Moviegoers Help The Chimps!

Yet again, enthusiastic animal-loving conservationists showed up in high volumes for the first two weeks of Disney's Chimpanzee realize back in April.  Now that all the ticket sales have been counted, Disney and the Jane Goodall Institute have confirmed that close to 130,000 acres of prime habitat have been secured for the chimpanzees in Tchimpounga Nature Reserve in the Congo!!  


DisneyNature made the donation to JGI through the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund and not only will the donation secure space for the critically endangered chimpanzees but it will also go towards educating over 60,000 children in the Congo in regards to primate importance and then extended to their parents and neighbours ultimately reaching half of the Congo's population!!! WOWOWOW

The program will also provide food and medicine for nearly all the chimp orphans at Tchimpounga Sanctuary for the next year!  This is just such incredible news not only for the Jane Goodall Institute and Chimpanzees but also for wildlife around the world.  

We have come to a critical point in our planets history and with the world economies collapsing one by one, it is great to see an amazing organization such as Disney step up and give back to the planet and the wildlife that is suffering because of humans. 


So far no word on next years DisneyNature film but I am keeping my fingers crossed that it will have something to do with turtles!!!  Goodness knows they need our help too!!!


DON'T FORGET TO PICK UP YOUR VERY OWN COPY OF "CHIMPANZEE" WHEN IT HITS STORES ON AUGUST 21st!! DISNEYNATURE WILL MAKE A DONATION TO THE JANE GOODALL INSTITUTE ON THAT DAY!


xoxoxox
N 

Bowl-A-Thon = Purrfect Success!

*Ready To Bowl!*

Toronto Cat Rescue’s 8th annual Bowl-a-thon was a great success! With the help of bowlers, pledgers and sponsors we raised $15,000 for the homesless cats and kittens of the Greater Toronto Area!

*Even the kids turned out for a purr-fect afternoon of fun!*

Over 140 bowlers came out for cats on Saturday May 26th. We would like to thank everyone involved as well as all of the TCR volunteers that gave up there time to help. Also, many thanks to Doug Hemmy who took photographs of the event. All of the photos can be seen

at www.SaveCatsFromTheGutter.com 

There were prizes for the top 12 highest pledge raisers with Nalini R. winning first place by raising $1,950!

*Volunteers and I helped hand out vegetarian & vegan pizza for all the participants!*

TCR want to thank everyone that donated prizes for the Bowl-a-thon including:

• Arbonne Independent Consultant Sarah Dineen.  www.arbonne.ca . sarahdineen@hotmail.com

• Rainbow Cinemas. www.rainbowcinemas.ca

• Lucky Strike Bowling. www.bowlluckystrike.com

• Corso Shoes

• Sue Namedof 

• Connie and Dieter Manero 

• Liz Cabral

• and Sue Gambacorta who handcrafts Swarovski Crystal jewellery with profits going to TCR. You can see her jewellery here:  

  http://torontocatrescue.ca/donate/ways-to-donate/

The 9th annual Toronto Cat Rescue Bowl-a-thon is scheduled for Saturday May 25th 2013 so keep bowling and start you pledges early this year!!

xoxox

Nicole

This Should Be Posted In Every Classroom & Office!

My friend and co-worker, who is an English high school teacher, shared this very informative chart with me this afternoon.  It is a great way to show everyone, kids and adults alike, how long it actually takes for different items to break down!! Can you imagine 550 years for a disposable diaper and 600 years for a fishing line!!!  This is so scary and in my opinion it is something EVERYONE NEEDS TO SEE!!! Print this chart out now and post it in your office, classroom, local store and even your refrigerator just to get the message out and get people thinking long-term instead of always in the moment!! 

-Nicole

A True Rescue Story!!

Surfeara is a beautiful little white cat who had a rough life before being rescued by my friend and co-worker Sherry! Surfeara was abandoned and neglected within her own home. Locked in the basement by herself, she was left by her family day in and day out. A few of our volunteers found out the kind of miserable life this poor cat was living and offered to take her from the family. It was good timing as the family was planning on taking a vacation and leaving her alone without anyone to care for her. When she was rescued, she went straight to the vet to be spayed and it was discovered she had an infection!! 

She is lucky she was rescued as this infection surely would have gone untreated. Now safe in a TCR foster home, she has taken some time to understand that her foster family is loving and caring. She now comes out of hiding regularly and has started to trust her caregivers. She comes when she is called and is loving and affectionate. She is just learning how to play again. Surfeara is a true rescue story. Without the help of some caring volunteers, she would still be stuck in a basement with no one caring for her. She would do well in a home with patient adults. Surfeara is a lovely little girl who is   ready for her second chance.


Please contact http://www.torontocatrescue.ca for more information!!


xoxox
Nicole

Saving Manatee's Abroad!

           It’s another day in paradise. Paradise Island in the Bahamas that is. With the support of Save the Manatee Club (SMC), a female manatee, Rita, and her calf, Georgie, were released back into the wildon April 19, 2012, after spending several months at Dolphin Cay-Atlantis on Paradise Island.

