Very nice blog from our own Matt Miller at The Nature Conservancy on mammal watching around Cairns and Cooktown in Australia.
Jon
See more at:
http://blog.nature.org/science/2013/06/18/traveling-naturalist-5-marvelous-marsupials-to-spot-in-queensland/
Michel Watelet from Belgium just wrote to say he’s back from a great trip in Sichuan with 3 friends (trip report to follow) and he saw a Chinese Mountain Cat.
“I found the cat on 04 June 2013 in North Sichuan ( Coordonnées : N33 35.211 E103 08.793 ). The altitude was 3500 m. It was late afternoon around 20 h. Desciption : Pelage was “Sand grey” rather uniform, with some stripes on head and legs. It was stout with a big rounded head, the nose was flat with a withe zone below. Ears was clearly tufts. The tail was big with 3 or 4 black ring a the end, the tip was black.”
Look forward to the trip report.
Jon
After reading about two recent successful trips to see Javan Rhino in Ujung Kulon, I’m thinking about heading there this August. Has anyone gone there? If so, what tour company did you use to arrange access, permits, etc?
Would anyone be interested in joining me?
I’ve gotten a quote from a local tour company (Ujung Kulon Ecotourism) for a week of camping in the forest, but I’m not sure about their credibility. They said that there were no problems with access, but Coke and Som Smith’s trip report indicates otherwise. They also claimed to have a 75% success rate, which I find hard to believe.
Here are the two reports:
http://www.savetherhino.org/latest_news/blog/657_how_to_spot_the_javan_rhino
http://www.cokesmithphototravel.com/expedition-to-java-barat.html
Ben
Some positive news for the Vaquita
The government of Mexico has taken a decisive step to save the vaquita – a porpoise threatened by extinction – and to promote sustainable fisheries in the upper Gulf of California for the benefit of fishers and their families, says WWF-Mexico.
http://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?uNewsID=208988#
Jon
A few interesting articles I’ve seen recently
Jon
Cheetahs may be the world’s fastest sprinters, but it is their blinding acceleration—faster than a Lamborghini’s—and their phenomenal athleticism, rather than their famous top speed of over 60 miles per hour (96.5 kilometers per hour), that is the true key to their hunting success
http://focusingonwildlife.com/news/a-cheetah-can-get-you-without-hitting-top-speed/
Tibetan monks could be the key to safeguarding the snow leopard (Panthera uncia) from extinction, according to an innovative program by big cat NGO Panthera which is partnering with Buddhist monasteries deep in leopard territory. Listed as Endangered by the IUCN Red List, snow leopard populations have dropped by a fifth in the last 16 years or so.
http://focusingonwildlife.com/news/tibetan-monks-partner-with-conservationists-to-protect-the-snow-leopard/
Australia’s leading scientific expert on the endangered Leadbeater’s possum has publicly lambasted the Victorian state government, claiming it is the first ever domestic administration to take “calculated actions” that it knew could wipe out a threatened species.
http://focusingonwildlife.com/news/scientist-australia-taking-calculated-actions-to-push-leadbeaters-possum-to-extinction/
Well oldish anyway … Murray Lord let me know that the really excellent 2008 guide to the Mammals of China (Princeton) by Smith and Xie has just been released as a pocket field guide (my version is pretty chunky). This is the only guide to all the mammals of China. The illustrations and accounts seem excellent with enough information to identify just about any species encountered though it would be good to hear what Coke Smith and other China experts think.
Jon
Atlantic Rainforest, 2013: Steve Morgan’s detailed notes of a 2 month mammal survey in the REGUA reserve. He recorded 29 species including Orange-Spined Hairy Dwarf Porcupine, Tayra and Puma.
Jon
