Wild Life - Summer 2021

Summer 2021 | bornfree.org.uk

A WARM

Welcome

FROM WILL TRAVERS OBE

Despite the challenges we still face from COVID-19, here’s to a summer we can all enjoy! Not least wishing my mum Virginia McKenna a Happy Birthday as we celebrate 90 years of family, friendship, wild animals and the arts. Take part at bornfree.org.uk/ happy-birthday-virginia This edition of Wild Life focuses on Ethiopia and our life-changing Ensessa Kotteh centre. Your help is needed to provide quality care for rescued animals, many confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade – lions, cheetah, hyena, primates, birds, tortoises, the list goes on.

I’m excited we can now explore the possibility of returning more of these animals to the wild, as well as re-igniting our education work there. Meanwhile my friend and colleague, Professor Claudio Sillero, shares his passion for the wildlife and people of Ethiopia.

But there is so much more! Thanks everyone for supporting our recent pangolin campaign. After years of our campaigning, will South Africa finally ban despicable canned hunting of captive-bred lions? Our new reports highlight the con in zoo conservation, dangerous UK pets and giraffes languishing in Europe’s zoos.

Meanwhile, with our colleagues, we successfully whisked Sandro the rescued tiger to a sanctuary in northern Italy.

Born Free has never shied away from the biggest challenges – fighting the ivory trade, promoting compassionate conservation, empowering communities, championing wildlife-friendly policies. But, that’s what it means to be part of the Born Free Family. Together, let’s make the world a kinder, safer place for wildlife, one animal at a time.

Executive President will@bornfree.org.uk @willtravers

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HAVE YOU HEARD THE LATEST WILD NEWS?

HAPPY 90TH BIRTHDAY VIRGINIA!

COVER STORY We celebrate our inspiring Co-Founder Virginia McKenna OBE’s special birthday and 90 years of family, friendship, wild animals and the arts (see page 4).

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THE TRUE VALUE OF RARE SPECIES

HOW EDUCATION IS THE KEY TO SUCCESS

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LET’S END CAPTIVE SUFFERING AND ABUSE

IT’S ABOUT RESPECT, SAYS VIRGINIA MCKENNA OBE

16 12 CREATING A SAFE HAVEN WITH YOU

WHY I LOVE ETHIOPIA - SHARE MY VISION

Have You Heard?

ALL THE LATEST FROM BORN FREE

ELEPHANT-FREE UK?

ZOOS SAVE RARE ANIMALS RIGHT?

Content at their tranquil, temporary home at Tonga Terre d’Accueil in France, the stress of the big top is a distant memory for Angela, Bellone, Louga and Saïda.

“With COVID-19 restrictions easing we can plan to move these rescued lions to our South Africa sanctuary,” said acting Head of Rescue & Care Maggie Balaskas.

“Meanwhile, the four love to chase, play and wrestle, then doze in the sun.”

Wrong! Our shocking new report Conservation or Collection reveals that, even in the UK’s best-known zoos, less than 27% of species are endangered. In fact, over half are ‘Least Concern’, including cute but common meerkats, wallabies and marmosets.

“Far from fighting extinction, these zoos are just saving themselves,” said report author Chris Lewis. “It’s time for the UK to tighten up its Zoo Act.”

© Tonga Terre d’Accueil

GOODBYE CIRCUS, HELLO AFRICA!

© georgelogan.co.uk

© georgelogan.co.uk

After years of our campaigning, new legislation to phase out elephants in UK zoos could be on the cards. We are thrilled! The suffering of elephants in zoos is why we began in 1984. UK zoos have exploited this intelligent, sensitive species since 1255 but never returned one to the wild. “There are currently 50 elephants in 11 UK zoos,” said our Head of Policy Dr Mark Jones, “but their complex needs can never be met in a zoo.”

SAVING MERU’S GIANTS Our conservation team has launched a major new project to protect rare giraffes and elephants in Meru National Park, Kenya.

Here in our charity’s homeland – where Elsa the lioness returned to the wild – Born Free is working with local people to prevent crop damage by these huge herbivores and encourage peaceful coexistence.

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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A Standing Ovation, All Over The World SUPPORTERS AND FRIENDS WORLDWIDE GATHERED FOR A SPECIAL ONLINE PARTY TO WISH VIRGINIA MCKENNA OBE THE HAPPIEST OF BIRTHDAYS. CELIA NICHOLLS REPORTS. ‘The world still astounds you, every time you look at a star…’

It was the party of the century, when over a thousand supporters from around the world joined us to celebrate the 90th Birthday of our beloved Co-Founder Virginia McKenna OBE in June.

“If I could go anywhere right now, I would visit the grave of Elsa the lioness in Meru Park in Kenya,” Virginia explained in her touching interview with actor and wildlife champion Dan Richardson. “We are all equals, with hearts that beat. Born Free is a true family – one of the things that makes our charity so special.”

In conclusion, Will asked Virginia to imagine she was on stage at the London Palladium. “The audience is on their feet cheering. You can’t hear the applause, you can’t see the standing ovation, but it is happening right now, all around the world.”

