WIN!

CANON 10X32
BINOCULARS
WORTH £1,299
See page 30
THE MAGAZINE FOR WWF MEMBERS SPRING 2018

IN THE LINE OF FIRE

How you’re helping to protect Africa’s elephants
from the devastation caused by poaching

OUR CHANGING WORLD FUNDRAISING YOUR WAY CHASING SHADOWS

A warming climate is affecting the Five inspirational stories of Stunning photos of the
planet’s most precious wildlife – supporters doing something majestic but secretive
see how we’re rising to the challenge they love for our planet jaguar in its forest home
 CONTENTS
STANDING UP FOR OUR PLANET TOGETHER, WE DID IT!
A round-up of all you’ve helped
4 FUNDRAISING, YOUR WAY 26
Big or small, do something you
There are few more heartwarming sights than that of us achieve in recent months love to raise funds for something
a mother African elephant tenderly helping her calf to we all need: our amazing planet
discover the world. But sadly, elephant families and WWF IN ACTION 6
other precious wildlife are increasingly threatened by Environment news, including our OVER TO YOU 28
an unprecedented spike in the illegal wildlife trade, work to ban the UK ivory trade Your adventures at sea and other
which could overturn decades of conservation great ways you’ve helped to
successes. It’s the biggest direct threat to many ELEPHANTS UNDER ATTACK 10 support our vital work
of the world’s most threatened species – and We explore the devastating
that’s why it’s our priority to stamp it out. impacts of poaching on these GIVEAWAYS 30
Thanks to your support, we’re tackling intelligent and social animals Win an incredible pair of
the illegal wildlife trade on the ground Canon 10x32 binoculars, worth
and beyond – supporting anti-poaching BIG PICTURE 16 £1,299, and a beautiful snare art
teams, developing new preventative An extraordinary insight into the bracelet from our shop
technology and improving intelligence nightly antics of a giant anteater
gathering for prosecution. But this year CROSSWORD 31
we want to do even more. FINDING THE SHADOW CAT 18 Solve our crossword to win a
For many species, life will be made Mysterious and elusive, jaguars copy of a new British wildlife
more challenging by climate change, are seldom seen. But they’re still photo book
which is altering natural environments hunted for the illegal trade
quicker than animals, plants or people NOTES FROM THE FIELD 31
can adapt. But with you on our side, OUR CHANGING WORLD 22 WWF’s Melanie Lancaster
we’re already helping to fight these We explore how climate change experiences close encounters
global crises. will affect some of the planet’s of the polar bear kind in the
We need your continuing support most precious wildlife Canadian Arctic
now more than ever. This is the year
we must all take a stand for the planet
– to create an unstoppable movement
that will end the illegal wildlife trade
by 2030 and radically reduce our MEET THIS ISSUE’S CONTRIBUTORS
impact on the climate. We can do it. DREW MCVEY MELANIE NIKI RUST
is our wildlife LANCASTER, is our expert
crime expert our expert on on how
in east Africa. Arctic species, climate
He’s seen first hand the encountered more polar change is likely to impact
devastation caused by bears than she expected on species. She says:
poaching. He says: “It feels in the Canadian Arctic. “Climate change will affect
like an arms race. I’ve seen She says: “I felt lucky to everything we know and
things out here that are see them, though local love, so we have to act
too horrific to share, but communities have to live now to reduce our impact
we’re making a difference.” with them every day.” on our precious planet.”

GET IN TOUCH MEET THE ACTION TEAM

COVER: © TIME BASED ARTS / ALL MIGHTY PICTURES | © MARTIN HARVEY / WWF
Editor Jessie-May Murphy
supportercare@[Link] editor@[Link]
Editorial assistant Jessica Wood
01483 426333 Loyalty marketing manager Ruth Simms
WWF-UK Living Planet Centre, Senior editor Guy Jowett
Rufford House, Brewery Road,
For Immediate Media Co.
Woking, Surrey GU21 4LL
Consultant editor Sophie Stafford
Art editor Nicole Mooney
FOLLOW US Account manager Kirsten Coleman
[Link]/facebook Design director Will Slater
[Link]/twitter Editorial director Dan Linstead

[Link]/pinterest THANKS TO OUR CONTRIBUTORS

[Link]/news Valeria Boron, Katherine Elliott,
Ellie Goulding, Barney Jeffries,
They’re strong and smart, but [Link]/youtube Melanie Lancaster, Drew McVey,
vulnerable and in need of our help. [Link]/instagram Alejandro Prieto, Niki Rust, Mike Unwin
Today, more African elephants are
killed by poachers than are being born,
but with your support we can give
calves like this one a safer future Produced in association with Immediate Media Co. [Link]
THANK YOU

TOGETHER, WE DID IT!

“The Arctic is in a changed state.
With your support, we’re tackling
climate change head on and helping
to stabilise it for future generations”
Thanks to your membership, we can help ROD DOWNIE, WWF-UK’S HEAD OF POLAR PROGRAMMES

protect wildlife and wild places. Here are

6 Lancaster So
und
suppor ts 6,5 00

some of the great things supporters like

© WWF-CANADA
bowhead wh
ales
and 75% of th

3
e
world ’s narw
you have helped achieve hals

1 KAZAKHSTAN 1 6 CANADIAN ARCTIC

YOU HELPED US PROTECT ARCTIC WATERS

YOU HELPED BRING TIGERS HOME 2 Thanks to your support, one of Canada’s most wildlife-rich
Wild tigers will finally return to Kazakhstan Arctic areas will be protected. Lancaster Sound is a vital area
70 years after going extinct there. Last September, the of water through which huge numbers of belugas, bowhead
Kazakhstan government announced plans to restore
4 whales, walruses and narwhals migrate. The open water here
these iconic cats to their former range in the Ili-
Balkhash region, as part of a joint tiger reintroduction
5 stays ice-free all year round and is an important feeding ground
for marine mammals. After more than 30 years of negotiations,
plan with WWF. If the plan is successful, Kazakhstan last August it was announced that the area would be designated

1,000–1,500
will be the first country in the world to restore wild a National Marine Conservation Area, and that its boundary
tigers to a region (central Asia) – where they were driven would be extended, making it the largest marine protected
to extinction more than 50 years ago as a result of habitat area in Canada. Traditional Inuit knowledge helped decide
loss, uncontrolled hunting and poaching. The programme exactly which area needed protecting. The result will protect the
will require the restoration of an immense forest integrity of the entire ecosystem. It will prevent waste dumping
bordering Lake Balkhash and the reintroduction of tiger and oil and gas exploration in the future. The expansion of the
prey species, such as Bactrian deer and wild donkeys. The area was only possible because Shell voluntarily relinquished
The number of river
area will be designated as a new nature reserve to protect its 30 energy exploration permits after our colleagues in Canada
rare wildlife and safeguard this vital ecosystem. The first dolphins experts believe launched a lawsuit in 2016. This removed one of the greatest

© MARTIN HARVEY 2010

step is to work with the Kazakhstan government to tackle are killed each year to supply the threats to the region.
poaching, train rangers and engage local communities. international market for mota fish
FIND OUT MORE at [Link]/lancaster
© ISTOCK

The planned reintroduction will contribute to securing a

future for these big cats in the wild.

