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Stern Remedies to Combat Wildlife Crime

12/30/2013

Source: Thebhutanese.BT

By Tanden Zangmo

The three-day annual forestry conference held in Samtse from December 19 to 21 resolved to combat wildlife crime and poaching more stringently.

Participants at the conference, constituting of about 180 foresters and conservationists from all parts of the country, felt that there is an urgent need to improve enforcement of forestry and wildlife regulations.

Participants also expressed appreciation towards the commendable tasks being carried out by the Forest Protection and Surveillance Unit (FPSU) of the Department of Forests and Park Services (DoFPS). The unit, in collaboration with all forest territorial divisions and park management, monitors, apprehends and compounds all cases related to illegal timber and poaching cases in the country.

However, many felt that there is an immediate requirement to improve forestry and wildlife enforcement since it entails various issues.

The conference, as a congregation of all policy makers and enforcers, is considered to serve as the right platform to deliberate and dovetail anti-poaching plans into making it more effective and daunting for the offenders.

“Combating wildlife crime and poaching is a very sensitive issue and must be dealt with very cautiously,” said one of the participants. He added the conference is the right forum to brainstorm and come up with effective tactics that could help in bringing down the cases of wildlife crime.

The conference, after in depth discussions, adopted that the existing capacity of the surveillance unit be strengthened. This will be done through deployment of more qualified and experienced staff in the unit. Participants shared that the shortage of staff is one impediment in curbing and curtailing the crime.

The conference also recognized informant networking or whistleblowers as one critical component of fighting wildlife crime. The participants at the conference felt that more than the forestry officials, it is the secret spy and informant who gain more access to secret plots that are being hatched within the confinement of closed door. More....

Four Poachers Nabbed

12/16/2013

Source: Thebhutanese.BT

By Tanden Zangmo

The apprehended miscreants who were poaching inside protected park areas in the high altitude zones of JSWNP were caught after officials recovered one of the culprit’s CID from the vicinity of the crime scene

Poaching in the country, like in many other nations, is fast becoming rampant with reports of confiscation and clandestine incidents happening frequently, especially across the government reserved forests.

With the Department of Forests and Park Services (DoFPS), Ministry of Agriculture and Forests (MoAF) taking poachers and illegal wildlife traders head on, it has in the recent times, apprehended many culprits involved in the illegal practice. Most miscreants were caught in the act within the government reserved forests or within the protected areas.

In the most recent case, a team of forest officials from Jigme Singye Wangchuck National Park (JSWNP) in Trongsa, while on patrol in the park areas, especially those in the high altitude caught and apprehended four poachers. According to the park officials, the surveillance team despatched earlier in November this year, encountered the poachers at the base of the Black Mountain in the place called Joe Dorshingla.

Joe Dorshingla, about three days walking from the park head office in Trongsa is situated 4,925 meters above the sea level in the deep jungles, away from any human settlements. Except for the rugged terrain, fenced by the towering mountains on all four sides, secluded in the heart of wilderness, the place offered just the right environment for the poachers.

JSWNP park manager Kezang Wangchuk said they suspected poaching in the area since a very long time. Although the park has been carrying out regular anti-poaching patrolling, due to its inaccessibility, the poachers used it to their advantage.

Upon investigation, the park’s anti-poaching team found that the poachers were involved in illegally killing atleast three musk deer and two Monal pheasant birds. In addition, the park officials have also confiscated bags of bush, musk deer pods and feathers of Monal pheasants.

The crime also includes killing of an additional two female and one male musk deer, and another one male Monal pheasant. More....

2013 In Review: Elephant Poaching

12/16/2013

Source: Britannica.com

By Richard Pallardy

No one knows for sure how many elephants exist in the wild in 2013. Even the agencies that monitor them will not issue official population estimates and will venture unofficial counts only with the greatest of trepidation. Some projections, however, suggest that the rapid surge in poaching could lead to the extinction of the African species within a decade. Fueling that threat is a brisk escalation in the ivory trade in Asia.

Counting Invisible Giants
Estimates do exist for the three species. The African savanna, or bush, elephant (Loxodonta africana), is the largest living land animal, with males, known as bulls, weighing up to nine tons each. Its cousins, the African forest elephant (L. cyclotis)—considered by some authorities to be a subspecies—and the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus)—comprising three subspecies—are not much smaller. A comprehensive 2013 report compiled by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), and the wildlife-trade-monitoring network TRAFFIC suggested a combined population of 420,000–650,000 African savanna and forest elephants spread across 35–38 African countries. Some 80% of the population—comprising solely savanna elephants—is concentrated in southern and eastern African countries, with 50% living in Botswana, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. Central Africa and western Africa, home to both forest and savanna elephants, host the remaining 18% and 2%, respectively.

