Stefanie's Hart to Hart with giraffes

International movie star Stefanie Powers brought a little Hollywood glamour to Twycross Zoo as she launched a new Conservation Welfare Fund.

The £1million fund has been set up by the zoo to champion wildlife projects which look after the health and welfare of animals both in captivity and in the wild.

Ms. Powers, the star of TV's much loved Hart to Hart, has been involved in wildlife conservation as president of the William Holden Wildlife Foundation and a supporter of the Jaguar Conservation Trust set up by Jaguar Cars.

Zoo director Suzanne Boardman said: "Twycross Zoo has a strong history of supporting projects that relieve suffering of wild animals as well as supporting the conservation of species.

"We feel we must support animals in their wild habitats.

"Some projects we can, and do, support through providing expertise, others by giving good PR but yet others need money to be able to achieve their goals.

"To increase the level of support we are able to give we have decided to set aside £1 million as a fund."

Each year the interest on that £1million will support projects and each year it will be added to by charitable profits.

Mrs Boardman added: "We want to see the fund grow and to be able to help projects vital to species conservation and welfare to achieve their aims.

"Most important we wish to help animals recover their numbers in the wild and to help protect their habitats."

Money will be targeted at projects which support primate species and the zoo hopes that by 2020 the fund will have helped secure the future of no fewer than five endangered primate species in the wild.

Those projects could encompass areas such as animal management, veterinary care, support for rehabilitation and reintroduction programmes and support for projects dealing with large-scale wildlife welfare problems.