5 ECUADOR
2 NEPAL 3 SCOTLAND 4 COLOMBIA

YOU HELPED PROTECT SNOW LEOPARDS YOU HELPED YOU HELPED PROTECT AMAZON RIVER DOLPHINS YOU HELPED PROTECT AN IMPORTANT WETLAND
Last August, three years after we launched our campaign to secure better
Last August, Nepal made conservation history when it SCOTLAND TAKE Thanks to your support, we helped persuade the Colombian protection for Ecuador’s largest wetland, the Cuyabeno-Lagartococha-
became the first country to launch a landscape-scale
management plan for snow leopards that considers CLIMATE ACTION government to ban the sale of a fish that’s deadly to Amazon river
dolphins – and people. Fisherfolk targeting a scavenger fish called
Yasuní complex was finally designated as a Ramsar site, which means
it’s now recognised as a wetland of international importance. Measuring
the effects of climate change. Thanks to you, we’ve You took action – and politicians listened! Last May, we launched ‘mota’ in Colombia and ‘piracatinga’ in Brazil have been catching a massive 7,700 sq km, the new wetland protected area is nearly three
been working closely with the Nepal government to the #OurFuture campaign asking the Scottish government for a river dolphins so they can use their flesh as bait to attract the times larger than Ecuador’s other 19 Ramsar sites combined – increasing

© ALAMY
safeguard this elusive species and its habitat, which strong Scottish Climate Act. We called for tougher targets to reduce fish. As the fishery has expanded, more dolphins are being killed, the country’s total to more than 10,000 sq km. The designation will give
is home to the headwaters of 20 major rivers in emissions and new policies on transport, energy efficiency and mainly in Brazil and Peru, to supply commercial markets in other this priceless network of rivers, swamps and lagoons – and threatened
© AMAZON RIVER DOLPHIN, RIO NEGRO, BRAZIL

Asia, on which millions of people depend for farming. And you helped. Thousands of you had your say during the countries including Colombia. Mota is avoided in Brazil as it eats wildlife such as Amazon river dolphins, giant otters and manatees
fresh water. The landscape management consultation. Just a few months later, Nicola Sturgeon announced carrion and can contain – an extra layer of protection. The new site incorporates parts
plan will be used as a model by all 12 plans to phase out new petrol and diesel cars by 2032. Transport dangerous levels of toxic of two of Ecuador’s most biodiverse regions – the Cuyabeno
snow leopard range countries and will is the biggest contributor to climate change in Scotland, and air mercury. As a result of Wildlife Reserve and the Yasuní
pave the way for achieving the goal of pollution affects the health of thousands of people every year. this, Brazil banned fishing National Park – and conserves
securing 20 snow leopard landscapes Getting fossil fuel vehicles off our roads will help cut climate change and the commercialisation critical corridors connecting the
by 2020. With your support, we’ll emissions and clean up our polluted air. The Scottish government of mota in 2015, and we’re basins of four key rivers. With
help Nepal implement the plan also announced new low emission zones and a ban on fracking. thrilled Colombia has your support, we’ll now help to
© ISTOCK

and assist others to follow suit. This wouldn’t have happened without your support. Thank you. now followed suit. enforce this protection.

4 | Action Spring 2018

 WWF IN ACTION WWF IN ACTION

ELEPHANTS AND

© DAVID PARRY / WWF-UK

Ellie Goulding has seen at

THE IVORY TRADE

first hand the effects of our
warming climate on the

90%
Arctic. So she’s supporting
WWF’s Earth Hour 2018

Our recent challenges and triumphs for wildlife and the environment

Decline in the number

of African elephants
in the past century

54,000+
More than 54,000 ivory
CLIMATE CHANGE

EARTH HOUR 2018: MAKE A PROMISE FOR THE PLANET

pieces were exported This Earth Hour (24 March) we’re is true. We have the solutions, we just need to act
On average, around 55 African from the UK between asking everyone to make an Earth Hour on them. And, at WWF, we think Earth Hour is
elephants are killed every Promise and pledge to make one simple a great place to start.
2005 and 2014

1,165
day so that their tusks can be change for our precious planet We’re asking individuals, businesses and
carved into religious objects and
decorative items. Here, a worker Earth Hour is the world’s greatest global communities to join us in making an Earth
in a Chinese factory finishes a movement for climate action, and every Hour Promise, a commitment to make one
piece symbolising prosperity
year it gets bigger and better, thanks to you. simple change to your lifestyle for our planet.
ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE Turtles, elephants and polar bears are just some You could switch to green energy, introduce a

TACKLING THE IVORY TRADE IN THE UK

of the animals we love that will be in serious meat-free day to your week, ditch plastic bags or
trouble because of climate change – their invest in a reusable coffee cup. It might seem like
habitats may change more than they can live something small, but together our actions are
Between 2009 and with (find out more on page 22). immensely powerful.
In great news for the fight against ivory. The UK has also been identified as a The consultation closed last December, 2014, at least 1,165 You’re already helping us to tackle some of Let us know your Earth Hour Promise at
the illegal wildlife trade, the British transit country for illegal ivory, and in recent and we want to make sure the government the impacts of climate change – but we know [Link]/earthhour and we’ll provide you
government has announced it will ban years seizures of illegal items have increased. delivers on its commitment and confirms the
ivory objects were you want to do even more. Around 90% of the with all the tips and tools you need to make your
the sale of ivory in the UK in an effort On World Elephant Day in August last ban within the next six months. seized entering the UK people who supported Earth Hour last year were promise count, for Earth Hour and beyond.
to help stop elephant poaching year we launched our #StopIvoryTrade Tanya Steele, our chief executive, says: inspired to take action to protect the planet.

3,200
Around 20,000 African elephants are petition, which calls for a ban on the legal “The illegal wildlife trade is a global problem And never has there been a more crucial time. Earth Hour 2018 takes place on Saturday
killed every year to feed the global ivory ivory trade in the UK to avoid fuelling the requiring global solutions: to truly end Many of us read about environmental and 24 March at 8.30pm. So switch off your lights
trade – that’s an average of one every 26 global demand for ivory. By February, when it means ending it everywhere. We will conservation issues and feel helpless to change and share your Earth Hour Promise with
minutes. Today, more African elephants are this issue of Action went to print, more than continue to work with them. As individuals, we may think that the us on Twitter using #EarthHourPromise.
being poached than are being born. 60,000 of you had already signed up. global leaders, other power is out of our hands. But the exact opposite Find out more at [Link]/earthhour

128 20
This appalling slaughter continues due to After much campaigning, we welcomed organisations and

tonnes
A 2016 survey by
the global demand for ivory, which is carved
into jewellery and ornaments. Despite an
the government’s announcement last
October about plans to ban the UK ivory
communities around
the world to stamp TRAFFIC found 3,200 NEWS IN NUMBERS
international trade ban, elephant tusks trade. The proposed ban does include out the illegal ivory items for sale in
continue to be smuggled by criminals – some possible exemptions for antique ivory wildlife trade,
mostly to Asia, and especially China, items, including musical instruments, and safeguard the
shops in London
where ivory is a status symbol. items of significant cultural value and those future of elephants

CHINA, THE US
Currently, British law allows trade in containing only a small amount of ivory. everywhere.” On average,
© BRENT STIRTON | INSET © ISTOCK

‘antique ivory’ carved before 1947, and The government also launched a public
20 tonnes of
THE TRUTH
AND HONG KONG
in items worked before 1990 that have consultation – the first time the British
The number of solar street pangolins and their parts
government certificates.
The problem is some ivory from the UK
public had ever been given the opportunity
to comment officially on ivory trade
ABOUT IVORY lights we’ve helped install in have been trafficked
is legally shipped to Asia, where demand is regulations (and the possible exemptions). Discover the 10 things you villages in the Sundarbans. internationally every
Other legal domestic The lights discourage tigers from entering year, according to
driving the poaching crisis. Recent evidence Thank you to everyone who took part need to know about the
has shown that the UK’s legal ivory market and shared your personal responses ivory trade and the UK at ivory markets have been villages close to the forest and help local new research by
has been used as a cover for trade in illegal to the proposed ban. [Link]/ivoryblog or are being closed people without reliable electricity. TRAFFIC and IUCN.

6 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 7

WWF IN ACTION WWF IN ACTION
PICTURE STORY

© DAVID PARRY / WWF-UK

INQUISITIVE PORPOISE
Harbour porpoises are shy and elusive mammals,
and rarely feature in underwater photographs. So
the judges of the 2017 British Wildlife Photography
Awards (BWPA) – which we sponsor – were swept
away when they saw this beautiful image by
Melvin Redeker. Melvin says a pod swam straight
ACTION INTERVIEW towards his boat “with the speed of little torpedos”

ELLIE GOULDING
off the island of Yell in Shetland. Their high jinks
and fast turns made it almost impossible to get
International musician a sharp photograph, but after countless blurred
© RICHARD STONEHOUSE

We built a spectacular images Melvin captured this glorious moment.

river garden in the Ellie Goulding has once again With your support, we’re working to protect
joined our call for action on
Houses of Parliament
to get MPs talking the crucial areas off Britain’s coast that these
about cleaning up our
precious waterways climate change for Earth Hour delightful animals use to feed and breed.

