Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center January 2015 newsletter

JANUARY 2015

Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center CONSERVATION 路 EDUCATION 路 PRESERVATION

Darlene and Makah

TIGERS

Encouraged By the Tiger Farming Industry, China’s Wealthy are Rediscovering a Taste for Tiger-Based Products and Making Poaching more Lucrative In Asia by Simon Denyer

IN PERIL Guilin, China - To the thump of loud music, four tigers roll over in succession and then raise themselves up onto their haunches.

A man in a shiny blue shirt waves a metal stick at them, and they lift their front paws to beg. The “show” takes place twice a day in a gloomy 1,000-seat auditorium -- empty on a recent afternoon except for one Chinese tourist, two reporters and a security guard, its uneven floorboards, broken seats and cracked spotlights painting a picture of neglect. Outside, hundreds of tigers pace in small, scrubby enclosures or lie listlessly in much smaller, concrete and rusted metal cages. An occasional plaintive growl rends the air. This is the Xiongshen Tiger and Bear Mountain Village in the southern Chinese city of Guilin, one of the country’s biggest tiger farms. It is part of a booming industry that is threatening to drive this magnificent animal toward extinction in the wild, conservationists say, by fueling demand for “luxury” tiger parts.

Encouraged by the tiger farming industry, China’s wealthy are rediscovering a taste for tiger bone wine -- promoted as a treatment for rheumatism and impotence -- as well as tiger skin rugs and stuffed animals. That trend, in turn, is making tiger poaching more lucrative across Asia. Wild tigers |2|

are cheaper to kill and smuggle across borders than captive bred ones and often preferred by consumers.

Farming has removed any stigma from tiger products and undermined global efforts to stamp out the illegal trade. “The argument put forward by the tiger-farming lobby is that farmed tiger products will flood the market, relieving pressure on wild tigers,” said Debbis Banks of the Environmental Investigation Agency. “This is a ridiculous notion and has turned into a disastrous experiment.”

Tiger numbers globally might have stabilized in recent years, yet they are still perilously low. Wild tigers are dying in record numbers in India, their main habitat, with many killed by poachers to satisfy demand from China. The next two years could be crucial, environmentalists say. With calls for change increasing both within the country and outside, China is reviewing its 25-year-old wildlife law and asking itself: Will it stand on the side of its domestic tiger-farming lobby, or will it stand on the side of wild tigers and global public opinion? Under global pressure, China banned trade in

There are thought to be between 5,000 and 6,000 tigers on about 200 farms in China

tiger bone and rhino horn in 1993, while traditional Chinese medicine practitioners also removed the products from their pharmacopeia.

Conservationists say the moves tamped down demand and helped stabilize the population of Siberian tigers in north Asia. But by then, China’s tiger-farming industry was beginning to take off. Tigers are easy to breed in captivity, and their numbers went from a handful to a few hundred and then thousands.

Today, there are thought to be between 5,000 and 6,000 tigers on about 200 farms in China, mostly born into captivity and many kept in appalling conditions -- compared with less than 4,000 of the animals left in the wild. Among them are Siberian (or Amur), South China and Bengal tigers. Chinese wildlife officials have been campaigning for international approval to lift the ban on tiger bone use, arguing that the country has a right to use its “domestic natural resources” as it sees fit. Even as the rest of the world disagrees, it appears that China has simply gone ahead anyway. Multiple probes by the EIA and International Fund for Animal Welfare over the past decade, together with The Washington Post’s own investigation, show the tiger bone wine industry has boomed.

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COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER | JANUARY 2015

wine, and taxidermists started selling tiger pelts, it really stimulated waning demand from consumers,” said Grace Ge Gabriel of the IFAW. Xiongshen alone says it house more than 1,000 tigers -- although fewer than 200 are available for tourists to view -- and 500 bears, legally farmed to extract their bile for a different wine. It presents itself as a tourist destination, but its bleak animal enclosures and show -- where bears also twirl hula hoops around their necks and cycle unsteadily across uneven floorboards, while a goat balances nervously on a high beam with a monkey on its back -- barely attract an audience. In a building on the compound, the farm’s real money-spinner is on sale.

