Rijksuniversiteit Groningen voert ook experimenten uit op proefdieren - Anti Dierproeven Coalitie wil einde aan deze proeven binnen de RUG

Apenleed in Groningen

Verleden tijd of...?

31-03-2009 Anti Dierproeven Coalitie


De afgelopen jaren zijn diverse publicaties verschenen van onderzoekers verbonden aan de Rijksuniversiteit Groningen (RUG) en het Universitair Medisch Centrum Groningen (UMCG) waaruit blijkt dat in het Hoge Noorden van Nederland ook apen het slachtoffer geweest zijn van akelige experimenten.

Zo verscheen er vorig jaar nog een onderzoeksrapport gepubliceerd namens het departement Anatomie en Embyrologie (inderdaad de afdeling waar ook poezen systematisch gepijnigd worden) waarin wordt beschreven hoe een resusaapje werd vastgezet in een speciaal ontwikkelde ‘primatenstoel’ en vervolgens hallucinogene middelen ingespoten kreeg. Vier jaar eerder (2004) werd al verslag gedaan van vergelijkbare experimenten; toen waren twee makaakaapjes de lijdende voorwerpen.

Vragen van de Anti Dierproeven Coalitie over deze experimenten bleven lange tijd onbeantwoord. Uiteindelijk kwam de afdeling Communicatie met onderstaande verklaring:

"De betreffende studies hebben plaatsgevonden in de periode 2000 tot en met 2003. De door u genoemde data van 2004 en 2008 betreffen de publicatiedata van de artikelen waarin de studies worden beschreven. Na 2003 hebben geen PET-studies met apen in Groningen plaatsgevonden. Bij de studies waren in totaal drie apen betrokken. De betrokken apen waren afkomstig uit een dierenfaciliteit buiten Groningen en werden voor het vervaardigen van de scans onder supervisie van biotechnici naar Groningen vervoerd. Na afloop werden zij direct weer overgebracht naar de faciliteit waarvan ze afkomstig waren.

Als vergunninghouder voor proefdieronderzoek betrachten wij uiterste terughoudendheid met wetenschappelijke studies met apen, ten gunste van haalbare en betrouwbare dierproefvrije onderzoeksmethoden. In Groningen zijn geen huisvestingsmogelijkheden voor apen."

De RUG bevestigt dus dat er onderzoek op apen heeft plaatsgevonden in Groningen, zij het enkele jaren eerder. Zeer opmerkelijk in dat verband is dat de jaarlijkse rapportages van de Voedsel en Waren Autoriteit (VWA), die uitkomen onder de naam Zo Doende, geen melding maken van apengebruik aan de RUG tussen 2000 en 2007. Een vraag hierover aan de VWA blijft vooralsnog zonder antwoord.

Deze schimmige gang van zaken valt nu niet bepaald te rijmen met de veelvuldig geclaimde ‘openheid inzake dierproeven’. De RUG zelf geeft voorts geen uitsluitsel over haar eventuele plannen in de toekomst met betrekking tot het gebruik van apen.

De Anti Dierproeven Coalitie eist duidelijkheid en openheid van de RUG en andere proefdierinstellingen over het ‘gebruik’ van dieren. Wij zullen de situatie in Groningen vanzelfsprekend nauwlettend in de gaten houden en zaken die mogelijk verborgen gehouden worden aan het licht brengen.

(Bron: http://www.stopdierproeven.org/)

Turkmenistan vangt vier luipaarden in kader WWF-project voor de Russische Kaukasus

Turkmenistan to send leopards to Russia's Caucasus

31-03-2009 RIA Novosti, Russia


MOSCOW, March 31 (RIA Novosti) - Turkmenistan has started catching leopards to help Russia restore its endangered population of the big cats in the Caucasus, the World Wildlife Fund said on Tuesday.

Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov earlier told Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin that his country would send four of the animals to Russia. One has already been caught.

Leopards used to live throughout the Caucasus region, but largely disappeared in the 1960s due to loss of habitat through urban expansion. Only a few leopards now inhabit the area. However, larger numbers can be still found in the Central Asian region, including Turkmenistan.

"The leopard avoids humans and is known for being able to hide even on open territory. It is not aggressive, and runs away from people," the coordinator for WWF projects in Turkmenistan, Viktor Lukarevsky said.
The return of the leopard to the Caucasus is the first major WWF-Russia conservation project sponsored by Russian businesses.

(Bron: http://en.rian.ru/)

Alaska wil bedreigde 'Steller eiders' (duikeenden) voor uitsterven behoeden door jachtbeperkingen

Alaska considers hunt rules to protect rare bird

31-03-2009 By DAN JOLING, The Associated Press


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A diminutive sea duck with a white head and a blue wing could bring restrictions to one of the last virtually unregulated hunting grounds in America.

Inupiat Eskimos on Alaska's northern coast for centuries have welcomed the spring return of waterfowl as a source of fresh meat after eight months of winter. They have been free to take almost whatever they want, whenever they want, without bag limits.

That could change this year. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services has proposed rules for subsistence hunting to protect Steller's eiders, a threatened species whose breeding numbers in the United States have dropped to an estimated 500 birds.

Steller's eiders are not sought by Inupiat hunters for meat, but they flock with the white-fronted geese, black brant and king and common eiders prized by hunters. Despite years of trying to educate hunters, federal officials found 27 dead Steller's eiders last year, including 20 that biologists confirmed had been shot. In one particularly disturbing discovery, a dead female Steller's eider was piled with carcasses of six juveniles outside a hunting blind.

This 2008 photo provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service shows a female Steller's eider and six juveniles found outside a hunting blind near Barrow, Alaska. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services has proposed rules for subsistence hunting to protect Steller's eiders, a threatened species whose breeding numbers in the United States have dropped to an estimated 500 birds. (AP Photo/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

Proposed rules would shorten hunting hours, ban shooting near roads, increase law enforcement presence, and set up a potential draconian measure: The agency's Alaska regional director could close all subsistence hunting to protect Steller's eiders.
The proposals are not sitting well with people who fought in court and Congress to retain rights to their land and the animals living on it.

"Part of subsistence is not just going out and killing your food. It's the freedom of going and getting the food from your land," said Barrett Ristroph, an attorney for the North Slope Borough. "Once someone comes in and says, 'You have to do this, you have to do that,' it kind of takes away what subsistence is all about."

The dispute pits people trying to preserve a unique species against people equally passionate about preserving a way of life.

There are four species of eiders on the North Slope. Steller's are the smallest, averaging 17-18 inches long.
The sea ducks were once common on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta but breeding pairs for decades have not been seen anywhere except the Arctic Coastal Plain, with a concentration near Barrow, America's northernmost community. After breeding, Alaska birds and eastern Russia birds migrate to southwest Alaska.
Besides their distinctive plumage, Steller's eiders stand out for their breeding habits: They don't breed every year and appear to assess environmental conditions before deciding whether to lay eggs. Between 1992 and 2008, they nested in roughly half those years, said USFWS biologist Ted Swem, the endangered species branch chief for northern Alaska.

The new rules would set hunting hours to a half-hour before sunset until sundown — a seemingly silly requirement in the land of midnight sun, except that some Steller's eiders killed last year were shot in August, a month when the sun finally dips below the horizon. Sticking to daylight hours, federal officials hope, will allow hunters to distinguish between a Steller's eider and other birds.
The rules would also create a no-hunting buffer zone along roads outside Barrow: The buffer would have protected 91 percent of Steller's eiders nests documented in 2008.

Federal law enforcement could inspect hunters' bags for Steller's eiders and could fine them $400 plus $50 per bird.
Federal agents are sensitive to the resentment toward officers patrolling the hunting grounds. Both sides remember what happened nearly 50 years ago in a clash between western and indigenous interests.

A Washington official with the federal Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife decided to enforce provisions of a 1916 treaty with Canada that banned hunting from March through August and made no provision for subsistence hunting.

Federal game wardens in May 1961 arrested and confiscated the gun of a Barrow state representative, John Nusunginya, when he shot a couple of spring geese. A few days later, 138 hunters showed up with ducks in their hands at the warden's door and demanded to be arrested.
The Barrow "Duck-In" protest became a galvanizing moment for Alaska's indigenous people asserting their rights. They received national sympathy and federal officials eventually dropped charges and backed down from halting a hunt that had negligible effect on waterfowl populations.

This undated photo provided by the Alaska SeaLife Center shows male Steller's eiders in breeding plumage.

Ristroph, the assistant North Slope Borough attorney, said the objections to the proposed rules start with the science behind them: Steller's eiders have always been a minor species on the North Slope and their numbers fluctuate up and down.

"As far as the eiders go, traditional knowledge indicates that there were never very many Steller's eiders on the North Slope," she said. And other factors could be to blame, like predators, pollution or climate change.
She said 56 percent of the households in Barrow get at least half their food through subsistence. Without it, they will have to travel farther or buy grocery store food, which would mean a less healthful diets.

Stan Pruszenski, special agent in charge for the USFWS's Office of Law Enforcement, said the agency's attempts to phase in enforcement has been pushed forward by the circumstances of the Steller's eider.
"Oftentimes the regulations aren't viewed as necessary in that rural folks believe they have a history of self-regulation and they know how to conserve and protect wildlife," Pruszenski said. "In this particular instance, with eiders being threatened, the service is attempting to institute some additional conservation measures."

Swem said Steller's eiders in Russia are not considered threatened but losing the U.S. population would be significant.
"It's a fascinating bird with a unique and fascinating breeding ecology," he said. "To lose it as a breeding bird, to lose it as a member of the breeding avifauna of Alaska, to me would signal a loss. That would be a change for the worse."

On the Net:
Link to proposed 2009 rules: http://alaska.fws.gov/ambcc/news.htm

(Bron & foto's: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g9TBCRxrEgpz3dM30E0n9wdQvurQD978THF80)

Olifanten zijn belangrijk in verkiezingsstrijd India - Spandoek bewoners Ranchi: 'Redt ons van olifanten en u krijgt onze stem'

Elephants loom large as election issue

31-03-2009 Article from: Reuters, From correspondents in Ranchi, India, Courier Mail, Australia


ALONG with Maoist rebels, rampaging elephants have become a key voter issue in eastern India ahead of the upcoming general election as political parties promise to save villagers from the animals.

Villagers have put up banners saying, "save us from elephants and get our votes," and "help us and we will help you", in Ranchi city, the capital of eastern Jharkhand state, and other towns.
A shrinking habitat has forced elephants to raid farmlands and villagers have been encroaching upon forest land to build homes, increasing the man-animal conflict in the state, which has also been hit by Maoist militancy.

"We can assure you that we will make serious efforts to end the problem of elephants by chalking out a national policy," said Alok Dubey, a local leader of India's ruling Congress party.

Between 60 to 100 people are trampled to death every year in Jharkhand by elephants, which have also destroyed crops and homes, officials said.
Villagers say they can seek the help of police to tackle Maoist rebels, but elephants are more dangerous.
"This year, our vote will go only to those candidates who will helping in getting rid of elephants," said Gandura Mahato, a villager.

In the last four years, villagers have also killed 40 elephants, officials say, apart from using chillies and fire crackers to keep the animals away. Some have recruited camels, saying the beasts' stink was enough to keep elephants at bay.

"Elephants and Maoists rebels are the two major problems in Jharkhand," said Sukhdeo Singh, a forest department official.

India's main opposition Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) activists are also going to villages, assuring help from elephants.
"We will give serious thought to find a solution to the problem when we are in power," said Sunil Soren, a BJP candidate from the Dumka parliamentary constituency, as he toured villages.

(Bron: http://www.news.com.au/couriermail)

Schapenboer Namibië laat 3.200 schapen 120 kilometer lopen naar veiling in Mariental - Transportkosten en stress onder dieren waren aanleiding reis

3 200 Sheep Make 120-km Trek to Auction

31-03-2009 by Staff Reporter, New Era, Namibia


WINDHOEK – Agra was part of another special auction, with a story that sounds like it comes from olden days. More than 3 000 Karakul sheep, a record number for a Karakul auction, were sold by Raimar von Hase at his giant auction on March 18 in Mariental.

The fact that the 3 200 sheep were driven on foot over 120 km from farm Jena to Mariental for four days and three nights, makes this much more significant, according to a statement from Agra.

A karakul sheep herd in Namibia

Transport costs, stress caused to animals and other risks involved in transporting large herds of animals by truck were the reasons behind Von Hase’s decision to move his animals on foot.

A 10-man team with a ‘bakkie’, trailer, tents, food and water, armed with their red flags and divided into three groups with 1 000 sheep each, spent four days and three nights on the road.
Luckily, there were lush pastures alongside the road and water everywhere, or available from adjacent farms.

On the farm Naris of Bernie Simon, where 630mm instead of the average 180mm rain fell this year, streams of clear water were flowing everywhere.
The team put up camp and herded the flock of sheep in kraals pitched with electric fence at night.

There were no major incidents and losses were limited to 14 out of the 3 202 sheep. The deaths were caused by snake bites and a few from poisonous plants.

At the auction, 3 055 of the animals were sold for an average price of N$609 for ewes and N$2 552 for rams.
“I am glad we did it this way,” said Von Hase.

“I think, for my Karakul sheep that don’t like being transported on a truck, it was much less stress this way and we saved a lot of costs – and fuel,” he said

(Bron: http://www.newera.com.na/)
(Bron foto: http://www.namibian.org/)

IJsvorming rond Gulf of St. Lawrence (Canada) hindert nog steeds de zeehondenjacht

Newfoundland, Quebec portion of Gulf of

St. Lawrence seal hunt may begin Sunday

31-03-2009 Metro News, Halifax, Canada


HALIFAX, N.S. - The federal Fisheries Department says sealers from Newfoundland and Labrador and the north shore of Quebec may begin their hunt in the Gulf of St. Lawrence as early as Sunday. Phil Jenkins, a spokesman for the department, says the hunt off the west coast of Newfoundland and Quebec's north shore is expected to start sometime between April 5 and 8.

Jenkins says the total number of seals that can be hunted in the Gulf of St. Lawrence is 84,424, which includes the 15,000 seals taken so far by hunters from the Iles de la Madeleines.

Meanwhile, in North Sydney, seal hunters from Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick were having difficulty going after seals off of Cape Breton due to tightly packed ice conditions around the island.

The Maritimers are eligible to take about 1,400 animals, but Jenkins said they've only managed to hunt about 15 seals due to the poor conditions.
"It's been a very slow start for them as a result of some difficult ice conditions, especially just north of Sydney," said Jenkins.
"The ice pack there is quite tight."

He expected three sealing vessels to take part in the hunt off Cape Breton on Tuesday.

The DFO spokesman said that a single vessel with an aboriginal fishing licence had taken its quota of seals by Sunday. It participated in the hunt off the Iles de la Madeleine.

Sheryl Fink, a spokeswoman for the International Fund for Animal Welfare, said her group will send observers to the northern Gulf to watch the next stage of the hunt.
"We will be up there to monitor it," she said.

(Bron: http://www.metronews.ca/)

PETA in Virginia (VS) in opspraak - Duizenden aan PETA toevertrouwde huisdieren zouden zijn gedood

Animal charity PETA accused of slaughtering

thousands of pets placed in their care

30-03-2009 By Paul Thompson, Mail Online, UK


An Animal welfare charity has been accused of slaughtering thousands of pets placed in its care. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which boasts Paul McCartney and Pamela Anderson among its supporters, are accused of only finding homes for seven pets last year.
Since 1998 more than 20,000 pets handed to PETA have been put down.

In 2008 official figures show that the charity put down 2,124 animals that had been given to them.

Figures obtained from the Virginia Department of Agriculture reveal that last year PETA killed five pets a day. The charity, which collects over £25m in donations, does not run an adoption shelter.
But as the most high profile animal welfare agency in the U.S. many people take unwanted cats and dogs to their main offices in Norfolk, Virginia.

R&B star Jamelia posing nude with a rabbit perched on her back

in support of an anti-fur campaign.

The Centre for Consumer Freedom obtained figures about PETA's slaughter from public records kept at the Department of Agriculture and Consumer services.
CCF Research director David Martosko said: 'PETA hasn’t slowed down its hypocritical killing machine one bit, but it keeps browbeating the rest of society with a phony ‘animal rights’ message.
'What about the rights of the thousands of dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens that die in PETA’s headquarters building?'

The CCF has attempted to have PETA's main offices in Virginia reclassified as a slaughterhouse.
Comic Ricky Gervais and singer Pink feature in the latest advert for the PETA.
Gervais plays a rabbit that has been 'skinned' while Pink is an alligator that confronts a woman holding a handbag made from her skin.

Many celebrities have been persuaded to pose nude for PETA as part of their advertising campaigns.
Supermodels Christy Turlington and Naomi Campbell both posed for the "I'd rather go naked than wear fur" campaign.
The group have also waged campaigns against several fast food chains for their treatment of animals.

Campaigners: Members of PETA protest against the Seoul Fashion Week in

South Korea last week.

The charity's slogan is 'animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, or use for entertainment '.

A PETA spokesman said the charity took in more than 10,000 dogs and cats in 2008 and most of those that were put down could hardly be called pets. 'They were unsocialised, never having been inside a building of any kind or known a pat on the head'.

(Bron: http://www.dailymail.co.u/)
(Bron foto's: Daily Mail)

In opspraak geraakt Dierenthuis Aarle-Rixtel met honderden zieke dieren vertrekt mogelijk naar Almere

'Dierenthuis verhuist naar Almere'

30-03-2009 Eindhovens Dagblad


AARLE-RIXTEL – De Stichting Dierenthuis wil verhuizen naar een nieuw onderkomen in Almere. Het opvangcentrum voor zieke dieren, nu nog gevestigd aan de Bakelseweg in Aarle-Rixtel, volgt hiermee het maandag gepresenteerde advies van de Commissie van goede diensten op.

Die commissie, ingesteld door commissaris van de koningin Maij-Weggen, liet weten dat een verhuizing van Dierenthuis de enige oplossing is voor de nu al vele maanden slepende kwestie. De stichting wil nu met de gemeente Laarbeek gaan bekijken hoe er tot aan de daadwerkelijke verhuizing 'met de lopende procedures wordt omgegaan'.

De commissie, die onder voorzitterschap stond van oud-burgemeester Joep Baartmans-van den Boogaart van Son en Breugel, concludeert in haar eindrapport 'Over dogma en dupe' dat het zoeken naar een oplossing voor de locatie in Aarle-Rixtel 'uitzichtloos' is. Een wijziging van het bestemmingsplan, dat de vestiging aan de Bakelseweg mogelijk zou kunnen maken, is volgens de commissie niet haalbaar omdat er zowel bij buurtbewoners als bij de Laarbeekse politiek geen draagvlak voor is.

De commissie adviseert Dierenthuis te verhuizen. Op korte termijn zou dat naar Lelystad kunnen en op de langere termijn naar Almere.

(Bron: http://www.ed.nl/)

14 Verwaarloosde en vervuilde Japanse spaniels door LID in Oisterwijk in beslag genomen

Inspectie neemt verwaarloosde honden in beslag

30-03-2009 De Telegraaf


OISTERWIJK - De Landelijke Inspectiedienst Dierenbescherming (LID) heeft maandag in Oisterwijk veertien verwaarloosde honden in beslag genomen. De Japanse spaniels zaten onder de ontlasting en hun vacht was vervilt.

Tegen de 44-jarige eigenaar is proces-verbaal opgemaakt.

De eigenaar hield de honden op de plaats en in een schuur achter de woning. Hij zei dat hij geen tijd had om de dieren goed te verzorgen. De honden zijn naar een tijdelijk opvangadres gebracht.

(Bron: http://www.telegraaf.nl/)

Deel van Chileense zuidkust wordt begraafplaats voor honderden penguins

Más de 800 pingüinos han aparecido muertos en la costa sin razón aparente. Los científicos investigan la tragedia sin éxito alguno por ahora.

SHAC Nederland protesteert bij diverse klanten van Brits proefdiercentrum Huntingdon Life Sciences

HLS collaborators get no rest in Holland

30-03-2009 SHAC UK

We started our demo at NYSE Euronext who make it possible for LSR to trade their shares. It is a true shame they let animal abusers on the stock exchange. Fifteen minutes before the stock exchange opened we started our demo and stayed for a long time. We let the cowards know we will never go away until you kick off LSR from the stock exchange!

Next was State Street (Amsterdam), one of LSR's largest shareholders. It is not the first time we went here and they knew exactly why we were there. Last time after our demo they tried to tell the media they didn't had any involvement in LSR and didn't know what this was about. Well one thing is sure, we do our research well when it's about who are the animal abusers and who are not. State Street won't get away with it by telling lies! Sell your shares State Street!

AstraZeneca (Zoetermeer) was the next company where we went. Next Monday it will be the international day of action against Astra Zeneca. We started off with a early demo at their office in the Netherlands. During the demo walked around the company building confronting the workers inside with placards showing beagle pups bleeding to death and rabbits used in experiments. Once we found their lunchroom and started shouting through the megaphone near the windows it's was funny to see the whole room going from almost full to totally empty! That's what you've been ordered to do isn't it Astra Zeneca workers? We want you to stop using HLS and never use them again ever.

After leaving AstraZeneca behind we went to HLS customer Bristol--Myers Squibb(Woerden). We've been here many times and the people of BMS will never show their face. We did a powerful demo at their office and informed all off the surrounding company's of their involvement in killing innocent animals. It's time to make a statement BMS and say you will never use HLS again. Until we haven't received your statement we will back anytime.

