Dramatic footage released last week by an animal welfare group shows a wild orangutan trying in vain to fight off destruction of its rainforest habitat in Borneo. The video, filmed in 2013 but posted on Facebook on June 5th for World Environment Day by International Animal Rescue (IAR), was shot in Sungai Putri, a tract […]
Yemen Rock Agama – An Namas
Whilst birdwatching the An Namas area of the Asir Mountains, 150 kms north of Abha, I came across a Yemen Rock AgamaAcanthocercus yemensis. The Yemen Rock Agama occurs in northern Yemen and adjacent Saudi Arabia, but the limits of its distribution in Saudi Arabia are currently not well known, although I have seen it as […]
Raccoon released into wild after successful skyscraper climb
A daredevil raccoon that became an online sensation when it spent almost 20 nail-biting hours scaling a 25-storey office tower in Minnesota has been safely rescued and released back into the wild after making it to the top of the building unscathed. The animal’s ascent on the outside of the UBS building in downtown St […]
Arabian Woodpecker – An Namas
Whilst birding the An Namas area of the Asir mountains, 150 kms north of Abha recently I photographed a pair of Arabian Woodpecker Dendrocopos doraeat at their nest hole. The hole was positioned in the trunk or major branch of a large tree about five metres above ground level and comprised of a small freshly […]
Pilot Whale Dies After Eating 80 Plastic Bags in Thailand
In another tragedy for marine mammals who are being increasingly harmed by our trash, a pilot whale has died in Thailand after consuming a shocking amount of plastic debris. He was found days ago in a canal near the border of Malaysia clearly in need of help. Rescuers used buoys to keep him afloat and […]
Little Owls – An Namas
Whilst birding the An Namas area of the Asir mountians 150 km north of Abha we came across two Little Owl Athene noctua. This was a new species for me in the Kingdom and both birds were found sitting on dry stone-walls where one bird entered when disturbed. The second bird did not allow close […]
Climate Change Caused One of the Biggest Seabird Die-Offs Yet
In 2014 scientists and beachgoers began finding west coast shores littered with thousands of small bodies. Their tragic discoveries would turn into what would become one of the largest seabird die-offs recorded yet, and now scientists have linked the cause to climate change. The birds who were washing up were Cassin’s Auklets, a portly little […]
Asir (Arabian) Magpie – Tanoumah and An Namas
Whilst in the southwest on the Kingdom in May I saw at least five Asir (Arabian) Magpie at two different locations. Old nests were discovered near Tanoumah and near An Namas with adults and at least one juvenile seen near the nests. These birds remain very difficult to photograph and are constantly on the move […]
POLL: Should the online trafficking of otters in Southeast Asia be stopped?
The online pet trade has emerged as a pressing threat to otters in Southeast Asia with a new TRAFFIC-IUCN Otter Specialist Group (OSG) study revealing hundreds of the animals for sale on Facebook and other websites over a four-month period. The Illegal Otter Trade in Southeast Asia, released today, revealed a high demand for juvenile […]
