Three Harris hawks and a handler are working to keep nuisance birds such as gulls and crows from calling the Salmon Arm Landfill home and potentially interfering with air traffic.

The Columbia Shuswap Regional District has signed a three-year bird-management contract with Raptor Ranch Inc. of Abbotsford.

The centre is part of a network of rehabilitators, falconers, vets and environmentalists that specializes in non-kill, non-chemical bird control.

According to a Raptor Ranch website, handlers are trained falconers and the centre has developed procedures that are more public friendly and safer for the predatory birds and the prey birds.

Read rest of story here

http://www.bclocalnews.com/bc_thompson_nicola/salmonarmobserver/news/50177062.html

The whoop-whoop-whoop of the helicopter announces the arrival of the 20-storey blade.

Gleaming in the early morning sun, the massive blade was one of three delivered to the top of Grouse Mountain on Friday, where they'll be pieced together to become Vancouver's first wind turbine.

During an environmental study of the mountain, Grouse discovered seven species of bats on its slopes. Grouse Mountain president Stuart McLaughlin told district councillors he had plans to hire two experts to monitor how bats and birds are affected by the new turbine.

Plans to study impacts on wildlife are still in place, Mbaho says.

"We already have experts (working with) our (wildlife) refuges. They will also work with third party consultants," he said.

 Read the rest of the story here

http://www.bclocalnews.com/greater_vancouver/northshoreoutlook/news/50482302.html

      By Barb Brouwer - Salmon Arm Observer

 

Thursday, June 18th, 2009

CAPE TOWN, South Africa

Today’s capture brings the tally of elephants relocated to 18 – the mission intends to rescue the entire herd of more than 60 elephants in the next few weeks and move them to put an end to years of fierce human-elephant conflict in the district.

Dozens of people have been killed by the elephants and the elephants in turn are killed and cruelly persecuted by local subsistence farmers intent on protecting their crops and livelihoods from the animals

read rest of story here

http://www.hotindienews.com/2009/06/18/103804

  See video of the reacue

http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw_united_states/general/malawi_ele_slideshow.php?msource=DR090505002#x