Our last demo was at Novartis Pharma (Arnhem)also on of the largest customers of HLS. Many of the workers tried sneaking out on the back of the location, but cowards like you will never get away without being confronted first by SHAC about the animal suffering going on in HLS. It is a sick business you are doing with HLS Novartis! Take the example of other leading pharmaceutical companies around the world who dumped HLS. We are going to continue focusing on you with the campaign if you don't dump HLS. Make the right decision.

SHAC Netherlands
info@shacnederland.net

(Bron: http://www.shac.net/)
(Bron foto's: SHAC Netherlands)

Brits protest tegen Barclays bank - Bank investeert in berucht Brits proefdiercentrum Huntingdon Life Sciences

* Dedicated to jailed animal rights activist Adam Ortberg who is incarcerated for participating in a peaceful demonstration against animal cruelty *

Darryl Herrick of Barclays! Your company has invested in the horrible animal death laboratory, Huntingdon Life Sciences, who kill 500 animals a day to test useless garbage like Splenda, bleach and toothpaste. The animals are tortured, maimed and abused beyond anything imaginable and Barclays is the largest institutional shareholder!

Activists visited your neighborhood today to bring the news to you and your oh-so-friendly (with an air of smug entitlement) neighbors that Barclays is investing in animal cruelty and you need to use your influence and ask them to sell their shares of Huntingdon Life Sciences (stock ticker symbol LSR).

Darryl Herrick, activists will return again and again with peaceful but LOUD demonstrations until Barclays does the compassionate thing and dumps their bloody shares of this company.

For more information on HLS : http://www.insidehls.com/

Zuid-Afrika spant zich in omhaar penguins te redden - Aantal neemt drastich af - Penguins krijgen eigen 'huisjes' om te nestelen en broeden

Save South Africa's penguins: give them a home

30-03-2009 By CLARE NULLIS, The Associated Press


BOULDERS BEACH, South Africa (AP) — Nesting in the sparkling sand, preening on the rocks and darting through the waters, the penguins on the southern tip of Africa are the ultimate crowd-pleaser. But crisis looms. Short of food, exposed to predators and the African sun, their numbers are plummeting. But salvation may rest in a simple manmade solution — housing for penguins.

Penguins stand together at a national park in Simons Town, South Africa, Monday, March 3, 2009. In scenes that captivate countless visitors every year, hundreds of penguins nest lazily in the sparkling sand, preen themselves on the rocks and dart effortlessly though the crystal waters near the Cape of Good Hope.(AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam)

Dotting the shore of this penguin colony near the Cape of Good Hope are 200 nesting boxes, each big enough to house a happy family of parents, eggs and chicks. The experiment has already worked well on a more distant penguin island in South African waters, and wildlife rangers are eager to see whether the boxes recently installed on Boulders Beach, where tourists can watch the birds up close, will prove equally attractive.

"You look at the penguins and think they have a lovely time in sunny South Africa, but it's a struggle," says Monique Ruthenberg, a ranger with the Table Mountain National Park in Cape Town, where summer temperatures recently hit 40 degrees (104 Fahrenheit).

Park authorities installed the boxes — made of a fiberglass mix, shaped like a burrow and dug into the sand to mimic the real nests — at Boulders Beach as part of desperate efforts to protect the dwindling populations of African penguins.

A penguin stands outside a breeding box at a National park in Simons Town, South Africa, Monday, March 3, 2009. (AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam)

It has been a losing struggle. Numbers of the cute, curious creatures have plummeted from around 3 million in the 1930s to just 120,000 because of overfishing and pollution. Some experts fear the species will die out in as little as a decade, and are particularly alarmed at the prospect of global warming increasing the number of scorching days, raising water temperatures and altering fish migration patterns.

The Boulders Beach colony has fallen 30 percent from a peak of 3,900 birds in 2005 to 2,600 and some of the island colonies have suffered calamitous declines of 50 percent.

The African penguin, also called the jackass because of its bray, is the only one to inhabit the African continent. It has shorter feathers than the Antarctic birds because it doesn't face such cold and is just 50 centimeters (20 inches) tall.

Penguins stand together at a national park in Simons Town, South Africa, Monday, March 3, 2009. (AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam)

The Boulders Colony began in 1985 when a couple of penguins moved from a nearby island onto the beach in the naval base of Simon's Town, decided they liked it and stayed. So many followed that authorities had to build fences to prevent them invading people's gardens. But the tourists poured in.

About 600,000 a year now visit Boulders Beach, which boasts that it is the only place in the world where people can swim with penguins. The real life "Happy Feet" are unfazed by all the attention and, apart from a few who were killed while snoozing under visitors' cars, don't seem to have suffered from their contact with humans.

There is a constant risk from pollution. The last big oil spill was in 2000, when 20,000 penguins were trucked about 470 miles from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth to allow workers time to clean up oil from a wrecked tanker while the birds swam home.

But even in years with no big accidents, the South African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds has to rescue and rehabilitate hundreds of birds whose feathers are covered in oil illegally dumped at sea and washed ashore.

The population fall continues, especially on the more remote Dyer Island where numbers have plummeted from 23,000 breeding pairs in the early 1970s to just 1,500 pairs. Penguins normally mate for life.

"It's horrible," Wilfred Chivell, chairman of the Dyer Island Conservation Trust, who blames bad fishing management for a dwindling supply of sardines and pilchards, the penguins' main food.

A penguin is seen inside a breeding box at a National park in Simons Town, South Africa, Monday, March 3, 2009. (AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam)

Such is the competition for fish that Ruthenberg says young seals attack penguins to rip the fish from their bellies.
Gulls prey on the eggs and young chicks, often working as a team; the nesting penguins leave their eggs to chase away the invaders, while another gull sneaks in behind, she says.

Eggs lie abandoned in the sand because the parents have taken to the water to escape the heat. Once a nesting pair abandons its eggs, other penguins often follow suit.

So volunteers calling themselves the iKapa Honorary Rangers asked the public to sponsor nesting boxes for $20 each. They initially planned 100 boxes but this was doubled thanks to a $2,000 donation from the Species Survival Plan — a cooperation program linking members of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums in the U.S.

The nesting boxes are meant to give the penguins an edge — shelter from the heat and a better defense against egg-stealing gulls — and the 1,000 boxes on the more remote Dyer Island have proven popular, with 80 percent occupancy.

Now Ruthenberg hopes the Boulders Beach penguins that have lost eggs and chicks will learn the lesson and take to the newly installed boxes in time to lay a second batch before the laying season ends in April.

(Bron & foto's: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iT9WEFXEhzLDXU7nkjOcf4pf_AkgD977PQF00)

Ondanks protesten van dierenrechtenactivisten zijn 335 geiten geofferd in Bhadrak (India)

335 goats sacrificed in Bhadrak

30-03-2009 Express News Service, Express Buzz, India


BHADRAK: Protests from animal lovers and social activists notwithstanding, as many as 335 goats were sacrificed at the altar of Rakshakali temple in Bhadrak district last night. Sources said, since time immemorial animals are being sacrificed in Rameswarpur village under Dhamanagar police limits on the ‘chaitra amabasya tithi’ to propitiate the deity.

‘‘Unlike every year, this year the district administration did not hold any meeting with the villagers to stop this practice and the animal lovers failed to get any support from the local police to stop it,’’ said Basudev Mohapatra, a local animal lover.

The incident had created a furore in the state in 2006 as some animals were sacrificed in the presence of former Revenue Minister Manmohan Samal, live pictures of which were aired by a private TV channel.

‘‘It is an 75-year-old tradition in our village. The village is always guarded by the deity who is being propitiated through the sacrifice. Earlier, devotees used to offer buffaloes before the deity but now only goats are sacrificed,’’ said Damodar Mohanty, a member of the Rakshakali temple committee.

However, Bhadrak Collector Hrushikesh Tripathy expressed his ignorance about the incident. Dhmanghar IIC, Bijay Mohapatra expressed his helplessness and said due to election work, the district administration did not hold any meeting with the villagers.

(Bron: http://www.expressbuzz.com/)

Al 5 dassen dit jaar in bossen Drents-Friese Wold doodgereden...

Dassen zijn hun leven niet zeker in Westerveld

30-03-2009 Dagblad van het Noorden


Diever - De dassen in de bossen van het Drents-Friese Wold zijn hun leven niet zeker. Vorige week werd weer een das aangereden in het gebied; al het vijfde slachtoffer in het voorjaar. "Een trieste score", constateert boswachter André Donker van Natuurmonumenten. Hij is bang dat nog veel meer dassen het loodje zullen leggen. Jongen worden geboren en trekken vanaf april eropuit.

De gemeente Westerveld en de natuurbeheerders gaan samenwerken om maatregelen te nemen. Her en der heeft Westerveld al actie genomen voor een veilige oversteek van dieren. Een aantal wegen heeft wildtunneltjes. Het zijn gleuven in de weg, met een raster eroverheen. Op provinciale wegen bij Diever en hoeve Boschoord zijn paddenoversteekplaatsen.

Meer faunapassages zijn gewenst, vindt ook wethouder Homme Geertsma. Westerveld heeft 35.000 euro beschikbaar, maar voorwaarde is wel dat de natuurbeheerders bijspringen. Een werkgroep met zowel gemeente als natuurbeheerders gaat deze week aan de slag. "Wij willen graag de dieren in leven houden." Dat ook Natuurmonumenten en Staatsbosbeheer hun steentje moeten bijdragen, begrijpt Donker. "We zullen alle zeilen bijzetten om dat te bereiken."

Het relatief grote aantal dode dassen houdt min of meer verband met de terugkeer van de das naar het Drents-Friese Wold. Het nationaal park telt vermoedelijk al vier dassenburchten. "Dat doet ons geweldig deugd", zegt Donker. De das hoort van origine in dit gebied, maar was lange tijd afwezig. Donker: "Het is verbazingwekkend dat zij hun oude sporen weer oppakken." Paden die door dassen een paar eeuwen geleden werden bewandeld, gebruiken ze nu weer.

(Bron: http://www.dvhn.nl/)

Wijs dierproefnemers op hun verantwoordelijkheid: stop met zinloze experimenten - Vrijdag bijeenkomst proefdiernemers in Venray

Emailalert: Dierproefnemers komen bijeen

in Venray

30-03-2009 Anti Dierproeven Coalitie


De 8e Landelijke Telemetrie Mededelingen Dag wordt samen met Harlan georganiseerd op vrijdag 3 april in Hotel Asteria in Venray.

Het programma wordt geopend door Jan Bartels en Edwin Spoelstra van Harlan Laboratories. Harlan staat altijd vooraan wanneer de 'vakbroeders' een informatiedag organiseren. Harlan sponsort de bijeenkomst gul en biedt dan ook haar specialiteiten aan: alle dieren in verschillende soorten en maten. In stukjes gesneden of in zijn geheel. Voer, testen of gespecialiseerde apparatuur. Harlan staat klaar voor de dierproefnemer. (Klik hier voor de productgids van Harlan)

Anti Dierproeven Coalitie in actie bij de proefdierfokkerij van Harlan in Horst.

Deze informatiedag staat in het teken van het aanbrengen van meetapparatuur in dieren, zodat bijvoorbeeld de bewegingen, de hartslag of bloeddruk gemeten kunnen worden. Wederom is alles erop gericht om het leven van de dierproefnemer gemakkelijker te maken terwijl dieren het leven onmogelijk gemaakt wordt. De Anti Dierproeven Coalitie vindt dit onacceptabel en zal vreedzaam maar gedreven blijven opkomen voor alle dieren in laboratoria.

Steun onze campagnes en stuur een protestmail naar de dierproefnemers!

"Als je dan op maandag binnenkomt loop je tegen een wand van ammoniak aan. De hele bakken zaten vol met urine en poep. De diertjes (cavia's) waren helemaal vuil. Dan moest ik de dode dieren uit de bakken halen, jonkies en zwangere moeders. Elke dag gingen er een hoop dieren dood. Vooral na het weekend was het heel erg. Dan moest ik dat op gaan ruimen. Ik was aan het huilen terwijl ik de dode dieren in een vuilniszak gooide. Het is gewoon vreselijk, nachtmerries had ik ervan. Ze vraten elkaar aan. De moeders beten hun jonkies dood, ze beten het hoofd eraf, of je vond weer een poot of dieren die helemaal uit elkaar waren getrokken. Het is een vorm van stress dat ze hun eigen jongen opvreten."
Ex-Harlan medewerkster vertelt openhartig over haar ervaringen bij Harlan in Horst.

Stuur een protestmail:
info@asteria.nl, secr@harlan.com, mku@harlan.com, hnlcsd@harlan.com, jbartels@harlan.com
espoelstra@harlan.com, jarts@harlan.com, oliver.stiedl@cncr.vu.nl, erieux@datasci.com,
paul.taylor@kcl.ac.uk, a.m.strijkstra@rug.nl, s.f.de.boer@biol.rug.nl, k.kramer@dienst.vu.nl

"Geachte,
Vrijdag 3 april komt de Werkgroep Telemetrie Nederland bijeen in het Asteria Hotel in Venray. De informatiedag belooft weinig goeds voor de dieren. De bijeenkomst vindt plaats op nog geen 10 kilometer van Harlan's proefdierfokkerij in Horst. Hier worden ratten, muizen, cavia's en konijnen gefokt voor proefdiernemers. Velen dieren vinden de dood al onder de erbarmelijke condities in Horst.

Er zal uitgebreid ingegaan worden op het gebruik van dieren in experimenten. Onderzoeksdoeleinden die weinig tot geen nut hebben voor de mens. Dr. Olivier Stiedl heeft als onderzoeksdoel 'om condities in muizen te simuleren die vergelijknaar zijn voor de symptomen voor depressie bij de mens.' Wat voor nut heeft het om een muis depressief te maken en hoe denkt men deze resultaten ooit te kunnen vertalen naar de complexe werking van depressies bij de mens?

Zeer typerend is een workshop die gegeven wordt door Janneke Arts van Harlan. Zij zal ingaan op de stress die ratten ondervinden bij het transport van fokkerij naar dierproefcentra. Harlan als commercieel bedrijf is gebaat bij meer proefdieren, meer transporten en meer testen. Een simpele manier om stress te voorkomen is door geen dieren te transporteren naar dierproefcentra. Maar daar is Harlan niet bij gebaat.

Michiel de Raaf van Notox is ook weer van de partij. Notox biedt haar services aan om ratten, muizen, konijnen, cavia's en honden te vergiftigen voor bedrijven. Commercie en overheidsinstellingen komen weer samen om te genieten van een hapje en een drankje. Nieuwe orders en afspraken worden gemaakt en de dieren zullen opnieuw de dupe worden van deze bijeenkomsten.

Ik steun de Anti Dierproeven Coalitie in haar activiteiten om dit soort wanpraktijken aan te kaarten. Omdat dieren geen gebruiksvoorwerpen zijn!

(JE NAAM)"

(Bron: http://www.stopdierproeven.org/)
(Bron foto: archief Kraaijer)

Meer dan 800 dode Magelhaenpinguïns op strand bij Queule, zuidelijk Chili - Doodsoorzaak nog onbekend....

Aparecen centenares de pingüinos muertos en

una playa del sur de Chile

• Los expertos no logran dar con la causa del incremento de mortandad de los animales

29-03-2009 EFE, El Periodico, Chile

SANTIAGO DE CHILE - Los expertos no logran comprender la aparición de más de 800 pingüinos muertos desde el pasado jueves en una extensión de cinco kilómetros en Queule, localidad situada a unos 790 kilómetros de Santiago.

Los pingüinos corresponden a la especie Spheniscus Magellanicus, que habita en el extremo sur del continente americano y que durante el invierno austral suele llegar hasta el norte de Chile e incluso más al norte.

Un hombre sostiene uno de los más de 800 pingüinos muertos en Queule, Chile. Foto: EL DIARIO AUSTRAL

Así lo han explicado varios científicos de la Universidad Austral, que han comenzado a buscar sin éxito las posibles causas que han provocado este incremento en la mortandad de los animales.

El teniente de la Marina Rodrigo Zambrano, de la Gobernación Marítima de Valdivia, ha dicho que hasta el momento no se ha encontrado una explicación razonable, pues los pingüinos no presentan señales de haber estado expuestos a algún elemento tóxico.

Zambrano ha explicado que es habitual que algunas de estas aves queden atrapados en las redes de buques pesqueros, pero en cantidades que nunca han sobrepasado los 80, mientras que hasta ahora se han contabilizado 803 cadáveres.

(Bron: http://www.elperiodico.com/)
(Bron foto: El Periodico)

Boliviaans leger slacht honden af tijdens militaire trainingen - Dieren worden gestoken, ingewanden worden bruut verwijderd....

Video Exposes Military's Stabbing of Dogs

29-03-2009 PETA


PETA has received horrific torture videos that show live dogs who scream in pain while being stabbed and killed during combat-training exercises conducted by soldiers in the Bolivian military. The soldiers state that their instructors received training from the U.S. military in how to conduct these exercises, and the training partnership is corroborated by a written agreement signed by the two countries.

The first video shows an instructor who repeatedly stabs a conscious dog in the head and chest. He then removes the dog's heart and smears it on the faces of the commandos, forcing some of them to eat the raw, bloody flesh.

Please be aware: this video really is shocking!!!!

The second video shows soldiers at night who restrain a dog's limbs and mouth while another soldier stabs the animal in the chest. The dog struggles in pain as blood gushes from his or her body. A naked soldier then throws his face into the dog's open chest and later stands up with arms stretched high. Watch the video here to learn more about the abuses that dogs suffer at the hands of the Bolivian military.

In the U.S., the Department of Defense currently stabs, shoots, poisons, burns, and cuts the limbs off thousands of living animals each year in medical-training exercises. The U.S. exercises differ from those used by the Bolivian military, but the victims are the same—vulnerable animals.

Read the letter that we sent to Bolivia's president, Evo Morales. Then take action against these horrific practices. Please send a polite e-mail to Bolivia's government urging it to end the military's use of animals.

Personalized letters always work best (http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/bolivia_military?c=weekly_enews)

(Bron: http://getactive.peta.org/)

(Noot Kraaijer:
Laatste nieuws van PETA d.d. 01-04-2009:
PETA heeft direct na ontvangst van de videobeelden actie ondernomen en heeft met een vooraanstaand Boliviaans congreslid en verontruste Bolivianen samengewerkt om een einde te maken aan deze wreedheid. Ook heeft ze haar leden en sympathisanten opgeroepen om deel te nemen aan een actieoproep gericht aan de Boliviaanse overheid.

PETA is enorm blij te kunnen melden dat, dankzij deze acties, de Boliviaanse minister van Defensie begin deze week op televisie een resolutie heeft aangekondigd voor een verbod op alle militaire training en dodingtechnieken uitgevoerd op dieren!
Deze aankondiging is een directe reactie op de campagne die PETA heeft gevoerd om hier een einde aan te maken. Dit wordt eveneens de allereerste dierenbeschermingswet in Bolivia.)

Drie eenden in Uden met pijlen uit kruisboog beschoten - Een eend overleeft aanslag niet....

Eenden in de Wilack in Uden mishandeld

29-03-2009 Brabants Dagblad


UDEN - Drie eenden in de Wilack in Uden zijn deze week geraakt door iemand met een kruisboog. De eenden zwommen rond met de pijlen nog in hun lijf.

Medewerkers van de dierenambulance en omwonenden zijn zaterdag en zondag uren bezig geweest om de dieren te vangen. Een van de eenden is inmiddels overleden.

De dierenambulance gaat aangifte doen van dierenmishandeling.

(Bron: http://www.brabantsdagblad.nl/)

Stieren 'evenement' in Tamil Nadu (India) leidt tot zo'n 250 gewonde deelnemers - 'Sport' in opspraak vanwege dierenmishandeling

Bull-taming event leaves 250 injured in Tamil

Nadu village

29-03-2009 Posted by hpandey in National, NewsPost Online, India

Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu, March 29 (IANS) About 250 participants and a senior police official were injured Sunday in the Tamil Nadu’s Pudukkottai district during the bull-taming sport of Jallikkattu, the police said.

According to a police official, some 250 of the 2,500-plus participants who tried to rein in over 1,000 bulls suffered minor injuries in the event. Deputy Inspector General of Police P. Balasubramanian was also wounded during the sport in Naththamalai village of the district.

An Indian youth attempts to tame a bull during the annual Jallikattu bull-taming festival in Palemedu, some 25 km from Madurai, south of

India's southern state of Tamil Nadu, 17 January 2007.

“Though the sport was conducted under the orders of the Supreme Court with adequate precautions, the unpredictable nature of the bulls and the enthusiasm of the participants resulted in a few scratches and that includes me,” Balasubramanian told IANS.
“Some 14 participants were referred to government hospitals in Tiruchirappalli and Thanjavur. Their injuries, however, were not serious,” he added.

According to police sources, the participants had come from six districts.

Jallikatu is an ancient bull-taming sport of Tamil Nadu. It is a horrifying display of animal torture. To vote BAN this sport, visit http://www.jallikatu.com

Two participants had died in a similar event in the state’s Ariyalur district March 15.
The sport had been banned till recently by the Supreme Court, following allegations of it endangering human lives and being an abuse of the animals.

During the last two decades, approximately 200 participants have lost their lives to Jallikkattu, according to petitions filed in the apex court.
The event is regularly conducted in at least six places in central and southern Tamil Nadu during the advent of spring.

(Bron: http://www.newspostonline.com/)
(Bron foto: http://www.daylife.com/photo/01ys9U66Qv51v)

Grijze zeehondjes Ecomare Texel vrijgelaten in zee....

