I spent some time this week looking into ways to get involved in otter conservation, and I’ve found a number of activities which run the gamut from pressing a few buttons on your computer to spending some time hanging out in a stream. I’ve divided them up into several categories- hopefully you find something that […]
Archive for the ‘Carnivores’ Category
Putting otters in the clear
A shallow, unaltered stream runs through it
In my last post, I mentioned that habitat degradation and human-caused mortality were some of the biggest issues facing river otters. Recent research has tended to support those views, while providing more detail about where, how, and when those issues loom largest. We’ve also seen that otter populations can recover with protection, but there are […]
On a downhill slope
As I started looking into the condition of river otters around the world, it became obvious that a lot of the information out there deals with otters in Europe and North America– I would say easily 90% of what I’ve read so far. In some ways that’s helpful, because it means that researchers have been […]
We otter pay attention?
Making room for large carnivores
Over the last few posts, I’ve mentioned that a number of groups around the world are working to reduce human-carnivore conflict- some of those strategies have been more successful than others, but we do have a better sense of what helps limit conflict, both from the human and the wildlife perspective. To get insight into […]
The large carnivore in the room
In the past few years there has been an emphasis on assessing what makes a carnivore conservation effort successful (or not) and what the long-term prospects are for the variety of strategies in use. The reality is that there is no magic bullet or guarantee of success, but we certainly have a better sense of […]
What it means to live large
When looking at large carnivore conservation this past week, it became evident that there are lots of layers to this topic. It’s about more than habitat availability or prey populations- it also includes the individuality of species and human attitudes. To begin with, there is the nature of carnivore ecology– these animals have large home […]
Is there room at the top?
A friend of mine recently returned from a year of field work in the Southwest- she’s investigating how carnivore species respond to each other and different levels of human activity in an arid environment. Some of the pictures from her camera traps make me completely jealous- she’s dealing with mountain lions and badgers and ringtails, […]
Does it really help to be on the A list?
As I mentioned in my last post, species listed on Appendix I of CITES are not permitted in international commercial trade. These are species which are threatened with extinction if trade continues. Trade is allowed only for non-commercial use and under exceptional circumstances. In order for the specimen to be transported internationally, first an import […]
Building a better dingo house
Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen that dingoes play a variety of roles in the environment, and the extent and importance of those roles is hotly debated by researchers. Dingoes may help native wildlife by keeping exotic predator numbers down, but they may also prey upon threatened species in Australia. Dingoes are apex predators […]