Poachers kill last four wild northern white rhinos

Terribly sad news from the TimesOnline which I think we all knew was almost inevitable. Rhino specialists have been unable to locate any of the four rhinos that were still thought to exist in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and it looks like the only remnants of the species are to be found in zoos.

The northern white rhino, Ceratotherium simum cottoni, has been struggling for suvival since the 1970s, when numbers dropped from about 500 to 15. A slight recovery was recorded in 2003 when 30 were counted but by 2006 only four were left. All of them were recorded in the Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo but war and civil unrest in the region has led to an increase in poachers.

“Worryingly, recent fieldwork has so far failed to find any presence of these four remaining rhinos,” Dr Martin Brooks, a rhino specialist with the IUCN, said. “Unless animals are found during the intensive surveys that are planned under the direction of the African Parks Foundation the subspecies may be doomed to extinction.”

Big crowd flocks to see kakapo chicks

Over the weekend, more than 5000 visitors took the rare opportunity to see the Kakapo chicks up close and personal at the site of Nelson's proposed Brook Waimarama Sanctuary. The Nelson Mail has the story.

Over the weekend six kakapo chicks were on display in the sanctuary's visitor centre to give the public a chance to see the large flightless parrots.

There are only 91 kakapo in the world, including the six chicks.

The chicks were taken from Whenua Hou/Codfish Island, which is just off Stewart Island, in April to be hand-raised by Department of Conservation staff in Nelson after the rimu fruit their mothers would usually feed them on did not ripen this year.

The chicks will be returned to the island in a week. For many people the weekend's event was not only the first time they had seen a kakapo, but also the first time they had visited the sanctuary.

See the previous post for the final opportunity to see the chicks on June 22nd before they are returned to their island home.

Kakapo chicks open for public viewing on June 22

Wildlife Extra has some exciting news that this year's Kakapo chicks will be on display to the public on June 22nd before they go back to their island sanctuary.

The Department of Conservation is offering the public a rare and special opportunity to see the newest additions to the small but increasing kakapo population.

The public viewing of the chicks will take place on June 22 at the Invercargill Workingmen's Club from 10am to 4pm. Entry is free.
[...]
while all precautions were being taken to ensure the chicks weren't affected by the event, the chicks' welfare was the number one priority. "If there are any concerns about their wellbeing, the viewing will be called off."

The last time the public were able to see kakapo chicks was in 2002 in Nelson. The event attracted more than 2000 people.

Rescued Divers Fought Off Komodo Dragons With Rocks

The rescued divers have been telling the tale of how they had to fight off curious Komodo Dragons by hurling rocks at them. There's a lot of coverage around the web about this story, including this one at the Mirror.com.

Last night - just hours after being rescued from a remote Indonesian island - they told how they:

Clung to a piece of driftwood for nine hours as they drifted more than 20 miles in shark-infested seas.

Hauled themselves exhausted on to a remote island...only to find themselves confronted by giant lizards known as komodo dragons.

Fought off one of the beasts - which theoretically could kill with its venom - by hurling rocks at it.

The BBC News page has a pretty decent article called How dangerous is a Komodo dragon?

"They will eat anything that washes up on the beach. That's why these people would have been in danger. When you have animals on the brink of starvation they will be very aggressive and humans are not very powerful.

In the wild they are very dangerous and would attack humans unprovoked. They bite their prey and their saliva has 80 strains of bacteria. They then wait two days for it to die and feast as a group on the kill

"If you have a couple of people throwing stones or sticks, that can work as long as you are only dealing with one or two [dragons]. They were in danger but they did the right thing.

And BBC Radio's Today show has an audio piece on the story.

Baby Amazonian Manatee - Q&A with rescuer

Here's an interview with Dr Miriam Marmontel, the conservation scientist who helped save Piti, the baby Amazonian Manatee recently. We covered that story back in early May.

Q: What's the story behind Piti, and how has Dr. Gregory Bossart been able to help?

A: Every year there are a number of cases of orphaned manatees, either because they became entangled in fishing nets or because the mother was killed. They may also be used as bait to attract the mothers for an easier kill. The animals that are rescued by the environmental agency (IBAMA) or donated are usually taken to one of 2 authorized facilities for rehabilitation, in or close to Manaus. However, those facilities are close to their maximum capacity, and they don’t have the policy of releasing animals after a few years (some have been in captivity for 30 years). We feel a need to release those animals as soon as possible, so that they can become part of the genetic pool.

Five bouncing baby gorillas

May's edition of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund newsletter has the exciting news that they're celebrating the birth of five new babies.

The year has started very well in terms of mountain gorilla births, with five newborns in the gorilla groups monitored by the Karisoke Research Center in Rwanda. Not only that, but three of the newborns were born to first-time mothers.

In scientific terms, we use the word “nulliparous” to denote females 8 years of age or older who have never given birth. After they have given birth, they are called “multiparous” females.

Kakapo Cottage

Kakapo Cottage left a comment on our post "Kakapo Encounter 2008 is coming which I thought was worth promoting a bit more. They say...

Looking for accommodation for the 2008 Kakapo Encounter, Ulva Island at Stewart Island, New Zealand? Check out our holiday home at Stewart Island - www.kakapocottage.co.nz. We are donating 10% of the value of Kakapo Encounter accommodation bookings to the Ulva Island Trust.

It looks like a beautiful place to stay and if I ever get the chance to visit that part of the world again, I'll be sure to check it out.