August/September marks a significant milestone for the rhino species' fight against rhino extinction and the rewilding of Zinave National Park with rhinos. Conservation heroes have successfully reintroduced 27 rhinos, 20 white and 7 black rhinos in Mozambique. This period also saw the arrival of the first rhino calf born in the park in over four decades. In August, seven critically endangered black rhinos were safely translocated from Manketti Game Reserve in South Africa to Zinave National Park in Mozambique. This follows the successful reintroduction of 19 white rhinos to the park just two m ..read more

Report Summary In 2022, more than one thousand elephants are held captive around the world. In captivity, these enormous, complex, and sentient beings suffer immensely from debilitating mental and physical disease, great limitation of behavioral expression, restricted social opportunities, shortened lifespan, compromised fertility, and decreased birthing success. Despite growing evidence confirming the high prevalence of these issues within captive populations, zoos around the world continue to house elephants in captive conditions that negatively impact their individual welfare and even count ..read more

The vast, shimmering savanna, dotted with weather-beaten anthills, mountains, thorn trees and doum palms swaying on the banks of seasonal riverbeds, makes for a magnificent landscape. However, a battle for survival is taking place in this vast expanse of remote, pristine, yet arid terrain in the north of Kenya and isolated pockets of Ethiopia. The Grevy’s zebra is so rare that they are listed as an endangered species on the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) red list of threatened species. From a global population of 15 000 in the late 1970s, there are now just over 300 ..read more

The Atlantic puffin consistently ranks high in the list of  Britain's favourite birds and has been lovingly dubbed ‘The clown of the sea’. The Atlantic Puffin is one of the most recognisable seabirds in the world and has gained icon status due to its appearance and behaviour. Puffins sport a classic black and white plumage and stun eager bird watchers with their beautiful multi-coloured beaks throughout breeding season. They are known for looking comically awkward in flight as they have very short wings and a stocky body, but don’t be fooled: These excellent fishers reach speeds of up to ..read more

The Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae) is clinging to survival, with less than 300 remaining in the wild. Their Indonesian cousins, the Javan and Balinese tigers, have already been declared Extinct, and experts are concerned the Sumatran tiger will follow in their footprints. Sumatran tiger conservation status Sumatran tigers face multiple threats to survival, including widespread destruction of their habitats, which reduces their home range and their food sources. A shockingly common cause of death is the deliberate trapping and killing of Sumatran tigers for the illegal trafficking of ..read more

Exhausted as she coaxed the scaly little creature in her hands to open its mouth and drink from the tiny nipple, Maria Diekmann was happy. The weeks-old pangolin just fit in her hands and looked like a tiny anteater–only covered in scales instead of fur. Maria had flown 5,500 kilometers to Lagos, Nigeria to try and save the orphan pangopup’s life, along with that of four others. No one had ever successfully raised five pangolin pups and released them in the wild. Wildlife experts say they’re virtually impossible to rear in captivity. Easily startled, they’ll stop feeding and curl into a p ..read more

2022 is the year of the tiger according to the Chinese zodiac calendar. Despite this, the last century has witnessed the world’s wild tiger population devastated by both hunting and habitat destruction. Attempts to restore and rebuild the population, such as Project Tiger, have reputations for their status as some of the most successful conservation projects in the world - but figures have failed to reach their previous heights. The wild tiger population in India was estimated at 1,000,000 at the start of the 1900s. Since this time, the figure has been unstable, dropping to its lowest level in ..read more

The 2022 Living Planet Index report indicates an “average 69% decrease in the relative abundance of monitored wildlife populations between 1970 and 2018.” The WWF living planet index is published every two years. This year, it gathered information from almost 32,000 populations of 5,230 species across the planet and leaves no doubt that the global plans introduced so far to curb biodiversity destruction has fallen far short of the planned goals. The living planet index report mainly reports on the state of wildlife globally. It does so by monitoring wildlife populations where data provides his ..read more

It is not every day that you get a chance to see the fantastic work conservation heroes are doing to fight for an endangered species. I was fortunate enough to be given a tour by Romy Klusener, the head of SANCCOB’s bird rehabilitation program. Who is SANCCOB? SANCCOB was founded in 1968 to rehabilitate oiled penguins. Today SANCCOB is an African penguin and seabird sanctuary that looks after various coastal and pelagic species. African Penguin Facts The African Penguin’s scientific name is Spheniscus demersus. Also known as the ‘jackass’ penguin due to the donkey-like sound it makes, the Afri ..read more

Preliminary 2022 surveys indicate that the number of southern right whales between Hermanus and Witsand is better than in 2019, 2020 and 2021. Since their international protection in 1935, southern right whale population has increased substantially from a mere 60 reproductive females in 1920 to some 15,000 individuals. The South African population, which occupies seasonal calving and nursery grounds in the nearshore and protected waters of the southern Cape coast, is believed to be the largest breeding stock of the global population, comprising some 6,300 individuals. Southern right whale and ..read more