Freelance wildlife writer, editor, and proofreader.
The home of an enthusiastic wildlife and environmental content creator
Every year, I am honoured to be invited back to Dr Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots Awards. Last month, I flew back from Germany earlier than planned to attend the ceremony at London’s Continue reading “Another wonderful year at Dr Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots Awards”
On 30 March every year, millions of people around the world switch off their lights for an hour at 8:30pm in a pledge to help save our planet. Some of the globe’s biggest landmarks get involved in the movement too, with Australia’s Sydney Opera House, France’s Eiffel Tower and Scotland’s Edinburgh Castle all going dark for the event.
Continue reading “Will you be switching off your lights for WWF’s Earth Hour?”
Every year, on 22 March, people around the world mark World Water Day. This year’s theme is “Leaving no one behind” inspired by Sustainable Development Goal 6 – a promise that everyone shall have access to clean, safe water by 2030.
On our planet, at this very moment in time as you read this article, billions of people are living without the safe water they need to survive. By definition, safe water doesn’t just refer to whether it is clean or dirty; safe water is water that would be suitable for consumption, free from contamination and readily available on premises such as homes, schools and workplaces.
Many people refer to these majestic creatures as peacocks but did you know that is actually the name for the male of the species? These birds are called peafowl with the males known as peacocks and the females being peahens. Here are ten more fascinating facts about these incredible birds…
1) Peacocks fan out their lengthy feathered trains, which can measure up to 2.2 metres long, to attract the females. Their “eye-spots” are called ocelli.
I was made aware of Beth’s story when in discussion with a fellow guest at this year’s Dr Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots Awards in London last week. From the brief story I heard, I knew I had to find out more about her eye-opening campaign and short film on the cub petting industry, so got in touch with Beth myself. Here’s what she had to say…
C: How would you describe Claws Out?
B: Claws Out began as an awareness blog and soon snowballed into a full time role as a Campaign Manager for IAPWA (International Aid for the Protection & Welfare of Animals). The entire entity stemmed from my experience as a volunteer in 2015, hand rearing lion cubs after being led to believe that I was contributing towards conservation. It’s now the charity’s only lion welfare campaign, raising awareness about the plight of lions in South Africa Continue reading “Spotlight: Claws Out founder, Beth Jennings, reveals the truth behind cub petting”
On 18 March, my article on last week’s climate change strikes went live on Rev. Rebecca Writes.
Both Rebecca and I have a passion for animals and the world we share with them, and it seems that thousands of others also share our enthusiasm in working to protect and conserve our planet for future generations. More than 2,000 protests took place around the world, stretching from North America to Asia. This landmark global movement was inspired by a 16-year-old’s passion and determination to take a stand and make her government listen.
Continue reading “Taking a global stand against climate change: my guest post”
Every year on the 8 March, females are celebrated for their brilliance and amazing achievements, and the issue of inequality and bias is brought to the forefront.
This International Women’s Day I want to raise awareness of the strong, powerful and overall amazing females of the animal kingdom.
Despite being better known as the ‘King of the Jungle’, it’s actually the female African lions who lead the prides. They spend their whole lives in the area they were born in giving them the advantage of knowing where all the best hunting grounds and watering holes are. They are also pretty good at defending their cubs against aggressive adult males (who commonly seek to kill cubs belonging to other males to ensure the survival of their own offspring), hunting and protecting their territory.
Continue reading “International Women’s Day – celebrating the females of the animal kingdom”
Since 2013, the 3 March has been recognised as UN World Wildlife Day – a day in which the world’s wild animals and plants are celebrated with the aim of raising awareness of their existence, the benefits of conservation efforts and, quite often, the risks these animals are facing.
Last week, video footage emerged of a local rugby team playing tug of war with a lion at Dartmoor Zoo in Devon, UK.
Marketed as “human vs beast”, visitors as young as eight-years-old are given the opportunity to pull a rope running underneath a gate into the enclosure of a big cat, which has a chunk of meat attached to the other end, enticing the animal to bite and pull back. The ‘experience’ costs £15 per person although it is not advertised on the zoo’s website raising animal welfare concerns. Continue reading “Zoo offers tug of war with a lion”
This week four endangered northern bald ibis, who were bred at ZSL London Zoo, were safely transported to Spain. This is where they will soon be released as part of a special conservation project, which is helping reintroduce these unique looking birds to Europe.
The quartet – who were lovingly nicknamed Iris, Indigo, Igor and Ivan by the zoo’s keepers – hatched last year. On 20 February, they travelled to Southern Spain’s Jerez Zoo where they will learn how to be wild before being released in Andalucia.
The species vanished from Europe almost 300 years ago. It’s now believed that there are just 600 northern bald ibis left in the world, reduced to one small part of Morocco (and two breeding pairs in Syria) where they are threatened by habitat loss, hunters and pesticides.
“We’re really hopeful that they’ll go on to breed in the wild – ultimately securing the future of the species” said Paul Atkin, ZSL London Zoo’s bird keeper.
To find out more about the northern bald ibis, head to birdlife.org
Freelance wildlife writer, editor, and proofreader. 