massive blow. Military soldiers assigned to protect the oil industry
have significantly increased poaching levels in the addax’s last remaining haven.
Dr. Jean-Christophe Vié, Deputy
Director of IUCN Global Species Programme said, “We are witnessing in
real time the extinction of this iconic
and once plentiful species. Without
immediate intervention, the addax
will lose its battle for survival in the
face of illegal, uncontrolled poaching and the loss of its habitat. On
behalf of all concerned parties we
are recommending a set of emergency measures to help save the addax from imminent extinction.”
The emergency measures proposed were to increase Niger’s
ability to monitor and protect its
remaining population of addax,
prevent poaching by soldiers, and
reinforce the existing addax population through the management of
assurance populations in human
care around the world.
The Louisville Zoo will play a role
in these measures as we participate
in the addax’s Species Survival Plan,
a coordinated breeding program
working to improve the genetic diversity of managed animal populations. Addax have been part of the
Zoo’s collection since our opening
year in 1969 with 53 successful
addax births at the Zoo including 26
males and 27 females.
The proposed measures for addax
have proven successful with other
hoof stock species. This summer,
the scimitar-horned oryx was
released into the remnant wild in
Chad with the help of the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD) in
collaboration with the government
of Chad.
In the past, more than a million
scimitar-horned oryx ranged across
North Africa from the Atlantic to
the Nile River. However, the species
had disappeared from the wild by
the 1990s because of uncontrolled
hunting and loss of habitat. This
year was the first in almost 30 years
any oryx had been in the country.
This reintroduction was made
possible through partnerships
between accredited Zoos, National
Zoological Park Conservation Re-
Above: addax Henri
and mother Roxanne.
Opposite top: Top Henri
Opposite bottom: An adult male addax
search Centre, Fossil Rim, governmental entities and environmental
organizations working across multiple disciplines. It was an exciting
and gratifying step for all involved,
obtained after many years of hard
work.
An equally tough road is still
ahead for the addax.
Don’t miss the chance to see this
amazing species at your Zoo. You
can see Henri on exhibit daily in
the addax exhibit, located near the
bongo and elephant exhibits in the
Africa zone.
Inside your Zoo
... and beyond
The plight of the Saharan addax is
dire, but there is still hope! The help of
zoos made the reintroduction of scimitarhorned oryx back into their native habitat possible.
Zoos could similarly be the hope for addax survival.
Please support your Zoo and AZA-accredited
zoos everywhere as we partner with the Sahara
Conservation Fund to restore and safeguard addax
in the Sahara.
Louisville Zoo Trunkline • Fall 2016 • 5