A fortnight later, supporters bid on exceptional lots, extraordinary experiences and celebrity memorabilia donated by Virginia’s nearest and dearest and fabulous friends at the Really WILD Auction. Hosted

by James Lewis, Born Free Patron and TV auctioneer from Bamfords Auction House, Derbyshire, the coveted lots raised vital funds for wild animal care and compassionate conservation.

THE WORLD STILL ASTOUNDS YOU, EVERY TIME YOU LOOK AT A STAR...

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HAVE YOU HEARD?

© Maria Slough

Hosted by Will Travers OBE and Patron Nicky Campbell OBE, the evening got off to a spectacular start with Kerry Ellis and Brian May’s version of ‘Born Free’, followed by a film looking back over Virginia’s dazzling life and career. Emotional birthday greetings included Joanna Lumley, Bryan Adams, Ricky Gervais, Penelope Wilton, Peter Egan, Caroline Lucas, Sir Michael Morpurgo, Chris Packham, plus messages from our teams around the world.

YOU CAN HELP There’s still time to give Virginia a birthday present, plus watch party highlights by visiting bornfree.org.uk/ articles/virginia-90th-party

With Pole Pole in Kenya, whose death at London Zoo led to the start of our charity

© Land Rover

“IF I COULD GO ANYWHERE RIGHT NOW, I WOULD VISIT THE GRAVE OF ELSA THE LIONESS IN MERU PARK IN KENYA”.

© Daily Mirror

On the set of classic film Born Free, with husband Bill Travers MBE

A new life in Malawi for Bella, rescued from a Romanian zoo

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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Have You Heard?

THE REAL TIGER KING

© NHC

With your help, a 15-year-old tiger rescued from a shoddy zoo in Spain, has a loving lifetime home at our partner sanctuary in Tuscany, Italy. Sandro endured years in a shocking barren cage but thankfully, after years of Born Free campaigning with Spanish colleagues, Ayamonte Zoo closed in 2019.

SEISMIC SHIFT

EVERY HOG MATTERS

Following years of our campaigning, South Africa has announced it may ban the grotesque trophy hunting of captive-bred lions. Intensely bred, thousands of lions are currently exploited at every stage of their lives – from cubs cuddled by tourists to near-tame young adults shot dead by hunters in a fenced enclosure, their head and skin taken as grisly trophies, their bones sold for medicine. See bornfree.org.uk for the latest.

Each year, we donate thousands of pounds to UK wildlife rescue centres to buy vital equipment, medicine and food.

“With a large, infected wound across her face Mulan the hedgehog wasn’t expected to survive,” said Born Free’s own rescuer Tarnya Knight. “But, after expert care from Hogfields Hedgehog Hospital in Birmingham, this strong independent girl can go wild.”

WE HAVE A WINNER! Eduardo Jose Pinel Ramos, a researcher from Honduras, will study rare spider monkeys in Mexico thanks to our annual Primate Society of Great Britain grant. With lanky limbs and long prehensile tails, you can see how these New World primates got their name! Spider monkeys feast on fruit and nuts and play a vital role in forest regeneration, dispersing seeds in their droppings.

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HAVE YOU HEARD

Born Free is delighted to introduce our new Patron – broadcaster Kirsty Gallacher.

Kirsty is especially supporting our rescue work, not least Sandro the tiger. “I feel passionately about your work to make sure animals are treated with compassion and respect,” she explained. “I’m committed to help raise awareness of exploitation and the, often shocking, reality of captivity.”

© J Foster

WELCOME KIRSTY!

BYE BYE DOLPHIN POOL The appalling, five by six metre pool in Turkey – built to exploit two wild-caught dolphins Tom and Misha – has finally been demolished. We rescued the sickly pair with local groups and returned them to the wild in 2012, via rehabilitation in a sea-pen. “Such welcome news,” said Born Free’s Sarah Jefferson.

“Public outcry helped save Tom and Misha, so if you see captive wild animal suffering do speak out.” See bornfree.org.uk/raise-the-red-flag

ONE BORN FREE’S PENNY BANHAM TALKS TO JENNY DESMOND FROM LIBERIA CHIMPANZEE RESCUE & PROTECTION (LCRP).

HOW IS MARY BEAUTY, THE TINY ORPHAN WE HELPED RESCUE? She’s progressing really well and can join other young chimpanzees to develop social and physical skills. So rewarding to see her go from strength to strength!

WHY WORK WITH COMMUNITIES? All of us matter, whether human, chimpanzee or another endangered species. We support the community so they become invested with the natural world, making it safer for wildlife and for people, in turn.

WHAT’S NEXT?

© LCRP

Our long-term goal is to stop the trade in chimpanzees, so we’ll keep pushing to make that happen. Our immediate next step is moving to our new site, 100 acres of forested land purchased from the local community. We will build a veterinary centre, an education centre and there will be a lot more space!

