Editing Perth Zoo (section)

==Conservation==
[[File:Asali gnangarra 160915-120.jpg|thumb|Asali, a [[Rothschild's giraffe]], leaving Perth Zoo for [[Monarto Safari Park]] after being part of the breeding program]]
The zoo participates in a number of breeding programs for [[endangered species]], both native  Australian and non-native species.  Some Australian species are bred for release into managed habitat in Western Australia, whereas the international species are for increasing genetic diversification in zoo population.

===Exotic species===
Perth Zoo contributes to the conservation of threatened species in the wild through its fundraising program, . Started in 2007, funds raised have been used for the conservation of [[African painted dog]]s, [[Asian elephant]]s, [[Goodfellow's tree-kangaroo]]s, [[Javan gibbon]]s, [[northern white-cheeked gibbon]]s, [[Rothschild's giraffe]]s, [[southern white rhinoceros]]es, [[Sumatran orangutan]]s, [[Sumatran tiger]]s,  and [[sun bear]]s. More than {{AUD|881,000|link=yes}}{{as of? |date=May 2025}} has been raised since the program began.<ref name="wca"/>

Many individuals of these species have been born at the zoo and later contributed to further generations of international and regional captive-breeding programs.
[[File:Sumatran_Orangutan_(Pongo_abelii)_at_Perth_Zoo,_February_2021_19.jpg|thumb|The zoo has had a long successful conservation program with endangered Sumatran orangutans, breeding twenty-three individuals from 1970–2012. Three individuals born at Perth Zoo have been released into the wild in Sumatra in 2006, 2011 and 2016 respectively.]]
The zoo's Sumatran orangutan breeding program is one of the most successful in the world, having bred twenty-three Sumatran orangutans between 1970 and 2012 (and additionally eight hybrid Bornean-Sumatran orangutans in the 1970s before difference species status was known, the hybrid orangutans were later sent to zoos in India). In 2006, 2011 and 2016 zoo-born Sumatran orangutans were released into the wild in Bukit Tigapuluh National Park in Sumatra as part of an international program to re-establish a wild population of the critically endangered ape.<ref name="released_orangutan"/>

Since 2006, Perth Zoo has made a significant contribution to conservation projects in the Bukit Tigapuluh National Park and the surrounding forested areas which support a rich diversity of life including a new colony of orangutans. These orangutans are part of an international program to reintroduce rescued ex-pet and orphaned Sumatran orangutans into the wild to establish a new population of this critically endangered species. More than 139 orangutans have been released into the area and some have bred.

In November 2006, Perth Zoo released 14-year-old, Perth Zoo-born Sumatran orangutan Temara into Bukit Tigapuluh as part of the reintroduction program. Temara was the first zoo-born orangutan in the world to be released into the wild. This was followed in 2011 with the release of the first male zoo-born orangutan, Semeru, into the wild, and in 2016 by another male Nyaru in the wild of Sumatra. Perth Zoo works with the [[Frankfurt Zoological Society]], Indonesian Government and the Australian Orangutan Project on this program and other conservation activities in Bukit Tigapuluh.<ref name="released_orangutan"/>

Puteri (born 1970) is the first of the Sumatran orangutan to be born at the zoo. She has lived at Perth Zoo her entire life, and birthed six second generation Sumatran orangutans (including Temara).

===Native species===
The zoo's  fundraising program has also contributed towards native Australian species under threat in the wild.

Working with the Department of Environment and Conservation, Perth Zoo breeds threatened Western Australian animal species for release into managed areas of habitat in the wild as part of its Native Species Breeding Program. As of 2011, Perth Zoo breeds species including [[dibbler]]s, [[numbat]]s, [[western swamp turtle]]s, [[woylie]]s and threatened Western Australian frog species.<ref name="Frog" />

[[File:Numbat.jpg|thumb|right|A numbat, one of the many species to benefit from Perth Zoo's involvement.]]
The [[numbat]]{{nbsp}}(''Myrmecobius fasciatus'') Western Australia's mammal emblem and one of only two diurnal marsupials, the numbat is the only Australian mammal to feed exclusively on [[termite]]s.<ref name="numbat"/> Despite the establishment of several populations by the Department of Environment and Conservation, it is still classified as endangered by the [[IUCN]].<ref name="iucn_numbat"/> Perth Zoo has been breeding numbats for release into the wild since 1986. The first successful birth was in 1993. By early 2011, 165 numbats had been provided by the zoo for release into protected habitat.<ref name="zaa_numbat"/> In 2022 Perth Zoo bred 13 numbat joeys, and released 10 of them (and a wild rescued female) into [[Mallee Cliffs National Park]] in New South Wales.

