16 Feb 2007 - Two members of WWF’s Nilgiris-Eastern Ghats
AREAS team in southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu were slightly
injured by a leopard they were rescuing from an illegal
snare in a tea estate near Ooty in the Indian state of Tamil
Nadu. The leopard had been ensnared in a wire noose for
hours before being rescued and released into a protected
area.
“The leopard was a young female that was probably stalking
prey in the tea estate when she stepped into the snare,”
said Nilgiris landscape coordinator N Mohanraj, who was
bitten and scratched by the wild cat during the rescue effort.
WWF field staffer N. Krishnakumar was also slightly injured
when trying to net the leopard.
“Fortunately, the estate staff called us rather than killing
the leopard, allowing the forest department and local veterinarians
to save the cat,” Mohanraj added.
The WWF team had rushed to the tea estate after workers
found the leopard caught with a wire cable wrapped around
her hips. The leopard may have been there for as long as
24 hours. The wire cable was secured to a large root and
laid across a path, left illegally by workers to capture
wild boar for bushmeat.
WWF staff helped local forest officers keep crowds away
from the leopard and removed the snare after the cat was
sedated. The leopard surprisingly suffered almost no injuries
from the snare. It was then transported to a protected area
some distance away.
END NOTES:
• The Nilgiris-Eastern Ghats Landscape, covering an area
of 12,000km2, is a priority area for WWF’s Asian Rhino and
Elephant Action Strategy work. Bounded by the Nilgiris Mountains
and the Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats ranges, the landscape
contains some of the most species-rich forests in the world,
home to the largest elephant population in Asia (about 9,000)
as well as tigers and leopards.
+ More
Marine turtle nestings on the rise in South Africa
19 Feb 2007 - KwaZulu Natal, South Africa – Loggerhead
nestings have reached record levels in South Africa, a positive
sign for the endangered marine turtle.
According to monitoring conducted by WWF-South Africa over
the 2005–06 season, there were over 2,000 loggerhead nestings
found along a 56km stretch of the northern KwaZulu Natal
coastline.
“This is the highest number recorded in 43 years,” said
Richard Penn Sawers, head of the WWF/Green Trust Turtle
Monitoring and Community Development Project.
Populations of the more critically endangered leatherback
turtle are also thriving here, with an average of 70–80
nestings per season.
One of the main contributing factors to the stability of
South Africa’s marine turtle populations is that they breed
almost entirely within the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park,
which is a designated marine protected area and World Heritage
site.
Elsewhere, populations are in decline due to the consumption
of turtle meat and eggs in poverty-stricken coastal areas,
and as a result of fisheries bycatch and abandoned drift
nets, which continue to drown turtle species in unknown
numbers.
“The overall aim of this project is to conserve and manage
the populations through community involvement in turtle
monitoring, conservation, tourism and education,” Sawers
added.
This includes the introduction of an eco-education programme
at several schools in the project area.
“The next challenge for the project is to extend marine
turtle conservation up the Mozambique coastline,” said Simanga
Mageba, who is coordinating the project’s 16 monitoring
sites in KwaZulu Natal.
“These amazing animals are so important to the future of
all people living here. Let’s hope in another 43 years time
we can look back to this time as a giant stride for marine
conservation.”
Marli Wessels, WWF-South Africa
