Lessons in the "Wildlife" Category

First mass extinction of wildlife expected since dinosaurs

The world is on the verge of the first ‘mass extinction’ since the age of dinosaurs. Species under threat include: elephants, tigers, gorillas and giant pandas.

The reasons for the decline include: poaching, habitat destruction, and egg stealing. The shocking findings, have been published by the WWF and the Zoological Society of London.

By the end of the decade (2020), seven out of ten of the world’s mammals, fish, amphibians, birds and reptiles will have been wiped out according to the biggest ever report on the subject. The study assessed 14,152 populations of vertebrates. Numbers fell by 58%, between 1970 and 2012.

Cecil the Lion Killed by American Poacher

Recently, we heard the sad news that Cecil the lion had been killed by an American poacher in Zimbabwe. Dr Walter Palmer, a dentist and a father of two from Bloomington, Minnesota, USA, is now begging forgiveness. He said he didn’t know he was breaking Zimbabwe law by killing the defenceless African lion, or for that matter that Cecil had been coaxed away from the game reserve he lived on.