insert_link Environment A lonely and ancient plant needs a female partner and researchers are using drones and AI to find it – podcast By Gemma Ware, The Conversation The only known specimens of Encephalartos woodii (E. woodii), a species of cycad, are all clones of the same male plant found over 100 years ago in a South African forest. Now a team of researchers is on a mission to find an elusive female version of the plant, with the help of drones and artificial intelligence. In this episode of The […] todaySeptember 19, 2024 12
insert_link Africa Mysterious African manatees inspire a growing chorus of champions By Petro Kotzé, via Mongabay As a young student, Aristide Kamla had “big plans” when he traveled to Lake Ossa in Cameroon to conduct his master’s degree fieldwork with the little-known African manatee. He was hoping for a manatee count and a management plan to come out of the expedition on the roughly 4,000-hectare (10,000-acre) lake. But securing grants was difficult for this budding researcher, so his first funder […] todaySeptember 10, 2024 29
insert_link Africa ‘Extinct’ trees found in Tanzania sparks hope for ecosystem recovery Conservationists in eastern Tanzania have found two specimens of a rare tree feared to be extinct. Millettia sacleuxii was only known from six specimens in forest reserves that have almost disappeared. Thousands of seeds have been collected and seedlings raised, and these are due to be planted out as part of a reforestation project in the Nguru Mountains. The two surviving Millettia “mother trees” were found near an area that […] todayJuly 17, 2024 40
insert_link Environment Lions in a Uganda park make a perilous journey across a 1.5km stretch of water: study suggests the drive is to find mates By Alexander Richard Braczkowski, Griffith University; Christopher J. O'Bryan, Maastricht University; Duan Biggs, Northern Arizona University, and Robynne Kotze, University of Oxford Domestic cats will do almost anything to avoid contact with water. Not so for their wild cousins, though. Lions, tigers and jaguars have had to adapt to water and sometimes take the plunge for survival. And this is what we observed on […] todayJuly 12, 2024 38
insert_link Environment Elon Musk could avert global species extinction with only a portion of his wealth A new study has pinpointed the most crucial areas around the world for protecting Earth’s rarest and most endangered species, the vast majority of which are found in tropical and subtropical moist forests. Just five countries — the Philippines, Brazil, Indonesia, Madagascar and Colombia — contain 59% of all identified sites globally. Only 7% of land protected over the past five years overlapped with these critical […] todayJune 26, 2024 27
insert_link Local Capricorn foundation commits to rhino conservation efforts with purchase of rhino guardianship certificate The Capricorn Foundation has affirmed its dedication to environmental conservation by becoming one of the first organisations to invest in the innovative Rhino Guardianship Certificate program. By purchasing a certificate from the Save the Rhino Trust Namibia (SRT), the Foundation has demonstrated its commitment to preserving critically endangered rhinoceros populations. The Rhino Guardianship Certificate is a recent effort by Save the Rhino Trust Namibia, in partnership with Wadappt, […] todayMay 2, 2024 22
insert_link Africa Blue whales: first discovery near Seychelles in decades – what our study found By Jeremy Kiszka, Florida International University Blue whales are fascinating animals. At 24-30 metres in length (longer than a basketball court) they are the largest creatures on Earth. They are also among the rarest. Estimates suggest that there are only around 5,000 to 15,000 blue whales left in the world. Their populations experienced a 89-97% decline due to commercial whaling activities worldwide that started in the North […] todayApril 22, 2024 19
insert_link Business / Economics South Africa is to shut down captive lion farms. Experts warn the plan needs a deadline By Neil D’Cruze, University of Oxford; Angie Elwin, Manchester Metropolitan University, and Jennah Green, Manchester Metropolitan University The South African government has officially confirmed that captive lion farms will be shut down. A new ministerial task team report just released has cemented the government’s intention, first made public in 2021, to put an end to African lions being legally sold and traded live, both internationally and domestically. […] todayApril 8, 2024 16
insert_link Environment Impunity for Cambodia’s exotic pet owners as trade outpaces legislation By Gerald Flynn On the outskirts of the western Cambodian city of Pursat, some 180 kilometers, or 110 miles, north of Phnom Penh, tourists and travelers stream out of minivans parked in the forecourt of a PTT gas station. The Cambodian subsidiary of Thailand’s state-owned oil and gas conglomerate, PTT stands out as one of the country’s more modern gas station chains, sporting retail outlets popular in […] todayMarch 12, 2024 40