Seal slaughter is damaging Namibia's economy, says study
September 2011: Namibian fur seals are slaughtered in their thousands each year, but now a new economic study has confirmed the seals are worth three times as much alive rather than dead.
Comparing the latest figures for the seal trade and seal watching, the report says that the annual Namibian seal slaughter poses a major risk to the far more lucrative seal watching tourism industry.
Pelts can fetch less than £4Each year in Namibia, nursing baby seals are forcibly separated from their mothers and beaten and stabbed to death for their fur. Their pelts are sold for less than £4 each. Seal watching takes place on the very same beaches where the killing is allowed: Cape Cross, Atlas Bay and Wolf Bay. During the hunt season, from July 1 to November 15, hundreds of baby seals are clubbed to death between dawn and 8am at Cape Cross, a seal reserve.
At 10am, the same beach opens as a seal-watching attraction and hundreds of tourists flood in, oblivious to the carnage that took place just hours earlier.
The report, produced by the Australia-based independent economics consultancy Economists at Large, reveals that in 2008, the seal hunt generated only £320,000, a poor comparison to seal watching which netted £1.3 million in direct tourism expenditure in the same period.
Culling threatens lucrative tourist industryIt gives a detailed insight into the seal slaughter by examining the monetary benefits attached to each part of the trade. Bull seals account for a large proportion of the profits attached to the seal kills, as their penises are sold in Asian markets for alleged aphrodisiac qualities, at about £85 per kilogram. Aside from the low income netted by the seal slaughter, the practice poses a real threat to the far more lucrative seal-watching industry; large scale killing could lead to a collapse of seal populations, as witnessed in the 1990s.
Seal watching in contrast is a popular tourism activity undertaken by around 10 per cent of tourists to Namibia - just over 100,000 in 2008. Based on current growth trends, the report predicts that by 2016 as many as 175,000 tourists will participate in seal watching, generating close £2.2 million in direct revenues. Seal watching also delivers benefits to a far wider range of Namibian society than seal killing, helping boost tourism support services such as hotels and restaurants.
Call on Namibia to end slaughterMark Jones, executive director of Humane Society International UK, one of a group of organisation's that commissioned the report, said: ‘The Namibian authorities have long defended the seal slaughter on the grounds that it generates money and jobs, but this report shows that it could actually be damaging to the economy.
‘We call upon the government of Namibia to end the cruel slaughter of baby seals for their fur, and act in the best interest of its citizens and the seals, by promoting seal watching as a viable and sustainable economic alternative.'
Claire Bass, WSPA Interbational Oceans Campaign Leader, said: ‘ Each year up to 85,000 seals are killed in Namibia to make just a few dollars from their furs; this report highlights that they would be worth so much more to the Namibian economy alive.
‘Eco-tourism is a growing part of Namibia's identity but tourists will be shocked to find that a seal they photograph one day may be killed the next morning. There is a clear economic case for the government to protect these animals.'
Showing posts with label tourism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tourism. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
Monster battle: Nessie tourism businesses get go ahead
Members of the Highland Counci have given permission for two tourism businesses to develop on the banks of Loch Ness.
21 March 2011 12:27 GMT
Two businesses are going head to head in a monster battle for Loch Ness tourists.
Highland Council's planning committee has been looking at multi-million pound plans for tourist centres on the banks of the most famous loch in the world.
The plans include a £2.5m application for the Jacobite Discovery Project submitted by Jacobite Cruises and a £2m application from Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition at Drumnadrochit to develop its existing waterside facilities, 850 yards away beside the Clansman Hotel.
Loch Ness cruise operator Jacobite Cruises announced plans in January for a new harbour, car park and visitor facilities on land each side of the loch-side A82 Inverness-Fort William road at Brackla.
Meanwhile, the family-run Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition is seeking approval for enhanced access, retail and catering facilities and parking.
Councillors viewed the locations from a boat before giving both projects full planning permission. Robert Bremner, managing director for Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition who have been given outline planning permission said: "Jacobite remain our tenants and I see no reason for that to change at the moment; we are still on speaking terms."
He added: "Our development will give people a chance to get down to the loch side. People are still attracted to the area, not just because of the mystery monster but because of the beauty of the area."
Robin Webster, partner at Cameron Webster Architects which has designed the Jacobite Discovery project, said: "There are many eco-friendly features within the development and the location of the discovery project lends itself excellently to these. Low-energy features are a priority."
Project director Rod Michie said: "We are delighted with the progress of Cameron Webster's designs and are proud our project will be as environmentally-friendly as possible.
"We are looking forward to having new facilities where visitors can make the most of beautiful Loch Ness. We want to create everlasting memories for customers to take home, whilst still being kind to the environment."
IN DETAIL: Nessie caught up in a monster tourism battle
http://news.stv.tv/scotland/highlands-islands/237605-monster-battle-nessie-tourism-businesses-go-head-to-head/
21 March 2011 12:27 GMT
Two businesses are going head to head in a monster battle for Loch Ness tourists.
Highland Council's planning committee has been looking at multi-million pound plans for tourist centres on the banks of the most famous loch in the world.
The plans include a £2.5m application for the Jacobite Discovery Project submitted by Jacobite Cruises and a £2m application from Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition at Drumnadrochit to develop its existing waterside facilities, 850 yards away beside the Clansman Hotel.
Loch Ness cruise operator Jacobite Cruises announced plans in January for a new harbour, car park and visitor facilities on land each side of the loch-side A82 Inverness-Fort William road at Brackla.
Meanwhile, the family-run Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition is seeking approval for enhanced access, retail and catering facilities and parking.
Councillors viewed the locations from a boat before giving both projects full planning permission. Robert Bremner, managing director for Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition who have been given outline planning permission said: "Jacobite remain our tenants and I see no reason for that to change at the moment; we are still on speaking terms."
He added: "Our development will give people a chance to get down to the loch side. People are still attracted to the area, not just because of the mystery monster but because of the beauty of the area."
