NW Trek Wildlife Park Wins Prestigious North American Conservation Award

NORTHWEST TREK WILDLIFE PARK WINS PRESTIGIOUS NORTH AMERICAN CONSERVATION AWARD FOR ITS CRUCIAL ROLE IN THE COLUMBIA BASIN PYGMY RABBIT RECOVERY PROGRAM

Honor bestowed by peers at the Association of Zoos & Aquariums' annual meeting

Eatonville, Wash. – Northwest Trek Wildlife Park’s years-long effort to save Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits received top honors in conservation from the Association of Zoos & Aquariums this week.

Northwest Trek and Oregon Zoo jointly received the prestigious North American Conservation Award during the AZA’s annual meeting in Kansas City, Mo.

The North American Conservation Award recognizes exceptional efforts toward regional habitat preservation, species restoration, and support of biodiversity in the wild.

“The conservation of Northwest endangered species, like the Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit, is central to our mission,” said Gary Geddes, director of the Zoological and Environmental Education Division of Metro Parks Tacoma.  “We’re gratified to know that we have played a role in aiding the recovery of these tiny rabbits in the wild.”

The award not only recognizes commitment to conservation, it also shows that Oregon Zoo and Northwest Trek have earned the respect of their peers, Oregon Zoo director Kim Smith said.

“We’re committed to conservation of many endangered species — large and small — and the fact is, these are the last Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits in existence,” she added. “They’re at the bottom of the food chain with the odds stacked against them. It’s gratifying to know that the zoo and its conservation partners have made significant strides in helping their recovery.”

AZA President and CEO Jim Maddy hailed Northwest Trek and Oregon Zoo as “proven leaders in wildlife conservation.”

“While all AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums make conservation a top priority, this award brings well-deserved recognition to these institutions for making a positive impact on the future of this species,” he said.

Northwest Trek’s dozen-year effort to help save the endangered Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit concluded in 2012. The wildlife park released its last breeding rabbits and their offspring in 2010, but staff and volunteers continued to support the program through 2012, building rabbit enclosures and fences in Ephrata.

Only 15 of the tiny Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits remained when the program began in 2000. Northwest Trek was among the first in the world to successfully breed them.

In the last 13 years, more than 1,600 pygmy rabbits were born through the efforts of Northwest Trek, Oregon Zoo and conservation partners at Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and  Washington State University.

The rabbits are now breeding successfully in the wild at Sagebrush Flat Wildlife Area in eastern Washington under close supervision by WDFW and USFWS.

The pygmy rabbit project was instrumental in laying the foundation for Northwest Trek’s future partnership efforts on other endangered and threatened species, ranging from the Oregon spotted frog to the Western toad to the fisher and trumpeter swan, Geddes said.

Northwest Trek’s pioneering efforts to save the Oregon spotted frog won the AZA’s North American Conservation Award a year ago.