essay examples zoos

Essay on Zoo for Students and Children

500 words essay on zoo.

The world is a huge place to see. It consists of so many living organisms that it is impossible to see each and every one of them. Especially for human beings, who are fascinated very much by animals. For the same reasons, zoos were created so that humans can interact better with animals.

In other words, a zoo is a facility that has animals, birds, and reptiles of all kinds. They are confined to space where they are given food and medical facilities. The government has given strict guidelines to maintain a zoo. This is done keeping in mind the animal’s safety. In addition, zoos are made breeding grounds for animals to protect their species.

Benefits of Zoo

Zoos were made to bring wildlife closer to humans. It gave humans a better and up-close view of them. This allows various researchers and scientists to note the behavioral pattern of the animals. It helps them in their studies and discover new things.

In addition, zoos are a great source of entertainment for kids. They love visiting zoos and interacting with animals. This helps them learn practical knowledge about the animal. It also gives them exposure to wildlife and widens their knowledge.

Furthermore, zoos give us easy access to rare animals. Had it not been for zoos, we would have never been able to see what some animals looked like. We enjoy their behavior and it also creates awareness about the extinction of the rare species.

Similarly, zoos are a safe breeding ground for animals. They ensure the animal breeds so they never go extinct. This helps in creating a good balance. Moreover, the zoos ensure the animals get all the nutrition in their bodies to lead a healthy life. This is beneficial as the animal may not get guaranteed meals in the forests.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Disadvantages of Zoo

While the zoo is a great place for entertainment, it is also very exploitive. It takes advantage of the poor animals to make a profit off them. The zoos keep animals in very bad conditions. It takes unethical methods just to create revenue.

Furthermore, zoos are very unfair to animals. They take the animals out of their natural habitats just for the sake of human entertainment. Why would the animals be put into cages as humans want them to? They are voiceless creatures who are being forced to live in poor conditions. Imagine putting humans into cages so animals could come to see them. It sounds inhumane the other way around but not when we do the same to animals.

Most importantly, zoos do not take proper care of exotic animals. They bring them over in their facility despite knowing that they cannot survive in that climate. Some zoos do not take enough precautionary measures to keep the animals safe. This has resulted in so many deaths of animals that it seems cruel.

In short, though zoos are very helpful to humans and animals to an extent. They must be monitored constantly to ensure the animals are safe. The unethical zoos must be shut down at once to prevent any further loss of animals.

FAQs on Zoo

Q.1 List the advantages of Zoo

A.1 Zoos bring the wildlife close to humans. It helps researchers study them closely and discover new things. It protects rare species and provides a safe breeding ground for them as well.

Q.2 How are zoos harmful to animals?

A.2 Zoos are very harmful to animals. They take them out of their natural habitat for human entertainment. They make them stay in poor conditions due to which they also lose their life and get infections.

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Essay Samples on Zoo

Ethical concerns: disadvantages of keeping animals in zoos.

Zoos have long been a source of fascination and entertainment for people of all ages. However, behind the veneer of entertainment and education lies a complex ethical dilemma. While zoos play a role in conservation and education, they also raise significant concerns regarding animal welfare,...

• Animal Welfare

Advantages of Keeping Animals in Zoos: Conservation and Education

Zoos have long been a source of fascination and learning for people of all ages. While the ethical considerations of keeping animals in captivity are widely debated, there are significant advantages to maintaining animals in zoos. These institutions play a vital role in conservation efforts,...

• Wildlife Conservation

Why Are Zoos Bad For Animals

There are many opinions about zoos. Some think they are good and others think they are horrible investments. Zoos are good because they provide protection against the species that are going extinct. They are also good because the provide an educational resource. The last reason...

Zoos Should Be Abolished: Animals Should Not Be Kept In Zoos

Animals are a beauty of nature. They have their own personalities, feelings, and interests, yet we still take them prisoner, throw them into tiny cages that are nothing like their natural habitat and leave them there to suffer just to make money. These horrific “tiny...

• Animal Cruelty
• Animal Ethics

Animal Cruelty And Why Animals Should Not Be Kept In Zoos

Until recently, the existence of zoos in our society was never something which we thought twice about. Zoos were widely accepted as educational and entertaining institutions. Children, and adults, love seeing animals, and a visit to the zoo has always been something we look forward...

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Role Of Zoos In Preservation Of Animal Species

Have you ever been to a place where a variety of animals are separated into different areas and having their own little spaces? People captured animals from different parts of the world and confined them to narrow places in order to create a place called...

Analysis Of Business Values And Strategies Of Zoo Victoria

Accessibility of Information With the invent of technology, online information has become easily accessible. The Vision, Mission and the values of Zoos Victoria are clearly mentioned on the website of the company. After opening the company’s website, different sections are available which clearly explains the...

• Strategic Planning

Analysis Of The Controversial Topic Of Zoo Ethics

One of the most controversial cases that has sparked huge debate over zoos had to do with a single gorilla. On May 28th, 2016, shots fired at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden grew to cause major waves throughout the world. After a 4 year...

