|
|
|
Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 15-09-28
CONTENTS
[01] Conservation group 'Callisto' rescue bear from illegal snare trap
[01] Conservation group 'Callisto' rescue bear from illegal snare trap
ANA-MPA -- A five-year-old female bear, possibly pregnant, has been
rescued after becoming trapped in an illegal wire snare and almost
suffocating to death, the environmental bear conservation group
'Callisto' reported on Monday. The group was called in to the Siatista,
Kozani area to assist with the incident by the Tsotyli Forestry Service
last Friday.
Callisto mounted a rescue operation to release the bear, through a
team maintained in the framework of the European LIFE ARCPIN programme
in the Grevena area. In addition to forestry staff, teams were also
sent by the Macedonia-Thrace Hunting Federation Rangers and the Kozani
Veterinary Service. The trapped bear was administered an anaesthetic by
a veterinarian working with Callisto and released with the assistance of
personnel from the other agencies without suffering serious injury. It
was also fitted with a radio collar that allows her movements to be
tracked for research and management purposes. She has recovered from
the anaesthetic and is currently moving through forests far from human
settlements, the group reported. According to 'Callisto' the wire snare
in which the bear became trapped is normally used by poachers hunting
wild boar. It has been declared illegal due to its brutality for trapped
animals and also because it also poses a threat to non-target protected
species, such as bears. A similar incident had also been reported last
April in Kozani.
|
