Saharan Wildlife Recovery Center
Shifting Sands, Fading Footprints
The Sahara Desert and its fringe of short, dry grasslands (the Sahel) are home to a unique suite of species exquisitely adapted to life in this harsh, dry environment. Tragically, it is also where a majestic species known as the scimitar-horned oryx was once declared Extinct in the Wild in 2000. The silent near-extinction of this 300-pound antelope served as a wakeup call to mobilize immediate action around the world.
The Saint Louis Zoo answered the call to join efforts to protect species in the Saharan-Sahel region. Beginning in 2004, funds through the Zoo's WildCare Institute made significant investment in start-up costs for a foundation focused on the perils of wildlife in the region. Soon, other zoos followed and Sahara Conservation, the first non-governmental organization devoted exclusively to wildlife conservation in this important desert ecosystem, was born. The Saint Louis Zoo served as the organization's U.S. headquarters.
In the years since, Sahara Conservation has led a historic effort to recover the scimitar-horned oryx and other desert species.
Though they were once Extinct in the Wild, genetically healthy herds of scimitar-horned oryx and other Sahelo-Saharan wildlife remained in human care in zoos and private collections around the world. Sahara Conservation led a collaborative approach that joined organizations with animals born in human care to raise awareness, reintroduce animals to the wild and gather support (both technical and financial) for conservation efforts in the field.
This collaborative approach involving a talented global team of partners including zoos, national governments and conservation organizations, led to one of the most extraordinary achievements in recent wildlife conservation history. In 2023, the scimitar-horned oryx was downlisted from Extinct in the Wild to Endangered. Reintroductions continue today with the wild herds thriving.
Today, Sahara Conservation has offices in France, Niger and Chad. Although ungulates (hoofed mammals) are a primary focus for the organization, priority species have also included ostriches, Saharan cheetahs, and vultures.
As part of its mission to support wildlife, Sahara Conservation also supports an innovative model to improve the lives of people in the region by providing mobile healthcare missions to reach remote areas where few services exist at the heart of protected conservation areas in Chad and Niger.
To this day, the Saint Louis Zoo is a major supporter of Sahara Conservation's vital work through the WildCare Institute Saharan Wildlife Recovery Center.
Lisa Kelley, Ph.D., Vice President, Conservation, Education & Science at the Saint Louis Zoo and Director of WildCare Institute, sits on the U.S. Board of Sahara Conservation.
Big Place, Big Opportunities
The Sahara is a big place: three million square miles sprawling over 14 nations. While habitat degradation is an issue in some parts of the Sahelo-Saharan region, unlike most areas under threat, there are literally millions of acres of good habitat still available for wildlife, with perhaps the lowest density of human population found in and around any conservation hotspot in the world.
Major threats facing Saharan wildlife today are exceptionally harsh weather conditions, including prolonged excessive heat, and conflict with humans. With the right kind of technical and material support, we believe win-win solutions can be found that allow for sustainable use of wildlife and a rational plan for managing the Sahara's natural treasures.
Raising Our Voice in the Desert
The Saint Louis Zoo's Saharan Wildlife Recovery Center is one of the leading voices in a growing chorus raising awareness about the Sahara's silent crisis of extinction. Its mission is to link zoo expertise and resources with meaningful conservation action in the Sahara. What we do with our Saharan species in zoos today will have a tremendous influence on these species' futures in the wild. Our program of work includes such activities as helping to launch Sahara Conservation; addax and scimitar-horned oryx repatriation into fenced reserves in Tunisia using zoo-bred animals; supporting a local ostrich recovery program in Niger through captive breeding; collecting baseline scientific data on Saharan wildlife through support of field surveys in Mali, Niger and Algeria; and supporting the planned reintroduction of captive-bred scimitar-horned oryx from the Middle East into Chad.
Big Dream, Greater Hope
Beginning in 2012, the Saint Louis Zoo, in partnership with Sahara Conservation, the Republic of Niger, the Convention on Migratory Species, and numerous other zoos and conservation organizations around the world realized a shared dream to establish a nature reserve for addax and other Sahelo-Saharan wildlife in the Termit/Tin Toumma region of Niger. On March 6, 2012, the Council of Ministers for the Republic of Niger decreed the formal establishment of the Termit & Tin Toumma National Nature and Cultural Reserve. At 97,000 km² (37,450 square miles), the reserve is bigger than the state of Indiana, and now ranks as the largest protected area in Africa. While there is still much work to be done to protect the wildlife in this new reserve, today there is more hope for the addax and other wildlife sharing this park.
Raising the Flag Here at Home
Zoos and private collections worldwide hold large numbers of some of the most critically endangered Sahelo-Saharan species. These institutions look for ways to connect what zoos do best (conservation breeding and the scientific management of small populations) to the recovery of the species in the wild.
The Saint Louis Zoo and Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park participate in some of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ (AZA) key Saharan wildlife conservation breeding programs for species including the addax, scimitar-horned oryx and dama gazelle.
Climate Change Impact
The Sahel Sahara area is extremely vulnerable to climate issues. Repeated droughts and continued desertification have decimated wildlife and domestic animals in a predominantly pastoral area. A quarter of African countries are located in this area, which includes the top eight largest states of the continent, six belong to the Sahel Sahara area: Algeria, Chad, Libya, Mali, Niger, and Sudan.