Archive for the ‘Wolves Campaign News’ Category
We have received a new video from the EWCP with some beautiful footage of wild wolves in the Bale…
A status update on 15 Species of disappearing wild cats and canids
Dr. Claudio Sillero, Head of Conservation, Born Free Foundation
Last month I returned from Washington DC, where together with other carnivore conservationists I took part in a US Senate Briefing to discuss the importance for wildlife conservation efforts worldwide of establishing the Great Cats and Rare Canids Conservation Act. At the Briefing we launched the Fading Call of the Wild report.
First introduced in 2004, this vital piece of legislation would provide wild cats and canids the same level of conservation assistance presently supporting tigers, great apes, elephants, sea turtles and other iconic species through the Multinational Species Conservation Funds, efficiently managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The House passed the Act, thanks to the efforts of sponsoring Representative Jay Inslee and a bipartisan group of co-sponsors. But the Senate version of the bill, sponsored by Senators Joseph Lieberman, Tom Udall and Sam Brownback, still awaits a floor vote. If passed, the new Act will provide timely direct financial support and leverage to high priority efforts to protect endangered cats and canids.
Many species of wild cats and canids remain perilously close to extinction. The Fading Call of the Wild paints a bleak picture for 15 of them, including the Ethiopian Wolf – the rarest canid in the world – a species that Born Free has been working tirelessly to protect for 15 years (www.bornfree.org.uk/campaigns/wolves/wolfinaction/ewcp/). This Act will also provide support for lesser known species like Borneo’s Bay Cat, Chile’s Darwin’s fox, clouded leopard and bush dog, along with those more familiar like jaguars, African wild dogs and lions. These carnivores face habitat loss and degradation, new diseases, and poaching that fuels the global wildlife trade. While the report profiles 15 species, these threats profoundly affect each of the world’s 72 different wild cats and canids.
Each species profile in the report provides a steps toward the recovery of the species and its habitat. Through such a program, wildlife health experts could implement vaccination programs to protect endangered Ethiopian wolves from lethal rabies. Conservationists could map out and plan corridors for cheetah migration that keep them moving safely between parks and reserves. Sustainable tourism programs could be developed so that local people will see healthy populations of African wild dogs as an economic benefit. And law enforcement professionals could train international customs officers how best to intercept and report illegal shipments of jaguar and leopard skins. By providing the mechanisms to protect the populations and habitats of cats and canids, other threatened species who share the same landscapes in South America, Asia and Africa will also benefit.
Congress has a chance to act to protect these iconic species that are both vital to their ecosystem and important to many people across the globe who treasure these animals as part of their culture. I urge the Senate to pass this bill and help protect some of the rarest, most threatened and ecologically important species of cats and dogs. Their loss would be a diminution of our biological riches, our natural heritage, and our lives would be significantly and irreversibly poorer without them.
For More information:
http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/energy-a-environment/111139-the-fading-call-of-the-wild-
The report was authored by Panthera, the International Fund for Animal Welfare, and the Wildlife Conservation Society, in cooperation with the Canid and Cat Specialist Groups of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). A copy of the report can be found here.
To support Ethiopian wolf conservation visit www.bornfree.org.uk/animals/ethiopian-wolves/