Expansion set to boost Canberra zoo's breeding and conservation efforts

Staff at the National Zoo and Aquarium were shocked when the healthy little fur ball came from a mother with severe behavioural issues and a father with recurring melanomas.

The zoo hopes to have more of these success stories through a plan to expand its captive breeding programs. .

The aim is to have 90 per cent of the animals at the zoo involved in breeding programs. However, it is much more complicated than placing two animals in together and hoping for the best.

Mary's success story was an exception. Her mum Otay was freed from a cage barely bigger than herself in an restaurant in south-east Asia, while chefs prepared to serve her paws as a delicacy.

The health of Mary's dad Arataki was not much better. He suffered several skin cancers until the most recent one was treated with nuclear-radiated gold dust, a treatment zoo owner Richard Tindale said was expensive.

Despite these health issues, the couple produced a healthy cub in Mary.

Operations manager at Canberra's National Zoo and Aquarium Renee Osterloh said Mary is now a vital member of the international breeding program for sun bears.

"To have a sun bear with these stereotypical behaviour issues and create a safe sanctuary for her to feel comfortable enough to raise a cub is rare," she said.

Unfortunately, not every baby-making pursuit had been so successful. While the zoo had luck with ring-tailed lemurs, zebras, red pandas and giraffes, there had also been many disappointments.

Ms Osterloh's voice was thick with tears as she described the sudden death of Berani the Sumatran tiger in 2015. The zoo was at the tail end of a meticulously planned 18-month courtship process with Berani and Rhani, when Berani died of kidney failure.

"We had tried for so long to get them used to each other slowly, with the female at her last estrous cycle which we believed would have been successful," she said.

"It was a huge shock to everyone. It really is devastating when you are so close to achieving something and then that happens."

There are an estimated 400 Sumatran tigers left in the world.

It was equally frustrating when the zoo failed to breed African serval cats for more than six years - until for unexplained reasons they finally bred 18 months ago.

Mr Tindale said that sometimes all the science in the world just can't make love blossom.

"You put two lions together they will breed straight away," he said.

"Tigers are a bit fussier. I've seen situations where because tigers are critically endangered an international stud book will make the decision all the way to Poland and they will say you will mate this one with this one and it just doesn't happen."

"It can be extremely disappointing when the future of the species depends on it."

The decision of which animals will mate is not one for individual zoos. They are at the bottom of the decision-making hierarchy of the Zoo and Aquarium Association, which co-ordinates breeding programs for 94 Australasian zoos.

An international species manager decides which zoos animals are sent to and who their partner will be, until a security population is released into the wild. Breeding is carefully controlled to increase the genetic diversity of each species. The difference of 1 per cent in a genetic make-up could be the difference between inbreeding and outbreeding.

"Twelve years ago we along with other zoos had to put money in to redo the whole system to ensure its accuracy," Mr Tindale said.

"The program cost a collective $US38 million just to rewrite. It's a very complicated process."

Genetics aside, there are several logistical challenges that come with transferring animals between zoos. When Shaba the Giraffe moved from Mogo Zoo to Canberra, the journey was planned down to the height of each branch.

Ms Osterloh said understanding the complex process of captive breeding was crucial to knowing what the expansion will mean for endangered wildlife.

The zoo's new focus on open-range exhibits aims to lead to more successful breeding efforts, as it phases out the least endangered species.

"Giraffes will do best through the expansion, with the larger space and the breeding facilities that we have," Ms Osterloh said.

"We need to stimulate natural behaviour as much as possible by having more space for the animals to feel happy and relaxed in the environments, which has a knock-on effect. We will have several larger animals, such as our three new rhinos, who we are hoping will successfully breed now that they have a larger space."

Animal rights activists argue that despite the move towards open-range exhibits, it is virtually impossible to replicate natural conditions in a zoo.

Ms Osterloh said she agreed with those statements but said staff were committed to learning about natural habitats to create the best environment possible. She also pointed to continuous funding for in-the-field conservation efforts.

She became emotional when asked about the belief that zoos prioritise profit over animal welfare.

"That's telling someone who knows the entire situation and dedicates their lives to the going out and learning more about their natural habitat that what they're doing is wrong," she said.

"Zoos in Australia have evolved and we have changed our ways and practices."

Mr Tindale expressed pride at the zoo's expansion and hope for the future of conservation.

"Everybody has different opinions about our bigger exhibits, from people who think tiny cages are best so they can get up close to not entertaining captivity at all," he said.

"Somewhere in the middle is where we stand. We believe animals should be in captivity because they have to be to save the species."

"We would love to be in a situation where the world doesn't have to have animals in captivity, but that's a fair way off - it could happen, but not in our lifetime."

"I bought this site with a promise to do something with animals, for animals, and with this expansion we can do more of that. We can't change the world but we can make a contribution."