Robin Webster, partner at Cameron Webster Architects which has designed the Jacobite Discovery project, said: "There are many eco-friendly features within the development and the location of the discovery project lends itself excellently to these. Low-energy features are a priority."
Project director Rod Michie said: "We are delighted with the progress of Cameron Webster's designs and are proud our project will be as environmentally-friendly as possible.
"We are looking forward to having new facilities where visitors can make the most of beautiful Loch Ness. We want to create everlasting memories for customers to take home, whilst still being kind to the environment."
IN DETAIL: Nessie caught up in a monster tourism battle
http://news.stv.tv/scotland/highlands-islands/237605-monster-battle-nessie-tourism-businesses-go-head-to-head/
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Alligator Farmers Snap Back (Via HerpDigest)
Alligator Farmers Snap Back At Florida's Plan to Sever Funding - With Sales Down, They Want Marketing Aid; Ribs, Tongue and a Missing Middle Finger
Wall Street Journal, 3/12/11 by Arian Campo-Flores
LAKE PLACID, Fla.-Genie Tillman, an alligator farmer from Lake Placid, Fla., prepared for an apparel trade show in Las Vegas last month by packing an array of reptilian wares into three large suitcases. She threw in alligator-skin bomber jackets, golf shoes and Bible covers.
"We have something for everybody," said Ms. Tillman, the 68-year-old owner of Parker Island Gator Farm here. "We even have a whiskey flask that's covered in alligator and purses for biker babes."
There are a lot of hungry mouths to feed at Gatorama, an old-time tourist attraction and alligator farm at the edge of the Florida Everglades. Judy Reich reports from Palmdale.
The trip was aimed at promoting Florida's struggling alligator industry-some 30 farms, along with hundreds of trappers, tanners and leather makers. Though demand for gator meat remains strong, tough times drove revenue from Florida alligator products down to $5.3 million in 2009, from $16.4 million the year before, the most recent state figures show.
Now, Gov. Rick Scott wants to cut off the funding that helped pay for Ms. Tillman's trip. Faced with a $3.6 billion budget deficit, Mr. Scott is intent on axing what he considers frivolous spending, including a line in the state budget for "alligator marketing."
"The state shouldn't be in that business," he said in an interview in January.
The marketing money, amounting to roughly $100,000 a year, depending on the alligator harvest, is administered by the state Department of Agriculture. It pays for booths at restaurant and fashion conferences. It finances brochures about "exotic Florida alligator meat" ("For people who love adventure!"). And there's a website featuring delicacies such as "citrus glazed gator ribs."
A recent competition for chefs sponsored by the department included a dish made with alligator tongue. "Surprisingly, it was good. It was very tender," says Allen Register, owner of the Gatorama farm and roadside attraction in Palmdale.
The promotional funds come partly from the alligator industry itself. For every egg harvested from the wild, farmers pay the state $5, of which $1 is earmarked for marketing. That yielded $32,000 in 2010, which was supplemented with another $54,000 in state money.
The farmers began this arrangement voluntarily in 1993, hoping to benefit from the agriculture department's expertise in promoting more than 300 commodities.
Other states promote native flora and fauna, too. Louisiana's alligator farmers help pay for their marketing, which is handled by the state's Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board. California markets sea urchin. Kansas touts buffalo jerky.
Mr. Scott's proposal has Florida's gator industry snapping mad. The governor "really doesn't know what he's talking about," says Mr. Register, whose left middle finger was bitten off by an angry crocodile.
Mr. Scott's office didn't respond to requests for comment. But in the January interview, the Republican governor said that eliminating unnecessary programs line by line in the budget adds up to significant savings.
The farmers have dealt with cuts before. Former Republican Gov. Jeb Bush cut all of the marketing money from the budget each year of his second term. The funding was later reinstated by Mr. Bush's Republican successor, Charlie Crist.
Mr. Register-who, like Ms. Tillman, voted for Mr. Scott-doesn't understand why some politicians have a beef with his industry.
"Maybe it just sounds bizarre," he says.
Raising alligators is arduous work. During egg-collecting season in July, two-person teams set out in 100-degree heat to scout marshes in airboats. One person gathers eggs, while the other fights off the mama gators. "The aggressive ones will literally get in the boat to come after you," says Mr. Register.
He fattens hatchlings in large enclosed tanks that look like mud huts, heating the water to 90 degrees to speed up their metabolism. To prevent them from brawling and scraping each other's skins, he keeps them in the dark.
Before harvesting them when they're about two years old, Mr. Register grades the quality of their hides, which means wading in with the creatures-who are four-and-a-half feet long by then-gripping their heads, and yanking them up for inspection.
He kills them with a .22-caliber bullet shot to the ear, or by severing their spines with a knife. Then he skins them and packages the meat.
As recently as four years ago, say farmers, hides could fetch $8 a centimeter from European buyers who might turn them into $15,000 handbags. Then the economy tanked, and along with it, demand for luxury goods. Today, the overall luxury market is picking up, but skins sell for $4 a centimeter, says Mr. Register.
Some farmers have had to shut down. Debbie Stewart was laid off from Froehlich's Gator Farm in Christmas, Fla., when its founder decided to retire because of the downturn. Nicknamed "Little Debbie," at 5'3" and 100 pounds, Ms. Stewart was known for her prowess with a skinning knife.
"I can have a five-footer skinned, deboned and processed in about 15 minutes," she says. She's now managing a bar and playing bass in a band.
The gator farmers say their marketing efforts have partly focused on convincing people that it's okay to eat and wear alligator. Though the animals were removed from the federal endangered-species list in 1987, some people still think the animals are at risk of dying off.
Hoping to boost sales of hides in emerging luxury markets, some farmers have traveled to trade shows in Russia and China.
At a recent gathering of farmers in Sebring, Fla., Brian Wood, owner of All American Gator Products, floated another idea: product placement. He invited Shari Cedar, a former producer of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta," to give a presentation. Among her ideas, she says: getting celebrities and athletes to wear alligator-skin garb by creating "the next 'It' alligator bag."
Farmers are counting on allies in the legislature to block Mr. Scott in the new legislative session, which started on Tuesday.
