ARCHELON, the Sea Turtle Protection Society of Greece

From mid May until mid October this year enthusiastic and committed volunteers are required to work on Archelon’s sea turtle conservation projects in Greece. Zakynthos, Peloponnesus and Crete are the Mediterranean’s major nesting areas for the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta). Archelon is an environmental NGO that has been protected and monitored Greece’s loggerhead turtles for over 25 years.

Volunteers can work on the island of Zakynthos where the first National Marine Park for sea turtles in the Mediterranean was established in 1999. They will assist the management agency of the National Marine Park of Zakynthos to implement protection measures for the preservation of the sea turtles.

 

In Peloponnesus (Kyparissia Bay, Koroni and Lakonikos Bay), volunteers will protect nests against predation from foxes and other mammals, and assist in the running of the established Nature Information Centre of Agiannaki (Kyparissia Bay).

 

On Crete (Chania, Rethymno and Messara), participants work on implementing a Management Plan for the nesting areas.

At the Sea Turtle Rescue Centre in Athens, volunteers have the opportunity to participate in the daily treatment of sea turtles that usually bear injuries as a result of accidental capture in fishing gear and help in raising of public awareness as well as maintaining of the Centre’s facilities.

Ask me a question or contact Archelon directly: volunteers@archelon.gr, www.archelon.gr

Lions have lost 75% of their original habitat in Africa

A new study has confirmed that lions are rapidly and literally losing ground across Africa's once-thriving savannahs due to burgeoning human population growth and subsequent, massive land-use conversion.

Representing the most comprehensive assessment of the state and vitality of African savannah habitat to date, the report maintains that the lion has lost 75% of its original natural habitat in Africa - a reduction that has devastated lion populations across the continent. 

The report, entitled The size of savannah Africa: A lion's (Panthera leo) view, was published online in the journal ‘Biodiversity and Conservation.'

Tiger Tourism in India - 2

India’s Supreme Court lifted its interim ban on tiger tourism on the 15^th October – so is everything back to normal for tiger watching trips? Absolutely not!

Most Indian states took little notice of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, which rather vaguely said that tiger reserve ‘core zones’ should be ‘inviolate’. States made their own definition of what this might mean – some decided that any number of visitors could go provided they didn’t stay overnight; others decided the State could built tourist lodges in the core zone and others ignored it completely & left it as a free for all.

Community activist Ajay Dubey instigated the ban, because he was appalled at how the Wild Life (Protection) Act was being ignored. In lifting the ban states have been given six months to respond to the 69-page document of guidelines drawn up by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (part of the Ministry of Environment and Forests). A number of states, like Karnataka, recognise they don’t comply – so they have maintained the ban on tourists visiting their tiger reserves.

So if you’ve got a tiger watching trip booked - you might not get to see any tigers.

Tiger Tourism in India - I

I’ve been researching tiger tourism for a magazine article & what a mess India has allowed the issue to become.

There’s a real possibility that in the not too distant future tigers will only exist in zoos.

But even zoos are not safe places for tigers. This September in India’s north-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh a gang of poachers managed to enter a high-security zoo in the capital and hack a tiger to death.

They choose a time when all three security guards decided to go to lunch together, leaving the animals unprotected. Poachers were free to enter the zoo, tranquillise the six-year-old tigress & then cut her to pieces whilst she was unconscious.

The Zoo chief, Zoram Dopum, said that the poachers fled when the ‘hapless’ security guards returned - but no one has been identified, captured or prosecuted for the slaughter.

The growing wealth in China & southeast Asia has seen demand for dead tiger products skyrocket. Tiger skins fetch $20,000, bones sell for $1,200 per kilogram and a whole animal would retail at $30,000.

Poaching is rampant and is the primary cause of the year on year decline in tiger numbers – there are even some tiger reserves where resident tigers have been poached to extinction.

Priceless or Worthless?

What is a species worth?

September 2012: Tarzan’s chameleon, the spoon-billed sandpiper and the pygmy three-toed sloth have all topped a new list of the species closest to extinction released by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

For the first time, more than 8,000 scientists from the IUCN Species Survival Commission (IUCN SSC) have come together to identify 100 of the most threatened animals, plants and fungi on the planet. But conservationists fear they'll be allowed to die out because none of these species provide humans with obvious benefits.

