Gray whale spotted off Namibia
On 04 May 2013, tour boats on a dolphin cruise to Pelican Point (Namibia) saw a strange whale. Several more sightings during the following week seemed to indicate the unlikely fact that a Gray whale was visiting Walvis Bay! On Sunday 12 May a member of the Walvis Bay strandings network confirmed the reports that there was a Gray whale in the locality. This is the first known record of this species in the Southern Hemisphere. The question is now "what is the origin of this whale?"
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Cheetah family still thriving in Iran - All three cubs have reached 1 year oldA large family of Asiatic cheetahs has been photo-trapped in Miandasht Wildlife Refuge in north-eastern Iran. The group was photographed as part of ongoing intensive monitoring of the cheetahs of Miandasht Wildlife Refuge by camera trap.
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Trapping of millions of birds in Egypt threatens European bird populationsDisturbing evidence has emerged from the Mediterranean coast of Egypt: Bavarian Broadcasting have documented a total of 700 kilometres of nets set to catch birds. The birds are then offered as a delicacy in markets and restaurants across Egypt.
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The end of a (sub)species? Syrian bald ibis population reduced to just 1 birdDespite the current crisis in Syria, the Northern bald Ibis field team have continued to monitor the ibis, and have reported the sad news that only one Northern bald ibis has returned to the breeding site at Palmyra this spring.
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Thailand's Tiger Temple: Unsafe, cruel, and riddled with false marketing, claims new reportThailand's famous Tiger Temple, a popular tourist destination, is misleading tourists into believing that it is a tiger sanctuary when it is actually nothing more than a money-making petting zoo where the animals must suffer mistreatment on a daily basis, says a new report.
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Why are so many Southern right whales dying in Patagonia? At least 605 right whales have died along the Argentine coast since 2003, including 538 new-born calves. One hundred and thirteen calves died in 2012 alone. The Southern Right Whale Health Monitoring Program is working with scientists worldwide to determine why the whales are dying, but as yet, a common cause remains to be found.
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Armed poachers enter World Heritage 'Village of elephants'Poachers have entered one of Africa's most unique elephant habitats threatening to cause one of the biggest elephant massacres in the region since poachers killed at least 300 elephants for their ivory in Cameroon's Bouba N'Djida National Park in February 2012.
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Largest pod of Scottish sperm whales for nearly 20 years A pod of 14 sperm whales was spotted off North Berwick last week; the whales were thought to be heading towards Fife. This is the largest group ever seen in the North Sea and one of the largest pods ever seen off the UK coast - according to marine research and conservation charity Sea Watch Foundation.
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Surprise - Beavers fell trees near the water's edge - A study of beavers introduced into the wild in Scotland that will cost nearly £2 million has discovered that beavers mostly effect trees near the water's edge, with 500 metres of their lodge.
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New population of rare Irrawaddy dolphins found in the Philippines A new population of critically-endangered Irrawaddy dolphins has been found in the Philippines.
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European bison released into the wild in GermanyOn 11 April 2013, a fence was cut down in the Bad Berleburg region of Germany. Nothing unusual in that, except that cutting the fence allowed a small herd of European bison (sometimes known as wisent) to become the first free roaming herd in Western Europe for 400 years.
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