Bristol Zoo: Charity pledges to help save 97 threatened animals - these are its six target species

Six lesser-known but incredibly endangered animals will be the championed by a UK zoo - including a frog with see-through skin, a bright-eyed lemur, and a helpful British crayfish.

The Bristol Zoological Society - the conservation and education charity which runs the Bristol Zoo Project - has this month signed the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ (WAZA) Reverse the Red species pledge. This will see it working with a global coalition of organisations fighting to reverse the decline of 97 different species facing major threats in the wild - from birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians, to larger mammals like gorillas and giraffes.

Bristol Zoological Society’s conservation and science director, Brian Zimmerman, said this was an important moment for them as a conservation charity. At its Bristol Zoo Project site in South Gloucestershire, 78% of the animals cared for were both threatened and part of targeted conservation programmes, he added, with their aim being for that to rise to 90% by 2035.

“We are currently working in nine countries across four continents and involved in 40 co-ordinated breeding programmes. We want to continue to build on this work,” he said. “From critically endangered western lowland gorillas, which many people will know and love, to lesser-known birds, fish and amphibians, every species on this list needs our help to survive.”

As part of its pledge, the charity will be championing six species. Each one is somewhat lesser-known, but still in dire need of help. “We have chosen our six flagship species as they might be considered by some to be ‘neglected species’ that need a champion to save them from extinction,” Mr Zimmerman continued. “They reflect the range of countries we work in and are from very small geographical locations, where with local partners, we work to save them from extinction. For those, we are leading the charge.”

Here’s some more about these animals - as well as what the charity is doing to help save them:

Blue-eyed black lemur

You could be forgiven for mistaking the descriptively-named blue-eyed black lemur for a Yu-Gi-Oh card. These critically endangered lemurs herald from Madagascar. Although famous for its many lemurs, 103 of the East African isle’s 107 species are now considered threatened. Deforestation is largely to blame, as there is fierce competition between people - who need the limited land for farming and housing - and wildlife.

There are now thought to be less than a thousand of these lemurs left. They eat fruit, pollen, and nectar in the wild and live in small groups. They are also sexually dimorphic - the males have black coats while the females are red-brown - although both have the same striking blue eyes.

Conservationists from the charity are working to protect the blue-eyed black lemur on its home turf, carrying out species monitoring, reforestation, and working with local communities to encourage sustainable land use - and create jobs for local people. A male and female pair, Haja and Olanna, also live at Bristol Zoo Project, where they are part of a conservation breeding programme.

Turquoise dwarf gecko

Also critically endangered, this tiny but loudly-coloured reptile calls Kimboza Forest Reserve in Tanzania home. It is only found over a relatively small geographic area, and prefers to live on established screwpine trees - where it sups water from leaves and eats insects. This species is threatened by the illegal pet trade, which sees them taken from the wild in large volumes and sold to collectors.

The Bristol Zoological Society is partnered with local conservationists in the Kizomba Reserve, where they assist with reforestation efforts to increase abundance of the tree species on which the geckos live. They have also been bred at the zoo since 2017.

Negros bleeding-heart dove

Only found on two islands in the Philippines, these birds are so named for the bloody-red streak on their chests. They often browse for food on the forest floor in flocks, although they can fly.

Unfortunately, as of 1988 there was only thought to be around 8 and 4% of the original forest cover left across their two home islands. These shrinking forest fragments are reportedly still being cleared for timber, charcoal burning and to make way for plantations and crops, leaving just a few hundred of these now critically-endangered birds.

Since 2014, the charity has worked with local partners in the Philippines on the captive breeding and reintroduction of the species on the island of Negros, as well as supporting ranger patrols and biodiversity surveys in the Northwest Panay Peninsula Natural Park, the species’ last stronghold in the wild.

Ankarafa skeleton frog

Also endemic to Madagascar and also critically endangered, these amphibians are found only on the banks of two streams in a single patch of forest - which the Bristol Zoological Society is helping to protect. They are less than three centimetres long and their speckled green skin is semi-transparent - and their call includes a unique two-beat ‘clicking’ sound.

The society is also developing a field station in the frog’s forest home, to facilitate more research and conservation work in the area.

Corfu toothcarp

Yet another critically endangered species, the Corfu toothcarp is a freshwater fish native to Greece. Historically found across all kinds of freshwater sites - from marshes to coastal lagoons - this species has now disappeared altogether from some areas due largely to habitat loss, as it needs still water with a lot of plant material in order to lay its eggs.

Bristol Zoo has managed to successfully breed this species in captivity, and the charity is now is leading the European breeding programme to conserve it.

White-clawed crayfish

Unlike the other animals on the list, this endangered crustacean is native to the UK, and is actually the only crayfish native to the British Isles at all. These dainty decapods can live up to ten years, and help clean their freshwater homes of decaying matter - with their habitats of choice being chalk streams.

Unfortunately, the introduced North American signal crayfish has proven to be a big problem for them. They not only carry a disease that native crayfish have no resistance to, but they are larger and can outcompete them when it comes to food - sometimes even preying on their smaller cousins. As well as hunting other native animals, signal crayfish burrow into streambeds much more than the white-clawed cray, weakening them and increasing flood risk.

The Bristol Zoological Society leads a captive breeding and reintroduction programme from its hatchery in Bristol for this species, where it has bred some 4,000 of them since 2008 - releasing them in specially-selected sites free from their invasive competitors.