CHIANG MAI, Thailand — A plan to construct seven dams in one of mainland Southeast Asia’s last intact forest systems could cause widespread habitat loss and sever important wildlife corridors, activists warn. The Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai (DPKY) Forest Complex is a vast and biodiverse region that spans six provinces in eastern Thailand. It was declared […]
Author: Supertrooper
Founder and Executive Editor
Finding fangs: new film exposes illicit trade killing off Bolivia’s iconic jaguar
Elizabeth Unger was a 25-year-old biology graduate working as a PhD research assistant for big cat and climate projects in Latin America when she heard about the Bolivian authorities intercepting dozens of packages containing jaguar fangs sent by Chinese citizens to addresses in China. “I was really blown away as [the story] was completely under […]
Chinese special economic zones hotspots for wildlife trafficking, surveys say
SINGAPORE — Special economic zones set up to promote trade between China and its Southeast Asian neighbors are facilitating a black-market trade in wildlife products, according to watchdog group TRAFFIC. Tens of thousands of prohibited wildlife parts and products are being sold across open and unregulated markets in five Southeast Asian countries, with a significant […]
Norway to conduct ‘cruel’ minke whale tests despite opposition
Plans to capture and run six-hour-long sound tests on young minke whales are set to go ahead in Norway despite condemnation from more than 50 international scientists and wildlife experts as “completely unacceptable”. According to the plans, approved by the Norwegian Food Safety Authority (NFSA), over one or two seasons a dozen juvenile minke whales […]
Unregulated by U.S. at home, Facebook boosts wildlife trafficking abroad
In a matter of seconds, anyone can find evidence of wildlife trafficking on Facebook, according to independent researchers and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) experts. Even using simple search terms returns thousands of posts that offer wildlife and body parts up for sale. Elephant ivory from Thailand, pangolin scales from Vietnam, and sun bears […]
101 Bears Saved from Bear Bile Farms
World Animal News reported a huge operational success for Animals Asia, who recently transported 101 Asiatic black bears away from the bear bile trade to new homes in Chenghu, China. Animals Asia has been rescuing bears since 1992 and operates a sanctuary for rescued bears. In 2013, a new person took over ownership of land […]
The secret bears of Bolivia’s lost dry forests
EL PALMAR, Bolivia — It was worth the journey. After sweating across the scrubby Bolivian mountainsides, stepping into the forest was like entering a different world. Twisted pino de monte pines trailed ghostly green-gray lichens into our faces. Ferns and, much to my surprise, moss sprung from the cracks in the bark and the little […]
Canadian Woman Busted for Selling Polar Bear Skulls
A Canadian woman, Vanessa Rondeau, was arrested and charged with the illegal sale and transportation of polar bear skulls to an agent pretending to be a buyer in Buffalo, New York. A statement released by the Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of New York confirmed the incident. The charges carry […]