Home/Posts Tagged ‘poaching’
Posts Tagged ‘poaching’
Conservation, Nov 5th, 2011,
The Asian market for traditional bogus medicine continues to grow, causing unprecedented losses in endangered species like the African White Rhino. Two poachers from Thailand were recently arrested for poaching upon their arrival in South Africa as part of a recent crackdown on poaching gangs. From Reuters Africa: More rhinos have been killed in South Africa in the past 10 months than in all of 2010, the WWF reported this week, citing figures from the South Africa National Parks. The figure stands at 341 animals lost to poaching, compared with a record total of 333 last year. Another response…
Tags: African, horn, poaching, rhino, South Africa, white
Wildlife & Flora, Sep 19th, 2010,
This Purple Heron is just one of many birds shot illegally during the biannual migration over Malta Thousands of birds fill the skies between Europe and Africa during their bi-annual migration, their weary wings silhouetted against the sun, an ancient migration that signals the changing seasons. However, over Malta, they are consistently unsafe. Despite charged efforts by both BirdLife Malta and CABS (Committee Against Bird Slaughter), and laws that apply throughout the European Union, illegal Maltese hunters continue to use these birds for target practice. This time last year, according to the BBC, over 200 birds were found by volunteers…
Tags: birding, Malta, poaching, wildlife
Conservation, Nature, Weird Stuff, Wildlife & Flora, ,
Today’s Creature Feature takes us to the Isla Escudo de Veraguas, off the Caribbean coast of Panama. The Pygmy Three-toed Sloth is a Critically Endangered species. They are 20% smaller than other Three-toed Sloth species and weigh 40% less. Their homes can be found throughout the mangrove forests that surround the Isla Escudo de Veraguas—at least, for the time being. Sloths are generally known to be slow movers through the trees, but if you put them in water you’ll see a whole different side. Three-toed Sloths are actually good swimmers. Another thing that may surprise you is, although the Three-toed…
Tags: Caribbean island, Creature Feature, critically endangered species, Isla Escudo de Veraguas, mangroves, poaching, Pygmy Three-toed Sloth
Conservation, Wildlife & Flora, Jul 19th, 2010,
The last female rhino at Krugersdorp Nature Reserve in South Africa was killed by poachers on Wednesday. The poachers are suspected to have entered the game reserve – near South Africa’s largest city, Johannesburg – by helicopter, where they then shot the white rhino cow with tranquilizers before cutting off her horn with a chainsaw. This latest killing marks the 136th rhino in South Africa that has been murdered for its horn this year – already more than last year’s total of 129, suggesting that the number of killings this year will double. The sophistication of the operation leaves conservationists…
Tags: Africa, animal, Asia, calf, CITES, Krugersdorp, park, poachers, poaching, Reserve, rhino, South, white
Conservation, Nature, Science & Technology, Weird Stuff, Wildlife & Flora, Jun 30th, 2010,
This week’s Creature Feature takes us along a stretch of the Pacific Coast from Mendocino County, California to Cabo San Lucas, Baja California, Mexico. The Black Abalone is a critically endangered large sea snail, or gastropod mollusk. The shell can be one of the following colors: dark brown, dark green, dark blue or other dark (nearly black) shade, but not black itself. However, the rest of the animal (tentacles, foot, etc.) is all black. The inside of the shell has a light pink and green tint to it and surprisingly, the outside of the shell is actually rather smooth, which…
Tags: Black Abalone, California, Creature Feature, critically endangered species, disease, gastropod, Mexico, mollusk, over fishing, Pacific Coast, Pacific Ocean, poaching, predators, sea snail, Withering Abalone Syndrome
Conservation, Nature, Politics, Wildlife & Flora, Jun 24th, 2010,
We live in a vast world with many different creatures. It may come as a surprise to learn where some species call home—especially when those places tend to be pretty remote and dangerous. Unfortunately, some of those dangers can still come from humans. In the past 11 months, 28 Indian Rhinos were poached throughout Nepal’s Himalayan Mountains. An investigation is currently underway as conservation officials, police and army chiefs were ordered to come up with a strategy to put a stop to the killings, once and for all. Although the rhinos are already protected by the government and the forests…
Tags: foothills, Great One-horned rhino, Himalayas, Indian Rhino, investigation, Nature, Nepal, poaching, political unrest, rhinoceros, rhinos
Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Apr 16th, 2010,
Earlier this week, India announced plans to use a new tiger tracking system in order to crack down on “lazy” wildlife guards. Environment Minister, Jairam Ramesh, explained that when it comes to patrolling wildlife sanctuary areas, “many field officers are too lazy”. He also adds that “they make up data instead of surveying the field”. Fortunately, the new tracking system should put a stop to that. The new tracking system involves fitting tigers with radio collars. A GPRS (general packet radio service) device, along with the M-STrIPES software, will be used to track the movement of the tigers. Right now,…
Tags: endangered species, India, killing, lazy field officers, poaching, tiger hunting, tracking system
Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Apr 8th, 2010,
About a month ago it was reported that Congo soldiers based in Virunga National Park were suspected of poaching a number of animals, including: 7 hippos, 5 elephants, 5 antelopes, 4 baboons, 3 chimpanzees, and 2 buffalo. Those suspicions were correct. According to the commander of the army’s 15th Brigade (which is behind most of the killings), the soldiers have resorted to poaching because of the inadequacy of their food rations. On top of the poaching for food, soldiers have also developed an illegal ivory business in Nord-Kivu province, where the National Park is located. Traders purchase ivory from the…
Tags: Africa, Congo, IDPE, ivory trade, poaching, soldiers, Virunga National Park
Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Mar 25th, 2010,
Another endangered species was found dead in Indonesia, but this time it wasn’t a tiger. Poachers are the suspected killers of a 10-year-old male elephant, particularly because the tusks were removed. Residents of Petani village found the elephant’s body. Mulyo Utomo, from a local nature conservation agency, mentioned that “we also found a stab wound on the right side of the chest, piercing through his liver.” Sumatran Elephants are a subspecies of the Asian Elephant. They are also terribly endangered. As the name suggests, they can only be found in Sumatra. Less than 3,000 Sumatran Elephants remain and most of…
Tags: elephants, endangered species, Indonesia, persecution, poaching, Sumatran Elephant
Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Mar 20th, 2010,
There is finally a bit of good news in the world of tigers. A lifelong poacher was caught by Indonesian conservationists yesterday. The alleged criminal, named Wiryo, admitted to the conservationists that he started hunting tigers on Java Island when he was 17 years of age. By 1960, he moved to Sumatra because the Javan Tiger population was on the decline. Iwin Kasiwan, of the natural conservation agency in Riau province, stated: “We caught him Thursday while he was sailing a traditional wooden boat in a river in Kuala Cinaku with evidence of skin, skull and 8.3 kilos of bones…
Tags: endangered species, Indonesia, lifelong tiger killer caught, poaching, Sumatran Tigers
Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Mar 10th, 2010,
Do you have a taste for exotic food? Well, then you might be interested in knowing that the overconsumption of certain species may soon wipe them completely off the menu. In this case, I’m talking about Sea Turtles. Sea Turtle eggs are viewed as a delicacy in Malaysia. Hundreds of thousands of them are consumed there every year. Unfortunately, this could mean the extinction of sea turtles—at least on Malaysia’s beaches. Why? Well, consider this: Sea Turtles lay eggs. Those hatchlings need to actually be able to hatch and make it out to sea if they’re going to have even…
Tags: delicacy, food, Malaysia, Nature, overconsumption, poaching, sea turtles, turtle eggs
Nature, Videos & Documentaries, Wildlife & Flora, Feb 21st, 2010,
If you live in Indonesia and have $100,000 to spare, you soon may be able to. The Indonesian government is contemplating a tiger adoption initiative in an attempt to curb the illegal poaching of the endangered big cats. These aren’t the typical kind of wildlife conservation ‘adoptions’ like the WWF’s Adopt a Tiger program, where a modest donation will get you a photo of a tiger and a plush doll. Ordinary Indonesian citizens would actually be able to keep a pair of adult Sumatran tigers in their own back yards for a deposit of $100 grand. According to CNN, the…
Tags: adopt, CNN, government, Indonesia, Indonesian, initiative, Nature, pet, poaching, Sumatran, tiger, WWF
Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Feb 11th, 2010,
