Quick Notes Raids conducted in different parts of the state in June reveal 6 cases of large wildlife seizures in just a month Wildlife trades include rare and protected species like the pied hornbill, slow loris, great Indian hornbill, bear, tiger, tokay gecko etc. Bengal is used as a hub and a transit point by […]
Direct Count Survey Reveals Elephant Count of Bengal to be 682
The State Forest Department of West Bengal undertook a direct count survey of the pachyderm population in the state. The tally stands at 682. The census covers both north and south Bengal. In the previous survey, 590 elephants were spotted in North Bengal only. The new survey by direct counting method showed that there were […]
Shark Awareness Day – Interesting Facts About Sharks
Today, July 14th is Shark Awareness Day and we are celebrating with some interesting facts about sharks. 1 Sharks Need to Swim to Stay Alive Some sharks need to swim continuously to stay alive. Sharks obtain oxygen for breathing from the water that flows over their gills. If they stop swimming, no more water flow […]
A Year Back Into Nature
“The extinction of wildlife would likely be caused not just by the greed of poachers, but equally by the rapacity of developers,” writes Prerna Singh Bindra in her book The Vanishing: India’s Wildlife Crisis. The year 2017 has given ample proof of both – the remorseless operations of the merchants of wildlife who will sell […]
Poacher Guilty of Killing 125 Tigers and 1025 Leopards Convicted
Five poachers were sentenced for four years by a Madhya Pradesh court for poaching tigers, leopards, pangolins and jackals. One of the convicted men is Mohammed Shamim, a close aide of the late infamous poacher Sansarchand who was responsible for wiping out all tigers from Sariska. This is one of the fastest convictions of poaching […]
Over 1000 Turtles and Tortoises Rescued in Bangalore from Smugglers
A group of smugglers trying to make away with 1012 exotic turtles and tortoises, valued at about Rs 4 crore in the international market were caught right on time by Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials last week in Bangalore. They were trying to make their way across the state border over to Chennai and […]
Asiatic Lion Pride Spotted on Coastal Highway
Travelers on the coastal highway between Bhavnagar and Una in Amreli district in Gujarat were in for a surprise when they sighted a pride of seven wild Asiatic lions casually walking by. The pride was earlier seen by some locals resting on a hillock near Balani Vav village close to the coastal town of Rajula. […]
Great Indian Bustard Numbers Rising in Rajasthan
Quick Notes The number of Great Indian Bustards in Rajasthan has gone up from 11 to 31. The bird is one of the rarest in the world and is marked Critically Endangered by IUCN. It is currently found in only 6 Indian states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. The number […]
New Aquatic Species of Snake Discovered in the Western Ghats
Quick Notes A new species of aquatic snake has been discovered in the Western Ghats. It is endemic to India. The snake prefers to live in fresh water streams. Juveniles and adults have different coloration. The snake was earlier mistaken to be Olive forest snake but was correctly identified after DNA testing to be a […]
Rhino Killed In Assam’s Orang National Park, Once Again
Poacher menace once again reared its ugly head in Rajiv Gandhi Orang National Park, Assam; where a rhinoceros was killed and its horn was taken away by poachers. According to officials, the rhino carcass was found without its horn near Gaspara forest camp, about 6 kms from the main office, inside the National Park in […]
An App To Identify Rare Animals By Tracking Their Footprints
A new method of tracking endangered species using drones and smartphones has been developed by researchers. The new footprint identification app called ConservationFit has been created to help scientists locate animals by reading the digital images of the footprints from cameras, drones and smartphones taken by common people. […]