Lion Appreciation Day at Oakland Zoo
Oakland, CA (PRWEB) August 11, 2015 -- On Saturday, August 22, from 10:00am – 3:00pm, Oakland Zoo presents Lion Appreciation Day. On this day, zoo guests can learn more about these big cats through a variety of interactive ways. Activities include: watching lions feast on treats, face painting, making paw print crafts, a lion “selfie” station, zookeeper chats, and tables hosted by three conservation partners (Bay Area Puma Project, Uganda Carnivore Program, and Mountain Lion Foundation).
“The wave of sadness and anger over the death of Cecil the lion from Zimbabwe demonstrates the compassion that the world can feel when they learn about the plight of a single animal,” said Amy Gotliffe, Conservation Director. “The incident also demonstrates the actions people are willing to take to make change. Our Lion Appreciation Day will focus on learning about lions and their conservation challenges while offering opportunities to turn that compassion into action. We can make a difference for lions all over the world and look forward to sharing that mission with our guests.”
Lions are one of the most popular and iconic animals in the world; however, lions are in trouble. According to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, it is estimated there are just over 30,000 lions left in all of Africa. Habitat loss due to human settlement and agriculture development, loss of natural prey population, and retaliatory killing by humans after lion attacks on livestock are the main reasons many believe lions are in trouble. There are lions in the Bay Area, too – mountain lions. The mountain lion population also faces many of the same threats that African lions do. World Lion Day is celebrated each August around the world, to draw attention to the challenges lions face and promote lion conservation. “Oakland Zoo is an amazing partner for all lions – throughout Africa and locally in California,” said Monica Tyler, Director, Uganda Carnivore Program. “We could not continue our African lion conservation work in Uganda without Oakland Zoo’s support of our scientific research and community-based conservation activities. We truly appreciate their partnership, which has had a significant positive impact on both the lion and the human communities in Uganda.”
For more information about World Lion Day at Oakland Zoo, please visit our website at:
ABOUT OAKLAND ZOO:
The Bay Area’s award-winning Oakland Zoo is home to more than 660 native and exotic animals. The Zoo offers many educational programs and kid’s activities perfect for science field trips, family day trips and exciting birthday parties. Nestled in the Oakland Hills, in 525-acre Knowland Park, the Zoo is located at 9777 Golf Links Road, off Highway 580. The East Bay Zoological Society (Oakland Zoo) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization supported in part by members, contributions, the City of Oakland and the East Bay Regional Parks. For more information please visit our website at http://www.oaklandzoo.org.
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Nicky Mora, Senior Manager, PR, Oakland Zoo, http://www.oaklandzoo.org, (510) 632-9525 Ext: 130, [email protected]
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