Species of the week:Ethiopian wolf

Species of the week:
Ethiopian wolf(Canis simensis)

1. The Ethiopian wolf's range is limited to the Ethiopian Highlands.
2. It prefers open spaces with grassland or shrublands.
3. The Ethiopian wolf is build very similarly to the North American coyote.
4. It forms packs of up to 20 although more commonly packs contain 6-8 individuals.
5. They mate around August-November, producing litters of about 2-6 pups.
6. Packs usually have a territory of about 6 km2.
7. They have a very specific diet, feeding only on Afroalpine rodents.
8. Ethiopian wolves hunt or forage for prey alone. They usually pounce on their prey and will dig to collapse tunnels of mole rats.
9. The wolf's population is estimated to be about 360-440 individuals and it is considered the world's rarest canid.
10. The Ethiopian wolf is considered Endangered by the IUCN due to habitat loss, disease, prosecution and hybridization with dogs.

A wrong cause

A few weeks ago I wrote an article about why you should research the organisations you support and why it is crucial to apply critical thinking and investigating your organisation before you start supporting them. In this article I plan to expand a little bit on causes. People tend to take up causes that although seem to be well intended might end up screwing up with others plans other organisations have in place for the benefit of others. I am talking about wildlife of course and in particular animals.

Conservation has it's dark moments. Not only does it seem like it's a war that seems to be lost with so many defeats and very few victories(depending on where you stand) but working for conservation you might have to be involved with a task that few are happy about. Culling. Culling is basically the act of killing animals in order to thin out their numbers. It is often done to make sure that some animals don't overpopulate, to remove invasive species, to stop a disease from spreading, to prevent inbreeding(this is quite questionable) and to relieve other species from the pressure the culled species might be inflicting on them. For example it is common practice to cull predators in a habitat where a particular prey is considered endangered. As is natural, an animal loving public will protest to the “unjust” killing of these animals and it is true that although it is highly unlikely that an individual animal has done anything to blame, for conservationists they have to go. A recent example of this is the attempt to protect whatever Scottish wildcats(felis silvestris grampia)are left in the wild. One of the methods that this is done with is with the culling of feral cats(with which the wildcats hybridise and also the feral cats spread diseases to the wildcats). The public however was not happy to hear that game keepers will be going around trapping feral cats and killing them. Protests from certain people and specific groups occurred and now plans have changed to neuter and vaccinate the feral cats. Although unknown to me as to whether these plans were already in motion or if they changed from culling to neutering which it is to my opinion a more costly and harmful approach. Another example is the removal of grey squirrels(Sciurus carolinesis) from Scotland and ultimately from the U.K in general in order to allow red squirrels(Sciurus vulgaris) to thrive. Public outcries about the grey squirrel have died out as people realize the necessity of removing them.

If you are going to advocate for certain animals or certain animal rights then make sure you read up on all the facts. The animal may be cute, may be majestic but in the end it might be that it's harming the ecosystem a lot more. However make sure you do your research well. Groups with agendas will often misinform the public by being selective on what they quote and publish(see my previous article). It is often a good practise to contact both sides and then deciding. If you decide for example that grey squirrels shouldn't be killed because of the mistakes humans made then that's fine. Human morals vary after all. Just make sure you are not misled and used for other agendas.

Species of the week:African Wild Dog

Species of the week:
African Wild Dog(Lycaon pictus)

1. It is the second largest canid in the world, the first being the grey wolf(Canis lupus).
2. They are carnivores with their diet usually revolving around medium to large ungulates depending on the region.
3. About 80% of African Wild Dog hunts end in kills.
4. African Wild Dogs live in large packs where each member takes on different roles such as pup sitters and hunters.
5. They can mate anytime of the year but prefer mating during the second half of raining season which is around March till June.
6. They give birth from 2-19 pups but the average is around 10 pups per litter.
7. Gestation period lasts from 65-75 days.
8. Pups leave the den and ran with the pack at about 3 months old.
9. The African wild dogs have an unusual behavior in the sense that females disperse from the pack rather than males as it is often observed in social animals.
10. Habitat loss,poaching, competitions from hyenas and lions, a need for large territories and outbreak of diseases have caused the African wild dog to be regarded as "Threatened"by the IUCN

Species of the week:Eurasian Blackcap

Species of the week:
Eurasian Blackcap(Sylvia atricapilla)

1. The Blackcap is part of the warbler family. It is widespread and can be found in most of Europe. Northwest Africa and Western Asia.
2. They lay about 4-6 eggs and which hatch in about 11 days.
3. The male holds a territory which it defends from other Blackcaps.
4. It's favorite habitat its deciduous woodland and scrubland depending on the location.
5. It's diet consists of small fruits and small insects.
6. Although it's generally grey the blackcap has distinct male and female plumage and a distinct black cap on it's head.
7. Although mostly monogamous both sexes have been observed deviating from this.
8. Blackcaps have evolved to spot alien eggs in their clutch making it hard for Cuckoo birds to mimic their eggs.
9. They are partial migrants meaning that they will only relocate from the colder areas to warmer areas within their own range.
10. It is considered a delicacy in European countries in which it is trapped. Despite it's "Least Concern"status the trapping practices are a nightmare for conservation as seen here.

It's a trap

It's Autumn. A season which can be considered an important one in wildlife terms. Bird migrations occur, animals prepare or enter hibernation and for most animals this will be the season where they leave their parents' nest. Today I want to focus on a particular wildlife threatening "custom"that occurs in the Mediterranean and sadly enough is dominant in my home country Cyprus. Illegal bird trapping. In this article I will try and raise awareness of what problems this illegal trapping is causing and dispel some of the myths that people use to justify their trapping.