Tweede kans voor grijze zeehondjes

29-03-2009 Noordhollands Dagblad


Texel - Begin dit jaar vond verslaggever Nico Volkerts op het Texelse strand een verzwakt zeehondje, dat werd opgevangen in Ecomare. Drie maanden later was hij erbij toen de aangesterkte zeehond werd teruggezet in zee.

Even aarzelt hij. Dan glijdt de jonge grijze zeehond, die Justin (6) en ik drie maanden geleden sterk verzwakt en vermagerd op het strand vonden, uit de kist het roerige water van de Waddenzee in. Zijn tweede kans tegemoet.

Met circa 7.000 gewone en 2.000 grijze zeehonden in de Waddenzee klinkt steeds vaker de vraag of opvang nog nodig is. Kan de natuur het niet zelf af?

,,In de jaren tachtig ging het heel slecht met de zeehonden'', zegt dierenverzorger Salko de Wolf van Ecomare. ,,Er zaten nog maar een paar honderd dieren in de Waddenzee. Elke zeehond die werd gevonden, moest worden gered. Wat het ook kostte.'' Ondanks een virusziekte enkele jaren geleden is er nu een robuuste populatie.

Laten liggen dus, de zwakke, zieke zeehondjes die het op eigen kracht niet redden? Toen mij zoontje en ik op 3 januari 's ochtends vroeg een zeehond op het strand vonden, kwam die gedachte geen moment bij ons op. Eerst dacht ik dat het dier dood was. Pas toen we vlakbij waren, schoot zijn kop omhoog. Blazend toonde hij zijn scherpe tanden. Het was alles wat hij kón doen. Hij was zelfs te zwak om weg te kruipen. ,,Wat ga je doen?'' vroeg mijn zoontje. ,,Ga je Ecomare bellen?''

Bijna drie maanden later weegt zeehond Justin, want dat was de naam die hij in Ecomare kreeg, ruim vijftig kilo. Bijna drie keer zo veel als toen we hem vonden. Tijd voor hem en Huib, Roel en Sjef om te worden teruggezet. ,,Ze zijn moddervet'', zegt Salko de Wolf tevreden. Hoogste tijd dat ze terug de natuur in gaan, vindt hij. Ze eten elk met gemak vijf kilo vis per dag. Dat loopt flink op.

Meestal worden de zeehonden op een zandplaat losgelaten. Maar het weer werkt niet mee. ,,De wind is zuidwest 7'', zegt Bram Fey van de Phoca, het schip van het ministerie van LNV, waarmee de zeehonden worden teruggezet. De golven zijn te hoog. Geen omstandigheden om kisten die meer dan honderd kilo wegen van het kleine schip op een nog kleiner rubberbootje over te tillen. Besloten wordt de dieren vanaf de boot te water te laten.

Dat gebeurt vlakbij De Bollen. ,,Er zitten hier zo'n vijftig, zestig zeehonden'', zegt Fey. ,,We zoeken altijd een plaats waar veel andere zeehonden zitten. Ze zoeken elkaar op, maar we weten dan ook dat er genoeg vis in de buurt zit.''

Met een hydraulisch kraantje takelt hij de kisten een voor een tot vlak boven de roerige zee. Het spreek vanzelf dat ik Justin voor mijn rekening neem. ,,Steek je hand niet in de kist'', waarschuwt dierenverzorgster Christine Koersen. Hoe aaibaar ze ook lijken, ze zijn het niet.

Even wachten nog tot de schroef is uitgezet, dan trek ik de kist open. Een korte aarzeling, dan laat onze zeehond de beschutting van de opvang achter zich en kiest hij voor een onzeker bestaan in zee. Zo'n twintig meter achter de boot duikt hij op. Zijn spitse snuit draait nieuwsgierig in alle richtingen. Die kant moet je op, wijs ik naar de groep zeehonden die op de rand van De Bollen ligt. Meer dan dat kan ik nu niet meer voor hem doen.

(Bron: http://www.nhd.nl/)

Bewoners Townsville City, Noord Queensland (Australië) leven zich uit op agapad - Duizenden 'cane toads' gedood tijdens 'Toad Day Out' jacht weekend

North Queenslanders jump into toad hunt

29-03-2009 Jamie Duncan, The Sydney Morning Herald, Australia


Some will be stuffed and mounted. Some will become mulch. And some will be donated to science. But one thing is for certain - north Queenslanders took a special pleasure in capturing thousands of dreaded cane toads in the inaugural Toad Day Out hunt this weekend.

Townsville City councillor Vern Veitch said up to 5,000 of the hated amphibians - "bloody mongrel pests", he calls them - were captured in Townsville alone, greatly reducing their impact on the environment.
"On average, each (female) toad can lay up to 10,000 eggs, so we have put a big dent in the next generation and we have substantially reduced the population now," he told AAP.

Toad Day Out, the brainchild of Queensland Liberal Nationals MP Shane Knuth, was staged to raise awareness of humane ways of catching and disposing of the toads.
Prizes were awarded to children for the heaviest individual toad and heaviest total weight of toads.

The project, supported by the Townsville, Burdekin, Ingham, Charters Towers and Cairns councils, was timed to match the spirit of the event, between Earth Hour on Saturday and April Fool's Day on Wednesday.

Cane toads were introduced to north Queensland canefields from South America in 1935 to eat pest beetles.
The slimy interlopers couldn't jump high enough to reach the beetles at the top of the cane stalks and, instead, rapidly spread in search of food.
Millions of them now threaten many local species and spread diseases such as salmonella across northern Australia.

Mr Veitch said up to 100 families gathered in Townsville to join weekend hunt, taking advantage of a free sausage sizzle and the carnival atmosphere.
The largest toad collected weighed in at a tick over 556g.
The collected toads were euthanased in freezers.
"The biggest ones will be taken by a local taxidermist and he'll sell them in the local mall," Mr Veitch said.

"The other 90 per cent will go to James Cook University to help students learn the anatomy of toads."

In Cairns, more than 100 people turned up at a collection point with about 1,000 toads, organiser Lisa Ahrens said.
The largest was 13cm long, weighed 290g and had a fifth leg sticking out of its chest, she said.

The skins of the toads were given to a local taxidermist while the flesh and bones met with a poetic end - they will be added to locally-made mulch used on cane farms.

(Bron: http://news.smh.com.au/)

Luipaard valt in waterput in Guwahati (India) - Met regelmaat belandt wild in Indiase waterputten

Hungry leopard gets into a spot of bother after

falling into a well

29-03-2009 By Daily Mail Reporter, Daily Mail, UK


She may be an intimidating predator in her natural environment but this leopard looked more like a lost kitten after falling into an open well - prompting a rescue operation with a difference.

The fully grown female big cat was prowling for food near the Sonaigali village in Guwahati city, northeast India, when she tumbled into the well.

Residents of the village were shocked to find the trapped animal when they made their morning trek to draw water from the well.
They notified the local police, who summoned forest rangers to tackle the angry cat.

The rangers tranquilized the leopard before veterinarian Bijoy Gogoi gently carried the creature out of the well. The leopard was taken to the local zoo.

It is the second time a leopard has had to be rescued from the populated area within the past month.

(Bron: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/)
(Bron foto's: Daily Mail)

(Lees ook: / Read also: http://news.smashits.com/365956/A-prowling-leopard-rescued-from-a-well-in-Guwahati.htm)

Beelden demonstratie tegen mishandeling van Turkse zwerfhonden 28 maart 2009, Den Haag

Stop met het doden van dieren!
Stop de agressie!
Respecteer hun leven!
Vang, steriliseer, vaccineer en laat vrij!
Ontken de realiteit niet langer!
Dump ze niet langer in afgelegen gebiedenalwaar ze van honger en uitdroging zullen sterven!

Wij zullen tot onze laatste dag blijven strijden voor de waardigheid van de dieren!Geen mishandeling van zwerfdieren meer in Turkije! Nooit meer!

Bezoek ook: http://shouete.hyves.nl/

Waarom:
De dieren worden op een sadistische wijze behandeld, niet alleen worden ze uit asielen ‘gekid-napt’ om vervolgens mishandeld, verkracht en op straat achter gelaten te worden, tenminste, als ze geluk hebben anders worden ze vergiftigd en sterven ze een langzame dood nadat ze uren soms dagen verschrikkelijke pijnen geleden hebben, ze worden gevangen en gedumpt in afgelegen ge-bieden om daar van honger en uitdroging te sterven, ze worden opgesloten in asielen die deze naam niet eens zouden mogen dragen, ze worden massaal vergiftigd, levend begraven en opge-jaagd, ze worden door ondeskundige artsen gesteriliseerd en zonder nabehandeling weer op straat gedumpt.

(Bron: http://www.actietegendierenleed.nl/)

Wetenschapper Universiteit Oklahoma (VS) experimenteert op sledehonden in onderzoek naar obesitas...

Sled dogs could hold key to diabetes, obesity

29-03-2009 Douglas Robson • USA Today, Pensacola News Journal, USA


Sled dogs competing in the Iditarod, which ended Tuesday, are among the most energy-efficient creatures on Earth, with a capacity to run hundreds of miles day after day without showing the normal signs of fatigue.

Could their fat-burning prowess help uncover ways to prevent and treat obesity in type 2 diabetes?

Michael Davis is on the trail to find out. Davis, a professor at Oklahoma State University who has studied exercise physiology in sled dogs for a decade, recently completed the first phase of research examining how dogs that train for the 1,100-mile Iditarod become "insulin-sensitive" and convert fat to energy so proficiently.

The Diabetes Action Research and Education Foundation has contributed one-third of the $30,000 research grant. Oklahoma State University is bankrolling the remainder.
Typically, the hormone insulin helps the body's cells take up glucose from the blood and turn it into energy. Type 2 diabetics often have problems absorbing glucose in response to the insulin their bodies create.

In January, Davis and collaborators Ray Geor of Michigan State University and Shannon Pratt of North Carolina State University chose 16 dogs in Iditarod-worthy shape from the kennel of one of this year's competitors and had them run 22 miles at a healthy clip of 8 mph. Half the dogs were anesthetized for five minutes while researchers took small muscle biopsies from their legs; the other half were measured for insulin sensitivity using catheters.
By calculating the metabolic stress on the muscles again in September and November — when the dogs are not in shape after a summer of inactivity — Davis hopes to understand how the cells are reacting under different physical conditions.

Davis' research has drawn the attention of at least one animal rights group that opposes experimentation.
"Ideally, Mr. Davis would work with human athletes and human cells, for direct relevance to our own species," says Kathy Guillermo of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

Davis counters that dogs share more DNA with humans than other, smaller mammals such as rats and mice. "There is a greater likelihood that something you discover in dogs will be directly relevant to humans," he says.

(Bron: http://www.pnj.com/)
(Bron foto: http://www.barentsphoto.com/viewimage2.php?folder=15259&no=35)

Elton John - Lion King's 'Circle of Life'

This is Elton John's version of The Lion King song 'Circle of Life'

Lyrics:
From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to be seen than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done

Some say eat or be eaten
Some say live and let live
But all are agreed as they join the stampede
You should never take more than you give

(Chorus)
In the Circle of Life
It's the wheel of fortune
It's the leap of faith
It's the band of hope
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle, the Circle of Life

Some of us fall by the wayside
And some of us soar to the stars
And some of us sail through our troubles
And some have to live with the scars

There's far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps the great and small on the endless round

(Chorus repeats)

On the path unwinding
In the Circle, the Circle of Life.

Zeldzame sneeuwluipaard doet zich tegoed aan vee in Opolo (Polen)...

Killer cat roams Poland

28-03-2009 Reuters, UK


Residents in south western Poland are living in fear of a mysterious predator blamed for attacking and killing livestock over the past few days.

The animal is thought to be a rare snow leopard. It's has been sighted numerous times around Opole and has even been recorded on a mobile phone camera by a resident of Biala village. At another location, a driver informed the police that a big cat had jumped over his moving car while chasing a deer.

Sonia Legg reports.

(Bron: http://uk.reuters.com/)

Een kwart van de baardwalvissen ter wereld zwemt bij Cape Cod, Massachusetts (VS) - Slechts 325 'right whales' nog in de wereld

Cape Cod sees rare large gathering of right whales

28-03-2009 By Jason Szep, Reuters, UK


BOSTON (Reuters) - Nearly a quarter of the world's population of North Atlantic right whales, one of the most endangered species on earth, have gathered off Cape Cod in Massachusetts in a rare feeding frenzy, scientists say.

The nearly 80 right whales are the largest number seen in Cape Cod Bay for this time of year, said scientists who attributed the spectacle to an unusually large presence of zooplankton -- a marine species that is favorite whale food.

A right whale off the Cape Cod coast in an undated photo courtesy of the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies. REUTERS/Handout

The number is about six times greater than last year and represents about 24 percent of the estimated 325 right whales left in the world, said officials at the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies, which is conducting aerial surveys of the whales, and the National Marine Fisheries Science Center.

In March, right whales typically feed on a winter type of zooplankton that forms in waters as far north as Canada and floats with the currents into Cape Cod. This year, the tiny zooplankton species are especially rich.

"It's a pretty special sight in a tiny embankment so close to land," said Dr. Charles Mayo, a senior scientist at the center in Provincetown on the tip of Cape Cod.

The sight of the whales thrashing off the sandy beaches of Provincetown follows an increase in right whale calf births in waters from coastal South Carolina to Florida, said Dr. Richard Merrick, an oceanographer at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's fisheries service.

That has swollen the right whale population by a rate of 1.8 percent a year over the past decade, added Merrick, who works at NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole on Cape Cod.

It is unclear how many North Atlantic right whales are dying each year. They roam a huge expanse from the Gulf of Mexico to Norway, and it's next to impossible to find and track all the carcasses as they die, said Merrick.

Right whales got their name from 18th- and 19th-century whale hunters who considered them the "right" ones to kill because they are rich in oil and baleen, move slowly, stay close to shore and float when they die.
Up to 59 feet long and weighing up to 100 tons (91 tons), they have been protected since a 1937 worldwide ban on hunting right whales. But ship strikes and fishing gear entanglements have ravaged the species in recent decades.

For the past two years, unusually large numbers have gathered in Cape Cod Bay, where they typically feed from January to mid-May. There were sightings of 148 last year and 161 in 2007 -- twice the yearly average from 1998 to 2006.
"I'd expect that we'll beat both those years," said Mayo.

Last April, about 70 to 100 right whales gathered in Cape waters but that was later in the season to feed on a spring variety of zooplankton known as Calanus finmarchicus.
It's far rarer, Mayo said, to have such a large number feeding on the winter variety, known as pseudo Calanus.

"We're in a pivotal time in this season," said Mayo. "The concentration of plankton in the upper levels of the water has now begun to drop from its highs in February and early March. That is normal. And we're anticipating the influx of Calanus, a very rich plankton source.
"If that happens, you can imagine what that means in terms of numbers of whales," he added.

(Bron: http://uk.reuters.com/)
(Bron foto: Reuters UK)

PETA-India gebruikt Bollywood actrice in nieuwe anti-bont campagne

Zeehondenjagers Cape Breton (Canada) gehinderd door zwaar ijs - Jagers Nova Scotia, New Brunswick en Prince Edward Island mogen 1.435 zeehondjes doden

East Coast seal hunt hampered by heavy ice

28-03-2009 The Chronicle Herald, Canada


SYDNEY — A small seal hunt has officially opened off Cape Breton, but the federal Fisheries Department says ice conditions could keep sealers away. Phil Jenkins says a couple of boats have headed out, but it’s unclear whether any hunting will take place today.

The sealing boat Cathy Erlene rests at berth in North Sydney on Friday. Heavy ice has kept sealers in port as a small hunt opened. (ANDREW VAUGHAN / CP)

Jenkins says the wind is slow and the ice is "quite tight," which could make it difficult for boats to manoeuvre in the area.

Sheryl Fink of the International Fund for Animal Welfare says the organization has a helicopter in the air, but has been unable to find any hunters.
Sealers from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island have a small quota of 1,435 animals.

The seal hunt in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence wrapped up Wednesday after hunters reached their quota of 15,000 seals.

(Bron: http://thechronicleherald.ca/)
(Bron foto: Chronicle Herald)

Vancouver BC, Canada, anti-seal-hunt demo 27th March 2009

80 Katten aangetroffen in een grote vuilnisbelt in miljoenen villa Chester Township, New Jersey (VS)

Officers Find 80 Cats in Filthy N.J. Home

27-03-2009 By ARUN KRISTIAN DAS, MyFox New York, USA


Officers with the New Jersey SPCA found 80 cats living in squalor inside a million-dollar home in Chester Township, according to authorities.The inside of the home was covered in filth, officers said.

"There was feces everywhere, and the smell was horrific," SPCA Superintendent Frank Rizzo told the Star-Ledger . "This is not a place you can live in. I don't know how anyone could survive in that."

Officials rescued more than 20 cats. Thursday and were expected to remove all the animals by Friday.
The SPCA expected to file 80 counts of failure to provide proper shelter against the homeowner, Wanda Oughton. Each count carries up to 6 months behind bars, 30 days of community service, and a fine of $1,000.

Feces, urine, and other debris covered much of the house, including an 8-inch mound of feces coating the bottom of a bathtub, according to the Star-Ledger report.

(Bron: http://www.myfoxny.com/)
(Bron foto's: My Fox New York)

Weer massale walvisstranding 'down under' - Ruim 100 grienden dood na stranding op kust Chatham Islands (Nieuw-Zeeland)

Whales die after stranding at Chatham Islands

27-03-2009 Radio New Zealand, New Zealand


More than a 100 pilot whales have died after becoming stranded on an isolated beach at the Chatham Islands.

The Department of Conservation was notified of the mass stranding at Mairangi, on the north-eastern islands, on Thursday night.
However, by the time DoC staff reached the location the tide had gone out.

Eight surviving whales had to be put down because of their injuries.

(Bron: http://www.radionz.co.nz/)

(Bron Google Earth: archief Kraaijer)

Kabinet maakt in april plannen tegen dierenrechtenextremisme bekend....

Dierenradicalen op de korrel

27-03-2009 Leeuwarder Courant, 'Opinie'


Het kabinet wil dierenrechtenextremisten harder aanpakken. Komende maand worden nieuwe maatregelen bekend gemaakt. Het wordt een moeilijk karwei, want de harde kern van deze activisten opereert volledig in het geheim.

Dierenextremisten dringen binnen in de persoonlijke levenssfeer van mensen die op een of andere wijze betrokken zijn bij het houden van proefdieren. Wageningen Universiteit wordt met een bomaanslag bedreigd als er daar wordt doorgegaan met dierproeven.

Nederland wordt zich in toenemende mate bewust van dierenleed en dierenwelzijn. Dat is mede te danken aan vreedzame actievoerders en aan democratisch werkende politici van onder anderen de Partij voor de Dieren. Hun methoden openen ogen, die van de extreme dierenradicalen wekken louter weerzin en scheppen angst. Het kabinet neemt hun dreiging serieus en wil ze aanpakken. Een goede zaak.

(Bron: http://www.leeuwardercourant.nl/)

Two endangered clouded leopard cubs born in US zoo

(Bron:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/03/26/earlyshow/living/petplanet/main4894861.shtml)

Een krab voelt pijn.... - Door toedienen elektrische stroomstootjes ontdekken wetenschappers dat ook een krab pijn ervaart....

Crabs feel pain and remember being hurt

Crabs not only suffer pain but can remember being hurt, research suggests.

27-03-2009 Telegraph, UK


Scientists made the discovery by submitting hermit crabs to small electric shocks. They say it has important implications for crustacean welfare in the food industry. Many chefs still boil lobsters alive, believing the creatures to be impervious to pain.

Only crabs that received shocks vacated their shells during the experiment, indicating that what they had experienced was unpleasant. Photo: GETTY

Hermit crabs lack a hard carapace of their own and so make their homes in empty mollusc shells.
The researchers delivered electric shocks to wires attached to the shells of hermit crabs.
Only crabs that received shocks vacated their shells during the experiment, indicating that what they had experienced was unpleasant.

With less powerful shocks, below the threshold that forced them out, crabs remained in their shells but appeared to be waiting for an opportunity to move.
When a new shell was offered to them, they were more likely to switch homes than crabs that had not received a shock.
This suggested that the crabs retained a memory of the pain they had felt earlier, said the scientists.

Professor Bob Elwood, from Queen's University, Belfast, who has previously studied evidence of pain in prawns, said: "There has been a long debate about whether crustaceans including crabs, prawns and lobsters feel pain.
"We know from previous research that they can detect harmful stimuli and withdraw from the source of the stimuli but that could be a simple reflex without the inner 'feeling' of unpleasantness that we associate with pain.

"This research demonstrates that it is not a simple reflex but that crabs trade-off their need for a quality shell with the need to avoid the harmful stimulus.
"Such trade-offs are seen in vertebrates in which the response to pain is controlled with respect to other requirements.
"Humans, for example, may hold onto a hot plate that contains food whereas they may drop an empty plate, showing that we take into account differing motivational requirements when responding to pain.
"Trade-offs of this type have not been previously demonstrated in crustaceans. The results are consistent with the idea of pain being experienced by these animals."

In his previous work, Prof Elwood found that when a prawn's antenna was treated with weak acetic acid, the creature rubbed it as if it was sore. But the rubbing was reduced by local anaesthetic.

The findings are consistent with observations of pain in mammals, said the professor, whose latest research is published in the journal Animal Behaviour.
He added: "More research is needed in this area where a potentially very large problem is being ignored.
"Legislation to protect crustaceans has been proposed but it is likely to cover only scientific research.
"Millions of crustacean are caught or reared in aquaculture for the food industry.
"There is no protection for these animals (with the possible exception of certain states in Australia) as the presumption is that they cannot experience pain.
"With vertebrates we are asked to err on the side of caution and I believe this is the approach to take with these crustaceans."

