SINGAPORE - Some 7, 500 runners took to the pathways of the Night Safari and Singapore Zoo on Saturday morning (Feb 18) to raise $100,000 for wildlife conservation.

The ninth instalment of Safari Zoo Run saw participants choose teams representing animal icons of the four wildlife parks to champion a species of critically endangered animal.

Team Ah Meng supported orangutans in Sumatra, team Chawang supported Sumatran elephants, team Sunny supported helmeted hornbills, and team Canola supported South-east Asian freshwater turtles.

Runners collected points for their team to earn a larger allocation of funds for the winning team's species.

Team Ah Meng came out on top, with nearly 30 per cent of runners choosing to race for the iconic zoo personality, raising $40,000 for Sumatran orangutan projects.

Wildlife Reserves Singapore will also commit an additional $20,000 each to regional projects supporting the other three species, it said in a release on Saturday.

Runners for the 10km competitive race flagged off at 7am, followed by those in the 5.5km and 2.5km family and kids runs.