National parks and tiger reserves in Madhya Pradesh, which had been shut amid the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, will be kept open from June 1 to June 30, state forest minister Vijay Shah said on Saturday. National parks and tiger reserves have remained shut since the last two months as a precautionary measure during the pandemic. "Madhya Pradesh is known as a tiger and leopard state. National parks and tiger reserves had been shut due to the coronavirus outbreak. We have decided to keep these parks and reserves open from June 1 to June 30," Shah said in a video statement. The move will help people involved in tourism activities in these national parks, the minister said, adding that visitors will have to follow COVID-19 guidelines during their trips. Madhya Prad...
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A subspecies of the Himalayan red fox was spotted at Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand at a height of 3,000 metres, officials said on Wednesday. The variety, known as Vulpes Vulpes griffithi, was seen in Bhujani and Khaliya Top areas of Munsiyari at an elevation of 3,000 metres, some 500 metres below the altitude, where its habitat is located, for the first time in recent years, said Surendra Panwar, president of Monal NGO that has been working towards the protection of upper range Himalayan animals for around 10 years. FILE PHOTO: A Himalayan Red Fox in Kumaon region of Uttarakhand "We have seen at least eight subspecies of the red fox at such an elevation in the Himalayan region after following it fruitlessly for two years," he said. Asked about the reasons behind the increased vis...
Read MoreSouth Africa will clamp down on captive lion breeding after a review panel concluded the industry risked the conservation of wild lions and harmed tourism, the environment minister said on Sunday. In the nearly 600-page report, the panel appointed by the ministry in 2019 recommended that South Africa end the breeding and keeping of captive lions for economic gain, including hunting them and tourist interactions such as cub petting. FILE PHOTO: Tourists interact with a lion cub at the Lion and Safari Park near Johannesburg, South Africa. Reuters/Tim Cocks The panel also recommended an immediate moratorium on the trade of lion derivatives such as bones, which they found to pose major risks to wild lion populations in South Africa. Barbara Creecy, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries ...
Read MoreRhino poaching is on the rise again in South Africa since the government loosened coronavirus restrictions, following a year-long lull due to the pandemic, wildlife parks say. The strict limits on travel, including international travel, imposed in March last year had the happy side effect of keeping poachers at bay. In 2020, 394 rhinos were poached, 30% fewer than the year before and the lowest yearly tally since 2011. But then South Africa began easing international travel restrictions in November. Veterinarians attend to a tranquillised rhino before it is dehorned, amid mounting fears of a rebound in rhino poaching, as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) travel restrictions ease, at the Balule Nature Reserve in Hoedspruit, Limpopo province, South Africa April 26, 2021. REUTERS/S...
Read MoreThe animals that roam South Africa’s Balule Nature Reserve have a new ally in the battle to keep them safe from poachers - camera phones mounted in protective cases that stream images of their activities to thousands of “virtual rangers” worldwide. With reserves across Africa cutting back on anti-poaching patrols amid a coronavirus-induced tourism lull that has hit funding, Balule has teamed up with handset manufacturer Samsung and tech pioneer Africam to supplement staff numbers with eyes and ears online. Over 55,000 people have become virtual rangers since the project, Wildlife Watch, went live this month. “We need more eyes; we need more people helping us,” said Leitah Mkhabela, a member of the park’s all-female anti-poaching unit known as the Black Mambas. “They can be...
Read MoreInternational Animal Welfare Organisation, World Animal Protection lauds and appreciates the recent legal directive of a court on the unethical and immoral practice of baiting lions for tourism in Gir National Park in Gujarat, as reported in the press. In the wake of this landmark legal directive that regulates the nature of wildlife tourism, two travel and tour operator companies, 1000 Islands Hotels and Resort and Wolf and Company, have undertaken to endorse the wildlife friendly pledge of World Animal Protection, that encourages travel operators to refrain from promoting the unethical exploitation of animals, including elephant rides and selfies with wild animals in tiger breeding establishments and other captive facilities. Recently, a court in Gir Somnath district of Gujara...
Read MoreThe COVID-19 pandemic is undermining nature conservation efforts, cutting park and anti-poaching patrols in more than half of Africa’s protected sites, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said on Thursday. The collapse of international tourism due to efforts to slow spread of the coronavirus has led to heavy revenue losses for many wildlife parks, cutting budgets and threatening longer-term closures. IUCN, a Swiss-based environmental network, said research released in a series of articles in its journal PARKS represents the most comprehensive review to date of the links between the pandemic and nature conservation. FILE PHOTO: Elephants are seen within the Kimana Sanctuary, part of a crucial wildlife corridor that links the Amboseli National Park to the Chyu...
Read MoreThe majestic sight of elephants roaming beneath Mount Kilimanjaro has long lured throngs of wildlife-lovers to Amboseli National Park on Kenya’s border with Tanzania. Yet the free movement of some 2,000 Amboseli elephants, along with two dozen other wildlife species plus cows owned by local Maasai people, may be under threat - from avocados. Kenyan agricultural company KiliAvo Fresh Ltd, which has farms near Amboseli on nearly 175 acres of land, is building nurseries and preparing to grow the fruit, whose popularity is growing worldwide due to its high nutritional value. Elephants are seen within the Kimana Sanctuary, part of a crucial wildlife corridor that links the Amboseli National Park to the Chyulu Hills and Tsavo protected areas, within the Amboseli ecosystem in Kimana, Ke...
Read More15-year-old polar bear male, called Nord, has moved to Ranua Zoo in Finland on Monday February 22nd, 2021 Nord came from Denmark, Skandinavisk Dyrepark. Nord was born in Moscow Zoo and the transfer was performed due to recommendation from EAZA´s (European Association of Zoos and Aquaria) polar bear coordinator. Nord left Denmark on Friday, February 19th, and he arrived to his new home on Monday morning. The transportation went well and Nord had a good appetite the moment he got to his new den. Nord will spend first days in his new home by getting used to his surroundings and his new keepers, and he might be hiding in the den occasionally. If all goes well, he will meet the female, Venus, later this spring. So far they will live in their own enclosures, and cubs are not expect...
Read MoreFace to face with the best of Africa’s wilderness on The Great Walk Of Africa
Africa is no stranger to walkabouts and migrations. Every year hordes of animals migrate in search of greener pastures with changing seasons. Few among us are unaware or unexcited about the great crossing of the Wildebeest, braving currents and carnivorous jaws of crocs and other predators. The tribes of Africa in its jungles, from the deep rainforests to the expansive grasslands of Savannahs and of course the great Sahara desert - all of them walk as a primary mode of movement, for game, food, water, spiritual communion and trade. So it must stand to reason that Africa, the unparalleled phenomenon is best experienced on foot! Intrigued by the proposition and want to know how to get one's feet on the ground, walking the ancient trails of the African Jungles? RARE Africa by Moyo brings ...
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