Fauna at the Rabat zoo “immortalized” by the National Geographic
“Immortalizing” by studio portraits the endangered animals of the zoological garden of Rabat to raise public awareness of their preservation: it is with this in mind that the American international photographer from National Geographic Joel Sartore recently collaborated with the Rabat zoological garden. Artistic and atypical shots that reveal these species in a whole new light and will significantly feed his photographic Ark project, started more than 16 years ago.
Several endemic Moroccan and African species housed in the zoo have passed under the photographer’s lens, including the Atlas lion, the Barbary sheep (Ammotragus lervia), the African elephant, the gazelles, as well as several species of reptiles. The goal is to make the general public aware of the importance of safeguarding these animals and their respective habitats.
Another goal of the approach is to provide a documentary fund that is strategic for researchers who regularly look into the dark future of these species about to become extinct. No less than 13,435 animals have been photographed to date around the world through this project, including many residents of zoos and aquariums. Sartore plans to photograph a total of 20,000 species of birds, fish, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. The catalog will represent an invaluable scientific resource for the experts who are regularly committed to this cause. The “Moroccan” shots will complement the specialist’s photographic Ark project. Morocco is full of extinct or endangered animals, such as the Atlas lion, the panther, the cheetah, the deer, or even the scimitar-horned oryx (Oryx dammah). Other species are endangered, such as the striped hyena, the dama gazelle (Nanger dama), the Barbary sheep, the wildcat (Felis silvestris), the fennec fox (Vulpes zerda), and the otter. As for the extinct birds, it is worth mentioning the red-necked ostrich (Struthio camelus camelus) and the eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca). Among the causes of this threat, in particular the pressure exerted by human activity on their natural habitat through overexploitation of forests, fires, forest clearing for agricultural purposes, or even the trafficking of endangered species.
Karim AGOUMI