SO MANY CHIMPS ARRIVE TRAUMATISED, NEEDING URGENT CARE. ONCE REHABILITATED, CAN THEY EVER RETURN TO THE WILD?

ANY IMPROVEMENTS IN LAW ENFORCEMENT AND AWARENESS? We work hand in hand with Liberia’s Forestry Development Authority and other partners to combat illegal trade. More wildlife criminals are prosecuted and the public engage with conservation through radio programmes, campaigns and even drama productions, and chimpanzee confiscations have increased.

© LCRP

It’s the ultimate dream. However, these highly social and complex beings live in groups, utilising vast areas.

Recreating those conditions is tricky, and wild threats remain so high. We strive to incorporate cultural and natural behaviours, such as nut cracking and hope, one day, they can return to the wild.

Hasn’t Mary Beauty recovered well?!

Liberia’s only chimpanzee sanctuary and conservation centre rescues victims of the illegal bushmeat and pet trades. In 2020, Born Free awarded a £5,000 grant in our annual McKennaTravers Award for Compassionate Conservation.

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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RARE AND PRICELESS NIKKI TAGG INTRODUCES YOU TO SOME INVALUABLE WILDLIFE GEMS WHOSE NUMBERS ARE LOW BUT ECOLOGICAL VALUE IS SKY HIGH!

There are millions of species on Earth, the diversity breath-taking. Yet, in our rapidly changing world, many populations are shrinking, in danger of being wiped out. “For any species, this is tragic,” says Born Free’s Chief Scientist, Professor Claudio Sillero, “but losing those that are rare, unique or endemic spells disaster on a greater level.

Recognising this conservation need, many Born Free projects address the threats such wonderful species are facing.”

‘Rare’ species are those that number few or are infrequently encountered, such as Argentina’s jaguars or grey crowned crane in central and southern Africa.

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RARE AND PRICELESS

Every species has evolved to help maintain their ecosystem, so a rare species can be crucial in helping their habitat adapt to change or can even plug the gap if a dominant species is lost. For example, if monkeys decline due to human hunting in central African rainforests, the rare eastern gorilla steps up to provide a similar seed dispersal role.

In contrast, other species carry out a role unlike any other. ‘Unique’ species are evolutionarily distinct, with few close relatives on the tree of life. Possessing rare genes, they are often unusual in the way they look and behave, such as the scaly, ant-eating pangolin. They can also fulfil unique ecosystem functions – the forest

HOW MANY?

THE TIGER’S TALE

RARE SPECIES YOU HELP KEEP SAFE: LOCATION

POPULATION

JAGUARS

ARGENTINA

250 ADULTS

GREY CROWNED CRANES

RWANDA

881

ETHIOPIAN WOLF

ETHIOPIA

500

EASTERN GORILLA

AFRICAN

4,800

PANGOLIN (FOUR SPECIES)

AFRICA

UNKNOWN

FOREST ELEPHANT

LIBERIA

1,000

BORNEAN ORANGUTAN

BORNEO

57,400

INDOCHINESE TIGER

THAILAND

200

A species of conservation value to science might mean something very different to local communities, with an ages’ old relationship – positive or negative. Animals find a way into myths, legends and folklore, be considered a totem or a spirit, even be revered. Others, for example a dangerous predator like the Indochinese tiger, presents a real risk and conjure a different sentiment altogether!

© Freeland

SPECIES

YOU CAN HELP Adopt a jaguar, gorilla, Ethiopian wolf, Bornean orangutan or pangolin – bornfree.org.uk/adopt

elephant disperses large seeds no other animal is big enough to swallow and helps manage the forest by knocking over smaller trees. This role is irreplaceable and other species and the habitat would suffer in the wake of their loss.

Uniqueness is closely tied to the species’ specialisation.

Evolved to fill a specific niche and isolated for much of evolutionary history, they are often restricted to a single location. Such species are known as ‘endemic’ – they occur nowhere else on Earth. Striking examples include Ethiopian wolves living only in high mountain ranges either side of Ethiopia’s Great Rift Valley, and Bornean orangutans – found only on Borneo. They alone fulfil

critically important ecological roles thanks to a unique combination of traits.

In this age of rapid biodiversity loss, many wild animal populations need our attention. Less prominent but rare, unique and endemic species are often the most vulnerable to human pressures. Could you help us reverse the trend and safeguard these precious jewels?

Dr Nikki Tagg Head of Conservation nikkit@bornfree.org.uk

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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FIND OUT MORE Calling all teachers and home-schoolers!

Discover our extensive, curriculum-based free education resources at bornfree.org.uk/ education

© georgelogan.co.uk

“IN THE END WE CONSERVE ONLY WHAT WE LOVE; WE LOVE ONLY WHAT WE UNDERSTAND; AND WE UNDERSTAND ONLY WHAT WE HAVE BEEN TAUGHT.” BABA DIOUM, SENEGALESE POET AND ENVIRONMENTALIST

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THE KEY TO SUCCESS

WITH A PRACTICAL VISION FOR WILDLIFE PROTECTION, LAURA GOSSET AND TEAM ENCOURAGE YOUNG PEOPLE TO LEARN TO CHERISH WILD ANIMALS. Education is crucial to secure a future for wild animals, because so many of the threats facing wildlife result from human activity. At Born Free we do everything we can to mitigate these pressures, such as our work to rescue and care for individual animals (including Janu the magnificent lion pictured here at our Ensessa Kotteh centre in Ethiopia). But, to bring about real change, we must tackle the drivers behind their exploitation.