Rita gave birth to Georgie, a female, in June 2010.

Rita’s story in the Bahamas began in November 2009, when she was first spotted in the Spanish Wells Harbor in North Eleuthera. A photograph of the distinctive scar pattern on her back was given to the U.S. Geological Survey’s Sirenia Project (USGS). Researchers there identified her as Rita, a manatee who had been sighted in south Florida since February 1988. Based on previous sightings between 1988 and 2008, Rita had given birth to at least seven calves. Once Rita was sighted in the Bahamas in November 2009, marine mammal care staff from Dolphin Cay-Atlantis conducted a health assessment and determined that Rita was pregnant yet again. Rita gave birth to a female calf named Georgie in June 2010, and she and Georgie remained in the area around Spanish Wells Harbor until Hurricane Irene hit in August 2011.

          Once it was clear the the manatees were healthy, plans to return them to the wild at a safer location were initiated. Several organizations were involved in this process, including the Bahamas Marine Mammal Research Organization (BMMRO), the Bahamas Department of Marine Resources (BDMR), Dolphin Cay-Atlantis, the USGS Sirenia Project, and Save the Manatee Club. It was decided that the best place to release Rita and Georgie was in Great Harbor Cay in the Berry Islands, where a group of manatees already resided. Both Rita and Georgie were fitted with GPS tracking devices before being released so that researchers can follow their movements and relocate them if they venture into unsafe habitat.

Rita and Georgie are released at Great Harbour Cay in the Berry Islands, where several manatees are known to reside

               Historically, manatee sightings in the Bahamas have been few and far between, and it was thought that the lack of freshwater sources has limited manatee population growth in the area. However, in the past few decades, the number of manatees reported in the Bahamas has been increasing. For this reason, the BMMRO began conducting research on the manatees in Great Harbour Cay 13 years ago. By attaching tracking equipment to Rita and Georgie, researchers will be able to study the habitats used by manatees in the Bahamas and will gain insights into where manatees find food and fresh water. By following the movements of these two manatees, field researchers should also have opportunities to photograph and identify other manatees in the Bahamas population and determine their gender and reproductive status. The information gained through these studies will help researchers better determine how to manage the manatee population in the Bahamas. 

             In addition to research efforts, the BMMRO also works to educate the local community about manatees through school presentations and reaching out to the boating community. They will be releasing a short five-minute educational video about manatees in the Bahamas later this year. 

            There are several organizations that contributed to this successful release and monitoring project. The Bahamas Department of Marine Resources, Bahamas Marine Mammal Research Organization, Dolphin-Cay Atlantis, and USGS Sirena Project were all heavily involved in the capture, care, and release of Rita and Georgie. To assist in the release and monitoring of Rita and Georgie, Save the Manatee Club provided substantial financial support to BMMRO and the USGS to help cover the cost of the transport vessel, monitoring vessel and fuel, a GoPro camera, an adult and calf belt/tether for the radio tag, GPS tag batteries, and software. In addition, we contributed educational materials to help BMMRO with their outreach efforts. This included several of our new manatee awareness dock signs. A big thank you to our Save the Manatee Club members, who made this contribution possible!

By Courtney Edwards
Staff Biologist, Save the Manatee Club

How Cute Is This!?!?!

I wonder if singer Carly Rae Jepsen knew she would have an impact on homeless animals!?!?


xxooxo
Nicole

Finally Some Good News From Indonesia!

The Indonesian government said on Monday it would protect a strip of peatland in Aceh province at the center of an international storm over palm oil development, in a case that had become a test of the country's commitment to halt deforestation. Indonesia imposed a two-year moratorium on clearing forest last May under a $1 billion climate deal with Norway aimed at reducing emissions from deforestation, but the former governor of the country's westernmost Aceh province breached the ban by issuing a permit to a palm oil firm to develop the peatland.

This prompted legal action from environmental groups and probes by the police and several government bodies.

The resulting preliminary investigation showed that the permit was issued to palm oil firm Kallista Alam without following proper procedures, a government official said.

The forest, home to endangered orangutans, was partly cleared by burning, even before the permit was issued, said Mas Achmad Santosa, an official at the presidency.

"The case of Kallista Alam in Aceh is the typical problem we are facing ... some parts have been turned to palm oil plantations, some have been burned, and it turned out the permit does not exist," said Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, who is in charge of overseeing forestry sector reform. 

                                        

He said the peatland would again be listed as a protected area.  Former Aceh governor Irwandi Yusuf issued the permit to open 1,605 hectares of land for palm oil in the Tripa peatland area in August last year.

Indonesia is the world's largest palm oil exporter and has seen rapid growth in production of the edible oil, used to make cooking oil and biscuits, in recent years. The Indonesian government said on Monday it would protect a strip of peatland in Aceh province at the center of an international storm over palm oil development, in a case that had become a test of the country's commitment to halt deforestation.

