Amsterdam’s Artis zoo faces an uncertain fate amid pushes to close it in the name of animal welfare.
The long-running zoo has welcomed Amsterdammers and tourists since 1838. However, when city councillors return after summer break, Artis’s head could be on the chopping block.
A fish out of water
The Partij voor de Dieren (Party for the Animals) is bringing the zoo’s existence up for debate, and academics agree.
One of the main arguments is that some animals simply need more space than a city zoo can afford.
“Elephants are such large animals that such a small space greatly hinders them from exercising natural behaviour”, Maarten Reesink, teacher of animal studies at the UvA, tells De Telegraaf.
“Some other animals have a fine life in the zoo, perhaps better than in the wild. Smaller prey do not need much space, and in Artis there is no danger of predators. There’s not that much wrong,” he explains.
Other animals in Artis are kept for, quite simply, the gezelligheid. Sea lions exist perfectly fine in the outside world, swimming and hunting over large distances. In Artis, they are contained in small enclosures and limited pools.
The future of Artis
While the zoo could face closure, it could also face renewal.
The future Artis might act as a reception location for animals that can’t live in the wild. For example, the zoo already receives vultures, which can no longer survive in the outside world.
However, whether zoos will be used for breeding programs in the future is another question. Behavioural biologist Claudia Vinke from Utrecht University points to the risk of inbreeding and an inability to return to nature later.
The Party for Animals is now discussing what Artis could look like in the future. Yet, public support for change could be limited after a recent survey found that only 49% of the Dutch population think some animals no longer belong in the zoo.
A report on the zoo in the future is expected at the end of this year.
Do you think zoos should be preserved or shut down? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
I remember going to this zoo nearly every week when my father was stationed in Amsterdam in de seventies and have great memories of the zoo. I loved it there and would feel very sorry if it closes.
Sure it might be fun to visit a zoo and see animals but it is for sure more important to let the animals live in their own habitat. I cannot understand how people still think it is ok to have zoos, especially in these “modern” countries.
Most zoos do an amazing job in many breeding programmes is the any possibility of it moving to a larger site, maybe just outside of Amsterdam?. Younge people learn about animals in zoos, many cant afford to see them in the wild this is the only way for them to see them.
Would be such a shame to have to find home for all the larger animals especially.. 🤞 something can be done .. Could Holland have a zoo like Whipsnade Zoo in the Uk, its a large open zoo with lots if large enclosures or maybe a safari oark, like Woburn or Longleat also UK??