And, we of course have a role to play in the UK as well.

It can be unclear how best we can each protect wildlife, especially when the stories we hear are about animals we never see. So, let’s not overlook what’s happening on our own doorstep. From habitat loss contributing to declining hedgehog numbers, to endangered African grey parrots being wild-caught, illegally traded and ending up in the UK exotic pet trade, global biodiversity is at risk.

One way we do this in Ethiopia is to run environmental clubs for local school pupils, supporting the essential work of our centre near Addis Ababa. Fun and informative, these sessions follow a carefully crafted curriculum tailored for local needs, asking questions such as: What wild animals live near me? What does the environment give to people? Why do we need laws to protect wildlife?

By engaging with pupils across the UK from an early age, Born Free empowers young people to take action and become part of the solution, both locally and globally. Through free workshops, events and resources, our UK education programme addresses powerful issues including animal welfare, biodiversity loss and plastic pollution. Pupils learn to critically evaluate their own actions and appreciate how they can have a global impact. Above all, we enable pupils to grow up to advocate for those without a voice – the wildlife.

Through these clubs we help young people, and thereby their communities, start to understand their impact on the natural world and begin to take an active role in protecting their country’s unique natural heritage.

Laura Gosset Head of Education laura@bornfree.org.uk

BORN FREE CLUB MEMBERS Menagesha Kolobo Primary School, Ethiopia

Tigist aged 13

Sena aged 15

Million aged 16

“I have seen the threats wildlife is facing like keeping wild animals as domestic animals. I want to tell my local community wild animals have the right to live in the wild.”

“I want to join this club because wildlife is facing such threats as illegal hunting and destruction of forest. I want to reduce such problems with Born Free.”

“I want to learn about wildlife more and advise people to stop illegal hunting and inform concerned authorities when such problems arise in our local community.”

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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WITH YOUR HELP, OUR RESCUE CENTRE IN ETHIOPIA HELPS LOCAL COMMUNITIES SAVE LIVES AND PROTECT RARE SPECIES, EXPLAINS MAGGIE BALASKAS. Close to Ethiopia’s bustling capital Addis Ababa, on an idyllic 190-acre site filled with indigenous trees and shrubs, Born Free’s Wildlife Rescue, Conservation and Education Centre plays a crucial role. Ethiopia is an ancient country with a unique cultural heritage and remarkable biodiversity, but their wild animals face many threats.

Ensessa Kotteh (‘animal footprint’ in Amharic) is the only centre of its kind, rescuing individual animals and providing a lifetime home for those who can’t be released. Working with our Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority colleagues, we give sanctuary to victims of the terrible illegal wildlife trade, as well as those found orphaned or injured in the wild.

Providing safety and expert care for confiscated wild animals is at the heart of our work and a fundamental first step in facilitating law enforcement.

Many have been taken from the wild to be kept locally as pets, or meet the demands of international trade, or to be exploited for ‘entertainment’. Most are isolated, tormented, undernourished and kept in appalling conditions not meeting even basic needs.

Once safe at Ensessa Kotteh, we carefully assess each animal to see if release to the wild is feasible after rehabilitation. Those who can’t go back to the wild we give loving lifetime care in spacious enclosures while our veterinary clinic provides on-site treatment including other wild animals in need of help. Caring for over 150 residents requires copious supplies of food, vet drugs and dietary supplements, plus we’re busy putting final touches to new recovery enclosures and sourcing much needed specialist vet equipment.

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SAFE HAVEN

FEELING INSPIRED? COME ON BOARD, WE’D LOVE YOU TO GET INVOLVED!

Our biodiversity-rich site is also a safe home to an array of free roaming wildlife including hyena, bushbuck, warthog, olive baboon, grivet monkey, serval and leopard, along with many bird species.

Our tree planting programme reforests indigenous species, providing food and shelter for local wildlife, while our education centre welcomes school groups and communities to learn about nature and the importance of conservation.

Maggie Balaskas Acting Head of Rescue & Care maggie@bornfree.org.uk

could buy a vitamin boost for a hyena like Matama

£10

could buy a meal for a rescued lion like Kebri

£50

could buy three week’s care for a gelada like Kera

£100

could support vet expenses during a cheetah rescue

© CCF

© georgelogan.co.uk

“Our relationship with the beautiful country of Ethiopia and its people began in 2009 when President Girma (now sadly deceased and much mourned) handed over to Will 190 acres of land to create a sanctuary. A short time later, Dolo the lion – kept for four years on a one metre chain – became the ‘founder’ of Ensessa Kotteh and our first rescued animal.