(Bron: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/)
(Bron foto: Telegraph)

België laat nieuw Centrum voor Toxicogenomica onderzoek doen naar alternatieven voor dierproeven...

Onderzoek naar alternatieven voor dierproeven

27-03-2009 De Standaard, Belgium


BRUSSEL - Er zal een Belgisch Centrum voor Toxicogenomica worden opgericht. Dat centrum moet alternatieven voor dierproeven onderzoeken. In de Senaat werd daarover een wetsvoorstel goedgekeurd.

Jaarlijks worden in België 800.000 dieren gebruikt voor tests in laboratoria. Geschat wordt dat binnen tien jaar de kaap van één miljoen dieren wordt overschreden. 'Nochtans werd de waarde van dierproeven nooit erkend noch werden ze als volledig betrouwbaar beschouwd', zei Philippe Mahoux (PS) die het voorstel indiende.

Het centrum moet de betrouwbaarheid aantonen van het 'science based toxicology programme' als een alternatief voor van dierproeven in het biomedisch onderzoek. (belga)

(Bron: http://www.standaard.be/)

Honden gaan 23 mei demonstreren tegen hondenexperimenten bij Belgisch proefdiercentrum Janssen Pharmaceutica, Beerse

Honden tegen hondenexperimenten

27-03-2009 Anti Dierproeven Coalitie


Kom naar onze actie zaterdag 23 mei 2009 tegen de verschrikkelijke experimenten op beagles en andere dieren in het proefdiercentrum Janssen Pharmaceutica te Beerse.

We verwachten jou en eventueel je hond op zaterdag 23 mei 2009 van 11u tot 12u.
Waar? Janssen Pharmaceutica, Turnhoutseweg 30 te Beerse.(Kijk op de kaart)

Daarna kan je vrijblijvend deelnemen aan een leuke boswandeling georganiseerd door een hondenclub.

Neem enkel je hond mee als hij of zij tegen de drukte kan aub! Er zullen mogelijk veel honden aanwezig zijn dus liever ook geen agressieve honden aub. Verder is natuurlijk iedereen van harte welkom. Tot de 23ste!

(Bron: http://www.stopdierproeven.org/)

Baviaan gered uit circus Spanje - Dier leidde eenzaam leven in opsluiting....

Simpatizantes de Igualdad Animal rescataron a una babuina de un circo donde vivía permanentemente enjaulada en el interior de un camión.

Más información:
http://www.igualdadanimal.org/noticia...

Dierenrechten 'actiegroepje' A.R.O.M.A. vernielt snoep in grote supermarkten - Claim gepubliceerd op Amerikaanse website - Haribo-snoep een doelwit

A.R.O.M.A. strikes again in supermarkets

Netherlands - One of the targets candy Haribo - Haribo company supports

Dutch circus

27-03-2009 Bite Back Magazine, USA


anonynmous report:

"On the 21st of March the A.R.O.M.A (Animal Rights One Man Army) went out to some big supermarkets in the Netherlands. (Different ones than last time) This time the A.R.O.M.A went on a Candy Trashing Spree.

About sixty Mars/Snickers/Twix bars had their packaging cut open.

Also +- 100 bags of HARIBO candy were ruined.

Haribo is the major sponsor for the Herman Renz Circus, which keeps wild animals for the amusement of idiots. They are also the biggest candyseller in the Netherlands. If animals have to die for or because of CANDY! this world has gone too far."

(Bron: http://directaction.info/)

30 Jaar oude skateboardende groene parkiet Gordo gestolen in Baldwin Park, Californië (VS)

Gordo the skateboarding parrot stolen

26-03-2009 The Associated Press, The Modesto Bee, USA


BALDWIN PARK, Calif. -- A birdnapper snatched Gordo the skateboarding parrot. The 30-year-old green Guatemalan parrot, a popular attraction for a decade in the San Gabriel Valley community of Baldwin Park, was taken from his front porch cage Wednesday morning.

AP Photo - Gordo, a 30-year-old Guatemalan parrot rides his skateboard on Dalewood Street in Baldwin Park on Friday, March 6, 2009 during his daily walk with owner Fred Mireles, 37, of Baldwin Park, Calif. A birdnapper snatched Gordo the skateboarding parrot. The 30-year-old green Guatemalan parrot, a popular attraction for a decade in the San Gabriel Valley community of Baldwin Park, was taken from his front porch cage Wednesday morning, March 25, 2009

Owner Fred Mireles said his mother heard some commotion and spotted a man running away with Gordo. The 47-year-old childless man says he's devastated, adding Gordo is like a kid to him.

Baldwin Park police Sgt. Darryl Kosaka said it could be difficult to recover the parrot, noting that animals are often stolen to become pets in other households or to be sold.

Mireles said the birdnapper is "up against a can of worms" because Gordo isn't used to strangers and will start biting.

(Bron: http://www.modbee.com/)
(Bron foto: Modesto Bee)

New York stad (VS) overweegt verbod op circussen met wilde dieren in de stad

Should Circus Elephants Be Banned?

26-03-2009 By Jennifer 8. Lee, The New York Times, USA


Almost half of City Council members believe so, with 23 of the 51 signing onto a bill that would prohibit “the display of wild or exotic animals for public entertainment or amusement.” Other animals included in the bill: dolphins, walruses, hippopotamuses, giraffes, koalas, kinkajou, sloths, tarantulas, rhinoceroses and armadillos.

Despite the extensive taxonomy in the bill, essentially everyone admits that the primary target for the legislation is the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. (There is a chimpanzee which rides a goat in Staten Island rodeo which would also be affected too, animal activists say.)

A proposed City Council bill would ban elephants from the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which arrived at Madison Square Garden this week.

In theory, if the bill were to pass, it would eventually become near impossible to see elephants in New York City. In 2006, the Bronx Zoo, the only city zoo with elephants, said it too would be phasing out the elephant exhibit as the current elephants died off.

The bill, which has circulated for many years in different local legislatures, has drawn renewed attention in New York City this week with Ringling Brothers arrival this week and last week’s closing arguments in a federal lawsuit that accused the circus of mistreating its Asian elephants. The lawsuit was filed in 2000 by a coalition of animal rights groups which charged the circus of violating the 1973 Endangered Species Act for harming, wounding or harassing the elephants through the use of a bull hooks and through chaining them up. (Documents are available here)

Animal activists say some of the information that has come up during the trial has helped give some momentum to the legislative efforts. “It adds so much more fuel to the fire,” said TracySilverman, the general counsel for the Animal Welfare Institute, one of the plaintiffs in the case. “It will only create a much more positive atmophere for passing legislation across the country.”

Ringling Brothers maintains that the circus is already regulated by the Department of Agriculture and that all investigations have shown that the elephants are very well treated. They also argue that philosophically, breeding elephants in captivity is necessary for an endangered species.
“There is no wild,” said Michelle Pardo, the lead lawyer for Ringling Brothers in the federal lawsuit. “There is a dwindling wild in this world. Unless these elephants are successfully raised in captivity, they are just going to become extinct.”

Asian elephants are endangered whereas African elephants, which there are more of, are classified as threatened. Ringling Brothers estimates that there are about 35,000 to 40,000 Asian elephants left in the world. Between 12,000 to 15,000 of the elephants are captivity in their native region, such as Thailand and Sri Lanka.

There are just over 300 Asian elephants in North America, with Ringling Brothers owning the the largest herd — 54. Of those, 18 are on tour and the remainder are kept in a sanctuary in Florida. Ms. Pardo noted that Ringling Brothers had bred 22 elephants, only one of which used artificial insemination. (It was born Jan. 19, on the eve of the inauguration, and thus named Barack.). “One of the indicators of good welfare is that they are breeding well,” said Ms. Pardo.

But the groups say life in the sanctuary is different from being forced to perform tricks for 9 minutes each show. “If they wanted to stay in Florida and breed the elephants and try to run a conservation center, that would be a completely different story,” said John Phillips, executive director of the New York League of Humane Voters, which has been lobbying for the City Council bill. “They are breeding these animals and then transporting them around the country.”
He added, “These animals are being denied a social natural existence, all just for eight minutes of entertainment.”

(Bron: http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/)
(Bron foto: New York Times)

Zeldzame Saimaa ringelrob in Finland met uitsterven bedreigd - Slechts 260 Saimaa ringelrobben in Saimaa meer

Saimaa’s seals on the brink of extinction

26-03-2009 Domestic news - General, Helsinki Times, Finland


Recent surveys show that the Saimaa ringed seal (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saimaa_Ringed_Seal) is seriously endangered. Urgent action is needed to save this unique freshwater seal, which is found only in Finland’s largest lake. Following a steep recent decline in their numbers there are only about 260 Saimaa ringed seals left today, scattered around the 4,400 square kilometres of the labyrinthine Saimaa lake system. Fewer than 70 of the surviving seals are mature females able to raise pups.

With their cuddly bodies and smiley faces, Saimaa’s seals have become emblematic of the nature-conservation movement in Finland, as it is the one animal found only in Finland. The loss of their charismatic mascot would be a tragedy for the country’s nature-lovers.

Lake Saimaa became cut off from the Baltic Sea about 9,000 years ago due to land uplift following the end of the Ice Age. Its marooned seals soon adapted to life in fresh water, but in modern times they have struggled to maintain their numbers in the face of hunting and persecution by local fishermen.

The seals raise their pups during late winter in lairs built in deep snow drifts on top of the frozen lake. Climate change will endanger the seals if the lake fails to freeze over so solidly in coming winters. In recent years a lack of snow has already been a problem. With insufficient snow for the seals to make sheltered lairs, pup mortality rates have been high. But an even more serious problem is that young seals often drown after becoming entangled in nets put out in the lake by local fishermen.

Save our seals
Finland has been urged by international conservation organisations to act urgently to save its seals. A report recently published by Metsähallitus, the authority responsible for protecting the seals, stresses that limiting the use of harmful fishing tackle in the seals’ breeding areas is the only way to help their numbers recover.

“Of the 50-55 pups born each year in late February or early March, 10-30 per cent may die in their lairs as a direct result of poor snow conditions, and only about 30 per cent reach the age of one year,” says conservation biologist Tero Sipilä, who works for Metsähallitus in Savonlinna. “Our research shows that about 65 per cent of investigated deaths are caused by young seals drowning in nets, 4 per cent die of natural causes, and the rest of unknown causes.”

Metsähallitus’s biologists will soon be heading out onto the frozen lake to find out how many seal pups have survived the winter. But according to Sipilä, the most urgent issue is to reduce deaths due to fishing by-catch, to compensate for increasing mortality rates in winter lairs due to climate change.

Stubborn fishermen
The use of harmful traps and baited hooks has already been banned in the seals’ breeding waters and many fishermen have been paid compensation for agreeing not to put down nets in the spring and early summer in waters covering a total area of 600 square kilometres. A working group set up within the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry urgently recommended either an enforced ban on net fishing or the extension of voluntary compensation agreements to cover more waters, but both proposals appear to have been blocked by Minister Sirkka-Liisa Anttila (Centre Party).

Sipilä is frustrated that so many water owners are reluctant to co-operate. “Their attitude is that it’s more important for them to fish as they like than to save the seals,” he says. “Stopping the use of nets in the springtime would save 10-15 pups a year. With the population being so small, every single animal is important. We have to act urgently, since if we continue only with the same level of protection the seals could soon become extinct.”

Experts reckon that under natural conditions, Lake Saimaa could be home to as many as 6,000 seals, but more realistic target by Metsähallitus’s is to press for protective measures that could raise their numbers to 400 by 2020. This could be just enough to save these lovable animals from the immediate threat of extinction.

Fran Weaver - HT
Katriina Mikkonen - Metsähallitus

(Bron: http://www.helsinkitimes.fi/)
(Bron foto: http://maakuntaesite.ekarjala.fi/en/sivut/2/1/lue_lisaa/a_landscape_of_lakes_and_forests)

In Colombia wordt gejaagd op twee ontsnapte nijlpaarden en jong uit nalatenschap drugsbaron Escobar

Overlast door nijlpaarden van overleden

drugsbaron

26-03-2009 Door een onzer redacteuren, NRC Handelsblad


Rotterdam, 26 maart. Een nijlpaard schijnt ook te overleven in het tropische klimaat van Midden-Colombia. Dit bewijzen twee nijlpaarden die ontsnapten van het landgoed van wijlen Pablo Escobar.

De twee maakten deel uit van de verzameling dieren die de drugsbaron begin jaren tachtig per Russisch transportvliegtuig uit Afrika liet invliegen: zebra’s, giraffes, buffels en struisvogels.
Enkele jaren geleden opende de regering op de geconfisqueerde haciënda een antidrugsmuseum. De meeste dieren gingen naar echte dierentuinen, maar de zebra’s en nijlpaarden bleven achter.

In 2007 slaagden twee nijlpaarden – een mannetje en een vrouwtje – erin samen te ontsnappen. Uit hun samenzijn kwam een kalfje voort. Inmiddels is het paar uit elkaar.
De autoriteiten willen de drie graag vangen, omdat ze voor overlast zorgen, meldde de krant El Tiempo gisteren. Boeren langs de Río Magdalena en enkele zijrivieren, klagen dat vee wordt aangevallen. De lokale bevolking schiet op de dieren om ze te verjagen.

Over drie weken worden kooien en lokaas geplaatst. Van het vrouwtje en haar jong is bekend waar ze ongeveer leven. Het mannetje is al een maand niet gesignaleerd. Hij leefde lang onder een brug, maar zou mensenschuw zijn geworden door het geluid van de motoren op vissersboten.

(Bron: http://www.nrc.nl/)

PETA vergelijkt lot dieren in bio-industrie met Holocaust - Duitse rechters verbieden omstreden reclamecampagne PETA

Rechter verbiedt reclame met Holocaust

26-03-2009 Het Parool


KARLSRUHE - De hoogste Duitse rechters hebben donderdag een reclamecampagne verboden waarin het lot van dieren in de bio-industrie wordt vergeleken met de Holocaust. De rechtbank in Karlsruhe noemde de actie van de internationale dierenbeschermingsorganisatie PETA ontoelaatbaar (http://special.peta.de/holocaust/mdh.html).

Een mildere actie van dierenrechtenorganisatie PETA: een Gekke Koe, een Pestvarken en een Salmonellakip als statement. Foto ANP

Het gelijkstellen van de bio-industrie met de Jodenvervolging door de nazi's schendt het zogenoemde persoonlijkheidsrecht van Joden, aldus de rechters van het constitutioneel hof. Het lot van de Holocaust-slachtoffers wordt op die manier als onbelangrijk gezien en in het banale getrokken.

Onder het motto De Holocaust Op Uw Bord had PETA beelden willen tonen van levende en dode gevangenen uit concentratiekampen naast dieren uit de bio-industrie. De campagne kon in de Verenigde Staten wel doorgaan. (ANP)

(Bron: http://www.parool.nl/)
(Bron foto: Parool)

Twee zeldzame gevlekte luipaardjes geboren in dierentuin Virginia (VS)

Rare clouded leopard cubs born at National Zoo's

Conservation and Research Center

26-03-2009 Los Angeles Times, USA


The National Zoo's Conservation and Research Center is celebrating the birth of two clouded leopard cubs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clouded_Leopard)-- the first births of their kind for the National Zoo in 16 years and the first in any North American zoo in six years.

Clouded leopards, an endangered species, (http://www.cloudedleopard.org/)present major challenges to those attempting to breed them in captivity -- one big reason for the long gap between captive births. Males are prone to aggression so severe that they often kill their potential mates. Females have a tendency to kill their offspring accidentally or intentionally shortly after giving birth.

The successful breeding that resulted in the two newborn cubs was much longer in the making than their three-month gestation period. Michael E. Ruane of the Washington Post explains:

Experimentation eventually suggested that if a male and female were raised together, the male would not kill the female once they reached adulthood and mated, Howard said. "You want to put the male in with the female, pair them up as early as possible," she said.

Hannibal and Jao Chu were such a pair. They were imported from Thailand last year, Howard said, and reached puberty together. Lang said experts believed the two mated several months ago at the center. About a week ago, curators realized Jao Chu looked as if she might be pregnant.

Several days ago, she was placed on a pregnancy watch, and when she turned down her usual snack of two dead mice Monday morning, Lang said they figured she was pregnant.

Early Tuesday, she vanished from the area of her enclosure that is monitored by video cameras, and about 1:30 a.m. Lang was summoned from his home on the center grounds. He unlocked the door of the leopard's enclosure, entered and spotted her in the corner with the two cubs.

The cubs' birth is especially important, the zoo says, because their genes come from outside the captive clouded leopard population. Their sex won't be known until their first veterinary exam, and they won't be on exhibit to the public.

Clouded leopards are native to southeast Asia, where they're in danger of extinction due to hunting and deforestation.

(Bron: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/)
(Bron foto's: http://news.ninemsn.com.au/glance/793913/rare-and-tiny-clouded-leopards-born)

Protest 7 april in Katwijk extreemrechts tegen gebruik wilde dieren circus Moskou-Holiday - Katwijk geen bezwaar tegen dieren in piste circus

Katwijk geeft wel vergunning aan circus Moskou-

Holiday voor optredens met dieren

26-03-2009 Leidsch Dagblad


Katwijk - De actiegroep 'Met de dieren tegen de beesten' demonstreert op dinsdagavond 7 april in Katwijk. Dat gebeurt om 19 uur op het parkeerterrein Noordduinen. Niet toevallig heeft daar het Staatscircus van Moskou-Holiday de tenten opgeslagen. De groepering wil het circus verbieden om wilde dieren, zoals tijgers en olifanten, in te zetten.

Vorige maand demonstreerde de groepering ook al in Alphen aan den Rijn. Die actie trok overigens weinig belangstelling.

Anders dan in Alphen aan den Rijn mogen in Katwijk wel wilde dieren optreden. De gemeente Katwijk heeft daarvoor inmiddels een verguning verleend. Het circus geeft er op 7 en 8 april voorstellingen. Burgemeester Jos Wienen heeft gisteren kennis genomen van de betoging. Hij heeft er geen bezwaar tegen.

(Bron: http://www.leidschdagblad.nl/)

Zaterdag begint in Queensland (Australië) doden van schadelijke agapadden (cane toads) - Dode dieren verwerkt tot mest voor suikerruit boeren

Toxic toads targeted in Australia's 'Toad Day Out'

26-03-2009 By KRISTEN GELINEAU, The Associated Press, SignOnSanDiego.com, USA


SYDNEY — For decades, the poisonous cane toad (http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agapad) has plagued Australians, breeding rapidly, eating voraciously and bestowing death upon most animals that dare consume it. So officials came up with a novel – and, some say, poetic – solution: hold a festive mass killing of the creatures and turn the corpses into fertilizer for the very farmers who've battled the pests for years.

In this July 22, 2003 file photo, a cane toad at Kakadu National Park in Australia's Northern Territory is shown. For decades, the poisonous cane toad has plagued Australians, breeding rapidly, eating voraciously and bestowing death upon most animals that dare consume it. (AP Photo/Mark Baker, Files) - AP

On Saturday, residents of five communities in cane toad-plagued northern Queensland state will grab their flashlights and fan out into the night to hunt down the hated animals as part of the inaugural "Toad Day Out" celebration. The toads will be brought to collection points the next morning to be weighed and killed, with some of the remains ground into fertilizer for sugarcane farmers at a local waste management plant.

"It's just a circle of poetic justice!" Toad Day Out organizer Lisa Ahrens said. "Seventy-five years later, they're a benefit to the cane farmer."

The toads were imported from South America to Queensland in 1935 in a failed attempt to control beetles on sugarcane plantations. The problem? The toads couldn't jump high enough to eat the beetles, which live on top of cane stalks.

The ample amphibians, which grow up to 8 inches (20 centimeters) in length, bred rapidly, and their millions-strong population now threatens many local species across Australia. They spread diseases, such as salmonella, and produce highly toxic venom from glands in their skin that can kill would-be predators. The toads are also voracious eaters, chomping up insects, frogs, small reptiles and mammals – even birds. Cane toads are only harmful to humans if their poison is swallowed.

"The cane toad is probably the most disgusting creature and the most destructive creature," said Queensland politician Shane Knuth, a longtime loather of cane toads who came up with the Toad Day Out idea. "They're killing our native wildlife, they're taking over our habitat and they're hopping all through this country."

Knuth, who has been pushing a proposal to offer a 40 Australian cent ($0.28) bounty on the creatures since 2007, said each adult female cane toad can produce 20,000 eggs. "So if we're able to remove 3,000 female toads, we have the potential in the long run of removing 60 million toads from our environment," he said. No one knows exactly how many cane toads live in Australia.

Organizers are trying to woo thousands of people to take part in the hunt by offering prizes for those with the biggest toad and the highest total weight of toads. Goodies range from cane toad trophies (made of actual stuffed cane toads) to a gift certificate for a local resort.

An organizers' tip sheet gives advice on how to create toad traps – or "detention camps" – and recommends that participants "study detention techniques to ensure your own, as well as the toad's safety – they must be alive and unharmed for interrogation."
Live toads brought to the collection points will be examined by experts to ensure they're not harmless frogs and then killed, either by freezing or by being placed in plastic bags filled with carbon dioxide.

Haydn Slattery, manager of the SITA waste management plant in Cairns, said he's hoping to receive about 220 pounds (100 kilograms).

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has applauded the effort – with one caveat.
"We're only supportive of the plan if the toads are killed humanely – in other words, they're not hit with baseball bats or cricket bats and golf clubs," said spokesman Michael Beatty.

