Latest news with #EndangeredSpecies
Washington Post
12 hours ago
- Science
- Washington Post
Tuesday is World Elephant Day. 5 things to know about the world's largest land mammals
BELA-BELA, South Africa — Tuesday is World Elephant Day. Here are five things to know about the largest land animals on our planet. There are three species of elephants: the African savanna or bush elephant, the African forest elephant and the Asian elephant. The African savanna elephant and the Asian elephant are listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The forest elephant is critically endangered.
BBC News
5 days ago
- BBC News
Asian elephants from Whipsnade zoo moved to Cheshire
Two Asian elephants have been transported across the country as part of a conservation breeding programme for the endangered 26, and her nine-year-old daughter Elizabeth, moved from Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire to their new home at Chester Zoo in move took months of planning and involved keepers, vets, two lorries, a crane able to carry 100 tonnes, and a team of animal transport experts. Stefan Groeneveld, section manager for elephants at Whipsnade Zoo, said that collaboration between zoos was "integral to keeping a strong and healthy insurance population for animals at risk of extinction in the wild". The elephants were transported in custom-built travel crates, weighing 10 tonnes each, specially designed to keep them comfortable for the duration of their road included being fitted with air conditioning and CCTV cameras for drivers to check on them during the four-hour two lorries, driven by animal transportation experts, travelled in convoy down the motorway with two of the keepers from Whipsnade and Karishma received a health check from the zoo's vet team to confirm they were fit and healthy for the move. Mr Groeneveld said the "wild population of Asian elephants is dwindling due to habitat loss, degradation, and poaching for their ivory tusks", and conservation breeding programmes were vital. He added: "It was a bittersweet day for all of the elephant keepers here when we said farewell to two of our elephants, Beth and Karishma."Karishma arrived at Whipsnade Zoo just over 20 years ago, and she and her daughter Beth, named after HM Queen Elizabeth II, have been much-loved members of our herd."He said that their remaining herd of five elephants, including male Ming Jung, females Kaylee, Lucha, and Donna, and calf Nang Phaya, would continue to contribute to the breeding programme at Whipsnade Zoo. Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Arab News
5 days ago
- General
- Arab News
Czech zoo welcomes 4 rare Barbary lion cubs whose population is extinct in the wild
DVUR KRALOVE, Czech Republic: Four Barbary lion cubs were born recently in a Czech zoo, a vital contribution for a small surviving population of the rare lion that is extinct in the wild. The three females and one male were seen playing in their outdoor enclosure at Dvůr Králové Safari Park on Wednesday, enjoying themselves under the watchful eyes of their parents, Khalila and Bart. That will change soon. As part of an international endangered species program that coordinates efforts for their survival in captivity, the cubs will be sent to other participating parks, including the Beersheba zoo in Israel. Chances are that might not be the end of the story for the animal. Dvůr Králové Deputy Director Jaroslav Hyjánek said that while preliminary steps have been taken for a possible reintroduction of the Barbary lion into its natural habitat, it's still a 'far distant future.' The majestic member of the Northern lion subspecies, the Barbary lion once roamed freely its native northern Africa, including the Atlas Mountains. A symbol of strength, they were almost completely wiped out due to human activities. Many were killed by gladiators in Roman times, while overhunting and a loss of habitat contributed to their extinction later. The last known photo of a wild lion was taken in 1925, while the last individual was killed in 1942. It's believed the last small populations went extinct in the wild in the middle of the 1960s. Fewer than 200 Barbary lions are currently estimated to live in captivity Hyjánek said that after initial talks with Moroccan authorities, who have not rejected the idea of their reintroduction, a conference of experts has been planned to take place in Morocco late this year or early 2026 to decide whether it would make sense to go ahead with such a plan in one of the national parks in the Atlas Mountains. Any reintroduction would face numerous bureaucratic and other obstacles. Since the lion has not been present in the environment for such a long time, the plans would have to ensure their protection, a sufficient prey population and cooperation and approval from local communities. Hyjánek said such a move is still worth trying if it turns out to be sustainable. 'It's important to have such a vision for any animal, ' he said. 'Without it, the existence of zoos wouldn't make sense.'