FRESH WATER 2018. We found out why Discover the winning images from last year’s

NEWS IN BRIEF
competition at [Link]/bwpa2017
she’s so passionate…
NATURE NEEDS WESTMINSTER WHEN DID YOU DISCOVER We’ve got an

YOUR LOVE OF NATURE?

egg-cellent
Last October, we created a river garden management practices, and abstraction. And to way to
in the Houses of Parliament as part of our call for better protection for these precious places. Growing up in the countryside gave me help shy
albatrosses
campaign to clean up the UK’s waterways The opening ceremony of the exhibition an innate love and affinity for the world
and put nature at the heart of politics, was hosted by our chief executive Tanya Steele around me. It’s only when you’re taken
where it belongs and MP Angela Smith, and attended by MPs away from it that you realise how much it
Our rivers are amazing – they’re teeming from across England and Wales. It launched has a positive and grounding effect on you.
with life, from water voles to kingfishers. But a week of public events celebrating our rivers. It amazes me to think I took it for granted.
our recent sewage report, Flushed Away, found In an overwhelming show of support for our NEW NESTS FOR SHY BIRDS
ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE
WHEN DID YOU FIRST WORRY
that 80% of rivers in England and Wales are #NatureNeedsYou campaign, more than 7,000 The shy albatross only breeds

TRACKING RHINO
unhealthy and 55% of these are polluted with of you wrote to your MPs about the importance on three tiny islands off the
raw sewage. This affects our wildlife – 13% of of your local rivers. ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE? Tasmanian coast. But warmer
As climate change became prevalent
HORN TRAFFICKERS
Britain’s freshwater species are now threatened But as we prepare to exit the EU, we’re calling and wetter conditions, caused
with extinction. for political commitment to the environment, in the news, I immediately tuned into by climate change, are making
To draw politicians’ attention to these and for MPs to demonstrate that the health it. I am concerned and I feel everyone poorly constructed nests fall
problems, we transformed the Upper Waiting of British rivers is at the forefront of political else should be too. The science is there, A new report has revealed disturbing apart and chicks overheat.
Hall of Westminster into a beautiful indoor river decisions and negotiations. the information is there, we know it’s evidence that criminals are now carving So we’ve helped make 120
garden with a bridge, live plants and recorded happening. The ways you can change your rhino horn into beads, bracelets and artificial nests that are less likely
birdsong. Our aim was to get people talking about KEEPING RIVERS FLOWING life to help alleviate its effects are easy – powder in South Africa to evade detection to collapse or allow chicks to
what you eat, drink, wear and drive are all

© MELVIN REDEKER / BWPA 2017 | © WILDLIFE JUSTICE COMMISSION | © MATTHEW NEWTON / WWF-AUS
the issues our waterways are facing – including Find out how you’re helping to protect UK The report by TRAFFIC, the only global overheat. Breeding pairs have
pollution, unsustainable agricultural and land rivers at [Link]/ukrivers life choices that affect the environment. organisation focused on wildlife trade monitoring, started using the nests and we
documents recent police raids that seized carved Most horn is destined for consumer markets hope they’ll help more chicks
WHICH SPECIES ARE YOU rhino horn beads, bangles and bags of horn in Vietnam and China. survive. [Link]/albatross
MOST CONCERNED ABOUT?
TIGER TEAMWORK
powder in South Africa. The criminal networks that transport it are
The thought that future generations won’t
The discoveries reveal an emerging trend that dynamic and highly adaptable. Smugglers come BETTER SHARK PROTECTION
could exacerbate Africa’s rhino poaching up with endless new ways of hiding the Last October, the silky shark
see the species and habitats we take for
Wild tigers have a new team on their side. We’ve crisis. Evidence suggests Chinese horns, such as disguising them as and all three species of thresher
granted today is awful. Polar bears are Rhino
agreed a groundbreaking partnership with Hull criminal syndicates are now toys, ornaments, or hiding them in shark were given official
so dependent on the health of their Arctic horn made
City Tigers football club. Since 1904, when the processing rhino horn in South car engines and electronics. This protection by CITES. They were
habitat. I don’t want my children to grow up into bowls, cups,
club was founded, more than 95% of the world’s Africa – turning it into shavings new trend is just one more way of added to Appendix II, which
learning about species that became extinct jewellery and other
wild tigers have been lost. We want to double their and powder, and carving it into staying ahead of the law. means that all international
because of their parents’ lack of action. items forms a
numbers by 2022, and so the Tigers are helping jewellery and other trinkets – in WWF’s African rhino expert trade must be closely regulated.
us to inspire their fans and employees to become order to evade detection and significant element Mxolisi Sibanda says: “Urgent
Tiger Protectors. They will raise money through WHICH PLACE ARE YOU MOST supply ready-made products to their of the illegal steps must be taken to help law
These sharks are threatened
by demand for their meat and
exciting activities, including a tiger match day, WORRIED WILL BE AFFECTED? consumers in Asia. trade enforcement agencies keep up fins. But now their body parts
and our panda logo will appear on the First Team I’ve seen the glaciers shrinking with my own Over 7,100 rhinos have been with the new techniques criminals can only be exported if they’re
players’ shorts and on the Under-23 squad’s shirts. eyes – and this makes it hit home. Warming, poached in Africa in the past decade. An are adopting. Thanks to our members, legally sourced. We’ll continue
TIGER © ISTOCK

Meanwhile, we’ll help the club to identify ways it more acidic seas, dramatic changes to estimated 2,149 rhino horns have been seized by we’re supporting new technology and training to help countries implement
can improve its sustainability performance. It’s a ecosystems and displacement of species enforcement agencies since 2010 – but this is just programmes to help tackle wildlife crime. No these new measures.
win-win all round, but especially for wild tigers. really will change everything we know. a fraction of the number being illegally traded. rhinos should be killed for their horn.”

8 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 9

PROTECTING THREATENED SPECIES PART OF OUR ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE SERIES

IN THE
LINE
OF
FIRE
Just like us, elephants feel
complex emotions, including
trauma, grief and loss. So we’re
fighting to protect them from the
horror of the illegal ivory trade.
Find out how you’re helping us
stamp out crime on the frontline

CGI RENDERED IMAGE: © TIME BASED ARTS / ALL MIGHTY PICTURES

HAVE YOU SEEN OUR CHRISTMAS ADVERT?
We made the advert to highlight the
elephant’s plight from the point of view
of a single individual. Elephants are
intelligent animals and we wanted to show
their emotional reaction to an attack
by poachers. We couldn’t film this story
because poaching is a criminal act, so we
brought together a team of animators
and incredible CGI effects to share our
message: that it’s up to us to be the
generation that ends wildlife crime
PROTECTING THREATENED SPECIES PART OF OUR ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE SERIES
Elephant herds are close-
knit families. Scientists
have proved that they
can feel empathy for one
another and grieve for lost
companions. Deaths caused
by poachers affect more
than just the victim

E
arly morning on the edge of Kenya’s the darkness will help them make their seemingly confident and happy become silent, many years before. In need of their help, she Today, Africa’s elephants are facing the out what’s going on,” he says. “But that’s the
Maasai Mara National Reserve. The escape. “You hear that shot,” says Drew, hiding away in thickets and emerging only had returned. The staff were able to remove most serious conservation crisis since the worst thing you can do, because then you
stench of death hangs over the long “and you know you’ve already lost.” after dark. He has watched their demeanour the spear and dress her wound. international ivory trade ban was first destroy evidence. If it’s a fresh carcass you
grass. In a trampled, blood-stained Elephant poaching takes a heavy toll change; seen the secretions flowing from the Poaching also has other ramifications for imposed in 1990. Illegal trade in ivory – have to be careful the poachers haven’t heard
clearing lies the body of an elephant. on Drew and the dedicated ranger team. stress glands below their temple. He calls it the elephants that survive. Within their close- largely for markets in China and the Far you coming and aren’t sitting in the bushes,
Already, her great flank is whitewashed with And what makes things harder is knowing “the closest thing to elephant tears”. knit communities, the older animals – in East – is now at its highest level for waiting for you.”
vulture droppings: nature is taking its course. how an attack affects those that survive. particular, the matriarchal females – serve as 20 years. The statistics make Winning this battle requires
FRIEND OR FOE?
EXCLUSIVE
Yet this is no natural death: the bloody mess, Elephants are complex social animals. The repositories of wisdom and experience. They grim reading: about 20,000 a systematic, dispassionate
where the tusks have been brutally hacked loss of any member of the herd has emotional He also credits elephants with great know, for instance, the routes to water in a African elephants are approach. “You have to

