Iran’s Department of Environment has officially banned the export, import, production and veterinary use of the drug diclofenac in the country. Diclofenac is a non-steroid anti-inflammatory drug whose veterinary use as a painkiller for livestock has been the main cause of the decline of several species of vultures around the world. Vultures are scavengers, often […]
Category: News
Scientist under attack after he kills bird that took decades to find
For Christopher Filardi of the American Museum of Natural History, there is nothing like the thrill of finding a mysterious species. Such animals live at the intersection of myth and biology – tantalising researchers with the prospect that they may be real, but eluding trustworthy documentation and closer study. Indeed, last month, Filardi waxed poetic […]
On The Hunt with land’s fastest predators
“Malaika is really special. I have never worked with a cheetah like her before. She is a wonderful mother and she is hunting every day.” These were the first encouraging words from Sammy Munene, as we sat beside a relaxed cheetah and her four cubs. The sun was just rising above Kenya’s Maasai Mara game […]
Volcano Could Mean Extinction for the Rocket Frog
Biologists near Quito, Ecuador are rushing to evacuate a critically endangered frog species before a volcanic eruption wipes it out. The small, chocolate-striped rocket frog—Hyloxalus (Colostethus) jacobuspetersi—was once common around Quito, even in pastures and backyards (it adapts well to peopled landscapes). Now, for unclear reasons, there is just one population left. Fewer than 100 […]
Video: Staring Down Angry Elephants (graphic scenes!)
Filmmakers and conservationists Dereck and Beverly Joubert come face-to-face with a herd of angry elephants. Their only option is to stare the elephants down. If they try to flee, it could provoke an attack. This video was first published by PBS.org on 14 Oct 2015.
California bans captive breeding of SeaWorld killer whales
The California Coastal Commission on Thursday approved a $100 million expansion of the tanks SeaWorld uses to hold killer whales in San Diego — but it banned breeding of the captive orcas that would live in them. Animal rights activists praised the decision as a death blow to the use of killer whales at the […]
Suspected poachers ‘kill 14 elephants with cyanide’ in Zimbabwe
Suspected poachers used cyanide to kill 14 elephants in Zimbabwe’s western Hwange national park and in the north since Sept 26, the national wildlife agency said on Tuesday Hwange, home of Zimbabwe’s most famous lion Cecil who was killed by an American dentist in July, holds 53,000 elephants, twice the park’s carrying capacity, the park’s […]
Maltese falcon makes a comeback
The return of the peregrine falcon to Malta, known to some as the “Maltese falcon”, has excited hopes that the iconic bird is making a comeback. At least one breeding pair was caught on film last week by a German-based NGO, Campaign Against Bird Slaughter (CABS), and according to local experts there may now be […]