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19th October 2011 - Report 2.

www.planetreport.net

Baby Snatchers
There has been an increase in poachers stealing baby Gorillas in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They can be sold for about $40,000. So far this year four baby gorillas have been rescued after rangers mounted undercover sting operations, and this is believed to be just a small number from the actual total being taken. There is less than 800 Mountain Gorillas left in the wild. Emmanuel de Merode, director of Virunga national park, believes surveillance at the borders is key along with having the local population on their side.

Elephant Emergency
A veterinary team in Sri Lanka went to assist a female elephant on the 11th October. She was reported lying inside the Udawalawe National Park close to Handagiriya - a village which borders the park on its western end. The border area between the village and the park records a high level of crop raiding and human-elephant conflict incidents. Sadly, the elephant was very ill and after many hours of medical attention she died. The vets took samples from the elephant concerned that it might have been poisoned by farmers and are awaiting the results. The milk from the elephants mammary glands indicated that a baby elephant calf was with the elephant and had possibly wandered off with a herd of buffalo, park staff are trying to locate the calf.

Wolf Hunt
Campaigners in the USA are appealing to the courts to put a ban on wolf hunting after 76 have been killed in Montana and Idaho since wolves were delisted from the Endangered Species Act. During the time they were protected numbers grew substantially, and began to affect livestock in the area. There is now about 1,400 wolves, but there is a concern that to many hunters will be hunting them during the rifle season, when snow is on the ground making it easier for them to be spotted.

Toxic Arctic
Scientific researchers in Denmark have discovered that industrial pollutants are moving north to the Arctic in sea and air currents. They analysed results of more than 200 organ, skull tissue and bone samples from about 100 east Greenlandic polar bears as well as repeated measurements and observations of bears living in the Svalbard archipelago, Norway, to understand the impact of these toxins on the Arctic food chain. Toxins and industrial chemicals were found in the samples, which could possibly do damage to their immune and reproductive systems.

Koala on the Mend
A Koala Bear is recovering after being shot seven times with an air rifle. The bear was discovered north of Brisbane in Queensland with pellets in every limb and in its skull. It was operated on at the Australia Zoo Wildlife hospital and once it recovers will be released back into the wild.