Gator farmer Ms. Tillman says she's all for stanching Florida's red ink.
But, she adds, if Mr. Scott "slows down and pays attention, he will realize that our little group is not where the leak is."
Wall Street Journal, 3/12/11 by Arian Campo-Flores
LAKE PLACID, Fla.-Genie Tillman, an alligator farmer from Lake Placid, Fla., prepared for an apparel trade show in Las Vegas last month by packing an array of reptilian wares into three large suitcases. She threw in alligator-skin bomber jackets, golf shoes and Bible covers.
"We have something for everybody," said Ms. Tillman, the 68-year-old owner of Parker Island Gator Farm here. "We even have a whiskey flask that's covered in alligator and purses for biker babes."
There are a lot of hungry mouths to feed at Gatorama, an old-time tourist attraction and alligator farm at the edge of the Florida Everglades. Judy Reich reports from Palmdale.
The trip was aimed at promoting Florida's struggling alligator industry-some 30 farms, along with hundreds of trappers, tanners and leather makers. Though demand for gator meat remains strong, tough times drove revenue from Florida alligator products down to $5.3 million in 2009, from $16.4 million the year before, the most recent state figures show.
Now, Gov. Rick Scott wants to cut off the funding that helped pay for Ms. Tillman's trip. Faced with a $3.6 billion budget deficit, Mr. Scott is intent on axing what he considers frivolous spending, including a line in the state budget for "alligator marketing."
"The state shouldn't be in that business," he said in an interview in January.
The marketing money, amounting to roughly $100,000 a year, depending on the alligator harvest, is administered by the state Department of Agriculture. It pays for booths at restaurant and fashion conferences. It finances brochures about "exotic Florida alligator meat" ("For people who love adventure!"). And there's a website featuring delicacies such as "citrus glazed gator ribs."
A recent competition for chefs sponsored by the department included a dish made with alligator tongue. "Surprisingly, it was good. It was very tender," says Allen Register, owner of the Gatorama farm and roadside attraction in Palmdale.
The promotional funds come partly from the alligator industry itself. For every egg harvested from the wild, farmers pay the state $5, of which $1 is earmarked for marketing. That yielded $32,000 in 2010, which was supplemented with another $54,000 in state money.
The farmers began this arrangement voluntarily in 1993, hoping to benefit from the agriculture department's expertise in promoting more than 300 commodities.
Other states promote native flora and fauna, too. Louisiana's alligator farmers help pay for their marketing, which is handled by the state's Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board. California markets sea urchin. Kansas touts buffalo jerky.
Mr. Scott's proposal has Florida's gator industry snapping mad. The governor "really doesn't know what he's talking about," says Mr. Register, whose left middle finger was bitten off by an angry crocodile.
Mr. Scott's office didn't respond to requests for comment. But in the January interview, the Republican governor said that eliminating unnecessary programs line by line in the budget adds up to significant savings.
The farmers have dealt with cuts before. Former Republican Gov. Jeb Bush cut all of the marketing money from the budget each year of his second term. The funding was later reinstated by Mr. Bush's Republican successor, Charlie Crist.
Mr. Register-who, like Ms. Tillman, voted for Mr. Scott-doesn't understand why some politicians have a beef with his industry.
"Maybe it just sounds bizarre," he says.
Raising alligators is arduous work. During egg-collecting season in July, two-person teams set out in 100-degree heat to scout marshes in airboats. One person gathers eggs, while the other fights off the mama gators. "The aggressive ones will literally get in the boat to come after you," says Mr. Register.
He fattens hatchlings in large enclosed tanks that look like mud huts, heating the water to 90 degrees to speed up their metabolism. To prevent them from brawling and scraping each other's skins, he keeps them in the dark.
Before harvesting them when they're about two years old, Mr. Register grades the quality of their hides, which means wading in with the creatures-who are four-and-a-half feet long by then-gripping their heads, and yanking them up for inspection.
He kills them with a .22-caliber bullet shot to the ear, or by severing their spines with a knife. Then he skins them and packages the meat.
As recently as four years ago, say farmers, hides could fetch $8 a centimeter from European buyers who might turn them into $15,000 handbags. Then the economy tanked, and along with it, demand for luxury goods. Today, the overall luxury market is picking up, but skins sell for $4 a centimeter, says Mr. Register.
Some farmers have had to shut down. Debbie Stewart was laid off from Froehlich's Gator Farm in Christmas, Fla., when its founder decided to retire because of the downturn. Nicknamed "Little Debbie," at 5'3" and 100 pounds, Ms. Stewart was known for her prowess with a skinning knife.
"I can have a five-footer skinned, deboned and processed in about 15 minutes," she says. She's now managing a bar and playing bass in a band.
The gator farmers say their marketing efforts have partly focused on convincing people that it's okay to eat and wear alligator. Though the animals were removed from the federal endangered-species list in 1987, some people still think the animals are at risk of dying off.
Hoping to boost sales of hides in emerging luxury markets, some farmers have traveled to trade shows in Russia and China.
At a recent gathering of farmers in Sebring, Fla., Brian Wood, owner of All American Gator Products, floated another idea: product placement. He invited Shari Cedar, a former producer of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta," to give a presentation. Among her ideas, she says: getting celebrities and athletes to wear alligator-skin garb by creating "the next 'It' alligator bag."
Farmers are counting on allies in the legislature to block Mr. Scott in the new legislative session, which started on Tuesday.
Gator farmer Ms. Tillman says she's all for stanching Florida's red ink.
But, she adds, if Mr. Scott "slows down and pays attention, he will realize that our little group is not where the leak is."
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Bigfoot sightings return to Eugene, California and alarm residents
GARBERVILLE, California – It’s a big, hairy ape-like creature that has a distinctive fowl odor say those who claim to have encountered “Bigfoot,” or “Sasquatch,” as its commonly called. The creature is legend around the world, and especially in northern California where’s it’s been sighted on a regular basis for the past 150 plus years. Recent Thanksgiving week new sightings in Garberville and other redwood communities have concerned both residents and the California Department of Fish and Game.
