Wild and Free - World Animal Day

I am a huge wild animal (and bird) lover but I love them in their own habitat - not mine.  For the sake of all (ourselves and the wild animals)  we need to leave the animals (birds included) in the wild, but we must protect that wild. So many problems are created because we destroy their habitat and poach what we can for our own use. COVID-19, like SARS, MERS, Ebola, HIV/AIDS, and many other zoonotic epidemics before, initially emerged from wildlife, then made the jump to people through close proximity or human consumption.

• Today, on World Animal Day, we need to make a pledge to do several things:
•      •  Shut down commercial wildlife markets and the cruel trade that fuels them.
•      •  End the import, export, and sale of wildlife for food and exotic "medicine"
•      •  Phase-out demand for wildlife as a food source by encouraging alternative
•         forms of food production.

The impact of the current pandemic in terms of loss of human life, physical and mental health, the economy, and public life has been completely devastating to the entire world and cannot be underestimated. Global and national action to curb the wildlife trade is one of the most effective strategies to prevent future pandemics and is necessary to reduce animal suffering and protect biodiversity.

We ultimately need to see an end to the wildlife trade for all purposes, not just human consumption to avoid another global health crisis but also to prevent millions of animals from being cruelly bred in captivity or poached from the wild.

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One of the most wonderful trips into the wild that I have been on was a photographic birding expedition down through central Mexico to Veracruz to see the River of Raptors and to float through the mangroves to photograph the amazing diversity of birdlife and wildlife.  I went as still photographer on the team and loved "mucking" through the wildlife preserve to photograph the birds that we saw.  We stayed in primitive but clean cabins.  The photograph above was taken of a hawk that followed us as we traveled down the river and the gull to the right was on the river itself.  

I am no birding expert but we did take an expert with us who told us what we were seeing.  We fell in love with the local people as we traveled and their hospitality couldn't have been warmer.  In the huge wildlife reserve, it was exciting to see the efforts that the Mexican people are making to save their bird and animal wildlife.  

We all need to do our part if only to contribute monetarily to the many wonderful wildlife organizations throughout the world that work so hard to help produce a better world for us all. Today I made a little contribution to try to do my small part.
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