Dear Colleagues,
Thank you for the condolence messages they were much appreciated. Life is still very difficult. I feel very much out of my depth. The pain lingers on and I don't suppose I will ever forget these past weeks. There are a lot of interesting stories today but as you can imagine I have a lot on my mind.
You may find the comments at the end of Orangutans to Giza Zoo of interest. There is a little new information on the situation there.
Please post in blog comments below if you feel so inclined.... sorry though I will not approve anonymous comments.
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Thank you for the condolence messages they were much appreciated. Life is still very difficult. I feel very much out of my depth. The pain lingers on and I don't suppose I will ever forget these past weeks. There are a lot of interesting stories today but as you can imagine I have a lot on my mind.
You may find the comments at the end of Orangutans to Giza Zoo of interest. There is a little new information on the situation there.
Please post in blog comments below if you feel so inclined.... sorry though I will not approve anonymous comments.
Looking for a job? Several new vacancies posted in recent days. Take a look at:
http://zoowork.blogspot.com/
Got one to advertise? email me.
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On with links:
Woodstock in Oxfordshire housed UK's first zoo
When King Henry I had a wall built to protect his strange menagerie of animals, he effectively created England's first zoo.
The year was 1110, and the seven mile long wall enclosed The Royal Park of Woodstock and his exotic collection of lions, camels and porcupines.
More importantly, it also kept peasants out of the manor grounds!
Henry, son of William the Conqueror, also wanted the land so he could indulge in his love of hunting.
"The animals were then moved to the Tower of London under later kings," explains John Banbury, editor of Woodstock and the Royal Park: Nine Hundred Years of History.
"And guess where they are now? Regent Park's Zoo. London Zoo."
There was no settlement in Woodstock 900 years ago but the clearing in the forest had been a royal park since
http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/oxford/hi/people_and_places/history/newsid_8717000/8717819.stm
Edmonton Valley Zoo to build $16.7M Arctic habitat
Delia Gruninger has developed close bonds with the Valley Zoo's sea mammals over the 27 years she's been caring for them.
She's been eagerly anticipating the zoo's announcement of a new, state-of-the-art Arctic mammal habitat for years, and is glad construction has finally begun.
"I'm extremely happy," Gruninger said as she prepared to tend to the zoo's two seals and one sea lion.
At a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday, zoo officials announced plans for a series of construction projects that will transform the 51-year-old attraction.
"We're breaking ground not just for a new exhibit, but for a whole new zoo," said Coun. Jane Batty, who attended with council colleagues Karen Leibovici and Ed Gibbons
The $16.7-million first phase -- called Polar Extremes, Arctic Shores -- is already under construction and is slated to be completed by fall 2011. The new exhibit, west of the zoo's entrance, will be home to Arctic fox, ground squirrels and the zoo's seals and sea lion, said Community Services general manager Linda Cochrane. The new habitat will provide a spacious, more natural setting for the zoo's sea mammals, and will feature more indoor and outdoor pools, better viewing areas for spectators and a glass floor so visitors can see the mammals swim beneath their feet.
"This is about doing what's best for the animals
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/travel/Edmonton+Valley+build+Arctic+habitat/3137886/story.html
Reptile expert facing several charges
Reptile expert Terry Cullen was charged Thursday with several criminal counts, including sexual assault and animal mistreatment. The investigation started when a 24-year-old woman contacted police, claiming Cullen had assaulted her in February after offering her an internship. According to a complaint, the woman also told police she had seen a crocodile freely roaming around Cullen's warehouse, along with several other reptiles and animals that were kept in what appeared to be shipping containers.
Police say when they served a search warrant at Cullen's properties, officers were overwhelmed by the smell of urine, feces, and decomposing animals. They removed hundreds of reptiles and animals
http://www.cbs58.com/index.php?aid=12528
DENVER ZOO ZOOKEEPERS WIN ANIMAL CARE AWARD
Denver Zoo’s zookeepers are being recognized for their professionalism in animal care. The zoo’s Predator Ridge team has won the prestigious Jean M. Hromadka Excellence in Animal Care Award from the American Association of Zookeepers (AAZK). The award recognizes “achievement of an individual or team in the animal care field and in fostering professionalism.” The team of Heather Genter, Andrew Rowan, Mike Murray, Laura Morrell, and Shaina Aguilar will be honored at the AAZK annual conference on August 26 in Philadelphia.
The award was named for Jean M. Hromadka in memory of her outstanding contributions to the furtherance of AAZK through her work as President of the Association. Winners must excel in areas including zoology, animal management, behavioral observation and daily record keeping on the species in their care.
“It is a very high honor to have our staff recognized in Jean’s memory,” said Denver Zoo President/CEO Craig Piper. “She was a highly skilled keeper who was determined to foster increased professionalism in zoo keeping and to promote awareness for the profession she loved. This award recognizes the innovative work and conscientious care of many keepers who have worked in Predator Ridge since it opened in 2004. We are very proud of them.”
Predator Ridge is a state-of-the-art, naturalistic habitat designed to re-create a portion of Samburu National Reserve in Kenya. It houses 12 African species, including lions, hyenas and wild
http://denver.dbusinessnews.com/shownews.php?newsid=211390&type_news=latest
Gamblers smoking vulture brains to predict outcome of World Cup
Wildlife organizations are warning that South Africa's vultures are being pushed to extinction by gamblers looking to gain special powers by smoking the dried brains of these birds of prey in order to predict the outcome of World Cup games.
Mark Anderson of BirdLife South Africa, said: "Many vulture species across the world are in trouble. Our very own species in southern Africa is declining sharply for a number of reasons, including reduced food availability, deliberate poisoning and electrocution from electricity pylons. The harvesting of the bird's heads by followers of muti
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/293084
Captured leopard breeds new conservation hopes
The capture of a Javan leopard in Malang, East Java, was a blessing in disguise for the rare animal's conservation, a park official says.
General Manager of Taman Safari Indonesia (TSI) park in Prigen, Michael Sumampow, said the fate of the animal, captured by residents last week and currently being held at the park, would be up to the authority, including if it is going to be re-released.
"*The leopard* could provide a new bloodline to be used as a mating pair to help preserve the species' population," he said.
The critically endangered Javan leopard was trapped by residents in Poncokusumo village, Malang regency, last Saturday.
According to TSI veterinarian Nanang, the leopard appeared to be very stressed, likely because of regular encounters with humans.
"Basically, a Javan leopard is reluctant and afraid to meet people. But if it has come down from the mountain and entered a village, there must be for a reason *for that behavior*," he said.
"It's likely the leopard went to the village to search for food."
The Javan leopard is on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's red list of critically endangered species.
Residents contacted officials at Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS) and the Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA) after capturing the leopard.
TNBTS and BKSDA then asked TSI Prigen to help transport the
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/06/05/captured-leopard-breeds-new-conservation-hopes.html
Animal Expert Arrested
2 weeks after police pulled hundreds of animals out of a south side warehouse, local reptile expert Terry Cullen was finally arrested and booked Wednesday, but not for charges of animal cruelty.
No one answered the door Wednesday at the residence listed to Cullen. Cullen was also not home 2 weeks ago when police pulled big snakes, alligators, crocodiles and other exotics from the residence and the warehouse.
Officers originally went to the building near 13th and Lincoln to investigate a sex assault case.
Wednesday, Cullen was booked on two counts of sexual assault, one count of kidnapping, and then released from custody. Police won't talk about the allegations, but the district attorney
http://animalhoardinginfo.blogspot.com/2010/05/terry-cullen-milwaukee-wisconsin.html
NGC documentary reveals lucrative tiger trade black market in China
2010 is the Year of the Tiger in the Chinese calendar, yet a recent documentary reveals that China still harbors a highly-lucrative illicit market that has taken the species to the brink of extinction. China remains a major consumer of tiger products despite the fact that Beijing has imposed a ban on the tiger bone trade since 1993.
A film titled "Inside: The Tiger Trade," produced by the National Geographic Channel reveals how agents of the Environmental Investigation Agency, an international organization which works to expose worldwide environmental crime, traveled across China to investigate smuggling operations and illegal trade in tigers and tiger parts.