The IUCN estimates that 40,000–50,000 Asian elephants are spread across 13 countries in Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam. India is likely home to more than 50% of all Asian elephants. There is still no reliable mechanism for keeping tabs on one of the most conspicuous residents of the planet. Data are difficult to gather on both continents owing to the political volatility of some regions and to the expense of aerial and ground surveys; unsystematic data collection further skews the projections.

Blood Ivory
The price of that unknown is exacted in blood and gore. Tusks, the enlarged incisor teeth that are the raw material for worked ivory, are normally sawed off at the base by poachers, often while the elephant is not yet dead. The valued part of the tusk comprises dentin covered by cementum. The dentin component is what is used to create the often-intricate ivory confections demanded by the Asian market; the cementum is usually discarded.

The African elephant, at greatest risk from the uptick in ivory poaching, is protected in only 20% of its range. That leaves a huge proportion of the pachyderms unprotected even by the porous boundaries of national parks and other conservation areas. These populations—which oftentimes overlap areas inhabited by humans—are thus harder to monitor. Populations that cannot be monitored cannot be defended. Despite their physical size and strength, elephants are in increasing need of protection. Even the armed guards who patrol some national parks are often no match for the heavy artillery and stealthy maneuvering of poachers harvesting ivory in central and eastern Africa at the behest of military leaders and warlords, who sell the valuable tusks to fund their operations. Park rangers themselves have been implicated in poaching incidents. More....

Poachers Galore

11/22/2013

Source: Thebhutanese.BT

By Tanden Zangmo

Poaching in the country, like in many other nations, is fast becoming rampant with reports of confiscation and clandestine incidents happening frequently.

Recently, the police in Gasa and officials of Jigme Dorji National Park (JDNP) arrested a 33-year-old man for poaching musk deer on the night of November 7, while three men are still at large. This was the second arrest made by the police and park officials within a week’s time in the same locality.

The trend of poaching in Bhutan is increasing, going by the number of cases in which the poachers are being apprehended within the park territories and protected areas in the country.

In another confrontation, police and park officials have caught two men, aged 18 and 25, on the night of November 2 on allegations of poaching.

Last year, three long-time poachers were apprehended in Neshingborang village, Nganglam under Pemagatshel by the forest officials for hunting down a leopard. The poachers had trapped and killed the leopard using poison left in the carcass of a horse left as a bait.

The JDNP Park Manager, also the national focal person for Tiger Conservation, Lhendup Tharchen said that the grounds on which poaching is rampant in the country is yet to be determined, but people believe it to be a lucrative business, therefore, is known to be encouraging people.

“Though we do not have a market for it in Bhutan, people fetch hefty amounts outside, which is why poaching, is increasing these days,” he said. He added that another reason could be lack of knowledge about laws or sheer ignorance. Moreover, the laws in place are neither very severe nor stern.

Lhendup Tharchen also said that lack of resources, especially human resources and vast forest coverage is also impeding the inspection carried out by the forest officials.

According to the head of Wildlife Conservation Division, Sonam Wangchuk, nabbing the poachers within the territory of the park and protected areas is due to less severity of penalty imposed on the poachers. Hence, he said that revision of the fines and penalties for protected species under section 82 (7) of the Forest and Nature Conservation Rules, 2006, pertaining to the tiger (Panthera tigris) and the snow leopard (Uncia uncia) has been revised. More....

Wildlife Crime Prevention Training at Manas

11/18/2013

Source: Assamtimes.org

By Subhamoy Bhattacharjee

Under the IFAW: WTI Wildlife Crime Prevention Training programme, a total of 100frontline forest staff of Manas National Park, Manas Reserve Forest, Kachugaon Reserve Forest and Ripu Reserve Forest in Greater Manas are targeted to be trained and equipped in partnership with the Assam Forest Department and Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC). The first batch of 32 trainees among the four batches from all the three ranges of Manas National Park is undergoing training from Sunday.

Greater Manas is a critical wildlife habitat along the Indo-Bhutan border in Bodoland, Assam, supporting a wide range of flora and fauna including the endangered Asian elephant, Royal Bengal tiger, greater one-horned rhinoceros, golden langur and Bengal florican. A concept, adopted by the Bodoland Territorial Council authorities, the landscape extends over 1500 sq km covering Manas National Park, Manas Reserve Forest and Ripu Reserved Forest. Two participants from Barnadi Wildlife Sanctuary on the easternmost buffer of Manas Tiger Reserve also attended the training.

The training that will go on for a month will see the frontline staff, in batches of 25, brush upon their understanding protection of biodiversity of Greater Manas, threats faced and its conservation. They will learn about identification of animals based on secondary evidence such as pugmarks and horns, about wildlife laws, commercial poaching and trade, important local endemic species in illegal wildlife trade, methods of hunting and the relevant sections of dealing with wildlife crime as per the state’s laws (Assam FR 1891) and the Indian (Wildlife) Protection Act of 1972, and a diverse other issues.

