Rising costs put strain on zoo's conservation work
Staffs at Twycross Zoo say they need new laws to make it easier to transport animals globally.
The future of endangered species worldwide may be threatened unless the government introduces new laws, according to conservationists. At Twycross Zoo, the impact of Brexit on animal transportation across Europe and the UK has been significant. Dr Rebecca Biddle, Twycross Zoo's director of conservation, explains that the additional costs and resources needed for animal transfers have led to a sharp decline in imports and exports since the UK's exit from the EU in 2020.
In 2025, only nine international arrivals were recorded, compared to 33 in 2019. Biddle emphasizes that this reduction is echoed across UK zoos, which previously transferred around 1400 animals annually to Europe. Twycross Zoo, which houses the UK's only herd of Kordofan giraffes, is particularly concerned as it needs to import animals to maintain healthy breeding populations.
Biddle highlights the difficulty in coordinating the relocation of a 10-month-old female Kordofan giraffe to a suitable mate in The Netherlands, involving multiple European countries. The UK government is currently negotiating a Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement with the EU to simplify animal transfers and remove trade barriers, but Twycross Zoo is urging the new prime minister to maintain pressure on the process.
Written by urgent.news from BBC Science's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
