Meeting Mark Stanley Price

[Guest guest]

*Hi,*

* Dr Mark Stanley Price, former director of the Durrell Wildlife

Conservation Trust in Jersey, was in the Wildlife Trust of India office

today in NOIDA and I met him. He has possibly done more singlehandedly to

save the Arabian Oryx from extinction than any other person alive. It was

good to meet someone with a connection to Jersey Zoo since he has been at

the forefront of zoo conservation initiatives. I interviewed him in 2004 and

have attached a transcript, it may interest some of you. He has also written

a comprehensive book called 'Animal Re-introductions: The Arabian Oryx in

Oman' published by Cambridge University Press in 1989(out of print now).*

* Trust the New Year is treating everyone kindly.*

* Regards and best wishes,*

**

* *

*THE MAN WHO SAVED THE UNICORN

Unicorns are creatures in fables and myths but the Arabian Oryx is an animal

that resembles it very closely in today's world. An antelope with

spiralling horns, it is an extraordinarily beautiful creature. Found in the

Arabian deserts it was faced with extinction in the sixties and the

seventies. The modern day unicorn would have vanished. Certainly. But for

Dr. Mark Stanley-Price, a scientist who has single-handedly done more to

salvage this animal from vanishing forever than anyone else.

Presently the Executive director of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust,

Dr. Mark Stanley Price has 25 years of hands-on experience with running

conservation projects in Africa and Asia. He was one of the most influential

people involved in reintroducing the Arabian Oryx to the wild in Oman.

Considered to be one of the important thinkers in international

conservation. Dr. Stanley Price elaborated the principles of releasing zoo

animals to the wild.

The possibilities of zoo animals being released to the wild are very

considerable according to Stanley Price. They depend on the species

involved, the threats it is facing in the wild and the location of the zoo.

He says that simply maintaining large numbers of animals in captivity for

release should not be the role for today's zoos. Instead, zoos should have a

specific focus on how to manage animals in a way that will help their wild

cousins.

Data from researchers, including Stanley-Price's own, suggest that zoos have

not been the major contributors of animals for release programmes. But he

insists that reintroduction should not be the only reason for keeping

animals in zoos. Captive animals can be of immense public benefit and

awareness, according to the man now responsible for a lot of what goes on in

Gerald Durrell's famed Jersey Zoo.

The Arabian Oryx project has now been questioned since many animals have

been poached back for collections. Zoo critics allege that zoos did not have

a sufficient commitment for the animals when they were released. Some

organisations have openly challenged the whole conservation ethic of the

project. Stanley-Price is not willing to blame zoos for the present

situation though. " To say that the project is in difficulty due to the lack

of commitment of zoos does not quite get the flavour of the oryx

reintroduction correctly. " he says.

He mentions that the initiative and responsibility for bringing the oryx

back

to Oman lay solely with the Government of Oman, which went into the

background of the wild extirpation and possibilities for restoration

extremely thoroughly over a period of some 5 years. Every problem was

foreseen and explored under the conditions of that time.

Having been intimately involved with the project. Dr. Stanley Price points

out the sociologically dynamic nature of West Asian society. " There is

considerablewealth and fast developments and changes to traditional life

styles. It is changes in civil society within Oman and the region that is

causing

the oryx's present problems. But, these are well known within Oman, and

I am confident that they will be overcome. " , he adds.

There have been well documented cases of captive animals spreading disease

to wild animals when released. Dr. Stanley Price admits this but says that

the issue is not whether the standards set by zoos are foolproof. " Just as

hospitals are increasingly felt to be a place in which to pick up

infections, so zoos have to be diligent to ensure first rate hygiene and

bio-security " , states Dr. Stanley-Price. He advises greater caution and

prudence for zoos aiming to reintroduce animals.

Reintroduction of zoo animals have not been many and quite a lot have failed

and remain controversial to this day. As one of the acknowledged pioneers of

the reintroduction of animals, Mark Stanley-Price believes that Golden Lion

Tamarin(a Brazilian species of small monkey) project has been the most

successful one. Apart from helping to increase the number of wild animals,

the project has also engendered a strong conservation ethic in the people of

Brazil. New habitat for the monkeys has also been bought by zoos, including

Jersey Zoo directed by Dr. Stanley-Price himself.

One of the most stringent criticisms of Western zoos is that they keep

Asian and African animals for show without considering the destruction of

their own native fauna. Also that these zoos in the West are too keen to

reintroduce animals to Third World countries when they have wiped out all

their animals. So a Western zoo preaching about releasing tigers and lions

to Asia and Africa is considered to be hyprocritical considering Britain has

no wolves and bears and is unlikely to welcome their return. Would Western

zoos accept it if Asian and African zoos wanted to release bears and wolves

to UK And USA? Dr. Stanley-Price challenges the notion : " I have not heard

of any proposals to reintroduce lions or tigers from western zoos into Asia

and Africa. I don't think the situation warrants this and it would be a

high risk option " . He however adds that there would be nothing wrong in

terms of logic and symmetry if Asian and African zoos wanted to reintroduce

wolves and bears in the West providing they have the correct species.

Reintroduction of animals is a tremendous conservation tool to save species

according to him. For a person who has been involved in some of the world's

most high profile animal conservation projects, Dr. Stanley Price is quick

to mention that reintroduction programmes are complex and take a long time

to be designed and implemented.

The final message of the saviour of the unicorn is : " My experience is

that the return of a species to its homeland (usually necessary because

there are no individuals in thecountry even in zoos) is a tremendous

publicity coup for responsible conservation, with multiple appeals and

benefits for conservation and environmental awareness. "

 

 

 

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