India’s tigers are making a comeback

Breeding success across many reserves

February 2012: India is home to the world's largest population of wild tigers - and more positive news is emerging from the country, with the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) pointing to the number of new cubs as a good measure of success.

'Where they are being well protected, where there is a good relationship between forest officials, scientists and NGOs, tigers are breeding and returning to the forests from which they once vanished and taking up residence rather than just being transient,' said EIA campaign leader Debbie Banks.

News of cubs in Kudremukh National Park, in Karnataka, which has historically been ravaged by iron ore mining, and of 25 tigers residing in the Sathyamangalam forests of Tamil Nadu is further testimony to the emergence of the southern states as tiger conservation champions.

Assam now home to more than 140 tigersKanha Tiger Reserve has 21 to 23 cubs; Pench Tiger Reserve has 21 cubs, while in Panna Tiger Reserve translocated tigers have given birth to seven cubs.

Further north, tigers have returned to the Nandhor Valley of Uttarakhand, while Assam is home to 143 tigers, 118 in Kaziranga National Park alone - the highest tiger population density in the country.

While the EIA admit things are still far from perfect - poaching, habitat loss and human/tiger conflict continue to put pressure on the country's tiger population- they are delighted with the progress being made.

Debbie added: ‘None of us can take our foot off the gas when it comes to saving tigers. But what the good news from India tells us is that the tiger's decline is not an irreversible situation; that with the right set of circumstances, tiger populations can recover, and with them the watershed forests that all our futures depend on. 

‘We must take heart that we are on the right path.' 

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/tiger-comeback.html

Endangered Lesser Antillean Iguana breed at Durrel

After eleven years of waiting rare Iguanas breed again at Durrell
January 2012. For the first time in eleven years Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust's rare Lesser Antillean iguanas have successfully bred, producing two young hatchlings.

Increasingly endangered in its wild habitat, the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, and held by only a handful of zoological institutions worldwide, Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust remains the only one to successfully breed this species.

Commenting on this exciting news, Mark Brayshaw, Head of Durrell's animal collection at the charity's headquarters in Jersey, said, "We are delighted by the arrival of these new hatchlings. They are feeding and growing well, and we are continuing to monitor them carefully at our herpetology department. We will continue our efforts to breed the iguanas and are encouraged by this recent success."

Bred in 1997 & 2000
Durrell's first successful breeding of this species was a single offspring in 1997, followed by eight juveniles in 2000. Between 2000 and 2011, despite efforts to get the most recent offspring to produce viable eggs, the annual clutches laid were all unfertilised eggs. Finally, in September 2011, one of the females, who had been paired with an unrelated male who arrived at Durrell's Jersey-based wildlife park in 2003, produced these latest two fertile eggs which subsequently hatched after an incubation period of 75 days.

The juveniles, vibrant green throughout, are quite different in appearance to adults. In a couple of years the young iguanas will lose their green colour and become grey with cream heads, like their parents.

Threats
The Lesser Antillean iguana (Iguana delicatissima) is an increasingly endangered cousin of the better known common green iguana, and its decline in numbers has been caused by a combination of problems, including habitat loss, interbreeding with the introduced non-native green iguana, and the introduction of predators.

So little is known about the iguana's behaviour in the wild that Durrell's previous breeding successes have led to a better understanding of the environment and conditions they need in order to reproduce. Some of the original 9 Jersey-bred iguanas have since been moved to other institutions as part of a wider conservation breeding effort. Durrell hopes to continue to gain enough experience to help other institutions breed Lesser Antillean iguanas, which will help establish a sustainable ‘safety net' breeding population.

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/antilles-iguana.html

Successful breeding for New Zealand's Doubtful Sound dolphins

Bottlenose dolphins in Doubtful Sound

December 2011. Doubtful Sound's resident pod of bottlenose dolphins have had the best two breeding seasons for some time.

Over the last two summers, the dolphins have had the most surviving calves for more than a decade. This gives the Department of Conservation (DOC), Otago University researchers, and the local tourism industry optimism about their future.

DOC's marine mammal ranger Kath Blakemore said alarm has been raised about the rapid rate of decline this well-researched population has been undergoing in recent years. Calf survival rates have been low since around 2002. This is more critical as research shows that this small group of dolphins lives separately from others, living almost exclusively within Doubtful Sound.


16 calves born - 11 survived
Sixteen calves have been born over the last two summers and 11 of these have survived so far. Otago University researcher, Shaun Henderson said that in 20 years of the University's research there has only been one other year with more calves born. If most of these calves survive it will be a significant boost to the population.


