Last month, the Slovakian cabinet approved plans to cull around 1 quarter of the bear population in the country (currently at around 1300) after some high profile fatal encounters between humans and bears.
It is unclear what the actual carrying capacity of Slovakia, and indeed this is often the problem. The government decides what the carrying capacity is of the land, they set quotas for hunting them and they reap the money for hunting permits, as well as having to deal with any livestock predation. These different requirements are often lead to different groups having different desires and therefore results can be skewed to support a decision which is not in the best interest of the country or the population.
Having carrying capacity and population size done by truly independent researchers would help with this, but in most countries, this independence is not real, with the government holding the purse strings or similar power over future studies.
A reduction of a quarter, is a large step, will change the population makeup significantly and is likely to greatly disrupt bear tourism to the country.
Tourism revenue for this country has hovered between 1 and 2 billion dollars in recent decades, and while it is hard to pinpoint exactly how much of this is to do with wildlife, and particularly bear tourism, it is thought that a majority do some sort of ecotourism while in the country – therefore care must also be taken to not destroy this important income for the country.
I have missed writing regularly, but have been having some issues with this website. I am hoping that in the near future these will be resolved, and allow the website to reach some of its potential – however for now, back to this article.
The UK is recognized as one of the most nature depleted places on earth. never the less, there is wildlife in the shadow of humans. A very wide range of wildlife has been lost, as humans have not left the space – this is causing us issues, not least because there are no apex predators left.
Wild boar, however, were accidently released – they were bred for meat, and between a variety of escapes and intentional released populations, a wild population has been established in the UK. Domestic pigs are descended from wild boar – it is thouoght that they were domesticated twice, once in the near middle east around 8500 years ago, and again in China around 6500 years ago (though it should be noted that these dates are still pretty unclear. 8500 years is not a long time in genetic evolution, and as such they are still capable to interbreed, even though there is a significant difference in how these two groups live.
There is an estimated 2600 wild boar living in the UK. The largest populations are listed below, though it does not account for all of them
Forest of Dean: This area has the most established and largest wild boar population in the UK. The population is estimated to be around 1,200 animals.
Kent/East Sussex: This area has a population of 250-300 wild boar.
West Dorset: This population is estimated to be over 50 animals.
North Devon: This area has a smaller population, estimated to be between 50 and 100 wild boar.
Wild boar are incredibly important for the health of forests – wild boar turn soil in their search for roots and tubers, and this is perfect for the growth of new seedlings. Boar rootling areas are often full of tree saplings and shoots growing together. It is something that has been missed for a very long time, and the health of forests that the boar returns to is greatly improving.
The area that I live in, has a great deal of army land, and therefore, I believe that the area could support hundreds of boar, if not more.
This individual boar, is likely to be a young roaming male, and usually, the first visitor does not settle within an area, however, females also roam, and should a male and female meet, they are likely to become a breeding pair, and at that point the population can grow fast as a breeding pair (when they have some domestic pig genes in them) potentially having 3 litters of 10 or more a year.
Will a breeding population be established around here? It is still for the time being, chance, however at this breeding rate, it is quite conceivable for boar to be back across the UK within the next couple of decades. Pure wild boar would be better, however adaption back to living in the wild will likely slow their breeding rate relatively fast.
researchers conduct autopsy on stranded spade beaked whale CC BY-SA 3.0
I wrote about this find (click here to read the original article) as one of just 7 of this species (spade-toothed beaked whale) to have washed ashore, it was too important an opportunity to find out something about this species in the wild.
Whales do eventually sink to the ocean floor, so it is quite difficult to know how many spade toothed whales there are left in the world (as we only encounter those which wash up on shore). They are thought to be very rare, but this is just conjecture. This is because, having been timed, holding breath for 87 minutes (and theorized that they might be able to last more than 2 hours), they would only have to surface perhaps 15 times in a 24 hour period. Furthermore, given their incredibly low profile in the water, they are likely capable of regularly coming to the surface without being particularly visible. It is true that they have been seen blowing spouts (the puff of moisture and air that signals a whales breath), but given their low profile, perhaps they are capable of exhaling in a less obvious way.
This one in question washed ashore in Otago, on South Island of New Zealand.
albatross aged 74 photo credit US fish and wildlife service
The bird, called Wisdom, is a Laysan albatross was photographed with her current partner and the egg. Normally expected to live between 12 and 40 years, this is an incredible lifespan. She is also thought to have had around 30 chicks, which given that they do not breed every year is a phenomenal number. Perhaps more impressive, the chick survived, and has been seen within the last month, suggesting that not only did she have this chick at such an old age, but she raised it successfully.
She was first tagged in 1956 (the year that my father was born) and they do not breed until at least 5 years old.
Killer whale or Orca: highly intelligent, inquisitive, caring of family, no wonder they fascinate us
The Southern resident killer whale population is on the brink of extinction, but it seems, not for the reason that people thought.
Found along the coast of Washington, Oregon, California, and British Columbia, this population is thought to number just 75, but births are rare, and often end in sadness. 2 calves have been born in the last 2 years, but both have died young. This year, the mother was seen carrying her dead infant for some time (draped across her snout).
