Illegal Killing and Trafficking of Black Bears
The illegal killing and trafficking of animal parts has long been a global concern. With trading at an estimated 6 billion dollars annually, poaching has become the world’s second most profitable crime activity behind illegal drug trade. In its prevalence, poaching has driven many species to the point of extinction.
Animals around the world are killed each day for their body parts. In Africa, elephant tusks are a valuable source of ivory used in jewelry. Moreover, the horns of rhinoceros could command up to $5,000 in the black market. The mothers of newborn mountain gorillas are often killed so that their young ones could be shipped to foreign countries for research or display.
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A known compound found in bile, ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), has been used in western medicine to treat liver disorders. A gall can command up to $10,000 in east Asia. Its price is about 20 times the street price of cocaine per ounce. Globally, the market in bear parts is estimated at $2 billion.
For obvious reasons, bears have become increasingly rare. Five of the eight bear species in the world are endangered. In Korea, where they were ounce abundant, black bears are virtually extinct now with a population between 20 to 300. The population of bears in Russia is dwindling rapidly as a result of gall trafficking by the Russian Mafia. Bear populations have decreased to the point that China is now using bear farms to obtain gall. Bears are kept cruelly in small cages that are often fitted to their body so that they cannot move. A steel catheter surgically implanted to their gall bladder removes bile from their bodies daily. However, instead of saving bears as claimed, bear farms have only instigated poaching by increasing demands for gall.
As bear populations decreased in Asia, more traffickers turned to North America where there are a considerable number of bears. Although poaching also occurs in the United States, the problem appears to be worse in Canada. This may be attributed to less
Lately, many people hunt polar bears and kill them to get their beautiful fur. The government of Canada, the United States, and Russia have banned the action of killing polar bears now since the number
The black bear is one of the most common bears in the U.S.A. Even though the black bear is one of the three smallest bears, it has great claws and amazing climbing ability. Experts estimate that about 80,000 black bears die each year in the U.S.A. This animal, the black bear, is threatened and should be saved.
Polar bears are one of the countless species who are endangered. They were one of the first animals affected by global warming and their population is heavily decreasing. Around 1980, the Arctic was as large as 8 million square kilometres. In 2011, studies show that the Arctic has reduced its size to 4.5 million square kilometers. In the future, will there be anything such as the Arctic? Scientist predict by 2040, only a fringe of ice will remain in Northeast Canada and Northern Greenland. This is known as the Last Ice Area. This matter is mostly taking part in Canada, since; Canada holds more than half the world’s polar bear population. Other affected countries include the U.S. (Alaska), Greenland,
With their habitat being wiped away, their own food sources being toxic, to the very environment harboring chemicals; they are truly struggling to survive. Furthermore, hunting, although not a threat on its own, poses a great deal of risk to this species because of the threats outlined previously. If it were not for the disadvantageous situation the species currently face, it would likely not pose a threat at all. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the threats faced by polar bears in Canada such as global warming, bioaccumulation of mercury, biomagnification of polychlorinated biphenyls and hunting. Furthermore, hunting quotas placed on northern Indigenous populations will be analyzed as a conservation method that is helping to reduce further strain on the existing populations of this Canadian
The American black bear (Ursus americanus) is native to North America, more specifically Canada and northern and southeastern United States. Ursus americanus once ranged from Mexico and all throughout United States and into Canada, but as human population increased and climatic conditions have changed, Ursus americanus moved to locations with lower populations and cooler climates, which are northern North America as well as southeastern United States. Ursus americanus are found with the highest populations in Canada and northwestern United states where there are lower human populations, larger forests, and cooler climates.
Many people may not know that Canada is home to one of the largest subspecies of polar bears called Ursus maritimus. These polar bears are notorious for being a nuisance for the people of Churchill, Man. Every year, hundreds of polar bears gather on the western shore of Hudson Bay to hunt for seals once the ice freezes. There is one very large issue about this; the polar bears have not eaten in months due to hibernation. This makes the polar bears very desperate for food. The polar bears often invade towns and become aggressive to the townspeople. An important question arises: what is the government doing about it?
