» Listings for 2017

1. Big cat tourism in South America can help jaguars

   Posted on 2:00pm Wednesday 19th Jul 2017

   There's some interesting research come from the University of East Anglia about big cat tourism. The overall message is that if we visit to see the jaguars, we will help them. Every year, thousands of tourists flock to the Pantanal, an area which spans Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay.  They want to see the big cat - the jaguar, who can be pretty elusive. The Pantanal is widely considered to be the best place to see jaguars in the wild.  Most tourists come to see jaguars, the Giant Otter, Anaconda, Marsh Deer, Giant Anteaters and water birds.   The World Land Trust is based in the UK, and its partner, Guyra Paraguay, manage a 52,000 acre reserve in north-eastern Paraguay.  It runs the Three Giants Biological Station on the reserve.   The reserve, by the way, is named after the Giant Otter, Giant Anteater and the Giant Armadillo who are present around the station, which tourists can visit.  Most tourists want to see jaguars;  animal tracking marks such as footprints are often seen.   Even though Jaguar sightings are rare, they are frequently caught on trail cameras. Responsible Travel list a number of wildlife holidays in Brazil ©Responsible Travel The jaguar is also at odds with local farmers, for killing their livestock and who consequently resent this big cat.  Some farmers even go so far as to hire bounty hunters to kill off problem cats. A research team from UEA, the Federal University of Mato Grosso, and Panthera, the cat conservation group, looked at the human-wildlife conflict.  They studied the area of Porto Jofre.  Here, ecotourism lodges and working cattle ranches work side by side.  Researchers discovered that the annual revenues gained from watching jaguar tour packages were more than US$6.8 million.  However, in the same area, the damage to livestock was US$121,500. Furthermore, the researchers interviewed ecotourists in the area.  98% would be willing to pay an extra fee to compensate ranches for the cattle they lost to jaguars.  A considerable 80% were willing to give 6% of the tour package costs.   Professor Peres said: “The discrepancy between the financial benefits and costs of retaining jaguars provides a huge window of opportunity for the conservation of this flagship cat and many other species of the increasingly embattled Brazilian Pantanal.” In short, there is monetary value in keeping a good number of jaguars in the Pantenal. Best practice in cattle herd management can also help reduce losses to farmers and ranchers. And tourists can help by looking to select tourism operators that work with local people to benefit the community and reduce any human-wildlife conflict.   Interestingly, the Snow Leopard Trust has set up a compensation scheme to help those farmers who livestock are killed by snow leopards, and also to help the farmers better manage their herds.  And it seems to be working.  I just feel sorry for the livestock. Read the full study from the University of East Anglia here

2. National Trust goes wilder for wildlife

   Posted on 9:00pm Tuesday 18th Jul 2017

   The National Trust is the largest private landowner in the UK.   It recently announced plans to help reverse the decline of wildlife on the land in its care. The National Trust was set up to protect places of natural beauty; it has a plan! It is going to create and restore 'priority'  wildlife habitats on 10% of its land - chalk, grassland and arable field margins. By 2025, at least 50% of its farmland will be nature friendly with protected hedgerows, field margins, ponds, woodlands and other habitats allowing plants and animals to thrive. Over 1,500 farm tenants on National Trust land are already farming in ways which benefit wildlife.  The Director of Land, Landscape and Nature is called Peter Nixon.  He says, "Nature has been squeezed out to the margins for far too long.   We want to help bring it back to the heart of our countryside."   Nature can rejuvenate.   Wildlife just need the right conditions to survive and we can all help create them.   We just need to make it happen.  And then birds such as the cuckoo, lapwing and curlew may come back and return to the fields, woods and meadows again.   Visit the National Trust

    