(Bron: http://www3.signonsandiego.com/)
(Bron foto: SignOnSanDiego)

Op Nederlandse kust gestrandde bruinvissen vermoedelijk verminkt door scheepsschroeven

Bruinvissen niet moedwillig verminkt

26-03-2009 Nieuws.nl


(Novum) - Tientallen bruinvissen die de afgelopen maanden met verwondingen zijn gestrand aan de Nederlandse kust blijken niet opzettelijk verminkt te zijn. Scheepsschroeven zijn waarschijnlijk de boosdoener.

Achter het strafrechtelijk onderzoek naar de verwonde bruinvissen is na deze constatering een punt gezet. Dat heeft het Korps Landelijke Politiediensten (KLPD) donderdag bekendgemaakt.

Op de stranden aan de Nederlandse kust spoelen geregeld bruinvissen aan. De teller staat sinds de laatste jaarwisseling op bijna negentig. Tientallen dieren hadden verwondingen. De waterpolitie van het KLPD startte begin deze maand een onderzoek naar de oorzaak van de veronderstelde verminkingen. Dat gebeurde op verzoek van het functioneel parket van het Openbaar Ministerie in Amsterdam.

Het Nederlands Forensisch Instituut en onderzoekers van de Faculteit Diergeneeskunde van de Universiteit Utrecht hebben geen aanwijzingen gevonden dat de verwondingen moedwillig door mensen zijn toegebracht, licht het KLPD toe. De verwondingen zijn waarschijnlijk na de dood van de dieren veroorzaakt door scheepsschroeven.

(Bron: http://binnenland.nieuws.nl/)

Urge the Olympic Committee to Help End the Canadian Seal Slaughter

(Info: http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/seal_hunt_09)

Gevangen Britse SHAC-activist Dan Wadham spreekt over infiltrant Adrian Radford

Letter from SHAC 7 veganarchist prisoner Dan

Wadham

25-03-2009 Support Dan Wadham, IndyMedia, UK

Dan Wadham is a veganarchist and animal rights activist from the UK. On 23rd December 2008 he was convicted with others of 'Conspiracy to Blackmail', in relation to the Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC) campaign. Dan was remanded on 19th January 2009 during his sentencing. On 21st January 2009 he recieved a sentence of 5 years imprisonment.


A message from Dan from within the prison walls:

On March 1st, The Sunday Times printed an article about the actions of Andrian Radford AKA Ian Farmer - Ex soldier, gay rights activist, animal rights infiltrator and police informant.

Disgusting as the news was, it comes as no big surprise that the state would accompany their surveillance operations with an undercover agent.

For 3 years Radford pretended to be human in order to inform on the caring individuals and their attempts to rid this earth of the violence of vivisection. Whilst we showed him friendship and kindness, he showed us deceit and malice. Radford would claim his actions were in the interest of public protection, but it is him and his violent, murderous masters that ordinary folk need protecting from. Violence from the animal liberation movement has been virtually non-existent, indeed non-violent direct action and an unwillingness to harm our enemies in the pursuit of freedom has been a defining characteristic of this struggle. While we are motivated by compassion for all the living things, Radford is motivated by money, fame and glory - As evidenced by the fact he is publishing a book of his experiences, a tacky but predictable course of action for someone of his integrity.

Radford tries to come across as reasonable and fair by praising our friend Natasha Avery as “compassionate”, “beautiful” and “warm” adding that “she is also a nutcase who attacks people”. Well it is true that Natasha certainly is compassionate, beautiful and warm - words that could never describe scum like Radford - However she is neither a “nutcase” nor does she “attack people”. And the evidence in our court case proves that. In reality it would seem that it is in fact Radford who is the “nutcase who attacks people”. He is the one who was paid to deceive and manipulate good people, trap them and hand them over to the state. I mean really, what kind of person does it take to hand their supposed friends over to the state?! What kind of low down criminal could use a person’s physical disabilities against them in order to hide their own dirty secrets?.. As Radford did to Gavin Medd-Hall, a gentle soul who is registered blind and who was blamed by Radford for his own secret disruptions.

Radford claims he is proud of his work - he has to though doesn’t he? People like him can only function by smokescreening the reality of their actions with some sort of false moral superiority. Just like the vivisector tells himself he is ‘saving lives’, the snitch hides behind the charade of ‘public protection’. The only thing he is protecting is his bank balance and the monopoly of power wielded by the international drugs mafia that test their goods on beagle puppies at HLS.

One wanders, if we are such dangerous lunatics, why was the document printed in The Sunday Times - that was passed to police by Radford from within SHAC - about finding someone to work undercover in HLS? No-one can argue that organising an undercover investigation into a lab that has been exposed scores of times for cruelty, negligence, falsification of data and bad practice is not the work of extreme terrorists. Such investigations were at the heart of everything we did. As someone who worked alongside Gregg, Natasha, Heather and Gavin, I can say there was never anything more important to us than exposing the daily abuse and torture inside Huntingdon Life Sciences. These friends of mine are amongst some of the most inspiring people I have ever known and their spirit still glows in my heart despite these prison walls and razor wire between us.

Intelligence gathering aside, another function of the infiltrator is to break and divide relationships amongst our communities. The age old divide and rule tactic is an effective one for our enemies - and was indeed used by Radford when he blamed his disruptions on our dear friend Gavin Medd-Hall. This is why we must remember the importance of unity and solidarity.

An infiltrator can spread fear and suspicion like a disease, but we must not let this insidious plot take hold. Many of our number are behind bars - But that will not last forever. The psychological prison formed by our fear is a far greater foe than any police force or court case. I am sat here in the comfort of my prison cell feeling like one of the luckiest people alive. Lucky to have such strong and loving characters for friends. Lucky to have such unshakable support from the animal rights community. And most of all, lucky to not be facing the horrific situation facing millions of innocent individuals across the world. From the down trodden inhabitants of countries under repressive regimes to the residents of depleting natural habitats and the imprisoned creatures of global industry and commerce. The individuals in places like Huntingdon Life sciences are serving life sentences, no possibility of parole, no rights, no access to sunlight, flesh air. Those creatures have no-one but us, no chance of freedom but the freedom we fight for and win for them, and right now is the time to make sure the efforts of Radford and co. do not lessen their chances.

For the animals always
Dan
x

Prisoner Address:

Dan Wadham (A5705AA)
HMP Camp Hill
Newport
Isle Of Wight
PO30 5PB

Links:
http://myspace.com/shacukprisonersupport
http://shac.net/features/prisoners.html
http://indymedia.org.uk/en/actions/2008/shac

Background:
50 Years For The UK SHAC 7 - http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2009/01/419733.html
Anti-vivisection campaigners convicted of blackmail - http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/12/416251.html

Support Dan Wadham
Homepage: http://myspace.com/supportdanwadham

(Bron: http://www.indymedia.org.uk/)
(Bron foto: IndyMedia UK)

Bekende gevangen Britse dierenrechtenactiviste Natasha Avery verhuisd naar andere gevangenis

Natasha Avery moved prison

25-03-2009 Support Natasha, IndyMedia, UK

Natasha Avery was moved yesturday to HMP Send, Ripley Road, Woking, Surrey GU23 7LJ. Natasha is a commited vegan activist, who has dedicated her life to saving animals from abuse.
In the past she's been involved in the closure of Consort Kennels, Hillgrove Cat Farm, and over the last few years she has dedicated herself to SHAC (Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty) http://www.shac.net/. A campaign with the aim to close down the notorious animal testing facility, Huntingdon Life Sciences.

However on May 1st 2007, Natasha was arrested and remanded into custody after 32 separate police raids, involving 700 police officers in the UK, The Netherlands and Belgium. On 30th July 2008 Natasha entered a plea of guilty which will give her a third off her original sentence. On 21st January 2009 she was given a sentence of 9 years imprisonment, which is the maximum sentence she could have been given with the third off.

Please write Natasha letters of support and get out there and demonstrate for SHAC! See her support page for what you can send to Natasha.

http://myspace.com/shacukprisonersupport
http://shac.net/features/prisoners.html
http://indymedia.org.uk/en/actions/2008/shac

Support Natasha
Homepage: http://myspace.com/supportnatasha

(Bron: http://www.indymedia.org.uk/)
(Bron foto: archief Kraaijer)

Canada's slaughter of baby seals - Photos made on March 25th by The Humane Society of the United States/Canada

(Bron: © media centre of the Humane Society of the Unites States, http://www.humanesociety.org/)

Horrible video footage Canadian seal slaughter - Made by the Humane Society of the United States/Canada, 25th March 2009

Leeuw gered uit Frans circus - Dier zat in veel te kleine kooi en klauwen voorste poten uitgetrokken - Leeuw in Belgische opvanglocatie

Franse circusleeuw Brutus opgevangen in

Oppglabbeek

25-03-2009 De Morgen, Belgium


Het Natuurhulpcentrum in Opglabbeek biedt sinds gisterenavond onderdak aan een 5 jaar oude mannetjesleeuw. Dat maakte Sil Janssen van het Natuurhulpcentrum bekend. De politie had het dier in beslag genomen bij een Frans circus. Intussen is het al de vijfde leeuw die het Natuurhulpcentrum opvangt.

"Een organisatie die bekommerd is om het welzijn van dieren, wist dat we ervaring hadden met de opvang van leeuwen", vertelde Sil Janssen.

Te kleine kooi, mishandeld en gebroken kaak
De leeuw zat in het circus in een veel te kleine kooi. "Na de nodige verdoving kon onze dierenarts Brutus onderzoeken. Het dier is gezond, maar zijn kaak stond wel scheef. Vermoedelijk het resultaat van een slecht genezen breuk. De leeuw werd vermoedelijk ook geschopt of geslagen. De klauwen van zijn voorste poten waren uitgetrokken", aldus nog Janssen.

"In onze grote leeuwenkooi krijgt Brutus een behoorlijke opvang en verzorging. We hebben al ervaring met de herplaatsing van leeuwen. Misschien verhuist Brutus net als deze dieren naar een wildpark in Afrika." (belga/edp)

(Bron: http://www.demorgen.be/)

Canadese zeehondenjagers hebben 23 en 24 maart al 17.200 zeehondjes afgeslacht bij Iles de la Madeleine

Seal hunt resumes off Iles de la Madeleine

25-03-2009 THE CANADIAN PRESS, The Star, Canada


HALIFAX – Seal hunters returned to the ice in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence for a few hours Wednesday to kill the last remaining seals allowed under their quota off Iles de la Madeleine.

Phil Jenkins, a spokesperson for the federal Fisheries Department, said about 17,200 seals were killed on Monday and Tuesday, leaving only a few hundred remaining before the hunt ended at 10 a.m. local time.

Helicopters carrying observers from two animal welfare groups headed out to witness the final stage of the hunt, which involved sealers from the Quebec islands.

In addition to sealers in boats, the hunt involved sealers who were able to reach the animals by snowmobile and all-terrain vehicles because of ice that reached the shore.

Jenkins said a hunt in the gulf for sealers from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island is scheduled to begin at 6 a.m. Friday.
"That's the earliest, weather dependent," he said.

About 50 licensed sealers plus their crew will take part in that hunt between Iles de la Madeleine and Cape Breton. It has a small quota of 1,435 animals.

The federal government has set a combined allowable catch for this year's East Coast seal hunt of 338,200 harp, hooded and grey seals.

(Bron: http://www.thestar.com/)

650 Lammeren opeengepakt in truck bij Graz (Oostenrijk) - Vrachtwagen onderweg van Roemenië naar Frigento (Italië)

Police stop ´lamb prison´ truck

25-03-2009 Austrian Times, Austria


Police stopped a truck yesterday (Tues) morning on the southern motorway (A2) near Graz that had been transporting 650 lambs in an area of only 122 square metres. Styrian police said today the lambs had been transported on four levels of the truck and had not been supplied with enough food and water. The truck was en route from Romania to Frigento in southern Italy.

Police stopped the truck at a control checkpoint at the Kaiserwald parking area near Unterpremstätten in Graz-Umgebung district.

They found that the larger lambs did not even have enough room to be able to stand up in the truck. The animals had no food, and devices from which they could supposedly obtain water could not supply them with enough of it.

Police also said the truck driver had not complied with the regulation to rest after 14 hours at the wheel.
Veterinarians were unable to find any injured lambs in the truck despite the bad conditions in which they had been transported.

Police let the driver continue on his way after giving him a citation. He may face court proceedings in the future.

(Bron: http://austriantimes.at/)
(Bron foto: http://www.oe24.at/oesterreich/chronik/steiermark/650_Laemmer_auf_122_Quadratmeter__0444249.ece)

Drie condors vrijgelaten in de uitlopers van de Chileense Andes - Chili werkt aan programma om de condor voor uitsterven te behoeden

Cóndores chilenos vuelan a la libertad

25-03-2009 The Associated Press, El Paso Times, USA (24-03-2009)


SANTIAGO DE CHILE—Dos cóndores machos y una hembra fueron liberados el lunes en los faldeos de la cordillera de Los Andes al culminar un proceso de rehabilitación que es parte de un esfuerzo de preservación de la especie, cuya situación es considerada vulnerable.

Un cóndor andino inicia su vuelo desde Farellones, Chile, el martes 24 de marzo de 2009. Tres cóndores fueron liberados por veterinarios chilenos después de un proceso de rehabilitación. Una de las aves había sido herida y las otras dos nacieron en cautiverio. ((AP Photo/Santiago Llanquin))

Las gigantescas aves de unos cuatro años emprendieron el vuelo majestuoso en la ceremonia encabezada por la ministra de Agricultura, Marigen Hornkohl.
El esfuerzo de preservación de la especie es desarrollado en conjunto por instituciones de Chile y Argentina.

Dos de las aves nacieron en cautiverio, por lo cual se requirió el proceso de preparación antes de lanzarlas a la inmensidad y los potenciales peligros de los cielos andinos.

El tercer cóndor fue hallado herido y en malas condiciones en el sur del país, pero al ser liberado el martes estaba totalmente rehabilitado.

El programa incluye seguimiento de la nueva vida de las aves mediante tecnología satelital.
La campaña de preservación "implica un trabajo coordinado de tratamiento, rehabilitación y reinserción de la mayor ave voladora del mundo", dijo Hornkohl.

Agregó que la mayoría de las aves rehabilitadas "han sido dañadas por la acción humana".

(Bron: http://www.elpasotimes.com/)
(Bron foto: El Paso Times)

1.000 Nertsen ontsnapt uit fokkerij west Jutland (Denemarken) - Mogelijk bevrijd door dierenrechtenactivisten

Activists suspected in mink release

25-03-2009 The Copenhagen Post


Police suspect that someone intentionally set free 1,000 minks from a western Jutland farm. Around 1,000 minks escaped from a farm in western Jutland on Tuesday.

Police indicated they did not know if animal activists were responsible for the release, but believe the action was done wilfully.

Southern Jutland Police say that the owner of the farm was awoken around 3:30am by his dogs, which began barking when the minks began running across his property.

In a similar incident last year, 8,600 minks were released from a farm in eastern Jutland by activists, causing considerable traffic tie-ups.

(Bron: http://www.cphpost.dk/)

Horrible video footage Canadian seal slaughter - Made by the International Fund for Animal Welfare, 24th March

Zes van de tien geredde walvissen op kust West- Australië weer gestrand.....

Rescued whales back on

25-03-2009 Article from: Australian Associated Press, The Australian, Australia


SIX of 10 surviving pilot whales herded out to sea after a mass stranding in Western Australia's southwest have become stranded again. The animals were among 87 long-finned pilot whales and five dolphins washed up on the beach at Hamelin Bay before sunrise on Monday.

Some returned to sea but more than 70 whales and four of the dolphins died, and their carcasses have since been removed from the beach.

Yesterday, The Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) trucked 11 surviving whales 20km to Flinders Bay and herded them out to sea.
One of the whales later had to be euthanased after becoming distressed and separating from the pod.

DEC information officer Jason Foster said six of the remaining 10 whales have since been found stranded on a beach 6km away from Flinders Bay, where they were released.
"They have been found along a stretch of pretty rugged coastline,'' Mr Foster said.
"Staff are on the way to assess the health of the whales,'' he said.

DEC officers had to use helicopters and four-wheel-drives to get to the latest stranding site.

Another whale has been found dead north of Hamelin Bay where the mass stranding occurred but Mr Foster said it is not believed to be one of the whales herded out yesterday.

There has been no confirmation of the whereabouts of the other four whales in the group released.
"The surveillance plane will be up throughout the day looking for the other four,'' Mr Foster said.
The whales initially resisted their rescuers' efforts, with at least two starting to swim back to shore.
But they were last seen heading for deeper waters late last evening.

A mammoth rescue effort involving up to 180 volunteers, wildlife officers and veterinarians began when the whales and dolphins were discovered by early beach walkers at the idyllic holiday community, south of Margaret River.

There have been 21 mass strandings of whales and dolphins along the West Australian coast since 1984, according to the DEC.

(Bron: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/)

(Lees ook: / Read also: http://animals-in-the-news.blogspot.com/2009/03/britse-dierenrechtenorganisaties.html)

Horrible video footage Canadian seal slaughter - Made by the Humane Society of the United States/Canada, 24th March

Canada's slaughter of baby seals - Photos made on March 24th by The Humane Society of the United States/Canada

“Today, despite overwhelming obstacles, HSI was able to reach the scene of the harp seal slaughter in the Gulf of St. Lawrence; we are devastated by what we saw,” said Rebecca Aldworth, director of Humane Society International Canada. “The once pristine ice floes were covered in blood, the carcasses abandoned as they always are—dumped like garbage. Sealers ran across the ice, clubbing every seal in their path. Sealers ran across the ice clubbing every seal in their path. The pups would cry and try to crawl away to escape the blows, but they were no match for the men with hakapiks. The beautiful harp seal nursery has been turned into the scene of a massacre.”

(Bron: © media centre of the Humane Society of the Unites States,
http://www.humanesociety.org/)

Is Chanel de oudste hond ter wereld...? - 20 Jaar oud hondje leeft in Port Jefferson Station, New York (VS)

World's oldest pooch?

25-03-2009 San Francisco Chronicle, USA


She may be hard on hearing, need goggles for her cataracts and prefer her cozy bed over a trip to the park. But according to a recent Newsday report, Chanel, a 20-year-old wire-haired dachshund in Port Jefferson Station, New York, is basking in the limelight of being named world's oldest dog.

The next edition of the Guinness Book of World Records, due out in September, will make that title official. (Guinness demanded a birth certificate, dated photos and notes from veterinarians to seal the deal.) She's since become a darling of the international press and it's rumored that a producer for Jay Leno even wants to fly her to California.

In so-called "dog years" Chanel will be 147 years old on her 21st birthday this May. (To put this into perspective, if she were a human, she would have been born in 1869 — just four years after Abraham Lincoln's death.) Although, interestingly, a study recently debunked the mythical ratio of seven dog years for every human year because smaller species of dogs tend to live much longer than larger ones.

Pet parent Denice Shaughnessy, 51, told Newsday that at one point she couldn't afford her auto insurance and had to give up her car. She and her daughter lived on mac and cheese, and Chanel shared the meals. During good times and bad, Shaughnessy admits to pampering her pooch, including administering massages after runs and letting Chanel choose between dog food and the human kind. And when Chanel is ready to go, it will be her choice, says Shaughnessy, adding, "I just hope she goes peacefully in her sleep."

But in the wake of the Chanel media avalanche, Shaughnessy isn't the only one who hopes Chanel goes peacefully. Her title is now being contested by several people from around the globe.

The 100th anniversary of the birth of Bluey, a famous Australian cattle dog born on June 7, 1910, will be celebrated next year by the residents of Rochester, a small town north of Melbourne, Australia. Bluey herded sheep and cattle for 20 years, and allegedly lived to the ripe old age of 27. His secret to longevity? Lots of exercise and a diet of kangaroos and emus.
Rochester residents are reportedly peeved by all the hoopla over 20-year-old Chanel who has been "mistakenly hailed as the world's oldest living dog."

According to a story from DogMagazine.net, Chanel's award has made "the canine world barking mad, because despite the error, she is rapidly becoming a world-famous bitch."

"This dog's age is no big deal," JT Cro growled on The Sun's website after the the U.K. paper picked up the Chanel story. "My grandparents had a dog before they passed away who was 33 years old in human years and in remarkably good health."

Of course, Guinness requires a dog's age to be documented, which bars many animals older than Chanel from the record book.

(Bron: http://www.sfgate.com/)
(Bron foto: San Francisco Chronicle)

Ruim 50 nieuwe diersoorten op Papoea Nieuw-Guinea ontdekt door Conservation International - Bijzondere spinnen, kikkers en een gekko

Spiders, Frogs and Gecko among Exciting

Discoveries Found in Papua New Guinea

25-03-2009 by Insciences, USA


Arlington, VA – Jumping spiders, a tiny chirping frog and an elegant striped gecko are among more than 50 species believed new to science discovered during a Conservation International (CI) Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) expedition to Papua New Guinea’s highlands wilderness. The discoveries were announced today following analysis of the species that were found in July and August of 2008 during a month-long exploration of Papua New Guinea’s central mountains.

CI scientists were joined by scientists from Papua New Guinea and the University of British Columbia (UBC) and Montclair State University to explore the region alongside members of local communities.

IN DEPTH: The Discovering Species Site
PHOTOS: View photos of the species from this RAP expedition.

