Tigers Facing Extinction: November summit holds hope for their future

2010 is the year of the tiger according to the Chinese calendar.

Probably no animal on dry land impresses me more than the tiger. It is a magnificent combination of strength, grace, and color. I can almost understand the allure felt by those who delve in ancient homeopathic medicine; the power of this great animal somehow being transferred to us mere mortals. But it is that very demand which fuels poaching and, combined with encroachment on their natural habitat, has reduced the number of tigers in the wild to a paltry estimated population of 3,200.

I have written about their precarious predicament before and I bring it up again because of one significant ray of hope. In November, a meeting will be held in St. Petersburg, Russia with representatives of 13 nations - primarily those that have wild tigers within their borders - to discuss how to better enforce and protect the remaining population and what can be done in the long term to improve their numbers and ensure their survival.

Over the past century, the number of wild tigers have declined by a staggering 97%. If nothing can be achieved at next month's meeting, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the tiger could become extinct in the wild within 12 years.

"The worse scenario is that the tiger could be gone when the next year of the tiger comes along, in 12 years," said Ola Jennersten, of WWF Sweden.

But another factor that threatens the wild tiger is the demand for tiger products obtained from captive tigers and how the current economy is pushing more captive tiger owners to sell their animals, no questions asked, both of which keep the demand high for wild tigers.

In fact, according to the WWF, there are more captive tigers in the United States alone, than in all of the wild. An estimated 5,000 tigers are held in the U.S. - and, unfortunately, not just in regulated zoos and animal parks, but in private compounds that are far from healthy and humane for the animals.



The WWF is pushing for stricter regulation and better enforcement regarding captive tigers in the U.S. and is conducting a campaign to get Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to attend the November Tiger Summit to ensure that the U.S. plays an active role in preserving and protecting tigers, both wild and those within the nation's borders. Concerned U.S. citizens can visit the WWF website or click here to become part of the campaign.

For the first time in a long time, there could be a reason to feel encouraged. "Despite the gloomy figures, the situation is more hopeful than ever," Jennersten said.

When I was a child, my favorite stuffed animal - my security blanket as it were - was a small tiger. While I would probably be seen as potential prey by a real tiger today, there is that spot in my heart that hopes to give back to the tiger some of the security it once gave me. That's a trade in animals I could live with.

Read about possible tiger extinction in NPR.
Read about captive tigers in the U.S.

Green Sea Turtles: coastal foraging puts endangered turtle at risk

Perusing the other ocean conservation blogs, I came across an interesting post written by Jesse Senko, marine researcher and seafood consultant for the Blue Ocean Institute - an ocean conservation non-profit headed by Dr. Carl Safina. Jesse writes of the challenges faced by green sea turtles as they forage through coastal areas. While tagging of sea turtles has produced important data regarding their long distance movements, not much is known about their shorter coastal movements, which actually constitutes the greatest part of their activity.

Although protected by law in Baja, Mexico, the green sea turtles are subjected to lax enforcement and protection and many turtles are lost to poachers or drowning in fishing nets. The turtles' dilemma in Baja reminded me of the supposedly protected white sharks, the juveniles of which can often be found in local Baja fish markets.

Daily movements of green sea turtles

Large marine vertebrates, such as sea turtles, are particularly vulnerable to human impacts due to their long lifespans, late maturity, slow reproductive rates, and extended migrations. Like most large marine vertebrates, sea turtles play key ecological roles in their environment when they are abundant. Green sea turtles are especially important in coastal areas because their grazing behavior significantly reduces nutrient cycling times in seagrass pastures.

In Baja California, Mexico, green sea turtles are protected by law, but lack of enforcement, coupled with drowning in fishing nets and illegal poaching has led these turtles to the brink of extinction. The majority of green turtles that are killed in Baja California are juveniles inhabiting coastal foraging areas; thus, understanding their movements and habitat use in this environment is a priority for conservation efforts. Nevertheless, while researchers have tracked the long-term movements of mainly nesting sea turtles, there is very little known about the short-term movements of green turtles in coastal foraging areas. Understanding this aspect of their biology is particularly important because green turtles spend the majority of their lives in these environments where they come in direct contact with fishing nets and poachers who often sell their meat on the black market.

