10,000 Birds

AUGUST 12, 2015

Although lip service was paid to the fact that lions are endangered and a lion was poached, the language of anger was the language of animals rights. The killing of Cecil was equated with murder, a moral crime rather than a symptom of a ecological problem. This is of course an anathema for many in the animal rights camp.

Lions 206

Lions Hunting Sierra Leone Buffalo 206

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 18, 2013

When I was a preschooler, I wasn’t allowed to watch much television, but I did get a double-dose of public programming — the PBS station out of Buffalo and the CBC beaming across the border from Ontario both showed a lot of material that met with my mother’s approval and my own.

Woodchucks 169

Woodchucks Buffalo Massachusetts Fox 169

4 The Love Of Animals

MARCH 17, 2011

Grief, friendship, gratitude, wonder, and other things we animals experience. Scientific research shows that many animals are very intelligent and have sensory and motor abilities that dwarf ours. In many ways, human emotions are the gifts of our animal ancestors. Waterfall Dances: Do animals have spiritual experiences?

Emotional 100

Emotional Animal Whales Whaling 100

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 18, 2013

After checking with a docent to make sure that the bird wasn’t a hazard to the collection I watched it for some time – I even tried to take its picture, but the lighting was less than optimal and the camera in my phone somewhat potato-like. But in the end, being dead doesn’t protect an animal from mortality.

Elephants 156

Elephants Mammals Buffalo Gorillas 156

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2024

One night while camping in the Himalayas, the birding friend hears a Satyr Tragopan calling. He leaves the camp to look for the bird, and has never been seen again. Birders will ask: did he see the bird? Is birding a dangerous sport, an extreme sport even? She died in a car accident during a birding trip.

Mozambique 217

Mozambique Birds Ghana Namibia 217

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 4, 2013

I will address two of them in the new year, namely, “Is hunting moral at all?” In the past I have attributed some of this conflict to differences between the conservation mindset and that of animal rights/animal welfare. It may not be the preferred solution for many, but it works.

Tigers 172

Tigers Hunting Game Protection 172