Aquariums and zoos – places of pseudo-knowledge?

Trips to tropical aquariums and zoos are still a popular leisure destination today. Most families justify their visit by saying that their children should learn something about the animals' way of life. Zoos assure you that they contribute to species conservation and that animals live much longer here than in the wild. But how much truth is there in this? Come on, let's take a closer look!

Trips to tropical aquariums and zoos are still highly regarded in society today and are a popular leisure destination. Most people justify their visit by saying that their children should learn something about the animals' lifestyle and appearance. Zoos are intended to ensure species protection and conservation. It is said that we learn a lot about exotic animals, that they are kept in a species-appropriate manner there and that they therefore live much longer than in the wild. But how much truth is there behind these statements?

dissemination of knowledge in the zoo

Usually, there are small information boards in front of every enclosure in a zoo with the country of origin of the animals. However, no further information is usually given about where exactly they come from, how they were brought to the zoo and the conditions under which they live in their natural habitats. Instead, the following picture typically emerges:

For example, we see sharks swimming from left to right and right to left in a space of just a few square meters, looking monotonous. Externally, they have injuries on their mouths from being captured, transported and locked up. Depending on how long the sharks have been in captivity, their fins are bent. Some even have their jaws dislocated by the hook and are sticking forward unnaturally. If you look more closely, visitors can also see rotten fins of sunfish and fungi on their skin behind the glass. This shows us that many animals in captivity look different and behave differently than in the open sea.

Another example is tigers, which in the wild travel dozens of kilometers every day, swimming and hunting. In zoos, however, they are confined to a few square meters, have no place to retreat to and lie around bored in their enclosures. With the image that aquariums and zoos show us, they are therefore spreading a kind of ignorance. They create a false sense of knowledge in us by only providing superficial information and selectively sharing the facts that they want.

Orcashow: Look at the curved fin of the orca in the middle and compare it with pictures of orcas in the ocean –
Photo by  Leslie Driskill on  Unsplash

The designed habitats of the animals

All areas in zoos are strategically planned, including where each animal is placed, paths and areas for people. The design of the enclosures and pools is based on the aesthetic ideas of the visitors and how they imagine the animals' habitat. The environments are often equipped with artificial but natural-looking objects, plants and temperatures. An additional sound is intended to provide visitors with a backdrop that reflects the supposedly real habitat of the animals. According to Professor David Grazien, this includes, for example, rocks and termite mounds made of concrete, fiberglass, perfectly shaped aquarium glass windows and hi-fidelity sound systems.

The construction and design primarily follows the needs of people. People may be shown where the animals normally come from and what the natural habitat of the respective animals looks, feels and sounds like. However, this ignores how the animals perceive these influences. Since all the effects described are artificially created, they are disturbing noises and factors that have nothing to do with their life before captivity. A termite mound without termites, without smell and made of concrete - what benefit does that have to the animal? None at all!

Sharks in a glass prison – Photo by Zander Janzen van Rensburg on Unsplash

Freedom vs. Captivity

Many zoological institutions advertise that they are committed to protecting species. But does this statement stand up to close scrutiny? In the last five to ten years, for example, German zoos and aquariums have released around 100 animals into the wild, but at the same time taken 800 endangered animals from their natural habitat and imported them to Germany, so there is a clear imbalance here. It is also often claimed that animals live longer in zoos than in the wild. This may be true for some animals, for example prey animals, but the statement does not apply across the board to all animals. For example, take a look at these numerical examples of marine animals in captivity versus in the wild:

As can be seen from the table, these animals live in captivity only a fraction of the time they would spend in the wild.

Every aquarium also needs a new one of the popular dolphins every two to three years. When dolphins are caught, they not only lose their freedom, but also suffer greatly. This is because they are very closely connected to their peers and live in family groups and fixed groups. Depending on their origin, they communicate in a different dialect. When they are then captured on behalf of the aquarium, they are separated from their family and reunited with other members of their species who probably communicate completely differently. In captivity, they often fall into a severe depression and after a while decide to stop breathing and die. An interesting fact about dolphins: unlike us humans, who breathe automatically as a reflex, dolphins decide for themselves when to breathe. But visitors to the zoo are unlikely to find this information on information signs. Instead, aquariums and zoos advertise environmental protection, animal welfare and species-appropriate care on their websites.

One final point clearly shows that zoos do not place sufficient value on animal welfare and sufficient living space. An example calculation: The tropical aquarium is located in Hagenbeck's Zoo in Hamburg and covers 8,000 square meters. A total of 14,300 animals live in these 8,000 square meters. If you do not include the space and rooms for people, each animal would have around 0.559 square meters of space available. If you then deduct the square meters that are mainly used by people within the zoo, the value would be significantly reduced again. To us, that does not sound like sufficient living space.

What we learn from this

In conclusion, we humans only learn what we see. Zoos, through their design and structure, produce pseudo-knowledge that we usually absorb and accept without a critical eye. Because facts are concealed, there is no real production of knowledge.

A lot of money is invested in the architecture and structure of a facility and unfortunately everything is planned for the eyes and well-being of humans. The feelings and well-being of the animals are usually not taken into account. How can a zoo commission the capture of a number of animals from the wild when, for example, many of them die during transport from the stress and incorrect handling? A zoo is in no way contributing to species protection if it takes the animals out of their natural habitat. It would make much more sense to try to preserve the habitats. Species protection must therefore take place locally.

It is clear that this must change in the future. But how can animal cruelty and the misconceptions be prevented? A simple solution would be to stop going to the zoo. We humans, and especially children, can just as easily learn about animals in their natural habitat or in documentation fascinate. Another idea: just go into the forest and look around and see what the animal world has to offer on your doorstep.

Sources

Frankfurter Allgemeine (2020): WWF: Largest extinction of species since the end of the dinosaur era threatens ( 150 species die out every day: Largest extinction of species since the end of the dinosaur era threatens (faz.net) , 16.11.2021)

Grazian, David (2015): American Zoo: A Sociological Safari, Princeton: Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400873616

Lehmann, Robert M. (2021): Mission Earth – The world is worth fighting for.