Category Archives: Animals

Sweden begins wolf hunt as it aims to halve endangered animal’s population

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Five entire families can be killed, totalling 30 wolves, in move campaigners say is illegal under EU law

Sweden’s wolf hunt starts on Thursday, with the country aiming to halve the population of the endangered predator.

The Swedish government has given the green light for five entire wolf families, a total of 30 wolves, to be killed in a hunt campaigners say is illegal under EU law. Under the Berne convention, protected species cannot be caused to have their populations fall under a sustainable level.

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Texas teenager accused of using poison to kill rival’s competition show goat

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Aubrey Vanlandingham charged with animal cruelty after reportedly confessing to force-feeding pesticide to goat

A Texas teenager has been charged with animal cruelty after she was accused of using pesticide to poison and kill a rival’s competition show goat.

Authorities allege that Aubrey Vanlandingham, 17, used a drench gun to force-feed toxic pesticide to the goat, named Willie, at a barn at the Vista Ridge high school in Cedar Park in October.

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Police seize 6,000 illegal wild birds’ eggs as raids net largest haul in UK history

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Part of an international initiative to combat organised wildlife crime, similar seizures in Australia and Norway have recovered more than 50,000 eggs

More than 6,000 eggs have been seized in the biggest haul of its kind in UK history, after police carried out raids in Scotland, South Yorkshire, Essex, Wales and Gloucester. Thousands of eggs were found secreted in attics, offices and drawers.

The UK raids took place in November as part of Operation Pulka, an international effort to tackle organised wildlife crime – specifically the taking, possessing and trading of wild birds’ eggs. The raids began in June 2023 in Norway, and resulted in 16 arrests and the seizure of 50,000 eggs. In Australia, an estimated 3,500 eggs have been seized, worth up to A$500,000 (£250,000).

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‘We have to change our attitude’: wildlife expert says rhino horn trade must be legalised

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Call for illicit market to be taken out of hands of criminals as numbers continue to fall drastically due to poaching

International trade in rhino horns should be legalised, a leading wildlife expert has urged.

Writing in the research journal Science, Martin Wikelski argues only carefully monitored, legitimate transactions in horns can save the world’s remaining species of rhinoceros.

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Scientists explore longevity drugs for dogs that could also ‘extend human life’

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Researchers say drugs may be able to increase lifespan by extending health and thus shortening the rate of ageing

Not for nothing are dogs called man’s best friend: they are good for their owners’ mental and physical health, and some studies have shown that if you’re looking for a date and want to seem more attractive, it might be time to get a canine companion.

So what would it be like if dogs could live for ever – and what if that secret could help their owners live longer, healthier lives too?

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Tiger among 20 cats to die of bird flu at sanctuary in Washington state

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Bengal tiger, cougars, a lynx and bobcats dead as disease spreads rapidly among US poultry flocks and dairy herds

Twenty exotic cats, including a Bengal tiger, four cougars, a lynx and four bobcats, have died after contracting bird flu at an animal sanctuary in Shelton, Washington.

The feline deaths come as bird flu, a highly pathogenic avian influenza, has spread rapidly through poultry flocks and dairy herds in the US, infected and killed domestic cats, and caused a severe illness in a person in Louisiana.

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‘Photographs did not do it justice’: King Louis XV’s magnificent rhino is star of new London exhibition

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After wowing the court of Versailles over 200 years ago, the jet-black beast is back in the spotlight at the Science Museum

King Louis XV’s rhinoceros was the star of the court of Versailles. Fed on a diet of bread, its tough hide was regularly massaged with oil. But it proved not an easy pet to keep and unfortunately killed two people who entered its enclosure.

Now, the magnificent beast, since stuffed and preserved, has left Paris for the first time since it arrived in 1770, travelling to London to take up a temporary place under the spotlight at the Science Museum in London.

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Bark detective: dog trained to sniff out UK tree disease

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Six-year-old spanador called Ivor taught to identify tree fungal-like organism killing trees and shrubs around UK

Sniffer dogs are usually found looking for contraband at airports and train stations, but the UK government is now dispatching trained hounds to find forest-harming pests.

A dog has been used for the first time in the UK to successfully identify tree disease. Researchers from Forest Research used a trained spanador – a cocker spaniel labrador cross – to find the tree pathogen Phytophthora ramorum.

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UK ministers support bill to crack down on puppy smuggling

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Bill aims to strengthen animal welfare by closing legal loopholes around imports of dogs, cats and ferrets

The government has thrown its weight behind a bill to crack down on puppy smuggling as part of a commitment to strengthening animal welfare.

Ministers announced on Friday that they were supporting a private member’s bill sponsored by Danny Chambers, a Liberal Democrat MP and veterinary surgeon, to crack down on the pet-smuggling trade.

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Mysterious mass elephant die-off ‘probably caused by toxic water’

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Satellite data analysis suggests climate-induced algal blooms could be behind hundreds of deaths in Botswana that sparked flurry of theories in 2020

More than 350 elephants that died in mysterious circumstances probably drank toxic water, according to a new paper that warns of an “alarming trend” in climate-induced poisoning.

