This week marks the anniversaries of two African icons: today, the lion, and on August 12, the elephant.

La BIOPARC Foundation It launches a call for its global protection., through direct action in their habitat and in the Valencian park, bringing hope to international conservation programs with important births like the elephants Makena and Malik.

The lion and the elephant They are two of the most emblematic species of the African continent and Their position is extremely delicate., having a population loss respectively from 30% in just two decades and from 95% in a century.

BIOPARC Valencia offers the opportunity to learn about their behaviorinteractions and characteristics to better understand the complexity of biodiversity and mobilize the population towards its protection. On the occasion of World Lion Day, which is celebrated he 10 August, And World Elephant Day, he 12 August, Since the BIOPARC Foundation A voice is raised in the face of this serious situation, appealing to strategy One Plan Approach (Single-plan approach) promoted by leading organizations such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Participation in scientific programs with successes such as the birth of the first elephants, Makena and Malik, offers hope for preventing their extinction.

The lion is one of the great cats and a symbol of the strength and majesty of wild nature. BIOPARC ValenciaThe group Angolan lion (Panthera leo bleyenberghi) It consists of the 10-year-old male Lubango, and the females Tata, 15 (the first lioness born in the park), and Shanga, 11. The three inhabit the area that recreates the kopjes, the unique rock formations that rise above the landscape and from which the lions can survey their surroundings. Undoubtedly, one of the aspects that most surprises visitors is to see them alongside giraffes, ostriches and different species of antelopes and birds without any kind of visual barrier.

These multi-species enclosures and the apparent coexistence between predators and prey It is representative of the innovative design of zoodipping which allows you to "travel", for a few moments, to the heart of the savanna.

From BIOPARC outreach work This image, reminiscent of "The Lion King," also aims to highlight a little-known reality: included on the IUCN Red List, it is estimated that Only between 22.000 and 25.000 individuals survive.

In the space that shows a impressive baobab forest next to a large lake, the pack of Elephants (Loxodonta africanaAt BIOPARC Valencia, you can observe the animals exhibiting their natural behaviors, especially during these summer months. bathing and water games They become one of the most striking moments. The imposing one male, four females, and the two little ones Born in the center, Makena and Malik form this group included in the European Programme for the Conservation of Threatened Species (EEP), with the aim of saving them from disappearing.

Habitat loss and poaching for ivory remain its main threats, with a population that has been drastically decimated to an estimated 350.000 individuals.

The future of biodiversity and these two symbolic mammals requires a new global vision which includes the populations under human care with those that remain in the natural environment.

If from the commitment to animal welfare of BIOPARC of Fuengirola, Valencia and the Gijón Aquarium Work is underway on a hundred conservation EEPs. ex situ, the BIOPARC Foundation promotes projects in situ in different parts of the world. Among them, in Africa, is the one being developed in conjunction with Big Life Foundation in the Greater Amboseli National Park, between Kenya and Tanzania. It protects this valuable enclave and its ecological corridors, favoring the survival of numerous species such as elephants, lions, giraffes, and rhinoceroses.