3. Tusk announce new partnership with Land Rover to help African wildlife

   Posted on 9:00pm Monday 17th Jul 2017

   There's good news from the charity Tusk.   They've just formed a new partnership with Land Rover.  Tusk say that this new partnership will have a significant impact on their work in Africa. Sharing an ethos..... going Above and Beyond for the wildlife and people in Africa - Tusk and Land Rover** In the email I received from Tusk, Land Rover’s Global Marketing Director Mark Cameron was delighted to announce Land Rover's formal partnership with the Tusk Trust, as both have a similar ethos:  going Above and Beyond. Tusk are trying to build a sustainable future for the African continent and its wildlife.  Since it was founded in 1990, it has invested over £30 million into a range of projects across Africa.   Taking a look at their project list, I can't help but feel excited.  Projects include the AfriCat Foundation, Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project, Durrell Madagascar, Coaching for Conservation, the Lamu Marine Conservation Porject, the Mali Elephant Project, Local Ocean Trust, various water projects, vulture conservation, rhino projects, those with primary and secondary schools, the South African Wildlife College and the Walikale Gorilla and Forest Conservation Project.  Click here to see their projects Given some of the very tough and rugged terrain Tusk and its partners work in, the enhanced partnership with Land Rover must surely be good news for people and wildlife, and Tusk must be very excited as they work to help African have a sustainable future for people and wildlife.  Click here to find out more about Tusk **cc Tusk and Land Rover

    

4. South Korea to scrap coal and nuclear power

   Posted on 10:00pm Thursday 6th Jul 2017

   Greenpeace's EnergyDesk reports that the new President of South Korea, Moon Jae-in, has commited South Koare to phasing out all coal and nuclear power stations.

   This suggests a major change in the country's energy policy and a new internatinoal commitment to move away from coal since Trump pulled America out of the Paris climate agreement. 

   Moon made a speech at a ceremony which shut down the country's oldest coal station, in which he promised to:

   • scrap existing plans for new nuclear plants
   • not extend the life of existing ones,
   • shut down 10 old coal power plants and
   • cancel new coal projects.

   Moon noted that so far the country's energy policy has focused on low prices and efficiency but that this should change, the priority now being on public safety and the environment. 

   South Korea is one of the top producers of nuclear power in the world and was looking to export its expertise and technology.

   But air pollution has recently risen up the political agenda, as South Korean was at risk of becoming one of the more polluted countries in the world. 

   Back in January 2017, a study from researchers at Harvard University and Greenpeace International said approximately 50,000 lives a year could be saved by 2030 if no new coal-fired power plants are built in Southeast Asia, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan.

   At a recent meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) Moon recently  suggested a 20% renewable energy target by 2030 and says South Korean will actively share their experience in building renewable energy sources and environmentally friendly energy towns with other AIIB countries 

5. Wildlfires affect animal and human health even if you don't live in the area

   Posted on 10:00pm Thursday 6th Jul 2017

   So you want to to be healthier, with a healthy diet, exercise, a good night's sleep and the physical and mental ability to live life to the full.   So how far have you thought about the air you breathe?  Wildfires have been ferocious this year - Chile, Portugal, Spain, the US for starters - and they affect not only those living in the area but also further away.  In the US west, Alaska and Canada, more than 9.8 MILLION acres burnt last year, according to the National Interagency Fire Center The American Lung Association has information on how wildfires affect people's health thousands of miles away.   It says in the US that climate change has caused higher spring and summer temperatures.  The snow has melted erlier, causing soils to be drier for longer and lengthening the wildfire season and increasing drought.  These hot, dry conditions can make fire more intense and also make it burn for longer.  Wildfires spread air pollution locally, but thousands of miles away.   For people, they can cause breathing difficulties in even healthy individuals, but particularly in hildren, older adults, and people with lung diseases such as asthma and COPD, and heart problems.  Although those in the immediate vicinity are of course affected first, fire and smoke spreads downwind.  Click here for more info The impact of wildfires on the animal kingdom and its habitat is horrific.   Domestic pets, working animals and wildlife die in large numbers as they have no fast way out.  Wildfires can spread at considerable speed.   Vigilence is essential to take care when it is particularly dry and hot.