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Stuttgart (dpa / lsw) - In the shadow of the corona pandemic, species protection is increasingly losing importance and attention, according to the director of the Stuttgart Wilhelma, Thomas Kölpin.

"Since society has been concerned about the virus, species protection has been forgotten," said the head of the zoological-botanical garden.

"And if people don't talk about it, people's willingness to donate decreases."

However, it is precisely these funds that are necessary outside the zoo's budgets to finance important projects to preserve the species on site, warned Kölpin in the run-up to the conservation day, which will be celebrated worldwide on Wednesday (March 3rd).

Above all, Wilhelma collects donations for its on-site projects by voluntarily donating the so-called species protection euro when purchasing an entrance fee.

Year after year, visitors collect around 500,000 euros in this way, as Kölpin said.

Over the past three years, Wilhelma has raised a total of two million euros, including donations from the species conservation euro, funds from the association and money from its own species conservation budget.

Kölpin was convinced that conclusions could also be drawn from the corona pandemic for species protection.

"We have the chance to learn from the corona pandemic."

The past year has shown that it helps species when humans are less mobile.

“The marine life stocks recover when fewer ships are on the move.

And there are fewer insects dying if we drive less often. "

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The commitment to species protection is also increasingly changing the appearance and appearance of German zoos, said Kölpin.

"Zoos are being transformed from exhibitors to modern species protection centers with their own breeding programs and the role of ambassadors for projects."

Wilhelma, for example, is currently funding more than 20 projects worldwide, including breeding for the critically endangered Sumatran rhinoceros in Indonesia and purchasing land to conserve species in Belize, Central America.

Many visitors are not yet aware of the importance of zoos in this regard, said Kölpin.

"But we have to get to the point where it clicks a little after a visit to the zoo."

Environment ministries and nature conservation groups report on conservation day on projects to protect endangered species.

The day commemorates the first signing of the Washington Convention, Cites, on March 3, 1973. It prohibits or limits the trade of thousands of threatened animal and plant species.

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210302-99-652880 / 2

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Information on the species protection euro

Details on Wilhelma's species protection projects on site

Official website of the UN for the conservation day