Khampa Borgoyary, Deputy Chief of BTC, remarked, "Training, morale boosting and equipping front line staff is very important in conservation. Conducting trainings like these in three crucial areas of Greater Manas is a good initiative to control wildlife crime and impose law and order in the region."

Sonali Ghosh, the Deputy Director – Manas Tiger Reserve, commented on the training, “It is a great initiative taken by IFAW-WTI to train the front line staffs of Forest. It should be done in broader aspects touching the boundaries from western side to eastern landscape of Manas. The local NGOs and CBOs should be included in the learning process as they also stand shoulder to shoulder with Frontline staffs in guarding nature." More....

Wildlife Crime Prevention Training Starts in Manas NP

11/17/2013

Source: News.webIndia123.com

Under the IFAW: WTI Wildlife Crime Prevention Training programme, 100 frontline forest staff of Manas National Park, Manas Reserve Forest, Kachugaon Reserve Forest and Ripu Reserve Forest in Greater Manas are targeted to be trained and equipped in partnership with the Assam Forest Department and Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC).

The first batch of 32 trainees among the four batches from all the three ranges of Manas National Park is undergoing training from today, a Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) release said. Greater Manas is a critical wildlife habitat along the Indo-Bhutan border in Bodoland, Assam, supporting a wide range of flora and fauna including the endangered Asian elephant, Royal Bengal tiger, greater one-horned rhinoceros, golden langur and Bengal florican.

The training that will go on for a month will see the frontline staff, in batches of 25, brush upon their understanding protection of biodiversity of Greater Manas, threats faced and its conservation.

They will learn about identification of animals based on secondary evidence such as pugmarks and horns, about wildlife laws, commercial poaching and trade, important local endemic species in illegal wildlife trade, methods of hunting and the relevant sections of dealing with wildlife crime as per the state's laws (Assam FR 1891) and the Indian (Wildlife) Protection Act of 1972, and a diverse other issues.

Khampa Borgoyary, Deputy Chief of BTC, said, 'Training, morale boosting and equipping front line staff is very important in conservation. Conducting trainings like these in three crucial areas of Greater Manas is a good initiative to control wildlife crime and impose law and order in the region.'

Sonali Ghosh, the Deputy Director - Manas Tiger Reserve, said about the training, 'It is a great initiative taken by IFAW-WTI to train the front line staffs of Forest. It should be done in broader aspects touching the boundaries from western side to eastern landscape of Manas. The local NGOs and CBOs should be included in the learning process as they also stand shoulder to shoulder with Frontline staffs in guarding nature.' More....

Poaching Cause of Concern in Manas National Park

11/7/2013

Source: Assamtribune.com

By R. Dutta Choudhury

At a time when efforts are being made to regain the old glory of the Manas National Park, poaching has become a major cause of concern and only recently, a skin of a tiger of the Park was recovered in a bordering town in Bhutan.Talking to The Assam Tribune, the Director of the National Park Anindya Swargowari admitted that the situation in the Park has changed a lot since the 1990s when most of the camps inside the park had to be winded up due to militant activities and now there are more than 70 camps, each manned by four to five Forest Department personnel.

Swargowari said that at one point of time, all the rhinos of the park were killed and later 10 rhinos were translocated from the Kaziranga National Park and eight from Pabitora Wildlife Sanctuary. Now the Park has 27 rhinos. He said that six rhinos were killed by poachers in the National Park since 2011. Though the number if not a big one, it is a matter of concern because the rhino population in Manas is not at large as Kaziranga.

Commenting on the problems faced by the Park authorities to deal with poaching, the Park Director pointed out that the southern boundary of Manas is totally porous and there are a large number of thickly populated villages all along the southern boundary. This is a major problem as the poachers and criminals can take shelter in the villages and sneak into the Park. Though patrolling inside the Park has increased with establishment of a number of camps, the thick forest cover puts the criminals in an advantageous position.

Moreover, easy availability of illegal weapons in the area is a major cause of concern as in recent times, even AK series rifles along with 303 rifles were used by poachers to kill Park animals. Swargowari said that the number of wild boar and deer is increasing and very often the animals venture into the villages and fall prey to the poachers and criminals. It may be mentioned here that there are reports of selling of dear meat in the fringe areas of the National Park.

Swargowari revealed that the possibility of the poachers taking animal body parts to Bhutan also cannot be ruled out and one such incident recently came to light. He said that the skin of one tiger of Manas (MT7M), photographed in the last census, was recovered in a bordering town in Bhutan, which proved that the poachers managed to smuggle out the skin by taking advantage of the porous international border.

Two Poachers Caught in Gasa

11/5/2013

Source: Kuenselonline.com

Following a tip off, Jigme Dorji National Park officials and police in Gasa caught two poachers with a Monal pheasant and two musk pods on the night of November 2.

The men, 28-year-old, and 18-year-old from Baylakha in Wangdue, were caught around 9pm above Gasa dzong, while they were returning from the poaching site, park officials said. The 28-year-old man is a former army personnel.

