The first thing that hit the inspectors was the smell. It was a sweltering midsummer day in Prague, and they had just opened an unplugged freezer filled with the rotting remains of tigers, lions and cougars. Pavla Rihova, the lead environmental inspector on the scene, said she had never seen anything like it. “I have […]
Tag: lions
Rescued Circus Lions Take Their First Steps on Grass
It’s hard to imagine having to spend your entire life in a cage, only to be let out to be used as a performer in a circus. Sadly that was the case for five lions who never experienced anything else …until now. These lucky five lions, including Sasha, Kimba, Nena, Tarzan and Tanya, were recently […]
POLL: Should trophy hunting of lions be made illegal?
On June 7th, a trophy hunter shot a male lion in Umbabat Private Nature Reserve in South Africa, a part of the Greater Kruger National Park. Nothing surprising about this: around 500 lions, usually males, are killed every year by trophy hunters on the African continent. What’s made this different is the suspicion that the […]
Mammals of Kruger Park
In my last post from South Africa, I will share some photos of mammals and reptiles we encountered in Kruger Park. Even though we did not find any surprising animals, it was exciting to see large numbers of common mammals. After the low densities we had experienced in Hluhluwe, Kruger Park felt like the Real […]
Cats and Vultures of Kruger Park
On our last full day in Kruger Park (February 16th) we spent some quality time with a pride of Lions not far from Satara, along the famous S100 track, by a waterhole. When we got there a few cars had already assembled, but it wasn’t too bad. I managed to maneuver myself into a good […]
Victory! UK to Ban Wild Animals in Circuses
In another major victory for animals used in entertainment, England has pledged to ban the use of wild animals in circuses. Such a ban was first promised by the government back in 2006, but no action was taken. Since then, numerous examples of animal abuse and suffering have come to light, but despite growing public […]
An Eagle Helps Preserve L.A. Land for a Wildlife Corridor
There are 17 acres of open land in the Hollywood Hills that provide a crucial corridor for wildlife like mountain lions, bobcats and deer. But, as I wrote in October 2015, that land was in danger of being subdivided into a housing development with four mansions, destroying the corridor. This would be devastating for local […]
Serengeti hooves
The annual migration of wildebeest and other grazing herbivores across the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem is one of the greatest spectacles in the natural world. The Serengeti is well known for its vast herds of wildebeest and zebra which migrate in a clockwise route from Ndutu in the south around February and March up along the western […]