Latest news with #wildlifeConservation
CNN
10-07-2025
- General
- CNN
Japan's panda town was booming. Now China wants its pandas back
Pandas, and those who adore them, have been central to the culture and economy in Shirahama, Japan for years. But the four pandas at the town's local zoo really belong to China, and China wants them back, leaving town residents in emotional turmoil.
CNN
10-07-2025
- General
- CNN
Japan's panda town was booming. Now China wants its pandas back
Pandas, and those who adore them, have been central to the culture and economy in Shirahama, Japan for years. But the four pandas at the town's local zoo really belong to China, and China wants them back, leaving town residents in an emotional turmoil.
Times of Oman
09-07-2025
- General
- Times of Oman
Environment Authority eradicates 161,410 invasive birds in Dhofar
Salalah — The Environment Authority has successfully eliminated 161,410 invasive birds in Dhofar Governorate, including 88,365 myna birds and 73,046 Indian house crows, since the launch of the National Campaign to Combat Invasive Birds (Myna and Indian Crow) in 2022. The Environment Authority in Dhofar continues to implement the campaign, with field teams eliminating 10,449 invasive birds in the first half of this year (as of the end of June). These birds pose a significant threat to the local ecosystem, competing with native species for food and habitats, which could lead to the decline or extinction of indigenous wildlife. The campaign focuses on areas where these invasive species are concentrated, aligning with the Authority's strategy to protect biodiversity and maintain ecological balance. Efforts include conducting regular field surveys to identify their locations and applying effective control measures to reduce their populations.
The Independent
05-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Releasing lynx into the wild would be disastrous for Britain's farmers
You'd be forgiven for thinking it was an imaginative, if not bloodthirsty, way to get rid of farmers protesting against the new inheritance tax rules. In June, the Lynx UK Trust , an organisation that campaigns to reintroduce wild Lynx to areas of rural Britain formally applied to reintroduce the cats to the Kielder forest in Northumberland. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) promptly refused, on the grounds that Lynx are classified as dangerous wild animals. But then the head of the government's wildlife regulator stepped in. Tony Juniper, chair of Natural England said he personally was 'enthusiastic' about reintroducing wild lynx to Britain – and would be 'absolutely delighted' if it could be achieved during his two-year term. In rural East Yorkshire, where I work, this was met with a degree of eye-rolling. People in agriculture have been aware of the proposals for a while, but until now, no one took them seriously. That has shifted a notch to: 'they couldn't… could they?' I do not work in agriculture, but my dad's family were tenant farmers, smallholders and contractors. My brother works on an arable farm on the Yorkshire Wolds, and I meet a lot of people in the industry. Politically, I always find myself caught in the middle ground. I think farmers moan too much and are too resistant to change, and I think too much farm and conservation policy is made by experts who give a good impression of not really knowing what they're doing. In this case, you have to say the reintroduction of the lynx to the wild in Britain would cause many problems for farmers – although it's not all about farms and the cats themselves. The most obvious issue – so obvious that it is acknowledged by lynx advocates – is the risk to livestock. There is no question that on large, upland farms, lambs would be killed. The Lynx to Scotland campaign group proposes financial compensation schemes to cover this, but you wonder about the limitations – surely once the predators know where the easy meals are, they will be back – repeatedly? And how do you prove a missing lamb was taken? This would not affect only sheep. In Europe, the lynx's preferred prey is deer, and there are about 30,000 farmed deer on 400 farms in the UK. You'd worry for outdoor-reared pigs as well. I know a man from a farm in Poland, where wolf numbers have grown in recent years, who tells stories about his family at home bringing in stock from the fields at night to protect them, so it's feasible that on some deer, pig and sheep farms we would see some form of evening round-up, or shelters being built. There is then the question of game on country estates. Few people, or indeed animals, will shed tears over barons and bankers being deprived of the chance to bag pheasant, but the awkward fact is that hunting tends to go hand in hand with a strong degree of nature conservation. Of course, landowners aren't going to give that up because a lynx snarfs a snipe here and there, but what they will do is get their gamekeepers to shoot them. The less obvious risk concerns not commercially bred animals, but domestic pets. A lynx's hunting range can be up to about 170 square miles, and they can travel up to around 12 miles a night. That would surely allow for them to enter rural housing developments, estates and villages in search of food, in the way foxes and deer do fairly routinely now. Given