Will your vote help study the genetics of the critically endangered black rhino?

TIME FOR CHANGE!

It’s time to fall into conservation, which means there are three new Quarters for Conservation (Q4C) projects for you to vote on. For the next three months, your vote will support a project of your choice: connecting elephant and giraffe populations, protecting the habitat of okapis or increasing the number of black rhinos.

THE PROJECTS

Elephant Connection Research Project (ECRP) aims to save diminishing elephant and giraffe populations through transfrontier conservation areas, which reconnect isolated wildlife. Focused on Zambia, this organization monitors landscape networking through satellite tracking of animals, which allows them to identify threats to the survival of local elephant and giraffe populations. ECRP will use its Q4C funds to cover field trips to the study area and allowances for staff, and purchase digital maps for GPS tracking.

Established in 1987, Okapi Conservation Project (OCP) works to protect the natural habitat of the endangered okapis living in the Okapi Wildlife Reserve in the Democratic Republic of Congo. OCP will use its funds to establish its second Team Okapi, a camera trap group that monitors and documents the reserve’s wildlife. It will also cover travel expenses to new areas of the reserve and new camera traps.

Zimbabwe is home to approximately 350 black rhinos—10% of the world’s population. Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust (VFWT) works with Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority to monitor the health and genetics of the country’s rhinos by collecting tissue, hair and blood samples. This information is used to assist in increasing the rhino population five percent each year. Funding will be used for travel expenses, veterinary costs, DNA banking and more.

CAST YOUR VOTE!

Your admission to the Zoo already helps these projects—25 cents from each admission (and five dollars from each membership purchased) goes towards Quarters for Conservation. On every visit to the zoo, you’ll receive a “quarter” token to use to cast your vote for whichever conservation project most inspires you. If you’re extra passionate about any of the projects, feel free to drop in “real” quarters or dollar bills! Together, our small corner of the world can help make a large impact on conservation everywhere.