Tag: Future

2. Subfamily Reduncinae: rhebok reedbuck and Waterbuck

2. Reduncinae - Rhebok, Reedbuck, Waterbuck

Bohor Reedbuck

Boher Reedbuck

The bohor reedbuck  is an antelope native to central Africa.

The head-and-body length of this medium-sized antelope is typically between 100–135 cm. Females are smaller. This sturdily built antelope has a yellow to grayish brown coat. Only the males possess horns which measure about 25–35 cm long. There are 5 subspecies:

  • R. r. bohor Rüppell, 1842: Also known as the Abyssinian bohor reedbuck. It occurs in southwestern, western and central Ethiopia, and Blue Nile (Sudan).
  • R. r. cottoni (W. Rothschild, 1902): It occurs in the Sudds (Southern Sudan), northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and probably in northern Uganda.
  • R. r. nigeriensis (Blaine, 1913): This subspecies occurs in Nigeria, northern Cameroon, southern Chad and Central African Republic.
  • R. r. redunca (Pallas, 1767): Its range extends from Senegal east to Togo. It inhabits the northern savannas of Africa. 
  • R. r. wardi (Thomas, 1900): Found in Uganda, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and eastern Africa. 
The total population of this species is 100,000, and while it is decreasing, it is not currently low enough to justify a near threatened rating, though this might change in the near future. At the current time, I cannot see any of the subspecies being in a worse position but can change this if I find out more.

Mountain Reedbuck

 The mountain reedbuck has 3 subspecies. The western mountain reedbuck only has 450 individuals still living wild, (shown on the map in red) also known as the Adamwa mountain reedbuck which is restricted to the highlands of Cameroon. The Eastern mountain reedbuck (or Chanlers) has 2900 wild individuals, is found in parts of Kenya and Ethiopia. The Southern moutnain reedbuck, blue, (33,000) is found in the Drakensburg mountains of South Africa.

Mountain Reedbuck

Southern Reedbuck

Southern Reedbuck

The Southern, or common Reedbuck is found in Southern Africa. It is a midsized  antelope, standing 134-167cm tall

 It was described in 1785 by Pieter Boddaert. Southern reedbucks live in pairs or alone, though occasionally they will form herds of up to 20. They prefer to lie in grass or reed beds in the heat of the day and feed during sunrise and sunset, or sometimes even at night. Old reedbucks are permanently territorial, with territories around 35-60 hectares, and generally live with a single female, preventing contact with rival males. Females and young males perform an ‘appeasement dance’ for older males.  Within this territory, it is active all the time in summer, but it is nocturnal in the wet season. It regularly uses paths to reach good sites to rest, graze, and drink water. They are hunted by all the top predators in the area, including Lion, Leopard, Cheetah hyena and wild dog, as well as animals like snakes.

They are easily hunted, and combined with loss of territory to human expansion, the population is down. About 60% occur in protected reserves, but in some countries like Gabon and the DRC are though to almost be locally extinct.

Kob

The puku  is a mid-sized antelope found in wet grasslands in Southern Democratic Republic of Congo, Namibia, Tanzania, Zambia and more concentrated in the Okavango Delta in Botswana.

Nearly one-third of all puku are found in protected areas, zoos, and national parks due to their diminishing habitat (though this still leaves 2/3 of Puku living outside all protected areas.

Kob (queen Elizabeth national park)

Red Lechwe

Red Lechwe

Red Lechewe is a species of antelope found in the south of eastern African. The red lechwe is native to Botswana, Zambia, southeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, northeastern Namibia, and eastern Angola, especially in the Okavango Delta, Kafue Flats, and Bangweulu Wetlands. They are found in shallow water, and have a substance on their legs which allows them to run pretty fast. Total population is around 160,000

Four subspecies of the lechwe have been recognized

  • Common red lechwe (Gray, 1850) – Widely distributed in the wetlands of Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and Zambia. (80,000)
  • Kafue Flats lechwe  (Haltenorth, 1963) – It is confined within the Kafue Flats (seasonally inundated flood-plain on the Kafue River, Zambia). (28,000)
  • † Roberts’ lechwe  (Rothschild, 1907) – Formerly found in northeastern Zambia, now extinct. Also called the Kawambwa lechwe.
  • Black lechwe (Kobus leche smithemani) (Lydekker, 1900) – Found in the Bangweulu region of Zambia. (50,000)

In addition, the Upemba lechwe (1000)  and the extinct Cape lechwe are also considered subspecies by some authorities. Although related and sharing the name “lechwe”, the Nile lechwe (below) is consistently recognized as a separate species.

