the future of the monarch butterfly
which performs the greatest migration of any insect on the planet. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/homero-aridjis/mexico-monarch-survival_b_6501656.html?utm_hp_ref=world
I wrote about the race to find the wintering grounds of the monarchs, which Homer Aridjis recounts, in Vanity Fair http://blog.dispatchesfromthevanishingworld.com/?p=3727
Today, the milkweed in North America’s heartland is being snuffed by pesticides. Only three million monarchs made it to the volcanoes of Michoacan, Mexico, …Read More
a great new cross-border intertribal bison conservation collaboration
this press release in from Wildlife Conservatin Society :
Historic Buffalo Treaty Signed by Tribes and First Nations Along U.S. and Canada Border
Native groups from U.S. and Canada join to support restoration of bison; renew cultural and spiritual ties
BOZEMAN, MT (September 24, 2014) – Yesterday afternoon, dignitaries from U.S. Tribes and Canadian First Nations signed a treaty—the first among …Read More
consider the rhino
one of the most embattled animals on the planet, because of the alleged medicinal and aphrodisiac properties of its horn. Yesterday was World Rhino Day. Dereck Joubert, a Botswana-based wildlife film-maker and conservation, wrote this appeal in Huffington Post : http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dereck-joubert/this-world-rhino-day-we-n_b_5864250.html?1411421208
Botswana is one of Africa’s few conservation success stories. A subject we will be reporting …Read More
appeal to three presidents to save the monarch butterfly gets promising response
Betty Aridjis writes :
Our letter addressed to Presidents Obama and Peña Nieto and Prime Minister Harper received excellent coverage in the Mexican and international media, and we were successful in getting the Monarch butterfly on the North American Leaders’ Summit agenda.
Here is the relevant paragraph from the joint statement released at the end of the …Read More
lions lose ground in uganda
http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=1&fid=9049391&jid=ORX&volumeId=-1&issueId=-1&aid=9049389
sharkfin victory may offer hope for elephants
Even cultures with long, established traditions of consuming wild animal parts can change. As WildAid’s Peter Knights says, “It is a myth that people in Asia don’t care about wildlife. Consumption is based on ignorance not malice.” After a concerted publicity campaign Chinese consumption of sharkfin soup is down 60-70%. Now it’s the elephants’ turn. …Read More
use of cyanide takes the poaching nightmare to a new level
http://www.voanews.com/content/elephants-killed-by-cyanide-reveal-alarming-innovation-in-poaching-tactics/1760380.html
rhino horn and ivory selling cheap and in the open in Jo’burg
http://mg.co.za/article/2013-10-04-00-rhino-horn-trade-thrives-in-joburg
africans aren’t the only ones killing the elephants
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/30/nra-hunting-show-nbcsn-elephant-hitler-cancelled
We should raise a glass of champagne ourselves and toasted NBC for yanking this show.
more grim news on the elephant poisonings with cyanide at Hwange Park
In my 2011 Vanity Fair piece, I describe how Johnny Rodrigues made a 24-hour video of a water hole at Hwange Park in Zimbabwe which showed that each species came to drink in its turn, and the predators didn’t kill on their prey. Every animal’s right to access to the life-giving fluid was respected. Johnny …Read More