Asian tigers have reached dangerously low numbers. Habitat destruction and poaching are 2 of the main culprits behind this decline. Since the beginning of the Chinese Year of the Tiger is right around the corner, there’s a good chance tiger poaching will be on the rise this year, especially since tigers have been used in Chinese medicine for quite some time. Unfortunately for some tigers, it seems the increased poaching has already started. Malaysian tribesmen are being paid to trap and kill wildlife, including critically endangered tigers. One man recently involved in a tiger attack, Yok Meneh, claimed he fought…
Tags: critically endangered, endangered species, Malaysia, middlemen, paid for poaching, poaching, tigers, tribesmen, Year of the Tiger
Uncategorized, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 19th, 2010,
Buyers beware: the goods you are purchasing could be illegal. The illegal selling and trading of animals—or their parts—has been known of for a long time. Sometimes, governments permit temporary sales or trades. In most cases, you will find these things on the black market. However, traders are willing to do whatever it takes to reach a wider customer base and evade authorities. Their chosen method of gaining higher sales may surprise you: the internet. Grace Ge, IFAW’s Asian regional director, suspects foul play. At a recent animal rights conference held in Singapore, she claimed that traders are able to…
Tags: ACRES, Animal Concerns Research and Education Society, endangered species, IFAW, illegal wildlife trade, International Fund for Animal Welfare, poaching, sales, study, TCM, traditional Chinese medicine
Nature, Uncategorized, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 5th, 2010,
In Africa, even private lands are no longer safe for endangered species. A Southern White Rhinoceros was killed by a group of poachers in a privately owned ranch located in central Kenya. The Kenya Wildlife Service sent out rangers to track the suspected poachers and buyers on Sunday; both were caught with two rhino horns weighing more than 16 pounds (7 kg) and $8,500 (647,000 Kenyan shillings) in cash, which is believed to be part of the money given to the poachers. According to the director of the Kenya Wildlife Service, Julius Kipng’etich, a total of 12 suspects—all Kenyans—were arrested…
Tags: endangered species, Kenya, northern white rhino, poaching, rhino horns, rhinoceros, southern white rhino, white rhino
Nature, Politics, Wildlife & Flora, Dec 29th, 2009,
The African Elephant may be one of the largest animals on the planet, but that doesn’t mean it’s without its own share of problems. Poaching has been on the rise again and now they face another issue: African countries need to decide whether or not to allow ivory sales for a limited amount of time. As a migratory animal, the elephant population varies throughout the different African countries; some countries have strong populations, while others are decreasing at an alarming rate. Tanzania and Zambia are 2 that are considered to have healthy populations. They’ve already started to take advantage of…
Tags: Africa, african elephants, CITES, elephants, ivory, ivory ban, ivory sales ban, Nature, poaching
Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Dec 3rd, 2009,
Siberian Tigers are on the decline, thanks to poaching. Elephants, leopards and a number of endangered species are also falling in numbers, thanks to poaching. More searches are being conducted and arrests are being made, but it does not seem enough to help our animal friends. A 3-month-long operation in Africa, which included the raiding of shops, intercepting vehicles and the use of sniffer dogs, uncovered more than 3,800 pounds (1,768 kilograms) of illegal elephant ivory. According to Awad Dahia, Interpol’s eastern Africa chief, the operation was setup by the international police organization and included the aid of customs departments,…
Tags: elephants, endangered species, ivory ban, poaching, Siberian tigers, Wildlife & Flora
Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Oct 31st, 2009,
Henry David Thoreau once said: “It is not part of a true culture to tame tigers, any more than it is to make sheep ferocious”. If only people today saw things the same way he did. The future of the world’s tigers is diminishing fast and looking very bleak, despite efforts made to protect them and bring them back. Of the nine known subspecies of tigers, 3 became extinct during the 20th century; the beginning of which saw more than 100,000 tigers in existence. Now their numbers have dwindled down to 3 or 4 thousand at the most. The other…
Tags: endangered species, Nature, poaching, population decrease, tigers, Wildlife & Flora
