Blog Archives

Lions decline 90-95% in last 50 years

South African lion taking a break from his kill, a Cape buffalo. Photo: Sally Kneidel Lions extinct in 10-15 years? That’s the prediction of National Geographic explorers-in-residence Dereck and Beverly Joubert. The couple have studied and filmed Africa’s big cats

Posted in Africa, Animal welfare / animal rights, Livestock, Wildlife, Wildlife habitat, Wildlife survival Tagged with: , , ,

We are family: new evidence of our close link to chimpanzees

Photo: wikimedia commons People are good at detecting human personalities accurately, even from expressionless mug shots. A study last year showed that we can reliably tell who is extroverted, emotionally stable, agreeable or imaginative – just from their blank and

Posted in Africa, Primates, Wildlife, Wildlife behavior Tagged with: , , , ,

Africa’s big mammal populations drop 59% in 40 years!

African elephants in Kruger National Park. Photo: Sally Kneidel Just saw a distressing news item.  In an interview published 1/27/11, scientist Ian Craigie says populations of big mammals in Africa have decreased 59% in 40 years. And those figures are

Posted in Africa, Animal welfare / animal rights, Deforestation, Ecosystems, Endangered species, Overconsumption, Primates, Resources, Wildlife, Wildlife habitat, Wildlife survival Tagged with: , , , , ,

Banding hurts penguins, says new study in journal Nature

Text and photo by Sally Kneidel, PhD Attaching bands to birds is a longstanding method of studying bird populations. The bands allow researchers to collect data on birds’ movements and longevity. But scientists have been debating for 30 years whether

Posted in Animal welfare / animal rights, Birds, South Africa, Wildlife Tagged with: , , , ,

Is males’ attraction to trucks and balls genetically based?

Young chimps. Photo: Delphine Bruyere My husband and I raised one girl and one boy, close together in age. We tried hard to avoid gender-stereotyping our young kids in any way. They had the same toys, many of them gender

Posted in Human behavior, Wildlife Tagged with: , ,

New study: a wandering mind creates unhappiness

A serene Buddha in Ubud, Bali. Photo: Sally Kneidel My long-time friend Therese Fitzgerald is an ordained Zen priest who works as a spiritual mentor and meditation teacher. She’s also director of Dharma Friends; her husband Arnold Kotler is publisher

Posted in Depression, Health, Stress Tagged with: ,

New study: Females choose cocaine; males prefer food

Cocaine.  Photo: DEA Are recreational drugs more enjoyable for women than for men? A recent study on that topic caught caught my eye this morning. Women are more sensitive to cocaine “Human studies of cocaine dependence indicate that women enter

Posted in Food, Health Tagged with: , ,

10 Tips for Holiday Stress and Depression

Confrontive dad arrives for the holidays A friend told me yesterday about his parents arriving at his home for the holidays. His wife was taking a shower when the parents arrived. His father said, “Where’s your wife? She should be

Posted in Depression, Health, Stress Tagged with: , , , , ,

Christmas trees: are fake or real more sustainable?

Readers, a woman who works for the Nature Conservancy asked me to post this article debating fake vs. real Christmas trees, by the Conservancy’s Frank Lowenstein. It’s also posted on the Nature Conservancy website. The debate is worth thinking about

Posted in Agriculture, Borneo, Climate change, Deforestation, Indonesia, Malaysia, Overconsumption, Southeast Asia, Sumatra, Sustainable choices for your home, Sustainable Living, Tree plantations, Wildlife, Wildlife habitat Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , ,

For orangutans, hunting may trump habitat loss as biggest threat

Most people are surprised to learn that unlawful traffic in wildlife and wildlife parts is the third biggest criminal activity in the world, after drugs and arms. The illegal hunting of great apes is so pervasive that it may threaten

Posted in Africa, Animal welfare / animal rights, Borneo, Bushmeat, Deforestation, Endangered species, Human behavior, Indonesia, Jakarta, Malaysia, Primates, Southeast Asia, Sumatra, Wildlife, Wildlife survival Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

What’s this blog about?

These days, I blog mostly about nature and wildlife. Even the tiniest creatures make me happy! You'll also find here lots of posts about plant-based foods, health, and ecotourism. Ecotourism can support local people who make a living through sustainable use of wildlife, habitat, and natural resources.

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Link to our other blog, Veggie Revolution

Our other blog, Veggie Revolution, focuses more on food than this one does, especially the environmental, health and humane aspects of our food choices. That blog was started in 2005 and continues today, while the blog you're reading now began in 2009. Some of the newer posts are on both blogs, but Veggie Rev has at least 260 more posts than this blog, including Sadie's travels to Morocco. In the sidebar of Veggie Rev, you'll see links to each year that can take you back to all the posts for a particular year.

Veggie Revolution blog