Young Lowland Gorillas Released into Nature Reserve

The UN airlifted these guys into the nature reserve so they can coalesce into a group that can survive when released back into the wild. This action is to prevent them from being eaten or poached in the meantime. (Sounds like these guys were orphaned as a result of bushmeat and illegal trafficking activities.)

Frankly, with the rate these poor animals are being decimated, I wonder sometimes if they SHOULD be released back into the wild. Wouldn't they be safer in the reserve?

Another Critical Article Directed at CITES

The CITES irresponsible treatment of marine animals made it to Huffington Post too. This article is by the President of the Blue Frontier Campaign.

I'm glad others share my disgust with CITES and the UN. Hopefully, regular citizens will read this and not just other activists. (I forwarded an article about this to my book club members. Knowing them, I bet they were hoping for fish and chips instead!)

Asian Countries Score Another Victory Over Marine Animals

Delegates to the CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) conference in Qatar voted down three of four proposals to protect sharks. This really sucks.

According to the New York Times...

China, by far the world’s largest consumer of the cartilaginous fish, for sharkfin soup, and Japan, which has battled to keep the convention from being extended to any marine species, led the opposition.

UN Refuses to Re-open Ivory Trade

Zambia and Tanzania proposed re-opening the trade, but the UN said no.

UN Launches Projects to Help Mountain Gorillas

Habitat destruction is a very serious threat to the mountain gorilla. Desperately poor people are devastating Virunga National Park in search of wood. This pressure has only increased with refugees from the many wars that have raged over the years.

From the UN News Centre....

The 2009 Year of the Gorilla (YoG) partnership is supporting a project enabling local residents in areas endangered by increasing demands for fuel – not least the Virunga National Park, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) – to buy low-cost, fuel-efficient stoves.

Other measures needed to target the reduction of charcoal production include solar cookers, tree-planting on farms and the widespread use of fuel-efficient stoves, UNEP said in a news release.

Further cause for concern to the agency is the signing of land deals by many gorilla range States with foreign companies for agriculture, including bio-fuel production.

There is a certain irony in that last sentence. The much-lauded production of biofuel is actually creating its own environmental hazard.

Year of the Gorilla Begins

On Monday, December 2, 2008, the Year of the Gorilla was launched by the UN and Monaco's Prince Albert.

Officials for the U.N.-backed Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals said they hoped to raise half a million euros ($630,000) for projects aimed at fighting the animals' biggest threats.

The "Year of the Gorilla" was launched at a ceremony in Rome where Prince Albert II of Monaco and representatives from more than 100 governments gathered this week to discuss increasing measures for nearly 30 species endangered by pollution, climate change and overhunting.

Half a million euros? That's all they think they can raise? That's setting your sights pretty low. (Reminds me of Dr. Evil asking for One. Million. Dollars.)