Human activities are contaminating the world’s water systems and disrupting wildlife. From toxic chemical runoff to the accumulation of litter miles away from land, here are five ways water pollution is killing animals: 1. More Than a Million Sea Birds and Mammals Are Killed Each Year By Ingestion of Plastic Around 100 million tons of […]
Tag: extinction
POLL: Should the trophy hunting of bears and wolves be banned?
On August 7, footage surfaced in international media of brown bears “besieging” a Romanian village. The clip shows the animals scavenging for food in trash bins, walking through the town, and running past bewildered pedestrians. Unfortunately, images like these can invoke fear among the public and play very well into the hands of those who […]
Dozens of Laotian elephants “illegally sold to Chinese zoos”
Dozens of elephants from Laos are being illegally bought by China to be displayed in zoos and safari parks across the country, according to wildlife investigator and film-maker Karl Ammann. According to Ammann, so-called captive elephants in Laos sell for about £23,000 before being walked across the border into China by handlers or “mahouts” near […]
Climate change is increasing the mortality rate of African wild dog pups
New research suggests that African wild dogs’ chances of survival might be dealt a serious setback as global temperatures continue to rise. The African wild dog (Lycaon pictus), a native of sub-Saharan Africa, is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, which reports that there are only an estimated 6,600 adults in 39 subpopulations left […]
POLL: Should the Eurasian beaver be “re-wilded”?
The extraordinary ability of eager beavers to engineer degraded land into wildlife-rich wetlands has been revealed by a new study in Scotland. Scientists studied the work of a group of four re-introduced beavers over a decade and found their water engineering prowess created almost 200m of dams, 500m of canals and an acre of ponds. […]
POLL: Should veterinary Diclofenac be banned to save vultures?
Vultures are declining world-wide, but Europe used to be a safe place. 3 years ago this changed radically when approval was given to the commercialisation of veterinary diclofenac. Today, we launch a new international campaign in Spain, Portugal and Italy that aims to ban the drug that could wipe out Europe’s vultures… just as it […]
POLL: Should South Africa’s canned hunting industry be banned?
South Africa’s drawing the ire of conservationists after approving the export of hundreds of skeletons from captive-bred lions this year, mainly to meet the demand for bones in parts of Asia. This move will prop up South Africa’s sickening canned hunting industry. The nation is home to an estimated 200 lion farms, where thousands of […]
POLL: Should the trafficking of Pangolins be stopped?
If during the past decade you’d wanted to see a scaly creature about the size of a house cat with a long skinny tongue for slurping up ants, California’s San Diego Zoo was the place to go in the U.S. Baba the pangolin arrived there in 2007 after wildlife officials intercepted him in an illegal […]