It is thought that this population is in danger as a result of a collapse in the Chinook salmon which is an essential part of their diet. However, this theory is defeated, when we look at the Northern resident killer whale population, and notice that they appear to have less access to the salmon. There is lots of shipping noise in their home, which may mean that they are incapable of communicating, which would impact their ability to hunt,
It is true that the origins of their decline lie around 120 years ago, when blackfish (orca as they were then called) were both slaughtered and captured for marine parks. The population on stopped falling fast when Canada banned capture. So is this just the straw that broke the camels back?
Why do captive orca have drooping fins?
Drooping dorsal fins are occasionally seen in the wild, so the split is not totally solid, but it is true, that while most captive orca eventually have a drooping dorsal fin, this is a far rarer site in the wild (while not being unheard of).
The fin is supported by a tough protein called callagen, and it has been suggested that with captive orca spending more time at the surface, the higher temperature from the sun may degrade the protein.
Tahlequah has given birth again (famous for carrying her first calf after it died)
Tahlequah carried a former calf for 17 days after it died, and for more than 1000 miles. This means it is rather lovely to see that she has had another calf. However, the calf has already been observed being pushed by the mother and does not look healthy. The mother is very experienced, so it is hoped that she can succeed, but time will tell. This mother is part of the Southern resident population which i mentioned above, which is small and with few births in recent years. It is therefore very concerning to find that 2 related calves died so close together.
A new video shows a mother orca teaching her calves how to hunt
I should say, that the article I read suggested this was the first time that it had been seen, but the below clip is from several years ago. Even so, it is fascinating to see a mother actively teaching her offspring how to hunt/
Orca have been seen, for the first time off Chile, hunting dolphins
As can be seen from the video above, orca are known to hunt and eat dolphins in various places around the world. However, this behaviour has never been seen in this population, so they had to work out how to do it for themselves. While in the past they have been filmed eating sea lions (and using local boats to hide their approach), they have now been filmed hunting dusky dolphins.
The study was looking at the eating habits of orcas in the southern hemisphere, so as to be able to conserve them more effectively. It suggests that Chile Orca are turning to these food-sources. While Orca have been filmed harrasing or even killing porpoises and dolphins, this is the first time that they have been filmed eating them.
Orca facing uncertain future as the marine zoo shuts
Marineland Antibese near Cannes France, is shutting, after the French government brought in more strict rules of their care. The law was passed in 2021, but comes into force in 2026. It is thought that 90% of the visitors come to see the killer whales and other dolphins, so without them they are not viable.
It is unclear as to what will happen with the Orca. They are from Icelandic waters, but having spent so much time in captivity, would not be able to look after themselves in the wild. A deal had been made to send them to a Japanese park, but there was outcry as their treatment would be worse, so the French government blocked it. There is another zoo in the Canary islands. A facility in Eastern Canada has suggested netting off around 40 hectares of a sea bay for them, where they could live out their lives, in relative comfort, and yet still be looked after by a team of vets and other carers.
Something similar has happened before. Keiko was the orca from the film Free Willy, and was rescued from captivity in 1996 and released into a similar bay in Iceland in 1998. Having spent more time in the wild, though he was able to relearn some skills and in 2002 he left with some wild orca. He swam to Norway, but unfortunately died from an infection in 2003.
Cattle in a newly deforested area on the edge of more Amazon rainforest – threatened in the future? photo credit Alice Mitchel
The problem with stopping deforestation, is that for the majority of the world we are far removed from rainforests (from where I sit in the UK, I would have to travel 3250km (over 2000 miles) to the nearest rainforest, which is an area on mainland India). Indeed, rainforest is generally something that only survives in developing countries.
This means that, for most people, they either live far removed from the rainforest, and so cant see it impacting them, or they live near a rainforest, but are struggling to provide for their family and those around them. It is quite true that many people in both the first and third world would like the rainforest to survive – indeed, should you talk to people in the west, many are very worried about the survival of the great apes, who are rapidly loosing land.
The problem is simple. Those living in the third world are living hand to mouth, so unless they work in tourism, the rainforest is often an inconvenience that makes life harder.
In 2023 a total of 6.4 hectares of forest were destroyed – more than 25,000 square miles. However, more concerning is the fact that 62.6 million hectares of forest (almost quarter of a million square miles) was degraded – for road building, logging, and forest fires. Degraded land is often less good for carbon storage, as well as conservation of the worlds wild species. It is often, then not long, before someone comes along a removes the rest of the plants so that the land can be used for something else.
And what was this deforestation for (other than logs)? Beef, soy, palm oil paper and nickel.
The Brazilian Amazon is one of the bright spots, where since the election of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, deforestation has fallen 62%. Unfortunately, in the same time period, Indonesia’s deforestation is up 57%
It seems hard to see how the world will meet its goal of cutting deforestation to zero by 2030 as most countries have pledged. Also, despite reductions in deforestation, the Amazon has had one of the hardest years in terms of forest fires – something that only gets more likely as rainforests are lost, and climate change increases the temperature in many parts of the world. It is a sad fact, that there is often not a great deal of temperature difference between a rainforest which is functioning, and one that dries out and becomes a fire hazard.
