Beasts of the Wild
Lions and tigers and bears - oh my! Exploring majestic beasts in their natural habitats.
The Tiger's Enduring Cultural Appeal
Sleek, powerful, and mysterious, the tiger has been feared and revered by civilizations since before antiquity. The largest and most recognized of the big cats, this beautiful and critically-endangered creature remains an iconic symbol of strength and courage.
Inquiring MindsPublished 6 days ago in Petlife
Rhinoceros
Start writing...Poaching for rhino horn.Rhino horn is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, but increasingly common is its use as a status symbol to display success and wealth. Poaching is now a threat in all rhino range states, however, as South Africa is home to the majority of rhinos in the world, it is being heavily targeted. More than ever, field programmes are having to invest heavily in anti-poaching activities.Poachers are now being supplied by international criminal gangs with sophisticated equipment to track and kill rhinos. Frequently a tranquiliser gun is used to bring the rhino down, before its horn is hacked off, leaving the rhino to wake up and bleed to death very painfully and slowly. Poachers are often armed with guns themselves, making them very dangerous for the anti-poaching teams who put their lives on the line to protect rhinos.The scarcity of rhinos today and the corresponding intermittent availability of rhino horn only drives the price of horn higher and higher, intensifying pressure on declining rhino populations. For people whose annual income is often far below the subsistence level, the opportunity to change one’s life by killing an animal that they don’t value is overwhelming.What is rhino horn?.Rhino horns are similar in structure to horses’ hooves, turtle beaks, and cockatoo bills. They are made of keratin – in rhinoceros horn, it is chemically complex and contains large quantities of sulphur-containing amino acids, particularly cysteine, as well as tyrosine, histidine, lysine, and arginine, and the salts calcium carbonate and calcium phosphate.Traditional Chinese Medicine.According to traditional Chinese texts, such as Li Shih-chen’s 1597 medical text “Pen Ts’ ao Kang Mu”, rhino horn has been used in Chinese medicine for more than 2,000 years and is used to treat fever, rheumatism, gout, and other disorders. It also states that the horn could also cure snakebites, hallucinations, typhoid, headaches, carbuncles, vomiting, food poisoning, and “devil possession.” While it is commonly believed to be prescribed as an aphrodisiac, this is not the case.When used, the horn is shaved or ground into a powder, before being dissolved in boiling water and consumed.As Richard Ellis, author of “Tiger bone and rhino horn” wrote in 2005 for the EAZA Rhino Campaign’s Info Pack: “It is not clear that rhino horn serves any medicinal purpose whatsoever, but it is a testimony to the power of tradition that millions of people believe that it does. Of course, if people want to believe in prayer, acupuncture or voodoo as a cure for what ails them, there is no reason why they shouldn’t, but if animals are being killed to provide nostrums that have been shown to be useless, then there is a very good reason to curtail the use of rhino horn. There are five species of rhinoceros and, with the exception of one subspecies of African White rhino, all are in danger of being hunted to extinction for their horns. Rhinos, as we know them, have been around for millions of years, but Dr H. Spaiens has created a predicament from which they might never recover. It is heartbreaking to realise that the world’s rhinos are being eliminated from the face of the earth in the name of medications that probably don’t work.”Aphrodisiac.There is a belief in Western countries that rhino horn is used as an aphrodisiac and sexual stimulant, but this is not correct and seems to have been misunderstood or misinterpreted by Western media. However, research has shown that people in Viet Nam are starting to believe this rumour as they are consuming it for new reasons.Even without aphrodisiacal properties, however, rhino horn is one of the mainstays of Traditional Chinese Medicines, and its collection has been responsible for the death of tens of thousands of rhinos around the world.Make no mistake: those people using rhino horn to cure medical ailments really believe it works. That’s what drives up the demand on which the poachers thrive. As Ann and Steve Toon commented in 2002, “For practitioners of traditional Asian medicine, rhino horn is not perceived as a frivolous love potion, but as an irreplaceable pharmaceutical necessity.”Viet Nam – new uses for rhino horn.There has been a recent surge in demand for rhino horn in Viet Nam. A survey, carried out by TRAFFIC in 2013, identified that the motivation for consumers buying rhino horn is the emotional benefit rather than medicinal, as it reaffirms their social status among their peers. Image and status are important to these consumers, as they tend to be highly educated and successful people who have a powerful social network and no affinity to wildlife. Rhino horns are sometimes bought for the sole purpose of being gifted to others; to family members, business colleagues or people in positions of authority.Trade.The international trade in rhino horn has been banned under CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora) since 1977. In South Africa it is possible to trade rhino horn domestically (within the country), after a legal battle to overturn the ban took place in 2017.
Zarinabanu ZarinabanuPublished 9 days ago in Petlife
An Owl Rescue Story
I live in a smallish town. A river runs through it. Early in the century the river was formidable with enough volume and flow as to transport fallen timbers to the mills. Now, it’s receded quite a bit. Even in the high flow of spring run-off it can more or less be waded across, though I wouldn’t recommend it and in the summer you can swim or float down and you’ll be bumping your bum along its bottom. It is a pretty piece of water.