Never forgotten. Our dedicated Ethiopian team now provide a welcoming home for many species.”

© georgelogan.co.uk

Dolo was our very first rescue.

£5

YOU CAN HELP Your gift today could save a life! Visit bornfree.org.uk/safe-haven-for-wildlife

Virginia McKenna OBE, Co-Founder Wild Life | Summer 2021

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YOU CAN HELP Support our work by adopting our Cheetah Family for just £3 per month – personalised gift pack includes a cuddly toy and regular updates: bornfree.org.uk/adopt-a-cheetah

© georgelogan.co.uk

With you by our side, since opening in 2009, our Ethiopian centre has rescued more than 250 animals – from baboons to bushbuck! Dozens have successfully been returned to the wild including birds of prey, servals, genets and caracals. But,for those who can’t survive on their own we give lifetime sanctuary and expert care.

Today, nine rescued lions call Ensessa Kotteh home – seven magnificent males and two charming lionesses, from two-year-old victim of the wild pet trade Iman, to old man Major aged 23, rescued from an army base. Each with their individual story and unique character, confiscated from wildlife traffickers being smuggled out of Ethiopia or rescued from horrendous captive conditions.

All but one of our ten cheetahs arrived aged less than one year, undernourished and in terrible health, no doubt stolen from their wild mothers to be sold as pets. Hailu was confiscated from illegal traders in eastern Ethiopia, then tethered by a chain in a military compound. Cheetah are sensitive to stress and even our loving expertise can’t compensate for such early trauma.

Our Animal Care Team go to great lengths to ensure cheetah are sympathetically cared for. Daily environmental enrichment such as puzzle feeders keep them mentally and physically active. The team understands each personality so know sisters Tamu and Nura enjoy companionship, whereas Hailu appreciates the peace of living alone. Every individual really does matter. MB

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WHO LIVES AT ENSESSA KOTTEH?

Meet the famly 2 10 CHEETAH GRIVET 9 LIONS 24 MONKEYS BIRDS 6 HYENA 2 OF PREY GELADA 19 BABOONS 67 TORTOISES OLIVE 5 BABOONS 2 ANTELOPE HAMADRYAS 8 BABOONS BALE 2 MONKEYS PATAS MONKEYS

In conversation MAGGIE BALASKAS TALKS TO BEREKET GIRMA, HEAD OF CENTRE AT ENSESSA KOTTEH, ETHIOPIA. TELL US ABOUT YOUR ROLE? I’ve been part of the Born Free team for 13 years now and involved with Ensessa Kotteh from the very beginning. Having originally supervised construction, I now oversee the entire centre.

WHAT CHALLENGES DO YOU FACE? Looking after over 150 animals needs a huge amount of food and many other materials. We have a big dedicated team and need to ensure everyone follows COVID-19 protocols on site and when back home.

Inflation due to the pandemic is also a big challenge, as is the importation of drugs and vet equipment.

DO MANY PEOPLE WORK AT THE CENTRE? It’s a big team! 30 security staff diligently ensure 24/7 security of animals, people and property while 13 loving staff take care of the rescued animals’ day to day care – food, cleaning, enrichment. Five staff maintain enclosures, buildings and fences and cover the landscape with native trees and vegetation. Plus a dedicated education team, admin staff and a threestrong Addis-based logistics team. That’s 53 in total!

My special lion Kebri, rescued as a cub, was due to be shot

ANY BEST MOMENTS? I enjoy all my days at the centre! Seeing the animals under our care healthy and content, it makes me feel happy so many stolen animals are now in a place of safety enjoying life. All the rescues with my wonderful team are the best moments and I love all our animals, but especially Kebri the lion!

YOUR VISION FOR THE FUTURE? That we continue to have a big positive impact on illegal wildlife trafficking in Ethiopia and neighbouring countries, give a shelter for confiscated animals, and expand our education work to encourage more young conservationists.

© georgelogan.co.uk

I ENJOY ALL MY DAYS AT THE CENTRE! SEEING THE ANIMALS UNDER OUR CARE HEALTHY AND CONTENT...

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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© W Burrard-Lucas

WITH A PASSION FOR ALL THE DIVERSE WILDLIFE AND PEOPLE OF THIS ANCIENT NATION, PROF CLAUDIO SILLERO WOULD ESPECIALLY LIKE TO INTRODUCE THE WOLF ON THE ROOF.

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WHY I LOVE ETHIOPIA

Dinkinesh (‘You are marvellous’) lived in Ethiopia 3.2 million years ago. Lucy, as she is also called, was unearthed nearly 50 years ago in the Rift Valley and is our oldest known direct ancestor.

Indeed, Ethiopia is the cradle of humanity, our ancestors may have been living in the Horn of Africa’s magnificent highlands ever since, later dispersing north across the Red Sea and out of Africa to conquer the globe. Pathways early humans followed grew into trade routes, taking incense, salt, oilseeds, cotton and gold to the middle East and beyond, and bringing livestock and agriculture to Africa. A rich and diverse civilization grew, and in modern Ethiopia myriads of ethnicities and languages coexist.