More than 600 species were documented during the expedition. Of those, a total of 50 spider species, two plants, three frogs and one gecko are believed to be new to science. The three frogs include a tiny brown frog with a sharp chirping call (Oreophryne sp.), a bright green tree frog with enormous eyes (Nyctimystes sp.),

and a torrent-dwelling frog that has a loud ringing call (Litoria sp.). The gecko (Cyrtodactylus sp.) was the only specimen of its kind found in the dense rainforest.

“The vast Kaijende Uplands and nearby valleys represent one of Papua New Guinea’s largest undeveloped highlands wilderness areas, and all of it is under the tenure of local clan landowners. These forests are essential to their traditional lifestyles,” said CI scientist Steve Richards, who led the expedition.

Local clan communities rely on this wilderness area for hunting and collecting forest products, and the region is a critical source of clean drinking water to tens of thousands of valley people living in the Enga Southern Highlands, Sandaun and Western Provinces. Globally, this vast forested wilderness is critical in helping slow climate change by sequestering large amounts of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide.

As part of the expedition, Montclair State University anthropologist Dr. William Thomas worked with the local Hewa clans to document the natural history and local knowledge of these resources as part of the “Forest Stewards” project, an initiative started by Dr. Thomas and CI’s Dr. Bruce Beehler.
“Dr. Thomas has devoted his professional life to the study of the traditional knowledge system of the Hewa people. Their intimate knowledge of and stewardship over a large tract of this vast upland wilderness has led to conservation of their wildlife and environment. Dr. Thomas’s goal is to help the Hewa continue this indigenous stewardship into the next century, for the good of these people and the world at large,” said Beehler.

This bent-toed gecko, Cyrtodactylus sp. that is believed to be new to science was discovered in dense rainforest during a Conservation International (CI) led Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) expedition of Papua New Guinea's highlands wilderness in 2008.

The discovery of three entirely novel genera from among the spider species discovered is particularly noteworthy, said UBC scientist Wayne Maddison, Director of the new Beaty Biodiversity Museum. “They are strikingly distinctive evolutionary lineages that had been unknown before, with a group that is already very distinctive on the evolutionary tree of jumping spiders,” said Maddison. “Their key position on the evolutionary tree will help us understand how this unique group of jumping spiders has evolved.”

Much of Papua New Guinea’s vast wilderness remains unexplored for scientific documentation. CI’s RAP program is planning three more expeditions to the country in 2009 with the first beginning in early April.

The expedition was funded by Porgera Joint Venture (PJV), principally owned by Barrick Gold Corporation. The resulting report will provide information for decision makers trying to balance development with protecting biodiversity that benefits local communities and the global ecosystem. The findings will be used to inform future conservation activities, the PJV mining operation, and development decisions by the local and national government.

“This underlines how passionate we are about our environmental responsibilities and we are pleased to be able to contribute towards the discovery of new plant and animal life but more importantly, their preservation for the future generations,” said Barrick General Manager Papua New Guinea, Mark Fisher.

Since 1990, CI’s RAP program has conducted more than 60 expeditions to the far reaches of the globe, and discovered more than 700 species potentially new to science. A recently launched species discovery initiative provides in-depth information about CI-led expeditions such as RAP surveys and features some of the discoveries which include species potentially new to science.

A jumping spider species potentially new to science, Orthrus sp., was found in a rainforest during a Conservation International (CI) led Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) expedition of Papua New Guinea's highlands wilderness in 2008.

The “Discovering Species” site contains vibrant content which includes descriptions of the species themselves – often by the scientists who made the discovery, photos of the species, dispatches from scientists in the field, and downloadable survey reports for those who wish to know more. Each month, more species are added as the scientists continue to explore new places as well as catalogue their previous discoveries.

To learn more, visit www.conservation.org/discoveries.

(Bron: http://insciences.org/)
(Bron foto's: Conservation International)

Waterschap Velt en Vecht wil de beverrat bij Coevorden en bij de grens vangen - Beverrat mag niet verder het land in zwemmen....

Extra vangkooien beverratten in omgeving

Coevorden

24-03-2009 Waterschap Velt en Vecht


Rondom Coevorden hebben de rattenbestrijders van Waterschap Velt en Vecht (http://www.veltenvecht.nl/organisatie/taken/item_1099) meer vangkooien geplaatst om de schadelijke beverrat te vangen en te bestrijden. De beverrat en de muskusrat komen via verschillende kanalen naar Coevorden om daarna verder landinwaarts te trekken. De rattenbestrijders proberen de dieren bij de grens en in Coevorden te vangen om dat te voorkomen.

De vangkooien worden gebruikt om de beverrat te vangen. De kooien staan op plaatsen langs het water waar sporen zijn gezien van de beverrat of waar beverratten langszwemmen. De rattenvangers controleren de kooien elke dag om te voorkomen dat de dieren er te lang inzitten.

Ander dier in de kooi
Door de grootte van de beverrat is gekozen voor een kooi waarin ze levend gevangen worden. Hiermee wordt voorkomen dat er andere dieren gedood worden. Het kan gebeuren dat er een ander dier in de kooi vast komt te zitten. Deze dieren worden door de rattenvangers vrij gelaten. En omdat de rattenvangers elke dag alle kooien controleren, zal dit dier nooit te lang in een kooi blijven zitten.

(Bron: http://www.veltenvecht.nl/)
(Bron foto: Waterschap Velt en Vecht)

Canadian Seal Hunt 2009 Begins

Take Action: https://community.hsus.org/campaign/protectseals_cat_cora?source=gabhi2 March 23, 2009: The Protect Seals team is covering the cruel Canada seal hunt.

Britse dierenrechtenorganisaties: Gestrandde walvissen doden in plaats van redden......

Stranded whales should be killed, not rescued,

claim animal welfare groups

24-03-2009 By David Derbyshire, Mail Online, UK


Stranded whales should be humanely killed rather than rescued, animal welfare groups claimed today. A group of British charities, led by the RSPCA, said attempts to save beached whales cause ‘horrendous’ suffering and do more harm than good.

The move follows new evidence that the creatures have ‘little or no chance’ of survival once they are trapped on the shore or in shallow waters.

Most stranded whales have already endured weeks of dehydration, hunger and stress. Once out of the water, they suffer hours of painful muscle damage and kidney failure. Out of more than 50 whale strandings in Britain between 2002 and 2006, not one whale survived.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals acknowledged that its new policy was controversial - but said it had to put the welfare of whales first.

Science officer Adam Grogan said: ‘Each case will be assessed as an individual, but the presumption will probably be that the animals is euthanised unless we have a very good reason not to.’
He added: ‘I can understand that it’s a very emotive subject and its difficult to make a decision on the beach. That is why we have looked at a lot of data.’

The U-turn follows a study into the welfare of beached whales at the Zoological Society of London.
Dr Paul Jepson, who carried out post mortems and blood tests on dozens of stranded deep sea whales, discovered a catalogue of pain and misery.
Most whales are already sick, malnourished, dehydrated or injured when the become stranded. Many will have experienced weeks of suffering.
Once out of the water their muscles start to collapse. Starved of blood and oxygen, the muscles are damaged and release toxic chemicals into the whale’s bloodstream. These chemicals cause massive and painful kidney failure.
Dr Jepson described the evidence of suffering as ‘compelling’.

‘Even if we get them back in a healthy condition, they are too far away from their normal habitat,’ he said. ‘We are often forced to leave them stranded for 12 hours while the tide comes back - and if they survive those 12 hours the muscle damage will be severe.'
He added: ‘Kidney failure is an awful condition and it makes animals feel very unwell. Add to that the stress and dehydration and these animals will be suffering.’

In the four years up to 2006, some 30 sperm whales and 24 beaked whales were reported stranded on the UK shoreline, he said.
None survived, despite attempts to refloat them.
The new policy covers all the major deep sea whales, such as sperm and beaked whales. Dolphins and porpoises are less vulnerable and will continue to be rescued
Whales will be killed by a lethal injection once a vet and marine mammal experts have checked out the scene.

They are most likely to get a reprieve if they are stranded on the West Coast - where it is relatively easy for them to get back into deep water.
The North Sea, on the other hand, is known as a ‘whale trap’. It is too shallow for deep ocean species, and many are unable to find their way out.
The RSPCA still wants people to give first aid to stranded whales until the experts arrive. That includes keeping them wet and upright.

In January 2006, the plight of a bottle nosed whale trapped in the Thames in London captured the world’s imagination. The 18ft long creature died 36 hours after it was lifted on to a pontoon, ready to be taken back out to sea.
The RSPCA says, with the benefit of hindsight, it may have been better to kill the whale as soon as it was discovered.

The new policy has been agreed by the RSPCA, the British divers Marine Life Rescue, International Fund for Animal Welfare, Marine Connection, Cetacean Research & Rescue Unit.

(Bron: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/)
(Bron foto's: Mail Online)

Slecht weer hindert waarnemers om bij Canadese zeehondenjacht te komen rond Iles de la Madeleine - Mogelijk vandaag al 15.000 zeehondjes afgeslacht

Bad weather hindering observers from reaching

gulf seal hunt

24-03-2009 THE CANADIAN PRESS, News1130, Canada


HALIFAX, N.S. - Bad weather is preventing anti-seal hunt observers from reaching the second day of the hunt in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence around Quebec's Iles de la Madeleine.

Hunters gather pelts as the annual East Coast seal hunt starts in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence around Quebec's Iles de la Madeleine on Monday. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan

Observers with the Humane Society International Canada and the International Fund for Animal Welfare are waiting in Prince Edward Island for a break in the wind and snow. The hunt began Monday and Rebecca Aldworth of the humane society says hunters killed about 9,500 seals.

She expects them to fill their quota of about 15,000 seals from around the islands by the end of today.

Federal officials have issued 16 observer permits to journalists and anti-sealing organizations.
Ottawa has set a quota of 338,200 seals for the entire East Coast seal hunt - an increase of 55,000 animals from last year.

(Bron: http://www.news1130.com/)
(Bron foto: News1130)

Fruitplukker op Komodo eiland (Indonesië) gedood door twee Komodovaranen

2 Komodo Dragons Kill Man in Eastern Indonesia

24-03-2009 By IRWAN FIRDAUS Associated Press Writer, ABC News, USA


JAKARTA, Indonesia March 24, 2009 (AP) - Two Komodo dragons (http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komodovaraan) mauled a fruit-picker to death in eastern Indonesia, police and witnesses said Tuesday, the latest in a string of attacks on humans by the world's largest lizard species.

Police Sgt. Kosmas Jalang said 31-year-old Muhamad Anwar was attacked on Komodo, one of four islands where the giant reptile is found in the wild, minutes after he fell out of a sugar-apple tree on Monday.

Komodo dragons are seen at Indonesia Safari Park in Cisarua, West Java, Indonesia Aug. 28, 2006. Police and witnesses say Tuesday, March 24, 2009 two Komodo dragons killed a man picking fruit in eastern Indonesia, the latest in a string of attacks on humans. Komodo dragon, the world's largest lizard species, is believed to number at less than 4,000 and can only be found in the wild on four eastern Indonesian islands. (Dita Alangkara/AP Photo)

He was bleeding badly from bites to his hands, body, legs and neck after two lizards, waiting below, attacked him, according to a neighbor, Theresia Tawa. He died at a clinic on the neighboring island of Flores soon after.

Attacks on humans by Komodo dragons — said to number at less than 4,000 in the wild — are rare, but seem to have increased in recent years.
An 8-year-old boy was killed in 2007 — the first recorded deadly attack on a human by one of the endangered lizards in three decades. A park ranger narrowly survived after one of the animals entered his hut last month and started biting his hands and legs.

There have been several other attacks in recent months, according to Metro TV.
The reptiles, which can grow up to 10 feet long (three meters) and weigh as much as 150 pounds (70 kilograms), have shark-like serrated teeth and a bite that can be deadly. Its saliva contains roughly 50 different known bacteria strains, so infection is a risk.

Komodos can be found in the wild on the Indonesian islands of Komodo, Padar and Rinca. Tiny numbers also can be found on Flores.

(Bron: http://abcnews.go.com/)
(Bron foto: ABC News)

Zeldzaam zwart zeehondje gevonden op strand Terschelling

Opnieuw zwarte zeehond aangespoeld

24-03-2009 De Pers


In de zeehondencrèche in Pieterburen is opnieuw een zwarte zeehond binnengebracht. Het beestje is gevonden op Terschelling en heeft de naam Black Beauty meegekregen, zo meldde de crèche dinsdag.

Volgens de crèche zijn zwarte zeehonden zeer zeldzaam. Pas twee keer eerder werden in Pieterburen zwarte zeehonden opgevangen. In 2005 ging het om Zwarte Lola die gevonden was op het strand van Vlieland.

Twee jaar later bood de crèche tijdelijk onderdak aan Onyx. De zwarte vacht van deze dieren wordt veroorzaakt door een overmatige hoeveelheid pigment.
Black Beauty is nog maar een paar weken oud en heeft last van een fikse longontsteking.

(Bron: http://www.depers.nl/)
(Bron foto: http://www.zeehondencreche.nl/nieuws2009/03_24_Zusje_van_Lola.htm)

Wie kent eigenaar van deze sterk vermagderde hond? - Dier gevonden in Hartelpark, Spijkenisse

Jacht op eigenaar vermagerde hond

24-03-2009 Algemeen Dagblad


SPIJKENISSE - De Dierenbescherming Rotterdam-Rijnmond maakt jacht op de eigenaar van een ernstig verwaarloosde herder die zaterdag werd aangetroffen in het Hartelpark naast het Spijkenisser dierenasiel.

De Dierenbescherming doet aangifte bij de politie en roept inwoners op de website te bezoeken waarop foto’s van de zwaar vermagerde kruising Mechelse herder staan. Wie de hond herkent, wordt verzocht zich te melden. ,,De eigenaar heeft ons namelijk iets uit te leggen,’’ vertelt Henk Beugeling van de Dierenbescherming. ,,Een hond van deze grootte moet 40 tot 45 kilo wegen. Dit dier weegt de helft. We hopen de eigenaar voor de rechter te kunnen brengen zodat die zijn hond nooit meer terugkrijgt.’’

Er is nog een kleine kans dat het dier is weggelopen, weet Beugeling, maar gezien de toestand en de plek waar hij werd gevonden -in het park waar geregeld dieren worden gedumpt- is dat onwaarschijnlijk.

Het angstige teefje werd zaterdag voor het eerst gezien. Ze vluchtte. Diverse Spijkenissers belden gedurende die dag het asiel zodat de medewerkers haar tegen het vallen van de avond weer in beeld hadden. Ze werd op het eilandje aan de Plaatweg tussen de sluizen gedreven en er werden slaappillen in wat voer gestopt. Medewerkers postten een lange nacht, tot het dier begon te eten. Twee uur later dommelde zij in slaap, waarna ze kon worden aangelijnd. De hond krijgt nu een speciaal dieet om aan te sterken.

http://www.asielenrijnmond.dierenbescherming.nl/.

(Bron: http://www.ad.nl/)
(Bron foto: Algemeen Dagblad)

François (langoer) leaf monkey geboren in Taronga dierentuin Sydney (Australië) - Zeldzaam aapje met hand gevoed

'Elke' the four-day-old hand raised Francois Leaf-Monkey (http://zipcodezoo.com/Animals/T/Trachypithecus_francoisi/) is shown for the first time at Taronga Zoo in Sydney. The Leaf-Monkeys native habitat is Northeast Vietnam and Southeast China.

Universiteit Groningen laat gruwelijke en onzinnige experimenten uitvoeren op poezen....

Kattenmisbruikers aan de Rijksuniversiteit

Groningen - Gert Holstege en z’n collega’s

24-03-2009 Anti Dierproeven Coalitie


Al ruim 15 jaar is de Rijksuniversiteit Groningen (RUG) het werkterrein van de neuroanatoom Gert Holstege en daarmee het toneel van verschrikkelijk poezenleed. Na eerst vijf jaar lang geëxperimenteerd te hebben op apen, katten en andere dieren in de Verenigde Staten vertrok hij in 1993 naar Groningen waar hij zijn gruweltesten op poesjes onverminderd zou doorzetten.

Als hoofd van de afdeling Anatomie en Embryologie, de plek waar hij anderhalf decennium geleden binnenkwam, regisseert hij het lijden van ’s mens beste vrienden. De meeste katten kunnen rekenen op een warm, zorgzaam en liefdevol thuis bij menselijke dierenvrienden, die hen als lieve, gezellige en eigenzinnige metgezellen zien. Voor de poesjes en katertjes die in de handen van Holstege en zijn team vallen daarentegen is het leven één grote lijdensweg. Deze viervoeters dienen een leven als onderzoeksinstrument en worden blootgesteld aan de meest misselijkmakende hersenexperimenten.

De meest recente publicatie van Holstege en co – uit 2008 - betreft een onderzoek waarbij van meerdere poezen een deel van de hersenen verwijderd werd. Vervolgens werd een substantie, onverdoofd(!), rechtstreeks in bepaalde gebieden van de overgebleven hersenen gespoten en werden de effecten op de ademhaling bestudeerd. Vivisector Holstege rapporteert dat de stimulatie van bepaalde gebieden in de hersenen leidt tot veranderingen in de ademhaling die samenhangen met ‘vocalisatie’ (miauwen en sissen). Injecties met een bepaald aminozuur leiden tot opwekking van een onregelmatige ademhaling.

Lees ook: belachelijke testen op de Universiteit van Groningen

In een experiment uit 2005 werden 9 poesjes gebruikt voor een studie van het hetzelfde hersengebied. Van verschillende katten werden de wervelbogen verwijderd en ook toen kregen de dieren injecties direct in de hersenen en ditmaal ook in het ruggenmerg. Na afloop van het experiment zijn de dieren afgemaakt en werden de hersenen en het ruggenmerg verwijderd. Hersenen en hersenstammen werden vervolgens in stukken gesneden voor ‘verdere analyse’. De levensloze poezenlichaampjes zijn ongetwijfeld als oud vuil vernietigd. Hier wordt echter in het wetenschappelijke rapport met geen woord over gesproken.

In 2006 werden nog eens drie vergelijkbare onderzoeken gepubliceerd waarin 11 katjes het slachtoffer waren. Bij één langlopend experiment dat in 2005 verscheen werden zelfs 72(!) poesjes ingezet voor een studie naar de werking van de hersenen in relatie tot micturitie (urineren). Veel onderzoeken zijn ronduit absurd, sommigen zelfs pervers. Over zijn zoektocht naar de werking van de menselijke hersenen bij een orgasme verklaart Holstege; ‘het begon allemaal met het strelen van een krolse kat’. Zo bestudeerde hij lange tijd het seksuele gedrag van poezen met hersenscanners. En dit is helaas nog maar het topje van de ijsberg. Over de afgelopen 15 jaar zijn honderden katten gepijnigd en kapot gemaakt door RUG ‘wetenschappers’ zoals Gert Holstege en zijn collega’s.

Dierenlevens worden aan de lopende band verkwist als wegwerpproducten. Dergelijk gruwelijk dierenleed is nooit te verantwoorden maar het wordt nog schrijnender als de directe relevantie, het nut en de toepasbaarheid van de onderzoeksbevindingen uit dergelijke horrorexperimenten ver te zoeken zijn. Het gaat hier om nieuwsgierigheidsonderzoek van de meest ziekelijke soort.

Katten behoren tot de vele diersoorten die worden misbruik aan de Rijksuniversiteit Groningen (RUG). Zelden of nooit wordt hierover iets gemeld in de reguliere media. Als dergelijke gruwelijke dierproeven al genoemd worden probeert men het vaak leuk te verpakken en misleidend te verkopen als een ‘noodzakelijk kwaad’. De Anti Dierproeven Coalitie zal mensen blijven informeren over wat er werkelijk gebeurt met dieren achter gesloten deuren in dierproeflaboratoria zoals die van de RUG. Dieren zijn geen gebruiksvoorwerpen. Het wordt tijd dat de RUG dit ook inziet en inzet op betrouwbare onderzoeksmethoden zonder dieren.

Gert Holstege – raakte onlangs in opspraak; niet vanwege zijn jarenlange 'staat van dienst' als dierenbeul maar vanwege 'het schenden van de privacy van een overleden patiente', op wiens hersenen hij autopsie had verricht en wiens naam hij in een publicatie had vermeld. Dit terwijl iedereen wist om wie het ging, de voormalig oudste vrouw ter wereld, Hendrikje van Andel-Schipper, die haar lichaam vrijwillig - in tegenstelling tot de honderden poezen - ter beschikking had gesteld aan de wetenschap.

(Bron: http://www.stopdierproeven.org/)
(Bron foto's: Anti Dierproeven Coalitie)

AIVD maakt 'Dossier dierenrechtenextremisme' openbaar op internet

Dierenrechten-extremisten hard aangepakt

24-03-2009 Het Parool


Het kabinet gaat dierenrechtenextremisten harder aanpakken. De AIVD (Algemene Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst) zal intensief samenwerken met het Openbaar Ministerie en een politieteam. Gisteren openbaarde de AIVD Dossier dierenrechtenextremisme (https://www.aivd.nl/actueel-publicaties/dossiers/item-117305).

In Nederland voerden dierenextremisten vorig jaar zo'n zestig acties uit. Foto ANP/Marcel Antonisse

Dierenrechtenextremisten zijn vrijwel ongrijpbaar, beaamt woordvoerder Wim de Bruin van het landelijk parket van het Openbaar Ministerie. ''Het is een zeer gesloten wereld. Erg lastig om binnen te dringen. Ze opereren in kleine groepjes.''

In Nederland voerden dierenextremisten vorig jaar zo'n zestig acties uit. Het aantal incidenten stijgt niet. Wel zijn de acties volgens de AIVD steeds heviger en persoonlijk van aard. Tot op heden zijn verdachten bijna nooit opgepakt, laat staan berecht.

