The Rwanda Development Board’s (RDB) decision to double price of Rwanda gorilla permits from USD 750 to USD1500 has been received with mixed feelings from local and international tour operators, conservationists and also the people of Rwanda. Many looked at the gorilla permits increase as a gamble that is bound to fail in the near…
Premier online education platform MasterClass announced today that Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE, UN Messenger of Peace and one of the world’s most renowned naturalists and conservationists, will offer her first-ever online class. Pre-enrollment for Goodall’s class begins today at www.masterclass.com/jg. For over 55 years, Goodall has dedicated her life’s work and studies to animal sciences…
A King penguin – rare to South African oceans – is currently under the professional care of the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) after being discovered in arrested moult on Hout Bay’s main beach on Thursday, 27 April 2017. SANCCOB was notified of the penguin’s presence by a retired marine…
Why is the illicit rhino horn trade escalating? In South Africa, domestic trade of rhinoceros horn, forbidden since 2008, is about to become legal again. On April 7 2017, a court effectively overturned the national ban. This controversial move was welcomed by commercial rhino breeders, who argue that legalising safe, sustainable horn removal from living…
Hunting is a major driver of biodiversity loss, but a systematic large-scale estimate of hunting-induced defaunation was lacking until now. In a new study published in Science, an international team of ecologists and environmental scientists warns that bird and mammal populations decline sharply in zones of 7 to 40 kilometers around villages and roads where…
New research indicates that juvenile African penguins are continuously foraging in areas of low food availability due to climate change and overfishing. The research conducted by an international group of scientists over the span of three years, highlights alarming results for the already endangered African penguin species, the only penguin endemic to the African continent….
Nonhuman primates, our closest biological relatives, play important roles in the livelihoods, cultures, and religions of many societies and offer unique insights into human evolution, biology, behavior, and the threat of emerging diseases. They are an essential component of tropical biodiversity, contributing to forest regeneration and ecosystem health. Current information shows the existence of 504…
Bill Laurance, James Cook University Pardon the pun, but it’s time to stick our necks out for giraffes. We have mistakenly taken the world’s tallest mammal for granted, fretting far more about other beloved animals such as rhinos, elephants and great apes. But now it seems that all is not well in giraffe-land, with reports…
I’m a Japanese woman married to a British diplomat. We keep moving places every 3 to 4 years and currently live in Malawi after staying four years in Kenya. Since our Kenya days, we’ve visited a number of national parks and game reserves in Kenya, Zambia and South Africa to appreciate rich African wildlife. The…
Selati Game Reserve in Limpopo opened its gates to twelve learners from two disparate communities for the inaugural “Bush Buddies” initiative. Six learners from rural Zivuko Secondary School and six from Penryn College were invited for an introductory course in conservation at this private reserve, supported by continuing learning and the opportunity to engage via…