The Guardian
6 days ago
- General
- The Guardian
Four rare Barbary lion cubs born at Czech zoo
Four Barbary lion cubs were born recently in a Czech zoo, a vital contribution for the small surviving population of a rare lion that is extinct in the wild. The three females and one male were seen playing in their outdoor enclosure at Dvůr Králové safari park on Wednesday under the watchful eye of their parents, Khalila and Bart. That will change soon. As part of an international endangered species programme that coordinates efforts for the lions' survival in captivity, the cubs will be sent to other participating parks, including the Beersheba zoo in Israel. There is a chance that may not be the end of the story. The deputy director of Dvůr Králové, Jaroslav Hyjánek, said preliminary steps had been taken to possibly reintroduce the Barbary lion into its natural habitat – but that was still in the 'far distant future.' The Barbary lion, a majestic member of the northern lion subspecies, once roamed freely in its native north Africa, including the Atlas mountains. A symbol of strength, the Barbary lion was almost wiped out by humans. Many were killed by gladiators in Roman times, while overhunting and the loss of habitat contributed to their later near extinction. The last known photo of a wild lion was taken in 1925. It is believed the last small populations went extinct in the wild in the mid-1960s. Fewer than 200 Barbary lions are now estimated to live in captivity. Hyjánek said that after initial talks with Moroccan authorities, who have not rejected the idea of the lions' reintroduction, a conference of experts has been planned in Morocco for later this year or early 2026 to decide whether to go ahead with such a scheme in one of the national parks in the Atlas mountains. Any reintroduction would face bureaucratic and other obstacles. As the lions have not been present in the environment for so long, the plans would have to ensure the animals' protection, a sufficient prey population, and cooperation and approval from local communities. Hyjánek said reintroduction was still worth trying if it turned out to be sustainable. 'It's important to have such a vision for any animal,' he said. 'Without it, the existence of zoos wouldn't make sense.'
The Independent
6 days ago
- General
- The Independent
Czech zoo welcomes 4 rare Barbary lion cubs whose population is extinct in the wild
Four Barbary lion cubs were born recently in a Czech zoo, a vital contribution for a small surviving population of the rare lion that is extinct in the wild. The three females and one male were seen playing in their outdoor enclosure at Dvůr Králové Safari Park on Wednesday, enjoying themselves under the watchful eyes of their parents, Khalila and Bart. That will change soon. As part of an international endangered species program that coordinates efforts for their survival in captivity, the cubs will be sent to other participating parks, including the Beersheba zoo in Israel. Chances are that might not be the end of the story for the animal. Dvůr Králové Deputy Director Jaroslav Hyjánek said that while preliminary steps have been taken for a possible reintroduction of the Barbary lion into its natural habitat, it's still a 'far distant future.' The majestic member of the Northern lion subspecies, the Barbary lion once roamed freely its native northern Africa, including the Atlas Mountains. A symbol of strength, they were almost completely wiped out due to human activities. Many were killed by gladiators in Roman times, while overhunting and a loss of habitat contributed to their extinction later. The last known photo of a wild lion was taken in 1925, while the last individual was killed in 1942. It's believed the last small populations went extinct in the wild in the middle of the 1960s. Fewer than 200 Barbary lions are currently estimated to live in captivity Hyjánek said that after initial talks with Moroccan authorities, who have not rejected the idea of their reintroduction, a conference of experts has been planned to take place in Morocco late this year or early 2026 to decide whether it would make sense to go ahead with such a plan in one of the national parks in the Atlas Mountains. Any reintroduction would face numerous bureaucratic and other obstacles. Since the lion has not been present in the environment for such a long time, the plans would have to ensure their protection, a sufficient prey population and cooperation and approval from local communities. Hyjánek said such a move is still worth trying if it turns out to be sustainable. 'It's important to have such a vision for any animal, ' he said. 'Without it, the existence of zoos wouldn't make sense.'
