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Over the last five years, CCF has conducted multiple large-scale camera trapping surveys to get a better understanding of where carnivores are located in Namibia’s central-eastern landscape. This vast and remote area is notably understudied, despite the region’s critical position in proximity to the southern African conservation network, particularly the massive Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA), the largest transboundary conservation area on the planet. Placing camera traps across this vast landscape was challenging, and researchers often relied on the help of local communities and the use of detection dogs to find signs of carnivores. And, the camera traps revealed some very interesting results! Dominant predators - like lions and spotted hyenas - were largely missing, indicating a substantial shift in the historic carnivore community in the region. In their place, we found smaller brown hyenas to be widespread, while African wild dogs and cheetahs showed clear habitat preferences. Wild dogs preferred areas of high vegetation productivity, while cheetahs favored areas with sufficient grasslands. Leopards, known for their adaptability, were found in rugged and vegetated areas away from humans. The changing carnivore population in Namibia reflects the challenges faced by wildlife in areas that are shared by animals and humans. While the absence of top predators, including lions and spotted hyenas, is troubling, the presence of more adaptable species, like African wild dogs, cheetahs, brown hyenas, and leopards, does offer hope. These species are finding ways to persist in human-dominated landscapes, their survival is still threatened by the encroachment of people – and livestock. The findings demonstrate the need for developing conservation strategies that consider multiple species together – while also recognizing that different species have specific habitat needs and preferences. Thank you Clive Johnson and B2Gold Corp. for your funding support over the past 4 years.

Over the last five years, CCF has conducted multiple large-scale camera trapping surveys to get a better understanding of where carnivores are located in Namibia’s central-eastern landscape. This vast and remote area is notably understudied, despite the region’s critical position in proximity to the southern African conservation network, particularly the massive Kavango-Zambezi  Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA), the largest transboundary conservation area on the planet. Placing camera traps across this vast landscape was challenging, and researchers often relied on the help of local communities and the use of detection dogs to find signs of carnivores. And, the camera traps revealed some very interesting results! Dominant predators - like lions and spotted hyenas - were largely missing, indicating a substantial shift in the historic carnivore community in the region. In their place, we found smaller brown hyenas to be widespread, while African wild dogs and cheetahs showed clear habitat preferences. Wild dogs preferred areas of high vegetation productivity, while cheetahs favored areas with sufficient grasslands. Leopards, known for their adaptability, were found in rugged and vegetated areas away from humans. The changing carnivore population in Namibia reflects the challenges faced by wildlife in areas that are shared by animals and humans. While the absence of top predators, including lions and spotted hyenas, is troubling, the presence of more adaptable species, like African wild dogs, cheetahs, brown hyenas, and leopards, does offer hope. These species are finding ways to persist in human-dominated landscapes, their survival is still threatened by the encroachment of people – and livestock. The findings demonstrate the need for developing conservation strategies that consider multiple species together – while also recognizing that different species have specific habitat needs and preferences.   Want to learn more? https://lnkd.in/ducKAVSp

Penguin Colony Eaten to Extinction by Foxes Returns After 30 Years: https://lnkd.in/gpWvnfnK There are invasive species just about everywhere these days, but Australia's native fauna have been especially hit hard. While the continent has some native mammalian predators, it lacks the sheer number and diversity of predatory species found in many other areas. The vacuum left when native predators were eradicated in large areas of their ranges by European colonists left the door open even wider to invasive predators like foxes, rats, weasels, and feral dogs and cats. These non-native mammals have contributed to the extinction of several of the 100 Australian species that have gone extinct in the past 230 years. Many more are threatened with extinction due to ongoing predation by invasive animals, among other environmental pressures. Predator-proof fences like those used to protect the Eden colony of kororā/little penguins (Eudyptula minor) are one of the tools conservationists have used to create safe spaces for endangered species. By keeping invasive predators out, the fence in Eden now gives the reintroduced penguins a fighting chance. Unfortunately, fences also keep individual populations of animals separated, which can decrease genetic diversity. The fences are a short-term solution, but continuing eradication of invasive species will likely be necessary in order to allow native Australian wildlife to thrive outside of these artificially delineated havens.

