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HONG KONG, China (AFP) – A ban on selling most ivory products in Hong Kong came into effect Friday, the culmination of a three-year process to eliminate the once rampant trade in the city. Hong Kong lawmakers in 2018 backed a bill opting for a gradual phasing out of the trade — a move some conservationists at the time criticised as a loophole that could be exploited. The city has been accused of playing an […]
by Sophie DEVILLER and Pitcha DANGPRASITH Agence France-Presse PHUKET, Thailand (AFP) – After laying eggs on a deserted Thai beach, a green sea turtle dives back into the turquoise-coloured waters of the Andaman Sea — a welcome sight for biologists who say the absence of tourists spurred the marine animal’s return. The turtle’s nesting was spotted in November by scientists. In about two months, the 100 eggs will hatch and babies will slide towards the […]
by Neil SANDS Agence France-Presse WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) – A two-tonne rubber whale can take on a life of its own in the frigid shallows of a windswept New Zealand beach, particularly when a bedraggled group of would-be rescuers is trying to wrestle it into a harness. “Keep the blowhole clear… you’re too close to the tail, one swipe can do a serious injury to yourself and the whale,” an instructor yells as the […]
by Sean CHANG Agence France-Presse NANTOU COUNTY, Taiwan (AFP) – Toads are a symbol of prosperity and good fortune in Taiwan, but the unexpected discovery of an invasive species has officials and environmentalists scrambling to contain their spread. With flashlights in hand and shielded by protective gloves, dozens of volunteers from the Taiwan Amphibian Conservation Society worked through the night searching rice fields and vegetable plots for their quarry — the cane toad. There should be […]
BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AFP) – A critically endangered Sumatran baby elephant has died after losing half of its trunk in a poacher’s trap, Indonesian conservation officials said. The one-year-old calf succumbed to a severe infection, two days after it was found by villagers in Aceh Jaya and despite subsequent efforts to save its life by amputating the rest of its injured trunk. “We couldn’t save it because the injury was severe and infected,” Agus Arianto, head […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) – High levels of illegal drugs have been found in a river running through Britain’s Glastonbury music festival site, endangering a rare species of fish and other wildlife, scientists said on Tuesday. The levels of cocaine and MDMA — more commonly known as ecstasy — detected in the water were so high, experts said, they could be harming wildlife downstream in Whitelake River that runs through the festival grounds. Samples taken […]
ABUJA, Nigeria (AFP) – UNESCO on Wednesday added 20 new sites in 21 countries to its global network of biosphere reserves, the UN agency’s designation for specially protected regions. New biosphere reserves are designated each year to promote sustainable development, protect terrestrial, marine and coastal ecosystems and encourage conservation. For the first time, Lesotho, Libya and Saudi Arabia joined the list. In Lesotho, the Matseng Biosphere Reserve covers an area of 112,033 hectares in the northern […]
SKOPJE, Republic of North Macedonia (AFP) — The Lake Ohrid region, shared by North Macedonia and Albania, avoided being listed as an endangered world heritage site by UN’s culture agency UNESCO on Sunday, despite concerns about urbanisation and pollution. UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee gave the two Balkan nations two more years to implement recommendations to improve the region’s conservation and welcomed efforts undertaken so far. Albania and North Macedonia should by February 2023 submit a report […]
MANAS, India (AFP) — A dozen of the world’s smallest pigs have been released into the wild in northeastern India as part of a conservation programme to boost the population of a species once thought to have become extinct. The pygmy hog, which has the scientific name porcula salvania, lives in tall, wet grasslands and was once found along plains on the Himalayan foothills in India, Nepal and Bhutan. Its population declined in the 1960s, […]
by Susan NJANJI PRETORIA, South Africa (AFP) — South Africa on Sunday revealed plans to ban the breeding of lions in captivity for trophy hunting or for tourists to pet, advocating a more “authentic” experience for visitors. The decision was in response to recommendations contained in a government study into the controversial practice. The panel studied the rules governing the hunting, trade and keeping in captivity of lions, elephants, rhino and leopards. Environment Minister Barbara […]
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — Forty-six small whales stranded on a beach in Indonesia have died, after rescue efforts succeeded in saving three others, local officials said Friday. Starting Thursday, at least 49 short-finned pilot whales arrived at a beach on Madura Island in northern Java, authorities said in a statement. Large crowds gathered as a rescue operation was launched, with volunteers using tarpaulins or just their bare hands to try to push the pod […]
by Peter Hutchison with Francois Picard in Houston NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — A deadly winter weather system that brought record-busting cold to the southern and central United States, knocking out power for millions in oil-rich Texas, was blanketing the East Coast in snow Thursday, disrupting coronavirus vaccinations. The historic frigid blast has over the past week seen Arctic cold envelope a US heartland unfamiliar with such extremes, leaving dozens of dead in its […]