Indonesia imposed a two-year moratorium on clearing forest last May under a $1 billion climate deal with Norway aimed at reducing emissions from deforestation, but the former governor of the country's westernmost Aceh province breached the ban by issuing a permit to a palm oil firm to develop the peatland. This prompted legal action from environmental groups and probes by the police and several government bodies.

                                                 

The resulting preliminary investigation showed that the permit was issued to palm oil firm Kallista Alam without following proper procedures, a government official said. The forest, home to endangered orangutans, was partly cleared by burning, even before the permit was issued, said Mas Achmad Santosa, an official at the presidency.

"The case of Kallista Alam in Aceh is the typical problem we are facing ... some parts have been turned to palm oil plantations, some have been burned, and it turned out the permit does not exist," said Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, who is in charge of overseeing forestry sector reform. He said the peatland would again be listed as a protected area.

Former Aceh governor Irwandi Yusuf issued the permit to open 1,605 hectares of land for palm oil in the Tripa peatland area in August last year. Indonesia is the world's largest palm oil exporter and has seen rapid growth in production of the edible oil, used to make cooking oil and biscuits, in recent years. 

xoxox

Nicole

C/O Reuters

Where Are All The Whale Sharks???

*Shelley and I Scuba Diving Utila!*

*Snorkeling With Spinner Dolphins*

A few weeks ago I returned from a fun-filled trip full of diving, volunteering and EATING Lionfish!! My main reason for diving Utila was to swim and snorkel with whale sharks in the wild. Utila, Honduras is considered the "Whale Shark Capital of the Carribean" and I did not want to be disappointed! After a failed attempt at seeing whale sharks up close last year in Placenica, Belize, I thought for sure my week would be filled with lots of bubbles and spawning tuna. Unfortunately, the boat captains and divers of Utila have not seen any whale sharks since mid January and my week was also whale shark free. Many locals and expats explained to me that the weather has really changed over the last few years due to global warming and the effects are already being seen. The warmer water is messing up the spawning seasons of the tuna & groupers therefore the whale sharks are going elsewhere looking for food. :( Yet another reason we MUST act now to combat our ever changing climate!

My week long trip however did not go in vain. I had the pleasure of diving with some awesome intructors (Chris & Brett from the Utila Dive Centre) as well as volunteer at a local spay & neuter clinic that takes place twice a month for the local villagers pets!

*Delivering Donations to Pilar & Volunteer Monica*

Sherry "Pilar" Thorn, found of Helping Hands for Hounds of Honduras, also made the trek from the Hondruan capital of Tegucigalpa to meet me on the tiny island where I delivered toys, blankets, medications, vet supplies and treats for all the stray dogs and cats she takes in to her shelter. Sherry, a retired University professor, has dedicated her life to helping street dogs and cats find a safe haven, food and necessary vet treatment when needed. She has saved countless lives and the locals know her as the go to woman for help when it comes to four-legged creatures (and birds.....snakes....pretty much anything that has a heartbeat!). Sherry invited my travel buddy Shelley and I to attend a local spay & neuter clinic that is run by two American expat vets who live in Utila. I had such a wonderful time seeing these volunteers dedicate their time, money and expertise to help control the unwanted stray population on the island of Utila!

*Helping A Local Dog Get Neutered*

*Brothers Now Neutered!!*

*Shelley and I With The Incredible Volunteers!*

Shelley and I also visited the "Iguana Station", only minutes from our hotel at the Mango Inn, to tour the sanctuary and view the hatcheries where they breed the endangered spiny tailed "swamper" iguana. The project accepts volunteers from around the world and educates the public and tourists about reptiles and animals native to Utila and the Honduran mainland. I would definitely recommend visiting the "Iguana Station" to any tourist to the island as they rely solely on the $3 admission fee and donations to keep the station running!

*A Male "Swamper"*

*Sherry Removing Ticks From A Rescued Boa*

Another highlight for me while visiting Utila was being able to eat the invasive and reef damaging LIONFISH!!!! Every Thursday night, the Utila Dive Centre hosts a BBQ for its employee's and divers and features chicken and lionfish on its menu! The lionfish is caught and prepared by master tec-diver Mary who is an instructor at IDC. She is just as passionate as myself when it comes to reef conservation and hunting the invasive lionfish. Its not everyday you have the opportunity to try them so Shelley and I jumped at the chance and absolutely loved the dinner!! The lionfish was all white meat and tasted so fresh - wasn't overwhelming at all! I really hope more restaurants around the Caribbean will jump on the band wagon and start serving this as a main course or even over pizza!

*Chicken and Lionfish On The Barbie!*

*Mmmmmm Yummy Lionfish!!!*

*Lionfish Hunter Mary and I*

It's time for bed...........I have to get up early for the Green Living Show tomorrow!!!!

Sincerely,

Nicole

Thinking Of A Real Bunny For Easter? THINK AGAIN!

Go Palm Oil Free This V-Day!!