Zoo collects $100,000 in quarters
Those quarters really added up.
The first year of Cheyenne Mountain Zoo's Quarters for Conservation program raised more than $100,000 to support conservation efforts around the world, the zoo said Friday.
Under the initiative, which began last spring, the zoo contributes 25 cents from each admission - or $2.50 from each family membership - to wildlife conservation.
Half the money goes to longstanding programs to protect black-footed ferrets, Mexican gray wolves and other animal species.
The other half goes to a half-dozen programs represented in a display in the zoo's entry plaza; visitors receive a token to vote for their favorite programs, thus determining the percentage of funding each gets.
"With every quarter, we will send a message to our visitors that says, by visiting us, you make a difference in the lives of wild animals," said Bob Chastain, zoo president and chief executive officer.
The top vote-getter in the first year was the snow leopard. As the second year begins, the zoo has picked six programs - three new ones and three repeats from the first year:
• Amphibians in Panama. Frogs and salamanders are dying around the world because of habitat loss, pollution and the spread of chytrid fungus.
• Bats in Colorado and throughout North America. Funds will go to researching a fungus threatening bats in the Northeast and creating habitats for bats in Colorado.
• Native skipper butterflies in Colorado. The zoo is partnering with several groups to restore habitat and survey populations of the threatened Pawnee montane skipper.
• Andean bears in Ecuador. The Andean Bear Conservation Project protects Andean bears from extinction through field studies, rehabilitation and release of captive bears.
• Orangutans. Quarters for Conservation will support an awareness campaign to help protect wild orangutans, whose habitats in Borneo and Sumatra have been devastated by the clearing of forests for palm-oil plantations and exotic woods.
• African vultures. Wild African vultures are jeopardized by loss of food and habitat, as well as other issues.
