Month: December 2021

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Roaming wolf who broke ground in California killed on a highway

Wolves were exterminated very effectively across much of North America. When so called native Americans arrived probably as much as 15000 years ago, they quickly learnt to live alongside wolves. Sure, occasionally one would be killed, but generally they were left alone. Not so for the European settlers; as they had done before in Europe, wolves were hunted mercilessly. So when we started to worry about conservation of these species in the last 50 or so years there were few left. Even in places like Yellowstone they were eradicated.

Wolves, as with most wild animals pay little attention to human borders. Unfortunately he did not survive, but he wont be the last
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Personal note

There is lots going on at the website behind the scenes. Hopefully, this will be able to go live over the next few months, but is absorbing some of my time – hence the gaps in posts.

We are creating several members areas. These will be called “members” for those who are listing some form of wild experience or are examining the idea (wild places, in the shadow of mankind or hides). I hope that over time this will develop into a community which can support each other. It will have a range of useful resources and will facilitate other people joining our mission. This website is meant to be a resource – to help those hands on in conservation.

Another is “Supporters”. This is open to anyone, with a monthly cost of probably £5. This will also have a series of discussion forums and other ways for you to engage – including the ability to interact with the blog staff. As you can imagine (if you have read our mission statement) the task we have set ourselves is very large. I know that I am not the only person concerned about the natural world, but at the moment few seem to be trying to simplify and help it in a way like us. I hope that supporters are going to be able to help in various ways – there will be ways for you to send us articles that you have written, as well as a way for you to submit places to be added to our various lists (there is no way for me to visit all wild places on the planet -even if I travelled non-stop).

We are also in the process of redoing our forms for adding wildernesses to our lists.

I enjoy writing the blog, and I hope that you enjoy reading it, however the work of the website runs beyond this. I value every one of you which drops in from time to time. Unfortunately, the natural world is under threat, so I feel that merely writing about it is not enough.

I hope that many of you will join me in this enormous task and between us we can make big differences to the health of the natural world

Watch this space

Tim Welby

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First known albino chimpanzee was born in Africa this summer. Unfortunately it was killed

Many species can have albinism. That is: a lower amount of pigmentation or indeed a complete lack of pigmentation. From white lions and white deer, or indeed even white grizzly bears – possibly the initial way that Polar bears evolved, albinism is not rare. Humans are also capable of having this condition – evidence is clear that humans originated in Africa, suggesting that all white humans are descended from people who had this condition.

This is unfortunately an image of the infant after it was killed by its family

Indeed, I have seen an albino child in an African village – very white, despite having 2 black parents.

Never-the-less, albino chimpanzees are rare. Now it should be noted that this group that the chimpanzee was seen in has a well documented propensity for infanticide – so it is unclear if this would be the natural reaction to an albino chimpanzee birth.

See Animals Wild