Tag: Reserve

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US has tightened African elephant trophy import rules but stops short of banning

Elephants hunting used to be a common activity. This was banned in Kenya in 1973 and in Botswana in 2014. The trade in Elephant parts was banned in 1989.

For many years, however, conservationists have called for rich countries to ban imports of hunting trophies on a country by country basis. This is for a simple reason – a reserve like the Kruger, has a real issue with a growing elephant population, yet at the same time Nigeria has only 400 elephants left. Tanzania has seen a reduction of elephants of 63%, while Mozambique has seen a reduction of 34%.

This new ruling suggests that imports are only allowed from populations which are large enough to support the loss. Now, I would be interested as to how this is worked out. For instance, could I buy a tiny parcel of land, on the edge of a large reserve, and allow any elephants that step on my land to be hunted?

  • Somewhere like the Selous game reserve, would in theory be acceptable for elephant hunting. If we go back to the 1976 there were approaching 109,000 elephants. However that population is now thought to be around 13,000 – hunting should be banned until the population has recovered. If a hunting reserve cannot afford to police well enough to eliminate poaching, it should not be allowed to hunt (the number of poached and hunted elephants must be below safety levels.
  • The Serengeti ecosystem also does not have a large elephant populatino so cannot allow hunting
  • The African forest elephant is considered critically endangered, so none of these elephants should be hunted

 

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The smallest elephant in the world is in danger of being lost

There has been much discussion about the history of elephants in Borneo, and whether their loss is a problem

The origin of elephants in Borneo is unknown. Known for hosting the smallest elephants in the world, there are 2 theories as to how the elephants got to the island. The first is that they were released by a ruler in the 17th century (The most rapid population growth ever seen was 7,1% after the end of poaching in a reserve in Tanzania, a population of 30 elephants could become 1000 in just 50 years) – if this was the case, then their loss would not be bad; and the second is that actually the elephants arrived on the islands hundreds of thousands of years ago (as high as 300,000 years).

It is increasingly agreed that the second one of these ideas is likely to be correct. Though having said this, genetic analysis suggests that the whole population started with just 28 elephants.

Just 1000 are found on the island at the current time.

All wildlife on Borneo is at threat, as the palm oil industry continues to demand increasing quantities of prime rainforest be cut down. As this happens, elephants are forced into human areas, in their search for food, and then into conflict.

The Borneo elephant has only recently been assessed by the IUCN red list as a separate subspecies, but it is hoped that this recognition might increase tourism on this species as well as conservation dollars to save this species from its slow slide towards extincion

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How did the wolf disappear from Holland and why is it back

A wolf couple, photographed in Holland

The wolf disappeared from Holland around 1870, though their decline was rapid – in 1760 (just over 100 years before) people in Brabant talked of a wolf plague). In 2015, the wolf was first sighted in Holland, and while some people had said that Holland was to densly populated to allow the wolf to return, this seemed to be wrong. Wolves have returned to many of the countries around Holland, and so it seems quite odd to think that it wasn’t considered that they would cross into Holland.

In 2022, there were thought to be 4 packs of wolves (including 16 pups) as well as an individual wolf. This number has, however, grown fast in the time since, and the current number is thought to be 9 packs. What is even more exciting, it is predicted that the country can support between 23 and 56 wolf packs at a minimum – which as a wolf pack contains 6-7 wolves on average, means a total population of between 138 and 392. It should be noted, that this number is not likely to remain genetically healthy into the long-term, however Germany has a wolf population of over 1000, and while these are mostly based in the East of the country, wolves disperse great distances, so it is likely that genetic material will arrive naturally, relatively regularly. There is also a founding (if small) population of wolves in Belgium, thought to number between 15 and 24 (it is also predicted to grow by 30% a year.

There is a problem, the Hoge-Velue is one of Hollands biggest reserves, but it is owned privately. They have decided that wolves are not welcome, and are making efforts to kill those that get through their fence. This is because, without the wolf, deer are easily seen within the reserve, and they believe that the number of tourists will dry up, if it becomes hard to see the red deer, as well as the roe deer and boar.

I find this attitude rather baffling and perverse. Furthermore, when we were there last year, we spent time in the government owned reserve, which borders the Hoge-Velue, this is government owned, and wolves have settled here. I spent a number of nights within the reserve in a hide. I did not get to see a wolf (though I met a local who had a wide range of fantastic shots he had taken over the previous years), but while watching and waiting in the hide, I saw red and roe deer, as well as wild boar, in significant numbers. The idea that someone would believe that the amount of tourism visiting after wolves return would decrease, seems quite contrary to what usually happens elsewhere.