Nile Lechwe

The Nile lechwe or Mrs Gray’s lechwe  is an endangered species of antelope found in swamps and grasslands in South Sudan and Ethiopia.

Nile lechwe can visually signal and vocalize to communicate with each other. They rear high in the air in front of their opponents and turn their heads to the side while displaying. Females are quite loud, making a toad-like croaking when moving. Known predators are humans, lions, crocodiles, cheetahs, wild dogs, hyenas and leopards. They flee to water if disturbed, but females defend their offspring from smaller predators by direct attack, mainly kicking. Nile lechwe are crepuscular, active in the early morning and late afternoon. They gather in herds of up to 50 females and one male or in smaller all-male herds. They divide themselves into three social groups: females and their new offspring, bachelor males, and mature males with territories. A males with territory sometimes allows a bachelor male into his territory to guard the region and not to copulate. They are sexually mature at 2.

Nile lechwe feed on succulent grasses and water plants. They have the special capability to wade in shallow waters and swim in deeper waters, and may feed on young leaves from trees and bushes, rearing up to reach this green vegetation. Nile lechwe are also found in marshy areas, where they eat aquatic plants.  Around 32,000 and are classed as endangered

Nile Lechwe

Puku

Puku

The puku  is a medium-sized antelope found in wet grasslands in southern Democratic Republic of Congo, Namibia, Tanzania, Zambia and more concentrated in the Okavango Delta in Botswana. Nearly one-third of all puku are found in protected areas, zoos, and national parks due to their diminishing habitat (the issue here, is that these 2/3 are clearly at danger of disappearing if humans change their behaviour. They are currenly listed as not threatened

Two subspecies exist:

  • Senga Puku
  • Southern Puku
Both appear to be not threatened.
They are found in Hluhluwe Umfolozi Game Reserve, Kruger National Park, Moremi Game Reserve, Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area and the Serengeti National Park

Waterbuck

The waterbuck  is a large antelope found widely in sub-Saharan Africa.It was first described by Irish naturalist William Ogilby in 1833.

Its 13 subspecies are grouped under two varieties: the common or ellipsiprymnus waterbuck and the defassa waterbuck. The head-and-body length is typically between 177 and 235cm  and the typical height is between 120 and 136cm. In this antelope, males are taller and heavier than females. Males reach roughly 127 cm at the shoulder, while females reach 119cm. Males typically weigh 198–262 kg and females 161–214 kg. Their coat colour varies from brown to grey. The long, spiral horns, present only on males, curve backward, then forward, and are 55–99 cm long. Waterbucks are rather sedentary in nature. As gregarious animals, they may form herds consisting of six to 30 individuals. These groups are either nursery herds with females and their offspring or bachelor herds. Males start showing territorial behaviour from the age of 5 years, but are most dominant from the six to nine. The waterbuck cannot tolerate dehydration in hot weather, and thus inhabits areas close to sources of water. Predominantly a grazer, the waterbuck is mostly found on grassland. In equatorial regions, breeding takes place throughout the year, but births are at their peak in the rainy season. The gestational period lasts 7–8 months, followed by the birth of a single calf.

Waterbucks inhabit scrub and savanna areas along rivers, lakes, and valleys. Due to their requirement for grasslands and water, waterbucks have a sparse ecotone distribution. The IUCN lists the waterbuck as being of least concern. More specifically, the common waterbuck is listed as of least concern. while the defassa waterbuck is near threatened. The population trend for both is downwards, especially that of the defassa, with large populations being eliminated from certain habitats because of poaching and human disturbance.

The common waterbuck is listed as least concern, while the Defassa is listed as near threatened. Only 60% of this subspecies population is in protected areas, so it could get worse, if they are lost.

Waterbuck

Baji or Chinese river dolphin

Baija or Chinese river dolphin - Extinct

Almost definitely extinct, this species of river dolphin lived in the Yangtze and was also known as the white dolphin among other names.

The last confirmed sighting was now more than 20 years ago, and given the incredibly polluted state of their river home it is unlikely that any did survive. There may well be much debate in the future, as to whether similar river dolphins from elsewhere could replace them. What is clear is that this is irrelevant for a significant length of time, as it is likely to be many decades before the river is capable of supporting significant populations of fish, never-mind a river dolphin.

