Belugas likely to be rehomed, anyhow. Marineland history suggests not holding breath unless swimming underwater NIAGARA, Ontario––Tentative good news about the fate of animals left by the 2024 closure of Marineland at Niagara Falls was offset within a week by more of the frequent bad news about Marineland that has emerged since Ontario animal advocate […]
Hunting lobby Michigan United Conservation Clubs goes bust
Would culling the Michigan hunter population have prevented the collapse? LANSING, Michigan––Once reputedly the most influential state-level pro-hunting lobbying voice in the U.S., the Michigan United Conservation Clubs are “dissolving after almost 90 years because of ongoing financial struggles,” reported Dan Basso on May 6, 2026 for the Lansing State Journal. The fiscal collapse of […]
Mule deer are again in Catalina Island Conservancy crosshairs
Mule deer are the major natural brakes on growth of tindery browse & grass, but conservancy wants to kill them all in the name of fire prevention AVALON, Catalina Island, California––The Catalina Island Conservancy, owners of 88% of Santa Catalina, California’s largest offshore island, as of January 30, 2026 has the go-ahead from the California […]
Big wins for elephants, rhinos, giraffes, sharks & falcons in Uzbekistan desert
The big loser at CITES Conference of the Parties 20 was the saiga antelope, native to host nation Uzbekistan SAMARKAND, Uzbekistan––Elephants, rhinos, giraffes, white-tipped sharks, peregrine falcons, and the Vantara captive wildlife sanctuary in Gujarat state, India, were among the big winners at the twentieth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the […]
Can more deer, goats, cows, elk, or wild horses really prevent wildfires?
Did the Grand Canyon Lodge burn because the Grand Canyon lacked hungry herbivores? GRAND CANYON, Arizona––A well-placed and well-timed bucket of water or the sudden, unexpected arrival of Smokey Bear can stop a wildfire before it gets started. Likely neither a bucket of water nor a bear, with or without hat and shovel, directed at […]
Texas House approves shooting feral aoudad sheep from helicopters
Texan cultural insecurity strikes again AUSTIN, Texas––The Texas House of Representatives on May 7, 2025 overwhelmingly approved a bill to allow hunters to shoot feral aoudad sheep from helicopters. “If the bill becomes law,” explained Austin American Statesman chief political reporter John C. Moritz, “aoudad sheep would join feral hogs among game animals who can […]
Tule elk win! Deal means cattle are to leave Point Reyes within 15 months
Nature Conservancy to pay ranchers $30 million to leave & take their cows with them POINT REYES, California––As wildfires erupted in the northern and northeastern Los Angeles hills on January 8, 2025, a much more hopeful story ignited in the coastal hills north of San Francisco, in habitat not much different from that of […]
Trump cabinet nominees Doug Burgum & Kristi Noem records on animals
Burgum favors fossil fuels, factory farming, & wild horses; Noem shot her dog, a goat, & three horses, then bragged about it in a book WASHINGTON D.C.––Whatever people in North and South Dakota think about animals on public lands, and human use of public lands, is very likely to be public policy during the second […]
Can guts of wolves & mountain lions purge North America of CWD?
Veterinarian Jim Keen suggests they can GRAND LAKE, Colorado––Five people spoke at an August 22, 2024 online media conference in support of the “Cats Aren’t Trophies” ballot initiative going before Colorado votes on November 5, 2024, but veterinarian Jim Keen, in particular, had a message ranging far beyond Colorado in ecological, economic, and humane significance. […]
Demo VP nominee Tim Walz hunts, but loves cats & is hated by gun lobby
Not as good a pro-animal record as Kamala Harris, but Donald Trump & J.D. Vance have none ST. PAUL, Minnesota––Introduced on August 6, 2024 as vice presidential running mate to Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, the current U.S. vice president, Minnesota governor Tim Walz does not bring to the ticket the same strong pro-animal credentials […]