Wildlife and conservation new, wild travel information and links for booking
I wrote the other day, about the ability of brewing palm oil, rather than creating huge estates to grow it. Perhaps these two issues could be combined to solve both problems
Well a few months ago, Indonesia changed its regulations which would allow large areas of protected land to be cleared for food production.
Continue reading “Indonesia has recently changed its rules, designating large areas once protected forests for food production”Back around the 1900 there were around 1000 bears roaming the mountains of the Iberian peninsular. Unfortunately by 1950 this population had been reduced to two small populations consisting of 50-60 in one and perhaps as low as 14 individuals in the other.
Walrus are thought of as an arctic species, and indeed this is where they are found in their greatest numbers. However, they once had a greater range. Walrus have been extinct here for 3000 years, however the UK is part of their natural range, if an extreme southerly point.
Dugongs, a close relation of the sea cow, have not done well over the last few centuries. In places like Australia they still live in large numbers. In places like Thailand though there are only thought to be about 250 remaining.
They particularly dislike motorboats and often get injured by them. The lockdowns have therefore been an incredible gift to these animals, and it is fascinating to see how quickly their behaviour changes where humans are absent.
A drone shot this image
Research done in the UK though not published (despite being completed 2 years ago) clearly shows that badgers are highly unlikely to infect cattle.
Sugar cane companies managed to get the rights to the land on which this forest stands in controversial circumstances, yet they were given the right to clear the land.
Home to both around 5000 chimpanzees and Mangabeys, under the “common good of the citizens of Uganda act” from 1998, areas like this are held in trust and may not be leased out or sold by the government.
Continue reading “The Ugandan environmental authority allows clearing of Bugoma forest”The stereotypical image of wild lions, is generally that of a group lying on there back in the middle of the open plains, snoozing.
However, this is not necessarily the most common way that lions would have lived. We have to bear in mind that this would not have been the standard behaviour everywhere. Lion population estimates from the past vary wildly, however it is reasonable to be confident in a wild lion population in the hundreds of thousands back in 1950. Different people will estimate anything from 200,000 up to 500,000.
Continue reading “A place where the African Lion lives alone”Albatrosses are known to be long lived birds. Wisdom, a Laysan albatross was first banded in 1956 and was at least 5 years old at the time. in her 70 years, she has reared at least 40 chicks.
Back in 2002 there were only 94 Iberian lynx left in the wild. This wild cat had declined for a number of reasons, unfortunately all down to humans.
The main threat to Iberian lynx was the loss of their main prey. Back in 1952 a doctor, fed up of rabbits overrunning his garden, introduced Myxomatosis. Myxomatosis is an illness, which kills rabbits. Within 2 years this illness had spread across Spain, and eventually went on to reduce the population by 95%.
Continue reading “Iberian Lynx continues to recover”Rajasthan madlyya Pradesh and Gujarat are all looking at potential sites were cheetah could be reintroduced. Given the precarious state of the cheetah population in Iran (thought to only be 50-60 animals) the reintroductions would come from Africa.
Continue reading “The possibility of reintroducing Cheetah to India is once again being looked at”