Nine

Black Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), Critically Endangered

100000 - The number of Black Rhinos alive in 1960
65000 - The number of Black Rhinos alive in 1973
14000 - The number of Black Rhinos alive in 1980
2300 - The number of Black Rhinos alive in 1993
4240 - The number of Black Rhinos alive today
9 - The number of Black Rhinos alive in a secret location

Nine Black Rhinos have recently been airlifted to a secret location in an effort to increase the range and numbers of these critically endangered African mammals. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF), in partnership with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife (EKZNW), selected individuals from different areas and parks to help establish the new population.

The final destination of the nine founders is being kept a secret because of illegal poaching--the main factor in the rhinos' steep decline since the 1960s. Rhino horn is used illegally in traditional Asian medicine, as well as being highly coveted for ornamental use.

In Yemen, rhino horns are used for the handles of curved daggers called jambiyas, which are given to young men as symbols of manhood and religious devotion. Not all jambiyas use rhino horn--only the most prized and expensive.

The use of Rhino horn in traditional Asian medicine, however, is by far the greater threat. Rhino horn is used to treat a variety of ailments, including fever, rheumatism, and gout. The horn is usually shaved or ground into a powder and dissolved in boiling water. As more and more Chinese people accumulate wealth and the ability to pay for expensive treatments, the market for poached Rhino horn will only grow.

Sign a petition to stop illegal Rhino horn trade.

Learn more from Save the Rhinos, The International Rhino Foundation, or Saving Rhinos.

Antelope or Sheep?

Saiga Antelope (Saiga tatarica), Critically Endangered

Saiga antelope have an extremely distinctive appearance with an enlarged nose that hangs down over the mouth like a mini-elephant trunk. Mature males have almost vertical orange-ish translucent horns that are ringed at the bottom. Despite their common name they are thought to be intermediates between antelope and sheep. Their coats are sparse and cinnamon-buff in the summer but become white and around 70 percent thicker in winter.

Currently, there are three populations of the subspecies S. t. tatarica in Kazakhstan - the Ural, Ust'-Urt and Betpakdala, and one population in the Pre-Caspian region (a European population). Some herds from one of the populations within Kazakhstan migrate to Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan during the winter. Each of these populations is distinct and there is little intermingling of the populations.

Until the early 1960s there was also a population of Saiga tatarica in China. Two populations of the Mongolian saiga (S. t. mongolica) inhabit the northwest of Mongolia. Saiga within the former Soviet Union were the subject of concerted conservation programmes. The population at one point reached almost one million individuals.

Saigas typically inhabit open dry steppe and semi desert grasslands of Central Asia and Pre-Caspian region. They prefer open areas free from dense vegetation where they run quickly (up to 80 miles per hour) to avoid predators such as wolves and humans.

Management of the species has now broken down however and illegal poaching is rife. Saiga horns are highly valued in traditional Chinese medicine as cures for illnesses such as strokes. Only the males of the species bear horns and poaching thus produces a population where there are far more females than males. The average life span of saiga is only around three to four years and if females do not mate every year the species can rapidly decline. They are on the CITES list and hunting is banned throughout the Saiga's range.

Maps and more information on the Saiga at EDGE - here.

Saiga also usually have one or (more commonly) two offspring at a go. I find Saiga terribly cute - adult or babies... they are - aren't they?!

Little Rhinos Offer a Little Hope

Javan Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus), Critically Endangered

The Javan Rhinoceros is believed to be the rarest large mammal in the world. With only 40-60 individuals still alive, scientists worry whether the population was large enough to recover. It once lived in Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Lao PDR. Today, it survives in two tiny isolated parks in Viet Nam and Indonesia. To really get an idea of its current and historic range, check out this excellent map from Wikipedia. Ujung Kulon National Park, on the western tip of Java has an estimated 50 individuals. Cat Tien National Park in Viet Nam has a mere 6 to 8, which may no longer be a viable population.

Some good news for these giants--scientists recently observed four young rhino calves and their parents in Ujung Kulon. According to the head of the park, the young rhinos were between 6 and 7 months and were in the company of their parents. This is a ray of light for the declining species and offers hope that they may be able to breed quickly enough to recover. Still they face difficult times, with the largest threat coming from poaching for traditional Chinese medicine. There are no Javan Rhinos in captivity to provide captive breeding or insurance populations.

How you can help:

Shop for rhino related products (t-shirts and such, not horns).