Reasons Behind the High Research Value of Monkeys and Other Primates

For many years, primate species such as monkeys, chimpanzees, and gorillas have been some of the most popular areas of research. These three groups of animals are not part of a larger group, as chimpanzees and gorillas are the only ones that are part of...

The Arguments For and Against Zoo Building

I believe that everyone has been to or heard of a zoo before. People can see many animals from all over the world, animals that appeared in books or Television show are all in front of you. Isn’t it very wonderful to have zoos in...

Consider the Elephant: The Predicament of Captivity

It was the middle of another bustling day around the office, and I had already managed to douse myself in burning coffee. “Great!” I thought to myself, “It is my second week as a correspondent for Time Magazine, and I am already making a fool...

Analysis of Negotiating About Pandas For the San Diego Zoo Case

In the Negotiating About Pandas For the San Diego Zoo case, Douglas Myers, the zoo’s executive director, is involved an exceedingly difficult negotiation process to procure the long-term loan of two giant pandas from China. Although the zoo has previously loaned two giant pandas for...

Positive And Negative Aspects Of Keeping Animals In Zoos

I remember when I was 10 years old, I have a fun memory of going to the zoo with my family during the school holiday. The magnificent species in the zoo had surprised my view of the world. The birds, Orangutan, even the elephants, and...

Best topics on Zoo

1. Ethical Concerns: Disadvantages of Keeping Animals in Zoos

2. Advantages of Keeping Animals in Zoos: Conservation and Education

3. Why Are Zoos Bad For Animals

4. Zoos Should Be Abolished: Animals Should Not Be Kept In Zoos

5. Animal Cruelty And Why Animals Should Not Be Kept In Zoos

6. Role Of Zoos In Preservation Of Animal Species

7. Analysis Of Business Values And Strategies Of Zoo Victoria

8. Analysis Of The Controversial Topic Of Zoo Ethics

9. Reasons Behind the High Research Value of Monkeys and Other Primates

10. The Arguments For and Against Zoo Building

11. Consider the Elephant: The Predicament of Captivity

12. Analysis of Negotiating About Pandas For the San Diego Zoo Case

13. Positive And Negative Aspects Of Keeping Animals In Zoos

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100 Zoo Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Inside This Article

Zoos are fascinating places that offer a unique opportunity to observe and learn about a wide variety of animals from all over the world. If you're tasked with writing an essay about zoos, you might be struggling to come up with a topic that is both interesting and informative. To help you out, here are 100 zoo essay topic ideas and examples that you can use as inspiration for your next assignment:

• The ethical implications of keeping animals in zoos
• The role of zoos in conservation efforts
• The impact of zoos on animal behavior
• The history of zoos and how they have evolved over time
• The benefits of zoos for education and research
• The controversy surrounding captive breeding programs in zoos
• The importance of zoos in preserving endangered species
• The challenges of managing a zoo and caring for its animals
• The role of zoos in promoting awareness of wildlife conservation issues
• The impact of zoos on local communities and economies
• The role of zoos in promoting animal welfare and ethics
• The debate over whether zoos should exist in the modern world
• The cultural significance of zoos in different societies
• The impact of climate change on zoos and their animal populations
• The role of zoos in public education and outreach programs
• The challenges of balancing conservation efforts with visitor experiences in zoos
• The impact of captivity on animal behavior and well-being in zoos
• The role of zoos in promoting environmental awareness and sustainability
• The ethics of using animals in zoo entertainment shows and performances
• The impact of zoos on biodiversity and ecosystem health
• The role of zoos in promoting animal rights and welfare legislation
• The impact of zoo closures and budget cuts on animal populations
• The challenges of reintroducing captive-bred animals into the wild
• The role of zoos in supporting local wildlife conservation efforts
• The benefits of zoos for public health and well-being
• The impact of zoos on visitor attitudes towards wildlife conservation
• The role of zoos in promoting sustainable tourism practices
• The challenges of managing invasive species in zoos
• The impact of zoo design and architecture on animal welfare
• The role of zoos in promoting cultural exchange and understanding
• The benefits of zoos for scientific research and discovery
• The impact of zoo accreditation programs on animal welfare standards
• The challenges of breeding endangered species in captivity
• The role of zoos in promoting animal enrichment and mental stimulation
• The ethics of using animals in zoo breeding programs
• The impact of zoos on local ecosystems and biodiversity
• The role of zoos in promoting public awareness of wildlife trafficking
• The benefits of zoos for educating children about conservation
• The challenges of managing a zoo during a pandemic
• The impact of zoo closures on animal welfare and conservation efforts
• The role of zoos in promoting sustainable food and waste management practices
• The ethics of using animals in zoo education programs
• The impact of zoos on wildlife populations in surrounding areas
• The challenges of managing zoo populations and genetics
• The role of zoos in promoting animal welfare legislation
• The benefits of zoos for promoting public engagement with wildlife
• The impact of zoos on local economies and tourism
• The role of zoos in promoting wildlife rehabilitation and release programs
• The challenges of managing zoo populations in the face of climate change
• The ethics of using animals in zoo research and experimentation
• The impact of zoos on animal behavior and social dynamics
• The role of zoos in promoting public awareness of wildlife conservation issues
• The benefits of zoos for promoting sustainable tourism practices

With these 100 zoo essay topic ideas and examples, you should have plenty of inspiration to get started on your next assignment. Whether you're interested in the ethical implications of keeping animals in zoos, the role of zoos in conservation efforts, or the impact of zoos on biodiversity and ecosystem health, there's sure to be a topic that piques your interest. Happy writing!

