conservation

For all their differences, Black-faced Spoonbill and Spoon-billed Sandpiper have one thing in common. Both are teetering on the brink of extinction.

Inspired by Wallace's book The Malay Archipelago, and enticed by the Spice Islands and the chance of adventure, I'm travelling to Ternate and nearby Bacan and Halmahera.

After a holiday in Wallacea - northeast Sulawesi and the north Moluccas - in August, I've written an article on travels and some of the wildlife for the Alfred Russel Wallace blog.

Now posted, with plenty of photos, at: http://wallacefund.info/content/holiday-heart-wallacea

It is only unforeseen events like the industrial revolution and the “green revolution” that helped feed many more people and stave off catastrophe.

It’s a scintillating morning in north Botswana, and I’m privileged to be standing within touching distance of an African savannah elephant

I’m about to confess to long-term crazy behaviour on my part. And then, I will read your mind.

            First, the confession. For over a quarter of a century, I have devoted considerable effort to what may well be a lost cause: trying to encourage far stronger environmental protection.

This past summer, a team of biologists scoured Siberian tundra in search of nests and eggs of one of the world’s most threatened species, spoon-billed sandpiper. Aim was for captive breeding; yet this is far from ideal way of saving species.