21 Jun 2013   Posted by NWCU1

“Durban – A convicted rhino poacher who was found guilty of the murder of his accomplice, even though he did not fire the gun, has been effectively jailed for 21 years. On Thursday Ingwavuma Regional Court magistrate, MA Khumalo, sentenced Wawito Mawala to 15 years for the murder of his hunting companion, Erasmo Mazivele. Mawala […]

 21 Jun 2013   Posted by NWCU1

“MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine government workers used a backhoe and an incinerator Friday to crush and burn more than 5 tons of smuggled elephant tusks worth an estimated $10 million in the biggest known destruction of trafficked ivory outside Africa. The government said that the destruction of the stockpile, gathered from seizures since 2009, demonstrates […]

 20 Jun 2013   Posted by NWCU1

“Conservationists fear a colony of endangered sea birds on the North East coast could be wiped out after eggs from breeding pairs were stolen. Durham Heritage Coast wardens said about 50 eggs from 65 nesting pairs of little terns had been taken from the site at Crimdon, near Hartlepool. The organisation’s Niall Benson described the […]

 20 Jun 2013   Posted by NWCU2

“LIES over birds he hadn’t bred led to the downfall of disgraced former National Birds of Prey Centre owner Keith Beaven. Investigators revealed how a routine inspection at a wildlife centre uncovered Beaven’s crimes, for which he avoided jail on Tuesday. Beaven, 68, told buyers of endangered Black Kites he had bred them at the […]

 18 Jun 2013   Posted by NWCU2

“A gamekeeper from southern Scotland has been fined more than £4,000 for poisoning a buzzard and possessing illegal pesticides. Peter Bell, 62, of Newton Stewart, admitted four contraventions of the Wildlife and Countryside Act. He committed the poisoning offence by lacing a pheasant carcass with carbofuran in December last year at Glasserton Home Farm near […]

 18 Jun 2013   Posted by NWCU2

“The former owner of a bird-of-prey centre has been given a suspended prison sentence for stealing rare owls. Keith Beaven, 68, of Staunton near Gloucester, was convicted last month of stealing six owls and also illegally selling three protected black kites. He tricked zoos into thinking he ran the National Birds of Prey Centre near […]

 16 Jun 2013   Posted by NWCU1

“Big cat sightings around the UK are usually presumed by most of us to be a hoax or a case of mistaken identity. But not everyone is able to play fast and loose with such claims. Wildlife crime officer Dean Kingham has had several calls from people believing they have seen dangerous predators roaming the […]

 15 Jun 2013   Posted by NWCU2

“The clearance of part of an area of outstanding natural beauty by contractors working for the National Grid is being investigated by Kent Police. About a third of an acre of scrubland at Bredhurst, near Maidstone was cleared by contractors working for the National Grid last week. Locals claimed that the work had killed protected […]

 14 Jun 2013   Posted by NWCU2

“Police are hunting thieves who snatched three kestrel chicks from Conisbrough Castle.  The birds, a protected species, were taken from their nest yesterday afternoon and both South Yorkshire Police and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds have been alerted to the theft. The chicks and their mother have become a popular attraction at […]