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• Sample Essays

In this IELTS Zoo Essay you have to discuss whether you think zoos are cruel and should be shut down or whether they are useful as they protect some wild animals.

Essays on zoos have appeared in the IELTS test before and this was a question that was recently in the test.

Some people think that zoos are all cruel and should be closed down. Others however believe that zoos can be useful in protecting wild animals.

Discuss both opinions and give your own opinion.

Understanding the Question

You must always read the question carefully and note if there is anything restricting the topic.

You have to discuss both sides of the argument and with this zoo essay question it would be very easy to read it and then simply write about the benefits and drawbacks of zoos.

But look at this bit carefully:

• Others however believe that zoos can be useful in protecting wild animals .

One of the arguments is specifically about protecting animals. So when you discuss the second argument you must be careful not to just write generally about the advantage of zoos. 

You have to focus on how they may protect wild animals . So when you brainstorm your ideas for the zoo essay, you should be thinking about:

• why animals need protecting and
• how zoos can help with this 

And in your other body paragraph you would need to explain why they are also seen as cruel. 

And of course you must remember to give your own opinion. In this essay, the author makes it clear at the beginning that they support the closing down of zoos. 

The opinion you decide on though is of course your choice.

Zoo Essay Sample

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.

Write about the following topic:

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own experience or knowledge.

Write at least 250 words.

Zoo Essay Model Answer

Zoos remain popular places for people to visit for entertainment and to learn about wild animals. Although some people are of the opinion that zoos can provide a sanctuary for endangered animals and so should be kept open, I believe that the cruelty that animals suffer outweighs this benefit, and that they should be shut down.

These days, animals are under threat from humans in many ways, seen for example in the way that their habitats are being destroyed through the cutting down of rain forests, or through poaching. Following on from this, the argument is that zoos can protect some of these animals that are under threat. The reason is that they are in a safe environment managed by trained staff who can ensure the animals are looked after and can produce offspring. There are examples of successes in this respect, such as with Pandas, which have been endangered for many years but have been protected.

However, there are more convincing arguments for why zoos should be shut down. Firstly, even though some species are under threat, there are lots of animals which do not fall into this category and who are there just for the entertainment of visitors. While it may be fun and educational to see them, animals are not meant to be caged, and their distress can often be seen in the way many of them pace back and forwards all day. Not only this, if the prime reason of zoos is to protect animals, this could be done in other environments such as wild life parks where the animals have more freedom.

In conclusion, animals should be protected but this does not have to be in zoos. Zoos are cruel to animals, not similar enough to their natural habitat, and they should be closed down. 

(299 Words)

Band scores are given for task response, coherence and cohesion, lexis (vocabulary) and grammatical range and accuracy. 

This zoo essay would get a good score for task response as it fully answers the question by discussing both opinions and giving a personal opinion. Ideas are also well explained, extended and supported. 

It would get a good score for coherence and cohesion as it is organised coherently and logically and is easy to follow. The introduction introduces the topic then there is a thesis statement.

One body paragraph discusses one side of the argument, and the other discusses the other side. The second body paragraph is also the writers opinion, and this is summarised again in the conclusion

.There is some interesting vocabulary and phrases. For example:

• sanctuary for endangered animals
• under threat from humans
• habitats are being destroyed
• produce offspring
• successes in this respect
• not meant to be caged
• natural habitat

There are also some good complex grammatical constructions and the grammar is precise. For example, the red words show that some of these are  adverbial clauses ,  noun clauses  and  relative clauses :

• Although  some people are of the opinion  that  zoos can provide a sanctuary for endangered animals...
• ...seen for example  in the way that  their habitats are being destroyed...
• ...the argument is  that  zoos can protect some of these animals who are under threat.
• ...trained staff  who  can ensure the animals are looked after...
• Pandas  who  have been endangered...
• ... even though  some species are under threat...
• ... While  it may be fun and educational...

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• Social Issues

Zoos and Aquariums Argumentative Essay Sample

Can you imagine being stuck in a small, refined cage your whole life? A place where you sleep uncomfortably, eat scarcely, and are forced to entertain people out of your own will. These species of wildlife are being captured to make others “happy” and “excited” while secretly they’re the ones who are hurting the most. Animals across the world in zoos, aquariums, and sanctuaries all deal with these horrific punishments every day, unaware of what they did to “deserve” this.

The idea of Zoos and Aquariums providing entertainment for people started thousands of years ago. From what was thought to be the first zoo in Ancient Egypt to now our modern-day San-Francisco Zoo, they were both created to amuse our society and make money. But what many people don’t realize is behind closed doors these animals are treated worse than inhumanely. The article titled “The Independent: Zoos Are Where the People Come First, Not the Animals' ' wrote, “these zoo enclosures are often built for a human-centric visitor experience rather than for the welfare of the animals' ' (Damian). The so-called safe places where these animals recover and help endangered species have quickly become a scheme to get money for the owners of zoos and aquariums.

