KARACHI, March 18: The federal government has advised the Sindh government not to process any request for the import of big cats – lions and tigers – belonging to the endangered species, it has been reliably learned. Sources said that the federal environment ministry took the decision as the Sindh Wildlife Department was delaying the matter of taking punitive action against the wildlife traffickers who had brought big cats from Africa and Europe in the country last year.

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MITHI, Jan 29: Marooara, a network of more than 60 non-governmental organisations, has demanded a complete ban on hunting of near-extinct species of animals and stern action against poachers and hunters. The chairman of Marooara coordination council Obhayo Junejo, project coordinator of Society for Conservation and Protection of Environment (Scope) Bharumal Armani, and programme coordinator of Baanh Beli Sultan said at a press conference at the press club that the Wildlife Department should stop issuing permit for houbara hunting to royal dignitaries in the name of hospitality.

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AS in previous years, the business of slaughter will be booming this winter. Arab dignitaries have been awarded 31 special permits to hunt the houbara bustard, a locally and internationally protected species that winters in Pakistan after travelling from its breeding grounds in Central Asia, China and Mongolia. Each licence carries a ‘bag limit’ of 200 birds which means that, at the very minimum, 6,200 houbaras out of the twenty to thirty thousand expected to grace us with their presence this year will be massacred on Pakistani soil. The actual figure will be much higher.

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PESHAWAR, Aug 27: The NWFP Wildlife department on Monday destroyed parts of dead turtles recovered from a hut near the Shah Alam River on the Charsadda Road. An official of the wildlife department said that a week ago some species of turtles were declared ‘endangered species’ by the government and trade and possession of turtles was made illegal.

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KARACHI, Aug 18: A huge consignment of body parts of highly rare freshwater turtles, which was caught at the Karachi airport a few weeks ago, had been certified by the federal ministry of food, agriculture and livestock (Minfal) as dry fish skin, it has been reliably learnt.

According to sources, the export of turtle parts is banned under the country’s laws as the turtles have been declared endangered species under international conservation laws, including the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

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