The deaths in Botswana’s Okavango delta were described by scientists as a “conservation disaster”. Elephants of all ages were seen walking in circles before collapsing and dying. Carcasses were first spotted in north-eastern Botswana in May and June 2020, with many theories circulating about the cause of death, including cyanide poisoning or an unknown disease.

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Western Australia’s endangered cockatoo among world’s longest-living birds

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Oldest Carnaby’s cockatoo in wild lived to 35, with eight recorded living beyond 21, researchers find

Western Australia’s endangered Carnaby’s cockatoos can live up to 35 years in the wild, making them one of the longest-lived bird species, according to a study that began in 1969.

Eight Carnaby’s cockatoos aged between 21 and 35 years have been recorded, according to research published in Pacific Conservation Biology.

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Elusive deer spotted wearing high-vis jacket in Canada: ‘Who is responsible?’

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‘Double takes’ as British Columbia mountain community tries to figure out how local animal came to don neon jacket

In a town of fewer than 1,000 people, it can be hard to keep a secret. And yet no one in McBride, a mountain community in British Columbia, can figure out how a local deer came to be wearing a zipped-up high-visibility jacket – or why the day-glo-clad cervid has been so hard to track down.

The mystery began on Sunday, when Andrea Arnold was driving along the snowy outskirts of McBride on Sunday and witnessed a sight so baffling she slowed her vehicle to a crawl.

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Largest great white shark ever caught in Queensland control program was pregnant with four pups

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Female almost the length of a shipping container was found dead on a drumline in August, primary industries department has revealed

The largest great white shark ever caught in Queensland’s shark control program died while pregnant with four pups, the primary industries department has revealed.

A female white shark was found dead on a shark-catching drumline near Gladstone in August. Queensland’s Department of Primary Industries took samples for research purposes and has been collaborating with researchers interstate, a spokesperson said.

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US moves to list giraffes under Endangered Species Act for first time

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Climate crisis, habitat loss and poaching have reduced its numbers – but will Trump put the kibosh on protections?

They are the tallest animal to roam the Earth and have become an icon of children’s books, toys and awed wildlife documentaries. But giraffes are in decline, which has prompted the US government to list them as endangered for the first time.

Giraffes will be listed under the US Endangered Species Act, the US Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed in a move that will cover five subspecies of the animal. The agency hopes the listing will crack down on the poaching of giraffes, as the US is a leading destination of rugs, pillowcases, boots, furniture and even Bible covers made from giraffe body parts.

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UK failing animals with just one welfare inspector for every 878 farms – report

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Only 2.5% of more than 300,000 farms were inspected at least once in 2022 and 2023, researchers find

There is just one local authority inspector for every 878 farms in England, Scotland and Wales, according to a report, which says that the current welfare system is continuing to fail animals.

Researchers for the Animal Law Foundation found that only 2.5% of the more than 300,000 UK farms were inspected at least once in 2022 and 2023, a marginal decrease from 2018-21 when Covid-19 might be expected to have affected inspection rates.

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How a fatal bear attack led an Italian commune to rally against rewilding

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Brown bears, introduced into Trentino province 20 years ago, have begun to clash with the local human population

Franca Gherardini used to cherish the sublime views from her home in Caldes, a village surrounded by forests on the slopes of the Brenta Dolomites in northern Italy’s Trentino province.

But now she tries to shut out the scene as much as possible, rolling down the window canopy in the morning to avoid looking towards the area where her son, Andrea Papi, 26, was killed by a bear.

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New Hampshire animal shelter struggles to house 1,000 mice

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A man surrendered his rodents recently, and now the shelter is grappling with a rapidly multiplying mouse problem

A New Hampshire animal shelter is grappling with how to handle nearly 1,000 mice that have been turned over in recent days, many of which are pregnant.

Lisa Dennison, executive director of the New Hampshire Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, called the situation “crippling” and said the organization is scrambling to care for an overwhelming influx of rapidly reproducing rodents.

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Pregnant cow rescued after getting stuck in swimming pool in Rutland

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The 600kg animal was in the deep end and it took Leicestershire firefighters three hours to get her out safely

A pregnant cow has had to be rescued by firefighters after she got stuck in a small swimming pool.

The 590kg (93-stone) cow was found in the deep end of the pool in two to three feet of water at a house in Ketton, Rutland.

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Pint-sized crustacean named after New Zealand brewery to boost interest in marine life

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Tiny isopod is dubbed Pentaceration forkandbrewer in push to engage community with climate-threatened life in local waters

New Zealand scientists have named a tiny snowflake-like crustacean after a Wellington brewery, in an attempt to boost the public’s interest in local marine life.

The roughly 1.5mm marine isopod was found in the silty depths off New Zealand’s southern east coast. It helps decompose organic material that drifts to the seabed.

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South African tiger farms illegally smuggling body parts, says charity

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Biggest tiger farms outside Asia are operating freely in South Africa, Four Paws animal charity says

The largest tiger farms outside Asia are operating freely in South Africa, facilitating the illegal smuggling of tiger body parts, according to a report by an animal welfare charity.

Research by Four Paws, which is campaigning to shut down South Africa’s big cat industry, found 103 places in the country where tigers were kept in captivity in 2023 or 2024 or had been kept during the previous three years.

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