Wolves are a part of Hollands animal food web, and while it is likely to take some time to get used to living with them present once again, it is going to allow the whole ecosystem to thrive. I feel frustrated, that in the UK, we do not have a similar situation, where wolves can simply wander across an unmarked border. I do believe that in the end, wolves will return to the UK (our food web is horrifically out of balance because of a lack of predators), however, on the last occasion that it was debated, numbers from a very specific country were used to block any further discussion (Click here to read a previous article on this subject, or visit the wolf page here to get a complete list of all occasions that they have been mentioned on this site)

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On the founding of Kahuzi-Biega National Park, locals were pushed out -they now have the right to return, what will happen

Kahuzi-Biega National Park was established in 1937 by the Belgium colonial rulers and then expanded in 1975. It now covers 6000 square km or 2300 square miles. Roughly 13000 Batwa were cleared out of the area to make way for the park (along with other people who had settled more recently).

Continue reading “On the founding of Kahuzi-Biega National Park, locals were pushed out -they now have the right to return, what will happen”

Ostrich

Both ostrich species Combined PaleoNeolithic photo credit Diego Delso&Ninara

Both ostrich species Combined PaleoNeolithic photo credit Diego Delso&Ninara

Ostrich

Common Ostrich 

Somali Ostrich

The common ostrich is found across a large part of the African Continent. Until 1919 there was a fourth subspecies of the common ostrich which was found across much of the Arabian Peninsular. It was completely extinct in the wild by 1972. They have now been reintroduced to Israel, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and United Arab Emirates – though it is hard to find accurate figures for how many are found there now. (Do get in touch if you operate a reserve with these birds present, we would love to help people find you).

As you can see, the other African subspecies  are still going.

The Somali Ostrich was only recognized as a separate species back in 2014, having been thought to be a subspecies until them.

A report to the IUCN in 2006 believed that this ostrich was common in central and southern Somalia until 1970-80. However, following the breakdown in the country, it is not surprising that conservation took back-stage, and it is questionable as to whether any remain (in the horn of africa).

In Kenya it is farmed for meat, feathers and eggs.

This is a map of the different Ostrich species and subspecies range

  • The yellow area, shows the range of the Somali Ostrich – Now recognized as a separate species.
  • The green area shows the range of the Massai Ostrich – while this population is listed as least concern, its numbers are in decline
  • The red is the South African Ostrich, this is generally secure, though only found within reserves.
  • The Orange is the range of the North African Ostrich: classed as critically endangered, it is only found in 6 of the 18 countries it originally roamed. It is the largest and heaviest subspecies. The countries it is still found in include fragmented pockets of Cameroon, Chad, Central African Republic and Senegal. They have also been reintroduced into Chad, Morocco and in 2014 (127 years after being lost) Tunisia. They were reintroduced to Saudi Arabia in the Mahazat as-Sayd Protected Area in 1994 and this population has done well with around 90-100 now living within this reserve

There is thought to be approximately 150,000 ostrich left in the wild. Having said this, like other large species, they are prone to local extinction. The best way to see these in the wild are to head to reserves where they still exist. 

Unfortunately, they are not easy to look after – in smaller reserves with large predators, they can be hunted and face local extinction. As such, while there are other reserves where they hang on, the majority of their remaining population are split between big reserves like the Kruger and the Serengeti, and small reserves like the Cape point national park in South Africa (this reserve is only 77.5 square km, or around 30 square miles and was in the past a big 5 nature reserve. Now, only the cape leopard is present and this is very rarely seen.

If you wish to see the Ostrich look in our list of wild places. Kruger, Okavango  and the Serengeti all have ostrich (in Kruger you need to look in the more sparsely area in the north of the park).

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Albino panda spotted in the wild

Rare albino panda seen again

If anyone has been reading this blog for some time, you may remember me writing about an albino panda that was photographed in wulong nature reserve in China (click here to read it)

This bear has been caught on camera (see above) and appears to be doing well. It has started to display mating behaviour and appears to be extremely healthy. It has all the features generally associated with albinism, with white fur and red eyes.. It is now around 5-6 years old, and has been seen playing with other pandas, suggesting that its unusual colouring is not leading to it being shunned from other pandas.

It was filmed approaching a mother with a 2 year-old cub. As the mother was ready to mate again, and yet did not show aggression to this male bear getting close, it is likely that this female is the mother of the white cub.

Currently thought to be numbered 1800 in the wild, the panda is currently listed as threatened – having been delisted from being endangered in 2016. It is also an integral part of the Giant panda national park which is being created, and links 67 panda reserves, allowing the bears to travel between the former islands of habitat, giving them the ability to breed in a more natural way. This is important, as inbreeding would make panda conservation even harder.