INSIGHTS
from her face, reveals the grim truth. This is repercussions for its companions. Ties are intelligence. “You get the feeling that they drought, the safest places to cross a river and being killed each year, stop and think,” says
the work of ivory poachers. know when people are here to help them,” the areas where poachers operate. around 55 per day; Drew. “You have to build

MORE ELEPHANTS
Worse, the tragedy does not end there. he says, having They also provide the social discipline more elephants are the systems that will
Beside the fallen giant stands her young calf, observed how and direction that now being poached See how we created our ensure you can find

ARE NOW BEING

still very much alive. It’s been three days since elephants binds elephant society than are being born; powerful elephant TV advert the people who have
the attack, but the youngster has not left its differentiate together. When and Tanzania’s Selous committed this crime.”
and watch an exclusive extended
mother’s side. Terrified and weak with hunger, between humans such elephants are Game Reserve, which He describes how in

POACHED THAN
it waves a tiny trunk towards the wheeling they see as a threat killed, herds often once had the largest version with unseen footage Kenya a new breed of
vultures and trumpets. But it’s alone. The and those who offer splinter. Younger elephant population in [Link]/ poacher is adopting a new

ARE BEING BORN

traumatised herd has scattered. A whoop them protection. elephants become east Africa, lost nearly elephanteye approach. “They’re now
announces the arrival of the first hyenas. In areas beset by lost, both literally and 80% of its elephants targeting large bulls, because
“It’s a horrific experience,” explains Drew poaching, he has emotionally. Drew recalls between 2007 and 2014. all the easy-to-kill elephants
McVey, WWF’s wildlife crime expert in watched terrified elephants how in the early days of For Drew and the rangers who around the edge of the parks are
east Africa. He’s come across such scenes strong – not just between cow and calf, but move closer to ranger camps elephant translocation in face the grisly, day-to-day reality of this already dead,” he says. “We’re seeing fewer

© NEIL ALDRIDGE | © ANUP SHAH

more times than he cares to remember. between siblings and even across generations. at night. And he tells of a young South Africa, when young slaughter, despondency would be easy. But opportunists and more specialists. And these
“It breaks your heart.” He describes how Elephants are known to grieve for their dead, female who recently turned up elephants were moved to it’s when feelings run high that a cool head poachers are prepared to kill people.”
each dead elephant is a body blow to patrol standing guard over carcasses for days and at a wildlife orphanage in Tsavo new parks without older is essential. “For our teams, it’s important The poachers’ weapons of choice are also
teams. “Ultimately, we all hold ourselves even returning months later to touch the National Park with a spear in her family members to keep to manage our emotions,” Drew stresses. changing – from noisy firearms to more
accountable,” he says. “You can’t help feeling scattered bones of a long-dead companion. flank. Her appearance alarmed the them in line, they ran riot, He describes that nightmare scenario of discreet poisoned spears. Rangers can
you’ve somehow failed.” Attacks usually Drew has witnessed the profound impact staff – until they recognised her as an attacking vehicles, rhinos finding a poached elephant when on patrol. now identify individual poachers by their
happen at dusk, the poachers knowing that of such attacks: how elephants that were once orphan they had reared and released and even each other. “You want to race up to the carcass to work modus operandi: one ruthless individual,

12 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 13

PROTECTING THREATENED SPECIES PART OF OUR ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE SERIES

for example, fires poison-tipped arrows into preventative measures in good time. why we’re tackling what goes on beyond
BRUTAL BUSINESS:
The loss of elder elephants,
an elephant’s kidneys. Illegal snaring is also Make no mistake, the challenges in Kenya the park boundaries – helping ensure that especially the matriarchs

FROM TUSK TO TRINKET

that are targeted by
on the increase: once largely practised by local are huge. There are at least 65,000 illegal information is shared across international poachers for their large
people hoping to capture small game for the guns at large in the country, each one of borders to crack down on illegal trade routes, tusks, severely impairs the
pot, this brutal practice has now taken on a which represents a potential poacher. And and to strengthen penalties to make sure ability of younger ones to
survive and thrive
more organised, commercial dimension, with vital conservation resources are thin on the they reflect the serious nature of the crime. In An ivory trinket or piece of jewellery could come
heavier wire snares designed for animals as ground. “Most protected area authorities do 2016, with support from our lobbying, a man from an elephant killed by a poacher. Here’s how a
large as giraffes, rhinos and even elephants. an amazing job with what they’ve got,” Drew in Kenya was sentenced to 20 years in jail and tusk travels from its rightful owner to the market...
Drew describes one young cow elephant in the says. “But they don’t have the resources they fined over £155,000 following a seizure of 228

1
Mara, known as ‘Shorty’, who lost the lower need.” So we’ve stepped in to help out. Thanks elephant tusks and 74 pieces of ivory. If an elephant is
third of her trunk to a snare. to you, we’re supporting anti-poaching teams killed by poachers
with training and equipment, and helping CLOSING DOWN THE IVORY MARKET inside a national park,
STAYING ONE STEP AHEAD governments to monitor and protect their Ultimately, stemming this tide of slaughter its tusks are removed
As the conflict escalates, we’re providing elephant populations. requires international solutions. So we’re (usually by chainsaw)
vital help and resources to Drew, the Kenya The legal side also presents challenges, stepping up our work with the Convention on and smuggled out of
with convictions often failing due to the

2
Wildlife Service and all our other elephant International Trade in Endangered Species the park – sometimes
conservation partners. “Poachers are adapting inexperience of arresting officers. “We have of Wild Fauna and Flora to ensure that Some tusks are
via the local community.
the whole time,” says Drew, explaining how the convention’s agreements are enforced sold illegally

WITH YOUR
in Africa, mostly

3
each new threat requires a new response. around the world. We’ve been engaging
With your support, we’ve pioneered novel directly with the biggest markets for illegal Most tusks to overseas

SUPPORT, WE’VE
technology that gives rangers an upper hand. wildlife products – including Thailand, China are smuggled out buyers (notably
The introduction of thermal imaging and Vietnam – and last year, our efforts of Africa, usually in from China).
a shipping container, Africa’s largest

PIONEERED NOVEL
cameras described in your last issue of Action, contributed to China, the UK and others
for instance, is now helping our teams track announcing new bans on domestic trade in but also increasingly by air. illegal markets
down poachers moving after dark through the ivory products. Meanwhile we continue Ivory often follows routes are in Lagos,

TECHNOLOGY THAT
Maasai Mara and to monitor anybody crossing to work with consumers to change their used for other illegal trade, Addis Ababa
illegally into Lake Nakuru National Park. With attitudes towards buying ivory. such as drugs and arms. and Cairo.

GIVES RANGERS AN
your help, we’ve also fitted 12 elephants in the So how does the future look for those

5
Mara with GPS collars so the rangers can keep working on the ground? Despite the Ivory travels from

UPPER HAND
an even closer eye on the herds and assess how horrors he’s witnessed, Drew is positive. transit points
they respond to threats. “This isn’t the first time elephants have to ivory markets,
Meanwhile Drew and his team are working been under pressure, and we’ve come principally in China
closely with local communities. “We need to through it before,” he points out. “If we and other Asian countries,

4
make sure that people who live with elephants to be more organised,” says Drew. “People can provide them with a safe and healthy Tusks are where they’re carved.
every day see their presence as beneficial,” don’t plead guilty. They look for weaknesses ecosystem,” he says, “they’ll find a smuggled

