Category: Help a species

1. Do it for nature! Join the State of Nature campaign!

   Posted on 11:00am Sunday 28th Mar 2021

   Do it for nature!  Join the State of Nature campaign!

   Why?

   Nearly half of the UK’s wildlife is in a long term decline.  15% of species are at risk of extinction.

   The Wildlife Trusts have emailed about a campaign to call on the Prime Minister to strengthen the Environment Bill to ensure it includes a LEGALLY BINDING TARGET to reverse nature loss in  England by 2030.

   The campaign is called the State of Nature. 

   They are doing this in a major collaboration with organisations across the environmental sector from the Wildlife and Countryside LINK Coalition.
   
   Examples of this campaign’s supporters include the RSPB, Earthwatch, Plantlife, The Rivers Trust, Amphibian and Reptile Conservation, the Shark Trust, Whale and Dolphin Conservation, the People’s Trust for Endangered Species, the Rare Breeds Survival Trust,  Four Paws, the Mammal Society, Butterfly Conservation, Open Spaces, National Trust, WWT, Woodland Trust, ZSL, the Marine Conservation Society  and a host more.
   
   

   
   So what’s the State of Nature campaign about?

   The UK is hosting the UN Climate Change Summit in Glasgow from 1 to 12 November 2021 so this is a good chance to lead the way.  

   The Prime Minister has called on world leaders to turn around the decline of nature by 2030.   

   
   But, Boris Johnson, words are meaningless

   We need you to lead the world by example and put this commitment into law.

   It’s no good saying you’ll turn the decline of nature around if you then destroy wildlife habitat for a theme park or allow a coal mine in Cumbria to go ahead or give oil and gas drilling the go ahead in the North Sea. 

   Nearly 100,000 people have signed it already but come on, everyone, we really need to let out a big noise for wildlife and let the Government know that we care.   The wildlife can’t do it – they are relying on each and every one of us.

   Please let’s push our Government to put its good intentions into law.   Words are meaningless.  ACTION is what wildlife need now.
   
   

   Please give wildlife your support today. 
   Please sign the petition here
   Thank you!
   

   
   Take a look at LINK – its role is to bring its members together on key issue and present a clear, consistent message to the Government, opinion leaders and the general public.

    

2. Good news for spectacled bears in Peru

   Posted on 9:00pm Thursday 25th Mar 2021

   There’s good news for spectacled bears in Peru from the World Land Trust!

   Locals in the Amazonas Department have successfully expanded a reserve in one of the most biodiverse ecoregions in the world.   It’s essential for spectacled bears and critically endangered primates.
   
   

   
   Originally 8,155 acres were envisioned but the community owned area has been enlarged by 21,530 acres! 

   This was made possible by Natureleza y Cultura Peru and World Land Trust supporters such as Puro Coffee.  Well done and thank you to them!  The reserves now protects 64,700 acres in what is a key biological corridor.

   130 flora species and 29 mammal species call the area home, and there are 65 avian species as well.

   The success of this project just shows how important it is to have local communities steer conservation efforts and how vital it is to involve them at every stage.   The communities manage the land, and NCP give them training and support in such areas as reserve mapping, fire prevention and tourism.  The area is rapidly being turned into agricultural land so you can see how important this development is.

   Find out more about the Peruvian milestone to add 21,500 plus protected acres to spectacled bear country!

   Find out about the Action Fund here. #Nottoolate
   
   

3. 34,051 acres saved in Ecuador!

   Posted on 9:00pm Wednesday 24th Mar 2021

   There’s good news from Ecuador, brought to us by the World Land Trust and their partner Naturalez y Cultura Ecuador (NCE for short). 

   The Santiago Municipal Reserve was officially declared early this month.

   It’s is an important expansion of vital habitat for species, covering 34,051 acres, and it’s a link between two national parks.  Essentially it’s expanded the Sangay-Podocarpus Connectivity Corridor which spans 1.4 million acres as well as parts of the Podocarpus-El Condor Biosphere Reserve.   WLT and NCE work here, too.
   
   

   
   
   

   However the protected land doesn’t stop there.  North of the aforementioned connectivity corridor, there’s a 200 mile long area of reserves and national parks.  They like along the eastern Andes, connected by the Llanganates-Sangay Biological Corridor which is managed by Fundacion Ecominga, another WLT partner.  So the network of protected areas now covers about 4 million acres.

   The most recent acquisition of 34,051 acres was partly funded by donations to the World Land Trust’s Action Fund.   The idea behind the Action Fund is that the World Land Trust can respond rapidly to any need to purchase land.
   
   

   This purchase is an excellent example of the Action Fund at work and how important it is to be able to move fast in conservation.