cats' noisy predilection for fighting, it seems a very real possibility that, in winter, they would end up attacking domestic pets. At this point, especially if it happens in a quiet news period, it would all become a very different kind of problem. Where that could affect farmers is in local pressure to fence-in land abutting housing. Given the increasing public complaints about the noise, smell and mud that are inextricably linked with agriculture, it would hardly be a surprise, should the circumstances arise. Admittedly, this is highly speculative and slightly paranoid, but it is worth pointing out that some rewilding schemes do have unintended consequences. Nature is full of unforeseen knock-on effects: this year, my neighbour got a rather murderous house cat, and the hay and barley fields next door are visibly less eaten-off by rabbits, because the cat has either eaten them or scared them off. Similarly, it appears to me and several local birdwatchers I know that the reintroduction of birds of prey, combined with the policy of cutting hedges less frequently, has visibly reduced the number of small birds. This is because, unable to get deep into the hedge any more, they nest on the outer edges where the nests make easy targets for sparrowhawks. It's for reasons like this that I find the idea of rewilding dubious in its insistence that nature somehow finds its own healthy balance; such balance as it finds is a lot healthier for the predator than for the prey. I can see that it can work in vast spaces – to be fair the reintroduction of lynx in areas of Germany, France, Italy and Switzerland seems to have worked without too much carnage. However, in most of the UK, the space is far from vast, and benefits from some sort of management. Finally, if the UK government's wildlife body does approve the reintroduction of the lynx, it may have another, more vague effect on farmers because of its symbolism. There has been no coherent agricultural policy from the current or the previous government, and there is a sense in the industry that these days MPs would rather just get the food from overseas, and pack in with food production altogether to save the greenhouse gas emissions. That may or may not be true – but releasing a livestock predator back into the wild would be interpreted by many as a certain signal of intent.
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
'Python Huntress' quits day job to fight back as snakes try to take over vast US area: 'The most effective tool that we have'
When Amy Siewe caught her first nine-foot python in Florida's Everglades, it wasn't just a thrill — it was a calling, according to the New Hampshire Union Leader. Within two months, the former real estate agent sold her business in Indiana and moved south to hunt snakes full time. Today, with more than 600 pythons removed, Siewe is known as the "Python Huntress." Her mission is to help protect one of the most biodiverse ecosystems in the United States. The Burmese python, native to Southeast Asia, has wreaked havoc on Florida's native species ever since a breeding facility was destroyed during Hurricane Andrew in 1992. With no natural predators in the Everglades, the snake population has ballooned — estimates now put it at more than 500,000. These snakes can grow up to 18 feet long and are known to consume birds, mammals, and even alligators. In a region that's home to endangered species like the Florida panther and the largest continuous mangrove ecosystem in the Western hemisphere, the impact has been dramatic. Studies have shown declines in raccoons, opossums, bobcats, and rabbits. "To date, [this one's] probably eaten about 200 of our native animals," Siewe said during a recent capture of a 10-foot snake. Invasive species — whether snakes, plants, or insects — throw ecosystems out of balance. While the Everglades' problem is on a grand scale, even invasive plants in backyards can crowd out native species. Plus, they're a headache to get rid of, costing time and money. Luckily, rewilding your yard with native plants, clover, buffalo grass, or using eco-friendly landscaping techniques like xeriscaping can slash your water bill and yard work. Plus, it makes your yard a friendly place for pollinators like bees and butterflies, which are essential to protecting our food supply. Even partially upgrading to a natural lawn can offer financial and environmental benefits. Hunting is one of Florida's most effective strategies to deal with invasive pythons. Florida even hosts an annual "Python Challenge" to encourage hunting. The snakes are often skinned, tanned, and repurposed into goods like purses and belts. It can take up to 12 hours to find one, so the work is time-consuming. Another potential solution could be found at the dinner table — a Southeast Asian study found that pythons turn feed into protein more efficiently than traditional livestock. "We're always going to have pythons in Florida," Siewe said, according to the New Hampshire Union Leader. "What we're trying to do is figure out how to decrease their numbers. Hunting right now is the most effective tool that we have." Should we be actively working to kill invasive species? Absolutely It depends on the species I don't know No — leave nature alone Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