At the same time, there's been recent reports of Bigfoot or a creature like it in and around the Eugene area. In fact, one local resident of the Eugene suburb of Alpine noted "seeing Bigfoot over Thanksgiving" while walking his dog in the woods near his home. Bigfoot has been a regular "visitor" to the Eugene area, say local U.S. Forest Service officials who've fielded hundreds of calls about Bigfoot in the woods of western Lane County.
Bigfoot responding to increase in tourism
One local media report stated that Bigfoot tracks were spotted near Garberville on Nov. 27 with massive feces droppings that were and not from a bear. In addition, numerous residents of the back woods area of town called police after hearing “terrible human-like moans coming from the forest.”
While the California Department of Fish and Game and local and state police departments are responding to recent Bigfoot sightings by locals and tourists in and around Garberville in Humboldt County, there’s a view around here that “Bigfoot will be Bigfoot, and that’s what he does from time to time,” says Garberville resident Ian Halmrast.
Still, other locals say they’re scared for both themselves and their children.
One local film maker from the L.A. area recently made a film about the legend of Bigfoot, and noted “it’s not aggressive when confronted by humans. The film maker also found evidence of Bigfoot kidnapping children from camp sites, but not harming them.
“There was this sound of food being scraped from a plate, and then an unbelievably loud cry as if someone was in pain. We ran towards it, and heard the sharp and brittle crack of the tree branches. We could then see this big thing run into the forest,” says Halmrast while breathing an exasperated sigh after the story he told.
Halmrast and others in Garberville -- a former logging and mill town in Northern California that was named “Dogtown” by the first settlers who arrived in this towering region of redwood trees back in the mid-1850’s – said there’s good reason to believe “Bigfoot is still out there.”
Garberville sits high in the mountains at nearly 550 feet where, say locals, “Bigfoot likes to hang out.”
During the recent Thanksgiving week -- with thousands of tourists and other visitors stopping to enjoy the redwood trees -- the recent new sightings of Sasquatch began to unfold.
“We first heard that he (Bigfoot) was back when a told us about a police report of something scaring people in the nearby forests. We all thought Bigfoot right then and there because we know it’s out there somewhere,” explains Deborah Dorsey who works in a local café.
At the same time, Dorsey notes that her brother Steve works at a nearby redwood tourist center that “markets Bigfoot” for tourists.
“Steve says he sells more carved Bigfoot figures and signs than most anything else during the busy summer months. While the police and the scientists who come up here discount the existence of the big guy, we know different because the stories have been going on for so long,” explains Dorsey who notes her grandfather telling her about Bigfoot when she was a kid more than 60 years ago.
Bigfoot is a legend with a long history in the Pacific Northwest and California
Anyone conducting research about Bigfoot or Sasquatch will find hundreds of thousands of references to the creature’s existence. Even accredited researches such as ape expert Jane Goodall have noted believe in such a creature existing both in North America and in various other places throughout the world.
Still, Bigfoot remains one of the most famous and controversial creatures in science today.
Those who’ve reportedly seen Bigfoot describe the ape-like beast as ranging between six to 10 feet with dark reddish hair and the weight and size of a big bull or cow. Those who’ve alleged to have seen the creature say it has large black eyes and a sort of cave-man like features.
Here in Garberville and other small town in the redwood forest region of Northern California the main claim to fame that Bigfoot is about “always seems to center on his footprints,” says local forester Wayne Cruthers.
“You get the tourists telling stories about spotting these footprints in the woods, and you just smile because you know that so many others also see Bigfoot foot prints but they don’t tell the cops or report it. You see, they’re not sure are they. It could be a bear or something. I think if we had a regular way to report Bigfoot sightings than we’d catch the thing,” says Cruthers who’s made it “a hobby to track Bigfoot legends in Garberville.”
Likewise, there have been numerous sightings of Bigfoot in 2010. The California communities of Mt. Lessen, Mt. Shasta, Weed, Round Mountain, Elk Creek, Caribou, Happy Camp, Clear Creek, Trinity Alps, Weaverville, Crescent Mill, Mammoth Lakes, Bear Valley, Eureka, Yreka, Fort Bragg, Orick and Crescent City have all listed reports to police about a “big, hairy beast walking in the woods.”
“We’ve seen photos of Bigfoot tracks that have a sort of claw look like a bear’s footprint. You sort of look in disbelief that such a thing could be around your home and kids,” says Cruthers with a helpless wave of his hands.
Bigfoot advocates, such as the noted crypto zoologist John Willison Green, have said “Bigfoot is a worldwide phenomenon that simply won’t go away"
At the same time, there's been recent reports of Bigfoot or a creature like it in and around the Eugene area. In fact, one local resident of the Eugene suburb of Alpine noted "seeing Bigfoot over Thanksgiving" while walking his dog in the woods near his home. Bigfoot has been a regular "visitor" to the Eugene area, say local U.S. Forest Service officials who've fielded hundreds of calls about Bigfoot in the woods of western Lane County.
Bigfoot responding to increase in tourism
One local media report stated that Bigfoot tracks were spotted near Garberville on Nov. 27 with massive feces droppings that were and not from a bear. In addition, numerous residents of the back woods area of town called police after hearing “terrible human-like moans coming from the forest.”
While the California Department of Fish and Game and local and state police departments are responding to recent Bigfoot sightings by locals and tourists in and around Garberville in Humboldt County, there’s a view around here that “Bigfoot will be Bigfoot, and that’s what he does from time to time,” says Garberville resident Ian Halmrast.
Still, other locals say they’re scared for both themselves and their children.
One local film maker from the L.A. area recently made a film about the legend of Bigfoot, and noted “it’s not aggressive when confronted by humans. The film maker also found evidence of Bigfoot kidnapping children from camp sites, but not harming them.
“There was this sound of food being scraped from a plate, and then an unbelievably loud cry as if someone was in pain. We ran towards it, and heard the sharp and brittle crack of the tree branches. We could then see this big thing run into the forest,” says Halmrast while breathing an exasperated sigh after the story he told.
