Brevard Zoo Membership Newsletter Fall 2019 | Page 12

Giant Armadillo Project Kevin Schafer have contributed more than $110,000 to conservation projects in this region since 2001. The Brazilian Pantanal is the largest wetland habitat in the tropics, spanning more than 42 million acres. Giant Armadillo Project (GAP) uses very high frequency and GPS transmitters to keep tabs on giant armadillos and giant anteaters. GAP researchers monitor the movements and activity patterns of their subjects and occasionally visit them in the field to conduct health assessments and collect biological samples. Since 2013, GAP has received over $15,000 from the Zoo to use in training highway workers, working with students and tracking more than 70 giant anteaters! Lowland Tapir Conservation Initiative (LTCI) champions tapirs as conservation ambassadors in the Pantanal. Their multifaceted approach encompasses research, habitat preservation, educational outreach, ecotourism initiatives and the development of roadkill mitigation plans. LTCI has received more than $5,000 in Q4C funding. Wildlife rehabilitation (like the work conducted in Brevard County at Florida Wildlife Hospital & Sanctuary and our very own Sea Turtle Healing Center) is an unfortunate necessity wherever humans and animals intersect. Although most of the patients admitted to these local facilities were inadvertently orphaned or injured by human activity or 12 Brevard Zoo News | Fall 2019 | www.brevardzoo.org acts of nature, Guatemalan nonprofit ARCAS American projects at the primarily takes Q4C voting station, and in animals confiscated from two partner ornizations will the illegal wildlife be selected to receive funding trade. ARCAS for a three year period. has received over $10,000 from the Zoo since 2007, using these funds to help create central offices, a wildlife rescue and holding center, and an environmental education and training facility. . . . you’ll see more Latin Our grants have benefitted many more organizations and species in Latin America, such as Andean cats in Bolivia, jaguars in Mexico, spectacled bears in Peru and Roatán spiny-tailed iguanas in Honduras—and that’s just the beginning. Starting next year, you’ll see more Latin American projects at the Q4C voting station, and two partner organizations will be selected to receive funding for a three-year period. Remember, five dollars from each membership and 25 cents from each Zoo admission benefits Q4C. It’s your support that enables us to make a difference for wildlife around the world, so thank you!