Having said all this… a study in Indonesia has found that controlled low-intensity logging doesn’t have to negatively impact a forest in terms of carbon storage or food availability – this in turn means that much wildlife can survive.
The problem often is that if the land is in private hands, then low- intensity logging is not going to happen. If the landowner has decided to deforest, they will raze the land. In national parks, in theory low intensive logging would be possible, but this would require people to control the logging, and this is the issue that we have in the first place. Unfortunately, despite the pledge by 140 countries, deforestation is coming back.
In a related subject, the Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto has stated that palm oil expansion won’t deforest because palm oil has leaves. There are many issues with this, but perhaps primarily amongst them, when forests are cut down, they are usually replaced with grass lands for grazing cattle – these are also covered in leaves. This is obviously stupid – it may well be a better thing, that the rainforest is going to be replaced with plantations, but it has been shown that palm oil plantations take up a tiny proportion of the carbon that rainforests take up.
In another article, there was a finding that macaques living in palm oil plantations have an alarming infant mortality. Unfortunately, these macaques are not unique in being threatened by palm oil, but others include orangutans, elephants, tigers, pangolins, bonobos, and Irrawaddy dolphins.
While palm oil may be a better vegetable oil than other crops, it still looks like it will lead to us loosing most of our rainforests, unless a grip on this is found.
The eastern black rhino is incredibly endangered, with just 1000 spread across a huge area. In this region, just 8 are known to live, so to see young is incredibly rare.
Rhino horn is incredibly valuable on the far East traditional medicine market, despite the fact that multiple scientific studies have shown that the rhino horn does nothing for humans. Never-the-less, this unmet demand for rhino horn, linked with the huge explosion of wealth in places like China, means that rhino horn is incredible valuable. While eastern black rhino horns rarely weigh more than 3kg, this can still be worth $200,000, which is very tempting, in a country where the average salary is under $200 a month.
As living conditions increase in the area, the desire to poach these animals is likely to decrease. Of course, these rhino are also likely to be worth similar amounts in tourism dollars across their lifetime, but that is a long-term thing, and something that the whole area benefits from (rather than the poacher, who is often struggling to make ends meet – though middlemen are instead making a fortune).
A small herd of 170 bison, released into a 20 square miles area of Tarcu mountains in Romania, are estimated to allow the land to capture 59,000 tones of carbon each year.
Big animals like this, stimulate the soil and plant growth, allowing the soil and plant growth to take up far more carbon than without them. Although Romania is one of the wildest countries in Europe, the European Bison was lost around 200 years ago. Between 2014 and 2021, 100 bison were reintroduced into the area, and that population has naturally grown such that there are now 170.
Scientists estimate that the lands carbon storing potential is as much as 10 times greater with the bison (they suggest that it is between 5 and 15 times more carbon.
Large parts of Australia look like the above photo, beautiful in a rugged way, but quite useless for the survival of many of Australia species. Australia has a wide range of habitats, which means that there are many areas which need to be protected.
The problem is, according to this study, declaring an area protected appears to be having little change on what is happened.
1/3 of all land that is set aside for restoration and conservation, has got worse rather than better. Given the fact that so many species are just hanging on to existence, this could be very bad news.
In one area that was studied, the majority of the area was cleared paddock – a serious problem for the koala and grey-headed flying fox which called the area home.
In particular, the idea of this scheme is so called biodiversity offsetting – if you are to clear wildlife habitat, you protect a similar sized area elsewhere.
Wolves have only recently returned to Austria, with an estimated 80 wolves spread throughout the country. It is perhaps not surprising therefore, that animal welfare activists, took the government to court, when it set cull numbers at 20, or 25% of the population a year.
The Austrian government had pointed to a condition in the 1992 EU directive on protecting wildlife, which states that wolf hunting to prevent financial damage can only be done if the population is in a favourable conservation status – something certainly not true in Austria. This condition can only apply to a wolf population which is stable.
I would also suggest that plans to kill 25% of the population each year, should also damage this, but this is a discussion for another day – when the population is far larger than it currently is. Other countries like Holland have similar sized wolf populations, and so this ruling could be applied in a variety of places.
Regional governments have absurdly argued that the wolf is no longer endangered in Austria, and that therefore its protection should be reduced. had the government listened would a ruling similar to the USA have come forward? Such that open season could be declared?
It is a good thing that wolves are so good at holding on, as we have spent much of our time attacking.
It is funny to think, that it is estimated our relationship with wolves (in the form of domesticating them as dogs) likely goes back to a similar point to the advent of growing crops, and well before the time that we started to keep livestock.
Given our fondness of dogs has deeper roots than our fear of wolves, it seems odd, that wolf persecution ever really got underway. It is true that wolf populations do need handling, but their existence is more good than bad. Places like the UK where they are missing, show this (when looked at the situation rationally)
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