Below is a rare clip of it from before extinction, and below is any times that it is mentioned on this site. Given that it is extinct, its mentioning may not be helpful for seeing it, but may well be of interest. Below this video, is an automated list of any articles from this site which mentions this species. Unfortunately, as the species is extinct means that the local population cannot benefit from ecotourism, but there are many other species that still cling on in China. All wildlife has the capacity to bring in money for those who live nearby. Help us make this happen

Primate family tree main and great and lesser apes

Primate family tree

Great apes
Lesser apes
Old world monkeys
Lemurs
New world monkeys
Lorisidae & allies
Tarsiaforms

The primates are in some ways one of the most successful families. It is true that many are now endangered, however, unfortunately, that is as a result of the run-away success of the most successful member of the primate family us! Having left the rainforests behind, we have been reducing their coverage dramatically over the last few centuries. 

The sad thing, is that while we have pushed many of our closest cousins towards extinction, the loss of forests may well cost us dearly in the future as well. As a species, we need to pull together to meet this challenge. in order to jump to the various families, click on the family of interest above – though all can also be reached by scrolling down.

Great Apes

Chimpanzee
Boonobo
Sumatran Orangutan
Borneon Orangutan
Tapunali Orangutan
Humans on the beach
Eastern Lowland gorilla
Mountain Gorilla
Western lowland gorilla
Cross river gorilla

Great ape Family split is thought to have split from its nearest relative – the gibbon family, around 17 million years ago.

4 million years later the Orangutan family split from the gorilla line and the human/chimp line.

3 million years after this (so around 10 million years ago) the gorilla family split from the Homo (humans) and Pan

Finally the human line (homo) split from the Pan line 5-6 million years ago.

It should be noted, that chimpanzees and Bonobos split from a common ancestor just 1.8 million years ago. This occurred as the two populations ceased to be able to have contact with each other – the Congo rive formed between 1.5 and 2 million years ago.

For more information on each species, click on their photo and this will take you to their page

It should be noted that while I have grouped eastern western and skywalker gibbon together, there is some contention that the skywalker gibbon should be in its own genus, having diverged around half a million years aog

Gibbons

siamang gibbon genus Symphalangus
hookock gibbon (Eastern, Western and Skywalker) Genus Hoolock
genus Normascus (crested gibbon)
Agile gibbon

Genus Nomascus

This family is the Genus: Nomascus or crested gibbon.

The last Genus of gibbons is Hylobates: dwarf gibbons.

Atlantic spotted dolphin

Atlantic Spotted dolphin

Found in the tropical and warm temperate waters of the Atlantic. While currently there is no recognized subspecies, there is a large spotty variant, found in the waters off Florida – while it is not yet recognized as a separate species or subspecies, this one may well change in the future. In the Bahamas, they have been observed mating with bottlenose dolphins.

Smaller than many dolphin species, they grow to a maximum of around 2.25m and have a range of 10 different vocalizations.

Given their similar look to other dolphins in their range, it is hard to get accurate population numbers, but the population is beleived to be at least 100,000.

Should you work in tourism or conservation of this species do get in touch.

Those who work in conservation, would be able to share news with the world. For those who work in tourism, we would love to list your services – and help people find you.

Any listings, will appear at the bottom of the page.

Guiana dolphin

Guiana dolphin

The Guiana dolphin (also known as estuarine dolphin or costero) is a dolphin which lives alongside central and Southern America. It was agreed as a separate species back in 2007. It looks like a bottlenose dolphin (though smaller at 2.1m. They do not bowride, but avoid them.

It has an electroreceptive sense – the suggestion is that all toothed whales have this, but it is unclear. It was described as a separate species back in 1864 (from the Tucuxi). This was questioned for some time, but is certainly confirmed from now.

It is found in estuaries and similar up and down the coast. The population in Guanabara bay is currently near Rio de Janeiro, down from 70 in 1995 and 400 in 1985.

Below is some footage of some of these dolphins. Below that is a list of mentions on this website (whether there is currently, we hope there will be in the future).

Vaquita Porpoise

Vaquita

Found, only in the Gulf of California in Baja California, Mexico. Males grow to 140cm and females grow to 150cm.

It is critically endangered, largely as a result of many getting caught in gillnets which result in bycatch. It is clear that these nets should be banned but it is happening too slow.

Its name comes from Spanish and means little cow. It can clearly be identified from the other porpoises which share its range.

In 2022, it was estimated that just 10 remained in the wild, and unfortunately they continue to be caught by mistake. Unfortunately, the future of this species is not good.

