So where does all that wealth from his biomedical company ( I find it hugely ironic how he has enriched himself out of medicine while his compatriots from Cuba work here as doctors in the favelas treating and curing the poverty stricken for modest salaries from the government of their country) actually go then ? Well it goes to building several private "sanctuaries" for rescued exotic animals and particularly great apes. But that is animal rights and has nothing at all to do with conservation, moreover if captivity is uncondonable and evil why aren't his chimps being sent back to Guinea, Uganda or Tanzania to be rehabilitated either back to the wild or more natural conditions ? That they can't be released back into the wild shouldn't be an excuse as afterall as he himself says with confidence entire species should be allowed to perish with dignity in the wild so by extension why does the same not apply to the individual captive animals under his care ? I think these animals haven't been sent to Africa / Asia because old Pedro secretly wants to have several of own little private zoos / menageries and basically because he wants to have his cake and eat it. Damian Aspinall got a lot of criticism when he came here on the forum to give his views about zoos (some of it was deserved and some of it wasn't IMO) but the truth is I have much more respect for Aspinall than I would ever have for Ynterian because at least he actually does what he says and at huge financial costs puts his animals back into the wild. Pedro just shuffles around playing the role of the wizened benevolent old Saint Francis figure for the cameras of crappy television networks while mouthing platitudes and shaking his fist at zoos.
Regarding Brazilian merganser at Zoo Itatiba, this is google translation of an article published last month by Prague zoo´s director. Itatiba has 40 mergansers now. Link "Electricity generator instead of aviaries Even a single power generator can preserve the chances of a critically endangered species for survival. And this is not a theoretical example, but a fact. Last year, we financed such a power generator at the Itatiba Zoo in Brazil. Located near the city of Itatiba north of Sao Paulo, this zoo is the only with beautiful and unfortunately critically endangered duck, Brazilian merganser, in the world. You may know other species of mergansers from our waters. They have an elongated, light-colored body and a thin, curved beak at the end. In contrast, the Brazilian merganser is not only black-gray in color, but also infinitely rarer. In the 1940s, it was already considered extinct, and in recent decades its number in the wild has been reported as less than 250 individuals. The latest estimates even speak of only about 50 individuals. It is one of the most endangered water birds in the world. In the past, the Brazilian merganser lived alongside Brazil in Argentina and Paraguay, today it occurs only in a few Brazilian localities. It requires shallow, clean, fast-flowing rivers - and there's a stumbling block. The construction of dams, clearing forests and soybean cultivation, but also diamond mining deprive him of the environment. Therefore, the decision was made to create a backup population of Brazilian merganser in human care. Its implementation was taken over by Zooparque Itatiba. In 2014, the collection of eggs from the nests of wild Brazilian mergansers began. In the first six years, 20 eggs were taken from six different nests, of which 17 ducklings hatched. In the meantime, however, the first of these young has reached adulthood, and in 2017 Itatiba Zoo announced the successful breeding of the first captive generation of Brazilian merganser in human care. A little later, our bird curator Antonín Vaidl visited them and then we decided to support the construction of new aviaries in the Itatiba Zoo. Everything was settled, money before sending, when at the end of 2019 we received a message from the local director Robert Kooi that the aviaries should wait. He wrote about two power outages - one eight- and the other three-hour - in a single week. At that time, there were only two Brazilian merganser eggs in the incubator, but this to happen in the high season, when there would be many more eggs in the incubators and freshly hatched chicks huddled under the heating lamps, it could mean a crushing blow for the rescue program. All the paperwork thus started anew - but Zoopark Itatiba was able to purchase a powerful power generator thanks to our support. Last season was the most successful of the Itatiba Zoo so far. "For the first time, we celebrated a total of 15 ducklings," reads the summary report for 2020. "For the first time, one female laid 7 fertilized eggs and they all hatched. And for the first time, we also have second-generation ducklings. ”There are now a total of 40 Brazilian mergansers in the Itatiba Zoo. And we plan to continue to support his rescue."
