Early on a Sunday morning last summer, the villagers of Epulu awoke to the sounds of shots and screaming. In the eastern reaches of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, that can often mean another round of violence and ethnic murder is under way. In this case, however, something even more horrific was afoot. The […]
Tag: wildlife trade
Poachers enlisting impoverished wildlife rangers as accomplices in elephant, rhino killing
Corruption among wildlife rangers is becoming a serious impediment in the fight against poaching, fuelled by soaring levels of cash offered by criminal poacher syndicates, senior conservation chiefs have admitted. Rangers in countries as diverse as Tanzania and Cambodia are being bribed by increasingly organised poaching gangs keen to supply ivory, rhino horn and tiger […]
Central africa to mobilize up to 1,000 soldiers to save its elephants (Warning: graphic photos)
Central African states on Saturday said they would mobilize up to 1,000 soldiers and law-enforcement officials to immediately start joint military operations to protect the region’s last remaining savanna elephants, threatened by Sudanese poachers on a killing spree in the region. On the night of March 14-15, in southern Chad, these poachers killed at least […]
Has shark fin consumption peaked at 100 million dead sharks per year?
While a new study warns that up to 100 million sharks are killed annually, there are signs out of China that demand for shark fin may be on the decline. A study published last week in the journal Marine Policy estimated shark deaths at 100 million in 2000 and 97 million in 2010, suggesting a […]
Most Popular and Widely-Read Articles in Feb 2013
During February our global team of wildlife photographers and authors published 208 articles in promoting the cause of wildlife conservation. The purpose of this review is to highlight the past month’s most popular and widely-read articles. First prize goes to Adam Riley with Komodo and its Dragons, an article published in August last year and […]
Pity the Pangolin: Most Common Victim of the Wildlife Trade
Last year tens-of-thousands of elephants and hundreds of rhinos were butchered to feed the growing appetite of the illegal wildlife trade. This black market, largely centered in East Asia, also devoured tigers, sharks, leopards, turtles, snakes, and hundreds of other animals. Estimated at $19 billion annually, the booming trade has periodically captured global media attention, […]
Asian bear farming: breaking the cycle of exploitation (warning: graphic images)
In the forests of Asia, bears are being captured. These captives will be sent to bear farms, most unregulated and illegal, where they will be kept alive in a small cage, locked away for life. Their bodies will be used as renewable natural resources, from which profit will be made through the extraction of internal […]