Positive Wildlife News 2022

Status
Not open for further replies.
Four new MPAs in Maluku boost Indonesia’s bid to protect its seas
  • Indonesia’s Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries designated four new marine protected areas in the country’s east in January.
  • The new conservation areas are in the waters surroundsingthe islands of Tanimbar, Damer, Mdona Hiera, Lakor, Moa, Letti and the Romang in Maluku province.
  • The newly designated MPAs are home to threatened and protected species, including the green turtle, the scalloped hammerhead shark, and an abundance of coral reefs and other marine ecosystems.
  • The four new MPAs bring the Indonesian government two-thirds of the way toward its goal of ensuring “effective management” of 10% of national waters by 2030.
The Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries has designated four new marine protected areas (MPA) around a group of islands in the eastern province of Maluku.

The designation of these remote waters around the islands of Tanimbar, Damer, Mdona Hiera, Moa, Letti and Romang represents 0.4% of national waters, which is still an area larger than the U.S. state of Connecticut or almost the same size as the Mediterranean nation of Montenegro.

In terms of conservation goals, the Jan. 11 designation brings Indonesia 4% of the way toward its goal to “effectively manage” 10% of national waters by 2030.

In numbers, the goal is to designate 325,000 square kilometers (125,500 square miles) worth of MPAs, with the new Maluku additions totaling 12,559 km2 (4,849 mi2). At their last published estimate, the ministry website tallied Indonesia’s conserved waters at 241,000 km2 (93,051 mi2), roughly two-thirds of the way toward the goal. The ministry management region containing Maluku (WPP-RI 715) contains the largest percentage of conserved waters.

https://news-mongabay-com.cdn.amppr...boost-indonesias-bid-to-protect-its-seas/amp/
 
Red-tailed Phascogale make a historic return to New South Wales

They’re back! Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC), in partnership with the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service and Alice Springs Desert Park have returned locally extinct Red-tailed Phascogales to Mallee Cliffs National Park in western New South Wales this week. The return of these tree-dwelling marsupials to the state, after an absence of more than a century, marks an exciting new milestone for the partnership and conservation in New South Wales.

Red-tailed Phascogale make a historic return to NSW
 
First Iberian lynxes released into wild in Algarve

Two Iberian lynxes were released into the wild in the Algarve for the first time on Thursday afternoon.

‘Sismo’ and ‘Senegal’ (male and female) were born at the El Acebuche reproduction centre in Andalusia, Spain, and were set free in the eastern Algarve municipality of Alcoutim, the Portuguese Institute for Nature and Forest Conservation (ICNF) announced.

First Iberian lynxes released into wild in Algarve - Portugal Resident
 
South of Scotland golden eagle population reaches new heights thanks to novel research technique

Partnership news release

The pioneering South of Scotland Golden Eagle Project has become the first in the UK to successfully translocate free-flying young golden eagles (aged between 6 months and 3 years) to boost a low population of this iconic bird. These new additions bring the total number of golden eagles in the south of Scotland to around 33 – the highest number recorded here in the last three centuries.

Taking a new research approach, under licence from NatureScot, the team leading the groundbreaking charity project revealed today (World Wildlife Day - Thursday 3 March) that they had successfully caught, transported and released seven golden eagles from the Outer Hebrides. The Outer Hebrides were selected as the source to boost the south of Scotland population because these Islands host one of the highest densities of golden eagles in Europe. The birds were released almost immediately on arrival in a secret location in the southern uplands of Scotland.

South of Scotland golden eagle population reaches new heights thanks to novel research technique
 
Breeding success brings new hope for the future of Bridled Nailtail Wallaby in New South Wales

There’s fresh hope for the future of the beautiful Bridled Nailtail Wallaby, with a small but significant population of the species doubling in size after reintroduction to the Pilliga State Conservation Area in north-western NSW. It’s good news for a species which was once thought to be extinct.

The wallaby made a historic return to the forest in August 2019, when 42 Bridled Nailtail Wallabies were released into a 680-hectare feral predator-free area. The reintroduction was conducted by Australian Wildlife Conservancy in partnership with NSW National Parks and Wildlife Services, under the NSW Government’s Saving our Species program, which aims to restore locally extinct species to the Pilliga. The
Greater Bilby was released in 2018 and now co-occurs with the Bridled Nailtail Wallaby. Other species that will be reintroduced include the
Brush-tailed Bettong, Plains Mouse, Shark Bay Bandicoot and Western Quoll.

Breeding success brings new hope for the Bridled Nailtail Wallaby in NSW
 
Hope for Kenya’s mountain bongos as five released into sanctuary

Rewilding programme marks the ‘most significant step’ in ensuring the critically endangered species’ survival

Five mountain bongos have been released into a sanctuary in Kenya, a milestone in the fight for the animals’ survival with fewer than 100 left in the wild

Considered critically endangered, the chestnut-coloured mountain bongo is one of the largest forest antelopes and native to the equatorial forests of Mount Kenya, Eburu, Mau and Aberdares. IUCN predicts their numbers will probably continue to decline without direct action. A recent wildlife census in Kenya counted just 96 mountain bongos in the wild.

Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy (MKWC) and Kenya Wildlife Service and Kenya Forest Service have been leading a breeding and rewilding programme for the last 20 years.

Hope for Kenya’s mountain bongos as five released into sanctuary
 
New Protected Areas in Southern Ecuador Conserve Nearly 120,000 Acres of Key Freshwater Sources

Andes Amazon Fund celebrates the establishment of the Espíndola and Catamayo Municipal Conservation Areas in the province of Loja, Ecuador. These areas protect native forests and endemic species that add to an ecological corridor that includes Podocarpus and Yacuri National Parks. As a result, these connected ecosystems can thrive and build resilience for local communities and wildlife in response to the impacts of climate change in the region.

New Protected Areas in Southern Ecuador Conserve Nearly 120,000 Acres of Key Freshwater Sources - Andes Amazon Fund
 
Critically endangered diving petrel population soars

The Department of Conservation says diving petrel are still under threat, despite an increase in breeding numbers.

Conservationists are celebrating a bumper breeding season for the critically endangered bird - found only on Whenua Hou / Codfish Island, near Rakiura / Stewart Island.

There are now 210 of the birds, up 5 percent on previous years.

Critically endangered diving petrel population soars
 
Toanui seabirds making come back in Taranaki

A survey has found a big jump in the number of flesh-footed shearwater birds (toanui) on an island off New Plymouth.

Initial estimates suggest toanui on Motumahanga Island number between 500 and 600 pairs - a big increase on the 100 to 200 pairs that were found in a 1990 survey.

Department of Conservation principal science advisor Graeme Taylor said the results of the January survey, just released, were a pleasant surprise.

Toanui seabirds making come back in Taranaki
 
Two new protected areas announced in Orkney

Two new marine Special Protection Areas (SPAs) have been established in Orkney, in recognition of their importance to marine wildlife.

After large swathes of Scotland's seas were granted protection in 2020, two areas in Orkney were left out despite being key wildlife sites. RSPB Scotland therefore welcomed an announcement from the Scottish Government in February that these were to be recognised as SPAs, stating that such protection was needed "now more than ever as we face a nature and climate emergency".

The announcement means that any future developments and activities in the areas, named North Orkney and Scapa Flow, will need to take account of potential impacts so as not to harm the critical feeding and wintering grounds of grebes, divers and other marine birds.

Orkney is one of the UK's biggest hot-spots for breeding seabirds. In the summer, around a million seabirds nest around the archipelago. In winter, its waters are home to internationally important populations of wintering birds including Common Eider, Long-tailed Duck, Red-breasted Merganser, Red-throated and Great Northern Divers, European Shag and Slavonian Grebe.

Two new protected areas announced in Orkney - BirdGuides
 
WCS Releases 35 Cantor's soft-shelled turtles into the wild

The Wildlife Conservation Society Cambodia Programme (WCS) has said it safely released 35 Cantor's giant softshell turtle hatchlings into the wild along the Mekong River on February 17, in Kratie province’s northernmost district of Sambor.

This comes as a result of collaboration with the Fisheries Administration (FiA) and the Kratie provincial FiA cantonment, the NGO said in a statement on February 18.

WCS releases 35 Cantor's giant softshell turtles into the wild
 
Endangered green turtles are bouncing back in the Seychelles

The recovery is a result of decades of protection and monitoring.

When Jeanne Mortimer first came out to Aldabra Atoll in the Seychelles to survey endangered green turtles, there was barely any activity. She would walk the 1.2-mile stretch of beach and encounter one, maybe two, turtle tracks. It was the early 1980s, more than a decade since the island banned turtle hunting in 1968, and there was still little sign of recovery for the hard-shelled creatures.

Mortimer, known as “Madame Torti” in the Seychelles, wouldn’t see a turning point in Aldabra Atoll’s nesting turtle population until 1995. That year, Mortimer, who is now founder and chairman of the Save Our Seas Foundation’s (SIF) Turtle Action Group Seychelles, began tallying 10 to 20 tracks during her surveys of the beach—a noticeable difference from years prior. Green turtles were finally making a comeback, three decades after being freed from human exploitation.