The [[western swamp turtle]]{{nbsp}}(''Pseudemydura umbrina'') is a short-necked freshwater turtle and Australia's most [[critically endangered]] reptile. The western swamp tortoise has only been recorded at scattered localities in a narrow, {{convert|3|to|5|km|adj=on|spell=in}} strip of the Swan Coastal Plain. Since 1988, Perth Zoo has bred more than 500 western swamp tortoises. The main barrier to the further recovery of the species is the lack of suitable habitat. Despite this barrier, in 2022 Perth Zoo released 191 western swamp turtles into [[Scott National Park]] and bush around Moore River area.

The [[dibbler]]&nbsp;(''Paranthechinus apicalis'') is a small carnivorous marsupial found on two islands off the coast of [[Jurien Bay, Western Australia|Jurien Bay]] (island dibblers) and on the south coast of Western Australia within the [[Fitzgerald River National Park]] (mainland dibblers). It once had a much wider distribution, but is now classified as endangered by the [[IUCN]].<ref name="iucn_dibbler"/> Perth-Zoo-bred dibblers were used to establish a new population on Escape Island in Jurien Bay. The focus has now changed to breeding dibblers from Fitzgerald River National Park for release on the mainland. By early 2011, over 500 dibblers had been provided by the zoo for release into protected habitat.<ref name="zaa_dibbler"/> Additionally between 2019 and 2023, 203 dibblers bred at Perth Zoo have been released into [[Dirk Hartog Island National Park]]. The Dibbler conservation breeding program was completed in 2023 after 26 years (beginning 1997) with 1,173 captive bred individuals born and released into protected wilderness areas during the program.

The frog breeding program is seeking to increase populations of threatened species, including those listed as vulnerable ''[[Spicospina flammocaerulea]]'' (sunset frog) and ''[[Geocrinia vitellina]]'' (orange-bellied frog), and the critically endangered ''[[Anstisia alba]]'' (white-bellied frog), the latter species being one example of the zoo's success with its captive breeding programs, having bred and released 1,250 white-bellied frogs back into the wild.<ref name="Frog">{{cite web |title=Frog Breeding Programs |url=https://perthzoo.wa.gov.au/saving-wildlife/breeding-conservation/frog-breeding-programs |website=perthzoo.wa.gov.au |publisher=Perth Zoo }}{{self-published source |date=May 2025}}</ref>{{self-published inline |certain=y |date=May 2025}}

===Previous breeding programs===
The [[chuditch]]{{nbsp}}(''Dasyurus geoffroi'') or [[western quoll]], is one of four quoll species in Australia and is the largest marsupial predator in Western Australia. At the time of European settlement, chuditch occurred in approximately 70% of the continent. By the late 1980s, they had become endangered, with less than 6,000 remaining in the south-west of Western Australia. Perth Zoo has bred more than 300 chuditch for release in the last decade. Since the breeding program began, the status of chuditch has been modified from [[endangered]] to [[Vulnerable species|vulnerable]]. This breeding program is now complete.

[[Shark Bay mouse]]{{nbsp}}(''Pseudomys fieldi'') also known as [[djoongari]], prior to 1993 the only known population of djoongari was on [[Bernier Island]] in the north-west of Western Australia, adjacent to the [[Shark Bay]] region and was considered to be one of Australia's most geographically restricted animals. Over 300 Perth-Zoo-bred djoongari have been released to sites on the mainland and on islands in the north-west of Western Australia. This breeding program is now complete.

The [[central rock-rat]]{{nbsp}}(''Zyzomys pedunculatus'') is a critically endangered [[rodent]] that was presumed extinct until it was rediscovered in the [[MacDonnell Ranges]] [[Northern Territory]] in 1996. The last of the zoo's central rock rats were sent to Alice Springs Desert Park in 2007 and the breeding program closed.