Earlier this month, officials took down a fence allowing the first herd of European bison (Bison bonasus) to enter the forests freely in Germany in over 300 years, reports Wildlife Extra. The small herd, consisting of just eight animals (one male, five females and two calves) will now be allowed to roam unhindered in the Rothaar Mountains as their ancestors did long ago.
Read more at http://news.mongabay.com/2013/0418-hance-wisent-germany.html
Jon
Amur leopard population rises to 50 animals, but at risk from tigers, poachers
Read more at http://news.mongabay.com/2013/0409-hance-amur-leopard-fifty.html#IXcs917HGz6ei1XA.99
Jon
An awesome new report… Xinjiang, 2013: Coke Smith, a week or so & 9 species and a couple of subspecies. An extraordiary trip through some seriously remote country and incredible scenery. No camels, but species included Prezwalski’s Horse, Great gerbil, Siberian Ibex and Goitred Gazelle.
I want to go!
Jon
A new report:
Spain, 2013: Mike Richardson, 3 days & 7 species including Wolf and Iberian Hare.
Jon
And another two reports from Ian Loyd,
Kenya, 2011: Ian Loyd, 1 week & 34 species including Leopard, Cheetah and Yellow-winged Bats.
Spain, 2012: Ian Loyd, 2 weeks & 15 species including Iberian Lynx, Eurasian Otter and Iberian Hare.
Jon
Stefanie Lahaye sent me several reports for Spain, Germany, Poland and Romania that are now on the site and available in the usual place.
Spain, 2012: Stefanie Lahaye, 2 weeks & 26 species including Iberian Lynx, Common Genet and Egyptian Mongoose.
Romania 2009: Stefanie Lahaye, 10 days & 9 species including Chamois and Brown Bear.
Poland, 2011: Stefanie Lahaye, 1 week & 14 species including both Martens and Souslik.
Black Forest, 2012 & 2011: Stefanie Lahaye, and notes of 2 trips with 6 species including Wild Boar.
Her reports are also on her blog http://mammaling.wordpress.com/trip-reports/
Jon
I know some of you have been there recently, or are planning a trip, or are dreaming about one. Here are two good ones to prepare.
Tibet Wild by George Schaller. The accomplished field biologist has studied many of the world’s great animals, and he’s spent the past three decades working on wildlife issues in Tibet and Central Asia. He mapped the migration route of the chiru and along the way found a host of wildlife troubles. This book is all about mammals. Great stuff.
Thomas McIntyre’s The Snow Leopard’s Tale is a novel, but really evokes the place, the culture and the wildlife of the region.
I highly recommend both.
You can check out my more detailed review on The Nature Conservancy’s blog.
Matt Miller
I’ve just added two interesting reports to mammalwatching.com
Nicaragua 2013: Fiona Reid Batwatch Tour, 8 days & 48 species on a great tour that included some stuff rarely recorded on trips, including some cool bats and rodents and, best of all in my opinion, a Water Opposum. Has anyone else seen one of these … if I remember right a Water Opposum is one of the first mammals to appear in the BBC’s “Life of Mammals” and I have been fascinated every since.
Sichuan, 2013: Coke Smith, 3 days & 10 species including Golden Snub-nosed Monkey, Takin, Goral and Tufted Deer.
Jon
Why did it eat it in the first place though?
http://now.msn.com/beached-sperm-whale-dies-after-swallowing-plastic#scpshrtu
Jon
I spent the weekend before last in Nicaragua, mainly to try to catch some bats. And a short report is here.
And a report Bieszczady, 2013 from Tomas Willems and his account of 10 days in Poland with Bison and Wolf, plus Lynx tracks.
Jon
