The aim is to reduce conflicts between the elephants and people.

Staff from the Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve have created about 100 hectares of the elephant’s favourite food in three different sites.  Bamboo and paper mulberry are on the menu.

On 5 July, a canteen had 20 Asian elephants who enjoyed their meal over two hours.

In Pu'er City, over 253 hectares of sugarcane, bananas and maize have been planted for the elephants.

The idea is that open-air canteens will help entice the elephants away from human settlements to prevent conflicts between the animals and people.  The elephants can munch on food plants far away from the villages so they are less likely to come in to conflict with them.  Fewer elephants are looking for food in the villages now.

The wild Asian elephants are endangered animals.   In China their population has grown from over 170 in the 1990s to about 300 today.  They live mainly in Yunnan.

Source:  Xinhuanet.com

Greenpeace has announced some great news.

The majority of the krill fishing industry has agreed to voluntarily stop fishing in sensitive Antarctic waters.  And it’s backing the campaign for ocean sanctuaries in the Antarctic.

Penguins, whales and other Antarctic wildlife that feed on krill will be very relieved.

And when the Antarctic Ocean Commission meet in October to decide on a massive Sanctuary, the influential krill industry won't be standing in the way.

Greenpeace started campaigning on the krill industry back in April.   And the public piles on the pressure –

• Over 45,000 emails went to Holland & Barrett calling on them to ditch krill oil products fished from areas that need protection.
• Over 11,000 tweets and Facebook messages went to Boots, calling on them to stop sourcing krill oil products from sensitive Antarctic waters
• Stickered krill products with the message on Holland and Barrett and Boots shelves nationwide,
• Visited over 30 Boots shops with 'krill-o-meters' which asked people to choose between an Antarctic Ocean Sanctuary and industrial krill fishing.

More people contacted stores stocking dodgy krill products.  Superdrug, Morrisons, Nature’s Best and others listened to customer concerns.

Greenpeace says, “This is a major step forward on the road to protecting the Antarctic. With many krill fishing companies now joining the 1.7 million people across the globe already calling for an Antarctic Ocean Sanctuary, we are looking ahead with hope to the Antarctic Ocean Commission's meeting in October.”

The British Retail Consortium is now calling on governments to act and protect the Antarctic this year.

Do your bit and add your voice

The UK Government is part of an Antarctic Ocean Commission which has pledged to protect the Antarctic, so you can urge it to stand up for ocean protection and support the creation of the world’s largest Antarctic ocean sanctuary. 

Play a part and add your voice to get governments to act and protect the Antarctic.

Sign the petition Greenpeace has got and add your voice.  Penguins, whales and marine life need you!

Travel group TUI is running a programme to protect turtles.  The travel group now has a target to save one million new-born turtles by 2020.

The TUI Turtle Aid programme has been created to protect the welfare of one million new-born turtles by 2020.

It is working with local organisations in Cape Verde, Turkey and Greece  -‘Project Biodiversity’ and BIOS.CV on the islands of Sal and Boa Vista, Archelon in Greece and DEKAMER in Turkey. The project is expected to expand to other countries in the months ahead.

The project will pioneer innovative research and protection methods to help safeguard the endangered global sea turtle population.

Experts estimate that only one in a thousand baby turtles survives to adulthood, and the projects TUI is supporting is aiming to protect turtle nests on beaches and increase hatchling survival rates.

Out of the 7 species of marine turtle, 6 are considered critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable.

Threats to turtles:

• Suffocation because they’ve ingested plastic bags;
• poachers;
• irresponsible beach use which leads to the destruction of turtles nests
• killing of hatchlings
• coastal development
• climate change
• illegal trade

Turtles in Cape Verde

The third largest loggerhead nesting populations in the world resides here. Five of the seven existing marine turtle species are in the Cape Verdean waters.  The plan is to engage with the local community and local stakeholders.  Local tour guides are taught about best practices and they give advice to visitors to help them holiday responsibly. Hotel partner involvement is vital to foster responsible beach use and waste management, and sustainable outings for tourist.

