Born Free urges zoo boycott over great ape welfare

Both Chester and Blackpool Zoos said they have the support of global conservation bodies

An international wildlife charity has urged people to boycott zoos to stop great apes being held in captivity there.

Born Free Foundation (BFF), which campaigns for animals to be kept in the wild, has called for the phasing out of the primates being kept at zoos across the UK, including those in Chester and Blackpool, due to concerns about their welfare.

Dr Kirsten Pullen, Chester Zoo's Chief Conservation Officer said without zoos creatures like the Sumatran orangutans, and highly endangered Bornean orangutans could be "lost forever".

A Blackpool Zoo spokeswoman said alongside their conservation efforts, "accredited and well managed zoos play a vital role in education and awareness".

BFF, which is headquartered in the UK, said more than 300 great apes are in UK zoos, with 43 in the north west of England.

Chester Zoo, which has the highest number of any UK zoo, houses 18 chimpanzees, seven Northwest Bornean orangutans and eight Sumatran orangutans, while four western lowland gorillas and six Northwest Bornean orangutans are kept at Blackpool Zoo.

BFF has released a report that argues the keeping of great apes in zoos is an "archaic, unethical, and damaging practice".

The broadcaster and naturalist Chris Packham has backed its campaign and said "all the evidence to prove radical change is now imperative is here, great apes mustn't be imprisoned for our entertainment any longer".

BFF has alleged animals in captivity such as chimpanzees and orangutans suffer chronic stress, obesity, heart disease and poor mental health.

It claimed captivity has caused "catastrophic results" ranging from "stillbirths to obesity and heart disease".

The foundation's Chris Lewis said keeping the "complex beings for our entertainment can no longer be justified on the basis of science, welfare, or animal and public safety".

The charity said keeping great apes in zoos was "no longer justified".

Dr Pullen invited the charity to visit the zoo to witness why "global bodies" like the International Union for the Conservation of Nature "stand behind us".

"The great apes here live in specially designed habitats and are cared for by a team of primate experts who know the physical, emotional and social needs of every individual," she said.

Blackpool Zoo's spokeswoman said the great apes it cared for were "critically endangered".

"We fully support the continued evolution of best practice in the welfare of all animals," she added.

BFF was co-founded in 1984 by actors Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna with their eldest son Will Travers.

The couple became inspired to champion animal rights and conservation after appearing in the award-winning movie Born Free in 1966.

The movie was a biopic of conservationist Joy Adamson, who raised a lioness called Elsa in Kenya after her husband George, who was a game warden, shot its father.