Born Free USA has launched a new campaign, #TrapFreeTrails, to call for an end to the barbaric practice of trapping animals on public lands, including national wildlife refuges, national parks, and natural preserves.
The National Wildlife Refuge System was established by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1903 and now encompasses 567 refuges, as well as 38 wetlands management districts. Together, they include 95 million acres of land. Within the system, more than 296 threatened and endangered species are conserved across 356 of the individual refuges.
According to the U.S. Department of the Interior, the National Wildlife Refuge System was established “to conserve America’s wild animals and plants,” and to “provide enjoyment and beauty” to the millions of people who visit these lands each year. With more than 2,500 miles of land and water trails, these refuges are popular destinations for walkers, many of whom are
Many threats are currently facing wildlife throughout the U.S. including the devastating wildfires currently burning in California, Oregon, and Washington. Other threats, such as poisoning by rodenticides, are not as talked about but are negatively impacting the survival of many species.
Sadly, this invisible and silent killer claimed the life of yet another wild animal this week; a bobcat suffering from mange after most-likely ingesting a poisoned rodent.
It is excruciating for the poor animal and senseless!
WAN talked exclusively with Anna Marie Reams, the Founder and Executive Director of Wildlife Care of Southern California, about the emaciated bobcat that she recently rescued (pictured above) from the Topanga Mountains and tried to save.
In a heart-wrenching social media post, Reams, who specializes in working with coyotes and the more-elusive bobcats who have mange due to rat poision, explained that she did not want
Conserv Congo carried out a sting operation this week where they rescued a baby chimpanzee from two wildlife traffickers on the outskirts of Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The operation was spearheaded by Conserv Congo and the Kinshasa Central Police, with the support of the Ministry of Environmental Affairs and Sustainable Development,under the leadership of Claude Nyamugabo.
The traffickers were intercepted on a highway to Bandundu,where the transaction was planning to take place. Thankfully, the team was able to rescue the baby chimpanzee that was being sold for $2,500 USD. The rescued female chimp was no more than three months old.
Prior to the interception, Conserv Congo had been investigating the traffickers for over two years and discovered they are one of the leading trafficking gangs of great apes in Kinshasa. Sadly, 11 baby apes were sold in that period of time.
Environmental groups recently announced that a total of 351 loggerhead sea turtles have been found dead so far this year in the same area of Baja California coastline where authorities also found 137 dead, beached sea lions last week.
TheFederal Attorney for Environmental Protection (PROFEPA) recorded 351 dead loggerhead turtles on San Lázaro beach in Baja California Sur. In addition, stranded sea lions have been found at the site.
In accordance with the provisions of the fishing refuge regulation, it is established that the allowable limit of turtles per year is 90 total. If this yellow turtle mortality limit is reached, commercial fishing with gillnets, falsework or longlines must be suspended for the rest of the year.
In Defense of Animals,ForELK,TreeSpirit Project, Rancho Compasiónand 50 concerned local citizens produced an eye-catching piece of artwork pictured below at Point Reyes National Seashore on Sunday, September 13th, in an effort to free trapped Tule elk. The world’s largest remaining herd of the rare California native species are fenced in and dying at a compound amid conditions of drought and nearby wildfires which have created a choking haze of smoke across the entire West Coast.
The National Park Service (NPS) has repeatedly refused to intervene to ensure more lives are not lost, prompting local activists to deliver water to the elk. Tragically, between 2012 and 2014,254 Tule elk out of a herd of 542 died from lack of access to adequate water and forage.
“The growing number of dead Tule elk has many local people extremely concerned,” said Fleur Dawes, of In Defense of
To commemorate the launch of Beyond Meatballs, which will be rolling into grocery stores throughout the United States beginning this week, Beyond Meat is offering people in Los Angeles and New York City a chance to be among the first to try its newest product during an exclusive one-day only pop-up shop on Wednesday, September 16th.
“We are thrilled to introduce Beyond Meatballs as they deliver on consumers’ growing demand for delicious and nutritious plant-based meat options without GMOs or synthetic ingredients,” Stuart Kronauge, Chief Marketing Officer of Beyond Meat said in a statement. “We are proud to introduce our newest innovation at retailers nationwide and know our fans will be excited about the great taste and convenience of Beyond Meatballs.”
Beyond Meatballs will be launching at grocery stores nationwide including: Whole Foods Market, Stop & Shop, Sprouts, Harris Teeter, Kroger, Albertsons, and others by early October. Sold in the
Two billboards addressing Kansas Governor Laura Kellywere launched on September 9th near the governor’s office at the state capitol. The billboards, which urge state officials to shut down slaughterhouses and promote a plant-based diet, were sponsored by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
The billboards confront the governor with the message, “Governor Kelly: Can Kansas Switch to a Safer Food Supply Like Sunflowers Over Swine? PromotePlantProtein.org!”
Sunflowers are a profitable crop in Kansas and there are several facilities in western Kansas that process the seeds for oil, butter, and roasting.
New Zealand’s Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sageannounced a plan yesterday to change the law to help protect more than 35,000 endangered species internationally, whose survival in the wild is threatened by unsustainable trade.
“The changes will be made by amending the Trade in Endangered Species Act 1989to ban the domestic sale of elephant ivory in New Zealand, with some exemptions, and to improve the regulatory system at the border,” Sage said in a statement. “This is a big step forward in strengthening the management of international trade in endangered, threatened, and exploited species.”
Currently, New Zealand has no restrictions on domestic trade in elephant ivory, unlike the United States, United Kingdom, France, and China,which have already put bans in place.
The Trade in Endangered Species Act 1989 will need to be amended to implement the changes. However, the proposed law will only make its way into
A coalition of state and national wildlife protection organizations is applauding the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commissionfor its vote to ban cruel wildlife killing contests, in which participants compete to kill the most, the largest, or even the smallest animals for cash and prizes.
The news comes after WAN issued an UrgentCall To Action back in July, that called for Washington residents to submit comments in support of the ban throughout the state.
The new rule, put forth by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, prohibits the killing of unprotected species including: coyotes, bobcats, crows, foxes, and raccoons in acontest. Contest participants killed at least 1,427animals in these events in Washington between 2013 and 2018.
Washington joins six other states including—Arizona, California, Colorado, Massachusetts, New Mexico, and Vermont—that have taken a stand against cruel, unsporting, and wasteful wildlife killing contests. California banned
“At Tommy Hilfiger, we’re committed to creating a better fashion industry by creating fashion that ‘Wastes Nothing and Welcomes All.’ We have always [taken] and will always take the environment, human rights, our community and related matters very seriously, which is why we don’t use fur or exotic skins in any of our collections. Together, we can drive fashion forward for good,” Hilfiger told PETA in a statement.
The severely crowded, filthy conditions in which wild animals are raised and slaughtered for their skins are similar to those that gave rise to the novel coronavirus, and they pose