My first point on why I believe zoos and aquariums are a terrible place for animals is because they fail to provide reasonable living conditions. They not only deprive them of their natural habitats but go the “cheap way” and get what’s going to cost them the least without taking the animal’s life into consideration. The website “Orlando Sentinel” talks about a well-known aquarium, Sea World, and its abuse towards marine life. The author, Marino, stated, “Kyara’s [a baby orca at Seaworld] mother, Takara, has lived her entire life in a concrete tank without ever knowing what it’s like to swim the ocean waters off the coast of Iceland from where her mother and father were captured.” When taking an animal like an orca away from their vast ocean home and sticking them in something as small as a “bathtub” for them you start to question what SeaWorlds “ main priorities” are. But, Kyra is just one example of the thousands of animals captured and put into captivity by SeaWorld. Their main intentions for these animals is to make money rather than help their animals live a somewhat “healthy life”.

But I can agree with many people with the fact that there are zoos and aquariums that do give their animals plenty of space to run freely and live similarly to how they normally would. In an article from “Boston Globe” stated “The executive director of the Detroit Zoo announced in 2004 that he was voluntarily sending his zoo's two Asian elephants to a California sanctuary, where the land was plentiful, the weather temperate, and the elephants could roam. The reason, Kagan said, was simple. To paraphrase: The zoo, despite its best efforts, was essentially ruining the elephants' lives.” To be clear, many activists against zoos do not believe that ALL zoos are bad and ALL zoos should be shut down, but from recent reports and history on zoos treating their animals horribly it inevitably ruins it for everyone. When certain popular Zoos start doing something wrong, it sets a precedent for all other zoos and makes us generally think very negatively of them. However a statement in the “New York Times” shows the overwhelming outweighing negatives which stated “the time devoted to pacing by a species in captivity is best predicted by the daily distances traveled in nature by the wild specimens." So although some zoos and aquariums do try and make their enclosures their “number one priority” in the end these animals will never truly experience what it’s like to be back in the wild again, or even ever. 

The second point on why zoos and aquariums should not be allowed is because they can cause stress and aggression within the animals. The reason that most zoos and aquariums even take in animals is because they are sick or are going to become endangered and they are trying to “save” them. But by keeping them in small spaces, alone, for so long there have been many signs that this has led to awful stress in the animals. In the article found in the “Boston Globe”, ____ States, “Gus's compulsive behavior, a growing pile of research suggests, is distressingly common among captive animals. The gorillas behind the glass are plucking their hair, and the orangutans are incessantly masturbating. Dolphins ram their heads into the sides of pools, and sea lion pups try to nurse from each other instead of adult females' ' (Scharfenberg). To clarify, these unusual behaviors of animals are showing signs of aggression and could be harmful towards others if we don’t stop zoos and aquariums fast. Wild animals were not brought into this world to be our “pets” and companions, but again and again we treat them that way, until they act in an irrational way back. A story in the “GlobalPost” called “'Lion Park' Where an American Was Mauled to Death…” states, “This wasn't the first such incident at the Lion Park. In March, an Australian tourist who had his window down was chomped by a lion. In December 2013, the father of a former South African rugby player was bitten on the shoulder” (Conway-Smith). All of these “incidents” have happened because they’ve been locked up in small cages and are going mentally insane. A regular wild lion might not show as much aggression to humans because they don’t find them as a threat but as lions live longer and longer in captivity, withering away, so do their brains. 

For example, when certain criminals are put in jail very few are obligated to be in solitary, where they have to spend time alone in a cell until their time is up. People who have experienced this have gone mentally insane and have shown signs of an illness in their minds. But what people fail to realize is that is exactly what most zoos/aquariums do to their own animals. There are many similarities between the 2 by keeping both “locked” up in cells, not allowing them to leave but there is one thing missing. The captured animals didn’t do anything to deserve to be in these cruel situations.

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The historical predecessors of modern zoos were primarily showcases of empire or poorlymaintained public spectacles, but zoos now promote themselves as institutions dedicated to conservation and education. Animal rights advocates and conservationists today debate the implications of zoos for threatened wildlife species and the ethics of animal captivity. Royal menageries in ancient China, Egypt, and Rome, and their counterparts in early modern Europe, Central America, and South Asia, symbolized the monarch’s power to command an extensive and exotic empire. In the 18th and 19th centuries, menageries grew into larger zoological gardens associated with royal scientific societies. These institutions added a layer of scholarly legitimacy to the royal menageries, but they remained a part of the imperial project. With growing popular interest in science, zoos such as the London Zoological Gardens attracted an increasingly broad public, though some were open only to dues-paying members.

Beginning in the late 18th century, animal collections became more accessible to the public. Some impresarios operated traveling zoos, transporting animals from town to town for display in the public square, and later Phineas T. Barnum led the establishment of early circuses in large cities. Public institutions such as New York’s Central Park and Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park attempted to create more educational exhibits in the 1860s, and though they were extremely popular with urban residents, they lacked the funding to maintain animals safely or to rise above the status of humble entertainment.