While the utilitarian value of nature is important conservation goes beyond this. Do these species have a right to survive or do we have a right to drive them to extinction?

Difficult conservation
Professor Jonathan Baillie, ZSL's Director of Conservation said: “The donor community and conservation movement are leaning increasingly towards a ‘what can nature do for us’ approach, where species and wild habitats are valued and prioritised according to the services they provide for people. This has made it increasingly difficult for conservationists to protect the most threatened species on the planet.”

Priceless or Worthless
The report, called Priceless or Worthless?, will be presented at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in South Korea this month (Tues 11th Sept), and hopes to push the conservation of ‘worthless’ creatures up the agenda that is set by NGOs from around the globe.

Co-author of the report, ZSL’s Ellen Butcher says: “All the species listed are unique and irreplaceable. If they vanish, no amount of money can bring them back. However, if we take immediate action we can give them a fighting chance for survival. But this requires society to support the moral and ethical position that all species have an inherent right to exist.”

Decline often caused by humans
The decline of these species has mainly been caused by humans, but in almost all cases scientists believe their extinction can still be avoided if conservation efforts are specifically focused. Conservation actions can deliver results with many species such as Przewalski's Horse (see Reintroducing an extinct species to the wild - www.peter-lynch.co.uk/wildlife-conservation-volunteering.html) and Humpback Whale have being saved from extinction.

The 100 species, from 48 different countries are first in line to disappear completely if nothing is done to protect them.

Wilderness knows no boundaries

Today PAN Parks announced Europe’s first successful verification of a trans-boundary wilderness area between Oulanka (Finnish) and Paanajärvi (Russian) National Parks. This verification will strengthen the protection of wilderness across political boundaries.

Oulanka and Paanajärvi were certified PAN (Protected Area Networks) Parks, but artificially divided by the country border between Finland and Russia. After a decade of working hard to harmonise the two areas management plans, the third-party verification conducted by PAN Parks’ experts confirms that natural values of the two areas are taken care by the two management bodies in close cooperation.

Home to some of Europe’s rarest creatures - bear, wild reindeer, lynx, wolf and wolverine this collaborative approach will aid their survival.

Photo: Andy Gehrig

The trans-boundary status of the area is the largest protected area within the European Wilderness Preservation System set up through the PAN Parks’ network. The two parks cover over 132,000 hectares, from which 103,000 hectares are managed according to wilderness principles. ‘These principles mean there is no extractive use within the wilderness zone! No hunting, no logging, no grazing with domestic animals, but nature developing on its own!’ explains Vlado Vancura, conservation director of PAN Parks Foundation.

This approach is still unique in Europe and unfortunately the few existing wilderness areas cover less than 1% of Europe’s land territory compared to 5% covered by artificial surfaces (roads, industry, housing, etc).

Find out more about PAN Parks

Our Wetland Wildlife weekend – 8th and 9th September

The UK’s wetlands range from small ponds and trickling streams to gushing rivers and massive reservoirs, and all are vitally important natural resources.

As well as supporting a huge variety of wildlife, including charismatic species like otters and marsh harriers, they also provide a range of crucial ecosystem, economic and cultural services – such as food, fuel, flood prevention, water storage, recreation and transport.

Despite this, wetlands are some of our most damaged habitats, and are still being lost at an alarming rate. 

The Wildlife Trusts are in the forefront of efforts to protect and restore the UK’s precious wetland habitats, in the face of threats from climate change, drainage and development. 

Wildlife Trusts across the UK are holding a series of ‘Our Wetland Wildlife’ events on Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 September.  The events form part of The Wildlife Trusts’ Centenary celebrations.

Be among the first to visit the new lagoons and hides at Rutland Water, spot water birds in Lincolnshire, identify moths in Cumbria, or take a wetland bat walk in Cheshire. Celebrate the wetland restoration work carried out in Radnorshire, go pond-dipping in Warwickshire, or check out the beavers back in Scotland after 400 years of extinction.