Final thoughts..

Throughout this semester at Clemson University, where I am finishing my bachelors degree on Conservation Biology, I took a Wildlife Policy class. It gave me a totally different view of the nitty gritty that goes into protecting not only our plant and wildlife, but also our lands and water systems.
So much goes into policy and its thanks to those people who push for change and put in the absurd amount of time to get research and data and formulate management strategies, but also deal with the political side of it.
I had a great time learning about wildlife policy and searching the internet for related new articles really gave me insight on the direction I want to go as a Conservationist. Thanks to Dr. Bowerman and those of your who decided to read the blog.

Movie stars care about wildlife too!

Sorry for the long hiatus from the blog. I've had plenty of things keeping me busy but I was browsing around on New York Times online and found an article that I thought was random but deals with my favorite animal, the Tiger. The unusual thing is, is that the person urging for better conservation efforts of the species is none other than major movie star Leonardo DiCaprio.
The article is about DiCaprio's efforts to persuade the juggernaut computer business, Apple, to do their part in aiding funding for the conservation of Tigers. The correlation between Apple and wildlife is that for the Mac's operating systems, Apple uses the names of big cat species such as Tiger, Snow Leopard and others. DiCaprio has been working with the WWF (World Wildlife Fund) to gather support for the conservation of the last few dozen breeding havens for Tigers.
This all took place on Twitter so it was a public ordeal, but it is also happening before the International Summit On Tiger Conservation in St. Petersberg. Studies concluded that there are about 2,500 adult individuals in the wild. This number is compared to the amount of tigers that are lost because of poaching and illegal animal trade. We just went over in my wildlife policy class about CITES, and a network monitoring poaching and traffic of rare wildlife just released findings in a journal stating that bones, skin and other body parts of over a 1,000 Tigers have been confiscated in the past decade.
I just want to end by saying that I'am glad to see that the mascot for Clemson University and my favorite animal get some attention from some big name people and corporation.

http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/21/dicaprio-presses-apple-to-aid-wild-tigers/?scp=4&sq=wildlife&st=cse

Habitat encroachment causes snakes in city

Hello everybody,
Iam back with another wildlife news article update. This latest one comes from Wildlife South Africa's website and is about the Rinkhal snake. The Rinkhal is a type of spitting cobra and although its not endangered, was thought to be extinct in the Cape Town area of South Africa. Recent findings have shown a return of the Rinkhal in the metropolitan areas. This is concerning for the crowded cities because it is a poisonous snake and a deadly one at that.
The reason for this is simply because of humans encroaching on an animals habitat. Its inevitable and once it happens then majority of the time, that species becomes a problem and its dealt with. I feel that perhaps some kind of conservation management plan needs to be constructed in order to insure that the snake populations are not diminished to the point of extinction. What are your thoughts?

http://www.wildlifesouthafrica.com/wildlife-news-articles.php

Eels are losing the battle

Hey Everybody,

I just want start off by saying, yes I know my blog is really Conservation biology oriented but Im trying to stress the point of the wildlife policy. I find it easiest to understand wildlife policy when I read articles about rare or endangered species. In the UK, populations of juvenile european eels have been drastically reduced. They are having trouble deciding how much can be exported when their numbers are so low. TRAFFIC is a wildlife monitoring network and they have been pushing for more rigorous studies to determine sustainable amounts that can be taken. In 2007, the European Eel was listed under CITES after the push by the EU. I want to ask you all how we as conservationist and policy makers, can get people to care about a species that not cute and cuddly?

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/11/1/eels-flounder-as-scientists-advice-goes-unheeded.html

Conservation of Wildlife 1 Illegal pet trade 0

So I was looking around at some articles on Illegal Pet Trade and found this website, Wildlife Extra News and there was an article about the smuggling of rare and endangered tortoises. The tortoises that were being trafficked where 11 Spider Tortoises, 400 Radiated Tortoises but he species of highest concern was 4 Ploughshare Tortoises. All of these tortoises come from Madagascar and where taken by two woman. Wait for it...THEY GOT CAUGHT!! In Kuala Lumpur, authorities have seized the shipment and have returned at least 1 of the Poughshare Tortoises.

The reason I wanted to talk about these Tortoises is because these guys are listed as critically endangered and it appears that its somewhat easy to obtain one. Along with all the other rare and exotic animals that succumb to the billion dollar illegal pet trade, the future of many endangered species could be near the end. Thankfully, we have the Species Survival Network and CITES. Anyway I just wanted to share some thoughts on subject, check back later for more.

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/stolen-tortoises.html#cr

Gray Wolves are good to go!

I stumbled upon a wildlife news article that had some positive vibes. On Salt Lake City's DNR website, I found an article that was about how Utah's wildlife board wants the Gray Wolf to be taken off of the Endangered Species list through federal legislation. The board consist of seven citizens that were appointed by the governor and their main goal is to set policies that guide management for wildlife in Utah.
The reason why they are requesting that it be removed from under the ESA, is because the wolf management plan cant begin until it is removed. The has been significant evidence that the Gray Wolf populations have far exceeded the population objectives in the recovery plan for the Northern Rock Mountain population of Gray Wolves.
Its finally good to see some species making a comeback from being listed as endangered, lets hope that history doesn't repeat itself and that further studies can give more insight into how we can better conserve and help maintain sustainable populations of all of our plants and wildlife.

http://wildlife.utah.gov/dwr/news/42-utah-wildlife-news/389-no-wolf-protection.html

Florida Panthers get a bit of Texan in them

I just recently heard a group presentation and it was about Florida and some of the wildlife that are threatened or endangered because of the urbanization of the area. The Florida Panther was a major part of the discussion because its range is so spread out that these cats where almost none existent. It was listed as by the IUCN as critically endangered but was taken off the list in 2008 and has been re-listed.
I looked up some stuff on the internet about them and found and article about how these big cats are making a strong comeback because of the introduction of Pumas from Texas. They are breeding with the population in Florida and creating stronger, larger cats that are more immune to diseases.
Some of the wildlife policies that deal with this sort of thing are the ESA, CITES and Florida and Georgia Endangered Species Act.

http://animals.about.com/b/2010/10/18/florida-panthers-revived-with-a-texan-twist.htm