World Pangolin Day Reminds Us That The Clock Is Ticking For The World s Most Trafficked Mammal
A pangolin hunting for ants on the ground.
Lions with their four-inch long canines and a deadly bite are designed to kill. But sometimes even these apex predators surrender to the natural, impenetrable armor of the pangolin, a creature that weighs no more than 10 pounds but has a network of overlapping keratinous scales covering its whole body. When threatened, the pangolin curls up into a tight ball with the exposed scales deterring the predators. Unfortunately, however, this defense mechanism of pangolins is the cause of their demise in the hands of humans, making pangolins the world s most trafficked mammals.
FREEZING temperatures and snowfall have hindered land owners’ efforts to complete the annual Big Farmland Bird Count. The Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust has had to extend the wildlife survey so people can do the count safely. More than 1,500 people took part in the event last year, as land owners are being asked to go outside for half an hour and count the birds they see. It usually ends today, but now people can continue the count until February 21. The GWCT’s Dr Roger Draycott, who organises the event, said: “We have heard from a number of farmers and gamekeepers that they are keen to complete the count, but the weather has so far been unsuitable or unsafe.
);
The 2021 GWCT Big Farmland Bird Count is underway. From today (February 5) until Valentine’s Day farmers and land managers across the country will be picking up their binoculars and heading to a corner of their land to spend 30 minutes counting birds. And it is not too late to get involved.
The event, organised by the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT), is a nationwide survey of farmland birds undertaken voluntarily by farmers and land managers. Last year more than 1,500 people took part.
Participants are asked to spend just 30 minutes recording the birds they see on their land and submit the results to the GWCT for analysis. The count helps to identify the farmland birds that are flourishing and the ones most in need of support.
How just 30 minutes on your farm could bolster conservation efforts
Farmers in Northern Ireland are encouraged to set aside just half an hour to get counting and join the Big Farmland Bird Count (BFBC).
Taking place from February 5 to February 14, 2021, the initiative run by the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust aims to show the public the positive impact farmland management has on protecting bird numbers – especially endangered species.
Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) deputy president David Brown will be among those taking part this year.
“The BFBC goes from strength to strength each year. In 2020, it was very promising to see bird count records being broken, especially considering the unprecedented circumstances,” Brown said.