6
he insists. Elephants can cause real harm by in the system and get off on technicalities.” way to survive.” through key Ivory is made into
raiding crops, after all, and even pose a threat So we’re working through TRAFFIC, the only Any doubts about the resilience transit points, ornaments and
to human life. “If communities don’t see any global wildlife trade monitoring network, to of elephants are answered most importantly jewellery to be sold.
benefits, poachers can be regarded as being strengthen law enforcement from the ground by the story of Shorty, who Malaysia, the Less than one-third of
like Robin Hood,” Drew explains, describing up, training rangers, customs officers and survived losing part of her Philippines, Vietnam the Chinese public know
how ivory gangs garner local support by prosecutors to help bring more poachers and trunk. “She’s a symbol of hope,” says Drew. and Hong Kong. elephants are killed for their tusks.
dressing up their illegal activities as a way of traffickers to justice. “Elephants are amazingly resilient.”
ridding the community of a problem. Behind all these challenges there lies a And what about those bad days, when
Addressing such issues comes down to
collaboration. With your support, we’re
much bigger picture: one of a huge, illegal
industry, involving a multi billion-dollar
everything feels hopeless? Drew has a simple
solution for keeping his spirits up. “I spend HELP US STOP THE SLAUGHTER
showing people new ways of reducing conflict international market, ruthless crime some quiet time with the elephants,” he says. You’re already helping us to protect Africa’s
with elephants – such as keeping bees as a syndicates, corrupt authorities, and a network When the big picture looks bleak, it helps to elephants and build a safer future for them. But if
deterrent – and explaining how elephants can of procurement and storage facilities that focus on all the positive things we’ve achieved you want to do more to support our vital work with
bring benefits such as tourism. Through our stretches across Africa and around the world. for elephants, thanks to your support. TRAFFIC to stamp out poaching and crack down on
GPS-collaring programme, we can also alert “We have to scale up our efforts,” insists Drew. Without you, the situation would be so much wildlife trafficking, your gift today could help.
communities to the approach of potential Of course, rangers have their hands full worse. “I look at elephants as individuals,” £10 could pay for a field ranger’s food for two days
crop-raiding elephants, allowing them to take trying to prevent poaching in the field. That’s says Drew. “And it always gives me hope.”
£30 pays for a police forensic kit to collect
evidence at poaching crime scenes
£50 covers a month’s running costs for a
community guard’s motorcycle to monitor

© ANUP SHAH | © ALAMY

African elephants
£100 pays for a customs officer to attend a training
workshop on wildlife law enforcement
Find out more at [Link]/stopthetrade

14 | Action Spring
Autumn2018
2016 Action
ActionAutumn 2016 | 15
Spring 2018
BIG PICTURE

THE NIGHT RAIDER

At 8.30pm on 24 March, thousands of people
around the world will celebrate Earth Hour
by gazing at the night sky. It’s a chance to
contemplate the astonishing natural beauty of
our planet and all the mesmerising wildlife that
comes alive after dark...
It was on a perfect starry night that this
extraordinary image was captured by Wildlife
Photographer of the Year 2017 category winner
Marcio Cabral. On the vast treeless savannah of
Brazil’s Emas National Park, tall termite mounds
that had been baked in the sun began to twinkle
with intense green lights. The bioluminescent lights
belong to click beetle larvae living in the termite
mound, which flash their ‘headlights’ to lure in prey
– winged termites that have taken to the sky to
mate. This stunning natural spectacle only occurs
when the conditions are exactly right and Marcio
had waited for three seasons for this moment.
Suddenly, out of the darkness ambled a giant
anteater. It began to attack the mound with its
powerful claws, sniffing out the termites living
deep inside. Protected from bites by its long hair
and rubbery skin, the anteater extracted the
termites with its exceptionally long, sticky tongue,
oblivious to Marcio’s presence.
Visit [Link]/savingthecerrado to discover
more about one of the world’s most important yet
little-known ecosystems, and how we’re protecting
it. You can see more images from the Wildlife
Photographer of the Year 2017 competition at
[Link]

© MARCIO CABRAL / WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2017

16 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 17
ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE PROTECTING RARE SPECIES

SHADOW CAT
Jaguars are the apex predators of the Amazon basin.
But as illegal trade in jaguar parts such as fangs and
bones poses a new threat to these beautiful cats,
your support is more important than ever

AMAZON ALLURE
The epitome of the mysterious beauty of
the Amazon, the jaguar has an unusually
large, round head, short legs and a
stunning coat of dark rosettes and spots.
Even though it’s the largest cat in the
Americas, it’s hardly ever seen. The
jaguar is so elusive, we don’t even know

© ALEJANDRO PRIETO
exactly how many are left in the wild – but
we do know its numbers are dropping
alarmingly and we need to act now.

18 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 19

ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE

APEX PREDATORS
Jaguars are the top predators in the
Amazon. They play an important
role in controlling the populations
of other species and maintaining
a healthy environment. With their
ultra-strong jaws and large teeth,
jaguars can bite through a caiman’s
skull or a turtle’s shell, but as
opportunist predators, they will
take almost anything they can catch
– including deer, armadillos and
monkeys. They sometimes climb
trees to prepare an ambush.

A SPOTTED COAT
Before the mid-1970s, jaguars were often hunted for their beautiful coats. This threat has been reduced,
thanks to CITES making the trade in jaguar parts illegal since 1975. But it appears that with increasing
Chinese investment in infrastructure in Latin America, demand for jaguar parts is rising again. Their
fangs are used for ornamental purposes and their bones are sometimes used in traditional medicine.
We must act before criminal networks consolidate and this threat to jaguars becomes even more serious.

PROTECTING THE
FOREST PHANTOM
Thank you for everything you’re
already doing to protect the jaguar’s
forest home in the Amazon. With
your support, we’re restoring
forest corridors to help isolated
populations meet up, and working
with local communities to educate
children, prevent conflict and
reduce retaliatory killings when
livestock is killed by jaguars. In
the Upper Putumayo region of
Colombia, where our adopted
jaguars live, we’re training local
communities to monitor these
big cats and other iconic Amazon

ALL IMAGES © ALEJANDRO PRIETO

wildlife using tracking skills and the
camera traps that you’ve helped
JAGUARS IN TROUBLE provide. If you’d like to do even
You could once find jaguars all the way from the south-western US down to the scrublands of
central Argentina. Today, they occupy less than half of their former range and are mainly confined
more, you can become a big cat
to the rainforests of the Amazon basin and the wetlands of the nearby Pantanal. But the jaguars’ adopter today and help us protect
forest home is being destroyed faster than ever before, isolating populations and reducing the jaguars and their Amazon home:
space available for them to live and hunt. This brings these rare cats into increasing conflict with
[Link]/jaguaradopt
farmers and ranchers.

20 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 21

CLIMATE CHANGE

RISING TO THE As the devastating impacts of climate change

CHALLENGE
on the wildlife we love become increasingly clear,
your support will make all the difference

W
e’ve all seen the pictures of polar bears strive for 1.5°C. That’s a big ask – scientists estimate
stranded on shrinking sea ice. But when it we’re currently heading towards an average global
comes to the impacts of climate change on temperature rise of 4.5°C by the end of the century.
wildlife, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. But those few degrees will make a huge difference.
Over the coming decades, climate “Without ambitious action on climate change, the
change is going to affect us in all sorts of ways – and impacts on species will be horrendous,” says Niki.
the loss of biodiversity is one of the most alarming. It’s “If we can restrict warming to 2°C that’s better, but
clear that, if we don’t take urgent action, we can expect below that is better still.”
unprecedented losses of biodiversity all over the world.
That’s why climate change is such a priority for WWF MAKING A DIFFERENCE
– from raising awareness and pushing governments to With your support, we’re promoting solutions that
up their game, to helping people and wildlife to adapt. will give us a chance to limit global temperature rise
“People often think of climate change as something to 1.5°C – from renewable energy to forest restoration
distant and abstract,” says Niki Rust, who leads our and sustainable diets. But even if we stopped all
work on the effects of climate change on wildlife. “But greenhouse gas emissions tomorrow, temperatures
climate change will affect so many of the places and would continue to rise for years to come.
animals we love. All our research indicates that, if That’s why on-the-ground conservation is so
current trends continue, most wildlife and ecosystems crucial. With your help, we’re doing everything we
won’t be able to adapt fast enough. And the can to give wildlife the best chance to cope

JUST
higher the temperature rises, the worse with a changing climate. Some species
things will get. So we have to act now.” may be able to adjust by moving to

