy and Judy McGillivray Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning Elizabeth Sarrailhe Limb Family Foundation North Central Catchment Management Authority NSW Department of Planning Industry and Environment Parks Victoria Plains-wanderer Recovery Team Taronga Conservation Society Australia Trust for Nature Victorian State Government Zoos South Australia

IMAGE: JO HOWELL

Zoos Victoria’s rescue efforts for the Plains-wanderer began with the building of a purpose-built breeding facility at Werribee Open Range Zoo. The goal was to develop a substantial captive population of the species and eventually replenish its numbers in the wild. The breeding site was called to action earlier than planned when a rogue Plainswanderer was rescued far south from its usual habitat and handed to a wildlife carer near Bendigo. Wanda, as the bird became known, was temporarily housed in an Eastern Barred Bandicoot enclosure until the purpose-built facility opened a few weeks later, in September 2017.

Learning to accommodate the birds’ very particular social and habitat preferences in captivity was an intense process for the care and husbandry staff at Werribee Open Range Zoo. “They’re not an easy bird to keep in captivity because they do have some special needs,” says Chris. “We have to ensure the vegetation within their enclosures is really well maintained. They can also be very demanding with the onset of breeding season. Females will increase in activity and start calling – they spend all day calling for a partner – and they can become quite agitated in their desire to be paired. You have to be very observant. The keepers at Werribee had to learn to read the birds’ novel behaviour and develop a catalogue to

“We have become the stewards of our planet, and we have amazing powers – to destroy, or protect, we have that power and I think ethically we are obligated where we can to preserve species, to do what we can to stop them from going extinct.”

ELIZABETH FINKEL / CONSERVATION PARTNER

BECOME A CONSERVATION PARTNER Move closer to our work by making a gift to one of our projects and make a real difference for some of the world’s most endangered animals.

Giving a major gift is much more than a financial transaction; it is inspiring others to give, changing animals’ lives for the better and helping move species off the critically endangered list.

Annual Levels of Support

$5,000 Fighter

$10,000

Champion

$25,000 Hero

$50,000

Influencer

$100,000 $250,000+ Leader

Visionary

For more information visit zoo.org.au/donate/conservation-partners

ANIMAL

Veterinarians to the rescue Our dedicated veterinarians are committed to improving the health and welfare of our animals, and those facing a growing number of threats in the wild.

WORDS Alegria

Alano

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VETERINARIAN CARE

Left to right A pelican being put under an anesthetic to remove a growth from its foot; Kangaroo joey wrapped in a blanket at a health check up.

IMAGES: JO HOWELL

Z

oos Victoria veterinarians provide medical care for the 5,000 animals in their care, as well as individuals in captive breeding programs and injured wildlife presented by the public.

“Our day-to-day work is a mix of all of those things,” says Dr Paul Eden, Associate Veterinarian at Werribee Open Range Zoo. “We’re here to respond to whatever crops up with the animals in the zoo and different species programs.”

The condition of an animal is a major factor in the type of work needed. Melbourne Zoo Associate Veterinarian Dr Bonnie McMeekin explains, “Sometimes you can lay hands on and examine an animal, but other times you have to do as much as you can without touching them until you’ve given them an anaesthetic. For example, we can’t physically touch tigers unless they’re anaesthetised, so we talk to the keepers about symptoms and get every bit of information we can from their behaviours.”

The breadth of work and species variation makes the job challenging, especially because some cases may not have been seen before. Dr Chloe Steventon is a Veterinarian Resident at Healesville Sanctuary. She is in the latter part of a twoyear program run by Zoos Victoria and the University of Melbourne and has already encountered many firsts.

“Recently, we had a Greater Glider joey come in. It’s the youngest one we’ve ever seen in the Sanctuary. I had to raise it without any information on how much to feed or what it needed. Few people have taken care of a joey this young, so there isn’t any published information on how to do it.”

Fortunately, a collaborative working environment helps fill knowledge gaps.

IN THE LAST FINANCIAL YEAR

Werribee Open Range Zoo saw

683 injured animals,

Melbourne Zoo helped

845 and Healesville Sanctuary treated

1,992 15

“We’ve got a network we can reach out to.

It’s quite a common thing to use the ‘brains trust’, and make sure we’re providing the best medicine,” says Dr McMeekin. The network includes other wildlife veterinarians at Zoos Victoria, other Zoo staff and the generous support of many specialist vets who donate their time and expertise. The Zoos Victoria veterinary team is grateful for the additional support from specialist vets – such as dentists – who are often called in to help provide the best welfare outcomes for animals brought in for treatment.

