October 2, 2013 — Is it time for a war on poaching? When Hillary Clinton unveiled an $80 million plan last week to combat elephant poaching in Africa, she highlighted a new and worrying trend: money from wildlife crime may be helping to fund terrorist groups. These include the al-Shabaab group that attacked the Westgate […]
October 1, 2013 — Wild things in Africa are under threat as never before. With exploding human populations, poorly managed development and criminal intrusion from afar, many fear that the continent’s most iconic animals may soon vanish from their natural habitat. The disappearance of lions, elephants and others would mean the crumbling of vital ecosystems—and […]
July 20, 2011 — Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki has ignited five tonnes of ivory stockpiled in the country since being seized in Singapore nearly a decade ago. Using a long stick with a ball of fuel-doused cloth at the end, Mr Kibaki lit the tall pyre of 4.967 tonnes of elephant tusks smuggled from Malawi, […]
July 8, 2011 — The best chance to rub elbows with royalty this weekend is going to be through a group called Tusk Trust. As Los Angeles braces for the Friday arrival of Prince William and Kate Middleton, details are emerging about the couple’s most intimate affair — a Sunday morning reception for the African wildlife […]
May 23, 2010 — Carefully, the Chinese ivory dealer pulled out an elephant tusk cloaked in bubble wrap and hidden in a bag of flour. Its price: $17,000. “Do you have any idea how many years I could get locked away in prison for having this?” said the dealer, a short man in his 40s, […]
April 15, 2010 — When Tony Fitzjohn was hired by the conservationist George Adamson to replace his assistant, killed by a lion, he had found his calling. Four decades and one near-fatal mauling of his own later, Fitzjohn is the last of a dying breed.