A Heartwarming Bear Story
A rampaging wild bear, the first seen in Bavaria in more than 170 years, has been shot dead by a hunter, a spokesman for the local authority in the region of Oberbayern said on Monday.

The young brown bear, known as "Bruno," drew widespread media coverage and was initially welcomed after it wandered across the border with Austria.

But authorities gave hunters the green light to kill the 100-kilogram (220.5 lb) beast after it went on a rampage, slaughtering dozens of sheep and chickens.

Authorities said the bear's hunt for food was taking it ever closer to inhabited areas and it was therefore a threat to the safety of residents.

Germany's animal protection agency in Bavaria called the decision to shoot the bear "hysterical," but a spokesman for the World Wildlife Fund said the beast could not be left out in the wild as it was too dangerous.

Gabriel Schwaderer, director of the European Nature Heritage Fund, said on Monday he regretted the shooting.

"We consider the decision by the Bavarian government to be wrong, because it was based only on the fact that the bear was getting close to human habitation," Schwaderer said.

"If this is to be the yardstick for the right to life of brown bears then the outlook is bleak for European bears."
- nostradamusfunkadelic, 1:42 PM | (0) comments |

 
Chinese CHL Volunteers need to Cowboy-Up
Folks, this is a horrible failure! These are goddamn pandas, for chrissakes!

Beijing, June 21. (PTI): A new study suggests that China may have more giant pandas living in the wild than the previous estimates, the state media reported on Tuesday.

The research, has found that the number of wild pandas in the Wanglang Nature Reserve, southwest China's Sichuan Province, climbed to 66 from 27 in 2002.

It was jointly carried out by the Institute of Zoology (IOZ), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Wanglang Nature Reserve, Sichuan Forestry Department and Cardiff University of the United Kingdom.

The research has utilised non-invasive techniques, including microsatellite DNA profiles from 370-plus faecal samples collected at the reserve and neighbouring regions, says Wei Fuwen, director of the Centre for Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, IOZ, who has led the team in the last two years.

Traditionally, the census on giant pandas relies on the analysis of bite size of bamboos found in their faeces combined with their home-range, which is hard to track, he was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.

Since the 1970s, China has carried out three national surveys on giant pandas. The first two found declines in panda population across their range in south-western China.

However, the third survey, completed in 2002, showed for the first time a recovery of the endangered species, thanks to protection measures taken by the Chinese Government, including the setting up of a network of nature reserves and strictly enforced prohibition on poaching and deforestation.

The 2002 census showed that there were 1,596 wild giant pandas living across China, mainly in the over 40 reserves spread across Shaanxi, Sichuan and Gansu provinces. The number of captive giant pandas was 161.
- nostradamusfunkadelic, 9:13 AM | (0) comments |