Bottles of wine, in the shape of tigers, list as a main ingredient the bones of “precious animals” and of African lions. Even the name on the bottle -- “tonic bone wine” -- uses a Chinese character that rhymes with the word for tiger. Everything is designed to tell consumers this is tiger bone wine, without saying so. Across town, retailers are more open, boasting that the tiger-shaped bottles do indeed contain wine in which tiger bones have been steeped. A bottle left to mature for 3 years sells for the equivalent of $80, 6 years of $155, while a vintage 8-year wine retails for $290. Even more grisly than the trade in wine and skins was a report from Leizhou in southern China in March that police had busted a gang who would slaughter tigers in front of a paying audience of local officials and businessmen. At least 10 were killed on separate occasions, according to police. They would then be sold for parts and meat, a prized delicacy at some banquets.

4-H tour bus from around the states and Hawaii to do a tour at the Center

Beautiful Keara

JANUARY 2015 | COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER

Prints in the snow

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Plan Your Next Visit

2015 Calendar of Events FULL MOON TOURS

FULL MOON FEEDING TOURS

March 7............................ March 6 and 8 April 4.................................. April 3 and 5 May 2.................................... May 1 and 3 May 30.............................. May 29 and 31 July 4.....................................July 3 and 5

JANUARY 31st

Full Moon Tour, BBQ and Bon Fire

NEXT

EVENT

FEBRUARY 14th

Valentine’s Day Event MAY 10th

August 1..................July 31 and August 2

Mother’s Day Celebration

August 29.....................August 28 and 30

JUNE 21st

September 26........September 25 and 27 October 24.................October 23 and 25 November 28.......... November 27 and 29 December 26......................December 27

OCTOBER 31st

Howl-O-Ween Event NOVEMBER 26th

STANDARD FULL MOON TOUR

Meet and greet Keyni - our ambassador wolf before the tour. Tour starts immediately after and lasts approximately 1 hour. One Saturday night a month!

FULL MOON FEEDING TOUR

Father’s Day Celebration

This tour combines our FEEDING TOUR with our FULL MOON TOUR. The Friday before and Sunday after our regular Full Moon Tours.

Thanksgiving Turkey Toss DECEMBER 20th

Winter Wonderland

Visit our website for more information.

All special events,full moon tours and full moon feeding tours are pre-pay.

RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED

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COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER | JANUARY 2015

JANUARY 2015 | COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER

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LOBOWEEK returns! 23-29

MARCH

It’s almost that time of year again! Time to celebrate the 17th anniversary of the return of the lobo its ancestral home in the wilds of the Southwest. This anniversary offers the perfect opportunity to raise awareness for the lobo!

Wolf Conservation Center | nywolf.org

The Return of #LoboWeek!

On March 29, 1998, 11 captive-reared Mexican gray wolves (Canis lupus baileyi) were released to the wild for the first time in the Blue Range Recovery Area of Arizona and New Mexico. Missing from the landscape for more than 30 years, the howl of the rarest and most unique subspecies of gray wolf, was once again greeted by the mountains of the southwest. This month, marks the 17th anniversary of this historic event, a significant milestone for the lobo and wildlife conservation. In recognition of the anniversary, we’re bringing back #LoboWeek! #LoboWeek, an international awareness building movement. So far the 2013 and 2014 #LoboWeek celebrations have been extremely successful in educating people about the Mexican wolf and our efforts to successfully restore this critically endangered species to the wild.

Become a Partner!

Starting March 23rd, we’re enlisting Wildlife Organizations, Zoos, Advocacy Groups, Businesses, individuals and more to come together with one common purpose - to raise awareness for the most genetically distinct subspecies of gray wolf in North America, the Mexican gray wolf. #LoboWeek is harnessing the power of social media to broaden our reach to and create a national moment.