Beginning with the National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C., in 1889, and the New York Zoological Park in the Bronx (later known as the Bronx Zoo and now the Wildlife Conservation Park) in 1898, zoos began to take on a conservation mission. Early wildlife advocates such as William Hornaday hoped to use these zoos as arks for disappearing species, most notably bison, from across the American continent, and as stages from which to deliver a conservation message to the public. With public and private funding, they were able to display more species and to construct more spacious, outdoor enclosures to simulate wild habitats and encourage “natural” animal behavior.

Much as in history, animal collections in existence today range from modest petting zoos to the private collections of wealthy and ostentatious individuals. The question remains whether they are sites of spectacle, science, power, conservation, or all of the above. Of the 1,700 animal exhibits in the United States, however, fewer than 200 are accredited by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA), a group that promotes zoos as a means to advance wildlife conservation and education. These include most major city zoos.

In the 1970s, two new challenges came together to force these zoos to consider their role in the conservation of wild species. One was the passage of the U.S. Endangered Species Act in 1973, which restricted zoos from taking members of listed species, and the other was the growing recognition that zoo collections were becoming inbred. Without taking in new animals, zoos could only expect to see the inbreeding problem worsen. In 1976, striving to become more progressive, AZA adopted a code of ethics governing the treatment and use of zoo animals.

In 1981, the organization began to coordinate Species Survival Plans (SSPs) among its members in order to produce healthier captive populations, rely more on captive breeding rather than capturing new free-ranging animals, and, ideally, benefit the genetic stock of threatened wild populations. American zoos have since integrated their efforts with those of zoo associations around the world, and have created an international database to optimize breeding arrangements. With increasing commitment to the genetic side of conservation, zoos are adding sperm bank to their list of cultural and environmental roles. Zoos now organize breeding exchanges, managing increased reproduction of threatened species with an eye toward introducing zoo-bred individuals back into wild populations. Captive breeding programs have brought a number of species back from the brink of extinction, for example the California condor. SSPs, however, cannot solve the biological difficulties of breeding for many species, and breeding may produce “surplus” offspring that raise another set of ethical issues.

Ethicists concerned about animal rights and conservation also question whether zoos’ contributions are adequate for them to truly deserve the label of conservation institutions, and to justify keeping animals captive. They ask, for example, whether zoos adequately integrate their own activities with conservation needs outside the zoo gates-that is, into what conditions will zoo-bred animals be introduced? If wild habitats are depleted or wild populations unhealthy, zoos’ breeding efforts may be wasted. Besides, some argue that very few individuals are ever actually integrated into wild habitats. In the meantime, however, zoo advocates say that they at least maintain an ark of genetic diversity that will last until the time viable wild populations can be supported. They point out that so-called wild populations are actually highly manipulated in a world where reserves must be set aside and managed; therefore, they suggest that to regard zoos as artificial, and zoo animals as wrongly captive, is to overstate the “natural-ness” of the rest of the world.

Zoo advocates also contend that keeping those animals captive is justified because seeing animals in zoos and participating in zoo education programs will ultimately increase public sympathy for conservation causes and thereby benefit animals in the wild. Some say that this is the true contribution of zoos, given the limited effect of SSPs. The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), a nonprofit organization based in New York City, is a leading proponent of this view. WCS manages several zoos, including the Bronx’s Wildlife Conservation Park, and promotes the use of zoos for education and conservation. WCS facilities deliver carefully designed educational programs to the public, and staff work to support wildlife reserves worldwide.

Meanwhile, ecocritics-scholars of the cultural studies of nature-argue that zoos may reinforce broad cultural conceptions that humans are separate from and superior to nature, rather than encourage concern for nature as zoo advocates claim. Specifically, seeing wild animals contained within enclosures, no matter how naturalistic, gives the impression that nature can be subsumed into an anthropocentric world view.

Bibliography:

• Vicki Croke, The Modern Ark (Scribner, 1997);
• J. Hoage and William A. Deiss, New W orlds, New Animals (Johns Hopkins, 1996);
• Randy Malamud, Reading Zoos (New York University Press, 1998);
• Bryan Norton, Michael Hutchins, Elizabeth F. Stevens, and Terry L. Maple, Ethics on the Ark (Smithsonian, 1995);
• Yi-Fu Tuan, Dominance and Affection (Yale, 1984);
• World Zoo Organization, The World Zoo Conservation Strategy (World Conservation Union, 1993).
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1. IvyPanda . "Zoos for Conservation of Endangered Species." April 18, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/zoos-for-conservation-of-endangered-species/.

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IvyPanda . "Zoos for Conservation of Endangered Species." April 18, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/zoos-for-conservation-of-endangered-species/.

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NPR defends its journalism after senior editor says it has lost the public's trust

David Folkenflik

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust.

NPR's top news executive defended its journalism and its commitment to reflecting a diverse array of views on Tuesday after a senior NPR editor wrote a broad critique of how the network has covered some of the most important stories of the age.

