Bite Me

The number of dog attacks in England is growing rapidly. They have increased by nearly 50% over the past four years. Hospitals have to adjust to these new figures or patients will fall behind.

Last year alone, 3800 people were treated due to dog bites. Both the RSPCA and the Government have stated that isn't the dogs fault, but the owners. I agree with this statement. If you don't train the dog properly, it will go rouge and start attacking innocent people.

There are currently four species of dogs banned in the United Kingdom. These are the Pit Bull Terrier (above), the Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino and Fila Brasiliero.

I hope the dogs get trained properly and the number of dog bites goes down.

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Thank you.

Decent Protection at Last

Today new laws were passed by the British government to give more protection over Water Voles. It is about time, seeing as many of them have died out over the past thirty years.

In fact, nine out of ten have disappeared. The endangered mammal has lost to housing taking over their habitat and the introduction of the mink, a predator not native to Britain and taking over many of the species of wildlife.

The new laws include not being allowed to take them away or sell them, among other things.

I personally think these laws are great; we are finally starting to protect more species.

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A Country's Cull

South Africa has announced plans to cull African Elephants. But don't threat, this will only be a last resort if they can't control the population in another way.

Locals have been complaining that the mammals are destroying their crops and drinking all of the water. The population has quickly risen from 8000 in 1995, just before culling was banned to 20,000 nowadays.

If an effective way of controlling them, such as creating decent enclosures of them, isn't decided before 1 May, the culling will come into force.

I hope the culling does not happen, and that they find a suitable way which makes every creature, including humans, happy.

Please comment. Thank you.

A Wild Count-Up

The Scottish Natural Heritage has started a survey to see how many wildcats are left in the wild. The last survey occurred twenty years ago, but in a 1995 study it was believed that there were 3500 of these mammals in the wild.

Scots are being urged to go out into Scotland's countryside and try to spot them. You can see a photo of one above. You can find out more about it here.

Don't expect to see them in England and Wales, however, as they died out over a hundred years ago there.

I hope the survey results are positive. I really don't want the wildcat to become extinct in the wild.

Please comment. Thank you.

Hammering Down the List

The Scalloped Hammerhead Shark has been added to the endangered list. Their numbers are falling fast. This is mainly due to being caught in fishing nets and some countries, such as China, eat their fins as a local delicacy.

The population has decreased by 90%, and in some places the number goes up to 98%! This, the most common type of shark, joins the 233 other shark species on the list.

Dr. Julia Baum, who has studied the problem, said, "Right now the oceans are being emptied of sharks.

"If we carry on the way we're going, we'll be looking at a very high risk of extinction for some of these shark species in the next few decades."

I hope the numbers increase soon.

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Thank you.

Operation Eagle

First of all, I have been really busy with homework recently, so I have not been able to do many posts. Sorry for this inconvenience.

A Golden Eagle has made a miraculous recovery. She is called Electra after flying into am electricity pylon after being chased by crows. She was lucky and only ended up blind.

She had another lucky strike recently when she had an operation never performed before. They succeeded. They made her see again! Well, in one eye anyway. The other is too badly damaged to repair. If it didn't work, she would have been put down.

Unfortunately, she cannot return to the wild because only the best eye sighted eagles are able to see their prey easily.

It is great that Electra can see some things now. Keep it up from here at Animalz!

Please comment.

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A Rat Investation

A ship has sunk by St. Kilda in Scotland. But this ship contained rats, and there are worries that they've got onto the islands. These islands are teeming with rare wildlife, from seabirds to mice & sheep. The rats might gobble on the chicks and eggs of the seabirds, making it even harder for them to breed.

Traps have been laid, but have all proven unsuccessful so far. I hope they save all of the animals, without harming any of them.

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They've Been Fooled, Have You?

Four hundred tortoises have been fooled by the "warm" weather in a sanctuary in Cornwall. But if it gets colder (although I'm not sure how it can), there are worries they could die. But worry not, for they have heat lamps ready.

Also, British wildlife is "startlingly" active, especially frogs, flowers & butterflies.

I hope there are no fatalities due to all of this confusion.

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Thank you.

Wildlife and You: February 2008

It is February, the month of love. Expect to see more animals popping out and about. Around Valentine's Day go out to a near-by pond. You will almost certainly see frogspawn. Some birds start their breeding season this month, such as the Collared Dove, but don't expect many pairs mating. That won't happen until March or April.

Some Wintering birds will start to move. They won't go very far, but they will trace back a few steps. For example, some Bewick's Swans at Slimbridge might go to Welney.

Please send in your photos to this address. They are very welcome, and I would also love to see photos from other countries, and I know I have North American, European & Asian readers.

Happy watching!

The Tiny Elephant-Thing

Above is a picture of a Grey-Faced Elephant Shrew, a species recently discovered in the mountains of African country Tanzania. It is the size of the average domestic cat.

"This is one of the most exciting discoveries of my career," said Galen Rathbun, who was part of an international team which confirmed that the animal was a new species. They are now going to find out how many exist, and find out if they need protecting or not.

As well as having different colouring than any other elephant shrew, the new mammal is much larger, weighing 700g. and measuring about 30cm. in length.

Dr. Rathbun said they were amazing: "They are not like a dog or cat you can interact with - but they are so bizarre-looking and a lot of their behavioural ecology is so unique and interesting, you kind of get wrapped up with them."

You can see footage below. Enjoy.

It is brilliant to discover a brand new species. I hope it is well populated.

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Rare RUFF

Above is a photo of a very rare species. They are Glen Of Imaal Terriers, and their mum is one of 25 of the species that are actually able to have puppies. This species is so rare, that the Giant Panda has a larger population! And because they're so rare, no-one knows they exist so they aren't very popular, even though they are really cute!

Jane Withers, who breeds the species said, "They are now number one and I imagine it is because people would rather have a little dog like Paris Hilton's Chihuahua or a trendy Labradoodle."

Paul Keevil, from the British and Irish Dog Breeds Preservation Trust, added, "It's not only the rarest (breed) in Britain, it is the rarest in the world."

I hope the species does really well in the future.

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