Gibbon – grey (Mullers/Southern, Northern, Western(Abbots) and Eastern)

The Grey Gibbon (also known as Mullers/Southern, Northern, Western (abbots) and Eastern

The Grey (Mullers/Southern, Northern, Western(Abbots) and Eastern) gibbon is a species endemic to the island of Borneo. As you can see, it goes by a variety of names.

Thought, until recently to be a single species, alongside the Northern and the Southern grey, recent studies have demonstrated that they are distinct enough to be separated either as subspecies or species. However, we are going to deal with them together. It is true that along the border of their ranges, there have been occasions of breeding together -and while lions and tigers have interbred, this seems different. It is possible that in the future, I will separate them out.

Borneon grey gibbons are as a whole considered endangered, having suffered a greater than 50% decline in numbers in the last 45 years.

 

 

The rainforests of Borneo are thought to be 140 million years old yet humans have destroyed half of it in just 40 years. The biggest driver of this deforestation is the Palm oil industry, which has required land to grow its crops. Never-ending growth of the lands for this crop must end, though whether this end will be reached while Borneon forests still stand is anyones guess.

 

 

 

This is not a species that I have written about, but if I do in the future, it will appear below. Furthermore, as we add destinations that are good for this species they will appear below the news (do feel free to send news articles that you write to be included here)

 

Algonquin wolf

Algonquin Wolf

This wolf was formerly called the Eastern Timber wolf, and was considered a subspecies of the grey wolf. There are only around 500 of this species that live in the wild. They are classified as vulnerable, presumably as there was never a large population of these wolves in the wild. They are thought to have split from grey wolves 67,000 years ago (for reference, this is more than twice the minimum distance back to when red and grey wolves split).

Found in the area of the great lakes and eastern Canada.

At the point at which it was decided that this wolf is a separate species, it already has a relatively low population, though it is considered to be mid-way between secure and extinct.

Any articles that we write in the future will appear below. We hope in the future to link to people who can help you see them in the wild, this will lie below the news. Do get in touch if you live or work in the area, we are really keen to connect you with those people visiting the area, so that they can see this newly split species and to bring you income from this species on your doorstep.

Both of the below videos are from Algonquin park, the first is a natural howl of a wolf in the stillness of the morning, while the second, is a howl prompted by a human howling into the wilderness – while this should not be done too often, as it can make the wolves nervous (they howl to spread themselves out, so hearing howls can make them think that they have to fight – though howling in North America is far more common, likely as a result of centuries of persecution in Europe.

As we make links in the field to see this species, they will appear below the  videos and the list of articles.

Clouded leopard and Sunda clouded leopard

Clouded leopard and sunda clouded leopard

Clouded leopards are actually one of the most ancient cat species, however due to their inability to roar or purr, they cannot officially be considered a big cat (roar) or a small cat (purr) due to their definition, which puts them in an odd category. They are most closely related to snow leopards, and are in the same family as the big cats from genetic research. It has recently been confirmed that there are 2 different clouded leopard species, one on the mainland, and the other on the islands (the sunda clouded leopard.

Both species are considered vulnerable. The mainland clouded leopard is thought to number between 3700 and 5580, while the sunda clouded leopard is thought to number around 4500 3800 in Borneo and 730 on Sumatra.

Clouded leopards are found in the forests of South East Asia. Both Poaching and habitat loss threaten their future survival is not easy to see, it makes it is hard for it to be clear what its current range is. However, if you simply compare extinct to all possible remaining habitat, you can see the best possibiltiy is that range has reduced by around 50%


The clouded leopard has been split into two species – the Clouded leopard found on mainland Asia (big picture at the top), and the Sunda clouded leopard (picture above) found on Borneo and Sumatra (these Sunda Clouded leopards have not interbred for a very long time so are considered 2 subspecies). 

 

This is a further image of a clouded leopard though taken in a US zoo, which allows an easier time of getting a good view of the head.

The map above shows the former and current range for these two species. As we start to link with places on the ground, we are likely to create separate pages for each of these clouded leopard species. Below is a video of each species of clouded leopard.

We look to work with people on the ground. Do get in touch if you live or work in the area, and can help people see these incredible animals click here

[TS_Video_Gallery id="5"]

Rusty Spotted Cat

Rusty spotted cat

The rusty spotted cat is one of the smallest cats in the world, and can be found in India and Sri Lanka. In recent times it has also been recorded in Nepal!

It is thought that this species has around 10,000 individuals in the wild and are classified as vulnerable

We hope to be able to help you find places to see these cats in the wild, in the near future. Any links will appear below the news section and the video below this text

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