Asia’s Pangolins disappearing fast

By Charlie • March 29, 2008 • No comments yet

The Pangolins, a group of ant-eating mammals covered in armour-like ’scales’, are threatened worldwide and nowhere more so than in Asia. A recent report from WWF states that an incredible sixteen tons of pangolin were seized at Hai Phong in Viet Nam in March - seven tons of carcasses and scales were seized at the same site in February!

Tags: pangolin

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About the Author

Charlie

Charlie has birded all over the world for twenty years. He has finally grown-up after years of having way too much fun and is now trying hard to be the writer/conservationist he's always said he wants to be. Blogging with 10,000 Birds is like chatting to hundreds of friends every day and suits him perfectly. Really - do birders get much more fortunate than this?

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State of the Birds 2010

The 2010 State of the Birds Report on Climate Change has been released. Go check it out!

Win a Birding Trip to Jamaica!

If you’ve been following this blog for the last few months, you know that I really enjoyed birding in Jamaica and loved staying at Hotel Mocking Bird Hill. Believe it or not, you can enjoy the same sublime experiences for FREE! My friends at Hotel Mocking Bird Hill are running a competition for a 4-day trip that includes a day of guided birding at Ecclesdown Road. You’ll have to take a quiz though, so get started here. The deadline is March 29th 2010.

Brazilian IBAs Part II

The Important Bird Areas (IBAs) of three of Brazil’s most diverse areas are now covered in a new publication Important Bird Areas in Brazil: Part II – Amazon, Cerrado and Pantanal. Of 237 Brazilian IBAs now identified, only 21% are protected, 39% are partially protected, and the remaining 40% have no official protection at all. As Dr Jaqueline Goerck, SAVE Brasil’s Director President and co-author of the publication says, “There is still a long way to go to ensure the long-term survival of Brazil’s bird diversity.” Forest clearance and cattle ranching should soon make things a lot easier though: once the country gets down to - say - ten or twelve remaining IBAs perhaps the tiny band of Brazilian conservationists will finally stand a chance of saving what’s left…

Authorities Cracking Down on Finch Fighting

USA Today has a short article on the practice of finch fighting, which apparently is becoming more popular in the United States. The sickos that participate usually use Saffron Finches Sicalis flaveola because the males are extremely aggressive when it comes to wooing a female. How does it work?

In the wild, they don’t fight to kill: The losing finch can escape.

But in tight-quarters matches, two males are placed in a segmented cage with a female to bring them to a frenzied state. The separation barrier is removed, and fighting continues until one bird is dead or mortally wounded.

Many of the seized finches’ beaks had been filed to razor sharpness.

Recent arrests and bird seizures in Massachusetts and Connecticut are likely only the tip of the iceberg. Is there any limit to how low humans will go for entertainment?