Join Crash! the Social Network for People who love Rhinos.

Donate to one of these Rhino Conservation organizations:

International Rhino Foundation, Save the Rhino

Baby Goliaths Can't Hide

Goliath Grouper (Epinephelus itajara), Critically Endangered

The Critically Endangered Goliath Grouper is the largest grouper in the Atlantic, growing more than 2 meters (6 feet) long, weighing more than 450 kg (1000 lbs), and living up to 40 years. Recently, the Ocean Research & Conservation Association (ORCA) used an underwater acoustic camera system (similar to the sonar dolphins or bats use) to visualize baby Goliaths among the murky waters of mangrove roots. Baby Goliaths, up to 1 meter long, spend the first 5-6 years of their lives, almost exclusively in and amongst the waters around mangroves.

Conservation action began in 1990 when the US placed a moratorium on fishing, and the Caribbean did the same in 1993. Though the population has increased it will take many years for numbers to recover to previous levels. Additionally, in some areas, fishing continues despite the bans. It is sometimes difficult to accurately assess the recovery of the species, in part because of the inability to visualize Baby Goliath numbers in murky and cloudy waters. The new camera system used by ORCA should alleviate this problem, and make surveys of Goliath populations easier.

Read an article here.

Donate to Ocean Futures, an Ocean Conservation that has worked to conserve the Goliath Grouper in the past.

Love 'em or Lose 'em

Being in love makes everything look different. Suddenly, doing the dishes, which used to be a chore, turns into an act of gratitude. A kiss becomes not just an exchange of physical pleasure, but a deep communication of affection and desire. A trip to the shopping mall is no longer an item on the to-do-list, but an opportunity to shower the loved one with gifts.

Loving is a great act of unselfishness, and sometimes unselfishness means sacrificing to make the loved one happy.

The world, right now, needs some love.

More specifically, the frogs, toads, and other amphibians of the world, need some love. They're desperate for love. In fact, if they don't get some love soon, they'll die. From agricultural pollutants, from invasive species, from poaching and hunting, from deadly disease, and climate change. Without some love, thousands of species of amphibians will be extinct, before my yet-to-be-born children ever have a chance to meet them, or get to know them.

In the past decade or so, over a hundred amphibians have become extinct. About 3000 more are in danger of disappearing. Amphibians are a vital link in ecosystems around the world, and as they disappear, those ecosystems will begin to crumble. And as they disappear, so will the medical cures that they hold. Cures that are the key to saving the lives of people we love.

All of this lack of love is not because amphibians are unlovable, or because people don't want to love them. It's just that sometimes we're not very good at knowing how to show our love. Sometimes we bring flowers, when a back rub would have been more appropriate. Sometimes we try to say the right words, when we should have just listened.

So how do you love a frog? 2008 has been designated the Year of the Frog (YOTF), and it's purpose is to show the amphibians of the world that they are loved, and to show people how to love them. The Amphibian Ark, a collaboration between conservation organizations, is leading the effort, and will be promoting frog conservation around the globe. Their plan is to work with zoos, botanical gardens, museums, universities, or anyone else that is able, to house the most endangered species, until the extinction crisis can be averted. The eventual goal, of course, is to return the species to the wild.

So. This year, 2008, love a frog. Get involved. Tell your friends. Volunteer. Live greener. Sign the petition. Learn more. Donate. Love.

Rescue Mission

Sloth Bear (Melursus ursinus), Vulnerable

A bear poacher has been arrested in Orissa, India, and a baby Sloth Bear confiscated. The poacher, Jumman Khan, was under surveillance for three weeks, before the presence of the bear cub was confirmed. He was arrested in a bout of 'high drama.' The period from November to February is when the majority of these bears are poached, as this is when cubs are born. Protective mothers are often killed in order to retrieve the cubs. The cub is being held and cared for by Wildlife SOS, an organization committed to the prevention of hunting, poaching, and trading of endangered species.

Donate to Wildlife SOS's Bear Rescue program.

Rhinos Killed for $60 000

One (Rhinoceros unicornis)

Four Rhinos have recently been killed in Kaziranga National Park, as poachers have grown bolder and guards have grown fewer. Those four horns, each weighing about 1.6 kg, represent about $60 000 (USD) that buyers are willing to pay, usually for traditional medicines in south-east Asia.

Contribute to the International Rhino Foundation.