Conservation partners

It’s an important part of what modern zoos do.

As well as the conservation work we do through our breeding programmes, we partner with several conservation organisations and charities to help the wild cousins of our animals.

It’s not just about raising money, although we do that too. It’s about raising awareness amongst you, our half a million visitors, about the threats facing animals and what you can do to help. Here’s some of the people we’re doing great things with.

Wildlife Vets International (WVI)

Registered charity number: 1109670

We’re supporting WVI’s Amur leopard reintroduction project. There are fewer than 35 Amur leopards left in the steppes, or grasslands, of Russia. The biggest threats they face are poaching, habitat destruction and infectious diseases transmitted from domestic animals, such as dogs.

The money we’ve raised has funded air travel for zoo vets and bought vital equipment to health check the wild population.

Steve Leonard, veterinarian and patron of WVI (and that vet off the telly!)

Visit WVI

Barbary Macaque Awareness and Conservation (BMAC)

Registered charity number: 1188719

We’ve been supporting BMAC’s work in Morocco for a number of years. The Barbary macaque, which you can see at Folly Farm, is at risk of extinction in the wild. The biggest threat facing them is being illegally taken from the wild for the exotic pet trade.

All of our macaques were illegally taken from the wild and kept as pets before joining us as part of a rehoming project from a sanctuary in the Netherlands. Sian Waters is the volunteer executive director for BMAC and she’s from South Wales. Sian and her team carry out vital work with children in Morocco to raise awareness of the importance of protecting the macaque and not accepting money to steal them.

We help fund the ‘Monkey Bus’ which goes around schools and communities to spread the conservation message and their vital field surveys to monitor the wild population of macaques.

A Folly Farm keeper in the ‘Monkey Bus’ on a voluntary field trip to Morocco

Visit BMAC

Neptune’s Army of Rubbish Cleaners (NARC)

Registered charity number: 1174029

We’re helping NARC conserve the marine wildlife off our very own coast here in Pembrokeshire. NARC’s volunteer divers have undertaken over 100 underwater clean up’s collecting marine litter. They’ve pulled up everything from fishing tackle, lost lobster pots, car batteries, bikes and even the kitchen sink! We help fund some of NARC’s dives and we also welcome them on park as part of our World Penguin Day event to raise awareness and additional funds.

A N.A.R.C volunteer lends a helping hand at our World Penguin Day event.

Visit NARC

Safina Lion Conservation Fund

Registered charity number: 1172709

We’re helping the Safina Lion Conservation Fund to raise awareness of, and funds for, lion conservation. Safina works with several conservation organisations working to protect lions in the wild. Their first project was working with Lion Guardians. The Lion Guardians approach involves recruiting young, traditionalist Maasai and other pastoralist warriors to learn the skills needed to effectively mitigate conflict between people and wildlife, monitor lion populations and help their own communities live with lions. We’re pleased Safina is using the funds we’ve raised to sponsor one of these warriors by donating the money needed to pay their yearly salary. Safina’s current Lion Guardian is Kuya Kipampa.

Kuya Kipampa is sponsored by Safina through the Lion Guardians project (📷 John Merishi for Lion Guardians)

Visit Safina Lion Conservation Fund

Red Panda Network

Registered charity number: 261103671

We’re lucky to have a breeding pair of red panda at Folly Farm as part of a European Endangered Species Breeding Programme (EEP), so we’re already doing our bit for the captive population. But helping their wild cousins is an equally important part of our conservation work. We’ve partnered with the Red Panda Network to raise awareness of, and money for, the vital work they do to monitor and protect the declining population of wild red pandas.

Our Forest Guardian

We’re proud to have previously sponsored ‘Forest Guardians’, who are employed by the Red Panda Network to monitor and protect red panda habitats, as well as educate communities on red panda conservation. Our latest donation in November 2021 is going towards the First Panda Challenge which will help Red Panda Network through it’s kind supporters to double donations made in November and December.

Menuka Bhattarai, working to protect red pandas in the wild

Visit Red Panda Network

Dogs 4 Wildlife

Dogs 4 Wildlife provides highly trained dogs and specialised ranger training, for the development of anti-poaching canine units to protect endangered wildlife. Inspiring and motivating the next generation of wildlife protectors, through effective and determined education. Our rhino keeper Jack is a director of this local charity and an important part of the dogs’ training is introducing them to the sights, sounds and smells of the animals we have at Folly Farm that they’ll encounter in Africa. As well as providing regular access to our animals we also raise funds to support the training and transport of the anti-poaching dogs.

Darren Priddle from Dogs 4 Wildlife

Visit Dogs 4 Wildlife

World Land Trust (WLT)

Registered charity number: 1001291

The World Land Trust (WLT) is an international conservation charity that takes direct action to save rainforest and other wildlife habitats. They were founded in 1989 and through their work nearly half a million acres of rainforest and other threatened habitat have been saved with a further 2.3 million acres now under protection agreements. The WLT depends on public donations. Our most recent donation in November 2021 is going towards WLT’s BIAZA Fund which continues to support the protection of 20,000 hectares at the Khe Nuoc Trong reserve in Vietnam.

Photo credit: Bjornolesen.com/Viet Nature Natalie Singleton – A mother and baby endangered Red-shanked Douc Langur (Pygathrix nemaeus) photographed in Khe Nuoc Trong.

Visit WLT