Halmrast and others in Garberville -- a former logging and mill town in Northern California that was named “Dogtown” by the first settlers who arrived in this towering region of redwood trees back in the mid-1850’s – said there’s good reason to believe “Bigfoot is still out there.”
Garberville sits high in the mountains at nearly 550 feet where, say locals, “Bigfoot likes to hang out.”
During the recent Thanksgiving week -- with thousands of tourists and other visitors stopping to enjoy the redwood trees -- the recent new sightings of Sasquatch began to unfold.
“We first heard that he (Bigfoot) was back when a told us about a police report of something scaring people in the nearby forests. We all thought Bigfoot right then and there because we know it’s out there somewhere,” explains Deborah Dorsey who works in a local café.
At the same time, Dorsey notes that her brother Steve works at a nearby redwood tourist center that “markets Bigfoot” for tourists.
“Steve says he sells more carved Bigfoot figures and signs than most anything else during the busy summer months. While the police and the scientists who come up here discount the existence of the big guy, we know different because the stories have been going on for so long,” explains Dorsey who notes her grandfather telling her about Bigfoot when she was a kid more than 60 years ago.
Bigfoot is a legend with a long history in the Pacific Northwest and California
Anyone conducting research about Bigfoot or Sasquatch will find hundreds of thousands of references to the creature’s existence. Even accredited researches such as ape expert Jane Goodall have noted believe in such a creature existing both in North America and in various other places throughout the world.
Still, Bigfoot remains one of the most famous and controversial creatures in science today.
Those who’ve reportedly seen Bigfoot describe the ape-like beast as ranging between six to 10 feet with dark reddish hair and the weight and size of a big bull or cow. Those who’ve alleged to have seen the creature say it has large black eyes and a sort of cave-man like features.
Here in Garberville and other small town in the redwood forest region of Northern California the main claim to fame that Bigfoot is about “always seems to center on his footprints,” says local forester Wayne Cruthers.
“You get the tourists telling stories about spotting these footprints in the woods, and you just smile because you know that so many others also see Bigfoot foot prints but they don’t tell the cops or report it. You see, they’re not sure are they. It could be a bear or something. I think if we had a regular way to report Bigfoot sightings than we’d catch the thing,” says Cruthers who’s made it “a hobby to track Bigfoot legends in Garberville.”
Likewise, there have been numerous sightings of Bigfoot in 2010. The California communities of Mt. Lessen, Mt. Shasta, Weed, Round Mountain, Elk Creek, Caribou, Happy Camp, Clear Creek, Trinity Alps, Weaverville, Crescent Mill, Mammoth Lakes, Bear Valley, Eureka, Yreka, Fort Bragg, Orick and Crescent City have all listed reports to police about a “big, hairy beast walking in the woods.”
“We’ve seen photos of Bigfoot tracks that have a sort of claw look like a bear’s footprint. You sort of look in disbelief that such a thing could be around your home and kids,” says Cruthers with a helpless wave of his hands.
Bigfoot advocates, such as the noted crypto zoologist John Willison Green, have said “Bigfoot is a worldwide phenomenon that simply won’t go away"
Bigfoot sightings return to Eugene, California and alarm residents
GARBERVILLE, California – It’s a big, hairy ape-like creature that has a distinctive fowl odor say those who claim to have encountered “Bigfoot,” or “Sasquatch,” as its commonly called. The creature is legend around the world, and especially in northern California where’s it’s been sighted on a regular basis for the past 150 plus years. Recent Thanksgiving week new sightings in Garberville and other redwood communities have concerned both residents and the California Department of Fish and Game.
At the same time, there's been recent reports of Bigfoot or a creature like it in and around the Eugene area. In fact, one local resident of the Eugene suburb of Alpine noted "seeing Bigfoot over Thanksgiving" while walking his dog in the woods near his home. Bigfoot has been a regular "visitor" to the Eugene area, say local U.S. Forest Service officials who've fielded hundreds of calls about Bigfoot in the woods of western Lane County.
Bigfoot responding to increase in tourism
One local media report stated that Bigfoot tracks were spotted near Garberville on Nov. 27 with massive feces droppings that were and not from a bear. In addition, numerous residents of the back woods area of town called police after hearing “terrible human-like moans coming from the forest.”
While the California Department of Fish and Game and local and state police departments are responding to recent Bigfoot sightings by locals and tourists in and around Garberville in Humboldt County, there’s a view around here that “Bigfoot will be Bigfoot, and that’s what he does from time to time,” says Garberville resident Ian Halmrast.
Still, other locals say they’re scared for both themselves and their children.
One local film maker from the L.A. area recently made a film about the legend of Bigfoot, and noted “it’s not aggressive when confronted by humans. The film maker also found evidence of Bigfoot kidnapping children from camp sites, but not harming them.
“There was this sound of food being scraped from a plate, and then an unbelievably loud cry as if someone was in pain. We ran towards it, and heard the sharp and brittle crack of the tree branches. We could then see this big thing run into the forest,” says Halmrast while breathing an exasperated sigh after the story he told.
Halmrast and others in Garberville -- a former logging and mill town in Northern California that was named “Dogtown” by the first settlers who arrived in this towering region of redwood trees back in the mid-1850’s – said there’s good reason to believe “Bigfoot is still out there.”
Garberville sits high in the mountains at nearly 550 feet where, say locals, “Bigfoot likes to hang out.”
During the recent Thanksgiving week -- with thousands of tourists and other visitors stopping to enjoy the redwood trees -- the recent new sightings of Sasquatch began to unfold.
“We first heard that he (Bigfoot) was back when a told us about a police report of something scaring people in the nearby forests. We all thought Bigfoot right then and there because we know it’s out there somewhere,” explains Deborah Dorsey who works in a local café.
At the same time, Dorsey notes that her brother Steve works at a nearby redwood tourist center that “markets Bigfoot” for tourists.
