Animal lovers, wildlife experts, and other stakeholders have called for increased investment and other logistics support to zoological gardens across the country to avoid losing their research, revenue and recreational purposes.
They made the call in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abeokuta, Ibadan and Ilorin on Friday. They suggested different ways of preserving zoos from extinction and thereby making them alive and relevant.
Expensive, complex animal care
Prof. Sammy Sam-Wobo, Director, Federal University of Agriculture (FUNAAB) Zoo Park, urged an all-inclusive participation of stakeholders in the improvement of the country’s zoological gardens.
Sam-Wobo said that animal care was becoming expensive, hence the need for all animal lovers to be part of their care. “There should be an arrangement between the owners and friends of the zoos, including tourists and all other stakeholders to support and care for them.
“With reference to FUNAAB Zoo, we will appreciate a situation where the owners of the zoo, friends of t,he university, tourists and stakeholders come and support the management and maintenance of the zoo.
“Maintenance goes a long way; it involves the animal care, animal welfare, nutrition, feeding, animal health and even the environment,” he said.
The director, however, lamented the decline in the number of animals in the zoo, blaming the situation on paucity of funds. According to him, when animals lack adequate feeding or are improperly taken care of, they fall sick and die.
“We are lucky in FUNAAB Zoo because the institution runs a college of veterinary science, so the veterinary doctors come to do the work as part of their clinical training and community service for the system.
“In some other zoos where they don’t have such facilities, they have to pay for veterinary doctors, and if they cannot afford the payment, it becomes difficult and may lead to extinction or death of the animals,” he said.
He explained that the average number of animals in a zoo depended on the capacity of the zoo. “If you are talking of a very small zoo, you are talking about a minimum of 10 to 15 different species, and if you are talking about a medium or big-sized zoo, this depends on the financial capability of that particular zoo,” he said.
The zoo director disclosed the institution’s plan to build more enclosures and acquire more animals. He said the school was presently maintaining the animals in stock with a projection of getting more within the next three to four months.
Mr. Gideon Adanu, a lecturer at the Biology Department, Federal College of Education (FCE), Abeokuta, expressed displeasure over the management of zoological gardens in the country.
Adanu explained that for effective management of zoos in the country, the training and retraining of zoo workers should not be toyed with because of the difficulty and risk involved. “Most times, funding is not available to feed animals in the zoos; this is a major problem in the country.
“There is also the need for conservation of these animals and proper breeding programmes. The breeding programmes will not work if there are no specialists to ensure their continuity,” he said.
The lecturer emphasised that funding must be taken seriously and issues of corruption in the system tackled.
Mr. Asikhiaof Enahoro, the acting Manager, Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL) Wildlife Park in Abeokuta, affirmed the difficult task of zoo maintenance, especially in zoos with more carnivorous animals.
Enahoro, identified the feeding of carnivorous animals as a majo,r challenge facing wildlife parks, saying “It is very expensive to maintain”.
“At OOPL Wildlife Park, we depend solely on the entrance fees paid by visitors to feed our animals and execute other maintenance issues. Although, there are times when the funding is supported with donations from sources.
“Some of these external personnel and visitors willingly donate life meat, such as cow, ram, goat to feed these animals, and this has helped in the maintenance of the zoo,” he said.
Enahoro said Nigerians needed to be educated and made to be aware of the benefits of each animal to the ecosystem. This, he said, would encourage people to have passion for the endangered animals.
He disclosed that the OOPL Wildlife Park has over 100 animals with 30 different species, including the lion, python, ostrich, hyena, crocodile, vulture among others.
According to him, the number of animals are steadily increasing as they reproduce. “The zoo had two lions but now they are three, while the dairy cows, which were four, have increased to seven,” he said.
He called on the government to add value to courses dealing with the study of animals as most people stay away from studying them.
“I also urge the government at all levels to enforce laws to keep the animals safe by creating an enforcement agency that will enforce the punishment of anyone who intentionally kill any animal.
“The government should also help in subsidising the amount used in feeding the animals; it should be done in a way that there will be a discount for any licenced zoo that wants to buy life meat for feeding carnivorous animals,” he said.
