Category: Help a species

1. Drones counting breeding pairs of penguins in the Falkland Islands

   Posted on 8:55pm Thursday 27th Jul 2017

   © Falklands Conservation

   Last year, I adopted a King Penguin from a scheme run by Falklands Conservation.

   One of the great things about doing this is knowing that your penguin adoption is making a difference.  And today, I received my Penguin Adopter's Newsletter.  

   The newsletter mentioned that they are using drones to count breeding pairs of penguins.   Falklands Conservation think the drones have big potential for improving and enhancing their monitoring of penguins in the Falklands - the drones will give a permanent record of the colonies which can be referred to and re-analysed in the future.

   Back in November 2016, they tested drones over the penguin colonies to see how they reacted to a drone over them.  The penguins didn't react if the drone was launched at a afe distance away from them, and kept to a safe distance above them, so Falklands Conservation hope to develop guidelines for the safe use of drones with wildlife in the Falkland Islands.  It's important that the drones are used correctly and safely and that they don't disturb wildlife so these guidelines should be very useful for tourists and any other drone users.

   Visit Falklands Conservation here
   

2. Vietnam to end bear bile farming

   Posted on 10:00pm Thursday 20th Jul 2017

    

   Great news from Vietnam for bears! The Vietnamese government has now agreed a plan to end bear bile farming in the country with Animals Asia. The Memorandum of Understanding outlines an agreement between Animals Asia nad the Vietnam Adminsistration of Forestry to work together to rescue the bears who are still caged on farms across Vietnam.  It is estimated that there are about 1,000 of them.  The Memo was signed and announced on Wednesday 19 July at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Essentially, the Memo commits the Vietnamese government to making sure that no bears are allowed to be kept by private households.  (It’s here that illegal bile extraction could take place.)    And the 1,000 bears currently held captive will be moved to sanctuaries.  Vietnam Director of Animals Asia, Tuan Bendixsen, said “This historic document ties NGOs and the government of Vietnam to a common goal – the end of bear bile farming in Vietnam.”  Bear bile farming was harming wild bears, whose population was dwindling, so hopefully the agreement will help show that the country is serious about the country’s remaining wild bears and protecting the heritage of future generations.  Key issues moving forward will be: How to fund and manage the sanctuaries How to proceed with the transfer of privately owned bears to rescue centres It is expected that new sanctuaries will need to be built, and help sought from existing sanctuaries run by animal conservation and welfare charities.  Animals Asia’s Founder and CEO, Jill Robinson MBE said:  “This agreement has been a long time coming with discussions beginning around 2014, so to see it finalised is a major step forward. This, of course, doesn’t end the work. Quite the opposite, but it now means we work together with a common goal – to end this cruelty. We’ve essentially sat down with the government and made a list of what needs to be completed to end bear bile farming and agreed to work through these issues together. The agreement will need the support and participation of many groups, NGO’s, government departments and animal lovers to make it happen, but Jill Robinson says, “pivotally we are all in agreement about what has to be done and now we can get on with seeing it through.” Click here to go to Animals Asia

    

3. Good news from South Africa for bird species from Birdlife

   Posted on 9:00pm Thursday 20th Jul 2017

   Birdlife International report there were celebrations in April 2017:  the Mpumalanga’s Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Land and Environmental Affairs declared the Greater Lakenvlei area a Protected Environment. New Protected Environment Declared in South Africa  ©Romy Antrobus-Ruth Greater Lakenvlei is an important conservation area: It has many “specials” e.g. Wattle Crane, Blue Crane, White-winged Flufftail, Yellow-breasted Pipit and many others. BirdLife South Africa recognises this area as the Steenkampsberg Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA). It is an important water catchment area. Lakenvlei (a wetland) is a peatland which helps with the storing and purification of water. The peatland holds a huge amount of carbon, so minimizing the impact of climate change. The tourism and agricultural activities provide jobs for hundreds of people, connecting tourism to the beauty of the area and outdoor activities South African legislation provides for different categories of formal protection: Nature reserves and national parks, where activities are strictly controlled Protected Environment where some activities e.g. farming practices can continue but destructive and unsustainable activities are not allowed Areas are divided into zones such as natural areas and degraded areas.   In natural areas, activities are strictly controlled – over-grazing and indiscriminate use of pesticides are not allowed. Greater Lakenvlei now has a Management Plan which will be implemented to benefit the birds in this area.  Hopefully this declaration will encourage more bird lovers and nature lovers to visit, which should lead to more jobs and help conserve the area. It was made possible by the collaborative efforts of the Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) and their NGO partners, the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) and BirdLife South Africa Click here to go fly away to Birdlife International