De laatste jaren dringen dierenrechtenactivisten bewust de privésfeer binnen van stafleden, onderzoekers en directeuren van met name farmaceutische bedrijven. Het bekladden van hun woning, het vernielen van hun auto en het plegen van nachtelijke dreigtelefoontjes moeten ervoor zorgen dat zij voor ander werk kiezen.

In Engeland deinsden extremisten er niet voor terug om stoffelijke resten van een familielid van een varkensboer op te graven. De fokker van proefdieren stopte in 2005. Tot vreugde van ook Nederlandse dierenrechtenextremisten, aldus de AIVD. Ook zij zien het opgraven als succesvol pressiemiddel. Het Animal Liberation Front (ALF) dreigt met een bomaanslag indien Wageningen Universiteit niet stopt met het gebruik van proefdieren. De bedreigingen worden zeer serieus genomen. De universiteit in Wageningen is vaker doelwit geweest van activisten.

Begin jaren negentig trachtte de BVD (voorloper van de AIVD) te infiltreren in de radicale milieubeweging, nadat op grote schaal genetisch gemanipuleerde gewassen waren vernield. Toenmalig minister van Binnenlandse Zaken Ien Dales noemde de verantwoordelijke Wageningse actiegroep de Ziedende Bintjes 'een gevaar voor de democratie'. Ook de opvolgers als de Razende Rooiers en Vurige Virussen, die voor miljoenen schade toebrachten, werden niet gepakt.

In 1990 voerde de regiogroep Wageningen van de Nederlandse Bond tot de Bestrijding van Vivisectie (NBBV) strijd tegen de proefdieren op de universiteit. Woordvoerder destijds was Volkert van der G., de latere moordenaar van Pim Fortuyn. ''Mens en dier zijn gelijkwaardig. De mens is een diersoort en het is arrogant om te denken dat hij meer is dan het dier, omdat hij toevallig meer hersens heeft. Het gaat om het lijden. Als je een hond een trap geeft doet dat evenveel pijn als wanneer dat bij een mens gebeurt,'' aldus Van der G.

De landbouwuniversiteit zou toen jaarlijks 3600 gewervelde dieren gebruiken waaronder 2800 vissen, 100 varkens, 115 ratten en 80 kippen.

Volgens ALF 'misbruikt' Wageningen tegenwoordig 15.000 dieren. De Voedsel- en Waren Autoriteit meldt dat de universiteit in 2006 13.292 proefdieren aanwendde voor wetenschappelijk onderzoek. In 2004 waren dat er nog 18.828. Landelijk werden er toen 543.000 proefdieren gebruikt. Het Centraal Dierenlaboratorium in Nijmegen en Overasselt gebruikt jaarlijks 40.000 dieren om medicijnen tegen dodelijke ziekten als kanker te testen. Ook dit laboratorium was al een aantal keren mikpunt van radicale dierenbevrijders.

Het aantal proefdieren kan volgens Merel Ritskes, hoogleraar proefdierkunde aan het Universitair Medisch Centrum St Radboud in Nijmegen, nog verder omlaag. Zij noemt de Wet op de dierproeven als een van de strengste van Europa.

Nederland onderscheidt zich vooral met het welzijnsdagboek voor alle proefdieren. Onderzoekers moeten elke dag het welzijn van hun proefdieren beschrijven, ook voor muizen en ratten.

Het welzijnsdagboek schiet volgens Ritskes zijn doel voorbij. Het leidt tot frustratie bij onderzoekers, die minder geneigd zullen zijn om voor dierproeven alternatieven te zoeken.

(HENK VAN GELDER en PAUL BOLWERK)

(Bron: http://www.parool.nl/)
(Bron foto: Parool)

(Noot Kraaijer:
De bij dit artikel in het Parool geplaatste foto is misplaatst. Voorzover ik kan beoordelen is dit een foto van een protest van de organisatie Bont voor Dieren. Het onderschrift bij de foto wekt de suggestie dat de demonstranten dierenextremisten zouden zijn.....Ook nu blijkt weer hoe ondeskundig het onderwerp dierenrechtenactivisme door de media wordt behandeld!)

Elf geredde gestrandde walvissen op kust West-Australië met trucks naar dieper water vervoerd

Surviving whales ushered out to sea

24-03-2009 ABC News, Australia


Eleven whales that survived a mass stranding on Western Australia's south-west coast have been herded into deeper water. The surviving 11 of the more than 80 long-finned whales found beached at Hamelin Bay early yesterday were taken by truck to Flinders Bay.

The surviving 11 whales were taken by truck to Flinders Bay. (ABC)

But the rescue has hit a snag - the pod split up when it was released and a number of mammals have headed back to shore.
Doug Coughran from the Department of Environment and Conservation says the release was always going to be the hardest part.

A number of boats and paddlers are attempting to herd the mammals out to sea.

Meanwhile local beaches affected by the mass stranding have been closed, amid fears the carcasses will attract sharks to the area.

More than 80 long-finned whales beached at Hamelin Bay early yesterday. (Tim Brown, Aerophoto)

The Department of Environment and Conservation and the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River have closed the beach from Hamelin Bay to Boranup North Point.

A number of whale carcasses showing evidence of shark bites were washed ashore this morning.

(Bron: http://www.abc.net.au/)
(Bron foto's: ABC News / Bron 2e foto: )http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/5040511/Australian-wildlife-experts-race-to-save-surviving-stranded-whales.html)

Canada's brutal seal hunt begins at Gulf of St. Lawrence - First pictures by The Humane Society of the United States

(Bron: © media centre of the Humane Society of the Unites States,

http://www.humanesociety.org/)

White Coat Harp Seal In The Canadian snow - This Is How Seals Must Live....Alive In Freedom

End the Canadian horrible seal hunt!

Rond Kaapstad (Zuid-Afrika) woedt 'strijd' tussen toeristen en brutale bavianen

South Africa tries to halt baboon break-ins

23-03-2009 Associated Press Writer, WTOP, USA


CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) - Baboons seeking snacks are breaking into tourists' cars in South Africa, and authorities have threatened to fine visitors who give them food and encourage their aggressive pursuit of bananas and sandwiches.

There has been a spate of cases where baboons stole picnics and snatched bags from people in popular tourist spots around Cape Town. In one recent reported incident, baboons jumped into the car of American visitors who were taking pictures on the side of the road.

In this Oct. 2008 file photo a baboon holds on to a signpost directing people to Miller's Point, South Africa, Sunday, Oct. 26, 2008. Cape Town's chacma baboons are a popular attraction and some visitors give them treats in order to lure them closer and take pictures. A statement Monday, March 23, 2009, from the city of Cape Town and the South African National Parks authority said that tour operators and tourists who deliberately lured baboons with food risked fines. It did not say how large the fines would be and officials could not immediately be reached for comment. (AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam, File)

In a statement Monday, the city of Cape Town and conservationists voiced alarm that some tour operators were apparently deliberately baiting the baboons, despite numerous signs warning against feeding the animals.
"Any tour operator caught doing so can be charged under national conservation legislation," city official Piet van Zyl said.
"We appeal to the public to exercise extreme caution in interacting with baboons. Under no circumstances should they ever feed the animals, and should they do so they can be similarly charged," he said.

Fanie Bekker, executive director of Cape Nature, said people faced a maximum fine of 1,500 rands ($150) or six months in prison, or both _ depending on the severity of the offense. He said authorities would actively seek to penalize those who broke the law.

There are around 340 baboons in 20 to 30 troupes around Cape Town. They are a protected species under South African legislation, but their persistent pursuit of food often leads to conflicts with local residents.
National park rangers have had to kill problem baboons that have become too aggressive, but there have been no recent cases of a baboon attacking a person.

Primatologists say baboons get as much nutrition from a half loaf of discarded bread as from what they forage in four hours in the undergrowth, and that they easily get used to eating human food.
At Cape Point there are baboon monitors who crack whips to scare baboons away from the restaurant area. But the surrounding roads are harder to police.

In some Cape Town suburbs, trained monitors try to prevent the primates from breaking into homes, where they have been known to rip off drainpipes and ransack the kitchen.

But not all residential areas can be protected, and there are constant attacks by frustrated locals against the hairy intruders, according to Brett Myrdal, manager of Table Mountain National Park.
City and parks authorities said they would hold a "baboon summit" in the coming weeks to try to come up with solutions.

Myrdal said the emphasis would be on trying to educate people to behave more responsibly rather than to control the baboons.
"It's not the baboons who are the problem," he said.

(Bron: http://www.wtop.com/)
(Bron foto: WTOP)

Twintig schepen vertrokken rond Quebec's Iles de la Madeleine (Canada) voor zeehondenjacht

Annual seal hunt underway in Gulf of St. Lawrence

23-03-2009 CTV.ca News Staff, Canada


The annual East Coast seal hunt is underway in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence around Quebec's Iles de la Madeleine, despite protests by animal rights activists and international efforts to ban seal products.

About 20 sealing vessels from around the islands have moved out among the ice floes, according to Department of Fisheries and Oceans spokesperson Phil Jenkins.
Some land-based hunting is underway as well, Jenkins said.

Seal hunters bring their boats back to the harbour at Cap-aux-Meule in Iles-de-la-Madeleine, Que., Monday, March 31, 2008. (Ryan Remiorz / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Windy conditions have pushed some of the ice against the shore, which gives land-based hunters access to the seals.
However, if the wind worsens, the herd that is close to shore may be dispersed into the gulf, Jenkins said.

The department has set a quota of 280,000 harp seals for this year's hunt -- an increase of 5,000 over last year -- out of a herd of more than 5.5 million.

About 30 per cent of the quota will be taken in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, while the rest will go to the major hunt off Newfoundland's northern coast, known as the Front.

"Sealing is a significant source of income in many small, isolated coastal communities throughout Atlantic Canada, Quebec and the North," said Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Gail Shea. "Our management decisions for the hunt take into account this fact as well as the advice of scientists to ensure the seal population is maintained."

Canada's seal hunt is the largest of its kind in the world.

DFO Fishery Officers will be monitoring the hunt to ensure compliance with regulations and licence conditions, and will take enforcement action "when necessary," said Shea.

Surveillance is conducted through aerial patrols, cameras, vessel monitoring systems, at-sea and dockside vessel inspections, regular inspections of processing facilities, and independent third party observers.
According to Jenkins, 16 observer permits have been issued to journalists and anti-sealing groups.

Rebecca Aldworth of the Humane Society International Canada says her group will once again be monitoring the hunt.
But she says in her opinion, the days of the annual hunt are numbered because international opposition to the killing of seals is growing.

The start of the hunt comes three weeks after a European Parliament committee endorsed a bill that would ban the import of seal products to the 27-member union.
The EU plan branded the hunting of seals as "inherently inhumane,"
In order to become law, the bill has to be approved by the entire EU assembly and EU governments.
Canada and Greenland have warned the EU that they could challenge such a ban before the World Trade Organization.

Several EU countries, such as the Netherlands and Belgium, already have their own bans on all seal products. The United States has banned Canadian seal products since 1972.

(Bron: http://www.ctv.ca/)
(Bron foto: CTV)

Wild slaat op vlucht voor bosbranden Mau (Kenia) - Nakuru Meer wordt bedreigd - Meer is thuishaven voor miljoen flamingo's

Wildlife flee Kenyan forest fires

23-03-2009 BBC News, UK


Hundreds of thousands of flamingos and other wildlife are at risk after five forest fires erupted in Kenya on Saturday, say wildlife officials. Police say they suspect some of the still-raging blazes were started by communities to make space for farmland.

The fires have had an adverse effect on the Masai Mara and in Tanzania on the Serengeti national park, officials say.

Other wildlife reserves are under threat, including Lake Nakuru, which is home to almost a million flamingos.

According to the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), all the rivers that drain from south-western Kenya's Mau forest into the lake have dried drastically.
Nearly 60 species of wildlife, including white rhino, depend on the lake.

By Sunday an estimated 200 hectares (500 acres) of woodland had been razed in Mau - East Africa's largest indigenous forest.

KWS communications manager Paul Udoto told the BBC: "We now have to pump water from underground bore holes to shallow pans to water the animals in the park otherwise they will all die. This is costing us a lot of money."

Members of communities opposed to government plans to move them out of the Mau forest are suspected, say police, and several people have been arrested, accused of arson.

Another blaze nearby has destroyed about a quarter of the 52 sq km (20 square miles) Mount Longonot National Park, an extinct volcano in Kenya's Rift Valley, said officials.

Zebras, buffaloes, antelopes, gazelles and giraffes have fled the fires, crossing roads and residential areas to reach safety, said witnesses.

But some wildlife experts said snakes and smaller animals, like rabbits and mongooses, may not have managed to escape.
Kenya is suffering a drought this year that has contributed to hunger the government says is affecting 10 million people.

(Bron: http://news.bbc.co.uk/)
(Bron map: BBC News / Bron foto Mau forest: http://safarinotes.blogspot.com/2008/11/save-mau-forest.html)

PETA protesteert bij restaurant Jamie Oliver in Brighton (Engeland) - Oliver moet zijn promotie voor Brits varkensvlees stoppen

Animal rights protesters target Jamie's new

restaurant

23-03-2009 Sussex Express, UK


Animal rights protesters have taken part in a demonstration against Jamie Oliver's promotion of British pork outside the celebrity chef's restaurant in Brighton. Members of Peta stood outside Jamie's Italian holding placards bearing the words "Be Pukka to Pigs: Go Vegetarian" while a heavily pregnant supporter crouched in a crate beside them.

Stooped on all-fours and clad in just a pair of flesh-coloured pants, Lynzi Waddington said she wanted to highlight the "cruelty that goes on behind closed doors" within the pig farming industry.
The 24-year-old, who is six-and-a-half months pregnant, added: "Pigs are very sensitive animals, they do feel pain, and they deserve to be treated right."

Poorva Joshipura, director of special projects for Peta, said that pigs are confined to the metal crates while they are pregnant and then kept inside them after they have given birth, without room to be able to nuzzle their offspring effectively.

After their piglets are taken away from them the process begins again, until they are killed at around five years old.

Ms Joshipura said: "If Jamie truly loved pigs then he would be joining us in asking people to go vegetarian."

But Oliver's spokesman said the protesters should target other restaurants as the celebrity chef had long "championed the welfare of pigs" but would not be taking meat off his menus.
"If they want people to go vegetarian then they're protesting in the wrong place," he said. "The meat Jamie is serving up is very high quality.

"They should go make a protest somewhere that imports its meat."

(Bron: http://www.sussexexpress.co.uk/)
(Bron foto Oliver: archief Kraaijer / Bron foto protest: )http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/4225880.Near_naked_protest_outside_Jamie_Oliver_s_new_Brighton_restaurant/)

Laatste 14 gestrandde walvissen Australische kust worden met truck verplaatst naar dieper water - 67 Walvissen overleden en 1 dolfijn

Truck to move remaining stranded whales

23-03-2009 ABC South West WA, Australia


The 14 remaining whales stranded on Western Australia's south-west coast will be moved from Flinders Bay at Augusta this morning and herded out to sea. More than 80 long finned pilot whales beached themselves at Hamelin Bay 300 kilometres south of Perth yesterday morning.

The Department of Environment and Conservation says 67 of the whales and one dolphin have died.

Wildlife officer Doug Coughran says the remaining whales have been grouped together and will be moved by truck to the deeper waters of Flinders Bay this morning.
"We will systematically move them with the resources of the vehicles and lifters and move them across to flinders bay and hold them," he said.
"Once they're all together and settled, we'll then do an effort of trying to move the lot by shepherding them out to deep water."

But rough conditions are expected overnight and may hamper the rescue effort.

About 100 volunteers turned out yesterday and WA's Environment Minister Donna Faragher says she is grateful to all those who have turned out to help.
"Thanks very much to the Department of Environment and Conservation, as well as to volunteers for the work they continue to do," she said.

A number of dolphins that also beached themselves in the same area have since returned to deep water.
Nick Gales, a senior research scientist from the Australian Antarctic Division, says there are a number of reasons why the whales could have become stranded.

"In this case possibly if there is aggressive activity from bottlenose dolphins around them when they are all feeding in one area, then as soon as one or two animals get into difficulty the others will follow suit and come into the beach because they are just wanting to stick together," he said.

(Bron: http://www.abc.net.au/)

Ter nagedachtenis aan de ruimte vleermuis

Bat hitches ride on space shuttle

The plucky creature clung to the shuttle's main fuel tank as it blasted off to the International Space Station on Sunday

Bat caught by cameras clinging to the main fuel tank of the space shuttle moments before take off. Photograph: Nasa

Without getting into the spectrum of consciousness that different species might or might not exhibit, I can't help wondering what this animal was thinking.
I suspect it thought it was clinging onto a rockface or a rather cold tree. When you're that close, the shuttle's main fuel tank is rough and craggy, so you can see how the mistake might have happened.

The pictures were taken by Nasa staff as the poor thing hung on while the countdown reached zero, the main engine roared into life, and space shuttle Discovery lifted-off into orbit. Apart from shuffling around a bit, the fair tail bat stayed put. At least for a while.

Nasa launch controllers used an infra-red camera to confirm the bat was still alive and hadn't frozen onto the shuttle's insulation before take-off. A wildlife expert concluded the creature had a number of injuries, including a damaged wing. It is thought to have perished shortly after the main engine ignited.

Launch Director Mike Leinbach said:
We're characterising him as unexpected debris and he's probably still unexpected debris somewhere.

Nasa's Final Inspection Team, known as ICE, assessed whether the creature posed a risk to the shuttle's heat shield, but decided it was safe to fly with the extra passenger. A Nasa memo said: "The bat eventually became Interim Problem Report 119V-0080 after the ICE team finished their walkdown," adding "Ultimately a Launch Commit Criteria waiver to ICE-01 was written to accept the stowaway."

(Bron: http://www.guardian.co.uk)

Project in Nieuw-Zeeland leert mensen hoe gestrandde walvissen en dolfijnen te redden...

A whale and dolphin rescue off Tasmania is been hailed as a successful operation.

Forty-eight out of 200 beached mammals were saved - and that is considered to be a good rate of rescue.

In New Zealand this summer more than 400 people have taken part in a programme teaching them what to do in the event of a whale stranding.

On the Project Jonah course they learn everything from crowd control to how to handle whales.

Campbell Live spoke to Project Jonah about the course and discovered that if you don't know the simple rules when it comes to whale rescuing, you could easily do more harm than good.

De Groenen Nieuw-Zeeland fel gekant tegen hervatting export schapen naar Midden-oosten

Sheep exports to Saudi Arabia will ruin NZ's

trade reputation, say Greens

23-03-2009 3News, New Zealand


New Zealand is poised to resume exporting live sheep to the Middle East, outraging animal rights groups. The Green Party says a deal that would see our sheep sent on a three week ocean journey to the Middle East simply to be slaughtered as part of a Hajj festival is imminent.

The Government has confirmed plans for an agreement with Saudi Arabia to resume exports.
"Obviously there's been a moratorium for six years and I think the hope is they would be resumed anytime from around June this year," says Green MP Sue Kedgley.

"It would be an important income stream for New Zealanders," says agriculture minister David Carter. "There's a particular breed of sheep the Saudi Arabians are interested in obtaining that do exist in New Zealand. If we can provide the security and the safety around the arrangements with the Saudi government, I see it as being another opportunity."

The sheep Mr Carter is talking about are being bred for export by a majority Saudi-owned stud company in Napier.
"Every exporter in New Zealand should be very concerned, because this is going to damage New Zealand's reputation, and for what?" asks animal right campaigner Hans Kriek. "For just one overseas company that wants to export sheep? Seems crazy."

New Zealand stopped live exports in 2004 after 5000 sheep died on an Australian ship bound for Saudi Arabia, prompting international disgust.

But the demand for live sheep is now bigger than ever, driven by the Hajj festival where sheep are sacrificed as part of Muslim culture.

"I don't question that the Muslims have their festivals and do what is culturally appropriate for them to do. but we don't have to participate in extreme cruelty," says Ms Kedgley.

"Very, very cruel journeys, a lot of them will die," says Mr Kriek. "Lots more will suffer and once they finally arrive, New Zealand has no control over the cruel treatment meted out to these animals."

But the Government says it is insisting on humane treatment of animals.
"New Zealand will not let live exports leave this country unless we're assured of their treatment both on water, and also the treatment of animals once they arrive at the destination," says Mr Carter.

The Government sees this as an opportunity for a new source of export income, but the Greens and animal rights campaigners fear not only will animals suffer despite best intentions, New Zealand's trade reputation will too.

(Bron: http://www.3news.co.nz/)

Milieudefensie richt pijlen op Albert Heijn in campagne tegen ontbossing in Zuid-Amerika voor sojaplantages

Albert Heijn dreigt Milieudefensie met juridische

stappen

23-03-2009 VARA's Vroege Vogels


Milieudefensie zet haar campagne over ontbossing en vlees bij Albert Heijn door, ondanks juridische dreigementen. De supermarktketen wil afdwingen dat de campagne gestaakt wordt. Milieudefensie heeft laten weten door te gaan, zolang Albert Heijn nalaat stappen te zetten tegen de ontbossing.

Voor het vlees dat de grootste supermarkt in ons land verkoopt wordt nu veel veevoersoja gebruikt. De teelt hiervan leidt in Zuid-Amerika tot grootschalige ontbossing. Milieudefensie voert sinds een week campagne met het beeld van een brulaap, verpakt als kiloknaller in de supermarkt. Dit dier staat symbool voor alle zeldzame planten en dieren die door de ontbossing voor veevoersoja verdwijnen. Milieudefensie heeft onder meer posters en radiospotjes ingezet.

