The Nuremberg Zoo killed 12 Santa Babbuini: “They were too many in the cages” (and protests are taken in Germany)

At the Nuremberg Zoo, in Germany, the suppression of twelve baboons from Guinea sparked a national case. The animals, all in good health, were demolished due to the overcrowding in the enclosure intended for them. The decision, defined as “necessary” by the management of the structure, aroused waves of indignation, with protests and complaints from animal rights groups.

The problem had long been known: the pack had counted over 40 specimens, but the area had been designed to host no more than 25. The contraceptive measures attempted by the veterinary team did not give the desired results and no European zoo offered to welcome part of the group.

Director Dag Encke clarified that neither the expansion of the structures nor the reintroduction in nature were viable options. According to the official press release, the intervention was conducted in line with the criteria EAZA (European Zoo and Aquarium Association), which consider the demolition “the last legitimate resource” in critical cases. On the basis of what was declared by the staff, the pregnant specimens and those under scientific observation were excluded from the plan.

The reaction of activists: protests and arrests

The gesture triggered a harsh reaction from the animal rights activists, culminating with events at the entrance of the zoo. Some activists have carved or glued to the ground, others have tried to enter the park to stop the demolition. Seven people have been arrested.

The Pro Wildlife Association has defined the “illegal and avoidable” killings, accusing the zoo of having maintained irresponsible breeding policies for decades. The DJGT, the German association for the right to animal protection, also criticized the action: by law, “The killing of vertebrates is allowed only in the presence of a reasonable cause“, And the excessive reproduction would not be enough.

Some animals given to predators

To this is added that the bodies of the suppressed baboons have been given to the carnivores hosted in the same zoo. An act that made the controversy even more heated, fueling a heated debate not only on the ethical level, but also on the very meaning of the management responsibility of animals in captivity. A last gesture of ruthless management with the animal that becomes the object, resource, dimensions to be disposed of in the most functional way possible.

What emerges from this story is a short circuit between biology, bureaucracy and morality: can we really speak of conservation or environmental education, as zoo often affirm, if in the end you choose death as an organizational shortcut? Is it acceptable to suppress healthy individuals to remedy human planning errors?

The case of the baboons of Nuremberg is not only a question of overpopulation, but the reflection of a system that, under the patina of care and science, shows the cracks of a deeply anthropocentric management, where animal life has value until it is useful or manageable.

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