The polar bear lives up in the Arctic region where global warming and climate change are melting the ice caps that the bears thrive on. They use the ice as a platform from hunting and rest. The random pocket holes in the ice, where the seals pop up at, is where the polar bear catches its prey. With this reduction of ice, “the abundance of seals, and increases the amount of energy and time needed for hunting, leaving less energy for reproduction” (Endangered Species and Habitats).
Today, they are primarily limited to sparsely settled, forested areas.[23] Black bears currently inhabit much of their original Canadian range, though they seldom occur in the southern farmlands of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba; they have been extinct in Prince Edward Island since 1937.[24] The total Canadian black bear population is between 396,000 and 476,000,[25] based on surveys taken in the mid-1990s in seven Canadian provinces, though this estimate excludes black bear populations in New Brunswick, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, and Saskatchewan. All provinces indicated stable populations of black bears over the last
(2004), sending away nuisance bears makes the niche available for another wild bear to become a part of the conflict as the roots of the problem still exist. The methods of translocation can pose dangers to the welfare of bears. Translocation can result in low survival rates because a bear’s ecological environment changes which result in a change in their behaviour in terms of finding mates, food, shelter (Massei et al., 2010). Stress related to capture and transport can affect affective states of bears, thus, as a consequent biological functioning of bears. The new niche may not be able to accommodate all the needs of the Grizzly bears which lead to low survival rate and future mortalities. This is not an effective practice to solve this issue on its own as previous case studies have not been successful (Riley et al.,
Planet Earth is the one and only home for humans, and it’s their natural duty to protect it and all of its inhabitants. For many people, the fate of animals is of little importance, especially when there are so many of their own species suffering throughout the world. However, only when one has respect for nature can he or she come to appreciate for his or herself. In the past few decades, some animals have progressively come closer and closer to extinction. When compared to demographics 30 years ago, less than 5% of tiger and rhino populations remain in the wild (Congressional). The main culprits for this abominable crime against nature are avaricious poachers who seek personal gain and profit. Poaching is the illegal killing of
A typical West Michigan backyard has tendencies to be a visiting place from some of nature’s finest species. A raccoon, opossum, or even white-tailed deer is very likely. A new likely species? A black bear. The imagination of seeing one of the most potentially dangerous species is actually becoming a reality in many locations all over the area. Many have reported aggressive tendencies from the black bear population. Reports of attacks are emerging throughout the state. Some experts say there is no trend of black bears migration to more southern areas of the state, yet others have projected that Indiana and Illinois will have some sort of black bear population. For the moment, it seems as if we won’t have to prepare ourselves for black bears, but the future may hold new residents to the southern counties of Michigan.
Poaching is a problem around the entire world. The Anti-poaching Foundation is trying to protect the endangered animals. Anti-poaching reported that modern day poachers use military equipment to kill high-target species such as elephants , rhinos , gorillas,whales and dolphin. The elephant population has dropped to 62% over the last decade.
Animal poaching has a bigger price tag than the trophy sitting on the shelf. Poaching is causing iconic animals of many continents and of our oceans to become endangered or even extinct. These animals that people have come to love and fantasize over may be gone before we are (Africa). Elephants, rhinos, lions, and zebras are the animals thought of the most when it comes to animal poaching, but many animals are poached. They are killed for only one quality, like their horns or skins and the rest of the animal is left behind. Poaching is a massive business that is ran by international networks, it’s estimated to make hundreds of millions of dollars (World). Not all wildlife trade is illegal, but it becomes a crisis when an increasing amount of illegal poaching is done and it directly threatens the survival of species in the wild (World). Since 1960 97.6% of the Black Rhino population in Africa has been poached and lions are extinct in seven African countries (Africa).
There are organizations around the globe designed to stop elephant poaching. Their intent is to sway people’s opinions to help with the world-wide problem. Only a global ban on the sale of ivory would take the heat off of these massive creatures. Solutions might include, addressing the involvement of international criminal institutes by means of strong law enforcement at both national and international levels along the full extent of the supply. Closing down domestic (national) markets in ivory, would also be beneficial. Countries could embrace the trade ban, and educate consumers in order to stem the demand for ivory (Bloody Ivory; January 11, 2013).
Bear is a true carnivore, but if not prevented the black bear could be a huge problem to humans.