“Our Veterinary Nurses are so intelligent, highly-trained and intuitive about what our patients need. I would not be able to do my job without them,” says Dr Steventon.

Zoo Keepers are also key as they provide valuable insight into the animals they know so well. “Even if it’s a small question, they SPRING/SUMMER 2021

ANIMAL

a new finding. “We discovered a new parasite – called a ‘nematode’ – that lives in the blood vessels and probably doesn’t cause them any harm, but it’s interesting because we’d never seen it before,” she says.

Fighting extinction also means being ready with the right resources and response during a catastrophic event. “There was a lot of involvement from Melbourne Zoo during the 2019–20 Black Summer Bushfires and a lot of fundraising around that,” says Dr McMeekin.

“With a warming climate, we’re only going to be faced with more bushfires, and a significant number of threatened species are impacted. It’s something everybody at Zoos Victoria wants to assist with, and thanks to the incredible

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Clockwise from top The team at Werribee Open Range Zoo perform a routine procedure on an Orange-bellied Parrot; an x-ray of an Australasian Grebe; a wombat about to have its teeth checked by a Veterinary Nurse.

IMAGES: JO HOWELL, MEGAN CROUCHER

don’t hesitate to ask us, which is wonderful because we often find out about conditions quite early on,” says Dr McMeekin.

Providing the best animal care often requires external collaboration. Dr Eden recalls the case of an injured koala named ‘Ernie’, brought to Werribee Open Range Zoo. “He’d been hit by a car and had a pretty serious broken bone in his right leg. We took him to U-Vet – the University of Melbourne Veterinary Hospital – to ask specialist surgeons to help us.” Ernie’s recovery took months of post-operative X-rays and assessments, performed by numerous veterinarians and wildlife carers. “There was a collaborative effort and it was all worth it when we released him,” says Dr Eden.

In the last financial year, Werribee Open Range Zoo saw 683 injured animals, Melbourne Zoo helped 845 and Healesville Sanctuary treated 1,992. Urban sprawl will likely result in even higher numbers in the future.

“Over the last six years, we’ve seen a tenfold increase in the number of animals that are brought to us. In the western suburbs of Melbourne, where there is rapidlyincreasing housing developments and loss of habitat, I think those numbers are going to continue increasing.”

Habitat loss is problematic not only for individual animals, but also for species.

Wildlife veterinarians play an important role in threatened species conservation, by providing medical expertise.

Healesville Sanctuary is currently the only institution in the world housing Critically Endangered Lowland Leadbeater’s Possums in captivity, and Dr Steventon’s residency research is helping fight their extinction.

Her research has studied their gut microbiome, historical health in captivity and reproductive status – which has resulted in

VETERINARIAN CARE

With a warming climate, we’re only going to be faced with more bushfires, and a significant number of threatened species are impacted.

DR BONNIE MCMEEKIN / ASSOCIATE VETERINARIAN

donations we received, we’re going to be able to keep doing that,” she says.

The generous donations that followed Black Summer enabled wildlife veterinarians to be seconded to work on the frontlines and is now being used to facilitate preparedness by increasing training. At Werribee Open Range Zoo, funding is supporting a collaborative project between Zoos Victoria and RSPCA Victoria to expand the wildlife hospital.

Wildlife medicine plays an important role in species conservation, which is crucial for the next generation.

“We’re treating animals that aren’t coping with their environments anymore. Our caseload is going to increase as our climate changes, and the needs of these animals is going to get more complex. That is quite daunting and any support to meet those needs is amazing,” says Dr Steventon.

THANK YOU Thank you to all donors to our recent campaign and throughout the year that support the work of the vets of Zoos Victoria. Zoos Victoria also gratefully acknowledges the Vizard Foundation for their support of the Veterinarian Residency program at Healesville Sanctuary.

HEAR FROM OUR VETS To hear more from our vets watch our recent Conservation Conversations webinar here bit.ly/3nZ0I1q Or watch them while they work with animals, here bit.ly/3bCFuRh

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A snapshot of giving

CONSERVATION PHILANTHROPY

Here’s how your support has helped us in the fight against extinction.

