The interplay between hunting and conservation can catch Raymond King, president and CEO of Zoo Atlanta, in the crosshairs of those who are appalled by the killing of lions such as Cecil in Zimbabwe and the hunters themselves.
The former senior vice president for community affairs at SunTrust Banks spoke at a Kiwanis Club of Atlanta luncheon Tuesday, Aug. 4, while Walter Palmer, the Minnesota dentist who killed Cecil, remained in hiding and Theo Bronkhorst, the professional hunter hired by Mr. Palmer, faced illegal hunting charges in Zimbabwe.
Mr. King quickly declared at the beginning of his talk that Zoo Atlanta is a “conservationist institution.” When questioned if the zoo provided hunting guidelines, he said that it relied on the guidelines of the national Association for Zoos and Aquariums, which is aggressively committed to preserving endangered species.
Cecil’s death sparked worldwide news coverage because he was a well-known occupant of the Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe’s largest game park; he was easily recognized by his black-fringed mane, was the leader of a large pride and was the subject of a study by Oxford University. It also is alleged that he was illegally lured out of the park where he was wounded by an arrow and then shot to death.
Delta Air Lines Inc. was prompted by the fallout from the controversy surrounding Cecil’s death along with other major carriers to forbid the shipment of the parts of lion, leopard, elephant, rhino or buffalo killed by trophy hunters. As the only U.S. carrier with direct service to South Africa, Delta previously was the object of numerous animal conservationist petitions to forbid carrying the trophy parts.
Apologizing for the pun, Mr. King said that he occasionally was caught “in the crosshairs” between aggressive policies of those intent on preserving endangered species and hunters, many of whom are staunch supporters of the zoo.
Several times during his talk Mr. King praised the expertise of the zoo’s staff and downplayed his scientific knowledge. Even from his introduction by his friend David Moore, the executive director of the Historical Oakland Foundation, it was clear that Mr. King’s expertise was in hunting down dollars rather than game.
According to Mr. Moore, when Mr. King retired from the bank to join Zoo Atlanta in 2010, the zoo’s fiscal condition went from a deficit to consistent surpluses of more than $1 million.
Mr. King also described how the zoo is to benefit from the $50 million to be invested in the transformation of the Cyclorama building and property for a restored facility and parkland.
Once remodeled, the Grant Park building near the zoo, which housed the massive, panoramic, city-owned painting depicting the Battle of Atlanta, will house an event venue able to accommodate 1,000 guests who will be able to look out onto parkland, which is to be occupied by elephants and giraffes.
In addition, he described the $22 million raised for its new amphibian and reptile facility, confessing that before the new facility, he resisted entering the old building housing the reptiles lined up in relatively small glass aquariums.
Today visitors are greeted at the reptile facility by a 30-foot waterfall that descends into a pool containing four alligators and then can move on to see the rest of the inhabitants who lounge about 10,000-square-feet of handcrafted rock work.
Mr. King drew a laugh from the Kiwanians when he said that the animals at the zoo receive better treatment than some of them do at home.
He also spoke with pride about zoo’s collection of gorillas and orangutans, saying that it is one of the most outstanding of any zoo and has attracted primate care professionals and curators, veterinarians, researchers and conservationists from around the world to discuss conservationist practices.
“Not all conservation is a sad story,” he added, saying that the zoo’s participation in restoring the population of panda bears has been impressive.
Nevertheless, one of the zoo’s prime goals is to preserve species that are on the verge of extinction. “The animals at the zoo are ambassadors of their species,” he added.
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