Imagine being ripped from your family, confined to small, dirty enclosures and transported to strange places. You are forced to perform painful and unfamiliar tasks, dances, and movements. If you resist, you are beaten, screamed at, or another horrific form of intimidation. Your captors get paid while you waste away, psychologically broken and physically brutalized. […]
Tag: elephants
Herculean Effort to Restore Mozambique’s Rhino Population Succeeds with 61 Animals Moved There
9 female white rhino have been reintroduced to one of Mozambique’s southern national parks as part of a mammoth undertaking to bring back species the country has lost. Mozambique was the victim of one of Africa’s worst post-colonial power struggles, during which time they lost virtually all of several large animals during a civil war […]
Endangered West African leopards show signs of recovery, despite odds. ‘It’s a win’
It’s been difficult to monitor West African leopards in Benin’s Pendjari National Park: It’s a large wilderness area, situated within a hotspot of armed conflict. The park is among the last strongholds for this geographically distinct leopard population — but a recent study shared hopeful news. Leopard density in the park increased over a six-year period, according […]
Removal of African elephants causes coextinction of dung beetles, study finds
A field experiment in Kenya shows that dung beetles disappear when the African elephants they depend on for their fecal food and shelter also vanish locally. This is the first time that coextinction, the disappearance of one species leading directly to the extinction of another species, has been demonstrated in a large-scale field experiment, according to […]
“One key thing to remember – it can run as fast as a racehorse…” 10 most dangerous animals you REALLY don’t want to meet on a hike
Wild animals are not the most dangerous thing about hiking in remote regions, but they are definitely worth bearing in mind. Here we look at the main species you need to take account of. Given the preponderance of large predators – big cats, especially – in Africa and some parts of Asia, we’ve assumed people will not […]
A hippo is dying of thirst in Botswana. But a pride of lions guards the water hole
In Botswana’s Okavango delta, deep floodwater can dry to dust in months. Thirsty animals seek out water holes for a much-needed drink – but this brings them into dangerous proximity with others. And in one episode of the BBC TV series Natural World, the film crew follow a group of hippos as they deal with the […]
Electric fences help farmers and elephants coexist in Zambian borderlands
LUNDAZI, Zambia — “It’s not possible [to coexist with elephants], because they are animals and we are human beings — they should have their own home,” says Esnart Banda, a Zambian farmer whose maize and tobacco fields lie 5 meters, just 16 feet, from the boundary of Malawi’s Kasungu National Park. Just two thin strands […]
Trade in elephant ‘trophies’ soars during second Trump presidency
The number of permits for importing African elephant hunting trophies has increased dramatically in the United States according to an investigation by the Centre for Biological Diversity (CBD). The charity, which has 1.8 million members and is dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places, used the 1967 US Freedom of information Act to […]