    

4. Elephant news from Liberia

   Posted on 9:00pm Wednesday 5th Jul 2017

   There's good news for elephants!

   The Librarian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has formally signed off on a National Elephant African Plan.

   The plan was devised by Fauna & Flora International (FFI) and its partners and it's being funded by Stop Ivory.  It aims to tackle the increasing threat to Liberia's forest elephants. 

   Poaching has escalated, and forest elephants are severely threatened.   Numbers are difficult to estimate with any degree of accuracy but they are thought to be as low as 300 individuals. 

   

   The National Elephant Action Plan helps to identify specific actions and interventions for which targeted funding will be sought to address this data gap.  The first nationwide baseline assessment of forest elephants in Liberia is one such action. 

   West Africa has lost over 90% of its suitable elephant habitat over the last 35 years, due to logging, mining and agriculture.  Elephants need enormous areas to roam, so in order for them to survive, it's essential to safeguard their remaining habitats and the wildlife corridors that connect them.  

   Fauna and Flora say that you can only find forest elephants in 8 African countries now.  Liberia has the largest forest cover, so the population of forest elephants there is really important.

   The new National Elephant Action Plan will complement the broader African Elephant Action Plan by providing a guide for the protection and conservation of forest elephants in Liberia.

   This plan is vital as FFI's Liberia Programme Manager, Michelle Klailova, says, "and I quote,  “It will allow us to obtain a better understanding of the issues surrounding the distribution and conservation of Liberia’s elephants, identify the key threats and establish a programme of measures to ensure the survival of the species in Liberia.

   “The Liberian President’s signature will ensure the ideas and objectives towards elephant conservation are not just theoretical but actually implemented through the action plan,” she added.

   This new commitment by the Liberian President proves the government’s commitment to protecting its natural environment.

   FInd out more from Fauna and Flora International here

5. Help stop bear farming in Vietnam - your voice is needed now

   Posted on 10:00pm Wednesday 28th Jun 2017

   Today I had an email from the amazing charity Four Paws asking for all our help in supporting their petition to encourage the Vietnamese government to stop bear farming once and for all.

   In just six weeks, 275,000 people have signed the charity's petition - including comedians Matt Lucas and John Bishop, MEP Jean Lambert and VietPro.  

   Will you add your voice to the petition to stop bear farming?  

   Four Paws are hoping to have half a million names on their petition.  
   
   

   

   Every single signature could help encourage the Vietnamese authorities to end bear farming once and for all.   Four Paws is asking everyone to share, share, and share - and if you know any famous people who can help raise the profile of the petition, that would be great :-) 

   Please sign now

   Share now using #saddestbears

   Although the Vietnamese government has taken steps to end bear farming over the last 10 years, there are still about 1,300 bears living in tiny cages.  Bears are being used for bile extraction. So more action is needed to end bear farming once and for all. 

   The petition calls on the Vietnamese government to (and I quote):

   • Take even greater steps in ensuring that bears are not farmed for bile extraction.
   • Ensure bears currently on bear farms are strictly monitored with confiscations and penalties for noncompliance.
   • Close all bear farms by 2020 and ensure the transfer of all remaining bears to rescue centers and sanctuaries.

   Please take action and sign the petition here