Side striped jackal

Side-striped jackal

The side striped jackal is found across a larger area than the black backed jackal, but are generally harder to see in the places where they are found. I have been lucky enough to see

them once or twice, in the Kruger. They are generally easier to spot when you are further north in the park (or at least we found that).

Mostly nocturnal, they are (like the black backed jackals) scavengers and will eat almost anything that they come across. They are omnivorous so can take advantage of fruit and other things that they will find. In terms of prey, they are capable of killing smaller antelope, as well as springhare and small mammals in the dry months, while in the wet months they eat a large amount of invertabrates.

They are also larger than the black backed jackals, but are naturally timid.

In terms of advice on seeing them, make sure you are in a reserve where they are found, and then try to find yourself in an area with less traffic. We have found, that while sightings are less common, they are often more exciting when they do occur.

Panda Bear

Panda Bear

Panda bears are unique amongst the bears, having become a vegetarian species. This means they are of great interest. They also survive only in China, despite the fact that it is the most populace country in the world.

A huge reserve is being created, which should connect most panda populations.

The only bear which has adapted a totally vegetarian diet, Panda bears are well known partly as a result in their face being the mark of the charity WWF, though it’s also likely that China’s panda diplomacy has had something to do with this. Eating almost exclusively bamboo they have a very restricted range in the mountains. Through much effort the current population is 2060 strong. While very expensive and needing high level of fitness, treks to see the Panda can be arranged.

Over time we hope to list many places where you can visit bears and see them in their wild home, these will appear here, and a list of posts we have published on bears will appear below these links

There are 2 subspecies, with the split thought to have occurred around 300,000 years ago.

The standard panda is the one that we all know well. This is the black and white stereotypical panda that we are all familiar with.

These pandas are generally found within Sichuan province in China.

The population of both subspecies of panda is nearly 1900, which means that the population of this subspecies must number between 1600 and 1700. However, as always, we are operating on subspecies so its hard to be sure.

Below, I have included 2 videos of the more common  giant panda.

  • The first is an incredibly rare encounter with a panda bear on one of the roads that crosses their habitat – what a treat for the driver.
  • The second is a mother panda teaching her young how to eat bamboo.
  • The last video shows the training that humans give to pandas. to get them ready for a life in the wild (this is incredibly hard and time-consuming process. While it may be possible to reintroduce captive breed animals , or even a whole population from scratch, it will be far easier if we are able to maintain a minimum wild population instead.

The Qinling panda, is restricted to the Qinling Mountains in Shaanxi at elevations of 1,300–3,000m. These pandas have a brown and white pattern (though largely in the same arrangement.

The population is thought to number 200-300 though numbers are not certain.

Below, I have included 2 videos of the Quinling panda. 

  • The first is a rare piece of footage of a quinling bear on the edge of a local city.
  • The second is footage of possibly the only Quinling bear that is currently found in captivity.
  •  The last video is a more in depth video about this subspecies which has recently be discovered.

Domestic cat

Domestic cat

Domestic cats are thought to have been first tamed back around 10,000 somwhere in the middle east. Unfortunately, as this is the cat that makes up the worldwide domestic cat population (almost exclusively) in many regions like Scotland, while reduction in numbers made specific subspecies of wildcat endangered, it has often been hybridisation that has pushed them over the edge.

There is little point in showing a map of the world, as they are found in almost every human population. It is thought that there are at least 200 million across the globe

Domestic cats are thought to have been tamed in Israel, which has unfortunately meant that this species of wild cat is now spread across the globe – many local species of wildcat have become extinct through hybridisation, the British wildcat is just one such example. There are now only pure British wildcats in captivity, and while there are still quite a few living wild in Scotland they have Asiatic wildcat features. This has happened in many places and solutions are not yet forthcoming.

While unfortunate, there is still work being done. In the UK there are plans to clear a peninsular of domestic cats, and re-establish a wildcat population. Only in situations like Scotland is hybridization likely, the most common reaction to a wildcat meeting a domestic cat is for the wildcat to kill the domestic cat. I hope to live to see the wildcat roaming Scotland once more, but we will se what happens.

They are not hard to see if you are in the right place. I have seen them in Africa, take a night drive in almost any nature reserve. Links will be added below.

Svalbard archipeligo (Norway)

Svalbard archipeliago, north of Norway

This refuge was established in 1980 to protest the wildlife, both on and off shore. In terms of wildlife, brown bears, reindeer (around 7000 in this herd) wolves, wolverines, foxes, beavers. Moose are locally extinct due to overhunting. Off the coast, there are sea otters, seals, sea lions, and migratory grey whales. There are also over 200 species of bird. There are local native people who have lived within the reserve for 10,500 years and use the lands resources sustainably.

The video below, is all filmed from a cruise ship visiting the islands – just to give you an idea of what there is to see.

This is an island that I am eager to visit one of these days.

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