Park officials said the musk deer (Moschus moschiferus) and monal pheasant (Lophophorus impejanus) were “endangered species”, and protected under schedule I of the forest and nature conservation rules, 2006.

Besides facing penalties for poaching the endangered species, the minimum penalty imposed for the offence of poaching inside a protected area starts from Nu 60,000, park officials said.

The offenders would be fined Nu 30,000 for each musk pod and Nu 5,000 for the monal pheasant. “The park is taking this seriously and is determined to curb anti-poaching activities,” park manager Lhendup Tharchen said.

Officials of the department of forest and park services, however, said they would soon be raising penalties for poaching wildlife and birds and that the department is serious about cracking down on poachers.

The men are under detention and the confiscated products will be handed over to the department of forest and park services.

Manas Loses Sixth Rhino

10/30/2013

Source: TelegraphIndia.com

Manas National Park, which got back its heritage tag in 2011, today lost its sixth rhino to poachers, endangering the process of re-establishment of the species here.

“The poachers fired three gunshots, killing a female rhino. A poacher has also been killed by the forest staff,” the park’s director, A. Swargiary, said.

The incident took place at 2.30pm at Bhuyanpara range and the carcass was recovered after a while.

The horn had been taken away and the post-mortem will be done tomorrow.

A source said the killing of the poacher, which took part in another area, is not linked to the killing of this rhino.

The female rhino was translocated from Pobitora wildlife sanctuary last year and had given birth to its first calf in Manas last year.

The World Heritage Committee early this year had said rhino poaching has been identified as a serious conservation threat at several world heritage sites.

It said the killing of the four translocated rhinos in Manas National Park has endangered the re-establishment of the species at this site.

The Bandar Lampung declaration in Indonesia, agreed upon by the rhino range states in Asia — Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Nepal early this month — had stated that laudable initiatives such as Indian Rhino Vision, 2020 are being threatened by the increasing illegal demand for rhino horn. More....

Poacher Arrest Reveals Bengal Link

10/10/2013

Source: TelegraphIndia.com

There is a string of commonality that has got forest officials from the anti-poaching team on the Assam side of the border worried — one that could prove that rhino poachers who operate here in the state could actually have bases in neighbouring West Bengal and elsewhere.

The issue has come to light with a dreaded poacher, Rati Ram Sharma, who was arrested in Assam recently, revealing contacts in the neighbouring state, something that allowed him to operate with impunity even while he was out on bail.

Sharma is currently being held in judicial custody in Karbi Anglong.

According to sources here, Sharma, who has earned himself the epithet “Rhino Man”, is the kingpin of the illegal trade in animal products in eastern India.

“He is originally from Rajasthan,” sources here said. “Sharma not only buys off horns of rhinos felled by poachers but also gets the job done through various people. He is known to sell horns in Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar for an estimated Rs 50 lakh each,” a source said.

With alarm bells ringing, Assam police have sent out messages to “all concerned” for further information on Sharma. Officials here believe that Sharma, 65, had set up base in Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. His arrest in the Niuland area in Nagaland’s Dimapur on September 28 was based on inputs from the police here, the sources said, adding that he was handed over to Assam police as he has cases pending in the state.

“We have sent messages to police forces of all states asking them to provide us information about him or his accomplices so that we can build a strong case,” the source said. More....

Need to Check Organised Gangs in Rhino Poaching: WWF

10/7/2013

Source: Business-standard.com

The recent rise in cases of rhinoceros poaching with sophisticated weapons, suggesting involvement of organised crime syndicates, was a serious matter that could have grave implications for the protection of the species, WWF-India said today.

"The recent rise in cases of rhino poaching with sophisticated weapons indicates the involvement of organised crime syndicates and is a cause of serious concern," said Dr Dipankar Ghose, Director, Species and Landscapes, WWF-India.

Ghose spoke about a recent meeting of five countries - Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Nepal - held in Indonesia's Bandar Lampung, where a common action plan was agreed with the aim of increasing the population of the Asian rhino by at least 3 per cent annually by 2020.

As per figures till March 2013, there were only 3,500 rhinos in Asia (compared to over 25,000 across Africa). Some species remain hanging by a thread, in single populations numbering less than 50 animals, officials said.

The international community has paid significant attention to the plight of the black and white rhinoceros across Africa, but relatively little focus has been given to the Asian species, they said.

However, committed action by Indian government had led to rhino populations bouncing back in Assam and their numbers had doubled over the last four decades, officials added.

Terming the Indonesia meet a welcome initiative for sharing experiences, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) and Chief Wildlife Warden of Assam, Suresh Chand, said that such forums will be able to draw the attention of international organisations as well as the governments to issue of rhino conservation.

The second meeting on the lines of the one in Indonesia is scheduled to take place in Assam next year.

