Wild Voices

Whooper Swans are the Eurasian cousin of North American Trumpeter swans.

They breed all over Iceland, and some overwinter in the thermally heated parts of Lake Myvatn. Interestingly, their North American Trumpeter Swan cousins do the same thing, spending winter in the thermally heated parts of the Yellowstone River.

These beauties are aptly named as they certainly seem to enjoy trumpeting!

Whooper Swans mate for life,

and their cygnets, and grown offspring, often overwinter with them.

Cheers to you from Iceland’s beautiful swans~

Guatemalan Black Howler Monkey, Belize

Monkeys  and humans are both primates — I think that’s why humans find monkeys so entertaining to watch. There are 260 species of monkeys currently living in the world, here are a few monkey species I have seen in the wild.

Wikipedia Monkey

Monkeys are generally divided into two major types: Old World and New World.

The Old World monkeys photographed here were seen in different parts of Africa. They are also found in Asia.

Olive Baboon, Tanzania

Baboons are one of the easier Old World monkeys to spot not only because of their larger size, but also because they travel in large troops. There were many instances when the safari vehicle rounded a corner to find a troop of 50 or 100 baboons walking their daily route.

Olive Baboon, Tanzania, Africa

Monkeys grooming one another is a frequent occurrence; it is one of my…

Thanks to each and every one of you for your many phone calls.  The good news is that House and Senate members met in a formal conference committee meeting yesterday to negotiate the final version of Fiscal Year 2019 spending bills, including the Department of the Interior.  This funding bill supports the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Wild Horse and Burro Program.

The Committee agreed on Continuing Resolutions (CRs) to fund ten federal agencies – including the Interior Department – through December 7.   The CRs carry forward Fiscal Year 2018.

So, the current law protecting America’s wild horses and burros from mass “euthanasia” (killing) and sterilization remains in place through Dec. 7.  Hopefully, this will increase the chances of a year-long CR so that this remains in place for FY19.

The House and Senate version of the bill are very different.  The House bill, in directing the BLM on the…

The LA Times reports

Gov. Jerry Brown on Saturday signed two bills that would block new offshore oil drilling in California by barring the construction of pipelines, piers, wharves or other infrastructure necessary to transport the oil and gas from federal waters to state land.

This locks into law the vows of Brown and other state officials who declared earlier this year they would do whatever it takes to stop the Trump administration from opening California waters to drilling on an unprecedented scale.
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“Today, California’s message to the Trump administration is simple: Not here, not now,” Brown said in a statement. “We will not let the federal government pillage public lands and destroy our treasured coast.”

Read full story at the LA Times:  Gov. Brown signs bills to block Trump’s offshore oil drilling plan

The bluefin tuna is one of the biggest, fastest fishes in the ocean. Its streamlined body can sprint at up to 45 miles per hour in pursuit of its prey. Reaching some 500 pounds, this giant once dominated the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. But humans have hunted the bluefin for thousands of years. In the last century stocks have been decimated. The Pacific population is now just 2.6 percent of its original size.

Many other species that live in the high seas — the two thirds of Earth’s oceans that lie beyond national waters — are suffering a similar fate. There is no universal law protecting biodiversity. “This is a massive gap, a literal hole in the middle of the ocean,” says Lance Morgan, president of the Marine Conservation Institute, a U.S. nonprofit focused on ocean protection.

That is about to change. The United Nations is pushing to…

Source: The Cloud Foundation

Temporary Retraining Order prevents September 2 Trapping and Removal

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO – Susan P. Watters, United States District Judge, has ruled in favor of Ginger Kathrens and the Cloud Foundation in their efforts to protect the small Pryor Mountain mustang herd from capture and removal stating, “Plaintiffs’ application for TRO is GRANTED. Defendants are hereby ENJOINED from conducting the wild horse gather set for September 2, 2018, pending a hearing on Plaintiff’s motion for preliminary injunction.”

“We won,” stated a jubilant Ginger Kathrens, who brought the herd to international prominence with her documentaries about Cloud, a charismatic palomino stallion she documented from the day he was born. “I hope that the TRO and what we believe will be a permanent decision later next month, will ensure a lasting future for this unique Spanish herd.”

In her ruling Judge Waters acknowledged that BLM fell short in…

This 2012 video says about itself:

An educational video by SEE Turtles about sea turtle migrations including leatherbacks and loggerheads. Learn how these amazing animals swim thousands of miles to find food and nesting beaches.

From the University of California – Santa Cruz in the USA:

Tracking marine migrations across geopolitical boundaries aids conservation

September 3, 2018

The leatherback sea turtle is the largest living turtle and a critically endangered species. Saving leatherback turtles from extinction in the Pacific Ocean will require a lot of international cooperation, however, because the massive turtles may visit more than 30 different countries during their migrations.

A new study uses tracking data for 14 species of migratory marine predators, from leatherback turtles to blue whales and white sharks, to show how their movements relate to the geopolitical boundaries of the Pacific Ocean. The results provide critical information for designing international cooperative agreements needed…