Zoos, Aquariums Face the Ax in NY, Elsewhere

Even porcupines could get pink slips in the slumping economy as states consider cutting or eliminating funding that supports zoos, aquariums and botanical gardens.

Elephants do a trick for elephant manager Kelly Schroer, not shown, at the Buffalo Zoo in Buffalo, N.Y., Thursday Jan. 8, 2009. From New York to Los Angeles, hard financial times are threatening government support for zoos, aquariums and gardens.

(David Duprey/AP Photo)
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As part of his plan to help New York address a potential $15.4 billion budget shortfall, Gov. David Paterson has called for cutting funding for the Zoo, Botanical Garden and Aquarium Program from $9 million to $4 million in the state's 2009 budget and for eliminating funding in 2010.

"We can't fire our bears or furlough our sea lions," said John Calvelli, executive vice president of public affairs for the Wildlife Conservation Society, which operates the Central Park and Bronx zoos and the New York Aquarium in Brooklyn, among others.

New York isn't the only place where hard financial times threaten government support for zoos, aquariums and gardens, known collectively as "living museums."

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In California, city council members ordered work halted late last year on a new $42 million elephant exhibit at the Los Angeles Zoo because of the city's fiscal woes. In North Carolina, state lawmakers recently told the North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro it won't get $4 million for repairs and new exhibits because of a budget shortfall.

Last year, city leaders slashed the Kansas City Zoo's budget by 20 percent, while The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore closed four weeks early this winter to save money and offset budget cuts from the state Legislature. In Florida, state lawmakers cut $2 million for manatee hospitals at Lowry Park Zoo, SeaWorld and the Miami Seaquarium.

Living museums typically operate on a variety of funding from government, philanthropic organizations, corporations, and admission and sales revenues, said Steve Feldman, executive director of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, a Maryland-based organization that accredits zoos and aquariums.

"It's been more difficult for some than others, depending on their mix," Feldman said. "But nearly all are being forced to cut back on spending and costs. The largest and deepest cuts at the state level, though, have come in New York."