Even by French gastronomic standards the method of preparing the prized – and increasingly rare – ortolan bunting for the table seems somewhat extreme. Vaunted for its delicate flesh and bones, the sparrow-sized bird is eaten whole after being drowned in armagnac. It is not just a matter of questionable taste, however. While eating ortolan […]
Tag: poaching
Elephant Poachers Poison Hundreds of Vultures to Evade Authorities
The ongoing slaughter of Africa’s elephants is at record levels. The situation has gotten out of hand in many countries, especially those lacking the resources to fight the increase in demand for ivory from the Far East. With wildlife authorities struggling to save the remaining tuskers, there has been little attention paid to the other… […]
Vanishing species makes astounding comeback
The reemergence of the endangered Huemul deer (Hippocamelus bisulcus) marks a momentous achievement by local governments and conservationists worldwide. From the brink of extinction—with populations decimated to one percent of what they previously were—the Huemul populations have not only stabilized but are steadily increasing, according to a new study in Oryx. A naturally docile and […]
Making movies to save Uganda’s great apes
A new series of films aims to protect Uganda’s great ape species (mountain gorillas and chimpanzees) by bringing entertaining and educational movies to a rural audience living on the edges of Kibale National Park and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Produced with heavy input from locals, these films are acted with an all-Ugandan task to teach […]
60 big cats killed in Brazilian parks in last two years
At least 60 big cats have been killed within national protected areas in Brazil during the past two years according to a recent survey published in mongabay.com’s open access journal Tropical Conservation Science (TCS). The report, which focuses on jaguar (Panthera onca) and puma (Puma concolor) populations, within Brazilian protected areas shows that reserve management […]
Demand for ivory destabilising central Africa
The massacre of elephants has gone beyond being a problem for animal rights activists. It now concerns international institutions and governments at the highest level because it is perceived as a threat to political and economic stability in central Africa. Last month, the matter drew the attention of the African Development Bank in Marrakech, at […]
Illegal wildlife trade flourishes in Sumatra
In a chilly rain on Sunday, in a town just a few kilometers beyond the edge of a protected Sumatran rainforest, a young orangutan sat perched on a piece of plywood and grabbed the metal wires of his tiny cage. He has sat in that cage for six months and, like dozens of other species […]
US gets a taste for lion burgers
In America over the past few months, a battle has been raging over big cat burgers. Lion meat, sourced from captive-raised populations in the US, crops up in restaurants every once in a while, and each time it provokes the same response: at one pole, rage about the unsound ethics of eating the ‘king of […]