“Steve says he sells more carved Bigfoot figures and signs than most anything else during the busy summer months. While the police and the scientists who come up here discount the existence of the big guy, we know different because the stories have been going on for so long,” explains Dorsey who notes her grandfather telling her about Bigfoot when she was a kid more than 60 years ago.
Bigfoot is a legend with a long history in the Pacific Northwest and California
Anyone conducting research about Bigfoot or Sasquatch will find hundreds of thousands of references to the creature’s existence. Even accredited researches such as ape expert Jane Goodall have noted believe in such a creature existing both in North America and in various other places throughout the world.
Still, Bigfoot remains one of the most famous and controversial creatures in science today.
Those who’ve reportedly seen Bigfoot describe the ape-like beast as ranging between six to 10 feet with dark reddish hair and the weight and size of a big bull or cow. Those who’ve alleged to have seen the creature say it has large black eyes and a sort of cave-man like features.
Here in Garberville and other small town in the redwood forest region of Northern California the main claim to fame that Bigfoot is about “always seems to center on his footprints,” says local forester Wayne Cruthers.
“You get the tourists telling stories about spotting these footprints in the woods, and you just smile because you know that so many others also see Bigfoot foot prints but they don’t tell the cops or report it. You see, they’re not sure are they. It could be a bear or something. I think if we had a regular way to report Bigfoot sightings than we’d catch the thing,” says Cruthers who’s made it “a hobby to track Bigfoot legends in Garberville.”
Likewise, there have been numerous sightings of Bigfoot in 2010. The California communities of Mt. Lessen, Mt. Shasta, Weed, Round Mountain, Elk Creek, Caribou, Happy Camp, Clear Creek, Trinity Alps, Weaverville, Crescent Mill, Mammoth Lakes, Bear Valley, Eureka, Yreka, Fort Bragg, Orick and Crescent City have all listed reports to police about a “big, hairy beast walking in the woods.”
“We’ve seen photos of Bigfoot tracks that have a sort of claw look like a bear’s footprint. You sort of look in disbelief that such a thing could be around your home and kids,” says Cruthers with a helpless wave of his hands.
Bigfoot advocates, such as the noted crypto zoologist John Willison Green, have said “Bigfoot is a worldwide phenomenon that simply won’t go away"
At the same time, there's been recent reports of Bigfoot or a creature like it in and around the Eugene area. In fact, one local resident of the Eugene suburb of Alpine noted "seeing Bigfoot over Thanksgiving" while walking his dog in the woods near his home. Bigfoot has been a regular "visitor" to the Eugene area, say local U.S. Forest Service officials who've fielded hundreds of calls about Bigfoot in the woods of western Lane County.
Bigfoot responding to increase in tourism
One local media report stated that Bigfoot tracks were spotted near Garberville on Nov. 27 with massive feces droppings that were and not from a bear. In addition, numerous residents of the back woods area of town called police after hearing “terrible human-like moans coming from the forest.”
While the California Department of Fish and Game and local and state police departments are responding to recent Bigfoot sightings by locals and tourists in and around Garberville in Humboldt County, there’s a view around here that “Bigfoot will be Bigfoot, and that’s what he does from time to time,” says Garberville resident Ian Halmrast.
Still, other locals say they’re scared for both themselves and their children.
One local film maker from the L.A. area recently made a film about the legend of Bigfoot, and noted “it’s not aggressive when confronted by humans. The film maker also found evidence of Bigfoot kidnapping children from camp sites, but not harming them.
“There was this sound of food being scraped from a plate, and then an unbelievably loud cry as if someone was in pain. We ran towards it, and heard the sharp and brittle crack of the tree branches. We could then see this big thing run into the forest,” says Halmrast while breathing an exasperated sigh after the story he told.
Halmrast and others in Garberville -- a former logging and mill town in Northern California that was named “Dogtown” by the first settlers who arrived in this towering region of redwood trees back in the mid-1850’s – said there’s good reason to believe “Bigfoot is still out there.”
Garberville sits high in the mountains at nearly 550 feet where, say locals, “Bigfoot likes to hang out.”
During the recent Thanksgiving week -- with thousands of tourists and other visitors stopping to enjoy the redwood trees -- the recent new sightings of Sasquatch began to unfold.
“We first heard that he (Bigfoot) was back when a told us about a police report of something scaring people in the nearby forests. We all thought Bigfoot right then and there because we know it’s out there somewhere,” explains Deborah Dorsey who works in a local café.
At the same time, Dorsey notes that her brother Steve works at a nearby redwood tourist center that “markets Bigfoot” for tourists.
“Steve says he sells more carved Bigfoot figures and signs than most anything else during the busy summer months. While the police and the scientists who come up here discount the existence of the big guy, we know different because the stories have been going on for so long,” explains Dorsey who notes her grandfather telling her about Bigfoot when she was a kid more than 60 years ago.
Bigfoot is a legend with a long history in the Pacific Northwest and California
Anyone conducting research about Bigfoot or Sasquatch will find hundreds of thousands of references to the creature’s existence. Even accredited researches such as ape expert Jane Goodall have noted believe in such a creature existing both in North America and in various other places throughout the world.
Still, Bigfoot remains one of the most famous and controversial creatures in science today.
Those who’ve reportedly seen Bigfoot describe the ape-like beast as ranging between six to 10 feet with dark reddish hair and the weight and size of a big bull or cow. Those who’ve alleged to have seen the creature say it has large black eyes and a sort of cave-man like features.
Here in Garberville and other small town in the redwood forest region of Northern California the main claim to fame that Bigfoot is about “always seems to center on his footprints,” says local forester Wayne Cruthers.
“You get the tourists telling stories about spotting these footprints in the woods, and you just smile because you know that so many others also see Bigfoot foot prints but they don’t tell the cops or report it. You see, they’re not sure are they. It could be a bear or something. I think if we had a regular way to report Bigfoot sightings than we’d catch the thing,” says Cruthers who’s made it “a hobby to track Bigfoot legends in Garberville.”