   The forests and grasslands would have faced cattle ranching and timber chopping, but thanks to the efforts of supporters like you and me, they have been saved.   Scientists have already recorded 344 plant species, 152 species of birds, 57 amphibian species, 47 mammal species and 11 reptile species.  They all call the area home.

   Their home was saved just in time!

   Visit the World Land Trust's website here

4. The 21 For 21 Initiative – make an impact on 21 conservation projects with only £21!

   Posted on 3:00pm Friday 19th Feb 2021

   Explorers Against Extinction have a remarkable way to mark 2021.

   They are championing the work of 21 conservation projects around the world, many of which are small projects that have been badly hit by Covid-19 in 2020.  They are calling this initiative 21 for 21 and all the fundraising and donations this year are going towards it.

   Firstly, a bit about Explorers Against Extinction:

   It is a registered working name of The Real World Conservation Trust, a UK registered charity.   There’s another working name called Sketch for Survival. Their mission is to promote the conservation of rare and endangered species and the protection of their environments;  to advance the education of the public in the conservation issues around rare and endangered species and the threats to their environment; and to help local communities impacted by proximity to rare species benefit from their protection.

   
   

   About 21 For 21

   There are 21 projects and you can nominate a specific project from the 21 For 21 Directory to fundraise for or split your fundraising across several or all of the projects.  There are some UK projects but equally there are projects overseas – and this will help raise awareness of the work they are doing. 

   In each case, human activity is the biggest driver of destruction so this amazing initiative gives us all the chance to really and truly contribute to worldwide conservation from our homes – just £21 will support the 21 projects, unless you prefer to focus on one or a couple, for example.  So this is a very exciting chance to really make a difference while sitting at home!

   

   The 21 For 21 Projects are:

   1. Seagrass Restoration UK
   2. Saving the last West African Giraffe, Niger
   3. Kit for Conservation K9s
   4. Protecting Pangolins, South Africa
   5. Big Cat Conservation, Tanzania
   6. Protecting Ol Pejeta, Kenya
   7. Sowing Seeds to Save Gorillas, Uganda
   8. Whale Shark Conservation, Indian Ocean
   9. Turtle Watch, Sri Lanka
   10. Manta Ray Research, Indian Ocean
   11. Big Cats of Bandipur, India
   12. Elephant Sanctuary Support, Cambodia
   13. Saving the World’s Smallest Bear
   14. Trees for Koalas, Australia
   15. Saving New Zealand’s Dophins
   16. Wild Water Whales, Southern Ocean
   17. Spotlight on Alabratrosses, South Georgia
   18. Rewilding in the Pantanal, Brazil
   19. Floating Classroom, Galapagos
   20. Safeguarding the Maya Mountain Marine Corridor, Belize
   21. Wildlife Protection Programme, US and Africa
       
       

   There's more information on each project and you can access that on the 21 For 21 Directory of projects here
   

   

    

   Ways to help are:

   • To simply donate – you could donate £21, with one pound going to each project, or £2.10
   • To get involved in Challenge yourself for Charity
   • To get creative for conservation – submissions are invited until 30 June 2021; there are three categories, namely Stories for Survival, Sketch for Survival and Focus for Survival
     
     

   

   One of the things I LOVE about the 21 For 21 initiative is that if, like me, you find it really difficult to choose between all the conservation projects, you can choose to support them all in one go with £21 or whatever you choose to donate!  I always feel bad for choosing one project over another so this makes it easy for me to support the lot! 

   Go to Explorers Against Extinction here

   Just make a donation here

   All images on this particular blog are ©Explorers Against Extinction

5. Oh rats! Dealing with rats humanely

   Posted on 9:00pm Thursday 18th Feb 2021

   Have you ever stopped to think about the impact rat poison has on rats?

   Two inspiring women, one in her teens, have put a website together called Rat Poison Facts to help people understand the impact.
   
   

   

   They want to bring an end to animal mistreatment and the poisoning of the ecosystem by stopping the use of rat poison.

   So the goal of Rat Poison Facts is to raise awareness:

   • How some rodent control methods are inefficient
   • How some rodent control methods could be dangerous for children, pets and other wildlife
   • How some rodent control can harm our ecosystems
   • How cruel and inhumane some methods to get rid of rats can be
   • Humane alternatives to dealing with rats

   When a rat takes in rat poison, there are all sorts of possible implications for the rat, such as internal bleeding, dehydration and dramatically bloated stomachs from overfeeding substances containing gas).  Death can be very slow and painful.

   Rat poison can be dangerous to people as well – young children end up in hospital every year because of it.  Pets may eat it by mistake.
   
   

   

   
   The site has very helpful education resources, with useful links, including how you can get rid of rats in a humane way, with humane ways to keep your house rat-free that work.

   You can find more information  on RatPoisonFacts website.