Species360

Species360

Formation	1973; 51 years ago (1973)
Type	International not-for-profit organization
Purpose	Zoo and aquarium animal records database
Location	Bloomington, Minnesota, U.S.
Region	Global
Method	Membership
Website	www.species360.org

Species360 (formerly International Species Information System or ISIS) founded in 1974, is an international non-profit organization that maintains an online database of wild animals under human care.^[1] As of 2023, the organization serves more than 1,300 zoos, aquariums and zoological associations on six continents and in 102 countries worldwide.^[2] The organization provides its members with zoological data collection and management software called ZIMS—the Zoological Information Management System.

ZIMS project was a large global collaboration with 600 people contributing under the leadership of Nate Flesness, Executive Director of Species360 (1979–2009),^[3] and Hassan Syed, CIO of Species360 (2003–2010).^[4] The ZIMS database contains information on 22,000 species, 10 million animals, and 82 million medical records.^[2] Members use the basic biologic information (age, sex, parentage, place of birth, circumstance of death, etc.) collected in the system to care for and manage their animal collections (including demographic and genetic management in many cases). It is also used for ex situ breeding programs and supporting conservation research and programs.

Since its foundation in 1973, the group has been a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) pursuing wild animal conservation goals. Species360 works in partnership with zoo associations around the world.

The organization has staff and representatives in Amsterdam and The Randstad (the Netherlands), Barcelona (Spain), Copenhagen and Odense (Denmark), Jerusalem (Israel), Bristol, London, and Paignton (UK), and across the United States (Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Texas, Wisconsin, Washington) with headquarters in Minnesota (US).