Likewise, there have been numerous sightings of Bigfoot in 2010. The California communities of Mt. Lessen, Mt. Shasta, Weed, Round Mountain, Elk Creek, Caribou, Happy Camp, Clear Creek, Trinity Alps, Weaverville, Crescent Mill, Mammoth Lakes, Bear Valley, Eureka, Yreka, Fort Bragg, Orick and Crescent City have all listed reports to police about a “big, hairy beast walking in the woods.”
“We’ve seen photos of Bigfoot tracks that have a sort of claw look like a bear’s footprint. You sort of look in disbelief that such a thing could be around your home and kids,” says Cruthers with a helpless wave of his hands.
Bigfoot advocates, such as the noted crypto zoologist John Willison Green, have said “Bigfoot is a worldwide phenomenon that simply won’t go away"
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Sexually rampant voles ruin Yorkshire village's tourist trade
METRO REPORTER - 16th June, 2010Visitors to Flaxton in north Yorkshire are being forced to take a 10km (six-mile) diversion because of a colony of breeding water voles.
The village’s shops and pub are suffering a trading slump after bridge repairs had to be suspended until the autumn – when the voles have finished mating.
Landlady Lorraine Ritchie, of the Blacksmith’s Arms, said: ‘We’re losing £700 a week and this is the busiest time of the year. We’ve come through the recession and we can’t get on.’
http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/831209-sexually-rampant-voles-ruin-villages-tourist-trade
Thursday, June 18, 2009
33,000 sharks, 2000 dolphins & 2000 turtles killed to boost beach tourism in South Africa
Remove the Nets: Join the Shark Angels' Campaign against Shark Nets! June 2009. It is difficult to believe in this day in age, with all that we know about sharks' plummeting populations, their critical role in ocean ecosystems and the minimal risk they pose to humans, that the archaic and destructive practice of installing shark nets for "bather protection" still exists. But in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa, a province ironically known around the world as one of the few places left where sharks and the ecosystems they keep healthy still thrive, untold numbers of harmless sharks, turtles, dolphins, and rays meet an untimely and senseless death each year by entanglement in the approximately 28 kilometres of ‘shark' nets that are installed just off the beaches.
What are shark nets? Shark nets are essentially gill nets: long rectangular nylon mesh nets, 200-300 metres in length, that are positioned near the surface of the water and kept afloat with buoys. Sharks swim into these nets and are caught by their gills. The squares of mesh are designed to be just large enough for sharks to become entangled, but not escape. The more a shark or any other animal struggles in these nets, the more hopeless their situation becomes, and the more impossible their chances of escape and survival. The vast majority of these animals die an agonizing death by suffocation. Gill nets are widely considered to be one of the greatest threats to the survival of many species of marine animals.
33% of sharks in nets were leaving beaches! In South Africa, the shark nets are installed in tiered patterns by the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board (KZNSB). Just beneath the surface, they do not fully extend to either the top or the bottom and do not even come close to fully enclosing the beach areas. The result is that sharks can easily swim around or under the nets and into the shallow waters in which humans swim and surf. In fact, the KZNSB acknowledges on its own website that at least 33% of the sharks killed in these nets were actually on their way OUT from the beaches, rather than on their way in, and other sources estimate that this number is closer to 70%.
Bait is set to attract sharks. You see, the goal is not to provide a physical barrier to keep sharks away from the beaches, but rather to control shark populations by culling them. In many cases, the KZNSB places baited drumlines just outside the shark nets, which are designed to attract sharks in towards the beaches and kill them, either by biting the baited hooks on the drumlines or by entanglement in the nearby gill nets.
Nets installed in Marine Protected Areas! The process is entirely unselective, with nets installed all along the coast, including in Marine Protected Areas! The sole purpose of these nets is to kill all sharks in the area, including highly endangered species that would otherwise enjoy stringent legal protection, such as whale sharks and the great white shark. According to the KZNSB's own website, "The Marine Living Resources Act (Act 18 of 1998) controls the exploitation of marine plants and animals in South African waters. . . . The great white shark is totally protected; in 1991 South Africa being the first country in the world to do so." And yet, the KZNSB, which is governed by the KZN Department of Arts, Culture and Tourism, is exempted from these important conservation regulations in the interest of making tourists feel safe.
Brutal, indiscriminate killers. Sea Shepherd's Director of Shark Conservation, Kim McCoy, a founding member of the Shark Angels alliance, was outraged to witness first-hand the carnage caused by South African shark nets. "Sharks and other animals don't stand a chance against these nets," said McCoy. "They are brutal, indiscriminate killers designed to systematically cull a species for no other reason than to boost tourism by giving beachgoers a false sense of security against a severely sensationalized threat."
Shark tourism. Shark Angels co-founder, Julie Andersen, who frequently leads groups of people on diving trips with the tiger sharks of Aliwal Shoal, clearly illustrates the irony of using shark nets to increase tourism, noting the number of tourists who come to South Africa each year specifically to dive with sharks. "Sharks in South Africa contribute a significant amount of revenue to the South African economy and provide countless jobs," said Andersen. "Live sharks mean tourists, jobs, and money. And that is recurring income-not the one-time income generated when a shark is killed."
33,000 sharks, 200 turtles, 8000 rays and 2000 dolphins killed in shark nets. Over the last three decades, more than 33,000 sharks have been killed in the KZNSB shark nets. And if that's not alarming enough, 2,000+ turtles, 8,000+ rays, and 2,000+ dolphins were also ensnared and killed.
In addition to the countless deaths of sharks and other species caused directly by the shark nets, their impact on our collective psyches is damaging to shark conservation efforts worldwide. The very existence of shark nets perpetuates the myth that sharks are bloodthirsty man-eaters, and that humans require some form of protection from them. The installation of shark nets reinforces our misguided and often irrational fears of sharks by legitimizing these concerns as valid. This in turn fuels the biggest issue faced in shark conservation: the public's apathy, or even loathing, towards sharks.
It could be said there was once a time and a place for shark nets. Perhaps decades ago, when the public knew little about sharks, the fear of shark attacks was running high, and shark populations were far healthier than they are today. The practice of installing shark nets in South Africa began in 1952, when little was known about sharks, and humans had yet to spend the next 50+ years ravaging our oceans, causing irreparable damage and the collapse of species after species. The public wanted "protection" from sharks, and shark nets served this purpose.
