NGO expands endangered species postcard campaign

NGO expands endangered species postcard campaign

Last updated: 6/25/2010 9:20

Wildlife At Risk (WAR) has expanded their postcard awareness campaign with three new rare animals in need of protection following the success of the endangered Rhino postcards released early this month.

The organization is handing out postcards featuring endangered species in Vietnam to raise awareness of the perils of wildlife trafficking.

The new postcards, emblazoned with images of elephants, tigers and bears, are being handed out for free to anyone interested, the Ho Chi Minh City-based organization said in a press release on June 21.

Each postcard includes information about the species geared toward making readers think about the conservation of creatures that are on the brink of extinction, WAR said.

“Only if we act immediately, will our children and grand children observe the rhino, elephant, tiger, bear and hundreds of other endangered species in the wild with their bare eyes.

Let’s start by spending one minute remembering the innocent animals that have already been slaughtered and think seriously about protecting these species,” said Do Thi Thanh Huyen, Wildlife Education Coordinator for WAR.

WAR is distributing the free postcards at its office: 202/10 Nguyen Xi Street, Ward 26, Binh Thanh District, HCMC until June 30.

The organization reported that more than 4,000 bears, mostly Moon Bears, are being held captive for bile exploitation in Vietnam.

The situation is more critical for the tigers as there are only about 30 Indochinese tigers left in the wild due to intensive hunting, trading and deforestation. Scientists have warned that wild Indochinese tiger could be extinct in Vietnam by the next Tiger Year, or 2022, if we do not act immediately to protect the tiger.

According to WAR, the elephant postcard is printed in memory of the seven elephants that died in Vinh Cuu Nature Reserve in the southern Dong Nai Province over the past few months.

According to the Management Board of the Nature Reserve, and many conservation specialists, the elephants were poisoned by the farmers when they came near crops seeking food. Local authorities are investigating the cause of the elephants’ deaths.

In the past decade, populations of the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) in Vietnam have been declining dramatically due to deforestation and the illegal ivory trade.

WAR’s distribution of wildlife postcards follows a similar campaign launched on June 7 to distribute postcards printed in memory of a Javan Rhino that died in Vietnam’s Cat Tien National Park in April to raise awareness of wildlife conservation efforts.

http://www.thanhniennews.com/2010/Pages/20100625222808.aspx

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