TWO DEGREES
new areas where conditions are
IT’S GETTING HOTTER more favourable, for example by
Global temperatures have risen A few degrees might not shifting to higher altitudes, but that
for more than a century due to our sound a lot, but warming depends on there being suitable
use of coal, oil and gas for energy – temperatures are already habitat available and no barriers to
and that’s only going to continue as affecting wildlife, so we’re getting there.
more greenhouse gases accumulate working to keep the global “If we enable species to move
in the atmosphere. In most places, temperature increase naturally, they’ll be less affected by
the hottest years of the past will below 2°C climate change, especially mammals
become the new normal by the middle of and birds,” says Niki. “However, many
this century – and maximum temperatures landscapes are fragmented, and there may be
will be higher than ever before. Lower rainfall and roads and other barriers in the way. We urgently need
longer droughts are expected in many places. to secure areas of habitat that will continue to provide
For species that have adapted to their climate a refuge for wildlife as the climate changes, and to
over thousands of years, adjusting to such dramatic protect and restore corridors connecting them.”
changes will be a huge challenge. Some simply won’t In the Arctic, for example, we’re protecting places
be able to cope with the difference in temperature and that are expected to be the last ice areas to ensure
moisture – the population crashes we’ve seen during polar bears have a home for many years to come. In
extreme hot and dry years in the past give a taste of Bhutan, we’re providing vital breathing space for tigers
things to come. But there are all sorts of other ways and snow leopards by supporting the government to
Climate change is already species are affected by a changing climate – from the manage a network of protected areas covering over
damaging our planet. spread of pests and diseases, to annual events such as half the country. Closer to home, we’re working to
Left unchecked, it has
flowering or breeding times being thrown out of kilter. future-proof the UK’s rivers against longer dry spells.
the potential to cause
species extinctions in A healthy and stable climate underpins all life on Ultimately, the decisions we make in the next few
many of the world’s most Earth. That’s why we’re working to communicate the years will determine the future of life on Earth for

© GETTY
valuable ecosystems importance of the Paris climate agreement, which centuries. “The future is in our hands,” says Niki. “We
aims to keep warming to well below 2°C, and to can avoid the worst impacts. But we have to act now.”

22 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 23

CLIMATE CHANGE HOW WE’RE HELPING

AFRICAN ELEPHANTS GIANT PANDAS

Elephants need water – lots of it. They drink Giant pandas are doing relatively well right now. With

HOW WE’RE
150-300 litres per day, and use it for playing and your support, they’re being well protected and their
bathing. During droughts in the past, populations have population is steadily increasing in parts of their range.
suffered – they may have fewer calves, and those they do But climate change could undo these hard-earned
have are less likely to survive. Elephants behave differently gains. The panda population remains small and their

HELPING
when temperatures rise too, eating less, resting more, and habitat is severely fragmented. This, coupled with
spending more time in the water and shade to cool down. RAINFALL a long generation time and low reproductive rate, will

IS ERRATIC
Over the coming years, hotter temperatures, reduced limit their ability to adapt to a changing climate.
rainfall and more frequent droughts are likely to affect Most worrying is the potential reduction of their
much of the African elephant’s range. This is a real causing longer dry periods bamboo forest habitat. Giant pandas depend almost
threat – not least because the herds are competing
for scarce water resources with a growing human
and heavier downpours.
Water shortages increase
Climate change affects different entirely on bamboo for food, but predictions suggest that
the area of suitable bamboo forest habitat will fall by at
population. It’s vital that we address this, as well as
conserving and connecting elephant habitats and
competition between
people and
species in different ways – but least a third by the end of the century. It could also come
under increasing pressure from people – the mountainous
protecting them from poachers.
One of many ways you’re helping is by supporting farmers
wildlife
with your support, we’re doing bamboo forests aren’t currently suitable for agriculture,
but that could change as the climate warms. So it’s vital
in Kenya’s Mara river basin to change the way they manage their
land, so there’s enough food and water for people and nature.
everything we can to help them that we continue our work with the Chinese government to
conserve, restore and connect giant panda habitat.
You’ve also helped us fit elephants with satellite tags so we can
track their movements – meaning we’re better able to protect
adapt to our warming planet
MARINE TURTLES
them if they have to travel further looking for food and water.

SNOW LEOPARDS
Marine turtles are seriously threatened by
climate change in several ways. Warmer sea
temperatures may affect the seagrass

AMAZON PLANTS MOUNTAIN GORILLAS

You might think snow leopards wouldn’t mind it a few meadows where they feed, forcing them to
degrees warmer. And indeed they can tolerate a wide range swim further to find food. Also rising sea
of temperatures, get by with very little water, and cover large
distances to find food and suitable habitat. The Amazon is incredible – Found in just two isolated groups in central Africa,
levels and more extreme weather events
threaten their nesting sites, which are CORAL
But with as few as 4,000-6,500 snow leopards and we’ve been working to mountain gorillas have little opportunity to move into already severely squeezed by beach
REEFS ARE
STRUGGLING
left in the wild, they’re hugely vulnerable. protect it for years. It’s home new areas as the climate changes. That’s a worry, as resorts and coastal development.
With their Himalayan habitat warming much to as many as 80,000 plant changes in rainfall patterns and temperatures may Warmer temperatures could severely
faster than the global average, their range species, many of which are found affect their food supply, as well as causing heat stress. upset the balance of future populations. to cope with warming seas.
will shrink as the treeline moves higher nowhere else on Earth. Together, They also face the risk of losing their forest habitat to The sex of hatchlings is determined by Mass bleaching events
into the mountains. Warmer, wetter they make up the world’s largest fires, and the emergence of new diseases to which the temperature of the eggs in the nest, threaten crucial marine
conditions are likely to affect their rainforest, helping to regulate global they have little or no immunity. with higher temperatures producing more ecosystems
prey species and bring the cats temperatures and rainfall patterns On top of that, a tougher climate poses a females and fewer males.
into more conflict with other and sustaining the richest wildlife on the challenge to the growing human population With your support, we’re working to give turtles
predators, such as wolves. planet. They also provide food, fuel, that lives alongside the gorillas. Communities the best chance as oceans warm. We’re protecting feeding grounds
Other threats include shelter and medicine for people, may encroach more on the forest to grow and nesting sites – including trees that provide shade to keep nests
poaching for the illegal wildlife including the 350 indigenous ethnic food or collect water and wood for fuel. cooler – and introducing new fishing gear that doesn’t accidentally
trade and conflict with humans, groups who live in the Amazon. As well as damaging the habitat, harm turtles. In some places where turtles are nesting below the
such as retaliatory killings when With many modern medicines being this increases the risk of changing high-water mark, we’re carefully relocating their nests to
snow leopards prey on livestock. derived from rainforest plants, the loss diseases being passed safer ground to maximise the hatchlings’ chances of survival.
But we’ve had a lot of success getting of plant diversity could also deprive us of on to the gorillas.
communities on board with snow future medical breakthroughs. With your support,
RANGES leopard conservation in Nepal If average temperatures increase, then we’ve been helping people

ARE SHIFTING
– for example, by helping
to establish community-
vast numbers of plant species could
disappear from the Amazon region
in surrounding communities
to develop livelihoods that TAKING CLIMATE ACTION
in response to warmer managed livestock forever. It would have a catastrophic are sustainable and resilient The good news is that we have solutions. As a member, you’re already
temperatures. But this insurance schemes that knock-on effect on other species to climate change. One way helping us to tackle climate change. You’re helping wildlife and people
depends on suitable habitat financially support herders that depend on particular plants for we’re helping is by installing to cope with the effects of our changing climate, and enabling us
being available and may who lose livestock. We’ll food. We know, though, that healthy rainwater harvesting tanks, to conserve vital forests. And when you join our campaigns, you
cause conflict with need to continue our support ecosystems are better able to where people can store and strengthen our call on governments to reduce greenhouse gas

© ISTOCK | © ALAMY
resident species for this as climate change withstand and adapt to change – so collect water without the need emissions. Add your voice to our climate campaign today by making
brings people and snow leopards our work to stop deforestation in the to come into contact with an Earth Hour Promise – a commitment to make one simple change
into increasingly close contact. Amazon is more important than ever. the gorillas. to your lifestyle for our planet at [Link]/earthhour

24 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 25

 SAVING THE EARTH YOUR WAY
HAVE FUN FUNDRAISING DO IT YOUR WAY

FINISH AS A FAMILY BY LUKE & ERYNN

Siblings Luke and Erynn were sad to hear that so many wonderful
animals are endangered – and they felt powerless to help. Then
they realised they could make a difference.
Every year, we’re so impressed by the imagination and dedication of our wonderful Their mum, Sarah, says: “As children, Luke and Erynn felt very
fundraisers. We couldn’t do what we do without you! So this year, we’re inviting small in a big world. But thanks to WWF’s support, they learned
that everyone can help support your amazing work, through
you to have fun doing something you love – while raising money for something raising awareness and funds. They wanted to do something fun
we all need: our beautiful planet. Here are some inspirational stories... and healthy to raise money, so they decided to help each other
tackle the obstacles, mud and endurance of the Junior Spartan
Race. From their experience, Luke and Erynn learned that you’re
never too young to set goals and celebrate accomplishing them –

BAKE A DIFFERENCE BY ALEXA nor to inspire others with your actions.”