Arpad NagyPublished 11 days ago in Petlife
Top 10 Wild Animals of India
Indian wild forest and national parks are home to many species of wild animals,birds and reptiles. More than 25% land of Indian states are covered with dense forest and provide shelter to the wildlife.
Mintoo Kumar YadavPublished 16 days ago in Petlife
Top Most Beautiful Birds In The World
Atlantic Puffin Atlantic puffin is a small, well-adapted seabird that found across the coast of Northern United States and Eastern Canada. Atlantic puffins are also known as ‘sea parrot’ due to their huge, multi-colored bill and penguin-like coloration. Atlantic puffins spend most of their lives on sea. Their water-resistant feathers keep their body warm while swimming. They flap their wings to swim on the surface and underwater. Atlantic puffins have excellent diving capability. They can reach up to 60 m on diving. They typically hunt sand eels, capelins and hakes. Atlantic puffins are also excellent fliers. They can reach a speed of 55 miles an hour by flapping wings up to 400 times per minute. They breed in each summer and spring on the islands of North Atlantic Ocean. They build nest using feathers and grasses in the burrows on the cliffs. The female lays only one egg and it takes 45 days to hatch it. After hatching, adult puffins leaves the nest for finding food for the chicks. They bring back small fishes for their chicks. Atlantic puffins can load between 10-30 fishes in their huge beaks.
Mintoo Kumar YadavPublished 17 days ago in Petlife
Top 1-5 Most Beautiful Birds In The World
1. Golden Pheasant Golden pheasants are famous for their brilliant colored plumage. They have a beautiful golden-yellow crest tipped with red. Their underpart is bright red and face. Sides and throat are rusty tan. The wattle of golden pheasant is yellow and its upper back is green. They also have dark, red shoulder feathers and a long pale brown tail. The male golden pheasants are more colorful than males. They have distinctive scarlet breast and flanks. Their central tail feathers also have striking black spots. Unlike male pheasants, females have a duller mottled brown plumage. Golden pheasants live in the dense forests and woodlands across Western and Central China. Male golden pheasants are longer than females. An adult male normally has a length up to 42 inches. Interestingly, the tail account for two-third of its total body length. Golden pheasants are poor fliers and spend most of their time on the ground. They mainly feed on berries, seeds and insects.
Mintoo Kumar YadavPublished 17 days ago in Petlife
Top 10 Most Expensive Fish In The World
10. Candy Basslet – $1,000 Least expensive in the list but still quite expensive for how small the fish is, we have the Candy Basslet. A curious combination of red with blue stripes adorns this fish’s body. At the price range of $1,000 you can have one of these in your aquarium swimming eerily.
SHAHID MANSOORIPublished 17 days ago in PetlifeORCA: A Racist Animal Rights Fraud
ORCA (Oceanic Rescue Center and Awareness), is an animal rights extremist group that claims to “create empathy, concern, and greater participation” of cetaceans and other marine wildlife issues through animal rights literature and signing of petitions and letters as forms of action. They also claim to have a rehabilitation center that is aimed at rehabilitating cetaceans. However, when I looked at their website in hopes to locate the supposed facility, I found what was actually at its given address. ORCA’s address was actually the address to two small businesses that are in San Francisco, California. One was a health consultant center, and the other was a software company. There was no sign of a wildlife rehabilitation facility being at that address.
Jenna DeedyPublished 23 days ago in PetlifeThe Heffalump
Donald was a kind old soul, hellbent on enjoying his well-earned retirement from the jewellery trade. He'd been spending a lot of his time of late getting back in touch with his artistic side & taking afternoon tea with his friends in the many & varied teahouses of the English countryside. He loved driving around in his well-cared for vintage cars & afternoon tea was his excuse for getting out of the house.
This PENGUIN used to walk to the MARKET every day... His story spread around the WORLD...
Hi guys, how do you feel about pets and which ones do you personally prefer let me guess most of you either say cats or dogs what if i tell you that one family had a penguin for a pet moreover a king penguin.
Vinoth RajeshwarPublished 27 days ago in Petlife
How Locals Negotiate the Dangerous Australian Wildlife
It can’t be denied that some of the world’s most deadly creatures can be found in Australia. Sharks lurk in the ocean. Snakes are numerous and bountiful. Spiders are big and scary or small and deadly. Saltwater crocodiles and box jellyfish rule some parts of the land. Even the kangaroos can pack a deadly kick if aggravated.
S Z PiranerPublished 2 months ago in Petlife
Pangolins
Introduction Pangolins are the only mammals to have scales. The scales of pangolins are very strong; when they are threatened pangolins curl into a ball to protect themselves and can withstand an attack from a lion or tiger. There are 8 species of pangolins, 4 in Africa and 4 in Asia. There are pangolins in rainforests, woodlands, swamps and savannas. Pangolins are sometimes referred to as “scaly anteaters” or “walking pinecones.” All species of pangolins are endangered.
Buck HardcastlePublished 4 months ago in Petlife
