Arignar Anna Zoological Park - Captive Breeding

Captive Breeding

The Central Zoo Authority of India (CZA) has identified the park as coordinating zoo for the breeding programmes for endangered species as per the National Zoo Policy adopted by the Government of India in 1988, which states that the main objective of zoos will be to complement and strengthen national efforts in the conservation of the country's rich biodiversity and that the species which have no chance of survival in the wild would be bred under ex-situ conditions. The park has a high rate of success in captive breeding of lion-tailed macaques. In 2010, the zoo had 22 lion-tailed macaques, from a breeding pair that were brought to the zoo in 1983. The park is also successful in breeding other rare species in captivity, including ostrich, Asian palm civet, Indian gaur, wild dog, Asiatic lion, Nilgiri langur, sangai, hippo, Malabar giant squirrel, white tiger, Asiatic wolf, panther and bison. The zoo is among four in the country to have an ostrich. The park also undertakes cross-breeding as part of its conservation efforts. The park is also a participating zoo of the CZA for the captive breeding of rock python, Nilgiri langur, lion-tailed macaque, Asiatic lion, wild dog, Asiatic wolf, and gaur. The zoo also promotes exterior conservation—conservation of rare species in their natural habitat—whereby individuals born in the zoo are released in the wild after adequate training, as per the guidelines of the CZA.