With evidence that the giant river otter is in an increasingly perilous state, delegates to the United Nations Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) listed it as an animal requiring urgent conservation action at its March 2026 meeting in Campo Grande, Brazil. The giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis), endemic to tropical river systems in South America, […]
Tag: Giant Otter
In Brazil’s Pantanal, too many tourists may be the jaguar’s new predator
PORTO JOFRE, Brazil — When Oscar de Morais isn’t out tracking jaguars, you’ll find him aboard his houseboat moored along the banks of the São Lourenço River. He sits beneath a mosquito net on two stacked blue plastic chairs, watching Brazilian soap operas while a fan blows warm air his way. That is, until someone […]
India’s Supreme Court Investigates Controversial Mega Zoo
India’s Supreme Court has ordered an inquiry into Vantara, a sprawling private zoo in Gujarat founded by Anant Ambani, son of Asia’s richest man. The 3,000-acre facility claims to be the “world’s biggest wild animal rescue centre,” but critics say it’s less about rescue and more about prestige — with more than 150,000 animals housed […]
Petition: Help Shut Down Zoo in England That Has a Long History of Animal Abuse and Neglect
More than 500 animals have died in just three years at South Lakes Safari Zoo in Cumbria, England. The harrowing images and stories from this facility reveal a horrifying pattern of neglect, abuse, and outright disregard for the lives of the animals entrusted to its care. This isn’t just a zoo – it’s a death […]
Jaguar release offers a lifeline to Gran Chaco’s lonely big cats
The lowland forest of El Impenetrable National Park in northern Argentina sprawls across the hot, swampy green of the Gran Chaco biome, home to South America’s largest mammals and thousands of plant species. It’s a critical conservation unit for the protection of one of the planet’s most deforested ecosystems, yet it’s missing an important resident: […]
Brazil Pantanal Day #3 – Fish Fest
Another great day in the Pantanal, despite the increasing mosquito load. The morning boat trip with Pantanal Nature produced another Jaguar encounter, our fifth in total. We intercepted a huge male swimming across the river, just too late before it reached the shore and disappeared promptly into the forest: Again we had breathtaking experiences with […]
Brazil Pantanal day #2
Another fantastic day here in the Pantanal with Panthera and Pantanal Nature. We went out on the boat in the morning and in the afternoon. We had a breathtaking Jaguar encounter with a wild, un-habituated male. We followed him from a distance for a while. He pounced on a Cayman but missed. Wow. We also […]
Giant Otters
The highlight of our trip to Ecuador this year was seeing a family of Giant Otters. We were fortunate enough to see them on 3 separate occasions and at one point floated in our canoe about 10 yards from them as they played and fed (all behind foliage however). I did manage to capture some […]