WcP Blog

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Conservationists are expressing outrage after an official in Germany ordered hunters to shoot the first wild bison seen in the country in more than two centuries. Calling the killing a criminal offense, the World Wildlife Fund says it will file charges against the official who gave the order, the Local reports.

“After more than 250 years a wild bison had been spotted again in Germany and all the authorities could think to do is shoot it," says Chris Heinrich, a WWF board member. The bison was seen by the river Oder near the eastern town of Lebus on Wednesday. Thinking the beast was a threat to public safety, a local official sent a pair of hunters to take care of it. It was unclear if any of them knew the European bison is classed as a "vulnerable" species and on Germany’s list of "strongly protected animals." The victim was likely a bull that had wandered across the border from Poland from its home in a national park. While they may be the continent's largest land mammals, weighing up to 2,200 pounds, the bison are not considered dangerous. If they were, says the local environmental minister, then "half of Poland, where the animal is a national symbol, would have to be declared a danger zone." Hunted to near extinction in Europe in the early 20th century, the bison are making a comeback thanks to conservationists, with more than 1,200 now roaming around Poland, per the Telegraph, which published a video showing bison fleeing, then standing up to, a pack of wolves. (The US bison is the country's first national mammal.)  read more »

"The Constitution is the guide which I never will abandon." - President George Washington

Image courtesy Fox News

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6 September, 2017
A temporary restraining order Wednesday spared a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee from being taken down — just hours after the Dallas City Council signed off on the removal.

14 September, 2017
A statue of Robert E. Lee was removed from a Dallas park Thursday after a series of delays that included a brief court stay and a fatal accident involving a crane assigned to remove the statue. Fox 4 News reported that workers took nearly three hours to remove the statue from its pedestal and place it on a trailer that would take it to a storage facility until a final decision is made on the statue's fate. Fox 4 News reported that workers took nearly three hours to remove the statue from its pedestal and place it on a trailer that would take it to a storage facility until a final decision is made on the statue's fate.

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Photo courtesy Fox 4 News

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Hurricane Harvey wreaks historic devastation: By the numbers
The remnants of Hurricane Harvey continued to dump rain on several southern states nearly a week after making landfall in Texas as the most powerful storm to hit the mainland in over a decade.

Harvey's torrential rain, devastating winds and widespread flooding have so far cost at least 39 lives, driven over one million people to evacuate their homes in Texas and caused extensive destruction that will likely make it one of the costliest storms in U.S. history.

Here is a look at the storm's historic devastation, by the numbers:

More than 20 trillion gallons: That's the total amount of rain that fell across Texas and Louisiana, a staggering deluge that represents enough water to supply New York City's needs for over five decades.

$125 billion: Texas Gov. Greg Abbot said his state will need federal relief money "far in excess" of that total. Moody’s Analytics has estimated $97 billion in destruction alone and some $108 billion in total damages counting lost output.

51.88 inches: The amount of rain recorded at Cedar Bayou on the outskirts of Houston in just under five days, marking a new record for the heaviest rainfall for a storm in the continental U.S., according to the National Weather Service.

3: The number of times Harvey made landfall– twice as a hurricane in Texas and once more as a tropical storm in southwestern Louisiana.

185,149: Homes estimated to be damaged or destroyed by Harvey, according to Friday’s data from the Texas Division of Emergency Management.  read more »

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The son of Cecil the Lion, the beloved animal killed two years ago by a Minnesota dentist, was shot dead near a Zimbabwe park, officials said.

Lion guardians at the Hwange National Park posted on Facebook Thursday that Xanda, a 6-year-old lion with a family of young cubs, was shot dead a few days ago. He was killed not far from where Cecil died.

"Today we heard that a few days ago, Xanda, the son of #CecilTheLion has been shot on a trophy hunt," the post read.

"We can't believe that now, 2 years since Cecil was killed, that his oldest Cub #Xanda has met the same fate," the park's lion guardians wrote on Facebook. "When will the Lions of Hwange National Park be left to live out their years as wild born free lions should."  read more »

Natural paradise: real-life Robinson Crusoe reveals 20 years alone on a desert island after losing his fortune has a surprising upside
David Glasheen, 73, lives happily on Restoration Island, off North East Australia, with his dog Polly. The former millionaire moved to the idyllic island in May 1997 after losing his fortune in the stock exchange crash of 1987.

The ex-gold mining tycoon and property magnate, who at his most successful was worth an estimated £22million, now lives in a wooden beach shack with only his loyal dog Polly for company.

But despite having limited electricity, fresh water and facing regular battles against deadly wildlife, the bearded exile insists he feels safe on the island.

Self-sufficient David, who was born in Sydney’s Northern Beaches to an Irish family, added there is nowhere he’d rather be than on his "heaven on earth" natural paradise.

He said: "I want to die here - where else would I? This is my heaven on earth.
When I came here I was sick of money - money is what makes people sick - and my marriage had broken apart."

The wilderness was named by famous seafarer Captain Bligh, who stopped at the island to restore his crew's health in 1789 after a mutiny on board the ill-fated Bounty.  read more »