Animal Rights, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Documentary Films, Elephants, Endangered Species, environment, Film Festival, Giraffes, Ivory, Kenya, Lions, Rhino, Rhinos, South Africa, Uncategorized, WCFF, WCFF Education Outreach, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Corridor

Wild Earth & Safari Live

January 23, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

We are pleased to announce a new partnership between the WCFF and Wild Earth TV. Every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 09:00-10:30 EST we will broadcast on our Facebook page Safari Live. Sign up today https://www.facebook.com/WCFForg/ to enjoy this great program. This many of the free education outreach programs WCFF will offer this year.

Learn more about wildlife conservation and protecting global biodiversity through the power of film. Join us for our eight year WCFF anniversary, October 18-28, 2018 in New York, NY. Ten days of film screenings, panel discussions, receptions, field trips, networking events, virtual reality programs and more.

Contact: info@wcff.org to join the planning committee Sponsor the film festival, advertise on the big screen during the outdoor summer series and/or October festival, Take a full or half page ad in the full color program book to be distributed in New York and China.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Wildlife Conservation Film Festival
October 18-28, 2018 | New York, NY
http://www.WCFF.org
Facebook.com/WCFForg
Twitter: @WCFF_org
Instagram: @wcff_org
Vimeo.com/wcff
LinkedIn: Wildlife Conservation Film Festival

Animal Intelligence, Bat Colonies, Bats, Biodiversity, Canada, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Mammals, North America, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service, Uncategorized, University of New Hampshire, WCFF, White-nose syndrome, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival

Cure for White-Nose Syndrome?

January 16, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

White-nose syndrome, a disease that affects insect-eating bats, is one of the most devastating wildlife diseases on record. But there may be a relatively simple way to stop it, according to new research: UV light.

A new study from a team of scientists from U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture and the University of New Hampshire has found that the fungus is highly sensitive to UV light. Only a few seconds of exposure to ultraviolet light destroys the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome, Pseudogymnoascus destructans.

P. destructans can only infect bats during hibernation because it has a strict temperature growth range of about 39-68 degrees Fahrenheit. However, treating bats for the disease during hibernation is challenging, so any weakness of the fungus may be good news to managers trying to develop treatment strategies.

Some estimates have over 7 million bats from multiple species to have been killed by this fungus. Some bat colonies have been totally destroyed and have not recovered.

https://www.whitenosesyndrome.org/

https://sciencebulletin.org/archives/18996.html

White-nose syndrome: P. destructans fungus is highly sensitive to UV light

Christopher J. Gervais, F.R.G.S.
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Animal Cruelty, Animal Rights, Antarctica, Antartctic Ocean, Biodiversity, Cetaceans, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Humpback Whales, Hunting, International Court of Justice, Japan, Japan Whale hunting, Marine Mammals, Megafauna, Minke Whales, Ocean, Oceans, Pilot Whales, Southern Ocean, Uncategorized, Water, WCFF, Whales, wildlife, Wildlife Activists, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Crime

Japan’s “Scientific Whale Hunt”

January 9, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

The Japanese whaling fleet is currently hunting minke whales in the Antarctic Ocean. This is in violation of a ruling by the International Court of Justice on March 31, 2014 that ordered Japan to stop this practice immediately. The waters around Antarctica are a designated whale sanctuary. Despite this ruling and the protected area, this does not stop Japan’s whalers who kill in the name of “scientific research.” Really? Who actually believes this?

in 2016 the Japanese Whaling Fleet returned home with a reported 333 minke whale carcasses, some where pregnant females. Japan has said it conducts this “scientific whaling” strictly for research; however, the meat is sold commercially and government agencies say the ultimate goal is the resumption of commercial whaling.

Learn more through the power of film and what you can do to stop this. Come to the eight year anniversary of the WCFF this fall. Ten days of film screenings, receptions, panel discussions, field trips, networking, VR & more. Join us October 18-28, 2018. To advertise with, sponsor the film festival, submit a film, or join the planning committee, contact: info@wcff.org

Christopher J. Gervais, F.R.G.S.
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Africa, Animal Rights, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Botswana, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Deforestation, Democratic Republic of Congo, Documentary Films, DRC, Elephants, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, habitat destruction, Hunting, Illegal Wildlife Trade, Ivory, Mammals, Megafauna, Poaching, Poaching, Population, President Xi Jinping, Uncategorized, Urban Development, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Corridor

China’s New Ban on Ivory

January 2, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

On Sunday, January 31 a total ban on Ivory in China was put into place. President Xi Jinping declared the import and export of elephant ivory to be illegal in the nation that has the world’s largest importer of elephant tusks for decades.

This ban will greatly reduce the number of elephants killed by poachers in Africa, which at one point was nearly 100 animals a day, over 30,000 annually. The partial ivory ban declared by China in 2017 helped reduce the number of elephants killed by nearly 40%. Now that a total ban is in place in China, conservationists hope this number will be reduced much further. The African Elephant population was near 10 million animals in 1900 and reduced to 1.2 million by the mid 1980’s. Today as few as 300,000 remain on the continent.

Poaching for ivory has been the biggest threat to the survival of the two species of Elephants in Africa, the Savannah and Forest Elephants. Loss of habitat and increased human population is another concern as urban development continues with the expansion of cities and roadways. The human population will soon reach 1 billion on the continent alone and this means less space for wildlife.

The establishment of wildlife corridors, connecting national parks and protected areas from one country to the next is the only hope for elephants, big cats, giraffes and of Africa’s wildlife both large and small.

Christopher J. Gervais, F.R.G.S.
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Christopher J. Gervais

Monthly Archives: January 2018

Wild Earth & Safari Live

Cure for White-Nose Syndrome?

Japan’s “Scientific Whale Hunt”

China’s New Ban on Ivory

From the Founder: Wildlife Conservation Film Festival