"An open-minded spirit no longer exists within NPR, and now, predictably, we don't have an audience that reflects America," writes Uri Berliner.

A strategic emphasis on diversity and inclusion on the basis of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation, promoted by NPR's former CEO, John Lansing, has fed "the absence of viewpoint diversity," Berliner writes.

NPR's chief news executive, Edith Chapin, wrote in a memo to staff Tuesday afternoon that she and the news leadership team strongly reject Berliner's assessment.

"We're proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories," she wrote. "We believe that inclusion — among our staff, with our sourcing, and in our overall coverage — is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world."

NPR names tech executive Katherine Maher to lead in turbulent era

She added, "None of our work is above scrutiny or critique. We must have vigorous discussions in the newsroom about how we serve the public as a whole."

A spokesperson for NPR said Chapin, who also serves as the network's chief content officer, would have no further comment.

Praised by NPR's critics

Berliner is a senior editor on NPR's Business Desk. (Disclosure: I, too, am part of the Business Desk, and Berliner has edited many of my past stories. He did not see any version of this article or participate in its preparation before it was posted publicly.)

Berliner's essay , titled "I've Been at NPR for 25 years. Here's How We Lost America's Trust," was published by The Free Press, a website that has welcomed journalists who have concluded that mainstream news outlets have become reflexively liberal.

Berliner writes that as a Subaru-driving, Sarah Lawrence College graduate who "was raised by a lesbian peace activist mother ," he fits the mold of a loyal NPR fan.

Yet Berliner says NPR's news coverage has fallen short on some of the most controversial stories of recent years, from the question of whether former President Donald Trump colluded with Russia in the 2016 election, to the origins of the virus that causes COVID-19, to the significance and provenance of emails leaked from a laptop owned by Hunter Biden weeks before the 2020 election. In addition, he blasted NPR's coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

On each of these stories, Berliner asserts, NPR has suffered from groupthink due to too little diversity of viewpoints in the newsroom.

The essay ricocheted Tuesday around conservative media , with some labeling Berliner a whistleblower . Others picked it up on social media, including Elon Musk, who has lambasted NPR for leaving his social media site, X. (Musk emailed another NPR reporter a link to Berliner's article with a gibe that the reporter was a "quisling" — a World War II reference to someone who collaborates with the enemy.)

When asked for further comment late Tuesday, Berliner declined, saying the essay spoke for itself.

The arguments he raises — and counters — have percolated across U.S. newsrooms in recent years. The #MeToo sexual harassment scandals of 2016 and 2017 forced newsrooms to listen to and heed more junior colleagues. The social justice movement prompted by the killing of George Floyd in 2020 inspired a reckoning in many places. Newsroom leaders often appeared to stand on shaky ground.

Leaders at many newsrooms, including top editors at The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times , lost their jobs. Legendary Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron wrote in his memoir that he feared his bonds with the staff were "frayed beyond repair," especially over the degree of self-expression his journalists expected to exert on social media, before he decided to step down in early 2021.

Since then, Baron and others — including leaders of some of these newsrooms — have suggested that the pendulum has swung too far.

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Legendary editor marty baron describes his 'collision of power' with trump and bezos.

New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger warned last year against journalists embracing a stance of what he calls "one-side-ism": "where journalists are demonstrating that they're on the side of the righteous."

"I really think that that can create blind spots and echo chambers," he said.

Internal arguments at The Times over the strength of its reporting on accusations that Hamas engaged in sexual assaults as part of a strategy for its Oct. 7 attack on Israel erupted publicly . The paper conducted an investigation to determine the source of a leak over a planned episode of the paper's podcast The Daily on the subject, which months later has not been released. The newsroom guild accused the paper of "targeted interrogation" of journalists of Middle Eastern descent.

Heated pushback in NPR's newsroom

Given Berliner's account of private conversations, several NPR journalists question whether they can now trust him with unguarded assessments about stories in real time. Others express frustration that he had not sought out comment in advance of publication. Berliner acknowledged to me that for this story, he did not seek NPR's approval to publish the piece, nor did he give the network advance notice.

Some of Berliner's NPR colleagues are responding heatedly. Fernando Alfonso, a senior supervising editor for digital news, wrote that he wholeheartedly rejected Berliner's critique of the coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict, for which NPR's journalists, like their peers, periodically put themselves at risk.

Alfonso also took issue with Berliner's concern over the focus on diversity at NPR.

"As a person of color who has often worked in newsrooms with little to no people who look like me, the efforts NPR has made to diversify its workforce and its sources are unique and appropriate given the news industry's long-standing lack of diversity," Alfonso says. "These efforts should be celebrated and not denigrated as Uri has done."

After this story was first published, Berliner contested Alfonso's characterization, saying his criticism of NPR is about the lack of diversity of viewpoints, not its diversity itself.

"I never criticized NPR's priority of achieving a more diverse workforce in terms of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. I have not 'denigrated' NPR's newsroom diversity goals," Berliner said. "That's wrong."

Questions of diversity

Under former CEO John Lansing, NPR made increasing diversity, both of its staff and its audience, its "North Star" mission. Berliner says in the essay that NPR failed to consider broader diversity of viewpoint, noting, "In D.C., where NPR is headquartered and many of us live, I found 87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions and zero Republicans."