Are you taking any steps to protect our Endangered Species? 🐻 "Endangered species are those species that are at risk of extinction due to sudden population reduction or habitat destruction" We are the guardians of wildlife and it's our responsibility to protect and preserve the incredible diversity of wildlife that graces our planet.🌍 Together we have the power to be the stewards of a thriving and balanced ecosystem. If you want to learn more about the 10 most Famous Endangered species click below: https://lnkd.in/guGUnw8Y #ecosystems #endangeredspecies #protection #wildlifeconservation #wildlifeonearth #savewildlife #habitat #animals #linkedingrowth #linkedinpost #linkedincontent #contenteditor

On June 28, 2007, the United States removes one of its most commonly-used national symbols from its List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. The de-listing of the bald eagle, which had been close to vanishing from North America around the middle of the 20th century, was one of the most notable wildlife rehabilitation efforts in American history. Sacred to some Indigenous American cultures, the bald eagle is the national bird of the United States and features prominently in its iconography. Despite its significance, the bird's population declined rapidly over the first half of the 20th century. Use of the common pesticide DDT, which negatively affects bald eagles' fertility and the strength of their egg shells, was a major factor in this decline, but there were a variety of others, including hunting, poaching, electrocution by power line, pollution, and the destruction of large swathes of their natural habitat. The overall population in the lower 48 states, estimated to have been around 400,000 in the 1700s, had declined to fewer than 1,000 by the 1950s. Congress banned the commercial trapping and killing of bald eagles in 1940, strengthening restrictions in the '60s and '70s. The ban of DDT use in the U.S. in 1972, and its heavy restriction in Canada, also helped revive the species, as did the protective powers afforded the government by the 1973 Endangered Species Act. After being reclassified from “endangered” to “threatened” in 1985, the bald eagle’s de-listing in 2007 represented a major victory for wildlife preservationists. 

We just released our Wetlands Status and Trends report, and our findings show that more than half of wetlands in the lower 48 states are gone, and losses continue. Loss rates have increased by 50 percent since 2009. Without additional conservation actions taken to protect these ecosystems, wetland loss will likely continue, reducing ecosystem benefits for people and habitat for fish, wildlife and plants. Wetlands are one of the most productive and biodiverse habitats, with 40 percent of all plant and animal species living or breeding in wetlands. Threatened and endangered species are no exception, with approximately half of all Endangered Species Act species in the United States being wetland dependent. Read the full report here ▶️ https://ow.ly/w49P50R0erI Photo at Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge by USFWS

Imagine #animals dying for something as simple as too much salt in their water? The only reason we need to ‘manage’ #wildlife is because of us.   Without humans, more wildlife would flourish.   This article reminds me of this fact.   We must find better ways of doing things and remember we are part of an eco-system and not entitled to all. https://lnkd.in/gyteNTq4

PLEASE HELP to keep Grizzly Bears protected with the Endangered Species Act. 🖋️ ↙️ TAKE ACTION https://lnkd.in/emNsXpQA “ The federal government is currently deciding whether it will remove Endangered Species act protections for grizzly bears living in the Northern Continental Divide and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystems. Yellowstone National Park’s iconic wolves have already been slaughtered by trophy hunters—entire packs have even been wiped out—and Yellowstone, Grand Teton and Glacier national park grizzly bears could be next. Thanks to their ESA protections, grizzly bears have slowly begun to recover their numbers. Yet with fewer than 2,000 individuals in the lower 48 states, it’s critical that they retain these protections if they are to survive. If grizzly bears lose those protections, those three states will undoubtedly allow trophy hunting and the bears cannot survive the inevitable carnage. We don’t have a moment to lose if we want to save this iconic species from extinction. TAKE ACTION NOW! Please take a moment to contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and urge them to keep grizzly bears protected under the Endangered Species Act.” Also, sign 🖋️ petition in protest of railroad Grizzly Bear deaths in protected areas of Grizzly Habitat ↙️ https://lnkd.in/eEbw9u3W I AM AN ANIMAL TOO, HERBIVORE BY DESIGN #lifemattersforall All life matters as all matters are intrinsically connected to all life on Earth 🌍 (?)•> ( )”~ * <”\ \/“> ^••^ ~•> ‘0‘ <•\ (!)

Why does wetland loss matter? For starters, it impinges on public health by decreasing supplies of #cleanwater, reduces opportunities for hunting, fishing and ecotourism, and makes the practice of cultural traditions more challenging. Only have a few minutes? Scroll this StoryMap 🔎 https://arcg.is/zH0v9

The findings of the latest Wetlands Status and Trends report are stark, and they underscore how potentially damaging the impacts of the #SackettvEPA decision could be for wetland habitats across the country. Without state protections for wetlands, more of these incredible ecosystems will be lost. Learn more about what's at risk – and what Environmental Defense Fund is doing about it – here 👉 edf.org/wetlands #SCOTUS #wetlands #flooding #habitat #wildlife #climatechange #floodrisk #habitatloss #biodiversity #naturalinfrastructure #naturalclimatesolution #naturebasedsolutions