The resulting documentary records the brave actions of the agency which is on the front line in protecting this majestic apex predator, filmed by a team who put their own safety in jeopardy to unravel the inner workings of the illegal trade network.
With the help of Chinese-speaking undercover agents, the agency found that the smuggling route is far-reaching, stretching all the way from India and through Nepal and finally landing in China.
A visit to a Tibetan horse festival even found tiger skins prominently on display there.
"The film is produced in the hope of reminding the world to pay more attention to preserving wild animals that have nearly gone extinct," said Mindy Lee, director of marketing for the NGC Taiwan Branch in a media premiere of the documentary on
http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=1277656&lang=eng_news&cate_img=327.jpg&cate_rss=Lifestyle_TAIWAN
Terri Irwin pushes ahead with plans for Australia Zoo in LA
AUSTRALIA Zoo, the wildlife park owned by the family of late Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin, is pushing ahead with a AU$300 million (US$250 million) plan to replicate the Australian tourist attraction in the gambling mecca of Las Vegas.
Steve Irwin's widow, Terri Irwin, said she hoped to buy the land this year and was on the lookout for investors, The (Brisbane) Sunday Mail reported.
"It's hard to predict how the economy is going to recover but we'd hope by next year we'd have the investors so we can look towards a date for breaking ground," she said.
"But it's very much on the go-ahead and it'll be such a brilliant icon for Australia. It's going to be so much about Steve and his dreams, and his philosophy and his message."
Irwin said the zoo would be "spectacularly Vegas" while respectful of the animals.
"There'll be nothing jumping through a hoop of fire but
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/terri-irwin-pushes-ahead-with-plans-for-australia-zoo-in-la/story-e6frf7jx-1225876007273
Hospital Prepares To Treat Turtles Hurt By Oil
Workers Plan To Clean Oil-Stricken Turtles With Mayonnaise
As the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico claims the lives of many sea creatures, workers at the only licensed turtle hospital in the U.S. prepare for the worst.
Wilma the loggerhead turtle is suffering from pneumonia, and she is among 43 endangered sea turtles recovering from ailments, issues and injuries at The Turtle Hospital in Marathon. None of the hospitals' patients suffer from oil-related injuries -- yet.
Two new 30,000-gallon tanks are ready for a possible influx of sea turtles injured by oil and tar from BP's burgeoning underwater plumes.
"I can honestly say we're as prepared as we can possibly be," said Ryan Butts, of The Turtle Hospital.
It is hard to say when oil-affected turtles could arrive at the hospital, and the effects they will suffer are unclear, even for the experts.
"The oil will weigh them down, but they usually are strong enough where they can stay buoyant and they will float. Eventually, the toxins in the oil are what
http://www.justnews.com/news/23849897/detail.html?taf=mia
Anger as penguins and monkeys visit Kingland House Residential Home
CONSERVATIONISTS have attacked the decision to bring a captive monkey and two penguins to a Poole nursing home for the day.
Dr Alison Cronin, of the ape rescue centre Monkey World, spoke to the Daily Echo after a 12-year-old squirrel monkey and two Humboldt penguins took centre stage at Kingland House Residential Home on Wednesday.
Around 50 people, including residents, their families and staff packed a room to meet and handle the animals.
The visit, carried out by Oxfordshire’s Amazing Animals – a company that specialised in training animals to work in film and TV – saw Dougie the squirrel monkey and two miniature penguins, Charlie and Ferrari, enthral
http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/8211522.Anger_as_penguins_and_monkeys_visit_nursing_home/
Cornwall tortoise sanctuary classed as zoo
A tortoise sanctuary in Cornwall could face closure after council officials reclassified it as a zoo.
Joy Bloor, who runs the Tortoise Garden at Sticker, near St Austell, has been told her docile pets are wild and cannot be classed as domestic.
Cornwall Cornwall said it had "no choice" but to apply the Zoo Licensing Act 1981.
Mrs Bloor said she was "devastated" and would appeal as being classified as a zoo brought added costs.
"These tortoises are not wild and it's pretty obvious we're not a zoo," she said.
'Spiralling' costs
She said the definition of a zoo was "an establishment which exhibits wild animals to the public".
She said that a zoo licence cost £262 but the sanctuary would not be able to afford the "spiralling" extra costs, such as paying for regular Defra vet inspections and vets'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/england/cornwall/10287686.stm
How poachers became caretakers
(Video and comments)
http://www.ted.com/talks/john_kasaona_from_poachers_to_caretakers.html?utm_source=newsletter_weekly_2010-06-08&utm_campaign=newsletter_weekly&utm_medium=email
An ape in a cage,and a cry for help
It's the morning rush hour in the city, and all manner of trucks, cars and busses are whizzing along a downtown street.
But this isn't your average rush hour in Jakarta. Amid the hustle and bustle of the city an orangutan sits forlornly in a cage on the median right in the middle of the highway.
arms are wrapped around himself in a defensive pose, and his eyes look up to the sky, as if searching for help. The cage around him is so small he couldn't stretch his arms out if he wanted to.
Below him is a bright yellow sign with bold black letters that read, "In captivity, I live in cages smaller than this. Please set me free." The logo of the Friends of the National Parks Foundation appears at the bottom of the sign.
The orangutan is not an escapee from the zoo, nor
http://www.medialifemagazine.com/artman2/publish/Alternative_media_43/An-ape-in-a-cage-and-a-cry-for-help.asp
NGO’s offer solutions to help lions
A grouping of Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) joined forces to meet with officials from the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) and provincial nature conservation agencies on the 2 June 2010, to discuss the possible welfare crisis facing more than 3 500 Lions currently held in captivity in South Africa.
The potential crisis could arise as a result of Judge Ian van der Merwe’s ruling in the Free State High Court in June 2009, which upheld the provision of the Threatened or Protected Species (ToPS) Regulations and could effectively put an end to canned Lion hunting in South Africa. Judge van der Merwe, in his ruling, supported a widely held view that the hunting of Lions bred and raised in captivity, and which are therefore totally dependent on humans for their survival, “abhorrent and repulsive”. However, this ruling is currently under appeal and the application of the regulations to prevent canned hunting of Lions will be delayed until the appeal is heard.
The implementation of the provisions for Lions may well put a halt to hunting of captive-raised Lions, however the quality of life, and the future, of the thousands of animals still held in captivity is of major concern. The South African Predator Breeders Association (SAPBA) has warned that they believe the implementation of the regulations will make hunting economically unviable and many breeders may simply abandon or kill their lions rather than incurring the considerable expense of keeping them.
As a result of this, the NGO Alliance Grouping made suggestions to the DEA in 2009 and relayed their concerns regarding the fate of the thousands of Lions in captivity. The group includes animal welfarists, animal rightists and conservationists who have repeatedly offered their assistance to DEA in preparing an action plan to address issues which may arise and compromise the welfare of captive Lions and impact negatively on Lion conservation.
In the interest of these animals, the NGO Alliance Grouping has undertaken to present a detailed management and action plan to DEA for consideration.
The group’s spokesperson, Karen Trendler, stated: “We are committed to ensuring that the Lions receive the consideration they deserve. We will offer our expertise and knowledge to the Department of Environmental Affairs in preventing a possible crisis.”
The group also expressed its concerns to DEA regarding the commercial breeding of Lions for their bones that is being proposed by some in the Lion industry
http://www.southafrica.co.za/2010/06/09/ngos-offer-solutions-to-help-lions/
Zoo boss wants to bypass Dalton
ZOO boss David Gill wants to bypass Dalton by building a new road to his tourist attraction.
Mr Gill recently applied to Barrow Borough Council, outlining plans for a new entrance road to his South Lakes Wild Animal Park.
Mr Gill, who was born in Cleator Street, Dalton, intends to route traffic through the Melton Brow junction, off the A590.
He said: “The reason for the new road is quite simple – we need to remove Dalton-in-Furness from our map.
“It is a problem for us, people having to go down into Dalton.
“They drive past 200 family homes on the way into the animal park.
“There are parking problems on Market Street, Broughton Road and Ulverston Road. It blocks the access for my visitors and deliveries, and they have to come round Tudor Square, which is awkward.