Berliner cited audience estimates that suggested a concurrent falloff in listening by Republicans. (The number of people listening to NPR broadcasts and terrestrial radio broadly has declined since the start of the pandemic.)

Former NPR vice president for news and ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin tweeted , "I know Uri. He's not wrong."

Others questioned Berliner's logic. "This probably gets causality somewhat backward," tweeted Semafor Washington editor Jordan Weissmann . "I'd guess that a lot of NPR listeners who voted for [Mitt] Romney have changed how they identify politically."

Similarly, Nieman Lab founder Joshua Benton suggested the rise of Trump alienated many NPR-appreciating Republicans from the GOP.

In recent years, NPR has greatly enhanced the percentage of people of color in its workforce and its executive ranks. Four out of 10 staffers are people of color; nearly half of NPR's leadership team identifies as Black, Asian or Latino.

"The philosophy is: Do you want to serve all of America and make sure it sounds like all of America, or not?" Lansing, who stepped down last month, says in response to Berliner's piece. "I'd welcome the argument against that."

"On radio, we were really lagging in our representation of an audience that makes us look like what America looks like today," Lansing says. The U.S. looks and sounds a lot different than it did in 1971, when NPR's first show was broadcast, Lansing says.

A network spokesperson says new NPR CEO Katherine Maher supports Chapin and her response to Berliner's critique.

The spokesperson says that Maher "believes that it's a healthy thing for a public service newsroom to engage in rigorous consideration of the needs of our audiences, including where we serve our mission well and where we can serve it better."

Disclosure: This story was reported and written by NPR Media Correspondent David Folkenflik and edited by Deputy Business Editor Emily Kopp and Managing Editor Gerry Holmes. Under NPR's protocol for reporting on itself, no NPR corporate official or news executive reviewed this story before it was posted publicly.

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Guest Essay

J.D. Vance: The Math on Ukraine Doesn’t Add Up

By J. D. Vance

Mr. Vance, a Republican, is the junior senator from Ohio.

President Biden wants the world to believe that the biggest obstacle facing Ukraine is Republicans and our lack of commitment to the global community. This is wrong.

Ukraine’s challenge is not the G.O.P.; it’s math. Ukraine needs more soldiers than it can field, even with draconian conscription policies. And it needs more matériel than the United States can provide. This reality must inform any future Ukraine policy, from further congressional aid to the diplomatic course set by the president.

The Biden administration has applied increasing pressure on Republicans to pass a supplemental aid package of more than $60 billion to Ukraine. I voted against this package in the Senate and remain opposed to virtually any proposal for the United States to continue funding this war. Mr. Biden has failed to articulate even basic facts about what Ukraine needs and how this aid will change the reality on the ground.

The most fundamental question: How much does Ukraine need and how much can we actually provide? Mr. Biden suggests that a $60 billion supplemental means the difference between victory and defeat in a major war between Russia and Ukraine. That is also wrong. This $60 billion is a fraction of what it would take to turn the tide in Ukraine’s favor. But this is not just a matter of dollars. Fundamentally, we lack the capacity to manufacture the amount of weapons Ukraine needs us to supply to win the war.

Consider our ability to produce 155-millimeter artillery shells. Last year, Ukraine’s defense minister estimated that the country’s base-line requirement for these shells was over four million per year but that it could fire up to seven million if that many were available. Since the start of the conflict, the United States has gone to great lengths to ramp up production of 155-millimeter shells. We’ve roughly doubled our capacity and can now produce 360,000 per year — less than a tenth of what Ukraine says it needs. The administration’s goal is to get this to 1.2 million — 30 percent of what’s needed — by the end of 2025. This would cost the American taxpayers dearly while yielding an unpleasantly familiar result: failure abroad.

Just this week, the top American military commander in Europe argued that absent further security assistance, Russia could soon have a 10-to-1 artillery advantage over Ukraine. What didn’t gather as many headlines is that Russia’s current advantage is at least 5 to 1, even after all the money we have poured into the conflict. Neither of these ratios plausibly leads to Ukrainian victory.

Proponents of American aid to Ukraine have argued that our approach has been a boon to our own economy, creating jobs here in the factories that manufacture weapons. But our national security interests can be — and often are — separate from our economic interests. The notion that we should prolong a bloody and gruesome war because it’s been good for American business is grotesque. We can and should rebuild our industrial base without shipping its products to a foreign conflict.

The story is the same when we look at other munitions. Take the Patriot missile system — our premier air defense weapon. It’s of such importance in this war that Ukraine’s foreign minister has specifically demanded them. That’s because in March alone, Russia reportedly launched over 3,000 guided aerial bombs, 600 drones and 400 missiles at Ukraine. To fend off these attacks, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, and others have indicated they need thousands of Patriot interceptors per year. The problem is this: The United States only manufactures 550 per year. If we pass the supplemental aid package currently being considered in Congress, we could potentially increase annual production to 650, but that’s still less than a third of what Ukraine requires.