Asian Rhino Conference Hailed as Major Step Forward

10/4/2013

Source: Jacarandafm.com

Environmentalists on Friday hailed measures including tough anti-poaching initiatives to help boost the dwindling population of Asian rhinos agreed at an international conference in Indonesia.

Officials from Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Nepal held a two-day meeting this week on Indonesia's western Sumatra island to discuss the plight of the animals. Two out of three Asian rhino species -- the Sumatran and Javan rhinos --are critically endangered, and the third, the greater one-horned rhino, is classified as vulnerable.

The populations have dwindled rapidly as poachers hunt the animal for its horn which is highly valued for use in traditional Chinese medicine, and the WWF says only around 3,500 rhinos remain in the wild in Asia. At the meeting of Asian countries with rhino populations in the city of Bandar Lampung, the participants agreed to try and increase the populations of Asian rhinos by at least three percent annually by 2020.

The agreement set out steps to increase the populations, such as improving biological monitoring and management and carrying out tough anti-poaching operations. Protection group the International Union for Conservation of Nature hailed the agreement as a "major step towards Asian rhino recovery". "The number of surviving Asian rhinos, especially of Javan and Sumatran rhinos, is currently so low that maintaining their populations is not enough to secure their survival," said Simon Stuart, chair of the IUCN's species survival commission. "What we need to see is the recovery of these species and a steady increase of their populations."

The WWF hailed the agreement made at the conference, which concluded Thursday, but urged governments to follow through with concrete action. More....

3 Arrested for Smuggling, Poaching

10/4/2013

Source: Morungexpress.com

Dimapur Traffic Police on October 3 intercepted a Mahindra pickup truck from Tragopan Police Point for traffic violations. While checking the vehicle, they recovered 3,300 Spasmo Proxivon Capsules and 10 tablets of Nitrosun. A press note from the Additional SP, Dimapur informed that the occupants of the vehicle, Sehngan Khongsai and Haopu Misao, were subsequently arrested for possession and smuggling of banned drugs. A case has been registered at the Dimapur East PS.

In a separate incident, Niuland police station arrested one person on September 28. According to the police, the accused, Rati Ram Sarma was wanted in several cases of Rhino poaching and trading in wildlife products and is involved in a network of illegal poaching and smuggling of wildlife products across India, Nepal and Bhutan. The accused was handed over to Assam police at Bokajan, where he is wanted in connection with a case.

Major Step Towards Asian Rhino Recovery

10/3/2013

Source: IUCN.org

At a meeting of the five Asian Rhino range states - Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Nepal - a common action plan was agreed today with the aim of increasing the populations of Asian Rhino species by at least 3% annually by 2020.

This agreement, called the Bandar Lampung Declaration, was reached after two days of negotiations at the Asian Rhino Range States Meeting held in Bandar Lampung, Indonesia, hosted by the government of Indonesia and facilitated by the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC).

“Our decision to host this meeting reflects Indonesia’s determination to do everything we can to save our species of rhino,” says Zulkifli Hasan, Minister of Forestry, Indonesia. “We have found that when a species becomes extremely rare, occurring at a very low density, such as the Sumatran Rhino, we need to take special measures to ensure that the animals can find each other and breed.”

The commitment outlines specific conservation actions that are necessary to secure a steady growth rate of all three Asian Rhino species – Sumatran, Javan and Greater One-horned. These include improving the biological management and monitoring of the species, strengthening the protection of their habitats, performing strict anti-poaching operations, introducing tougher penalties for those that illegally kill Asian Rhinos, and maintaining the ban in the international trade of all rhino products.

“The number of surviving Asian Rhinos, especially of Javan and Sumatran Rhinos, is currently so low that maintaining their populations is not enough to secure their survival,” says Simon Stuart, Chair of IUCN SSC. More....

Three Sloth Bears Rescued

9/23/2013

Source: Business-standard.com

Three endangered sloth bears were rescued from the nepal" target="_blank"> [sic\ Indo-Nepal border as poachers were trying to smuggle them into India.

On the information provided by Delhi-based NGO Wildlife SOS, the Jharkhand police and state forest department carried out a raid rescued the bears and arrested poachers involved in the racket, a statement issued by the NGO said.

The bears, two male and one female, have been transferred to the Agra Bear Rescue facility in Uttar Pradesh which is the largest rehabilitation centre in the world for sloth bears.

The Agra Bear Rescue Facility is run by Wildlife SOS in collaboration with the UP Forest Department, it said.

"We are trying out best to stop the illegal poaching," Rupak De, Chief Wildlife Warden, UP said.

"It is suspected that the poachers brought the bear cubs from different parts in India (states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Orissa) and then hid these cubs in Nepal until they were big enough for sale and then brought them into India to sell them," the statement said.

The six hours long anti-poaching operation on Thursday last was carried out using a convoy of six vehicles, including a large police van, with about 20 police officers in addition to 15 forest officers and Wildlife SOS personnel.

"The poachers were caught hiding in Giridih district with the three bears. At one point, it became very difficult for us to control the crowd and take the bears to a safe location.