“Then when you have something like the medieval fayre and the carnival, you also have the potential for loss of business. So what we have done is taken the project completely out of Dalto
http://www.nwemail.co.uk/news/zoo-boss-wants-to-bypass-dalton-1.717573?referrerPath=news/
Why vanishing snake colonies have ‘large-scale implications’ for humanity
The first documented evidence of the baffling disappearance of up to 90 per cent of snake colonies in five disparate spots on the globe has “large-scale implications” for humanity, a Canadian expert says.
And the “most obvious cause, intuitively, would be climate change,” biologist Jason Head of the University of Toronto, told the Star.
“Snakes are top predators in their eco system,” said Head. “They are regulators on rodents. If we remove that regulator, you can expect an increase in the number of disease vectoring (carrying) animals.”
Venomous snakes are taking the biggest hit in the findings, which has serious consequences for medicine, said Head.
“Snakes are not an insignificant component of human society
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/822229--why-vanishing-snake-colonies-have-large-scale-implications-for-humanity
Peninsula Not Suitable Habitat For Orang Utan, Says Masidi Manjun
The plan to transfer orang utan from Sabah to a proposed ape sanctuary in Kuala Lumpur may not proceed, for fear the great apes may not survive in the different forest ecosystem there.
State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said the Sabah government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) here had conveyed such reservations at a meeting with the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry's technical committee recently.
"We were invited to present our case on the proposal to relocate the orang utan to Kuala Lumpur, so we provided evidence from scientific studies to show that the forest in the peninsula is different from ours. Therefore, we do not think the orang utan in Sabah can live in the forest there.
"Another issue is we don't have tigers here and they do in Peninsular Malaysia, so there is likelihood of the orang utan being mauled and eaten by tigers. The state government's stand is very clear, we are not agreeable to transporting the apes to the peninsula," he told reporters after closing the Workshop on Species Action Plan for Orang Utan, Elephant and Rhino, here Friday.
Masidi said following that, the technical committee agreed to recommend to the federal cabinet that they should not proceed with the plan to send orang utan there.
Sabah currently has some 11,000 orang utan, comprising 80 per cent of the overall orang utan population in Mala
http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=505395
Arabian Oryx runs wild once more
A UAE-funded programme to re-introduce the Arabian Oryx back into the wild, an effort which started in Jordan last year, could soon be extended to Iraq and Syria.
The initiative, worth Dh4 million, released 20 antelopes, born in captivity in the UAE into Jordan’s Wadi Rum last year. Three babies have since been born and another 40 animals are set to be released over this year and next. “We have two more countries in the pipeline,” said Abdulnasser al Shamsi, the executive director of animal welfare and forestry projects at the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi.
Once numerous across the Arabian Peninsula, the Arabian Oryx has been extinct from the wild since 1972. The antelope has since survived only in zoos and private collections.
Abu Dhabi has the largest population, about 3,000 animals in captivity, and 155 live in a protected area in Umm al Zamool.
Yesterday, Mr al Shamsi said that 15 to 20 UAE-born Arabian Oryx can be sent to Iraq as early as next year, possibly in a secure area near the border with Jordan and Saudi Arabia. He was speaking from Damascus, where a regional conservation strategy to protect
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100611/NATIONAL/706109898&SearchID=73393633674471
Airport stops illegal effort to import cheetah cubs
Two Emiratis and a Somali national have been held by police in Dubai after a failed attempt to bring rare cheetah cubs into the country.
The cargo of 15 animals, which can only be exported under strict guidelines, was intercepted at Dubai International Airport two days ago. The shipment arrived from Somalia.
All of the animals weighed less than two kilograms.
“I think they were collected from their mothers,” said Abdullah Salem al Jan’an, executive director for agricultural and animal affairs, at the Ministry of Environment and Water.
Because of the stressful journey, six of the animals died, he said. The remainder have been sent to the Al Ain
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100611/NATIONAL/706109824&SearchID=73393633864782
Only 50 Arabian tahrs left in the country
When Ali al Shehhi’s son got engaged, the bride’s family brought a treat to celebrate: Arabian tahr with rice.
It was, he said, one of the best dishes he had ever tasted – “very different and delicious”. It was traditional, too: Mr al Shehhi’s ancestors had hunted the tahr near their rocky homes in the mountains of Ras al Khaimah for generations.
What neither he nor the other members of the two families realised was that the Arabian tahr they were eating is seriously endangered, with fewer than 50 animals remaining in the wild in the UAE.
That goat’s fate was all too common, according to Jackie Strick, the veterinary nurse and Arabian tahr specialist at the Breeding Centre for Endangered Arabian Wildlife in Sharjah.
“They either get mistaken for a regular goat or some actually recognise it as the exotic mountain goat and hunt it down because of the very fact that they are different,” she said.
“Because of their dependency on water, they often get ambushed as they drink at known water holes.”
Efforts are now well under way at the centre to preserve the species.
Just four weeks ago, the project had another success, in the shape of Qara, the sixth tahr kid to be born there.
Named after a mountain in Oman, where most tahr reside, Qara already climbs easily over the rocks in her enclosure.
She has bumps on her head where her horns will eventually emerge, and a grey-brown coat that is rapidly turning browner as she gets older.
It is thought that the coat’s initial grey colour is to help the young tahr stay camouflaged in their natural mountainous habitat.
Qara is one of the nine tahr that now live at the centre, along with her mother, Kydd, and father, Akhdar.
Typically for a male, Akhdar has distinct thick horns that curve back over his head. His long, red-brown coat is shaggier than
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100613/NATIONAL/706129915&SearchID=73393633941480
JEREMY KEELING: The orangutan who saved my life
Scarred by his traumatic childhood, Jeremy Keeling found solace working with exotic animals. Now, in his enchanting and touching book, he reveals how he became a ‘mother’ to an abandoned baby orang-utan called Amy - and how she healed his broken heart...
The car climbed the steep bank at high speed and then rolled – nose to tail – back on to the motorway hard shoulder, the impact ripping the roof and shattering windows. Everything went black. I suffered head injuries, as did Amy, the one-year-old orang-utan I had rescued after her mother abandoned her.
Luckily, my girlfriend Meryl was unscathed and my son Jamie escaped with bruising. A policeman, arriving at the scene, crawled into the mangled wreck from the rear and saw the back of my blood-soaked head. He noticed a large, hairy hand reach out and wrap itself around my head, cradling it. I had once saved Amy. And now she would not let me go.
There was always an innate attraction between me and the orange people – the orang-utans (the name actually comes from the Malay for 'man of the forest'). Chimps are highly intelligent and sociable. Gorillas are gregarious but lazy.
The orang-utan, though, is a simple, solitary creature that just wants to eat, sleep and work out mechanical formulas. It is the grumpy old man of the forest, something I empathise with. That's why I felt so much for Amy. I knew what it was like to be unwanted. I too had been discarded by my mother, Jill, who ran our family zoo in the Pennines, as punishment for making contact with my absent father.
I was forced to live in a beaten-up caravan at the age of 12, deprived of love and affection. Perhaps that was why I was so drawn to Amy. We were both loners. My mother was the dominant force in my family. The death of her childhood sweetheart days before they were to marry left a bitter resentment that she took to her grave.
After I left home, I briefly worked with chimps at a zoo owned by family friends and later at Colchester Zoo, where I gained my first introduction to orang-utans. Here was I, a troubled 18-year-old, responsible for chimps, baboons, spider monkeys, capuchins, gibbons and lemurs. The main draw for me, however, were Guy and Prissy, the zoo's orang-utans. You just get on better with some people than
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1286101/JEREMY-KEELING-The-orangutan-saved-life.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
Rare Javan rhino found dead in Indonesia
The carcass of a critically endangered Javan rhino has been found in Indonesia, conservationists said Monday, bringing the world?s scarcest mammal one step closer to extinction.
The remains of the male rhino were found two weeks ago in Ujung Kulon National Park in West Java, home to the species' last viable population of less than 50, experts said.
Rhino Foundation of Indonesia head Widodo Ramono said the animal could have died during the rainy season around February to March. Its horn was intact, meaning it probably was not killed by poachers, he said.
"There were no signs that it had been killed or poisoned. We suspect it could have died from an illness or, since it was partly submerged in water when it died, it could have drowned," he added.