Thank you for sharing this @Jana , this is very interesting indeed ! I think that the work they are doing at the Itatiba Zoo sounds absolutely fantastic and as someone interested in this species I would love to actually speak to them and find out more about their captive breeding programme. That said, I do find it very strange that they hold so many of these birds and that these haven't yet been sent to other zoos within the country.
Some footage of the ducks at Itatiba: This isn't related to the mergansers at Itatiba zoo but rather to WWT efforts to conserve the species in the wild but here are some interesting audio videos I found about its conservation (quite old now):
Found some more information on the background of the Brazilian mergansers kept at Itatiba As with many waterfowl ex-situ conservation programmes individuals are obtained through collection of eggs from the nests of wild animals: "Eight eggs were collected to compose the species' captivity program An important tool for the conservation of the Brazilian Merganser, the Captivity Program of the Brazilian Merganser, recorded a great breakthrough. Eight eggs of the species were collected and taken to the Zooparque Itatiba/SP, to compose the Program, which is coordinated by Brazil’s Chico Mendes Institute of Biodiversity Conservation - ICMBio. Four eggs were collected in Jalapão/TO and four in the region of Patrocínio/MG. The ducklings were born and are developing well, growing and being fed adequately. The expectation is that they reproduce in the next years, strengthening the captivity program. These new individuals join the two which already have been in the Zooparque Itatiba since 2014, besides the other two that have been at the Criadouro Científico Poços de Caldas, since 2011, when the captivity program began, starting from the eggs collected in Serra da Canastra. "By increasing the Brazilian Merganser's population in captivity, it is possible to plan the introduction of the individuals in nature. This is one of the most important objectives of the captivity program, which is aimed at contributing to decreasing the degree of threat of extinction of the species", explains Lívia Lins, coordinator of the Brazilian Merganser's Program." (Source: Brazilian Merganser ducklings are born in captivity) It appears that sometimes ducklings which are found in adverse conditions in the wild in Serra da Canastra national parks have been taken into the captive breeding programme at zoo Itatiba: "This season, the biologists had to deal with a situation, unprecedented in the 13 years of the species’ studies and research. During the monitoring, they found a Brazilian Merganser duckling that became separated from the family right after leaving the nest. The biologists evaluated the survival conditions of the duckling out in nature and decided to take it in captivity, where it would have higher chances of survival. The duckling was taken to the Zooparque Itatiba, in Itatiba – SP, as established by the captivity group of the Action Plan for the Conservation of the species, where the bird is developing well, gaining weight and being watched closely by specialists. This is the second time that an individual of the species has been raised out of its natural environment. In 2011, a Brazilian Merganser couple was born in captivity in the city of Poços de Caldas/MG. With the support of Terra Brasilis and the authorization from the ICMBio, the eggs were collected at Serra da Canastra and taken to an artificial incubator. The birth of these Brazilian Merganser ducklings in captivity had never been registered in anywhere the world." (Source: Terra Brasilis Institute follows the birth of Brazilian Merganser ducklings in Serra da Canastra)
The Brasil merganser project would never have come to fruition without Dr. Moacyr Carvalho Dias (Ave é Vida Institute). Worth noting also that the Criadouro dos Poços de Caldas et al have seen the involvement by Fa. Kooy from the Netherlands. The family - it is a tradition - are well known and highly respected aviculturists. Robert Kooy is currently working at the Parque Itatiba on the Brasil merganser project a.o. Link: Harteman Wildfowl - The Brazilian merganser NOTA BENE: Also should be underlined the integral part of Dr. Mike Lubbock's work (Sylvan Heights Waterfowl) for this project and eventually finding birds and the founder stock for the captive-breeding and restocking effort. Link: Mike Lubbock
Hopefully, some Brazilian mergansers will also find their way to Europe - a great way to ensure more interest and funds for a species about which, basically, nobody heard of outside Brazil.
