Vienna zoo no longer naming baby animals

Baby zoo animals often captivate the public's attention, especially when they belong to rare or endangered species. Their births tend to generate significant media coverage, turning them into attractions in their own right. In some cases, the public are even invited to participate in the naming of a newborn animal, such as the famous polar bear "Knut", born in Berlin.

However, in a first for German-speaking zoos, the Vienna park has now opted to ban the naming of new offspring in order to prevent drawing attention to individual creatures. Zoo director Stephan Hering-Hagenbeck told the "Tiroler Tageszeitung" paper that publicly naming an animal will lead people to attribute human qualities to the creature. "It becomes a sensation when you see a director holding a baby animal in their arms. It naturally leads to the humanisation of a wild animal."

"For a long time, the focus was on the display of a single animal," he continued. Going forward, the zoo intends to shift its emphasis towards promoting the preservation of entire species, placing conservation at the core of its activities.