Today is World Wildlife Day – a day created by the United Nations to celebrate the beautiful and varied wild creatures valued by people worldwide. But this day also reminds us of the global threat the illegal wildlife trade poses to these animals.
Source: www.defendersblog.org
GR: Birds, butterflies, lizards, turtles, and more: They’re all victims of capture for body parts or for exhibition. Lizards and turtles, for instance, are easily captured and rarely survive the experience.
Target: Juliana Machada Ferreira, Wildlife Conservationist
Goal: Thank Ms. Machada Ferreira for working to stop the illegal poaching and trafficking of wild animals.
In Brazil, wildlife trafficking is a two-million-dollar industry. Every year one hundred and eighty million animals are taken from the ecosystems of Brazil to satisfy the demand for exotic pets both in Brazil and around the world. Most of the animals that are poached are birds like wild songbirds, macaws, and parrots. Yet, conservationists face a serious challenge in that keeping an exotic bird as a pet in Brazil and many places in the world is a deeply rooted cultural norm. Thankfully, conservationist Juliana Machada Ferreira is working to educate consumers on the ecological impact of their choices and bring wildlife trafficking to an end Source: animalpetitions.org
GR: People must come to understand that many of the animals for sale in pet stores and on display in circuses and zoos were stolen from their native homes. Some of the most beautiful and most trusting species have been devastated for human entertainment. Please help.
GR: Will the Puerto Rican parrot survive? It is the only remaining native parrot in Puerto Rico. Parrots of the region began disappearing in the 1700’s due to logging, farming, and pet collecting. The species’ prospects have improved, but the World Conservation Union still lists it as critically endangered. In 2012, there were only 58–80 individuals in the wild and 300 individuals in captivity. Considering the numbers that persist, I wondered if conservation efforts over the past 40 years have done enough.
This blog post from Brain Pickings describes the species’ step back from the brink of extinction.
“Most children’s books are full of animals — as protagonists, as pets, as age-old standbys in fairy tales and alphabet primers alike. But, as Jon Mooallem poignantly observed in his bittersweet love letter to wildlife, by the time each generation of children grows up, countless species of animals that roamed Earth during their childhood have gone extinct — today, scientists estimate that one species ceases to exist every twenty minutes. Perhaps whatever chance we have of reversing this tragedy lies in translating our children’s inherent love of animal characters into a tangible grown-up love of animal species, the kind of love that protects them from growing extinct, preserves their natural habitat, and honors the complex dynamics of ecosystems.”
Source: www.brainpickings.org
In 2010, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) proposed listing nine large constrictor snakes as injurious under the Lacey Act, which would significantly reduce the trade of these species as pets. However, in January 2012, only four of the nine species were listed. USFWS is still considering the remaining five species of snakes for listing and is soliciting public comments on the matter.
Large constrictor snakes have become established in parts of Florida and are consuming native wildlife, including endangered and threatened species. Scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey concluded that all nine species of these large constrictor snakes present a “high” or “medium” risk of becoming invasive.
Source: secure.humanesociety.org
GR: Express yourself. Sign the Humane Society’s petition.
GarryRogers Nature Conservation 