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Margaret Mead, American anthropologist, 1901-1978
 


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» Listings for 2018

  1. 664,484 acres protected in Bolivia

    Posted on

    There's good news from Bolivia.

    The World Land Trust and Nature and Culture International have jointly funded the creation of Heroes del Chaco Historical and Wildlife Municipal Reserve.

    This is protection a whopping 664,484 acres of Dry Chaco forest in Bolivia!

    The project was given community support, and on the ground, it's Natura Bolivia who run it.   

    World Land Trust says the plains of Gran Chaco extend from the base of hte Andes across Northern Argentina, western Paraguay and south east Bolivia.

    It is ihome to the largest Dry Forest in South America, and has swamps, savannahs, marshes, salt flats and scrubelands.

    It supports about 500 species of birds, 150 species of mammals, 120 species of reptiles and 100 species of amphibians, so it's a very important area for wildlife.  Threats to the area are deforestation, hunting and unsustainable cattle farming.  

    Natura is working with locals in the area to develop a conservation model which works for both wildlife and people in the area.   For instance, the govenrment has given support for conservation incentives.   

    This is very exciting, especially the work to develop conservation models which work for people and wildlife and it will be interesting to see how the project develops.  

    Meantime, it's great to think that over 664,000 acres are being protected. 

     

  2. Seychelles protects an area as large as Britain

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    There's great news from the Seychelles - they are to protect an area as large as Britain in the Indian Ocean.

    The island has agreed to protect 81,000 square miles of ocean in exchange for getting some of its national debt paid off.   The swap was agreed with the Nature Conservancy, a US charity, and several investors back in 2016.   Future national debt payments will be directed into the Seychelles Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust, which will offer lower interest rates on debt repayments.  Any savings will go to fund new projects to protect marine life and handle climate change effects.

    The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation is just one of the investors which had worked on the deal.   The actor said the effort will serve as a model for future marine conservaiton projects world wide.   

    An important part of the agreement is that the Seychelles is raising the amount of its protected waters by 2020 to 30% (from 0.04%) so that's a huge increase. 

    The plan falls into two parts

    1. To create new marine parks covering the Aldabra islands - they are home to hundreds of thousand tortoises, nesting bird colonies, and the endangered dugong.   Only research and regulated tourism will be allowed.
    2. To limit fishing and tourism activities around the Seychelles main islands. 

    The hope is to introduce similar actions in the Caribbean and other ocean regions facing threats from climate change. 

     

  3. New reserves to create whale sanctuary in Scotland

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    The Scottish Government is to consult the public on the creation of new marine protected areas - MPAs.

    Four marine reseres are set to be established to protect dolphins and whales in their Scottish breeding and nursey aresa.

    The areas are:

    1. North East Lewis
    2. The Sea of the Hebrides
    3. Shiant East Bank (around the Outer Hebrides) 
    4. The Southern Trench (from the sea off Buckie to Peterhead)  

    The Sea of the Hebrides is known to be a vital breeding spot for basking sharkes.   Risso's and bottlenose dolphins, along several whale species, frequent all the areas.

    The Whale and Dolphin Conservation society had proposed 3 of the sites in 2011.

    Currently, Scotland's MPA network covers about 20% of its seas at the moment and it comprises over 30 MPAs.

    You can find out more about the WDC's report on this proposal here

    And more about the Scottish Government's Marine Protected Areas here

     

  4. Chile receives amazing donation of land

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    There’s amazing news from Chile.

    It’s officially designated a national park network, including land which has been privately donated by a couple from the US.


    The government signed a deal with Kristine McDivitt Tompkins.  She and her late husband Doug worked for years to protect areas of Patagonia. They relocated to Chile in 1994 to work on conservation, and they bought up land to preserve as wilderness. He founded North Face clothing label and died in a kayaking accident back in 2015 in Chile.

    The couple set up a not-for-profit organisation, Tompkins Conservation.  The area being protected is about the size of Switzerland, and it’s thought to be the biggest donation of land by private owners to a country.

    The move will create 5 new national parks and expand 3 others.  Plus is adds about 10 million acres of land – about 10% of this was donated by the Tompkins.

    The Chilean government wants the national parks to span a tourist route of over 1,500 miles across the country.

    This is the most recent act of natural protection by Chilean President Michelle Bachelet.   Back in 2017, an area off the coast of Easter Island was designated as one of the largest marine protection zones. 

    Keep going, Chile, and may other countries follow your example.  Nature needs it.

     

  5. AWF Donates Land to Rwanda to Protect Mountain Gorilla Habitat

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    The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists mountain gorillas as critically endangered.   

    Mountain gorillas are only found in the Virunga Massive and in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda.  They are one of the four great apes living in Africa and are the only great age which is increasing in population. 

    The Government of Rwanda, says the African Wildlife Foundation, has distinguished itself as a leader in conservation after the amazing recovery of the ape numbers.

    The 2010 cenuses of mountain gorillas in the Virunga Massife showed there were about 880 individuals - 480 in the Virunga Massive and 400 in Bwindi.  This means they had increased about 26% over the previous 7 years. 

    Visit the African Wildlife Foundation's website for more info

    This success led to a key challenge:  enough habitat for the mountain gorillas.

    In 2017, the African Wildlife Foundation bought a 27.8 hectare property right next to the park.  

    However, the increase in mountain gorillas has led to a key challenge: adequate habitat.

    So in 2017, the African Wildlife Foundation bought a 27.8-hectare property next to the park.  

    In January, the Rwanda Development Board received a property that will help increase the size of Volcanoes National Park, vital habitat for the mountain gorillas.  The park was established in 1925 and it's home to mountain gorillas.  It is sited in the north of Rwanda bordering the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda and it hoped that the handover of land from the African Wildlife Foundation to the Rwanda Development Board will help address the issue of adequate habitat.

    Visitor numbers have risen 82% since 2007, showing that more and more people want to see mountain gorillas.  Visitor numbers will help ensure their long term survival, provided that the gorillas are treated with respect and given the right habitat they need to survive and thrive.

    Responsible Travel is an ethical travel directory and it lists a number of gorilla safaris - click here for more information.