As spring brought budding trees and new shoots to Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina, it also brought renewed hope for the survival of the red wolf, the most critically endangered canid in the world.
Since a victory by AWI and allies in a lawsuit to limit coyote hunting in the red wolf recovery area (see AWI Quarterly, summer 2014), the US Fish and Wildlife Service has continued to sabotage its own once-successful red wolf recovery program, in apparent capitulation to a small, but very vocal group of individuals opposed to red wolf recovery.
Red Wolf Revival made its debut in Washington, DC, on February 22 at the Carnegie Institution for Science, followed by a panel of speakers that included filmmaker Roshan Patel and representatives from AWI, Defenders of Wildlife, and the Wildlands Network.
The red wolf (Canis rufus) once ranged throughout the eastern and southcentral United States. Now, however, it is the most endangered canid in the world, and one of the rarest mammals, due to intensive predator control programs, degradation and alteration of its habitat, killing by hunters who mistake red wolves for coyotes, and the abandonment of the Red Wolf Recovery Program by US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).
In late April and early May, four adult captive red wolves were released into the Red Wolf Recovery Area in eastern North Carolina, and four red wolf pups born in captivity were fostered to a wild female red wolf in the recovery area. This marks the first time since 1998 that adult red wolves were released directly into the recovery area from captive breeding facilities and the first time since 2014 that red wolf pups from the facilities have been fostered into the wild.
As the country continues to battle COVID-19, the Biden administration is taking steps to strengthen the nation’s commodity supply chains and ensure increased resiliency against major disruptions in the future.
Rabbits can be affectionate companions. They are not, however, naturally predisposed to feel at ease around humans. In a laboratory setting, in particular, being approached and subsequently scruffed by an unfamiliar human is likely to induce fear and stress responses - and possibly skew research data.
Although grizzly bears are listed as provincially threatened in Alberta, the Rocky Mountain subpopulation of grizzly bears, which includes the bears in southwestern Alberta, is increasing. In southwestern Alberta, conflicts between grizzly bears and agricultural activities have increased over the last 15 years, and the distribution of conflicts is spreading east.
In January 2018, a report released by the World Health Organization’s newly minted Global Antimicrobial Surveillance System revealed widespread antibiotic resistance among people with suspected bacterial infections in nations around the world.
Handling procedures for macaques assigned to re search often involve two circumstances that trigger anxiety and fear in the subjects: removal from the home environment and involuntary restraint. Common responses to this situation include a variety of distress reactions [1,2] that not only affect the well-being of the macaque but also the validity of research data [3-18].
Refinement techniques were developed for caged research rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) in order to better foster the animals' behavioral health and well-being. Individuals were transferred from the traditional barren single-cages to compatible pair-housing arrangements in double-cages furnished with perches, gnawing sticks and custom-made food puzzles.
AWI President Cathy Liss joined Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) and other animal welfare advocates in August at DuPage County Animal Services in Wheaton, Illinois, as Krishnamoorthi announced the introduction of legislation designed to protect animals from unscrupulous dealers and exhibitors and close loopholes in the US Department of Agriculture licensing process.
Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) has remained steadfast in her determination to end use of inhumane traps in the United States, but has shifted the focus of her legislation to our nation’s refuges.
A survey conducted by the FWS revealed that more than half of all refuges allow trapping of wildlife. Trapping on the NWRS is allowed for predator control, facilities management, population management, recreation, commerce, and subsistence. Most of the trapping conducted by private citizens on refuges occurs for “commercial” and “recreational” purposes, according to the FWS.
The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) endorses the Refuge from Cruel Trapping Act, reintroduced today in the US House of Representatives by Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Congressional Animal Protection Caucus Co-Chair Earl Blumenauer (D-OR).
The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) commends House Appropriations Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) for reintroducing the Refuge from Cruel Trapping Act today. This bill would prohibit the possession or use of body-gripping traps—which endanger wildlife, people, and pets—within the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS).
The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) commends House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Congressional Animal Protection Caucus Co-Chair Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) for reintroducing the Refuge from Cruel Trapping Act today.
Following a successful legal battle, conservation groups hope the recent release of nine highly endangered red wolves into the wild is the first of many steps by the US Fish and Wildlife Service needed to save the world’s rarest canids that now number as few as 15 known animals in the wild.
A bill introduced Friday by Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) seeks to ban the use of wildlife-killing M-44 devices, commonly known as “cyanide bombs,” on federal public lands. These deadly devices—spring-loaded capsules armed with cyanide spray—have injured people and inhumanely killed thousands of animals every year.
Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR), introduced the Targeted Use of Sanctions for Killing Elephants in their Range (TUSKER) Act on September 11, a bill to impose trade sanctions on countries that facilitate ivory trafficking.
On July 30, Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) introduced the Polar Bear Cub Survival Act (HR 7876). Polar bears are one of many species facing ongoing threats from the oil and gas industry.