These weapons are not only needed by Ukraine. If China were to set its sights on Taiwan, the Patriot missile system would be critical to its defense. In fact, the United States has promised to send Taiwan nearly $900 million worth of Patriot missiles, but delivery of those weapons and other essential resources has been severely delayed, partly because of shortages caused by the war in Ukraine.

If that sounds bad, Ukraine’s manpower situation is even worse. Here are the basics: Russia has nearly four times the population of Ukraine. Ukraine needs upward of half a million new recruits, but hundreds of thousands of fighting-age men have already fled the country. The average Ukrainian soldier is roughly 43 years old , and many soldiers have already served two years at the front with few, if any, opportunities to stop fighting. After two years of conflict, there are some villages with almost no men left. The Ukrainian military has resorted to coercing men into service, and women have staged protests to demand the return of their husbands and fathers after long years of service at the front. This newspaper reported one instance in which the Ukrainian military attempted to conscript a man with a diagnosed mental disability.

Many in Washington seem to think that hundreds of thousands of young Ukrainians have gone to war with a song in their heart and are happy to label any thought to the contrary Russian propaganda. But major newspapers on both sides of the Atlantic are reporting that the situation on the ground in Ukraine is grim.

These basic mathematical realities were true, but contestable, at the outset of the war. They were obvious and incontestable a year ago, when American leadership worked closely with Mr. Zelensky to undertake a disastrous counteroffensive. The bad news is that accepting brute reality would have been most useful last spring, before the Ukrainians launched that extremely costly and unsuccessful military campaign. The good news is that even now, a defensive strategy can work. Digging in with old-fashioned ditches, cement and land mines are what enabled Russia to weather Ukraine’s 2023 counteroffensive. Our allies in Europe could better support such a strategy, as well. While some European countries have provided considerable resources, the burden of military support has thus far fallen heaviest on the United States.

By committing to a defensive strategy, Ukraine can preserve its precious military manpower, stop the bleeding and provide time for negotiations to commence. But this would require both the American and Ukrainian leadership to accept that Mr. Zelensky’s stated goal for the war — a return to 1991 boundaries — is fantastical.

The White House has said time and again that it can’t negotiate with President Vladimir Putin of Russia. This is absurd. The Biden administration has no viable plan for the Ukrainians to win this war. The sooner Americans confront this truth, the sooner we can fix this mess and broker for peace.

J.D. Vance ( @JDVance1 ), a Republican, is the junior senator from Ohio.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

Follow the New York Times Opinion section on Facebook , Instagram , TikTok , WhatsApp , X and Threads .

Home — Essay Samples — Environment — Environmental Protection — Zoo

Essays on Zoo

Hook examples for zoo essays, anecdotal hook.

"The moment I gazed into the eyes of a majestic lion at the local zoo, I felt a profound connection to the wonders of the animal kingdom. Yet, the debate over the ethics of zoos has left me questioning the boundaries of our fascination."

Rhetorical Question Hook

"Do zoos serve as vital educational tools that inspire conservation efforts, or are they prisons that confine innocent creatures? The controversy surrounding zoos raises important questions about our relationship with wildlife."

Startling Statistic Hook

"It's estimated that over 10,000 species are currently housed in zoos worldwide, but a staggering one-third of them are considered threatened or endangered in the wild. What does this say about the role of zoos in wildlife preservation?"

"'The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.' Mahatma Gandhi's words remind us that the treatment of animals in zoos reflects our values and ethics."

Historical Hook

"From menageries of ancient civilizations to modern zoological parks, the history of zoos is a journey through our evolving attitudes towards wildlife. Examining this history provides context for the current debate."

Narrative Hook

"Imagine being a young child, wide-eyed with wonder, as you witness exotic animals up close for the first time. This narrative explores the impact of zoos on childhood experiences and environmental awareness."

Contrast Hook

"In a world increasingly concerned with animal welfare and habitat conservation, the existence of zoos seems paradoxical. Contrasting the mission of zoos with their ethical challenges sparks a thought-provoking discussion."

Emotional Appeal Hook

"The joy of seeing a rare animal and the sadness of witnessing captivity—zoos evoke a spectrum of emotions. Understanding the emotional complexities of zoos is key to appreciating their impact."

Conservation Focus Hook

"Zoos claim to be champions of conservation, but do their efforts truly benefit wildlife in the wild? Exploring the role of zoos in species preservation sheds light on their significance in the global ecosystem."

Educational Purpose Hook

"What can we learn from zoos, and how do they contribute to our understanding of the animal kingdom? Delving into the educational value of zoos reveals their potential to inspire future conservationists."

Pros and Cons of Zoos

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Discussion of The Issues of Zoos: Imprisonment Or Preservation

The painful experiences of animals in the zoos, why people captivate wild animals for their own purposes, the negative consequences of keeping animals in captivity, study on how to better design healthier and more effective exhibits for otters, questioning god: bengal tiger at the baghdad zoo, hostage animals: the reasons behind keeping animals in captivity, the way zoos helps to protect endangered species, the ethics and controversies of zoos, why animals should be kept in zoos, zoos: exploring advantages and disadvantages, do zoos help or harm animals, relevant topics.

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