"An unruly mob gathered around the poachers to protect them from the police and even tried to torch the police vehicle," Baiju Raj of Wildlife SOS said.

Sloth bears are highly endangered and are only found in the Indian subcontinent with a small population in Nepal and Bhutan. The animals have been used for centuries as dancing and performing bears, an activity banned by the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.

Iconic Ganges River Dolphin: Freshwater Species of the Week

9/22/2013

Source: Newswatch.nationalgeographic.com

By Brian Clark Howard

Conservation India reports that an endangered Ganges river dolphin (or Gangetic dolphin, Platanista gangetica gangetica), was killed by villagers in Assam this week. A fishmonger was seen selling the marine mammal’s meat at a roadside market in Lezai-Kalakhowa.

The Ganges river dolphin is the national aquatic animal of India. It lives in the freshwater of the Ganges and Brahmpautra Rivers in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.

Conservation India warned, “Though legally the species enjoys protection status equal to that of a tiger, poor awareness, construction of dams that restrict their movement, hunting for food etc. are driving them to extinction.”

Ganges river dolphins are one of two subspecies that make up the South Asian river dolphin (Platanista gangetica). The other subspecies, Platanista gangetica minor, is called the Indus river dolphin and makes its home in the Indus River in Pakistan. The two groups were considered separate species until the late 1990s, when they were reclassified as subspecies.

Both dolphins are critically endangered. Like a number of other river dolphins around the world, they have long, pointed noses and prominent teeth. They have brownish, stocky bodies. The South Asian river dolphins are nearly blind, and navigate and find prey through echolocation.

Unlike all other cetaceans, the South Asian river dolphins primarily swim on their sides.

According to Conservation India, wildlife officials are investigating the recent illegal killing of the Ganges dolphin. Sanctuaries have been set up in the river to protect some habitat for the animal, although many challenges remain, including entanglement in fishing nets, pollution, overfishing of the dolphins’ prey, dams that restrict movements, and poaching. More....

Why the World Bank Is Saving Tigers

9/12/2013

Source: Newswatch.nationalgeographic.com

By Sasha Ingber

“Wait, what?” people would say when I told them I worked for the Global Tiger Initiative at the World Bank. “The Bank is saving tigers?” For a financial institution that strives to end world poverty, maybe it’s difficult to connect the dots to tiger conservation. The idea is that poverty cannot be eradicated without a sustainable environment that supports not just human life, but other species.

The GTI was established in 2008, rumored to be a “pet project” of Robert Zoellick, then president of the World Bank. Its mission is to double the world’s population of wild tigers—which now hovers around 3,200—by 2022, the next year of the tiger in the Chinese calendar. For the first time in history, the world’s 13 tiger range countries came together in order to achieve this goal. So during the last week of Zoellick’s tenure in June 2012, he called the senior managers into a meeting and said, “‘It’s a thousand dollar question. What happens to the GTI after I leave?’” recalls GTI team leader Andrey Kushlin. “We were moved from an incubator into real life.”

On July 1, 2013, the small team moved from the arm of the Bank that deals with knowledge and innovation to the arm that deals with sustainable development policies. What does that mean for the future? “We are showing that the GTI wasn’t just a one-time flick. It’s a program which countries need and want,” says Kushlin.

I spoke with Kushlin, my former colleague, about GTI’s newest chapter.

What has worked in the past for GTI?

Our summit in St. Petersburg in November 2010 attracted global attention and brought the issue of tigers to politicians. More....

China Customs Authority's Wildlife Detector Dog Team Ready for Action

8/9/2013

Source: Menafn.com

China's Customs authority now has detector dogs ready to assist in sniffing out wildlife trafficking after three fully trained Labradors and their trainers were passed fit for service in the last week of July.

To qualify for the novel role in Chinese wildlife trade enforcement efforts, the three canines and their trainers underwent months of intensive training at Ruili Drug Detector Dog Base, part of the Anti-smuggling Bureau of the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC).

Following the training, the dogs had to each pass a stiff test to locate wildlife products concealed in a variety of locations including a container, on an airport luggage conveyor belt and at a postal centre.

All three dogs passed the test by successfully detecting the hidden items, which included Tiger bones, ivory, rhino horn, pangolin scales and live freshwater turtles, among other samples. These are all wildlife products commonly trafficked from South and South-east Asia to China across the border in south-west China's Yunnan Province.

"TRAFFIC is very impressed to see the dogs have completed their training successfully and are ready for action," said Dr Jianbin Shi, Head of TRAFFIC's China Programme, which provided partial support to the training project.

"The deterrent effect of having trained detector dogs on patrol should not be underestimated--wildlife smugglers will be aware the dice are now heavily loaded in favour of them being caught."

Initially the dogs are expected to be deployed to key airports and checkpoints in Yunnan Province. More....

