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Seven Endangered Species You Can Still See in the Wild
There is no doubt that we are fascinated with wildlife. We love to watch diverse and interesting animals, preferably in their natural habitats, and we're often willing to travel to remote places, sometimes at great expense, to see them. If you enjoy the kind of travel that allows for these kinds of animal encounters, they you'll want to check out BootsnAll's list of the Seven Endangered Species You Can Find Outside a Zoo.The article not only lists the creatures, it also gives us the best locations to go and see them for ourselves, including some brief insights into what to expect out of the journey. For instance, if you want to see polar bears in the wild, you can expect a long flight, or 40-hour train ride, to Churchill, Canada, on the famed Hudson Bay, where every October and November, the bears gather, waiting for the bay to freeze so they can continue on northward. The other creatures, and locations that can be found, include: sea turtles in Barbados, tigers in India, rhinos in Tanzania, elephants in South Africa, pandas in China, and gray whales in Mexico.
As the article points out, in the era of ecotourism, these trips to see these rare animals can be a force for good. Conservation efforts can receive funding from our visits and an increased awareness about the plight of the animals helps to prevent poaching and protect natural habitats as well. Just be sure to travel with a reputable guide service and make sure you pack out everything you pack in.
So did they leave anything off the list? I was a bit surprised to not see the mountain gorillas that we wrote about last week, on there. They'd certainly make my top list. What's on yours?
Filed under: Africa, Asia, North America, South Africa, Tanzania, China, India, Barbados, Canada, Mexico, Caribbean
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Kassie Siegel Mar 30th 2009 10:43AM
One of our most important tools for protecting these wonderful, imperiled animals is the Endangered Species Act. Yet one of President Bush’s last acts in office was to issue regulations weakening the protections the polar bear and other listed species receive. On the campaign trail, President Obama pledged to revoke Bush’s Endangered Species Act regulations, and Congress then granted his Interior Secretary Ken Salazar a golden opportunity to rescind the rules entirely with no more than the stroke of a pen, but this special authority extends only until May 9th. Ask him to protect the polar bear and other species by rescinding the Bush rules at www.savethepolarbear.org.