Russia moves to free nearly 100 captive whales after outcry

Russia

Decision coincides with visit to enclosure by French marine expert Jean-Michel Cousteau

Reuters in Moscow

Mon 8 Apr 2019 11.17 BSTLast modified on Tue 9 Apr 2019 00.50 BST

Russian authorities have decided to free nearly 100 whales held in cages in the country’s far east, according to reports.

Images of the whales, kept in cramped enclosures in a bay near the Sea of Japan port city of Nakhodka, first appeared last year, triggering a storm of criticism.

The animals had been captured by a company that planned to sell them to China but the Kremlin intervened and ordered local authorities to find a way of freeing them.

After months of delays, the decision to release the whales coincided with a visit to the enclosures by the French oceanographer Jean-Michel Cousteau, son of the famous marine expert Jacques Cousteau.

“An official decision has been taken to release all the animals into the wild,” Oleg Kozhemyako, the governor of the Primorsky region, was quoted by the Tass news agency as saying. “Scientists from Cousteau’s team and Russian scientists will decide when and which animals to release.“

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Seal pups released back into wild by Guernsey animal shelter

Two grey seal pups rescued over the winter have been released back into the wild by a Guernsey animal charity.

Jethou Bumblebee was found in November and Hanois rescued in January. Both were sick, injured and less than half their ideal body weight.

Steve Byrne, GSPCA manager, said the seals had been driven ashore by the unseasonably rough seas.

He said: "Although a little unsure at first they were soon playing and enjoying being back in the wild."

'True privilege'

Mr Byrne said the months of intensive care and nearly 2,000kg of fish, the majority of which was donated or funded by public donation, had paid off.

He said the two pups had developed a bond and hoped this would help them in the wild. They were released from Jethou on Wednesday.

Geoff George, animal collection officer, said "The whole event from the rescue to the release has been a real highlight of my career and makes the job so worth while.

"To see them back in the wild was a true privilege and to actually see them jumping out of the water and Hanois even catch his first fish helps place my mind at rest that they will do well."

The charity aims to fundraise over the summer to improve its seal unit by making the pool bigger and fitting a pump system in case any further rescues are needed.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-guernsey-22201637

This sure is one lucky buzzard

Lucky , the endangered black breasted buzzard with Anita Turton who nursed the bird back to good health. Picture: Matt Turner  Source:   AdelaideNow

AN unlikely combination of freakish circumstance, chance meetings and the goodwill of Outback workers and wildlife lovers will return one of Australia's rare birds to the skies this week.

This endangered black-breasted buzzard, named Lucky by her rescuers, has been nursed back to health over the past three months at Williamstown after being discovered, near death, on the Strzelecki Track at Moomba.

The plan is to release her back at the track, but she will have to undergo one final procedure to ensure she survives. Four tail feathers taken from road kill will be glued to existing feather stumps so Lucky can fly away.

Grounded by a broken wing bone and unable to feed herself for at least three weeks, Lucky was found by an ornithologist conducting research on a part of the track usually closed to the public. Recognising how important she was, the scientist phoned the local ranger, who contacted Santos workers, who built a crate for the bird and organised for her to be flown to Adelaide.

Read on:  http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/national/this-sure-is-one-lucky-buzzard/story-fndo471r-1226448263284