Shark populations endangered. But since then, shark fishing has skyrocketed, eliminating a large percentage of the world's shark populations, and the public has been exposed to much information about the importance of biodiversity conservation and the true nature of shark behaviour towards humans. In recent years, it has been proven that a variety of non-lethal shark deterrents, such as the Shark Spotters program funded by private donations and the City of Cape Town, can be equally effective, and that animals need not be killed to allow for peaceful coexistence in their domain. The need for shark conservation is now a well-established fact, as is the fact these animals are significantly misunderstood, with the actual risk of an unpleasant shark encounter infinitesimal.
Shark nets are an unnecessary and outdated practice designed to address an issue that could easily be tackled in a non-lethal way, and they blemish South Africa's image as a world leader in conservation. It is time for a change. It is time to get these shark nets out of the water, once and for all.
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/shark-nets.html
What are shark nets? Shark nets are essentially gill nets: long rectangular nylon mesh nets, 200-300 metres in length, that are positioned near the surface of the water and kept afloat with buoys. Sharks swim into these nets and are caught by their gills. The squares of mesh are designed to be just large enough for sharks to become entangled, but not escape. The more a shark or any other animal struggles in these nets, the more hopeless their situation becomes, and the more impossible their chances of escape and survival. The vast majority of these animals die an agonizing death by suffocation. Gill nets are widely considered to be one of the greatest threats to the survival of many species of marine animals.
33% of sharks in nets were leaving beaches! In South Africa, the shark nets are installed in tiered patterns by the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board (KZNSB). Just beneath the surface, they do not fully extend to either the top or the bottom and do not even come close to fully enclosing the beach areas. The result is that sharks can easily swim around or under the nets and into the shallow waters in which humans swim and surf. In fact, the KZNSB acknowledges on its own website that at least 33% of the sharks killed in these nets were actually on their way OUT from the beaches, rather than on their way in, and other sources estimate that this number is closer to 70%.
Bait is set to attract sharks. You see, the goal is not to provide a physical barrier to keep sharks away from the beaches, but rather to control shark populations by culling them. In many cases, the KZNSB places baited drumlines just outside the shark nets, which are designed to attract sharks in towards the beaches and kill them, either by biting the baited hooks on the drumlines or by entanglement in the nearby gill nets.
Nets installed in Marine Protected Areas! The process is entirely unselective, with nets installed all along the coast, including in Marine Protected Areas! The sole purpose of these nets is to kill all sharks in the area, including highly endangered species that would otherwise enjoy stringent legal protection, such as whale sharks and the great white shark. According to the KZNSB's own website, "The Marine Living Resources Act (Act 18 of 1998) controls the exploitation of marine plants and animals in South African waters. . . . The great white shark is totally protected; in 1991 South Africa being the first country in the world to do so." And yet, the KZNSB, which is governed by the KZN Department of Arts, Culture and Tourism, is exempted from these important conservation regulations in the interest of making tourists feel safe.
Brutal, indiscriminate killers. Sea Shepherd's Director of Shark Conservation, Kim McCoy, a founding member of the Shark Angels alliance, was outraged to witness first-hand the carnage caused by South African shark nets. "Sharks and other animals don't stand a chance against these nets," said McCoy. "They are brutal, indiscriminate killers designed to systematically cull a species for no other reason than to boost tourism by giving beachgoers a false sense of security against a severely sensationalized threat."
Shark tourism. Shark Angels co-founder, Julie Andersen, who frequently leads groups of people on diving trips with the tiger sharks of Aliwal Shoal, clearly illustrates the irony of using shark nets to increase tourism, noting the number of tourists who come to South Africa each year specifically to dive with sharks. "Sharks in South Africa contribute a significant amount of revenue to the South African economy and provide countless jobs," said Andersen. "Live sharks mean tourists, jobs, and money. And that is recurring income-not the one-time income generated when a shark is killed."
33,000 sharks, 200 turtles, 8000 rays and 2000 dolphins killed in shark nets. Over the last three decades, more than 33,000 sharks have been killed in the KZNSB shark nets. And if that's not alarming enough, 2,000+ turtles, 8,000+ rays, and 2,000+ dolphins were also ensnared and killed.
In addition to the countless deaths of sharks and other species caused directly by the shark nets, their impact on our collective psyches is damaging to shark conservation efforts worldwide. The very existence of shark nets perpetuates the myth that sharks are bloodthirsty man-eaters, and that humans require some form of protection from them. The installation of shark nets reinforces our misguided and often irrational fears of sharks by legitimizing these concerns as valid. This in turn fuels the biggest issue faced in shark conservation: the public's apathy, or even loathing, towards sharks.
It could be said there was once a time and a place for shark nets. Perhaps decades ago, when the public knew little about sharks, the fear of shark attacks was running high, and shark populations were far healthier than they are today. The practice of installing shark nets in South Africa began in 1952, when little was known about sharks, and humans had yet to spend the next 50+ years ravaging our oceans, causing irreparable damage and the collapse of species after species. The public wanted "protection" from sharks, and shark nets served this purpose.
Shark populations endangered. But since then, shark fishing has skyrocketed, eliminating a large percentage of the world's shark populations, and the public has been exposed to much information about the importance of biodiversity conservation and the true nature of shark behaviour towards humans. In recent years, it has been proven that a variety of non-lethal shark deterrents, such as the Shark Spotters program funded by private donations and the City of Cape Town, can be equally effective, and that animals need not be killed to allow for peaceful coexistence in their domain. The need for shark conservation is now a well-established fact, as is the fact these animals are significantly misunderstood, with the actual risk of an unpleasant shark encounter infinitesimal.
Shark nets are an unnecessary and outdated practice designed to address an issue that could easily be tackled in a non-lethal way, and they blemish South Africa's image as a world leader in conservation. It is time for a change. It is time to get these shark nets out of the water, once and for all.
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/shark-nets.html
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