EAZA Ex situ Programmes (EEPs) are population management programmes for animal species that are managed by EAZA Members. The aim of EEPs aim is to have and maintain healthy populations of healthy animals within EAZA and beyond. Together with Regional Collection Plans and Long-term Management Plans, EEPs are one of the pillars of EAZA's population management structure. Currently EAZA manages programmes for over 400 different species. A selection of these EEPs are showcased on this website. Click on the EEPs below to learn more about the programmes' different conservation roles, which conservation organisations they are partnering with, the number of animals that are in the programme, and more.

If you are looking for information about an EEP that does not have its own EEP page yet, feel free to contact us.
EAZA Member staff with a Member Area account can click on the link on each EEP page for more detailed information, such as calls for action and relevant documents.

Programme roles

Each EEP has its own set of roles that describe the benefits of the EEP to the overall conservation of the species, as well as to the zoos and aquariums and their visitors. These roles can be served either simultaneously or consecutively, and are divided in three categories: direct conservation roles, indirect conservation roles and non-conservation roles. 

Direct conservation roles
An EEP can have a direct conservation role if ex situ management is identified as (one of) the essential action(s) for the conservation of that species by the conservation community. Direct conservation roles are generally aimed to address the causes of primary threats to a species in the wild, offset the effects of these threats, buy time when a wild population is declining at a rapid rate, or restore wild populations. Descriptions of these roles are based on the IUCN SSC Guidelines on the Use of Ex situ Management for Species Conservation and Appendix I of the Amphibian Ark Conservation Needs Assessment Process. 

Indirect conservation roles
There are situations in which the zoo and aquarium community can contribute to conservation by making available its expertise, knowledge, materials, staff, fundraising, etc. to help implement in situ conservation actions, and/or by carrying out general awareness and conservation education activities aimed at the zoo-visiting public. Programme roles related to these situations are called indirect conservation roles, as they are helpful and needed, but not immediately essential the conservation of the species.

Non-conservation roles
While the conservation of wildlife is one of the central missions of EAZA, ex situ populations of species can also be managed for different reasons. One example of a programme role that is not related to conservation is the education of visitors on topics such as specific aspects of the species' biology. A species can also be very suited, for example, to let zoo staff gain experience in preparation of taking on a species with more complicated husbandry requirements.

This work is supported by the European Union LIFE NGO funding programme. The European Union is not responsible for the views displayed in publications and/or in conjunction with the activities for which the grant is used.