The Javan rhino is distinguished from African rhinos by its small size, single horn and loose skin folds. Rhino horns are used in traditional Chinese and Korean medicine although most Asian countries have banned the trade.
Around 44 Javan rhinos are believed to live in Ujung
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g6Z3tdAxJuXPcH1-Ths0Ux2vEo3Q
'Cute' animals researched more: study
A new study says the same rule that applies to Hollywood celebrities also applies in the jungle -- it pays to be beautiful.
Researchers may be biased towards "cute and charismatic" animals, such as polar or panda bears, leaving some of nature's homelier creatures at risk of being neglected – and therefore at higher risk of extinction -- the study suggests.
Conservation ecologist Ted Cheskey of Nature Canada says that all threatened species deserve equal attention.
"There's a problem in that because in ecology all species have a value and a purpose," he told CTV's Canada AM Wednesday, of the study. "If we put our research dollars or conservation efforts towards protecting the big, charismatic (animals), we might be missing the thing that is most important."
The study, carried out at the University of Pretoria in South Africa, surveyed scientific papers from 1994 to 2008, looking for mentions of some 2,000 species in southern Africa.
Combining the data with a global list of endangered status, researchers found threatened large mammals appeared in 500 times as many papers as threatened amphibians.
Threatened birds, reptiles and smaller mammals were studied much less often.
And some animals that are most often referred to with adjectives such as "cute" and "cuddly" at the zoo, had a disproportionate amount of studies on them.
For example, the loveable meerkat was featured in about 100 studies, while the noble, but charisma-free manatee was only featured in 14.
The most studied animals were chimpanzees
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/SciTech/20100609/study-cute-animals-100612/
Wanted: Female mate for rare rhino in Malaysia
Malaysian authorities are trying to trap a female mate for Tam, a rare Borneo Sumatran rhino, in a last-ditch effort to produce an offspring in captivity and save his species from extinction, an official said Thursday.
Laurentius Ambu, a top wildlife official, said Tam's current mate is too old to reproduce. Tam was rescued from the jungles of Sabah state on Borneo island two years ago and is one of the handful of Borneo Sumatran rhinos believed to be alive.
"We are looking for a reproductive fertile female," said Ambu, the director of Sabah's Wildlife Department. "The female that we have is quite old now."
Hopes for saving the Borneo Sumatran from extinction were raised following the recent spotting of a rhino believed to be a female, whose image was captured by a remotely controlled camera, Ambu said.
The trap is in an area on Borneo island where the solitary rhinos, indigenous to the island, are known to roam.
Only 10 to 30 Borneo Sumatran rhinos -- a subspecies of the bristly, snub-nosed Sumatran rhino -- are known to remain in the wild. So it is crucial that the breeding-in-captivity program launched two years ago when Tam was rescued
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9G879K00.htm
Man who founded zoo on Carolina Beach Road dies at 88
George Tregembo, collector of animals and assorted worldly curiosities that became the Tregembo Animal Park, died Thursday after an illness. He was 88.
Tregembo opened the Carolina Beach Road zoo in 1953, originally calling it the Tote Em In Zoo. It quickly became a child favorite, and remains a landmark to this day.
Originally from Hallowell, Maine, Tregembo first came to North Carolina while in the Army and stationed at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro.
He visited Carolina Beach and Fort Fisher while on a two-day pass and immediately loved the weather, said his son, Robert Tregembo.
After getting out of the Army and spending a few years running a zoo in Maine, George Tregembo moved to Wilmington in 1952 and soon founded the Tote Em In Zoo.
He started with less than a dozen animals and a collection of spear points, shrunken heads, masks and more that he had started while
http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20100612/ARTICLES/100619856?Title=Man-who-founded-zoo-on-Carolina-Beach-Road-dies-at-88
Woodstock in Oxfordshire housed UK's first zoo
When King Henry I had a wall built to protect his strange menagerie of animals, he effectively created England's first zoo.
The year was 1110, and the seven mile long wall enclosed The Royal Park of Woodstock and his exotic collection of lions, camels and porcupines.
More importantly, it also kept peasants out of the manor grounds!
Henry, son of William the Conqueror, also wanted the land so he could indulge in his love of hunting.
"The animals were then moved to the Tower of London under later kings," explains John Banbury, editor of Woodstock and the Royal Park: Nine Hundred Years of History.
"And guess where they are now? Regent Park's Zoo. London Zoo."
There was no settlement in Woodstock 900 years ago but the clearing in the forest had been a royal park since
http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/oxford/hi/people_and_places/history/newsid_8717000/8717819.stm
Edmonton Valley Zoo to build $16.7M Arctic habitat
Delia Gruninger has developed close bonds with the Valley Zoo's sea mammals over the 27 years she's been caring for them.
She's been eagerly anticipating the zoo's announcement of a new, state-of-the-art Arctic mammal habitat for years, and is glad construction has finally begun.
"I'm extremely happy," Gruninger said as she prepared to tend to the zoo's two seals and one sea lion.
At a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday, zoo officials announced plans for a series of construction projects that will transform the 51-year-old attraction.
"We're breaking ground not just for a new exhibit, but for a whole new zoo," said Coun. Jane Batty, who attended with council colleagues Karen Leibovici and Ed Gibbons
The $16.7-million first phase -- called Polar Extremes, Arctic Shores -- is already under construction and is slated to be completed by fall 2011. The new exhibit, west of the zoo's entrance, will be home to Arctic fox, ground squirrels and the zoo's seals and sea lion, said Community Services general manager Linda Cochrane. The new habitat will provide a spacious, more natural setting for the zoo's sea mammals, and will feature more indoor and outdoor pools, better viewing areas for spectators and a glass floor so visitors can see the mammals swim beneath their feet.
"This is about doing what's best for the animals
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/travel/Edmonton+Valley+build+Arctic+habitat/3137886/story.html
Reptile expert facing several charges
Reptile expert Terry Cullen was charged Thursday with several criminal counts, including sexual assault and animal mistreatment. The investigation started when a 24-year-old woman contacted police, claiming Cullen had assaulted her in February after offering her an internship. According to a complaint, the woman also told police she had seen a crocodile freely roaming around Cullen's warehouse, along with several other reptiles and animals that were kept in what appeared to be shipping containers.
Police say when they served a search warrant at Cullen's properties, officers were overwhelmed by the smell of urine, feces, and decomposing animals. They removed hundreds of reptiles and animals
http://www.cbs58.com/index.php?aid=12528
DENVER ZOO ZOOKEEPERS WIN ANIMAL CARE AWARD
Denver Zoo’s zookeepers are being recognized for their professionalism in animal care. The zoo’s Predator Ridge team has won the prestigious Jean M. Hromadka Excellence in Animal Care Award from the American Association of Zookeepers (AAZK). The award recognizes “achievement of an individual or team in the animal care field and in fostering professionalism.” The team of Heather Genter, Andrew Rowan, Mike Murray, Laura Morrell, and Shaina Aguilar will be honored at the AAZK annual conference on August 26 in Philadelphia.
The award was named for Jean M. Hromadka in memory of her outstanding contributions to the furtherance of AAZK through her work as President of the Association. Winners must excel in areas including zoology, animal management, behavioral observation and daily record keeping on the species in their care.
“It is a very high honor to have our staff recognized in Jean’s memory,” said Denver Zoo President/CEO Craig Piper. “She was a highly skilled keeper who was determined to foster increased professionalism in zoo keeping and to promote awareness for the profession she loved. This award recognizes the innovative work and conscientious care of many keepers who have worked in Predator Ridge since it opened in 2004. We are very proud of them.”
Predator Ridge is a state-of-the-art, naturalistic habitat designed to re-create a portion of Samburu National Reserve in Kenya. It houses 12 African species, including lions, hyenas and wild
http://denver.dbusinessnews.com/shownews.php?newsid=211390&type_news=latest
Gamblers smoking vulture brains to predict outcome of World Cup
Wildlife organizations are warning that South Africa's vultures are being pushed to extinction by gamblers looking to gain special powers by smoking the dried brains of these birds of prey in order to predict the outcome of World Cup games.