Blackcap or "Ambelopoullia"as they are called in Cyprus are a small bird that uses the Mediterranean as a migration route. They are considered a delicacy for the locals and a small plate of 12 birds can cost around 60-80 Euros to buy. They are trapped by the use of mist nets, which are laid across tree areas(much like nets used to catch birds for ringing) or the use of lime sticks. Lime sticks are sticks prepared with either industrial glue or an organic glue made from the gum that comes from a specific tree. The glue is laid on the sticks which are placed in between tree branches. The birds sit on the sticks are are stuck their, often suffering a slow, torturous death.

Many organizations are trying to stop the practice and the European Union has prohibited the practice from it's country members. Despite it's cruel nature of trapping the birds,it is not bird welfare that is the first thing that is troubling about this particular practise. Conservationists are against this method because it's non selective. The birds that are caught in the nets or on the limesticks are either killed by the poacher or die from stress. Due to the Mediterranean being a major migration route for a lot of different birds it means that all sorts of bird species are in danger of being caught in this poaching activity. Pictures from conservation and activist organizations show endangered birds meeting an unjustified death. This is one of the problems that people tend to neglect. Locals refuse to understand what non selective trapping can do. It is impossible to estimate the damage done to the endangered bird species or in fact all the bird species and because of its illegal nature it means that either all sorts of birds are sold as blackcaps(reports of robins and other small birds processed and eaten is all too common) or the corpses discarded, buried or feed to other animals. So data is hard to come by but BirdLifeCyprus estimates that about 2.5 million birds are killed every year in two trapping seasons. About 152 species are caught, 78 of those are considered endangered. And these numbers are concerning Cyprus. The practise occurs in Malta, Italy and Spain as well as other regions of the Mediterranean. So imagine the numbers adding up.

Another sad misconception is that the practise is legal. It is not. Although through lax laws and law enforcement in the past the practise was all but illegal, EU Directive2009/147/EC has prohibited such practise. It is a black market industry that has been estimated to an overall turn around profit of 15 million euros a year. Many of the big time poachers are either part of the organized crime or working for it. Thus the money are often used to fund organized crime activity. Small time poachers are usually the ones that make mistakes that allow to their capture while big time poachers often evade the law. Not only that but the fine is often around 600-800 euros which is nothing compared to the thousands of euros that can be made by trapping in one season. So although the fine might discourage some it will unlikely made a dent in those seasoned enough to comprehend the fact that the fine is nothing but a minor setback at best. A little known fact is the loss of approximately 40 million euros each year in the tourist industry. Countries such as Cyprus which are a major migratory route for birds, are often visited by keen bird watchers. These bird watchers are usually repulsed by the trapping and hence choose not to visit and in fact will also very likely spread the word, harming the country's tourist industry. Not only but even regular tourists are disgusted by the idea and hence either leave the country and never visit or refrain from visiting at certain times.

Overall non selective bird trapping can be combated. With local knowledge as well as an active anti-poaching task-force from the government the poachers may be arrested. However it is up to locals to stop supporting restaurants that serve blackcaps, report any activities and shun the so called “tradition”of eating blackcaps and in the end stop supporting the industry all together. Only then, when the trappers realise that no profit can be made will the illegal trapping actually stop and the bird migrations will occur undisturbed. 

Species of the week:Common Raven

Species of the week:
Common Raven(Corvus corax)

1. The common Raven is found all across the northern Hemisphere and it's considered the most widespread corvid species.
2. It has an omnivorous diet, mostly scavenging depending on the region.
3. They have a wingspan of about 100-150 cm and weight from 0.69 to 2kg.
4. Ravens tend to nest for life with the same partner on the same region.
5. Breeding pairs obtain their own territory first and then begin nest building. They will defend their territory fiercely.
6. Eggs are laid in late February and chick fledge about 10-15 days after the eggs are laid.  
7. The chicks will stay with their parents for about 6 months before moving on.
8. Ravens have about 15-30 different vocalizations recorded.
9. Ravens seem to posses an ability for problem solving,insight and imitation. They appear to have identified wolf howls and often follow wolves to kills in order to scavenge.
10. Ravens are one of the few animals to make their own toys as it has been observed that they break twigs to make their own toys.

Species of the week: Bald Eagle

Species of the week:
Bald Eagle(Haliaeetus leucocephalus)

1. The Bald Eagle is a species of sea eagle only found in North America
2. A Bald eagle is a carnivore whose main diet is fish. However it is an opportunist and will eat small mammals or carcasses.
3. It weighs anything from 3 to 7 kilograms and has an average wingspan of around 2 meters.
4. Female Bald Eagles are larger than male Bald Eagles by about 25% .
5. The Bald Eagle can be found is any sort of wetland habitat across North America. 
6. Bald Eagles live until around the age of 20 years old and are sexually mature around the age of 4-5 years old.
7. They start building nests in mid February and the eggs are laid late February. Incubation starts until mid April to early May where the young hatch.
8. One to three eggs are usually seen in a Bald Eagle's nest although the common number is two eggs. In half the nests observed, two fledglings are observed.
9. The white plumage that is characteristic of the Bald Eagle does not appear until the fourth year in the eagle's lifespan.
10. The Bald Eagle is listed as "Least Concern"by the IUCN.