Turtles on the beach!

When Kosum Kao-Uthai’s family noticed mysterious imprints in the sand outside the hotel resort they own in Koh Samui, she knew exactly which animal had paid a visit. She remembered spotting the same marks, left by a nesting sea turtle, when, as a teenager, she helped her father farm coconuts on the island. Kosum hadn’t seen another for five decades. Yet, this year, as the coronavirus pandemic emptied Thailand of tourists, nests belonging to endangered hawksbill and green turtles cropped up...

Giant redwoods, memories burn

Towering over the coast, straining for sun as they’ve done since before there was such a thing as California, the old-growth giants of Big Basin Redwoods State Park stood in flames on Friday. John Gallagher thought of his sons. Darryl Young thought of his father. Laura McLendon thought of her wedding day. “It was evening and the sun was just starting to slant through the trees,” said Ms. McLendon, a conservationist in San Francisco who married her husband in the...

Learn about … badgers

Video by my friend Alex Collins – wildlife scientist SUBSCRIBE TO MY CHANNEL FOR MORE VIDEOS – https://www.youtube.com/alexcollinswa… ————————————————————————————————————————————————————— FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER – https://twitter.com/AlexcollinsWaC LearnFromNature  Tweet  ...

Celebrating the orangutan

World Orangutan Day is a great opportunity to highlight these amazing creatures! We were very happy to be able to visit Sepilok a few years ago….. therefore contribute to the sanctuary and its conservation and education work. Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre in the Malaysian Sabah District of Hi I North Borneo was founded in 1964, to rehabilitate orphaned orangutans. The site is 43 sq km of protected land at the edge of Kabili Sepilok Forest Reserve. Today around 60 to...

‘Jewel of the Kalahari’

The Okavango Delta emanates in the highlands of Angola, where the mighty Okavango River begins as just a trickle before gradually becoming the third largest river in southern Africa that flows for over 1,600km to reach inland Botswana. Around 60,000 years ago, the river deposited its water into Lake Makgadikgadi, a paleolake believed to have covered over 100,000km² of Botswana’s interior. At a time when we were just dragging ourselves into the Later Stone Age, most of southern Africa was...

Biodiversity = connections the key!

People have been raising the alarm over habitat and biodiversity loss for decades, but solutions have so far failed to effectively address the problem. A new report, “Guidelines for Conserving Connectivity through Ecological Networks and Corridors,” suggests greater consideration of connections between protected areas is part of the solution. Ecological corridors on land, freshwater and in the sea are a critical conservation designation needed to ensure that ecosystem functioning and ecological processes are maintained and restored. ( source – https://news.mongabay.com/2020/08/in-the-fight-against-biodiversity-loss-connectivity-is-key-commentary/...

Celebrating science!

It’s National Science Week –Australia- time to engage your curious mind and explore the world around you. Resource you can download – https://www.scienceweek.net.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/2020ASTA-DeepBlue_ResourceBook_FINAL.pdf LearnFromNature  Tweet  ...

Oil spill devastates Mauritius!

Satellite images of the MV Wakashio shipwreck off the south-east coast of Mauritius reveal the damage as the Japanese bulk carrier leaked an estimated 1,000 tonnes. The ship struck a coral reef on 25 July and began leaking oil last week, raising fears of a major ecological crisis ( source – https://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2020/aug/13/satellite-photographs-of-the-mauritius-oil-spill-in-pictures?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other ) LearnFromNature  Tweet  ...

Celebrating youth!

“Youth Engagement for Global Action” seeks to highlight the ways in which the engagement of young people at the local, national and global levels is enriching national and multilateral institutions and processes, as well as draw lessons on how their representation and engagement in formal institutional politics can be significantly enhanced. As the United Nations turns 75, and with only 10 years remaining to make the 2030 Agenda a reality for all, trust in public institutions is eroding. At the international...

Celebrating elephants

World Elephant Day has been created to bring the world together to help elephants. It is a day to honor elephants, to spread awareness about the critical threats they are facing, and to support positive solutions that will help ensure their survival. Some charities working with elephants * https://www.savetheelephants.org * https://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/orphans Born Free Foundation – https://www.bornfree.org.uk/elephants-in-crisis LearnFromNature  Tweet  ...

World lion day – born free!

For Born Free, the lion, holds a special place in our hearts as the inspiration behind the charity we know today. Lions live in family groups, known as prides, and can contain up to 12 females, three males and several youngsters at a time. Female offspring will stay with their family group for life, whilst males strike out on their own in small groups looking to establish a pride of their own. With powerful muscular bodies, they are effective hunters working...

Ocean hero dedicated to vaquita … COVID-19

IUCN is deeply saddened by the loss of Mexican conservationist Paco Valverde, who dedicated his life to protect the vaquita – the world’s smallest porpoise and most threatened marine mammal. Paco was regarded as an ocean hero who inspired his community to care for the marine environment on which their livelihood depends. Our thoughts go to his family, who have accompanied him in these conservation efforts. The site was formally listed as “in danger” last year after its population of vaquitas,...

Beavers here to stay!

Wild beavers, once part of England’s rich tapestry of wildlife, had been absent in the country for around 400 years. Hunted to extinction, the animals were in demand for their meat, fur, and castoreum, which was used in medicines and perfumes.  But in 2008, wild beavers were found for the first time in England on East Devon’s River Otter. Although the origin of these animals here is unclear, they are clearly thriving, with an estimated 15 family groups colonising nearly all of the...