Turtles in Greece 

Conservationists will work with local companies and the tourism industry on Crete anda in the Peloponnese to implement management measures on loggerhead nesting beaches.  It is hoped that 60,000 loggerhead hatchlings will be born every year.

Turtles in Turkey

On Turkish beaches there are efforts to involve national and regional government, local businesses and visitors in the turtle-protection activities. A rescue centre will help care for injured turtles along the coast.  The partnership will enable DEKAMER to develop international research and conservation porjects, including the satellite tracking of turtles, the sex ratio estimate of turtles under global warming and more.

Well done, TUI!   Let's hope this really expands to other turtle sites.

Elephants and other wild animals are being protected in India by protective barricades around open wells in reserve and revenue forest.

This is because the animals were falling into wells.

After a survey of the wells, they were nearly all found to be abandoned and unsafe for wild animals.

Reports suggest there are about 360 such abandoned wells in the reserve and revenue forest.

Rescuing the trapped elephants was an enormous task which took several hours to do, so the Dhenkanal Forest division has taken steps to stop this happening and to prevent elephants and other wild animals from falling into them in the first place.

Source:  Newindianexpress.com

The Times of India's You Tube video

African Parks is responsible for the rehabilitation and long term management of national parks and protected areas.

They do this in partnership with governments and local communities, and the goal is to make teach park ecologically, socially and financially sustainable in the long term.

And at the end of 2017, they were responsible for managing 14 protected areas in 9 countries (it’s now 15).   The areas spanned 40,540 square miles covering 7 of the 11 ecological biomes on the continent.  They have a large counter-poaching force with 1,000 rangers and over 5,000 staff across the parks.

They are undertaking various active management interventions:

• Extreme species translocations and reintroductions
• Providing security to create safer spaces for humans and wildlife
• Ensuring that local people benefit

Where security has been restored and governance established, they’ve seen the rise of civility and a better way of life has returned. 

There is tremendous momentum to make this rehabilitation happen and to continue to build on successes that African Parks has so far achieved.  

Founded in 2000, it’s a non-profit conservation organisation.

Their Annual Report for 2017 Restoration:  Nature’s Return highlights:

• The Chinko team achieved success on the ground keeping 10,000km2 free of cattle and giving wildlife a chance to return
• 39 elephants were collared in one of the largest elephant collaring exercises in Africa, giving them better protection from armed poachers
• The successful reintroduction of 18 black rhinos from South Africa to the Akagera Park in Rwanda, 10 years after they had locally become extinct.   7 years were spent making the park safe and reducing poaching to an all time low.  Singing children lined the route between Kigali and Akagera to celebrate their return.
• The park received 37,000 tourists for the year, making it 75% self-sustaining
• In August, 520 elephants were translocated from the Liwonde National Park and the Majete Wildlife Reserve to the Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve.  Tourism is on the rise here, and back in Liwonde the human-wildlife conflict has dropped dramatically as a result
• A long term agreement was signed with the Government of Benin for the Penjari National Park, the largest remaining intact ecosystem in all of West Africa, and a stronghold for the critically endangered West African lion and African elephant
• In December, African Parks signed a 25 management agreement with the Government of Mozambique to manage the Bazaruto Archipelago National Park, the first marine reserve in its portfolio
• And HRH Prince Harry joined African Parks as their President.
  
  

African Parks’ model for its protected area management 

1. Law enforcement for the long term sustainability of the parks
2. Biodiversity conservation, with active management of the wildlife and their habitats
3. Community development – the process of building constituencies for conservation through economic development
4. Tourism and enterprise – well managed parks contribute directly to the local and national economy
5. Management and infrastructure – essential for governance and effective park management

African Parks goal is to manage 20 African parks by 2020.    You can be a part of this journey and give your support.   

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