"While we don't know the reason for this increased rate of births, everyone involved is hoping this trend continues," Mr Henderson said.


Dolphin watching rules
Since 2009, DOC has been working with boat operators to implement a set of rules for vessel use in Doubtful Sound to minimise any potential impacts from the dolphins interacting with boats. In addition, a research programme has begun to explore some of the other potential causes of the decline, such as genetics, habitat modification, broad-scale climate changes and diet.

The commitment from the Doubtful Sound tourism industry to work alongside DOC and others to help these dolphins has been encouraging. All boat operators, private or commercial, must be familiar with the protection guidelines before heading into Doubtful Sound. These are readily available from the DOC website or your local DOC office. The guidelines aim to reduce the amount of time dolphins spend interacting with boats so they can spend more time doing what dolphins should naturally do.

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/doubtful-dolphins.html

Bittern breeds at Kent's Stodmarsh reserve for first time in 40 years

Best year on record for Britain’s bitterns
October 2011: In the best year for British bitterns since records began, the species has come home to roost at Natural England's Stodmarsh National Nature reserve, near Canterbury.

Staff and volunteers spent an anxious summer watching the adult birds coming and going, but were finally rewarded at the end of August when they saw a female leading three juveniles through the marsh. The youngsters remained on the Reserve for about three weeks before heading for their winter roosts.

Bittern was once extinct as a British nesting speciesBitterns are highly secretive wetland birds and live most of their time within dense stands of reed, making them very difficult to spot. The males have an amazing call where they fill their gullets with air that they release to make a booming ‘song' which can be heard several kilometres away. The bittern has had a rollercoaster history in Britain, as the bird was extinct as a nesting species between 1886 and 1911, when it re-colonised the Norfolk Broads.

Natural England's Kent reserves manager, Becky Plunkett said: ‘It's been terrific to hear the males booming in the long, summer evenings. We've made changes to the way the water levels are being managed and cut back some of the reeds to create areas of young reed growth that the bitterns like.

‘This work has taken place over the last couple of years and it's this year that everything has come together at the right time. Having the bitterns breeding here again is a great reward for the staff and volunteers for all their hard work.'
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/bittern-2011.html

Wild-born black footed ferrets seen in Canada for first time in 70 years

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/black-footed-ferret.html

Canada's first wild-born black-footed ferrets in 70 years have been spotted by delighted conservationists in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan - and the antics of the mother and her three kits have been caught on camera by a documentary film crew.

Once considered North America's rarest mammal, the black-footed ferret was reintroduced in Canada in October 2009. The last wild sighting in the country prior to this was in 1937.

Previously occupying a huge area from western Canada to Mexico, ferret numbers began to decline in the early 20th century. The last wild specimen in Canada was seen in 1937. For many years, scientists thought the species had become completely extinct but, in 1981, a small population was found near a ranch in Wyoming. A successful captive breeding programme was started with the hope of reintroducing the ferret to the wild in Canada. Parks Canada reintroduced 34 black-footed ferrets back into their native habitat in Grasslands National Park in October 2009.

Since their reintroduction, this once extirpated native species has been closely monitored by Parks Canada biologists and dedicated ‘citizen scientist' volunteers. In the early hours at the end of July, a playful litter of kits was observed on a black-tailed prairie dog colony. The black-footed ferret mother and her three kits appeared healthy and engaged in honing their survival instincts.

The exciting discovery was captured by a documentary film crew for Nature of Things with David Suzuki and the footage is due to be broadcast in Canada later in the year.

A glimpse of a new generation
‘It is a privilege and profound experience to be able to be part of this story,' said documentary director, Kenton Vaughan. ‘This species was on the brink of extinction and now we have caught a glimpse of a new generation of wild born animals.'

SLEEK: Black-tailed ferrets are nocturnal Picture: Paul Knaga

Last year, a total of 34 ferrets were released in the national park. After an intensive spring survey involving 975 hours of volunteer assistance, 12 of the 34 were positively identified as the minimum number of ferrets that survived through the winter. Now, the discovery of ferret kits is confirming how quickly the ferrets are adapting to their new home on the Canadian prairie.

‘The observation of wild-born ferrets is a tremendous cause for celebration and a significant benchmark in the reintroduction effort of this species,' said Jim Prentice, Canada's Minister for the Environment. ‘The reintroduction of the black-footed ferret in Grasslands National Park is a success story due to the efforts of Parks Canada staff, our partners and dedicated volunteers.'