At 46, Tiger Deaths may Beat Last Year’s High

7/29/2013

Source: Economictimes.Indiatimes.com

By Vijay Pinjarkar

With 46 tiger deaths in just 7 months this year in the country, most of them due to poaching and several shrouded in mystery, the Global Tiger Day on Monday will be celebrated under a dark shadow.

Looking at the startling revelations by organized tiger poachers, arrested recently near Nagpur and Amravati, the tiger death figures may even be more than 46. A gang of five Bahelia poachers, currently in magisterial custody at Nagpur, has claimed that other gangs have killed at least 11 tigers. These skins were sold to Sarju Bagdi, a tiger skin and body parts trader from Haryana/Delhi, near Nagpur in April and June this year. However, Maharashtra forest officials are investigating only 5 tiger skins, others have not been recorded officially.

Global Tiger Day, celebrated every year on July 29, is relatively new, first initiated at the global tiger summit at St Petersburg (Russia) in 2010. The primary aim is to draw world's attention to the plight of tigers, but it is a low key affair in the region, which otherwise should be a mega event considering the 'Gateway to tiger capital' status.

The day is celebrated by 13 range countries - India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia (Sumatra), Lao, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand, Vietnam, and perhaps North Korea.

In the last seven months, from January 6 to July 16, 46 tigers have died in India, compared to 72 in all of 2012. Of the 46 deaths, at least 15 have died of poaching, while several deaths are shrouded in mystery and still under investigation. Twelve 12 tiger deaths were recorded in Karnataka, followed by eight each in Maharashtra and Uttarakhand. More....

Wildlife Crime Syndicates ‘Linked With Terror Groups’

7/9/2013

Source: Ens-newswire.com

There is evidence that some wildlife crime syndicates are linked to terror groups, India’s Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan told a meeting Friday of police, customs and wildlife officers from eight countries.

At the five-day meeting co-convened by Interpol’s Environmental Crime Program and India’s Central Bureau of Investigation, CBI, Natarajan said, “The existence of illegal wildlife trade undermines efforts made by a country to protect their natural resources. Recent evidence points at, as CBI must be knowing, some of the networks are linked with terror groups.”

Opening the meeting, CBI Director Ranjit Sinha described wildlife crime as a highly organized, transnational crime conducted by an extensive network of criminals.

Referring to tigers as the “greatest living symbol of our natural world,” Sinha called for greater coordination between intelligence and law enforcement agencies across international borders.

The Wildlife Crime Control Bureau in India, National Tiger Conservation Authority and TRAFFIC India were partners in the workshop held for law enforcement officials from the eight countries in the South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network, SAWEN: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Dr. Maheshwar Dhakal of the Bhutan-based SAWEN Secretariat highlighted the need for capacity building of law enforcement agencies of the eight SAWEN countries through networking and information sharing to combat wildlife crime in the South Asia region. More....

Saving Tiger a Formidable Challenge: CBI Chief

7/1/2013

Source: Zeenews.India.com

New Delhi: It is a "formidable" challenge to protect India's national animal - Tiger - from poaching and threat to its habitat, CBI chief Ranjit Sinha today told wildlife crime investigators from South Asia.

"A welter of pressures, including the loss and fragmentation of habitat, large scale and organised poaching fostered by an ugly international demand, unregulated mining in tiger landscapes, loss of connectivity between source areas and ever increasing demand on our forests for developmental projects continue to challenge the efforts to save the tiger," Sinha said.

India has the maximum number of tigers along with its source areas amongst the 13 tiger range countries in the world. The country is home to about more than half of the world's tigers.

"Presently, the country's 1,706 tigers are scattered across a fragmented system of 43 reserves which are under the governance of 17 different state governments. The challenge to protect these is formidable," Sinha said.

The CBI Director said the probe agency had gained valuable expertise in this domain while probing the Sariska Tiger killings case few years back.

Calling India "the land of the tiger", Sinha inaugurated the five-day conference of 'Interpol Integrated Investigative Capacity Development and Operational Planning-South Asia' which is being attended by country's neighbours like Pakistan, Bhutan and Sri Lanka, among others. More....

South Asian Nations Meeting In Delhi To Curb Illegal Wildlife Trade

6/27/2013

Source: Bernama.com.my

Enforcement and intelligence agencies from eight South Asian countries will meet in New Delhi from July 1 to 5 to form an operational strategy to curb rising illegal wildlife trade in South Asia.

The eight countries are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.

The meeting is hosted by INTERPOL's Environmental Crime Programme and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) with technical support from the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC.

The meeting aims to mobilise co-ordinated action against wildlife crime by the South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network (SAWEN), TRAFFIC said in a statement.

It will identify regional priorities in wildlife law enforcement, implement a common approach for regional operations, and bridge communication gaps between agencies at national and regional levels.

It will also focus on capacity development of tools for the support of investigative operations, intelligence-led best practices such as controlled deliveries, questioning wildlife smugglers, and professionalism in building wildlife cases.