It is this background of trade routes and cultural diversity that helped me understand the biological diversity I encountered when I first came to Ethiopia in the 1980s. With a staggering 90% of all land in the continent above 4,000 metres found in Ethiopia, I like to think of it as the roof of Africa. Its alpine meadows, moorlands and mountains forests offered opportunities to many representatives of sub-Saharan fauna and flora, as well as from Eurasia, effectively constituting a biogeographical crossroads. With its peculiar geology and climate (vast areas of Ethiopia were covered by glaciers not so long ago), this region became a centre of endemism, where unique plants and animals evolved – many found only in Ethiopia today.

Bleeding heart geladas, graceful mountain nyalas, lions, giant forest hogs and wattled cranes with a southern ancestry converged with stubborn walia ibex, Ethiopian wolves and Abyssinian hares whose predecessors would have crossed land bridges from the north. These converging migratory sources delivered a diverse assemblage unique to this country and matching the colourful peoples of this land.

A WOLF IN FOX’S CLOTHING "…is how I often describe the Ethiopian wolf, due to their fine-tuned adaptations to life in the Roof of Africa’s harsh conditions, where they tap in a seemingly inexhaustible supply of giant molerats.

Yet, their successful adaptation to the Afroalpine meadows awaiting the relatively recent arrival of wolves to the Horn of Africa – some 100,000 years ago via land bridges connecting Africa to Eurasia – might be their undoing, since they are now imprisoned in ever-shrinking ‘islands in the air."

Claudio Sillero

AFRICA’S WATER TOWER While images of dusty refugee camps and unbearable suffering might linger in our memories from watching Bob Geldof’s Live Aid in 1985, water is plentiful in Ethiopia. Thousands of springs originating in the highlands form mighty rivers such as the Blue Nile, effectively serving as the continent’s water tower, bringing life and relief to lands further down the slopes and beyond political boundaries.

Fertile highlands are a patchwork of small fields of teff (a native lovegrass grain staple), wheat, barley and other food plants have fed Ethiopia’s people for thousands of years.

Its forests have gifted us coffee, which takes central place, bringing people together to socialise, and is a source of pride and vital income from trade. But, farming has modified Ethiopia’s surface for millennia. An expanding human population (Ethiopia is Africa’s second most populous country) and ever increasing need for arable land bring incessant pressure on natural habitats. Barley and potato fields encroach the last relicts of Afroalpine diversity, and land is increasingly tired, challenging the future of people and nature alike.

By and large, the people living in the highlands are relatively tolerant of wildlife, but their priority is survival, and unless their livelihoods can be brought into line with sustainable practices, the meadows and moors they need to graze cattle, gather firewood and tend crops will soon be degraded to bare rock.

DEADLY TRADE ROUTES Ironically, some ancient ‘incense’ routes are now retraced by criminal gangs profiting from the illegal wildlife trade – channelling ivory, pangolins, lion parts and even cheetah cubs out of the Horn of Africa. This has prompted Born Free into action to end wildlife trade in Ethiopia, training police and customs officers and looking at the role air cargo has in this ghastly trade.

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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A GAUCHO SET LOOSE IN THE HIGHLANDS Another feature of Ethiopia I love is their horse culture.

I grew up in the Argentine pampas, and spent long days riding, herding cattle and sheep and farming wheat. Thus, I settled in Ethiopia with no trouble at all! What is less clear is how a gaucho ended up in Africa. I can’t pin it down to any specific event, other than watching many episodes of 1960s TV series Daktari.

At some point, I started hatching a plan to one day go to Africa to work with wildlife.

AFROALPINE’S FLAGSHIP SPECIES

My African plan came one step closer in 1985 with a successful application to study in Nairobi University and I found myself studying spotted hyaenas and black rhinos in Aberdare National Park’s montane forests. But I first heard of some mysterious red wolves living in Ethiopia’s highlands over dinner with friends.

Days later I was on a plane bound for Addis Ababa, and embarked on four years studying Ethiopian wolves in the freezing heathlands of Bale Mountains.

Over 4,000 hours of detailed observations on the ecology and behaviour of 130 wolves led to a University of Oxford doctorate, and sowed the seeds for the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme This became a reality when Born Free committed to saving the wolves in 1995, and we have worked with Ethiopia’s government and local communities to protect the wolves and other unique highland wildlife ever since. Taking a long-term view to protect wildlife has been possible only thanks to your sustained support. Thank you!

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WHY I LOVE ETHIOPIA

The Ethiopian wolf is one of the world’s rarest carnivores, if not the rarest! Trapped on a few mountain islands rising on both sides of the Rift Valley, this unique canid has survived millennia of human-animal interactions in one of Africa’s most densely populated rural lands. But threat of disease and a shifting agriculture frontier require new conservation measures.

The most clear and present danger to the wolves comes from domestic dogs. They not only compete for food, but transmit rabies and canine distemper to their wild cousins, and even hybridise with them. Our One Health approach to address this threat implements solutions to bring benefits to wildlife, but also dogs, livestock and peoples’ livelihoods.

