Whats wrong with breeding elephants in captivity?
http://www.alv.org.au/issues/whatswrongwithzoos.php Of the 5,926 species classified as threatened or endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, only around 120 are involved in international zoo breeding programs. Many species, including endangered species such as pandas and elephants are notoriously difficult to breed in captivity. For example, to date no elephant has ever been bred successfully in an Australian zoo and even captive populations numbering in the hundreds in Europe and the United States are not self sustaining. There is also the problem of genetic diversity. In small populations there can be problems associated with inbreeding, which can result in genetically weaker offspring. These offspring are more vulnerable and less likely to survive in the wild. The concept of re-introduction is plagued with serious difficulties. Species threatened by poaching will never be safe in the wild until attitudes change and the culture of poaching is eradicated.
