REVIEW - German review of Last Chance To See

This German review of "Last Chance To See" has sent a few visitors through to my site, and it's worth checking out even by non-German speakers, if only for the nice line drawing of a baiji, as drawn by Douglas Adams himself in 1993. The drawing is near the bottom on the right-hand side.

HISTORY - 1991 article from The Times

On February 19th, 1991, The Times newspaper published this article, entitled "War's other victims", in which a possible follow-up to "Last Chance To See" was discussed...

Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, plans to visit Gulf war battlefields once the artillery falls silent to
gather material for a book about the plight of wildlife in war zones
around the world.

He and his co-author, Mark Carwardine, had the idea long before the invasion of Kuwait. They have already researched the plight of animals in Afghanistan, Uganda, Nicaragua and Vietnam. "In south-east Asia we were particularly interested in the kouprey, a species of wild ox on the borders of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, which has been devastated by minefields," says Adams. "No-one has seen one for some time, and there are fears that it may be extinct."

There are no such fears, as yet, for wildlife in the desert around Kuwait, but Adams and Carwardine are concerned about the long-term effects of the Iraqi-inspire oil spillages in the northern Gulf on fish and bird life.

Thanks to David for this story

KAKAPO PARROTS - Breeding Season Update

Scoop has this update on the current breeding season, which we've covered in a few recent posts. The article describes the team's hopes and plans for the future...

With the kakapo breeding season now in full flight, the Department of Conservation is looking ahead to do more research into improving breeding success.
[...]
It is appropriate now to set in place new directions and goals for the next decade (2006-2016). The review team's report, due in June this year, will serve as a basis for the new plan.

Among new areas of kakapo research are work on improving genetic diversity within the 83-strong kakapo population and the relationship between rimu fruiting and triggering of breeding behaviour.

KAKAPO PARROTS - MP3 Douglas Adams lecture

Courtesy of a link found on the Douglas Adams Continuum, here's an 15-20 minute MP3 file (or RealMedia), part of Douglas Adams' Last Chance To See themed lecture. The file is hosted on Steffen's Fun Stuff page.

Jan has kindly added some information to this in the comments, which helped me link to the Fun Stuff page. Thanks Jan.

NORTHERN WHITE RHINOS - Inseminating elephant takes 2 Germans, an ultrasound and a very long wait

This article from SeattlePI.com discusses Woodland Park Zoo's artificial insemination programme, in relation to elephant and Northern White Rhino.

The basics of artificial insemination may be routine, but a glance into the elephant house at the Woodland Park Zoo yesterday evening should have been enough to convince anyone that this super-sized branch of animal husbandry poses some uniquely huge problems.
[...]
Last night in the elephant house, a scaffold was erected at the business end of Chai so Dr. Thomas Hildebrandt, from the Berlin Institute for Zoo Biology and Wildlife Research, had easy access. Hildebrandt was covered in plastic protective gear and sporting a bike helmet he had equipped with ultrasound imaging goggles.
[...]
"Reproduction technology is increasingly important for saving species," said Hildebrandt. He and his colleagues apply their skills to many animals, such as the critically endangered Northern White Rhino.

These are the same German scientists who successfully impregnated Lulu, the Northern White Rhino at Budapest Zoo. [Related Archive Post]

Dr Hermes of the Berlin Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research tells me that, to the best of his knowledge, Lulu's pregnancy is progressing normally, and she's due to deliver her baby in August 2005. Enough time to knit some rhino-sized baby-booties...

I'm trying to get in contact with someone at Budapest Zoo who'll be better able to update us on Lulu's progress, but I don't speak Hungarian.

This zoo page has a picture of Lulu, and presumably is talking about her pregnancy, but your guess is as good as mine. I've not found a working online translator for Hungarian to English.

EVENT - Rhino Survival Challenge

Friday 13 – Sunday 15 May 2005

At a secret location in the Herefordshire countryside...
The rhinos are surviving – can you?

You will be exposed to a series of physical and cerebral challenges, which will hone your powers of communication, enhance your team-working skills and test your capacity to survive the elements.

• Your team of five people will arrive at the secret destination at lunchtime on Friday 13 May, and be given instructions, which you’ll have to decode in order to find equipment for your shelter for the weekend
• On hand to help will be a team of experienced ex-SAS instructors, who are experts at survival in the field

Find out more at
Save the Rhino International - Rhino Survival Challenge

MAGAZINE - Travel Africa

The Winter 2004/2005 edition of Travel Africa (with a Mountain Gorilla on the cover), currently on sale (I bought my copy in Borders, Philadelphia) features an article on the current desperate plight of the Northern White Rhino. Every article in the issue finishes with a White Rhino footprint.