Via de website http://www.stopfoutveevoer.nl/ kunnen klanten de oproep aan de supermarkt onderschrijven. Met een voorlichtingstour bij diverse filialen worden klanten van Albert Heijn geïnformeerd over het drama achter goedkoop vlees.

Nederland is als doorvoerhaven de tweede grootste importeur van soja ter wereld. Ruim 90 procent van de soja die in ons land blijft, wordt gebruikt als goedkoop veevoer, vooral voor kippen en varkens in de intensieve veehouderij. De productie van kipfilets en karbonades veroorzaakt zo grootschalige ontbossing. Als grootste supermarkt heeft Albert Heijn de sleutel in handen om dit probleem op te lossen en daarmee een voorbeeld te stellen voor alle Nederlandse supermarkten. Milieudefensie heeft de supermarktketen de afgelopen jaren al herhaaldelijk aangesproken op dit probleem. Echte verbeteringen bleven tot nog toe uit.

Campagneleider Wouter van Eck van Milieudefensie: “Het is echt beter als Albert Heijn haar energie richt op maatregelen om de ontbossing te stoppen. Wij zwichten niet voor de juridische dreigementen en gaan door met onze activiteiten.”

De briefwisseling tussen Albert Heijn en Milieudefensie is na te lezen op: http://www.milieudefensie.nl/stopfoutveevoer/info

(Bron: http://vroegevogels.vara.nl/)

Egyptische politie onderschept smokkel 560 schapen via tunnels naar Gaza Strook

Police seize smugglers' sheep

23-03-2009 Metro, UK


Police have seized a flock of 560 sheep set to be smuggled through underground tunnels into the Gaza Strip.

A Palestinian smuggler moves a goat through a tunnel from Egypt to the Gaza Strip under the border in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, Friday, Nov. 14, 2008.

The animals were discovered last night, along with the entrances to six tunnels in the Salah el-Din district north of the Rafah border crossing, Egyptian police said.
Officers also confiscated five tons of cement and found a half-ton cache of TNT hidden in near the border.

Gaza has been under a crippling Israeli and Egyptian blockade since Hamas violently seized control of Gaza in June 2007.

A Palestinian smuggles a sheep into the Gaza Strip through a tunnel under the Egypt-Gaza border at Rafah on December 5, 2008.

The tunnels are the main artery for food entering Gaza, but are also a conduit for weapons to Gaza militants.

Israel destroyed many tunnels during its recent three-week military offensive in Gaza, but smuggling continues.

(Bron: http://www.metro.co.uk/)
(Bron foto's: http://www.news-world.us/index.php/2008/11/14/photo-of-the-day-friday-november-14-2008/ & http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2008/12/the_hajj_and_eid_aladha.html)

Minstens 25 mensen in 2008 gedood door wild in Magoe district (Mozambique)

Wild animals kill 25 in Magoe

23-03-2009 Independent Online, South Africa


Maputo - At least 25 people were killed by wild animals in the north-western Mozambican district of Magoe in Tete province, 3000km north of Maputo, and 16 were seriously injured in 2008, the daily Noticias reported on Monday.

The report cited Antonio Mapure, Magoe district administrator.

Six cattle and 36 goats were also killed by wild animals in the same district in 2008, said Mapure.

He said the problem animals which killed people included lions, hyenas and crocodiles, while elephants and hippopotamuses had destroyed more than 56 hectares of different crops during the same period.

In 2007, the Mozambican government authorised the army to shoot problem animals which killed people or destroyed fields

(Bron: http://www.iol.co.za/)

Beelden internationaal protest in Belgisch Leuven tegen gebruik proefdieren in Universiteit Leuven - 21-03-2009

Discussie in Leuven (België) gestart over nut en onzin gebruik primaten als proefdieren in universiteit

Betoging tegen gebruik apen als proefdieren

"Vlooien in onze pels"

23-03-2009 Veto (blad voor studenten Leuven), Belgium

Deze zaterdag werd er betoogd tegen het gebruik van een vijfentwintigtal makaakapen voor neurofysiologisch onderzoek. Voor de onderzoekers is dit een wetenschappelijke noodzaak, voor dierenrechtenactivisten wetenschappelijk machogedrag. Wie heeft gelijk? Geen makkelijke vraag, maar we leggen alvast enkele argumenten van de actievoerders voor aan de wetenschappers.

Ide Smets & Tom Demeyer

In eerste instantie bestaat er volgens veearts André Menache, een groot tegenstander van het gebruik van proefdieren voor biomedisch onderzoek, een Europees besluit dat zegt dat als een experiment kan worden uitgevoerd zonder dierenproeven, het verboden is dieren te gebruiken.

Onderzoekers zouden deze reglementering volgens hem zonder scrupules naast zich neerleggen.

Professor Peter Janssen, directeur van het laboratorium neurofysiologie, vindt dit een pertinente onjuistheid: "Er is een onafhankelijke commissie van experts die het gebruik van dierenproeven evalueert. In september is er een publieke hoorzitting geweest, samengesteld uit mensen die ik van haar noch pluimen ken, die zich vragen heeft gesteld bij de noodzaak van dierproeven op verschillende domeinen binnen het biomedisch onderzoek zoals neurowetenschappen, infecties en toxicologie. Ze zijn tot het besluit gekomen dat het absoluut essentieel is om de aap in die context te blijven gebruiken."

Als alternatief voor dierproeven haalt Menache verschillende niet-invasieve methodes aan om hersenen te scannen aan zoals MRI, CT, PET.

Peter Janssen bevestigt dat deze technieken heel erg nuttig zijn in hun experimenten, maar dat de beeldvorming die deze scans opleveren als alternatief gebruiken ontoereikend is: "Met beeldvorming kun je de bloeddoorstroming zien in de hersenen, maar je kan de hersenactiviteit zelf niet meten. Je meet dus iets indirect: als een gebied meer activiteit heeft, gaat het meer bloeddoorstroming krijgen. Er is wel een zekere correlatie, maar er zijn ook veel situaties waarbij die twee niet overeenkomen."

Menache heeft niet alleen problemen met de gebruikte technieken, maar daarenboven leiden de dieren een dieronwaardig bestaan in de laboratoria: "Voor de onderzoeken moeten de dieren in een speciale stoel volledig gefixeerd zitten, vervolgens moeten ze uren in een zwarte kamer op een knop drukken als ze een lichtpunt herkennen om dan een beloning te krijgen van bijvoorbeeld een paar druppels water. De herkenning van zulke punten heeft een training van vaak meerdere jaren gevraagd. De rest van hun dag spenderen ze alleen in kooien zonder omgevingselementen."

Getraind
"De apen worden inderdaad gedurende een lange periode getraind om bijvoorbeeld lichtpunten te her kennen op een scherm," vertelt Janssen, "maar uit studies waarbij men nagaat wat natuurlijk is voor het gedrag, blijkt dat de dieren in onze laboratoria hetzelfde hebben. Ze moeten iets doen om een beloning te krijgen. Het dier is dan ook zeer gemotiveerd om deel te nemen aan de tests. Het is verder inhoudelijk belangrijk voor een dier om te weten waar hij eten zal krijgen. Sommigen zijn er van ovetuigd dat de dieren hier een stresserend bestaan leiden, maar dat is absoluut niet waar. De apen zijn heel kalm en dat moet ook aangezien enkel hun hoofd gefixeerd wordt. De armen en ledematen kunnen vrij bewegen en als dat dier het beu is, kunnen wij hem niet dwingen om te blijven zitten. De experimenten zijn op aandacht gebaseerd. Als het dier niet wil, dan wil het niet."

Jef Arnout, directeur van het proefdierencentrum op Gasthuisberg, leidt ons rond door het proefdiercentrum: "Toen het onderzoek hier begon zaten die apen solitair in een kooi. We beseften dat dat niet goed was; apen zijn immers sociale beesten. Vandaar dat we nu groepen apen samen huisvesten. Ze zitten in kooien die per vier aan mekaar verbonden zijn en eventueel voor onderzoeken van elkaar kunnen gescheiden worden. Mochten we alle dieren samen zetten in één ruimte zou er een leiderschapsstrijd uitbreken onder de dieren met geamputeerde vingers of tenen ten gevolg wat ook zou gebeuren in de vrije natuur. Ze blijven ook niet heel de dag in hun kooi; één keer per dag verhuizen ze naar de speelruimte om zich daar gedurende een viertal uur te kunnen uitleven.."

Vlooien
In het neurofysiologisch laboratorium op Gastbuisberg wordt enkel fundamenteel onderzoek verricht naar de werking van onze hersenen zonder directe op geneeskundige toepassingen. Dat onderzoek moet volgens Menache enkel de nieuwsgierigheid van de onderzoekers stillen. Als veearts heeft hij geen enkel nut van de bevindingen van dit soort onderzoek, en ook de waarde voor de menselijke geneeskunde is miniem als we hem mogen geloven.

Voor Janssen, daarentegen, is de noodzaak van dit soort onderzoek een onweerlegbaar feit: "Het onderzoek dat wij verrichten, zal in de toekomst helpen om de menselijke geneeskunde een grote stap voorwaarts te laten zetten. Dit is op lange termijn denken. Ook alle huidige, bestaande inzichten uit de neurologie, inclusief hun toepassingen, zijn gebaseerd bevindingen van twintig, dertig jaar geleden."

Zowel Janssen als Arnout zien de acties van de dierenrechtenorganisaties als een manier om aan het publiek uit te leggen wat er met het belastinggeld gebeurt. "Ze dwingen ons ertoe verantwoording af te leggen," omschrijft Arnout het, "Eigenlijk zijn zij een beetje de vlooi in onze pels. Het is niet zo erg dat we de jeuk uit onze pels moeten houden, maar het kriebelt."

(Bron: http://www.veto.be/)
(Bron foto: Veto)

Weer massa stranding walvissen en dolfijnen kust Australië - Zo'n 55 dieren overleven stranding niet - 25 Dieren in leven

Stranded whales, dolphins die in Hamelin Bay

23-03-2009 Janine Beacham, WA Today, Australia


About 55 stranded whales and dolphins have died after beaching themselves at Hamelin Bay, 10km north of Augusta, early this morning. The Department of Environment and Conservation said the mass stranding involved about 80 mammals, but only 25 had been found alive.

DEC staff and volunteers were currently working to stabilise the whales that remained alive.

About 55 whales and dolphins have died at Hamelin Bay, 10km north of Augusta.

Photo: Janine Beacham

Incident controller Greg Mair said the whales were spread over a long expanse of WA's South-West coast heading north from the Hamelin Bay Caravan Park.
He said they were believed to be false killer whales, with some bottlenose dolphins among the group.

Veterinary assistance had been organised to assess the health and wellbeing of the alive whales, and equipment provided by Sea Search and Rescue was being rushed to the scene to help return the whales to deeper water.
"Our main priority is to ensure the welfare of the remaining alive whales before we herd them back out to sea," Mr Mair said.
"When we will be assisting them back to sea depends on ocean conditions and the strength of the animals. At present, ocean conditions are quite dangerous, with rough seas and large waves."
“We try to bring the live animals together as a group. Releasing single animals is rarely successful.”

Mr Mair said some whales are still free swimming offshore Hamelin Bay and there are concerns for those animals to beach themselves as well.

Hamelin Bay caravan park manager Melissa Lay, who lived in the are for five years, said she has never seen an incident like that happen before.
Mrs Lay said lots of people in wetsuits have come down to the beach to help the remaining live whales which are spread from the caravan park further north towards Boranup.

Incident controller Greg Mair said DEC staff had been swamped with volunteers wanting to help the stranded whales. Anyone wanting to help should contact the DEC Busselton office on 9752 5555.

False killer whales are medium-sized whales which average 4.5-5.5 metres in length.
It is not uncommon for the species to strand, with mass beachings in WA occurring in 1986, 1988, 2002 and 2005.
Bottlenose dolphins are common in cold, temperate and tropical seas and estuaries all over the world. The species is know to strand both singly and in small groups.

Since 1984 there have been 21 mass strandings of whales and dolphins along the WA coast.

Augusta-Margaret River Mail

(Bron: http://www.watoday.com.au/)
(Bron foto: WA Today)

Reeuwijk wil otters in Reeuwijkse en Nieuwkoopse Plassen - Partij voor de Dieren tegen herintroductie van otter

Dierenpartij wil geen otters

22-03-2009 Leidsch Dagblad


Alphen aan den Rijn -De Partij voor de Dieren komt in verzet tegen de herintroductie van de otter in Zuid-Holland. Het idee is gelanceerd door de burgemeester van Reeuwijk en ook het provinciebestuur denkt er over na.

Maar volgens de Partij voor de Dieren zal de otters die eventueel in de Reeuwijkse en de Nieuwkoopse plassen worden uitgezet, geen lang leven beschoren zijn.

Volgens de partij is de kans groot dat de dieren te veel gif binnen krijgen door het eten van de vis in de Zuid-Hollandse wateren. Bovendien zou de kans veel te groot zijn dat de dieren worden aangereden in het verkeer. In 1978 werd de laatste otter in de Nieuwkoopse plassen doodgereden.

(Bron: http://www.leidschdagblad.nl/)

Russia bans 'bloody' baby seal hunting

Russia banned the hunting of baby seals, weeks after Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called it a "bloody industry".

"The bloody sight of the hunting of seals, the slaughter of these defenceless animals which you cannot even call a real hunt, is banned in our country, just as well as in most developed countries, and is a serious step to protect the biodiversity of the Russian Federation," the minister for natural resources, Yuri Trutnev, said in a statement.

Seals inhabit Russia's White Sea region in the Arctic. Hunters target the fluffy baby seals -- also known as "whitecoats" for their highly valued snow-white fur -- in early spring.

Canadian legislation bans the hunting of baby seals with white coats, according to Fisheries and Oceans Canada, a government department.

Protests urging a halt to hunting of baby seals took place in 20 cities and towns across Russia this week. On Feb. 27, state-owned Rossiiskaya Gazeta quoted Putin as saying: "This is a bloody business and it's clear that it needs to be stopped." He said hunters should be compensated for lost earnings.

Gruwelijke Canadese zeehondenjacht start maandag 23 maart - HSI gaat jacht volgen en op video vastleggen

Canadian Seal Slaughter Scheduled to Open

Monday, March 23

22-03-2009 CNW Group, Canada


Humane Society International Will Document; Broadcast Quality B-roll and
Stills Available for Media

The Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans has confirmed that Canada's commercial seal slaughter will officially open before sunrise Monday, March 23. Weather permitting, the killing will begin and Humane Society International will be there to document it.

"With a vote on banning seal product trade pending in the European Parliament, the eyes of the world are on the Canadian seal kill," said Rebecca Aldworth, director of HSI/Canada.
"Behind the slick PR lines of the Canadian government lies the bloody reality of this cruel slaughter, and we intend to show it to the world."

WHAT: Broadcast quality video and stills will available for media download from HSI
WHEN: Monday, March 23, 2009
WHERE: Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence
HOW: To download video visit http://video.hsus.org/ click on pressroom then seals

Background:
Canadian government has ignored sound science by setting a recklessly high quota for this year's kill. Sealers can club and shoot 338,200 seals - an increase of 55,000 from last year's quota. The 2009 quota includes 280,000 harp seals, 50,000 grey seals and 8,200 hooded seals. Independent scientist have warned the high kill levels, paired with the impacts of global warming on ice-dependent harp seals, pose a serious threat to the survival of seal
populations.

HSI consistently documents unacceptable cruelty at the Canadian seal kill, including seal pups being cut open while conscious; seals showing responses to pain after being impaled on metal hooks and dragged across the ice; and wounded seals left to suffer.

Next month, the European Parliament will vote on a proposal to ban trade in seal products, potentially removing a primary market for the Canadian sealing industry.

(Bron: http://www.newswire.ca/)

Al Stewart - Year of the Cat (1988)

'Heart of a Lioness', the amazing and moving story of Kamunyak.....

Today I was struck by a film on Animal Planet television in which I watched how a lioness adopted an oryx as its own baby in Samburu Reserve, Kenya. The story is a few years old, however it deserves attention. The story is amazing....

Samburu Reserve is unashamedly red in tooth and claw - the dominion of predators, it’s a dangerous place for the vulnerable. At night the hills reverberate with roars as lions claim their territory – it’s the wildest part of Kenya’s northern frontier.

But when a lioness has a change of heart, for one small antelope - a baby oryx - this land of predators becomes a land of miracles.

Astonishing the scientific world, a young lioness, adopts a baby oryx and mothers it with infinite tenderness for 16 days. Foregoing her most basic needs she proves both a tender and fierce protector. The Samburu people call her Kamunyak – the blessed one.

Saba Douglas-Hamilton, a wildlife expert born and raised in East Africa, documents this extraordinary story as it unfolds before her eyes. Drawing upon her expert knowledge of lions, Saba unearths clues explaining Kamunyak’s extraordinary behaviour and tries to unravel the mystery behind this natural wonder. But first she has to find Kamunyak. Facing dangerous buffalo, defensive elephants, Saba tracks Kamunyak down with help from both the people and animals of Samburu. Relying on the Park Wardens lion identification photos, her friendship with the local Samburu people, and her bush tracking skills, Saba searches for Kamunyak and introduces us to Samburu reserve in all its vibrancy and colour.

But seeing Kamunyak for the first time is nothing short of witnessing a miracle. Appearing out of nowhere, the lion and the lamb curl up side by side. Fascinated, Saba follows them for days. She’s not alone in her astonishment, gawping gazelles bark out their alarm, not quite believing their eyes.

Back at camp, Saba taps into all her contacts, but the scientists she’s writing too are just as puzzled, for what Kamunyak has done is unprecedented. It can get lonely in the bush, but Saba’s blessed by a nightly visitation, a genet cat comes to eat the moths attracted to Saba’s paraffin lamps.

Exploring oryx natural history and the nature of big cats, Saba sets out to understand Kamunyak’s history and what might have stimulated her bizarre fixation. Her motives are a mystery, especially when she plays a dangerous game of cat and mouse with the calf. But it’s not until Saba meets lion expert, Dr. Laurence Frank, that the pennies start to drop. He reveals that lion prides on the park boundary come into frequent conflict with people, too often fatal for the lions. There’s a great temptation for lions living near human settlement to hunt livestock. But when core members of a pride are killed the effects on lion society are devastating. Whole lion prides can be shattered and the survivors isolated. Unable to defend a territory, these lone lions become outcasts in their own land and must to eke out an existence as a vagrant. Laurence suggests that if Kamunyak lost her pride and suffered from a deeply traumatic event, the bad experience coupled with her immaturity might well have sparked off her aberrant mothering.

Saba maps out what she knows of the resident Samburu lions and discovers that Kamunyak does indeed seem to be solitary. Without a pride and lacking female relatives to help her hunt or in defence, her future looks bleak. She’s also in danger from hostile lions that don’t want her around trespassing. In the two days that Saba’s been away visiting Laurence, Kamunyak’s condition has deteriorated considerably. With a shock Saba begins to realise the full significance of Kamunyak’s misplaced obsession. Both Kamunyak and the calf are starving.

But it seems help is at hand. Kamunyak’s fame has spread throughout the land and hundreds of people come to see the Miracle Lioness for themselves. Everyone’s touched by her state and the Park Warden is pressurised to intervene and feed the lioness. At night he throws her a chunk of meat. Saba keeps watch for hours, but the lioness won’t take the food.

Next day, Saba’s more hopeful. Kamunyak and the calf come down to the river to drink. It’s the first time Saba’s seen them doing something sensible. Here their fond attachment to one another confirms what Laurence Frank suggested, that trauma from losing her pride probably fuelled Kamunyak’s quirky obsession. But hidden along the river bank danger is lurking. Here predators lie in wait for unwary prey. Kamunyak’s inverted nature, but will nature now strike back.

On the 15th day, both Kamunyak and the calf are much worse for wear. Kamunyak rests in thick bush, her energy spent. For a moment she lets down her guard and the calf wanders out of sight. A shocking snarl springs both Kamunyak and Saba into action – horrified they see a massive lion has caught the calf in a killing grip. Kamunyak is desperate, but too frightened to get any closer to the male. Saba watches in horror as the calf is killed and Kamunyak reacts with all the passion and fear of a lioness who’s lost her cub. But all that’s left of the calf is the red blood that the male licks off his lips.

The next day, Kamunyak kills a warthog and eats for the first time in 16 days. One month later she adopts another oryx.

Over the next year, Kamunyak adopts 5 more oryx calves, but none last as long as the first. One dies of starvation, some escape, the last she abandons after just a few hours and it’s found by its mother. Then Kamunyak disappears and no-one’s seen her again.

As Saba leaves Samburu she reflects on what she’s seen. Kamunyak has turned nature on its head and mystified the world. She’s moved off into the vast wilderness of Samburu and who knows if she’ll be seen again. But while she remains an enigma to the scientific world, she has become a legend of the people of Samburu. They way they tell the story is that she was barren and that god gave her a child. That one day, she will rise up in front of them as surely as the African sun. But what remains with Saba is the poignancy of her tale. Saba hopes that Kamunyak will beat the odds of a solitary lioness and raise cubs of her own, to return at last to the company of lions.

Saba and Dudu Douglas-Hamilton

(Bron: http://www.lewa.org/oryx-lioness.php)
(Bron foto's: http://www.douglas-hamilton.com/Site/Pix%20-%20Heart%20of%20L.html)

(Lees ook: / Read also:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1746828.stm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamunyak
http://animal.discovery.com/fansites/wildkingdom/lioness/lioness.html)