Another creeping threat is far less tangible: climate change. With Africa, and most of the globe, steadily warming up since the Pleistocene, the wolves’ Afroalpine grassland home continues to shrink, rendering their specialists’ success an ecological trap. Our hope is that by translocating wolves between populations and to areas they have disappeared – preventing local extinctions and maintaining genetic diversity – we will save the species even in a warmer world.

THIS REGION HAS BECOME A CENTRE OF ENDEMISM - UNIQUE ANIMALS HAVE EVOLVED, FOUND ONLY IN ETHIOPIA.

There is so much at stake. People and wildlife with amazing ancient histories, yet relying on finding a balance between sustainable development and environmental protection to provide a future where both can coexist. Still, I remain positive. Optimism and hope are essential to a career in conservation. We must resist the notion it is too late to stop humankind’s juggernaut destroying our wonderful biosphere. Against the odds, we should work and campaign for a change in current trends of biodiversity loss. Together, let’s secure a future for at least some of this grandeur of life, not just for us, but for generations to come.

Abyssinian hare

© R Waddington

Mountain nyala

© J Kerby

Walia ibex

© N Borrow

© Vynz101

Bleeding heart gelada

“For over 30 years I have been happy to work alongside Claudio and Born Free.

We protect the wolves but also help the community to care about natural resources and create job opportunities for locals.”

Edris Ebu Programme Manager Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme

YOU CAN HELP Prof Claudio Sillero Chief Scientist claudio@bornfree.org.uk

Help Claudio secure a safe future for Ethiopia’s wildlife by adopting our Ethiopian Wolf Family at bornfree.org.uk/adopt

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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BORN FREE EXPOSES THE INHUMANE PET TRADE, RESCUES INDIVIDUALS, APPREHENDS DEALERS AND CAMPAIGNS FOR TIGHTER REGULATIONS.

THE PET TRADE CAN TAKE A DEADLY TOLL ON CHEETAHS AND OTHER RARE SPECIES, BUT YOU CAN HELP STOP THE EXPLOITATION, EXPLAINS DR MARK JONES.

For millennia, humans have traded animals for all kinds of purposes, including companionship.

Some species have adapted over thousands of years to living with people – our domestic cats and dogs are testament to that. However, in recent times, demand for wild animals as pets has dramatically increased. The multi-billion-pound international trade has a devastating impact on animal welfare and conservation, and places human and animal safety at risk. Born Free is campaigning hard to end the cruelty.

Every year millions of mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians are captured from the wild or bred in captivity and shipped around the world. Some trade is legal – serious loopholes in legislation mean even the

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STOLEN AND SOLD

rarest species, including big cats, apes, grey parrots and many others, can be traded when bred in captivity.

Weak laws in consumer countries, including the UK and European Union, permit trade even when species are legally protected in country of origin. And the rarer the species, the higher the price. Born Free’s policy team is lobbying persistently to improve legislation.

Our Ensessa Kotteh rescue centre in Ethiopia is home to cheetahs seized in transit to the Middle East. As many as 300 wild-caught cubs are smuggled through the Horn of Africa each year, from a global population of less than 7,000. Many die during transit, with the survivors – fetching thousands of pounds – condemned to a miserable and often short life as ‘trophy pets’.

YOU CAN HELP

CONFINED GIANTS

Find out more and take action at bornfree.org.uk/wild-animals-pets

Born Free’s recent report shows keeping giraffe in European zoos impacts their welfare, and performs no clear role in conservation. With more than 800 giraffe in European zoos, including over 150 in the UK, individuals are deprived of the opportunity to form complex social relationships and confined to bare enclosures less than 1% of their average wild home range.

Lameness, trauma, nutritional diseases and behavioural disturbances occur commonly, and many live shortened lives. Born Free calls on European zoos to phase out keeping giraffe in captivity.

Demand for big cats isn’t confined to the Middle East. In the United States, thousands of tigers and other species languish in back yards and roadside zoos, all too often in appalling conditions. Our research reveals at least 61 big cats in private ownership across Britain – among 4,000 wild animals requiring a Dangerous Wild Animals Act licence, the tip of a much larger iceberg given many species don’t need licences.

These and the millions of other wild animals traded as pets are just that – wild animals. They cannot possibly be provided with their physical, psychological and social needs in people’s homes. “We have long campaigned to end the exotic pet trade,” said our Executive President Will Travers OBE. “Please help us end this trade. Wild animals belong in the wild, not in our homes or gardens.”

Dr Stephanie Jayson Veterinary Consultant

© G Calaf

Dr Mark Jones Head of Policy markj@bornfree.org.uk

YOU CAN HELP

Coro and his sister Pollyanna (named in honour of our much-missed Patron, artist Pollyanna Pickering) were just weeks old when snatched from the wild for the Middle East pet trade last year. Sickly and undernourished, the siblings were nursed back to health by our Ensessa Kotteh care team in Ethiopia, who have helped rescue 19 cheetah since 2011.

