An ambitious new strategy has been launched by a wildlife charity which aims to reverse the decline of at least 50 species over the next eight years.
Conservation charity the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) has also pledged to significantly increase the number of people and communities protecting nature.
Chief executive of the charity David Field said: “With more than a million species at risk of extinction, our planet’s life support system is in crisis and the time to act is now.
“The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland has an important role to play because our teams have incredible expertise in conservation science and animal care.
Field, who has worked in zoos and conservation for more than 30 years, added: “A perfect example is the ground-breaking Saving Wildcats project we are leading at Highland Wildlife Park, working with national and international partners to restore Scotland’s critically endangered wildcat population by breeding and releasing wildcats into carefully selected locations in the Cairngorms National Park.
“Our pledge is to reverse the decline of at least 50 species by 2030, including wildcats, pine hoverflies and pond mud snails in Scotland. We will also develop plans to protect other native Scottish species.
The RZSS plan also aims to “create stronger connections with nature for more than a million people” and enhance communities’ ability to better protect nature across the world.
Field said the approach by RZSS recognises the vital role zoos have in strengthening communities. He said: “Nature needs us all more than ever and stronger communities have a greater capacity to care for wildlife.
“Zoos are in a unique position to help people realise the mental and physical health and wellbeing benefits of being close to wildlife.
“This is why we are pledging to enable more than 100 communities to better protect nature. These will be communities in our zoos, including our members and volunteers, in Scotland and where we work around the world.
“Together, we can help create a world where nature is protected, valued and loved.”
RZSS owns Edinburgh Zoo and Highland Wildlife Park. Field said that the Zoos “are our gateways to the natural world” enabling the public to experience wildlife in person. He said: “This very important because few people will ever have the hugely expensive luxury of seeing animals like giraffes, sloths, and polar bears in the wild.
“Through our zoos and our outreach programmes, we are going to create deeper connections with nature for more than a million people, which we will be able to measure to demonstrate our impact."
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here