$10.9 million donated to the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund*

We reached some significant conservation milestones in 2021, including:

The breeding of 16 critically endangered

Tasmanian Devils

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1,380 critically

Started planting

Southern Corroboree Frogs released

as habitat for critically endangered

endangered

into the wild

15,000 shrubs

Helmeted Honeyeaters

DONATIONS

Most of Zoos Victoria’s donors are located in…

$425,000 was donated to the 2021 EOFY campaign specifically for veterinary needs

VICTORIA

1,300 donors are also Animal Adopters* and the top three animals adopted are…

Tigers

Snow Leopards

Orangutans

Over the past three years Zoos Victoria has received donations from more than 105 countries and territories.

167 people

confirming they have left a gift in their will to Zoos Victoria.

*As recorded at the end of the 2020/21 financial year

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PHILANTHROPY

The money is used for enrichment items, installing new puzzles and games...

ANDREA SMITH / PRECINCT COORDINATOR, TRAIL OF THE ELEPHANTS

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FUTURE HANDS

WHERE THERE’S A WILL Tracey Gaffney has left a gift in her will to support the elephants at Melbourne Zoo, but she is witnessing the positive effects that donations can have on the lives of the herd right now.

WORDS Georgia

Lejeune

IMAGE: JO HOWELL

T

he much-loved elephant herd at Melbourne Zoo is just one group of animals acting as ambassadors for their counterparts under threat in the wild. “People can come to the Zoo, they can learn about elephants, they can form that really important connection and they can take small steps to help protect them in the wild,” says Precinct Coordinator, Trail of the Elephants – Life Sciences, Andrea Smith.

Regular keeper talks, campaigns such as ‘Don’t Palm Us Off’ (educating people about habitat loss caused by the palm oil industry) and the opportunity to observe the elephants interacting with each other in their habitat all encourage people to contribute to conservation efforts.

Educational programs make a positive difference to the lives of the Melbourne Zoo herd and their relatives overseas, but the generous support of donors is essential. “It is expensive looking after elephants, so we’re really fortunate when there are donations and money that

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comes through to us,” says Andrea. “The money is used for enrichment items, installing new puzzles and games, and creating new ways to offer them food.

“I think people connect with the elephants because, being so big and unusual – they are an iconic species. They have a really long lifespan, the females live together in herds and look after the young and raise them together, and they are very maternal and caring,” says Andrea.

This emotional connection with the elephant herd inspired Tracey and Bernie Gaffney – following the example set by Tracey’s sister Kerry – to leave a gift in their will to Zoos Victoria. A regular visitor to the zoo since she was a child, Tracey has watched the welfare of the elephants improve over time and the positive influence that donor funding can have on their day-to-day lives.

“As kids, we were excited to go to Melbourne Zoo. It was big day out and we came down on the train, the red rattler, from Gippsland,” says Tracey.

“I think zoos are doing a much better job than 50 years ago. There’s so much more consideration SPRING/SUMMER 2021

given to developing enclosures that are more natural and provide more opportunities for the animals to use their instincts.”

Tracey’s mother, Merle, was a hard-working single mother whose generosity rubbed off on her three children. She was the first to create the family’s long-lasting connection with Zoos Victoria. “When we all left school, and she was no longer involved in the school-based volunteering that she’d been doing, she saw an ad in the paper about volunteering to be a guide at Melbourne Zoo. So, she applied and continued to come down on the train from Warragul and do her shift every second week for 18 years, up until she passed away,” says Tracey.

When Tracey and Bernie began researching organisations to include in their will, they realised that many wanted to recognise the gifts within the donor’s lifetime. “I wrote to each of the organisations and let them know that we’d made a decision to include them in our will and that they would be a beneficiary when we passed away,” says Tracey.

Tracey and Bernie are two of 167 people who are part of the Future Hands Fellowship at

Zoos Victoria – a group of people who have left a gift in their will. Their future gift allows the Gaffneys to see first-hand the positive impact of donor funding to the lives of the animals in Zoo Victoria’s care.

“I think they’re doing a marvellous amount of work in terms of extinction and conserving wildlife, from the Lord Howe Island Stick Insects to the elephants. The world would be a poorer place without animals,” says Tracey.

Donor funding also helps with habitat upgrades, including the elephant herd’s future move to their new facility at Werribee Open Range Zoo. “We really value any money that we can put towards continually improving all the enrichment items we currently have, and all the ways we’re able to offer stimulation to our elephants,” says Andrea. “It’s important that we can upgrade and add new things in because just like us, variety keeps their lives interesting and fulfilled.”

Above Asian Elephants at Melbourne Zoo; Tracey Gaffney, Zoos Victoria supporter.

