In support of World Tiger Day (29 July), Blood Lions has released an explosive video that puts the focus on the international trade in tiger body parts and makes the link to South Africa’s legal lion bone trade, in their latest campaign movement. Since 2008, nearly 7,000 lion skeletons weighing a total of around 70 […]

A stunning scene – featuring a rare (and sadly endangered) humpback dolphin – has been captured by Love Africa photographer Casey Pratt, off the KwaZulu-Natal coast in South Africa. Watch below. Casey says: “A large pod of dolphins were swimming by (on Friday) and with the clean water and early morning light I knew it would […]

Three people have declined to serve on a government panel. That’s not exactly news. But, given who they are and the panel on to which they were invited, their refusal has exposed major fault lines in South Africa’s treatment of wild animals.   The high-level panel was set up by the Minister of Environmental Affairs, […]

Rhino horn worth almost R116 million has been discovered at OR Tambo International Airport, according to the South African Revenue Service (SARS). A total 41 pieces of rhino horn were valued at R115.66 million in a consignment declared as “fine art” on Tuesday by customs teams aided by detector dogs. SARS said the consignment of […]

Over 622 youth from around the world have signed a letter calling on the South African Government to phase out captive predator breeding in South Africa. To commemorate Youth Day in South Africa, leading conservation organisation Blood Lions and Youth For Lions sent a letter on Friday to various Ministers of the South African Government […]

The Ministry of Environmental Resources, Conservation and Tourism in Botswana has issued a press release about the recent mysterious deaths of elephants in the areas around Seronga. Since March 2020, National Park Rescue reports 356 elephant deaths of which the Botswana government said 275 elephant carcasses have been verified. Investigations into the unexplained deaths of […]

The finalists for the prestigious 2020 Rhino Conservation Awards have been announced, featuring several South Africans. The winners will be celebrated in a virtual event on World Ranger Day on 31 July. These conservation heroes comprise the people and organisations who work constantly to reduce the threats and increase the sustainability of conservation efforts in […]

Three Critically Endangered African White-Backed Vultures have been successfully rehabilitated and released back into the wild by Wildlife ACT, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and Raptor Rescue; through the Zululand Vulture Project. (See video at bottom of page.) The release last week, following fantastic collaborative efforts, came after a spate of poisoning incidences ravaged Zululand last year. […]

Nature intended rhino to have horns… but thanks to an insatiable and totally misguided belief that that horn can cure illnesses, the rhino in Pilanesberg reserve have just been dehorned in the world’s largest rhino dehorning operation ever. It took nine days, two helicopters and 30 ground support staff per team (there were two teams) […]

It’s one of the most controversial poaching prevention measures, but dehorning rhinos to reduce their value for poachers, is a method that some conservationists believe simply must be employed. So when South Africa went into lockdown, two small expert teams in the Pilanesberg National Park in the North West, which has suffered several rhino poaching […]

Today is a big day for vulture conservation, with Wildlife Act and Raptor Rescue in South Africa, as they will be releasing three rehabilitated African White-backed vulture back into the wild after they were poisoned in Zululand last year. (Watch video at bottom of page of a vulture being released.) In spite of lockdown, conservation […]

Between 12 and 20 rare roan antelope tragically died last year in the Kruger National Park, South Africa, due to dehydration in the Nwaxitsumbe Roan Breeding Camp, the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries has revealed. A senior ranger has been dismissed for gross negligence in this regard. The information was given in response to […]

PETA US has revealed findings from its investigation into the fate of birds used in the gruelling South African Million Dollar Pigeon Race (SAMDPR) that expose the enormous suffering, deaths, gambling, environmental violations, and potential financial crimes involved in the event. PETA US discovered that all the birds entered by Queen Elizabeth II, a long-time […]

South Africa’s captive-bred lion industry will go down in history as one of the most shameful wildlife disasters ever created by humans on earth. While it continues to spiral into an increasingly corrupt trade, it drags down with it our country’s credibility as a reputable wildlife tourism destination… writes Environmental Writer Louzel Lombard Steyn. A […]

Supported by wealthy and powerful organisations like Safari Club International, the Dallas Safari Club and the National Rifle Association, and egged on by countless awards and record book listings, trophy hunters have gunned down 1.7 million wild animals in the past decade. Around 250,000 were endangered species. This is detailed in an alarming book, “Trophy […]

Four alleged poachers have been arrested in Uganda for the tragic death of a rare Silverback mountain gorilla, known as Rafiki. They claim it was self-defence. Rafiki belonged to the famous Nkuringo Gorilla group in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. At the time of his death the group had 17 members – one Silverback, three Blackbacks, […]

China has outlawed the use of pangolin scales in traditional medicine and upgraded pangolins to the same first-tier protection status as pandas, in a significant move that will hopefully protect the seriously endangered species. The delisting of pangolins from the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) pharmacopoeia was reported by China’s Health Times newspaper, according to The […]

In celebration of World Oceans Day yesterday, Shark Attack reached out to members of the public to get their views on the “bather safety nets” – aka shark nets – in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. There are currently 37 beaches along the KZN coastline that have “shark safety” gear installed. This shark safety gear is […]

A very large Squid – believed to be a Giant Squid – washed up on a beach in St Helena Bay on the West Coast of South Africa on Sunday morning. Adele MomNdele Grosse captured the following photos and video of the rare sighting. Adele told SAPeople it is likely the Squid – which measured […]

South Africa’s famous anti-poaching hero – an award-winning dog by the name of Killer – was sadly put down this morning due to ill health, according to the film makers of multi award-winning rhino documentary STROOP. Stroop said late on Friday afternoon: “Such sad news coming out of Kruger today: Anti-poaching hero, Killer was put […]

Diligent detective work by the Protected Resources Division (PRD) of the Namibian Police, has led to more poaching charges being registered against well known Prophet Jackson Babi… writes Niël Terblanché from Informante. Prophet Babi, the founder of the House of Joy Ministries, is currently in police custody in Namibia, on poaching charges that stem from […]

A plea has gone up for donations to help bring back to health a jackal that was close to death’s door after being held in a Bloemfontein petting zoo. “It is those two big pleading eyes that kept me up at night. Pleading for escape, pleading for relief of unimaginable pain, pleading for help!” said […]

Conservation groups from South Africa and around the globe have called on the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and their Global Tourism Crisis Committee to phase out close-contact wildlife encounters and entertainment practices in tourism to help build a more resilient and sustainable industry going forward…. writes environmental writer Louzel Lombard Steyn.  This as […]

With the war raging against rhino poachers, there’s a pilot in KwaZulu-Natal who is saving rhinos from the air and protecting a total of 1.8 million hectares of land in Northern KZN, South Africa. The video below features a day in the life of Etienne Gerber, a Zululand Anti-Poaching Wing pilot for Project Rhino. He’s […]

Rhino poaching in South Africa has (fortunately) suffered a significant decline during lockdown… although sadly it has not ground to an absolute halt, and could spike after the pandemic as poachers make up for their losses. But for now, the good news is that in April 2020 the Kruger National Park recorded the fewest rhinos […]