Above: Jesse Senko (author) holding a green turtle before it is released

Recently, a team of biological scientists set out to better understand green sea turtle fine scale daily movements in a coastal foraging area along the Pacific Ocean in Baja California, Mexico. They developed a novel tracking device to conduct their study. The tracking tag consisted of a buoy that housed a GPS logger to record turtle movements and a VHF transmitter to locate the tracking tag. The researchers tethered the buoy to six green sea turtles. They found that green turtles were active throughout 24-hour periods while moving large distances over surprisingly short time periods. “We were surprised to see how far some of the turtles moved over temporal scales as short as one or two days. We had some turtles that moved total distances as far as 29 kilometers (18 miles) and occupied areas as large as 1,575 hectares (6 square miles) in a single 24-hour period”, said Senko, the study’s lead author.

The researchers also found that turtles were active throughout day, night, and crepuscular (dawn and dusk) periods of activity. “These results indicate that turtles were active throughout 24-hour periods, and did not show preferences for certain periods of the diel cycle (one 24-hour period). Given our findings that turtles moved large distances over short time periods and were active throughout 24-hour periods, conservation strategies intended to protect this endangered species may ideally need to encompass the entire coastal foraging area rather than focus on a few high use zones”, added Senko.

Above: Tracking a turtle

The full study in Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology can be found online at: http://wallacejnichols.org/wallacejnichols/Research/Entries/2010/9/2_JEMBE__Movements_of_green_turtles_in_Baja_files/*Senko_JEMBE_2010.pdf

Satellites and Sniffer Dogs: conservation groups support Galapagos efforts to curb poaching

While generating positive public opinion for shark conservation is an important goal, it is also a slow process. And while it builds over time, sharks continue to be slaughtered in horrifying numbers. Therefore, the proactive steps - the moves that are less of a reaction to the situation but rather are strategic steps forward - are needed probably to a greater degree.

WildAid, Conservation International, and other groups, working in cooperation with the Ecuadorean government and the Galapagos National Park Service, have been supporting the efforts of ranger managing the Galapagos Marine Reserve with the use of both technology and outright gumshoe detective work. One of the greatest issues facing the Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR) is poaching of tuna, sharks, and even sea cucumbers - all to meet the ever-demanding Asian markets.

The GMR utilizes a high-tech satellite-based tracking system to keep tabs on fishing boats that are periodically allowed to pass through the reserve. The Vessel Monitoring System, or VMS, can detect whether a boat is proceeding at speed or whether it is changing speed, dillydallying and a clear sign that illegal fishing may be taking place. A boat is then dispatched to investigate.

Just like in the drug world, smugglers often try to hide their illegal catches. Wrapped in foil, shark fins, sea cucumbers, and other caught species are less likely to give off a telltale scent. Unless you are a trained sniffer dog from the K-9 Environmental Police Unit of Galapagos' Santa Cruz island. The K-9 unit - supported by WildAid, Sea Shepherd, and Conservation International - has been responsible for some significant "busts" of shark fins and other illegally fisher species.

According to WildAid's director, Peter Knights, "Marine reserves are the last great hope to save fish stocks. Marine enforcement is always difficult due to the distances involved and cost of marine operations, so illegal fishing has been an almost risk free crime. But tools like VMS can provide much better surveillance and the sniffer dogs can prove to be a great deterrent as well as assist in detection of smugglers. The sooner we can deploy these tools to more marine reserves the sooner we can secure the world's dwindling fish stocks."

Click here to read more about the Galapagos VMS and K-9 Unit.

Galapagos Islands: WildAid focuses on conservation results

There are places throughout the world that can serve as both a unique oasis of ecological development and a microcosm of the world as a whole. The Galapagos Islands are an archipelago of volcanic islands off the coast of Ecuador that fit that description to a tee. First brought to worldwide attention by Charles Darwin's studies during his 1835 expedition, the islands have been a source of fascination with scientists and, more recently, tourists.