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LEAVE A GIFT To learn more about Future Hands Fellowship, go to zoo.org.au/donate/future-hands-fellowship/

IMAGE: ALEX STORER

PHILANTHROPY

PARTNERS

ESTATES

INFLUENCER

Helen Myall and Alistair Firkin

Judith Landsberg and David Cash

Zoos Victoria acknowledges the generosity of those who have given via a gift in their Will.

Naomi Milgrom Foundation

Osaka Tennoji Zoo

Peter Lemon

Vizard Foundation

Stuart Webster

Caroline Liow

HERO

FIGHTER

Animals Australia

Ian Barker Gardens

In loving memory of Barbara Longmuir

Buffalo Zoo

M. Begg

Capital City of Prague

Jay Bethell and Peter Smart

Equity Trustees Animal Welfare Program

Eric and Julie Bird

Merle Carroll Assistance Fund Estate of Kevin Cowell Estate of Patrick Beaumont Forbes Estate of David Willam Ford Estate of Jean Frank Estate of Richard Gilmour-Smith HGK Bequest 1 – Equity Trustees Charitable Foundation Estate of Marion Isabel Jennings

BM Investments Pty Ltd

The Fox Family

Maxine Bowness

International Fund for Animal Welfare

Camp Australia

Limb Family Foundation Los Angeles Zoo

The McPhee Charitable Trust Melbourne Girls Grammar – Morris Hall In honour of Helen Anderson Miller Helen MacDougall in honour of John Seebeck

Debbie Carruthers

The Myer Foundation

The Cattermole Family

Pet.co.nz

Estate of John Patrick Kennedy

Sunraysia Foundation

Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden

Janice Pleydell

Estate of Betty Claire Lynch

CHAMPION

John Cochrane

Estate of Norma Verna Rebecca McLeish

Liz Sarrailhe

Allen & Unwin – Albert Street Books

Coote Family Lawyers

Shirley Sullivan

Estate of Clara Julia Oostergetel

Aussie Ark

Estate of Rodney Normal Opie

Mark and Carol Collins

Estate of Shirley Edith Poole

Columbus Zoo and Aquarium

PHILANTHROPIC PARTNERS

The Dyson Family

Zoos Victoria acknowledges the generosity of those who give via our Philanthropic Conservation Partners program, including those who give anonymously.

VISIONARY Bowness Family Foundation

Debbie Dadon AM DODO Foundation

SALT Catalyst

Texas State Aquarium

Fiji Aid Melbourne

The Tisch Family Biblical Zoo in Jerusalem

Finkel Foundation

Kate and Blaise Vinot

Alexander Gosling AM and Wirat Sukprem

Virginia Zoo

Simon and Christina Edelstein Marc and Karyn Fookes

Grey Street Primary (Traralgon) Lesley Griffin

Monica Grollo and Nick Whitby

Kenneth and Carole Hinchcliff

JMS Foundation

The Hooper Family

Allan Jones

Jost and Dorothee Kaiser

Prague Zoo

The Lin Huddleston Charitable Foundation

LEADER

Milwaukee County Zoo

Suzanne Kirkham

The Dyson Bequest

Mondelez Pty Ltd

Melody Ku and Jian An Lim

Sonia and Wayne Kent

ZooWorld, Panama City Beach, FL Zoos Victoria also acknowledges the generosity of those who give anonymously to support our conservation initiatives.

Zoos Victoria acknowledges the ongoing annual funding from the Victorian State Government.

Please visit our supporters page for further information: zoo.org.au/ donate/our-supporters/

ZV is published for Zoos Victoria by Hardie Grant Media HARDIE GRANT MEDIA: MANAGING DIRECTOR Nick Hardie-Grant ACCOUNT DIRECTOR Scott Elmslie ACCOUNT MANAGER Hannah Louey EDITOR Georgia Lejeune DESIGN Dallas Budde, Natalie Lachina PRINTER: Immij ZOOS VICTORIA: Angie Retallack, Samantha Dalton.

Zoos Victoria PO Box 74, Parkville Vic 3052 P 03 9340 2780 / F 03 9285 9390 E contact@zoo.org.au W zoo.org.au

Connect with us: Join the conversation on our social media channels. @ZoosVictoria on Twitter and Instagram.

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Cover: Southern Corroboree Frog.

(Illustration Phil Constantinesco/ The Illustration Room)

Printed on 100% recycled paper with vegetable-based inks. Zoos Victoria is a carbon neutral organisation.

SPRING/SUMMER 2021

zoo.org.au/donate