Mark Anderson of BirdLife South Africa, said: "Many vulture species across the world are in trouble. Our very own species in southern Africa is declining sharply for a number of reasons, including reduced food availability, deliberate poisoning and electrocution from electricity pylons. The harvesting of the bird's heads by followers of muti
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/293084
Captured leopard breeds new conservation hopes
The capture of a Javan leopard in Malang, East Java, was a blessing in disguise for the rare animal's conservation, a park official says.
General Manager of Taman Safari Indonesia (TSI) park in Prigen, Michael Sumampow, said the fate of the animal, captured by residents last week and currently being held at the park, would be up to the authority, including if it is going to be re-released.
"*The leopard* could provide a new bloodline to be used as a mating pair to help preserve the species' population," he said.
The critically endangered Javan leopard was trapped by residents in Poncokusumo village, Malang regency, last Saturday.
According to TSI veterinarian Nanang, the leopard appeared to be very stressed, likely because of regular encounters with humans.
"Basically, a Javan leopard is reluctant and afraid to meet people. But if it has come down from the mountain and entered a village, there must be for a reason *for that behavior*," he said.
"It's likely the leopard went to the village to search for food."
The Javan leopard is on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's red list of critically endangered species.
Residents contacted officials at Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS) and the Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA) after capturing the leopard.
TNBTS and BKSDA then asked TSI Prigen to help transport the
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/06/05/captured-leopard-breeds-new-conservation-hopes.html
Animal Expert Arrested
2 weeks after police pulled hundreds of animals out of a south side warehouse, local reptile expert Terry Cullen was finally arrested and booked Wednesday, but not for charges of animal cruelty.
No one answered the door Wednesday at the residence listed to Cullen. Cullen was also not home 2 weeks ago when police pulled big snakes, alligators, crocodiles and other exotics from the residence and the warehouse.
Officers originally went to the building near 13th and Lincoln to investigate a sex assault case.
Wednesday, Cullen was booked on two counts of sexual assault, one count of kidnapping, and then released from custody. Police won't talk about the allegations, but the district attorney
http://animalhoardinginfo.blogspot.com/2010/05/terry-cullen-milwaukee-wisconsin.html
NGC documentary reveals lucrative tiger trade black market in China
2010 is the Year of the Tiger in the Chinese calendar, yet a recent documentary reveals that China still harbors a highly-lucrative illicit market that has taken the species to the brink of extinction. China remains a major consumer of tiger products despite the fact that Beijing has imposed a ban on the tiger bone trade since 1993.
A film titled "Inside: The Tiger Trade," produced by the National Geographic Channel reveals how agents of the Environmental Investigation Agency, an international organization which works to expose worldwide environmental crime, traveled across China to investigate smuggling operations and illegal trade in tigers and tiger parts.
The resulting documentary records the brave actions of the agency which is on the front line in protecting this majestic apex predator, filmed by a team who put their own safety in jeopardy to unravel the inner workings of the illegal trade network.
With the help of Chinese-speaking undercover agents, the agency found that the smuggling route is far-reaching, stretching all the way from India and through Nepal and finally landing in China.
A visit to a Tibetan horse festival even found tiger skins prominently on display there.
"The film is produced in the hope of reminding the world to pay more attention to preserving wild animals that have nearly gone extinct," said Mindy Lee, director of marketing for the NGC Taiwan Branch in a media premiere of the documentary on
http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=1277656&lang=eng_news&cate_img=327.jpg&cate_rss=Lifestyle_TAIWAN
Terri Irwin pushes ahead with plans for Australia Zoo in LA
AUSTRALIA Zoo, the wildlife park owned by the family of late Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin, is pushing ahead with a AU$300 million (US$250 million) plan to replicate the Australian tourist attraction in the gambling mecca of Las Vegas.
Steve Irwin's widow, Terri Irwin, said she hoped to buy the land this year and was on the lookout for investors, The (Brisbane) Sunday Mail reported.
"It's hard to predict how the economy is going to recover but we'd hope by next year we'd have the investors so we can look towards a date for breaking ground," she said.
"But it's very much on the go-ahead and it'll be such a brilliant icon for Australia. It's going to be so much about Steve and his dreams, and his philosophy and his message."
Irwin said the zoo would be "spectacularly Vegas" while respectful of the animals.
"There'll be nothing jumping through a hoop of fire but
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/terri-irwin-pushes-ahead-with-plans-for-australia-zoo-in-la/story-e6frf7jx-1225876007273
To visit please click
Hospital Prepares To Treat Turtles Hurt By Oil
Workers Plan To Clean Oil-Stricken Turtles With Mayonnaise
As the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico claims the lives of many sea creatures, workers at the only licensed turtle hospital in the U.S. prepare for the worst.
Wilma the loggerhead turtle is suffering from pneumonia, and she is among 43 endangered sea turtles recovering from ailments, issues and injuries at The Turtle Hospital in Marathon. None of the hospitals' patients suffer from oil-related injuries -- yet.
Two new 30,000-gallon tanks are ready for a possible influx of sea turtles injured by oil and tar from BP's burgeoning underwater plumes.
"I can honestly say we're as prepared as we can possibly be," said Ryan Butts, of The Turtle Hospital.
It is hard to say when oil-affected turtles could arrive at the hospital, and the effects they will suffer are unclear, even for the experts.
"The oil will weigh them down, but they usually are strong enough where they can stay buoyant and they will float. Eventually, the toxins in the oil are what
http://www.justnews.com/news/23849897/detail.html?taf=mia
Anger as penguins and monkeys visit Kingland House Residential Home
CONSERVATIONISTS have attacked the decision to bring a captive monkey and two penguins to a Poole nursing home for the day.
Dr Alison Cronin, of the ape rescue centre Monkey World, spoke to the Daily Echo after a 12-year-old squirrel monkey and two Humboldt penguins took centre stage at Kingland House Residential Home on Wednesday.
Around 50 people, including residents, their families and staff packed a room to meet and handle the animals.
The visit, carried out by Oxfordshire’s Amazing Animals – a company that specialised in training animals to work in film and TV – saw Dougie the squirrel monkey and two miniature penguins, Charlie and Ferrari, enthral
http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/8211522.Anger_as_penguins_and_monkeys_visit_nursing_home/
Cornwall tortoise sanctuary classed as zoo
A tortoise sanctuary in Cornwall could face closure after council officials reclassified it as a zoo.
Joy Bloor, who runs the Tortoise Garden at Sticker, near St Austell, has been told her docile pets are wild and cannot be classed as domestic.
Cornwall Cornwall said it had "no choice" but to apply the Zoo Licensing Act 1981.
Mrs Bloor said she was "devastated" and would appeal as being classified as a zoo brought added costs.
"These tortoises are not wild and it's pretty obvious we're not a zoo," she said.
'Spiralling' costs
She said the definition of a zoo was "an establishment which exhibits wild animals to the public".
She said that a zoo licence cost £262 but the sanctuary would not be able to afford the "spiralling" extra costs, such as paying for regular Defra vet inspections and vets'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/england/cornwall/10287686.stm
How poachers became caretakers
(Video and comments)
http://www.ted.com/talks/john_kasaona_from_poachers_to_caretakers.html?utm_source=newsletter_weekly_2010-06-08&utm_campaign=newsletter_weekly&utm_medium=email
An ape in a cage,and a cry for help
It's the morning rush hour in the city, and all manner of trucks, cars and busses are whizzing along a downtown street.
But this isn't your average rush hour in Jakarta. Amid the hustle and bustle of the city an orangutan sits forlornly in a cage on the median right in the middle of the highway.
arms are wrapped around himself in a defensive pose, and his eyes look up to the sky, as if searching for help. The cage around him is so small he couldn't stretch his arms out if he wanted to.
Below him is a bright yellow sign with bold black letters that read, "In captivity, I live in cages smaller than this. Please set me free." The logo of the Friends of the National Parks Foundation appears at the bottom of the sign.
The orangutan is not an escapee from the zoo, nor
http://www.medialifemagazine.com/artman2/publish/Alternative_media_43/An-ape-in-a-cage-and-a-cry-for-help.asp
NGO’s offer solutions to help lions
A grouping of Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) joined forces to meet with officials from the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) and provincial nature conservation agencies on the 2 June 2010, to discuss the possible welfare crisis facing more than 3 500 Lions currently held in captivity in South Africa.
