NC Zoo hosts 'Sky Art' event to aid plant conservation in Africa
Posted on 04/08/10ASHEBORO, NC-The North Carolina Zoo will host a photography event Friday, April 16, with proceeds from the fund-raiser going to support plant conservation through the Association of Zoo Horticulturists' (AZH) Conservation Keystone Project.
The event, "Sky Art," will be held at the zoo's Oak Hill Picnic Area in the Africa Region at 1 p.m. As part of the event, an overhead photograph will be taken of the participants making the outline of a stylized primate with the plant Aframomum-an important food and medicinal plant on which wild primates rely.
Participation in the event will be $10 per person, with the first 150 participants receiving a free event T-shirt to wear for the photograph. It is not necessary to purchase admission to the zoo to take part in the event.
Participants can purchase tickets online at nczoo.org or at nczoo.com or at any zoo gift shop (336-879-7267). Tickets will also be sold at the event.
"Sky Art" will be held rain or shine but cancelled in the event of lightning or thunderstorms. For more event information, call 336-879-7400. The event photograph will appear online at: plantconservationday.org, nczoo.org and nczoo.com. The Sky Art photo image taken at the event will be featured on a T-shirt that will be available at the zoo's gift shops beginning May 18.
The N.C. Zoo's plant-conservation fundraising supports the Tooro Botanical Garden in Fort Portal, Uganda, central Africa, which protects both rare and endemic plant species growing in the region. The botanical garden is located in Africa's Albertine Rift, home to some of Africa's rarest species and most diverse ecosystems.
The zoo is an agency of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Dee Freeman, Secretary; Beverly E. Perdue, Governor.
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