All week (March 23rd-29th) #LoboWeek partners are dedicating time to the lobo on Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and all other social media; offering information, fun facts, special events, contests and more. If you don’t have anything planned yourself, it’s an opportunity to promote other awareness building campaigns/events around the country and in Mexico. |6|

The Plan It’s up to you how you choose to celebrate, but by following the simple steps below, our united efforts can help #LoboWeek take its place on the calendar and help make history!

FACEBOOK during March 23 – 30: • Step One: Update your Org’s Cover Photo (the banner photo, not profile picture) to reflect something related to the lobo. For larger orgs with a diverse collection this may be more difficult, but if the change is only for one week, perhaps it won’t raise too many hackles. Each org can use whatever photo they choose.

• Step Two: Overlay the SOON –TO-BE-AVAILABLE #LoboWeek logo (it has a transparent background) on your cover photo. The logo reflects no affiliation with a single org, it’s a neutral tool that if used by all #LoboWeek partners, will strengthen the impact of this unified educational movement.

• Step Three: A commitment from each partner to post about lobos. It need not be every post. Posts can be educational facts, introduction to the lobos they house, articles, contests, games… whatever works for that partner. I encourage sharing posts among the campaign partners and promoting lobo related events among the partners.

TWITTER during March 23 – 30: • We can connect on Twitter by using hashtag #LoboWeek on all lobo related tweets • Retweeting partner’s tweets is a great way to show that our mission to educate people is united effort.

PRESS BLITZ! This anniversary gives us all the perfect excuse to contact CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER | JANUARY 2015

local or national press. We all have diverse relationships with lobo recovery so we can offer the press varied points of view! Not only is the anniversary an opportunity for press about the lobo, it’s also a good reason to offer the press news about your participation in the campaign and lobo recovery, and the recovery program itself, and your organization.

Orgs hosting breeding pairs or upcoming release candidates will have a special story to share.

QUOTES NEEDED FOR PRESS – I am working with Zoe Helene (a writer, Huffington Post blogger, etc..) to expand the impact #LoboWeek and she looking to start collecting (now) some short but strong quotes from participating org representatives about the Lobo and about Loboweek. Please email me if you are interested so I can connect you to Zoe. Please let me know what you all think and share the campaign with any other orgs you think would be interested in participating!

Cheers, Mags | maggie@nywolf.org PS - If you need help creating banner photos, please let me know. Also, please let me know (maggie@nywolf.org) if your org can participate so we can track the growth of the #LoboWeek movement and share with supporters, press etc..

New Federal Rule Makes It Easier to Kill Mexican Gray Wolves Endangered Earth | Center for Biological Diversity www.biologicaldiversity.org

Mexican gray wolfA U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rule issued Monday caps the number of Mexican gray wolves in Arizona and New Mexico at 325, bans them north of Interstate 40, and eases the path for private parties and government agents to kill them. Although the rule expands the animals’ room to roam and allows releases of captive-bred wolves into New Mexico for the first time -- which could help alleviate inbreeding -- the other provisions will damage the lobo’s long-term recovery.

The agency announced a second rule Monday that protects Mexican wolves as a subspecies separate from other wolves, entitling them to their own recovery plan. Both new rules stemmed from petitions and lawsuits filed by the Center for Biological Diversity.

“The Mexican gray wolf recovery program has been hamstrung from the start, and this new management rule doesn’t go nearly far enough to fix the problem,” said the Center’s Michael Robinson. “Capping the population and keeping them out of the Grand Canyon and northern New Mexico will keep the lobo on the brink of extinction.”

We’ll be fighting back against those bad provisions. Stay tuned for how you can help.

JANUARY 2015 | COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER

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Thanks again for the amazing experience!!

The pictures are awesome- this one is one of my favorites- Kekoa is such a beautiful boy :) Thank you again, Patty Hsu

Sunning in the snow...

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COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER | JANUARY 2015

ADOPT ME FROM TCRAS: the no-kill shelter in Divide, CO 719.686.7707 · tcrascolorado.com BUZZ - Are you looking for a youngster to mold and train and make your best friend forever? Well look no further, Buzz here and I am just your guy! I am full of energy and need an active home. I just love my people time so much I am boiling over with excitement when it is my time for attention! I will benefit from some further training and hope you have the patience to help me learn. I am a pretty fun guy and hope my forever family is out there!