Alhaji Kamaldeen Akintunde, Secretary-General, Ogun Muslim Council, called for an increased budgetary allocation for the effective running and development of zoos in the country.
Akintunde said organising capacity-building for zoological garden workers, including international support and cooperation, would go a long way in addressing some of the challenges of the country’s zoos.
In Oyo State, a community leader in Ibadan, Mr Idris Abdullah, regretted the decline in the number of wild animals in the zoos due to inadequate funding, old infrastructure and insufficient animal care.
Abdullah called on both the federal and state governments to partner with private sectors and create adequate awareness on the benefits of visiting zoological gardens and parks. He said this would go a long way in addressing some of the challenges facing zoological gardens.
Maltreatment of animals sin against God
An Islamic cleric, Malam Usman Zakariyah, emphasised the importance of loving and caring for animals,describing it as a sin against God to cage animals and not take good care of them.
He said that loving animals would at the end, translate to loving fellow human beings, thus promoting harmonious relationships in the society.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Culture and Tourism in Oyo State, Mr Wasiu Olatubosun, said the state government has intensified efforts to explore its tourist sites.
He said that the Gov. Seyi Makinde-led administration would sign a Memorandum of Understanding before the year ends with the investor of Agodi Gardens, Ibadan.
“This will help improve and develop Agodi Gardens to international standards where people from overseas can come to relax . Presently, there is nothing there that can attract tourists,” he said.
In Kwara, the University of Ilorin Zoological Gardens boasts of about 32 wild animals of different species, primarily catering for the research needs of the institution.
The Principal Curator of the zoo, Mr Kareem Olatunji, says the zoo, however, generates revenue for the institution as people visit for recreational purposes, especially during festive seasons.
According to Olatunji, the zoo, a popular destination for school children to learn about animals and nature, records an average 4,000 visitors in one month.
He explained that the zoo, established in 1978, was initially part of the Biological Science unit of the university before it was changed to a zoological garden.
“It was initially at the mini campus of the university before it was later moved to the permanent site of the institution,” he said.
According to him, the departments of Plant Biology, Microbiology and Zoology utilise the gardens for scientific research purposes. The curator disclosed the steady pace of the animals, increasing in number at a time, while losing them to death at another. He, however, said the zoo was at the stage of replacing more animals.
He said the zoo was of utmost importance to the state and the country as it help to control climate change and the absorption of Carbon dioxide, serving as research and recreation grounds.
Animals should enjoy their natural habitat
Stakeholders in zoology and wildlife from Bauchi have identified incessant conflict between humans and animals over control of forest resources as a major threat exposing zoological gardens and wildlife to extinction.
The stakeholders including zoologists and wildlife conservationists said practical measures were imperative to protect zoos and wildlife from debilitating effects of human activities.
They spoke in in Bauchi, Dutse and Gombe while responding to a survey by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the poor state of zoological gardens in the country.
Mr Stephen Yashi, a Bauchi-based conservationist, said it was unfortunate that poor management of Yankari Game Reserve and other parks resulted in a drastic decline in wildlife population in the state.
He said that though there are established zoos in Bauchi State, they are endowed with a prolific abundance of wildlife. According to him, wildlife and animal species are prone to extinction due to poaching and other harmful human activities.
Yashi, who is a former Director of the Bauchi State Ministry of Forestry, alleged that host communities were conniving with poachers to hunt elephants, thereby depleting its population.
“Yankari Game Reserve, once home to over 300 elephants, has seen a significant decline in its population due to poaching. It reduced to about 100 and 150 individual elephants now,” he said.
Also, Ibrahim Yusuf, an ex-staff of the Yankari Games Reserve, said that the lion population was facing extinction in the reserve. “The lion population in Yankari game reserve is critically endangered, with only a few individuals remaining, due to poaching and habitat loss,” he said
According to Yusuf, Yankari Reserve is one of the biggest wildlife parks in West Africa, adding that the exact number of wild animals fluctuate due to seasonal migration.
Corroborating earlier opinions, Dr. Zubairu Musa, a veterinarian, attributed the decline of animal populations in the parks to climate change, overgrazing, and disease outbreaks.
