CZECH ZOOS OFFER TO HELP ASIAN RHINOS

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Czech zoos join European Save the Rhino Campaign

 

PRAGUE, Dec 15 (CTK) - Czech zoos have recently joined the European Save the

Rhino Campaign launched by the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria at

the beginning of September in support of the conservation and survival of

rhinos in the wild.

 

Fewer than 18,000 rhinos live in the wild and only about 60 Javan Rhinos,

the rarest rhino species, have survived. At the beginning of the 19th

century, there were about two million rhinos on the planet while at present

four in five rhino species face the threat of extinction.

 

The zoo in Ostrava, north Moravia, has placed information about the campaign

that will run till the end of August 2006 on its website, the Prague zoo

organised a press conference on the topic on Wednesday, and zoos in Brno,

south Moravia, Liberec, north Bohemia and Jihlava, south Moravia, have also

joined the campaign.

 

European Rhino Day will be marked on May 1, 2006.

 

The main goal of the European Save the Rhino campaign is to support at least

13 selected rhino conservation projects in Africa and Asia. The campaign

that aims to create awareness of the threats that rhinos face in the wild,

is accompanied by money raising events, the goal of which is to collect

350,000 euros in support of the selected projects.

 

The money will go, for instance, to Kenya to purchase equipment to monitor

rhino populations and finance an educational programme, and to Zimbabwe, for

the purchase of a crane to re- settled rhinos. In Indonesia, the collected

donations will be used to reinforce security patrols monitoring Javan and

Sumatran rhinos. Two security patrols are to be established in Malasya.

 

vv/dr/ms

 

This story copyright 2005 CTK Czech News Agency.