The potential crisis could arise as a result of Judge Ian van der Merwe’s ruling in the Free State High Court in June 2009, which upheld the provision of the Threatened or Protected Species (ToPS) Regulations and could effectively put an end to canned Lion hunting in South Africa. Judge van der Merwe, in his ruling, supported a widely held view that the hunting of Lions bred and raised in captivity, and which are therefore totally dependent on humans for their survival, “abhorrent and repulsive”. However, this ruling is currently under appeal and the application of the regulations to prevent canned hunting of Lions will be delayed until the appeal is heard.
The implementation of the provisions for Lions may well put a halt to hunting of captive-raised Lions, however the quality of life, and the future, of the thousands of animals still held in captivity is of major concern. The South African Predator Breeders Association (SAPBA) has warned that they believe the implementation of the regulations will make hunting economically unviable and many breeders may simply abandon or kill their lions rather than incurring the considerable expense of keeping them.
As a result of this, the NGO Alliance Grouping made suggestions to the DEA in 2009 and relayed their concerns regarding the fate of the thousands of Lions in captivity. The group includes animal welfarists, animal rightists and conservationists who have repeatedly offered their assistance to DEA in preparing an action plan to address issues which may arise and compromise the welfare of captive Lions and impact negatively on Lion conservation.
In the interest of these animals, the NGO Alliance Grouping has undertaken to present a detailed management and action plan to DEA for consideration.
The group’s spokesperson, Karen Trendler, stated: “We are committed to ensuring that the Lions receive the consideration they deserve. We will offer our expertise and knowledge to the Department of Environmental Affairs in preventing a possible crisis.”
The group also expressed its concerns to DEA regarding the commercial breeding of Lions for their bones that is being proposed by some in the Lion industry
http://www.southafrica.co.za/2010/06/09/ngos-offer-solutions-to-help-lions/
Zoo boss wants to bypass Dalton
ZOO boss David Gill wants to bypass Dalton by building a new road to his tourist attraction.
Mr Gill recently applied to Barrow Borough Council, outlining plans for a new entrance road to his South Lakes Wild Animal Park.
Mr Gill, who was born in Cleator Street, Dalton, intends to route traffic through the Melton Brow junction, off the A590.
He said: “The reason for the new road is quite simple – we need to remove Dalton-in-Furness from our map.
“It is a problem for us, people having to go down into Dalton.
“They drive past 200 family homes on the way into the animal park.
“There are parking problems on Market Street, Broughton Road and Ulverston Road. It blocks the access for my visitors and deliveries, and they have to come round Tudor Square, which is awkward.
“Then when you have something like the medieval fayre and the carnival, you also have the potential for loss of business. So what we have done is taken the project completely out of Dalto
http://www.nwemail.co.uk/news/zoo-boss-wants-to-bypass-dalton-1.717573?referrerPath=news/
Why vanishing snake colonies have ‘large-scale implications’ for humanity
The first documented evidence of the baffling disappearance of up to 90 per cent of snake colonies in five disparate spots on the globe has “large-scale implications” for humanity, a Canadian expert says.
And the “most obvious cause, intuitively, would be climate change,” biologist Jason Head of the University of Toronto, told the Star.
“Snakes are top predators in their eco system,” said Head. “They are regulators on rodents. If we remove that regulator, you can expect an increase in the number of disease vectoring (carrying) animals.”
Venomous snakes are taking the biggest hit in the findings, which has serious consequences for medicine, said Head.
“Snakes are not an insignificant component of human society
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/822229--why-vanishing-snake-colonies-have-large-scale-implications-for-humanity
Peninsula Not Suitable Habitat For Orang Utan, Says Masidi Manjun
The plan to transfer orang utan from Sabah to a proposed ape sanctuary in Kuala Lumpur may not proceed, for fear the great apes may not survive in the different forest ecosystem there.
State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said the Sabah government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) here had conveyed such reservations at a meeting with the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry's technical committee recently.
"We were invited to present our case on the proposal to relocate the orang utan to Kuala Lumpur, so we provided evidence from scientific studies to show that the forest in the peninsula is different from ours. Therefore, we do not think the orang utan in Sabah can live in the forest there.
"Another issue is we don't have tigers here and they do in Peninsular Malaysia, so there is likelihood of the orang utan being mauled and eaten by tigers. The state government's stand is very clear, we are not agreeable to transporting the apes to the peninsula," he told reporters after closing the Workshop on Species Action Plan for Orang Utan, Elephant and Rhino, here Friday.
Masidi said following that, the technical committee agreed to recommend to the federal cabinet that they should not proceed with the plan to send orang utan there.
Sabah currently has some 11,000 orang utan, comprising 80 per cent of the overall orang utan population in Mala
http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=505395
Arabian Oryx runs wild once more
A UAE-funded programme to re-introduce the Arabian Oryx back into the wild, an effort which started in Jordan last year, could soon be extended to Iraq and Syria.
The initiative, worth Dh4 million, released 20 antelopes, born in captivity in the UAE into Jordan’s Wadi Rum last year. Three babies have since been born and another 40 animals are set to be released over this year and next. “We have two more countries in the pipeline,” said Abdulnasser al Shamsi, the executive director of animal welfare and forestry projects at the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi.
Once numerous across the Arabian Peninsula, the Arabian Oryx has been extinct from the wild since 1972. The antelope has since survived only in zoos and private collections.
Abu Dhabi has the largest population, about 3,000 animals in captivity, and 155 live in a protected area in Umm al Zamool.
Yesterday, Mr al Shamsi said that 15 to 20 UAE-born Arabian Oryx can be sent to Iraq as early as next year, possibly in a secure area near the border with Jordan and Saudi Arabia. He was speaking from Damascus, where a regional conservation strategy to protect
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100611/NATIONAL/706109898&SearchID=73393633674471
Airport stops illegal effort to import cheetah cubs
Two Emiratis and a Somali national have been held by police in Dubai after a failed attempt to bring rare cheetah cubs into the country.
The cargo of 15 animals, which can only be exported under strict guidelines, was intercepted at Dubai International Airport two days ago. The shipment arrived from Somalia.
All of the animals weighed less than two kilograms.
“I think they were collected from their mothers,” said Abdullah Salem al Jan’an, executive director for agricultural and animal affairs, at the Ministry of Environment and Water.
Because of the stressful journey, six of the animals died, he said. The remainder have been sent to the Al Ain
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100611/NATIONAL/706109824&SearchID=73393633864782
Only 50 Arabian tahrs left in the country
When Ali al Shehhi’s son got engaged, the bride’s family brought a treat to celebrate: Arabian tahr with rice.
It was, he said, one of the best dishes he had ever tasted – “very different and delicious”. It was traditional, too: Mr al Shehhi’s ancestors had hunted the tahr near their rocky homes in the mountains of Ras al Khaimah for generations.
What neither he nor the other members of the two families realised was that the Arabian tahr they were eating is seriously endangered, with fewer than 50 animals remaining in the wild in the UAE.
That goat’s fate was all too common, according to Jackie Strick, the veterinary nurse and Arabian tahr specialist at the Breeding Centre for Endangered Arabian Wildlife in Sharjah.
“They either get mistaken for a regular goat or some actually recognise it as the exotic mountain goat and hunt it down because of the very fact that they are different,” she said.
“Because of their dependency on water, they often get ambushed as they drink at known water holes.”
Efforts are now well under way at the centre to preserve the species.
Just four weeks ago, the project had another success, in the shape of Qara, the sixth tahr kid to be born there.
Named after a mountain in Oman, where most tahr reside, Qara already climbs easily over the rocks in her enclosure.
She has bumps on her head where her horns will eventually emerge, and a grey-brown coat that is rapidly turning browner as she gets older.
It is thought that the coat’s initial grey colour is to help the young tahr stay camouflaged in their natural mountainous habitat.
Qara is one of the nine tahr that now live at the centre, along with her mother, Kydd, and father, Akhdar.
Typically for a male, Akhdar has distinct thick horns that curve back over his head. His long, red-brown coat is shaggier than
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100613/NATIONAL/706129915&SearchID=73393633941480
JEREMY KEELING: The orangutan who saved my life
Scarred by his traumatic childhood, Jeremy Keeling found solace working with exotic animals. Now, in his enchanting and touching book, he reveals how he became a ‘mother’ to an abandoned baby orang-utan called Amy - and how she healed his broken heart...