The islands' uniqueness is a result of their isolation, producing endemic species and acting as a perfect laboratory for the study of natural development and the relationships that intertwine to produce healthy marine and terrestrial ecosystems. The islands are known for their marine iguanas, Galapagos tortoises, and several species of birds - including the only tropical penguin, the Galapagos penguin - just to name a few.

To preserve some of that uniqueness, the Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR) was established in in 1986, covering over 70,000 square miles of surrounding ocean, one of the largest marine reserves in the world.

However, the more troubling and challenging side for the Galapagos is the islands' role as a microcosm of the world: an ecosystem threatened with the imprint of man. From a growing island population and tourism industry to invasive plant and animal species to illegal fishing within the reserve (often for sharks or sea cucumbers to satisfy a demanding Asian market), the Galapagos Islands are besieged from all directions. Island agencies, struggling with limited resources, must turn to outside conservation organizations for support.

One such organization that has taken a special interest in the Galapagos Islands is WildAid, based in San Francisco. Often working in conjunction with other conservation groups, WildAid has been closely involved in the monitoring of fishing boat activity, finding illegal fishing for shark fins and sea cucumbers taking place under the guise of boats supposedly only passing through the GMR. Last year, the ability to monitor boat activity was improved with the installation of a satellite-based vessel monitoring system. WildAid was also instrumental in bringing sniffer dogs to the islands several years ago, trained to smell not only drugs but shark fins and sea cucumbers.

But while enforcement is an important part of conservation, it is equally important to tackle the root, or roots, of the problem. And in that regard, WildAid has worked with several agencies to help island locals with changing their personal economies away from poaching and abusing their natural resources, assisting them with building more sustainable activities. WildAid's efforts towards alternative incomes garnered the organization the UNDP Equator Prize in 2007.

Realizing the impact of the online world, WildAid has worked in conjunction with Good Egg Studios to develop Elf Island Virtual World, where kids of all ages can participate in interactive online game play to track and protect threatened sharks of the Galapagos Islands, thereby learning what is being done and what they can do to preserve these endangered species. The game company merged with Xeko.com recently, expanding their nature and conservation slate of online gaming.

There are other organizations like WildAid, ones that walk the talk, that provide tangible results and are truly making a difference. When you consider showing your support for any conservation organization, understand that they are all well-intentioned but in the final analysis there must something solid backing them up - good words supported by good deeds.

Biodiversity Yin-Yang: sobering UN report and more tigers in India

Yin-Yang news about biodiversity: the United Nation's Convention on Biological Diversity recently released its third Global Biodiveristy Outlook report and the results were not good. Eight years ago, targets were set to improve both plant and animal biodiversity and not only were those targets not met, but the report determined that the rate of extinction of plant and animal life is happening 1000 times faster than expected.

The report examines global biodiversity which includes ecosystems such as coral reefs, tropical rainforests, and other ecosystems in addition to specific threatened plant and animal life.

But on a more positive note and speaking of threatened animal life, a recent field study of tigers in the Kaziranga National park in northeast India revealed the largest concentration of these highly endangered cats. Using camera traps, the study, conducted in the first quarter of 2009, photographed tigers at a rate of 32 per 100 sq. km - that's compared to the rate of 3-12 tigers found throughout India's reserve parks and nearly twice that of the previous record of 19.6 tigers found in another reserve.

The success of the tiger population in this one reserve is being attributed to the reserve's grassland features and available food sources like deer and wild boar. Hopefully, the reserve's ability to resist poaching is also playing a role. Unfortunately, tigers are illegally hunted for their hides and, in particular, for their genitals - a homeopathic freeze-dried aphrodisiac that commands a high price in many Asian countries.

Read about the biodiversity report in the Guardian.co.uk.
Read about the tiger study (with pictures) in the BBC Earth News.

Tigers: still threatened but international efforts are at work

It has been some time since I posted any news updates on Tigers. These beautiful cats are emblematic of the problem of poaching and the illegal trade in endangered species. While their habitat has been encroached upon through development or deforestation, illegal hunting seems to be the biggest threat to their existence. And the scarcer they become, the more valuable and tempting they are to the poacher.