Officials representing one or more enforcement agencies, including the police, wildlife departments, INTERPOL National Central Bureaus, environmental and Customs agencies are expected to attend the meeting along with delegates from China and Russia.

Illegal wildlife trade is the fifth largest illegal global trade after narcotics, counterfeiting, human trafficking and oil trafficking.

Delhi Meet to Focus on Curbing Wildlife Crime in South Asia

6/26/2013

Source: Economictimes.Indiatimes.com

Officials from enforcement and intelligence agencies of the eight South Asian countries besides China, Russia and Myanmar will meet here next week to develop a cross cutting operational strategy to curb the growing menace of illegal wildlife trade in the region.

The meeting is being hosted by INTERPOL's Environmental Crime Programme and the Central Bureau of Investigation, with additional technical support from the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), the National Tiger Conservation Authority ( NTCA), and TRAFFIC.

Illegal wildlife trade is perceived to be a high profit and low risk activity and has grown to become the fifth largest illegal global trade after narcotics, counterfeiting, human trafficking and oil trafficking.

Besides driving many endangered species towards extinction, illegal wildlife trade strengthens criminal networks, undermines national security, and poses increasing risks to global health.

Since illegal wildlife trade extends beyond national borders, a regional strategy and international cooperation are needed to address its growing influence. More....

Snow Leopards Caught by Mountain Yak Herder

6/17/2013

Source: Newswatch.nationalgeographic.com

By Amy Bucci

A young yak herder, Wangchuk, captured this footage of snow leopards with camera traps provided by the Bhutan Foundation and biologist Tshewang Wangchuk, also a National Geographic Waitt grantee. The yak herder, Wangchuk (who goes by only one name), is a 24-year-old young man who lives in the mountains of Bhutan, in Tsharijathang Valley near Shinjeyla Pass in Jigme Dorji National Park. (Residents in this area are primarily yak herders as the area is mostly above the tree line.) In February 2013, when one of his yaks was killed, he set up the cameras and got several hundred shots of a family of three snow leopards eating the yak.

Normally, snow leopards hunt alone, but here you see three leopards feeding together. Tshewang and Wangchuk believe this is a family unit—most likely a mother and two grown cubs who are not totally independent yet. The cats seem well fed. They spend about fifteen minutes at the kill, eating as much as they can until they are disturbed by a dog. The dog then eats the kill after the snow leopards run away, and crows scavenge the rest.

Snow leopards are notoriously elusive to photographers and conservationists alike. There have been several reports of a snow leopard with two cubs from different parts of Bhutan indicating that this endangered feline could be breeding and doing well in Bhutan. It is estimated that about one hundred snow leopards in live in Jigme Dorji National Park.

Bhutanese Yak Herder Cooperation

Tshewang’s challenge is to offset yak losses—like the yak these snow leopards killed—for herders like Wangchuk so that there are no retaliatory killings. He would like to get other herders working toward snow leopard conservation. More....

Jail Time for Thailand’s “Cell Phone” Tiger Poachers

3/7/2012

Source: WCS.org

The evidence for their crime was grim: Two poachers posed proudly over a dead tiger, shotguns in hand. The photo was found on one of the men’s cell phones last summer, damning proof that eventually led to their conviction.

Now, Thailand is hoping to send a new warning to the criminal gangs that continue to pursue the world’s last wild tigers. Thai authorities have sentenced the two poachers, who were arrested in July, to prison.

The sentence was handed down after a lengthy trial. One poacher, a Thai Hmong will serve five years in jail, while the second, a Vietnamese citizen, will serve four. These are the most severe punishments for wildlife poaching ever handed down in Thailand.

The tiger killed last summer was an animal being tracked by WCS conservationists in Thailand’s Western Forest Complex. Researchers were able to confirm its identity by examining the stripe pattern depicted in the cellphone photo—a visual thumbprint unique to each tiger. The poachers had alleged the tiger was shot in neighboring Myanmar, but the matched stripe pattern proved otherwise.

The sentences are the latest achievement of an ongoing operation known as the SMART patrol, a systematic, evidence-based adaptive management program designed to increase monitoring and enforcement in areas important to conservation.

“The jail sentences show that Thailand is serious about stopping poaching of its wildlife,” said Joe Walston, WCS Executive Director for Asia Programs. “WCS commends the dedicated park guards and enforcement personnel who made this conviction a reality.”

Thailand serves as a training ground for guards from other Asian countries seeking to protect their own resources. WCS collaborates with the Thai government in the training of enforcement staff from China, Nepal, India, Myanmar, Bhutan, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

Last December, WCS released incredible camera trap video footage of a rich gallery of wildlife from the forests of Thailand confirming that anti-poaching efforts are paying off.

WCS work in Thailand is supported by the Multinational Species Conservation Funds of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Department of State, Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation's Save the Tiger Fund, Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund, The Cattail Fund, and other private donors.