“Climate change, overgrazing, and disease transmission from domestic animals have further threatened the wildlife in Yankari Game Reserve, exacerbating the decline of already vulnerable species”.
Reacting, Nasiru Yusuf, General Manager of Bauchi State Tourism and Yankari Game Reserve, said that efforts were underway to protect the engendered wildlife.
He said the Bauchi government was working in partnership with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), to co-manage Yankari Game Reserve, implementing measures to reduce poaching and protect wildlife habitats.
“The government would be strengthening anti-poaching patrols, habitat restoration, and wildlife monitoring. We are promoting community engagement by educating local communities on conservation benefits and involving them in park management,” he said.
Similarly, the Jigawa government has recently transferred ownership of the Baturiya Bird Sanctuary to the Federal Government to enhance effective management, project wildlife and habitats.
Gov. Umar Namadi said during the handing-over ceremony of the park that Hadejia Wetlands, often referred to as an international bird sanctuary, was home to approximately 400 species of migratory birds and ambphibian from Europe and Australia.
Namadi said the measure would facilitate upgrading and effective management of the park for sustainable developments.
He recalled that the Hadejia Wetlands in the 70s hosted a variety of wildlife species and ponds, rich in aquatics, such as fish, crocodiles, and monitor lizards, among others.
He said the wetlands embodied diverse flora and fauna, both of the Sahel and Sudan Savannah, comprised of predominant and diverse animal species.
Sabo explained that the reserves vegetation varies according to locations, including Red pata monkeys, baboons, Dalmatian Hyenas, Grey duiker, Warthogs, Jackals, and snake species, including rock python, among others.
On his part, Dr Amobi Maduabuchi, a Gombe-based zoologist, advocated adequate funding to ensure effective management of the zoos and parks in the country.
He attributed the decline in animal populations to poor maintenance culture, and the high cost associated with nurturing and caring for the animals.
He said that government’s lack of emphasis on the importance of maintaining the facilities left many zoos in disrepair. “Take lions, for example, a single lion requires a full goat to feed every day. Even feeding them once a week is a major financial burden, especially when you have several carnivorous animals to cater for.
“Without adequate funding, these animals suffer from malnutrition, and their populations are dwindling. And, this is due to government’s inaction and neglect, adding that government’s support was crucial to reversing the trend,” he said.
Maduabuchi stressed the need for improved investments in wildlife conservation, and a good maintenance culture.
“Simply allocating funds is not enough; there must be a commitment to ensure their proper upkeep”, he said.
While highlighting the importance of public enlightenment, Maduabuchi urged Nigerians to recognise the potential for zoos to promote tourism and contribute to National economic growth.
“In East Africa, wildlife is central to their economy. Nigeria should be in that league, but we’re getting nothing from our wildlife”.
Maduabuchi further shared his experience with the Kano Zoo, saying: “In 2009, as a student, I did my industrial attachment there. During festive periods, the zoo generated N1 million per day for one week.
But when I visited in 2019 with my students, I was heartbroken. The zoo was nearly in ruins, a shadow of its former self,” he said.
He said zoos and wildlife parks in Nigeria should have been thriving institutions capable of bringing in foreign currency.
He said urgent action was needed to save Nigeria’s wildlife and zoos from further decline “Without significant investment and a cultural shift towards proper maintenance, these important institutions risk disappearing,” he warned.
According to him, zoos and wildlife are valuable sources of both ecological balance and economic growth, blaming that our current performance in managing zoos is dismal. He stressed that the country must act now before it’s too late.
Similarly, report from Benue indicated that the zoo was fast deteriorating and needed adequate funds and improved feeding for the animals to enable them to survive.
Mr. Gwaza Ayu, the zoo manager, said during an interview with the the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)in Markurdi that urgent action should be taken to strengthen it.
According to him, there is a need for a clinic and a consultant who can come for a regular check-up and deworming of the animals.
He said the zoo was initially under the Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism, but the previous government handed it to Benue State University (BSU), adding that it was underfunded resulting in death of some animals.
“When BSU took over the running of the zoo, it could not manage it well and this led to the death of most of the animals because there was no adequate feeding and health care for them,”
“Some of them died for lack of deworming and infections and the animals became fewer by the day,” Ayu said. (NAN)
