World Sloth Bear Day
The 12th October is a very special day for sloth bears, as it’s World Sloth Bear Day and as such, an opportunity to celebrate the sloth bear and to raise awareness of things being done to conserve and protect them. It’s also an opportunity to show how you can help!
The more we know and understand our wildlife, the better placed we are to protect them and to hopefully the greater our desire and will to do something to help them. Wildlife SOS in India has lots of information about sloth bears here.
Sloth bears are 'vulnerable'
Over 90% of the sloth bears that are left live in India, and the IUCN considers sloth bears to be ‘vulnerable’ so they are at high risk of extinction in the wild. Wildlife SOS say there are between 6,000 and 11,000 sloth bears in the wild. Sloth bear populations have declined due to habitat loss, ongoing poaching for body parts, and retaliating killings. Some are hunted because of their aggressive behaviour or their destruction of crops.
Wildlife SOS has been conserving and protecting sloth bears for three decades. You can read about their ongoing research to protect bears in the wild here.
They care for 190 sloth bears at a number of sanctuaries: Agra Bear Rescue Facility, Bannerghatta Bear Rescue Centre, Van Vihar Bear Rescue Facility and the Purulia Bear Rescue Facility.
You can volunteer with Wildlife SOS!
Lend a paw...
You can support Wildlife SOS in their efforts to care for the bears.
There’s a petition you can sign to support the designation of official Wild Sloth Bear Sanctuaries in India. Sanctuaries that are legally authorised further the conservation of a wild species, as they are protected.
Image at top of page copyright Wildlife SOS
Comments