Five-year-old Alexa loves elephants and when she learned they

were in trouble, she burst into tears. Then she did something
amazing – she decided to do something about it.
Alexa’s mum says: “We organised a bake sale to raise money
for the elephants. Alexa and I made lots of chocolate cakes
and gingerbread animals, then she and her little sister
set up a table outside our house. The response was
MAKE IT MEMORABLE BY BOBBY
Bobby took on a huge personal challenge when he decided
incredible – people even pulled over in their cars to chat
to conquer Mount Kilimanjaro for WWF, driven by his love of
to Alexa. It was inspiring to see so many people engaging
wildlife and his passion for protecting our stunning planet.
and caring. And it was all so easy and fun – in two hours,
Bobby says: “When I was travelling, I saw so much beauty,
Alexa raised a delicious £80! And she was so proud of the
but I also saw the damage we’re causing. I feel passionately
money she raised for something that’s really important to
that we have a moral responsibility to care for the world we live
her. Give it a go – you won’t regret it.”
in, so last October I took on a seven-day climb up Kilimanjaro,
the world’s tallest single-standing mountain, to raise money
to support WWF. I was nervous, and it was one of the toughest
things I’ve ever done in my life, but I loved every second of it!”

GO THE EXTRA MILE BY LAURA & KIERAN WEAR IT WILD BY HOLY TRINITY PRIMARY
Laura and Kieran are passionate about running and conservation, Wear it Wild is one day when you can show your wild side
so they decided to put their best foot forward and run a marathon to highlight the importance of protecting our planet – but the
for WWF. But before they pulled on their trainers, they planned a lessons learned last forever.
© ISTOCK | © ALAMY | © TOM O’DONOGHUE

year full of fundraising events… Last year, pupils from Holy Trinity Church of England primary
Laura says: “First, I set up a blog page to keep people up to date school dressed up in animal outfits and led our colourful Wear it
with our efforts. To make it more manageable, we set incremental Wild parade through Woking town centre.
fundraising targets and organised a series of events over the Debbie Caunce, from the school, says: “Many of the children
course of the year. First, we started a weekly bake sale at work, show an interest in protecting endangered animals. It was a
then we organised a quiz night and asked local businesses to wonderful opportunity to promote WWF in such a fun way!
donate prizes for a raffle. So many people were willing to help! We can all relate to the need to protect our habitats. Even our
The sense of pride and achievement when we crossed the finish youngest children here at the school are horrified at the idea
line and knew we had hit our fundraising target was so worth it.” of a world without much-loved creatures, great and small.”

6
SIMPLE STEPS 1 DO THE ONE THING
YOU ENJOY MORE THAN
2 SAVE THE DATE
Pop the date in the
3 GET EVERYONE
ON BOARD
4 SET UP AN ONLINE
FUNDRAISING PAGE
5 TAKE LOTS
OF PHOTOS
6 PAY YOUR MONEY IN
Once you’ve held your
GET STARTED! DOWNLOAD
OUR FAB FUNDRAISING KIT

TO START
ANYTHING ELSE calendar in advance, Just send them a It’s simple, it makes And don’t fundraising event, please Our new fundraising booklet
Whatever it is, big or so you can get as message on social it easy for people to forget to send pay in your funds to WWF has everything you need

FUNDRAISING
small, indulge yourself many people along as media or use the donate and it helps us pictures of – you’ve just done your to make your event a huge
and seize your chance to possible (and give them invitations in our you keep track of whatever you bit to help build a better success, so download it today
do something amazing! time to prepare). fundraising kit. your total! get up to. future for our planet. at [Link]/fundraise

26 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 27

 OVER TO YOU!
We know you’ve done some really great stuff for
us since the last issue of Action, so why not tell us WE LOVE OUR
about it? These are your pages – let’s celebrate you! WWF RUNNERS.
YOU MAKE
TEAM PANDA

© ANDY THOMPSON
IN NEED OF A SEA CHANGE
© STEVE NAYAR

SO PROUD! Rod Downie’s visit was an

amazing surprise for these

TAKING A STAND
young polar enthusiasts

POLAR FRIENDS
I was lucky enough to win a two-day trip It was wonderful to see minke whales, I was volunteering in Kenya in
on the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin harbour porpoises and basking sharks 2012 when elephant poaching
Trust’s research vessel, Silurian, courtesy on my trip. And to hear that the crew had hugely increased. We
I am a teacher at Andover Primary in their important work in the Arctic.
of a WWF competition I saw in Action. of Silurian have also recorded witnessed an elephant that had
Brechin, Scotland. Last November, our The children are thrilled Rod visited the
Almost as soon as we sailed out of significant numbers of cetaceans and been put to sleep because of
pupils enjoyed an extra special assembly school to answer their questions. They
Tobermory Harbour, home to Silurian seabirds – a clear indication that fish the terrible injuries caused by
when WWF’s polar expert, Rod Downie, have been genuinely excited to learn
and HWDT’s visitor centre, we spotted stocks are healthy. poachers. When we arrived,
popped in to personally answer their about polar animals, especially as each
white-tailed eagles in the Sound of Mull. The trip showed me the enormous, the rangers were removing
questions about polar bears. pupil has chosen their own animal to
These awe-inspiring birds had been positive changes for nature we can all his tusks.
The school children were so inspired by research and then create a presentation.
hunted to extinction in the UK, but were help to bring about if large numbers of As we watched, I felt so angry.
their research into Arctic animals that they They got to share their work with Rod.
reintroduced and bred successfully in the people are willing to make tiny changes Once the tusks were removed, I
adopted a polar bear with WWF. We were Who knows, maybe we have a budding
wild. It was a joy to witness the results of to their lives. If we work together, sat with the elephant, touched
happy when Rod told us that this would Arctic explorer in our midst.
such a successful conservation project. governments can be persuaded his leg and apologised. I was
help him and his colleagues to continue Ashleigh Mathieson, Brechin
HWDT’s own conservation research to help to protect our planet. ashamed to be human and I felt

FIGHTING EXTINCTION
and education work, supported by Melanie Ross MacDonald, Cornwall so helpless. Once you’ve seen
WWF, has significantly helped to protect ivory poaching at first hand, you

WITH A PAINTBRUSH
the marine life of these rich Hebridean COULD YOU BE A WWF FUNDRAISER? can’t not do anything about it.
THEIR FUTURE,
THE VOICE OF THE NATURAL WORLD
waters by ensuring the development of It’s so easy – see our super steps to That’s when I decided to help
protected areas where species can thrive. fundraising success on page 26 WWF fight it. Now, I talk about
OUR PLANET,
YOUR LEGACY
Through my paintings, I aim to raise it whenever I can, and share
awareness of the very real threat of photos on social media. I want I’ve supported WWF since 2001 so I was I look forward to
extinction currently facing many of to keep people talking about delighted to attend your special event attending supporter
the world’s incredible creatures. the ivory trade. I also want to on Reviving Our Oceans, at the Natural events in the future and
Fuelled by the belief that it’s not too keep raising money to help WWF History Museum’s Flett Theatre. finding out more about the
late to reverse the trend, I created a make it stop. In 2016, I ran my Hope and positivity that there is real difference my support is making
series of powerful images of declining first marathon for WWF. This planning for the future as well as action and how the gift in my will may be used.
species to raise funds for their year I’m going to abseil 400 feet today to help the planet is heartwarming. Susan, Horsham
conservation. Half of the proceeds down the National Lift Tower. I don’t want to be remembered as part
from the sale of my painting ‘Majestic Supporting WWF makes me feel of the generation who ‘just took’
Lion’ went to help WWF’s valuable like I’m making a difference. If without caring for and supporting
work, and I intend to sell two more. poaching doesn’t stop, there will the natural world.
I chose WWF because it was my be no elephants left – so we’ve I support WWF and have also
mother’s favourite charity. Plus all got to do everything we can included a gift to WWF in my will
I’ve always been impressed by the to help. because someone needs to be a voice
fact that so much of the money you Sarah Ward, Northampton of the ‘non-human world’ as its advocate
raise is allocated directly to your and protector. WWF is such a voice.
© LYNDSEY DODDS / WWF-UK

conservation projects in the field.