The car climbed the steep bank at high speed and then rolled – nose to tail – back on to the motorway hard shoulder, the impact ripping the roof and shattering windows. Everything went black. I suffered head injuries, as did Amy, the one-year-old orang-utan I had rescued after her mother abandoned her.
Luckily, my girlfriend Meryl was unscathed and my son Jamie escaped with bruising. A policeman, arriving at the scene, crawled into the mangled wreck from the rear and saw the back of my blood-soaked head. He noticed a large, hairy hand reach out and wrap itself around my head, cradling it. I had once saved Amy. And now she would not let me go.
There was always an innate attraction between me and the orange people – the orang-utans (the name actually comes from the Malay for 'man of the forest'). Chimps are highly intelligent and sociable. Gorillas are gregarious but lazy.
The orang-utan, though, is a simple, solitary creature that just wants to eat, sleep and work out mechanical formulas. It is the grumpy old man of the forest, something I empathise with. That's why I felt so much for Amy. I knew what it was like to be unwanted. I too had been discarded by my mother, Jill, who ran our family zoo in the Pennines, as punishment for making contact with my absent father.
I was forced to live in a beaten-up caravan at the age of 12, deprived of love and affection. Perhaps that was why I was so drawn to Amy. We were both loners. My mother was the dominant force in my family. The death of her childhood sweetheart days before they were to marry left a bitter resentment that she took to her grave.
After I left home, I briefly worked with chimps at a zoo owned by family friends and later at Colchester Zoo, where I gained my first introduction to orang-utans. Here was I, a troubled 18-year-old, responsible for chimps, baboons, spider monkeys, capuchins, gibbons and lemurs. The main draw for me, however, were Guy and Prissy, the zoo's orang-utans. You just get on better with some people than
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1286101/JEREMY-KEELING-The-orangutan-saved-life.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
Rare Javan rhino found dead in Indonesia
The carcass of a critically endangered Javan rhino has been found in Indonesia, conservationists said Monday, bringing the world?s scarcest mammal one step closer to extinction.
The remains of the male rhino were found two weeks ago in Ujung Kulon National Park in West Java, home to the species' last viable population of less than 50, experts said.
Rhino Foundation of Indonesia head Widodo Ramono said the animal could have died during the rainy season around February to March. Its horn was intact, meaning it probably was not killed by poachers, he said.
"There were no signs that it had been killed or poisoned. We suspect it could have died from an illness or, since it was partly submerged in water when it died, it could have drowned," he added.
The Javan rhino is distinguished from African rhinos by its small size, single horn and loose skin folds. Rhino horns are used in traditional Chinese and Korean medicine although most Asian countries have banned the trade.
Around 44 Javan rhinos are believed to live in Ujung
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g6Z3tdAxJuXPcH1-Ths0Ux2vEo3Q
'Cute' animals researched more: study
A new study says the same rule that applies to Hollywood celebrities also applies in the jungle -- it pays to be beautiful.
Researchers may be biased towards "cute and charismatic" animals, such as polar or panda bears, leaving some of nature's homelier creatures at risk of being neglected – and therefore at higher risk of extinction -- the study suggests.
Conservation ecologist Ted Cheskey of Nature Canada says that all threatened species deserve equal attention.
"There's a problem in that because in ecology all species have a value and a purpose," he told CTV's Canada AM Wednesday, of the study. "If we put our research dollars or conservation efforts towards protecting the big, charismatic (animals), we might be missing the thing that is most important."
The study, carried out at the University of Pretoria in South Africa, surveyed scientific papers from 1994 to 2008, looking for mentions of some 2,000 species in southern Africa.
Combining the data with a global list of endangered status, researchers found threatened large mammals appeared in 500 times as many papers as threatened amphibians.
Threatened birds, reptiles and smaller mammals were studied much less often.
And some animals that are most often referred to with adjectives such as "cute" and "cuddly" at the zoo, had a disproportionate amount of studies on them.
For example, the loveable meerkat was featured in about 100 studies, while the noble, but charisma-free manatee was only featured in 14.
The most studied animals were chimpanzees
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/SciTech/20100609/study-cute-animals-100612/
Wanted: Female mate for rare rhino in Malaysia
Malaysian authorities are trying to trap a female mate for Tam, a rare Borneo Sumatran rhino, in a last-ditch effort to produce an offspring in captivity and save his species from extinction, an official said Thursday.
Laurentius Ambu, a top wildlife official, said Tam's current mate is too old to reproduce. Tam was rescued from the jungles of Sabah state on Borneo island two years ago and is one of the handful of Borneo Sumatran rhinos believed to be alive.
"We are looking for a reproductive fertile female," said Ambu, the director of Sabah's Wildlife Department. "The female that we have is quite old now."
Hopes for saving the Borneo Sumatran from extinction were raised following the recent spotting of a rhino believed to be a female, whose image was captured by a remotely controlled camera, Ambu said.
The trap is in an area on Borneo island where the solitary rhinos, indigenous to the island, are known to roam.
Only 10 to 30 Borneo Sumatran rhinos -- a subspecies of the bristly, snub-nosed Sumatran rhino -- are known to remain in the wild. So it is crucial that the breeding-in-captivity program launched two years ago when Tam was rescued
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9G879K00.htm
Man who founded zoo on Carolina Beach Road dies at 88
George Tregembo, collector of animals and assorted worldly curiosities that became the Tregembo Animal Park, died Thursday after an illness. He was 88.
Tregembo opened the Carolina Beach Road zoo in 1953, originally calling it the Tote Em In Zoo. It quickly became a child favorite, and remains a landmark to this day.
Originally from Hallowell, Maine, Tregembo first came to North Carolina while in the Army and stationed at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro.
He visited Carolina Beach and Fort Fisher while on a two-day pass and immediately loved the weather, said his son, Robert Tregembo.
After getting out of the Army and spending a few years running a zoo in Maine, George Tregembo moved to Wilmington in 1952 and soon founded the Tote Em In Zoo.
He started with less than a dozen animals and a collection of spear points, shrunken heads, masks and more that he had started while
http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20100612/ARTICLES/100619856?Title=Man-who-founded-zoo-on-Carolina-Beach-Road-dies-at-88
***
Blog Posts:
Look to the right within the blog and see and click on blog postings. Some of these have not been mailed out by email. Most will have been posted on the Facebook Page however.
*******************************************************************************
June 2010
*******************************************************************************
ZHCD Botanical NEWS for June
Celebrating Plants and the Planet:
As oil continues to pollute the Gulf of Mexico like never before, threatening wildlife, wetlands and people, it's hard to ignore the downside of our addiction to fossil fuels.
So at the risk of veering off topic, this month's links at http://www.zooplantman.com/ (NEWS/Botanical News) take an unblinking look at what is at stake and how ill-prepared we are to handle the challenge (cheery stuff, no?):
· Just as planners have been unprepared to staunch the oil flow, so too have they been unprepared to protect the wetlands. Strangely, the best idea now is to set fire to them. (The wetlands, not the planners. I think.)
· What if we move to biofuels instead of fossil fuels? That will merely damage wetlands and other environments in different ways. Seven hundred scientists report on how.
· An upcoming UN report on the economic value of biodiversity asserts that it will cost ten times more to replace the benefits we receive from Nature then it would to protect habitat and biodiversity in the first place.
· Some interesting experiments on pond ecology show that it is nearly impossible, once a habitat is destroyed, to recreate what was lost.
· If research doesn't move us, then perhaps a good movie will. "Home" is a full length HD movie (you can watch it on-line) that beautifully lays out how the interconnected systems of Earth's ecology are being mortally damaged by human behavior and how time is running out for us to straighten up.