© B Jaschinski/BF

CASE HISTORY CORO AND POLLYANNA

Pledge not to visit zoos with giraffe and support conservation by adopting our wild Giraffe Family (bornfree.org.uk/adopt).

Read our report at bornfree.org.uk/publications/ confined-giants-2021.

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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YOU CAN HELP Take action at bornfree.org.uk/ dwa-take-action

Our recent survey into Dangerous Wild Animal (DWA) licences uncovered 3,951 dangerous wild animals kept privately in Britain including 158 crocodiles, 320 wild cats, 274 primates and 508 venomous snakes. The intention of the DWA Act was to make the keeping of dangerous wild animals an exceptional circumstance, but our research reveals ownership has increased 59% since 2000. Created 45 years ago, legislation fails to address animal welfare, or consider the complex behavioural, environmental, social and nutritional needs of these animals.

“To protect animals and people we call on the government to reform laws on dangerous wild pets,” said our Head of Policy Dr Mark Jones.

“Please sign our petition and urge your local MP to support our campaign.”

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LIONS

Chris Lewis Captivity Research Officer clewis@bornfree.org.uk

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CROCODILIES

VENOMOUS SNAKES

8

18

TIGERS

10

PUMAS

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LIGERS

2

CHEETAHS

LEOPARDS 22

WHO LIVES NEXT DOOR?

2

ELEPHANTS

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SERVALS

1

JAGUAR

A LITTLE RESPECT IN BLAKE’S FAMOUS POEM AUGURIES OF INNOCENCE, TWO LINES SHOUT FROM THE PAGE: ‘A ROBIN RED BREAST IN A CAGE PUTS ALL HEAVEN IN A RAGE’.

© georgelogan.co.uk

IF THAT IS THE CASE, HOW WOULD HEAVEN FEEL ABOUT LIONS AND TIGERS?

IT’S NOT ENOUGH TO LOVE WILD ANIMALS, WE NEED TO RESPECT THEM TOO, EXPLAINS VIRGINIA MCKENNA. Two months’ ago, the two-part ITV documentary Britain’s Tiger Kings – On the Trail with Ross Kemp told the story of people who keep big cats in their back gardens. I hardly know how to begin, but that in 2021 people can keep ‘pet’ wild tigers and lions is unbelievable, like the perpetuation of the Dark Ages.

On one hand we watch extraordinary wildlife documentaries which show animals in their natural environment, facing the challenges of survival but living as nature intended. This recent programme showed animals living as a man or woman intends, fulfilling their ego until the animals die (or laws change and this practice is no longer allowed).

Those who own big cats tell us how much they love them, that they would not have the survival skills to be set free. That is probably true, but surely the word ‘sanctuaries’ has relevance here. Genuine wildlife sanctuaries expertly care for a variety of species – big cats, elephants, primates, birds, tortoises and others. Born Free has two such sanctuaries in South Africa, one in Ethiopia and supports many others.

This programme posed questions perhaps we should all reflect on. Why do humans feel the urge to ‘dominate’, ‘control’, ‘own’? Keeping creatures captive for our presumed entertainment, to display our superiority, or because we ‘love them so much’ is surely questionable. The programme also involved crocodiles and snakes. Many for sale – a terrifying echo of puppy farms. In fact, nearly 4,000 dangerous wild animals are licenced to be privately owned in the UK – including wild cats, primates, venomous snakes and crocodiles.

We incarcerate people in prison because they have done something wrong. Why should rules be different for innocent animals? I hope, beyond all else, this TV programme will be viewed with the greatest seriousness. The days should be long gone when we are ‘entertained’ by captive animals performing in the ring, pacing their cages or kept in someone’s garden – never able to be who they really are.

I hope anyone who saw these documentaries or has been affected by this article will feel moved to sign our petition (bornfree.org.uk/dwa-take-action). Then there will be a chance justice will be done.

Virginia McKenna OBE Co-Founder & Trustee

Wild Life | Summer 2021

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LEAVE A LEGACY OF LOVE Girma and Rea, before Born Free

With the help of a kind legacy, Born Free rescued Girma and his brother Rea from a police cell in Ethiopia in 2016. Victims of the brutal wild pet trade, the terrified cubs were brought to our sanctuary near Addis Ababa where, with loving care, they recovered from their ordeal. Today, the lion brothers are cherished in their spacious, tree-filled enclosure.

Girma today

Your legacy to Born Free could help rescue other animals like Girma and Rea and provide lifetime care. An incredible one in four of our projects to help wild animals and secure their safe future is funded thanks to generous gifts in Wills.

To download your FREE practical guide to making and updating a Will, or to use our FREE Will writing service visit bornfree.org.uk/leave-a-gift or call 01403 240170.

Born Free Foundation, 2nd Floor, Frazer House, 14 Carfax, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 1ER, UK bornfree.org.uk | +44 (0) 1403 240170 | info@bornfree.org.uk bornfreefoundation

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