News
We bring you the latest from around the World in wildlife and conservation news.
Scientists Can Now Track Penguin Huddles In Real Time
On Antarctica’s harsh frozen landscape, emperor penguins huddle together to defend themselves from the cold and windy weather. The huddling allows the penguins to pool their warmth and conserve energy during periods between forages and breeding. This behaviour has been documented for a long time but now scientists have the technology to observe the evolution of a penguin huddle. The study revealed the main trigger prompting penguins to huddle and reaffirmed the purpose of the behaviour.
US Lifts Ban On Elephant Trophy Hunting Angering Millions
There has been an angry line drawn in the sands of the Southern part of the African continent. On one side you will find a pack of conservationists and biologists demanding action and on the other are a group consisting of politicians and hunters refusing to compromise. Recently the United States lifted its ban on the importation of wildlife trophies such as elephants and this has led to the outbreak of all out war between the two groups who both claim to represent the best interests of wildlife.
Asian Elephants Face New Threat From Growing Chinese Demand For Skin Products
A UK based conservation group says that growing Chinese demand for elephant skin products is resulting in greater poaching of the protected species. The increased demand poses an even greater threat to the wild elephants of Asia than even the illegal trade in ivory the group claims. The Elephant Family released a report which suggests that the threat to the Asian elephant is most severe in Myanmar and also warned that if conditions continue to worsen, the species could vanish from half the areas they currently inhabit.
Chinese Family Adopts Asiatic Black Bear Thinking It Is A Puppy
A Chinese family who adopted what they believed to be a pet dog has been forced to give it up after realising what they had taken into their family was actually a black bear instead. The family is from the Chinese city of Kunming in Yunnan province, and took in what they believed was a Tibetan mastiff puppy whilst on holiday in the region in 2016. What they in fact had inadvertently brought home with them was an Asiatic black bear cub which has now been handed over to a local animal sanctuary.
How To Tell Jaguars And Leopards Apart
Everybody can tell the difference between a lion and a cheetah, but when it comes to telling jaguars apart from leopards, the difference is not so clear cut. Both of these big cats are muscular and have spotted fur. This is why people tend to confuse the two species and many people actually think they are both the same. As a result, we decided to put together a more detailed look at the two big cats so people could see there is quite a bit of difference between the two feline species.
Smoke Inhalation A Real Threat To The Survival Of The Orangutan
Large scale farming, human encroachment and logging have resulted in habitat loss for orangutans which are now critically endangered. If that threat was not enough, they face another threat in the form of smoke that results from both natural and man-made fire according to the results of a new study. Researchers studying orangutans in the forests of Indonesian Borneo found that their work had to be halted as a result of fires which they helped fight. These fires usually occur every year when small farms and plantations clear the forest to plant crops.
Panda Cub Makes Her Public Debut At Malaysia’s National Zoo
Recently a panda cub that was born five months ago at a Malaysian zoo was introduced to the public. So far, the female panda has yet to be given a name and is the second cub to be born to parents Liang Liang and Xing Xing both of whom have been loaned to the zoo for ten years. The first female cub was named Nuan Nuan and was born in 2015. She spent two years with her parents at the zoo before being sent back to China as part of the agreement between the two countries.
Beach Clean Up Results In First Hatchlings Of Turtles In Decades
For the first time in decades, hatchlings from a vulnerable species of turtle have been seen on Mumbai beach that has been cleaned up by a massive operation staffed by volunteers. Recently approximately 80 Olive Ridley turtles found their way into the Arabian Sea from their nests on Versova beach. The hatchlings were protected from feral dogs and birds of prey by volunteers who stayed overnight to ensure they made it into the ocean.