Their current numbers across their entire range from Nepal to Malaysia is estimated at only 3,000. By contrast, in the 1950s there were 3,000 in the Malaysian Peninsula alone (a population that has now been reduced to around 500). While a complete tiger skin has value in the black market, of particular value are the male genitalia - freeze-dried and sold as an aphrodisiac in Asian markets.

Organizations like the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and WildAid put a lot of their resources towards working with governments to clamp down on poaching and the illegal trade. Here is a video of a recent rescue in Malaysia of a young tiger caught in a poacher's wire snare. The tiger is being cared for at the local zoo and veterinarians hopefully will be able to save its leg. Read more.



This is an issue that requires action on a governmental and international level for more resources and better enforcement. Recently, over 250 scientists, experts, and government delegates convened in Nepal to discuss the situation and make recommendations. The Kathmandu Global Tiger Workshop cited the need for greater protection, support of a tiger resolution with CITES, and a review of development projects that could impact the tiger's habitat.

“These are a good start but the momentum from Kathmandu needs to be carried forward all the way to the Tiger Summit during the Year of the Tiger 2010 and beyond,” said Mike Baltzer, head of WWF’s Tiger Initiative. “The tiger range countries are clearly committed to saving their wild tigers and the world needs to extend unstinting support to this mission because once tigers are gone, they’re gone forever.” Excerpt from a WWF press release.

Most of you are probably not shopping for a tiger skin rug or some frozen tiger penis to spark up your romance. What you can do is support the efforts of groups like World Wildlife Fund or WildAid who are keeping the issue alive with governments and international organizations while also addressing the issue with local citizenry and the populations where the demand for ancient homeopathic medicines still flourish.

Sea Turtles: many factors adding to their risk

All of the ocean's sea turtles exist today under some level of endangered or threatened status due to years of hunting in the past for their meat and shells. And though laws exist for their protection, they are still severely impacted by illegal poaching for their eggs and the turtles themselves, in addition to the number of turtles lost in commercial fishing nets.

Steps are being taken to protect sea turtles and ongoing research continues to investigate their living behaviors, but populations are still in critical decline and many species face an unknown future.

Here's some info on one particular species: the large, impressive Loggerhead Turtle.

According to a report by the National Marine Fisheries Service on the status of the loggerhead turtle which is listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, the turtle's worldwide population is still very much at risk of further declines. While a few areas in the world have shown some improvement at nesting beaches, most areas at at risk of further decline. In particular, the Northeast, Northwest and South Atlantic Ocean; the Mediterranean, and the North Indian Ocean.

Migratory patterns of loggerhead hatchlings are being studied as these migrations can be critical in determining risk exposure for turtles, in addition to finding correlations between nesting site and other more distant populations. Studies have shown that loggerhead turtles can travel great distances, making transoceanic migrations, possibly as far away as from the Pacific to the Atlantic. Hatchlings from South Pacific nesting sites, like Australia, have been recorded along the Peruvian coast, where no nesting sites exist.

It's not just poachers or natural predators that threaten eggs and hatchlings at nesting sites. When the subject of coastal development is brought up, many often think of construction that brings about pollution. While this is an issue, another coastal development action that threatens loggerhead and green turtles is "artificial beach nourishment." This a somewhat fancy term for beach re-shaping or just plain moving sand. Either to replace sand due to or to act as a deterrent to erosion, sand is moved in and beaches are reshaped. When this occurs in areas that are known turtle nesting sites, the re-sculpturing of the beach slope sometimes makes it difficult if not impossible for the female sea turtle to properly lay its eggs, particularly for the larger loggerhead turtle.

In addition to turtle conservation campaigns being initiated by major NGOs like Oceana, WildAid, and Ocean Conservancy , there are turtle specific organization, like the Sea Turtle Restoration Project, that are worth looking into.

Dealing In Endangered Species: slitting our own throats

What you see in the picture above are not wild cats in a cage, but the severed heads or pelts of cheetahs, ocelots and other rare and endangered cats - all confiscated and in storage in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services' main storage facility in Colorado. It is a sobering place, a bold reminder of man's greed and perverted sense of dominion over animals - perverted because as we threatened our natural resources, we threaten ourselves.