“One thing that people have learned is protection works,” Mortimer says. “But you may need to be patient and wait for 35 years.”

https://www-popsci-com.cdn.ampproje...om/science/endangered-turtles-seychelles/?amp
 
New South Wales critically endangered plains-wanderers released after successful breeding program

Nicknamed "Goldilocks", it is a miracle these tiny, critically endangered birds have found somewhere to call home.
  • Ten critically endangered plains-wanderers have been released into the wild in NSW
  • It is hoped the Paddocks for Plains-wanderers project will boost the bird's population
  • Local Land Services have been helping bait predators in the state's south-west
Also known as plains-wanderers, 10 of the animals, which were hatched in captivity, have been released in native grassland near Hay, in NSW's south-west.

https://amp-abc-net-au.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/amp.abc.net.au/article/100925912
 
New initiative to expand and strengthen the network of marine protected areas in Libya launched last week

IUCN-Med, SPA/RAC and WWF will work in close collaboration with the Libyan Ministry of the Environment to help develop a robust network of marine protected areas. During last week’s kick-off event, Dr. Ibrahim Al-Arabi Mounir, Minister of Environment, welcomed the project as a key step to establish a legal framework for MPAs and to develop management plans for three sites (El Kouf, Farwa and Ain Al Ghazala). This will be one of the seven projects led by UNEP/MAP (Barcelona Convention Secretariat) and funded by the Global Environment Facility as a part of the Med Programme initiative.

New initiative to expand and strengthen the network of marine protected areas in Libya launched last week
 
WWF creates 100,000 km2 safe haven for dugongs in northern Great Barrier Reef

The World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia has effectively created a 100,000 square kilometre refuge where dugongs, inshore dolphins, and turtles can be free from commercial gill nets.

It stretches from Cape Flattery through to the Torres Strait in the northern Great Barrier Reef, an area larger in size than Tasmania.


WWF creates 100,000 km2 safe haven for dugongs in northern Great Barrier Reef
 
Last edited:
Denver transfers 33 bison to tribal nations in an effort to bolster and conserve herds

On a snowy, blustery March morning, Denver Parks and Recreation (DPR) donated 17 bison yearlings to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes in Oklahoma.

The bison had been staying at two of the Denver Mountain Parks: Genesee Park in Golden and Daniels Park in Douglas County.

“This is what we should’ve been doing for decades as owners and as stewards of these wonderful animals: returning them, as we have nurtured them and raised them, but returning them back to our Indigenous leaders of this land, the caretakers of this land,” said Denver Mayor Michael Hancock, who spoke at the March 21 event at Genesee Park.

According to DPR, this year is the first time in “recent history” that Denver is not holding a bison auction; that tradition ended last year when the department said it would instead “select tribes across the country that will accept the bison to build and enhance conservation herds on tribal lands.”

In total, Denver is transferring 33 bison this year: 15 to the Northern Arapaho Tribe in Wyoming; 17 to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes in Oklahoma (which happened Monday); and one to the Tall Bull Memorial Council in Colorado.

Denver transfers 33 bison to tribal nations in an effort to bolster and conserve herds
 
Connecticut conserves their largest property within the Highlands Conservation Act Grant Program

When you set foot on Beech Hill in Goshen, Connecticut, you sense you’re someplace special. Birdsong wafts from the deep forest. A dirt road bisects a corn field and meanders into the distance, encouraging discovery. This is the welcoming sight a group of state, federal, municipal and nonprofit partners experienced last September during a tour of the site.

Bob Valentine, first selectman of the Town of Goshen, is one of those partners. Valentine grew up coming to Beech Hill. Standing next to a cold-water brook where he used to fish as a teenager, he shared, “This is an amazing piece of property. As you get down here, you can hear the birds and the wind, and very little civilization, which is a really great thing about this whole area.” That’s why Valentine and others are dedicated to conserving this place for future generations.

Connecticut conserves their largest property within the Highlands Conservation Act Grant Program | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
 
Two new marine parks will be established off Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands in the Indian Ocean.

Two new marine parks will be established off Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands in the Indian Ocean.

Key points:
  • The islands are home to many species found nowhere else on Earth
  • The announcement follows months of consultation with locals
  • Money for the parks was set aside in the last federal budget
The federal government confirmed the move after months of consultation with locals and an earlier $5.4 million commitment.

The two areas — which are more than 2,000 kilometres off the coast of Western Australia — are home to many species found nowhere else on Earth.

The Cocos (Keeling) Island's pristine environment is encircled by turquoise lagoons, while Christmas Island is the tip of a 5,000-metre submarine volcano.

https://amp-abc-net-au.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/amp.abc.net.au/article/100924776
 
Lebanon’s Shouf is a rare restoration success story
  • The Shouf Biosphere Reserve is a living laboratory experimenting with degraded ecosystem recovery in ways that also boost the well-being of the human communities living there.
  • Previous conservation efforts in the area involved using land mines and armed guards to stem illegal logging and reduce fire risk.
  • Today, the reserve builds local skills and creates jobs in a bid to help the local community through Lebanon’s severe economic crisis.
  • Managers are also employing adaptive techniques to build resilience in this climate change-hit landscape.
Late afternoon light falls across Talal Riman’s weathered face as he stands under the ancient cedars he’s tended for almost three decades in Lebanon’s Shouf Biosphere Reserve (SBR). Riman used to defend these trees against would-be loggers and human-caused forest fires with a pump-action shotgun. Now, the SBR team protects what’s left of Lebanon’s iconic cedars and the surrounding landscape with community engagement and a new generation of sustainability-savvy conservationists.

From land mines to lifelines, Lebanon’s Shouf is a rare restoration success story
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top