I’m just happy to be able to help
TELL US ABOUT YOUR EARTH HOUR 2018 PROMISES
© DAVID PARRY / WWF-UK

© ISTOCK
your amazing work to protect the
biodiversity of our planet. It’s Earth Hour on 24 March and there’s no better time to reflect on your impact on the planet and how you could make
Steve Nayar, via email it a bit lighter. This year, we’re asking everyone to make one simple change to the way you live – and share it with us
[Link] on Twitter using #EarthHourPromise or via editor@[Link] We can’t wait to hear how you’ll make a difference!

28 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 29

COMPETITIONS NOTES FROM THE FIELD

GIFTS THAT GIVE BACK CROSSWORD IN THE LAND OF THE POLAR BEAR
WIN!
SNARE WIRE
For a beautiful gift that makes a real difference,
you can’t beat these unique snare wire bracelets.
And we have three to give away!
Solve our crossword and you could win a copy
of British Wildlife Photography Awards 8,
available online and from book shops for £25

BRACELETS These gorgeous hand-made bracelets by Mulberry

Mongoose are inspired by life in the Zambian bush. Talented
craftswomen take an unlikely reclaimed material to fashion
into this truly original jewellery – wire from snares removed
by anti-poaching patrols.
In an area where unemployment and poaching are a reality,
every piece of jewellery sold helps these amazing ladies to

© CHANTAL VIS
support their families, create awareness about poaching and

© EDWARD SELFE / MULBERRY MONGOOSE

conserve the unique place that inspires their work.
Each graceful and rugged bracelet comes in a unique
pouch made of chitenge material, which is traditionally
used by Zambians to hold, wrap, protect and carry things Last summer, I was lucky enough to visit the Canadian Arctic on
that are special. a field programme. We camped on the shore of Tremblay Sound,
where thousands of narwhals spend the summer. This is also
These snare bracelets are just part of our new range of
polar bear country, though we were told the chances of seeing
beautiful, planet-friendly products. To find the perfect
one were slim. Just to be safe, a team kept watch at all times.
present, please visit [Link]/shop
The awesome team at A week later, we saw our first polar bear. Early one
Mulberry Mongoose morning, three white dots were spotted in the distance.
are such an inspiration It was a mother polar bear with two nearly full-grown cubs.
They approached our camp, but were deterred from coming
We’ve got three snare wire bracelets to give away.
closer by the watch crew.
Each bracelet is made from colourful cord with metal beads
Later that morning, I was on watch when a huge polar bear
and coiled snare wire, and worth £29.99. To be in with a WWF Action crossword 38: spring 2018 issue. Compiled by Aleric Linden
loomed in my binoculars. He was about a kilometre away,
chance of winning this super prize, just follow the instructions
right next to a river we had bathed in just two days earlier! As
After solving the crossword, take each letter from the shaded we watched him, we heard a shout. Coming from the opposite
(below) and mark your entry ‘Snare Bracelet Comp’. squares (going from left to right and top to bottom) to spell out direction was a mother and cub. We were surrounded. Attracted
the prize word. To be in with a chance to win, just send a postcard by the smell of our camp, the bears stood up on their back legs
with the prize word to the address on page 30, or email it to and sniffed the air. My heart was racing! Fortunately, the bears
competition@[Link]. The closing date is 23 March 2018. were eventually persuaded to move on. The experts concluded
that the sea ice must have broken up in the Sound close by, and
Clues across 4 Conservation group behind the

NEW CANON 10X32 BINOCULARS

1 Monitoring network for the wildlife Red List of Threatened Species (4) the bears were finally starting to come onto land.

HOW TO ENTER
trade (7) 5 _ bears, iconic yet vulnerable
5 Wild orang-utans are bought and Arctic animals impacted by climate
DAWN OF THE NARWHAL
ACTION GIVEAWAYS
change (5)
We have a pair of Canon 10x32 image-stabilised binoculars, worth £1,299, to give away!
kept in captivity as such (4)
6 African fly whose bite can transmit We hoped the breaking sea ice meant the narwhals would soon
8 The spoon-shaped feature of a
critically endangered sandpiper (4) sleeping sickness (6) make their way into Tremblay Sound. Sure enough, 24 hours
Send an email with your name, 9 Body of water located off the 7 Those who must pay congestion later, at 2.45am, there was a tap on my tent: “They’re here!”
Any wildlife-watcher would be thrilled to charges in some city centres (7)
pack these fantastic versatile binoculars address and phone number, north-east coast of Australia (5,3) Poking my head out, I looked out over the water. Hundreds of
10 Raw material mined and refined to 12 What lies beneath the top surface
in their travel bag. The new Canon 10x32 and Snare Bracelet Comp or of the ground (7) narwhals were swimming into the Sound! Some were alone,
extract metal (3)
IS binoculars have precision optics Canon Binoculars Comp in 11 The world’s highest mountain (7) 14 _ lowland gorilla, critically others in groups, mothers with young, and big males with long
endangered creature also known tusks that pierced the air as they surfaced. It was a sight I’ll
that provide a crisp, bright and high the subject line, to 13 Where rivers meet seas (9)
17 Bin or heap - it’s the ideal destination as the Grauer’s gorilla (7) never forget. The night was so still you could hear them exhale.
definition image that’s perfect for tricky competition@[Link] 15 Close relative of the chimpanzee (6)
for kitchen and garden waste (7) Over the next few hours, about 3,000 narwhals congregated.
species identification. Their powered 19 The US and Brazil are major growers 16 Pattern of weather such as a
Alternatively, post your entry to cyclone (6) They became a familiar backdrop as they jousted with their
image stabilisation counteracts any of this bean and food crop (3)
Action Mag, WWF-UK, 21 Wildlife crime that fuels the illegal 18 Groups of wolves (5) tusks and lay near the water’s surface, seeming to enjoy the
shaking or vibration from handholding
Living Planet Centre, Rufford trade in elephant ivory (8) 20 Many are unfortunately poached Arctic sunshine. While I was in camp, six narwhals were
and reduces eye strain, while ergonomic from the nests of marine turtles (4)
House, Brewery Road, 22 Juvenile newts (4) fitted with satellite transmitters so we can learn why they use
controls at your fingertips enable you
23 Reduction or destruction of habitat Tremblay Sound and help to protect this important habitat.
to use these binoculars comfortably for Woking, Surrey GU21 4LL. - a grave threat to many species (4) OCTOBER 2017 ANSWERS:
as long as you want. To be in with Only one competition per 24 A potentially devastating sea wave, Prize word: HEATING. Though we didn’t see any more bears, their heart-thumping
Across 6. Hydroelectric 8. Rangers
a chance of winning these great entry please. often earthquake-induced (7) 9. Fires 11. Acts 12. Drone 15. Tidal
visits were a reminder of why we work with communities across
binoculars – courtesy of Canon, 16. High 19. Taiga 20. Station the Arctic to help keep people and polar bears safe. Needless to
The closing date for the Clues down 21. Greenhouse gas
say, I did not bathe in that river again!
and worth £1,299 – just follow the competitions is Friday 23 March 2 They are highly prized in the illegal
Down 1. Thermal 2. Power 3. Alps
4. Stripe 5. Tiger 7. Donate 10. Coal
instructions (right), and mark your entry
‘Canon Binoculars Comp’.
2018. For terms and conditions,
visit [Link]/compterms
wildlife trade for their horns (6)
3 Removes impurities from water, as
12. Dodo 13. Living 14. Chinese
15. Tagged 17. Hairy 18. Marsh
20. Smog
Melanie
a wetland does (7) Melanie Lancaster, WWF Arctic species specialist

30 | Action Spring 2018 Action Spring 2018 | 31

 • ACTION • SPRING 2018 • ISSUE #38
© [Link] / INAKI RELANZON / WWF | © CAT HOLLOWAY / WWF | © TROY MAYNE
24 MARCH 2018 8:30PM
This Earth Hour, join our global movement by making a
promise to protect the planet at [Link]/earthhour

IN YOUR NEXT ISSUE

AMAZON RIVER DOLPHINS + WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING: EXPOSED
[Link]

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