The worldwide trade in exotic and endangered animals is as important an issue as global warming or pollution/commercial development as to its worldwide impact on species. In 1973, the U.S. Endangered Species Act was passed and two years later the international Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) was ratified but while these laws and governing bodies have done much to regulate, enforce, and protect endangered species, the slaughter continues.

And why? Well, the dilemma with many endangered species is that, to the poacher, the value increases as the more endangered it becomes and in impoverished areas where much of the illegal poaching takes place, the temptation to put food on their table is too great.

Terry Grosz, former regional director of enforcement for the Fish and Wildlife Service explains, "Given the poverty and corruption that exist in other parts of the world, there will always be pressure to resort to the illegal wildlife trade. People have to eat. When people are hungry, this is what they do."

But what supports the market for these products? There is a market based on greed and status. Do we really need a tiger head or a set of white shark jaws above our mantle? Or a stuffed gorilla hand to use as an ashtray? Or how about a caiman, standing on hind legs and holding a silver tray like some reptilian butler? Man's superiority? Only in his capacity for evil.

Another pervasive motivation that drives the market is the cultural history in ancient homeopathic medicine. Rhino horns, tiger penis (freeze-dried for your convenience), black bear gallbladder bile, and many more - all for everything from libido to hangovers and more, and at times more challenging to address than the status souvenir buyer.

But it must be addressed. Scientists have been making estimates of as much 15% to over 30% of the planet's animal and plant species could be bound for extinction by 2050. Naturalist E.O. Wilson says we may be heading to a new epoch - the current Age of Mammals, or Cenozoic Period, would be followed by the Eremozoic Period, a Greek prefix denoting loneliness.

Support organizations that are working towards curtailing the illegal killing and trading of exotic and endangered animals: CITES, WildAid, Center for Biological Diversity, and there's many more. They need your help . . . and so do the plants and animals of Earth.

"Wildlife dies without a sound," says Grosz. "We're the only guys who can give them a voice." Join them.

Thanks to the Los Angeles Times.

Saving Our Predator Cats: the Amur Leopard

Many of you are probably familiar with the critical need for conservation and protection of tigers (see previous posting). These great cats have been subject to relentless hunting/poaching and their numbers are in sharp decline.

But there are other cats that have been subject to poaching as well to meet the black market demand for furs. And one is the Amur Leopard found in the northern regions of Russia, China, and North Korea. A sub-species of the leopard more commonly found in Africa, the Amur Leopard has been listed on the IUCN 2000 Red List of Threatened Species as "critically endangered" and CITES has also listed it as endangered.

The good news is that some positive steps are being taken. In 1998, Russia adopted a conservation strategy that focuses on curbing poaching and the trafficking of leopard products, in addition to rebuilding dwindling populations of the leopards' primary food sources. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has been assisting the Russian government in monitoring the results of the strategy.

An amazing animal, with legs longer than the typical leopard for walking in snow, this cat is capable of leaping 19 feet horizontally and 9 feet vertically! The WWF has been an international leader in the conservation and protection of nature's feline predators - like many of our other predators, an important component to a healthy and balanced ecosystem.

Tigers: another priceless predator that needs our help

Stepping on to dry land for a moment, there are other predators besides sharks that are being threatened. Tigers are certainly in that category - there are less than 5,000 tigers left in the wild. Much like the shark fishing/finning industry, there is a clandestine black market industry that feeds an Asian market for tiger parts - a market with a long cultural history, but one that can be changed with continued vigilance.

The future of the tiger rests in the efforts of governments to prohibit and enforce against illegal poaching, for international cooperation in curtailing illegal trafficking, and for conservation organizations to continue their efforts to educate the public to curtail demand. One of the great dilemmas faced by many endangered animals like tigers, mountain gorillas, and sharks is that as their numbers become more scarce their black market value increases, making the poacher more embolden and willing to defy the law.

WildAid is one of the leading organizations dedicated to ending the trade in endangered animals. They have an excellent video that covers the issue regarding tigers. Take a look.

Tigers, like sharks, are both beautiful predators and vital to the health of the ecosystems within which they live. Support WildAid's efforts to curb the tiger trade.