ZENA - Please excuse me if I do not come out from my cube to greet you. I am declawed and that has left me feeling defenseless and a bit scared. Once we get to know each other I would appreciate a good chin scratching, or even behind my ears. I am not so comfortable being held, but will sit in, or near, your lap for that chin scratching I am looking forward to. I am a middle aged gal, who is set in her ways, and likes to lounge from place to place. I am not one who likes to play a lot, I just enjoy my human companionship and a good spot to watch the birds!

Please do not let me outside, I can not fend for myself and feel much safer in an indoor environment. I do hope you are the one to give me a chance, it seems like you understand my ways and are looking for a cat to love forever. Please let that be me!!!

REGGIE

ADOPT ME FROM SLV Animal Welfare Society · slvaws.org 719.587.woof (9663) Non-Profit Shelter · Monetary Donations Always Needed

Remus & Romulus. They are orphans. Their mother was shot and killed. About 12 weeks old lab/dalmatian/ boxer. Sweet, sweet. Mom was about 50 lbs.

Incredible 2 year old Husky/Shepard mix. Extremely intelligent and strong. Likes to listen and please.

Neutered, micro chipped, up to date on all vaccinations, including kennel cough. At 70lbs, he’s a big guy, but very gentle! He likes to stay close to his people. Runs like there is no tomorrow. He’s had some obedience training. He likes the work—and getting treats for his efforts—and would do well in a home where he can continue working on obedience skills. He is crate trained, house trained, stays off of furniture, and knows to only chew on his toys. He would do best in a house without other dogs.

JANUARY 2015 | COLORADO WOLF AND WILDLIFE CENTER

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working together to make a difference “We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.”

We are five 7th-grade boys on a FIRST Lego League team, named Master Mindstormers. FIRST® is a worldwide organization that provides an opportunity for kids, ages 9 to 18, to compete in areas related to science and technology. This year’s theme is “World Class.” Teams were required to come up with an innovative way to teach someone about something.

Our team researched wolves and learned that wolves are beneficial to the environment, but they have been brought to the brink of extinction in North America. It became clear to us that wolves are stereotyped. We then researched the concept of stereotype and decided to develop a boardgame as an innovative way to expose kids to this idea and how stereotyping affects our lives.

Our board game simulates the environment and shows the players what happens if they act on stereotypes. In the beginning of the game, the players draw three event cards, which require them to make decisions on how to treat the wolves.

Based on their decisions, populations of wolves, elk, coyotes, rodents, and trees change. To introduce an element of surprise, each fourth card that the players draw is a season card, which also affects the environment, but the players have no influence over the outcome. After playing sixteen cards, players use their environmental tiles to illustrate what kind of environment they created, good or bad. They then play the game again, but with a different deck of cards. These cards include not just questions, but also facts, so players can base their decisions not just on the stereotype of the “big-bad wolf,” but on real facts. In the brochure that comes with the game, there are discussion points, which gradually introduce the concept of stereotyping humans through the story of the wolves.

We believe that our game offers an innovative way to introduce the concept. The traditional solution today is to discuss stereotypes and discrimination, using specific people as examples, which can be very uncomfortable. Our game is different because it provides a NON-threatening, NON-intimidating, and NON-embarrassing way to explain what stereotypes are and to show the negative impact they have on our lives.

We have created a website to help kids learn about stereotypes and about the importance of wolves in our environment. The website also makes our game available to a wider audience. theothersideofthewolf.weebly.com.

~ Immanual Kant

Natural Resources Defense Council www.nrdc.org

www.aza.org www.projectcoyote.org

“An animal’s eyes have the power to speak a great language.” www.bornfreeusa.org

~ Martin Buber

Mexican Grey Wolves www.mexicanwolves.org

www.defendersofwildlife.org

For current wolf articles and to be a voice through knowledge

WILD EARTH GUARDIANS

www.wildearthguardians.org

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