On a much happier note, Dallas Zoo's new 11-acre exhibit for elephants, giraffes, lions and more opened to rave reviews. And it was planned, designed and built in under 18 months. You can find out more about "Giants of the Savanna" and how the habitats were designed at http://www.zooplantman.com/
Please share these stories with associates, staff, docents and -- most importantly -- visitors! You can even follow on Twitter: http://twitter.com/PlantWorldNews
Rob
*******************************************************************************
We are looking for contributions of articles from colleagues within the Middle East region for the next issue. Please contact the editors with any ideas that you may have.
info@wmenews.com
Vol 4 Issue 4 Contents
Editorial
Kuwait turtle nesting season 2009: Low and challenging
Foundation for the protection of the Arabian leopard in Yemen
Confirmed eradication of house crow from Socotra Island, Republic of Yemen.
Sand cat, one of the truly amazing cats
Preventative medicine programmes for hoofstock in the Middle East
Artificial wetland biodiversity in desert countries, example of Wadi Ham Dam in Fujairah emirate, UAE- a call for a proper national monitoring of UAE wetlands and waterbirds
News and reviews
conference on biodiversity conservation in the Arabian peninsula
an illustrated checklist of the flora of Qatar
News and reviews
Better buildings, enhanced water-, energy- and waste management in Arab urban ecosystems – globally applicable.
Request for photographs of the rock hyrax in the Middle East
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
1st Southeast Asian Animal Enrichment & Training Workshop
Hosted by: Wildlife Reserves Singapore
In partnership with: Active Environments and Shape of Enrichment
Instructors: Gail Laule & Valerie Hare
Chair of Organising Committee: Diana Marlena
Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) is pleased to announce the 1st Southeast Asian Animal Enrichment & Training Workshop. This unique four-day workshop will present an array of topics relating to animal behavioural management with particular emphasis on environmental enrichment, positive reinforcement training techniques and problem-solving processes. The workshop is open to zookeepers, aquarists, managers, supervisors, curators, and veterinarians from the Southeast Asian and Australasian region.
The workshop will be conducted in English and will include both theoretical and practical aspects through discussions, small group projects, demonstrations, and hands-on enrichment and training opportunities with WRS’ diverse animal collection at the Jurong Bird Park, Night Safari and Singapore Zoo. Skills taught will enhance the participants’ ability to manage captive animal behaviour, enhance animal welfare, and improve the management of captive animals.
Participants who complete this workshop will be equipped with the basic knowledge and skills to allow them to apply these animal enrichment and training techniques in their home institutions. The workshop format is designed to maximise learning outcomes for each participant and by addressing specific needs and objectives.
Have fun while you interact, brainstorm and participate!
A registration fee of SGD$520 includes the following:
All workshop material, including a copy of Don’t Shoot the Dog
All lunch and tea breaks during the workshop
Icebreaker and closing banquet
Transportation between hotel and the workshop venue
Tote bag and commemorative t-shirt
A certificate of accomplishment
A one-year free on-line subscription to The Shape of Enrichment
For further information contact:
Diana Marlena
Singapore Zoo
Tel: +65-6360 8601
Fax: +65-6365 2331
Email: diana@zoo.com.sg
Thank you and we hope to see you in Singapore!
Fanny Lai
Group CEO
Wildlife Reserves Singapore
*******************************************************************************
Zoo Conferences, Meetings, Courses and Symposia
Look to the right within the blog and see and click on blog postings. Some of these have not been mailed out by email. Most will have been posted on the Facebook Page however.
*******************************************************************************
June 2010
PANTHERA NEWSLETTER
To read please click
*******************************************************************************
ZHCD Botanical NEWS for June
Celebrating Plants and the Planet:
As oil continues to pollute the Gulf of Mexico like never before, threatening wildlife, wetlands and people, it's hard to ignore the downside of our addiction to fossil fuels.
So at the risk of veering off topic, this month's links at http://www.zooplantman.com/ (NEWS/Botanical News) take an unblinking look at what is at stake and how ill-prepared we are to handle the challenge (cheery stuff, no?):
· Just as planners have been unprepared to staunch the oil flow, so too have they been unprepared to protect the wetlands. Strangely, the best idea now is to set fire to them. (The wetlands, not the planners. I think.)
· What if we move to biofuels instead of fossil fuels? That will merely damage wetlands and other environments in different ways. Seven hundred scientists report on how.
· An upcoming UN report on the economic value of biodiversity asserts that it will cost ten times more to replace the benefits we receive from Nature then it would to protect habitat and biodiversity in the first place.
· Some interesting experiments on pond ecology show that it is nearly impossible, once a habitat is destroyed, to recreate what was lost.
· If research doesn't move us, then perhaps a good movie will. "Home" is a full length HD movie (you can watch it on-line) that beautifully lays out how the interconnected systems of Earth's ecology are being mortally damaged by human behavior and how time is running out for us to straighten up.
On a much happier note, Dallas Zoo's new 11-acre exhibit for elephants, giraffes, lions and more opened to rave reviews. And it was planned, designed and built in under 18 months. You can find out more about "Giants of the Savanna" and how the habitats were designed at http://www.zooplantman.com/
Please share these stories with associates, staff, docents and -- most importantly -- visitors! You can even follow on Twitter: http://twitter.com/PlantWorldNews
Rob
*******************************************************************************
Wildlife Middle East News Vol 4 Issue 4
March 2010
Request for articles for future issues:
We are looking for contributions of articles from colleagues within the Middle East region for the next issue. Please contact the editors with any ideas that you may have.
info@wmenews.com
Vol 4 Issue 4 Contents
Editorial
Kuwait turtle nesting season 2009: Low and challenging
Foundation for the protection of the Arabian leopard in Yemen
Confirmed eradication of house crow from Socotra Island, Republic of Yemen.
Sand cat, one of the truly amazing cats
Preventative medicine programmes for hoofstock in the Middle East
Artificial wetland biodiversity in desert countries, example of Wadi Ham Dam in Fujairah emirate, UAE- a call for a proper national monitoring of UAE wetlands and waterbirds
News and reviews
conference on biodiversity conservation in the Arabian peninsula
an illustrated checklist of the flora of Qatar
News and reviews
Better buildings, enhanced water-, energy- and waste management in Arab urban ecosystems – globally applicable.
Request for photographs of the rock hyrax in the Middle East
To see index and download articles please click
*******************************************************************************
1st Southeast Asian Animal Enrichment & Training Workshop
4 -7 October 2010
Hosted by: Wildlife Reserves Singapore
In partnership with: Active Environments and Shape of Enrichment
Instructors: Gail Laule & Valerie Hare
Chair of Organising Committee: Diana Marlena
Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) is pleased to announce the 1st Southeast Asian Animal Enrichment & Training Workshop. This unique four-day workshop will present an array of topics relating to animal behavioural management with particular emphasis on environmental enrichment, positive reinforcement training techniques and problem-solving processes. The workshop is open to zookeepers, aquarists, managers, supervisors, curators, and veterinarians from the Southeast Asian and Australasian region.
The workshop will be conducted in English and will include both theoretical and practical aspects through discussions, small group projects, demonstrations, and hands-on enrichment and training opportunities with WRS’ diverse animal collection at the Jurong Bird Park, Night Safari and Singapore Zoo. Skills taught will enhance the participants’ ability to manage captive animal behaviour, enhance animal welfare, and improve the management of captive animals.
Participants who complete this workshop will be equipped with the basic knowledge and skills to allow them to apply these animal enrichment and training techniques in their home institutions. The workshop format is designed to maximise learning outcomes for each participant and by addressing specific needs and objectives.
Have fun while you interact, brainstorm and participate!
A registration fee of SGD$520 includes the following:
All workshop material, including a copy of Don’t Shoot the Dog
All lunch and tea breaks during the workshop
Icebreaker and closing banquet
Transportation between hotel and the workshop venue
Tote bag and commemorative t-shirt
A certificate of accomplishment
A one-year free on-line subscription to The Shape of Enrichment
For further information contact:
Diana Marlena
Singapore Zoo
Tel: +65-6360 8601
Fax: +65-6365 2331
Email: diana@zoo.com.sg
Thank you and we hope to see you in Singapore!
Fanny Lai
Group CEO
Wildlife Reserves Singapore
*******************************************************************************
Zoo Conferences, Meetings, Courses and Symposia
click HERE
*******************************************************************************
ZOO BIOLOGY
The Zoo Biology Group is concerned with all disciplines involved in the running of a Zoological Garden. Captive breeding, husbandry,cage design and construction, diets, enrichment, man management,record keeping, etc etc
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