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We are pleased to report that two new bears have arrived to Chaparri. One is a very young female (approximately 1 year old), named Azulina. She was rescued from being kept as a pet by a family in Tarapoto (north Peru), in the buffer zone of the Cordillera Azul National Park. The NGO CIMA who works in the area brought her to Chaparri. She has been recently placed in the same enclosure with Cholita, who has seemingly “adopted” her, and as a result she is adapting to her new surroundings very rapidly. CIMA and the Cordillera Azul National Park - which helped us in the transfer of Azulina -organized a visit to Chaparri by the people who had the bear and some local teachers; it is hoped that this will help promote bear conservation in the Cordillera Azul area.
The other bear is an adult male, named Reque, after the river that gives its name to the area where he was found. He had been kept as a pet in a restaurant for three years and was voluntarily given to the project as he had become an adult and was proving difficult to manage. Generally the project does not receive males since they are more problematic within the captive population and are generally less suitable for reintroduction. We decided, however, to receive him because he is a local bear and to help raise the profile of the project.
Tongo, a subadult male from Luya, 250 km from Chaparri, is a firm candidate for release to the wild*.
He lives with Rosita, who does not accept him as a dominating partner. Tongo is a star of several television
documentaries due to his playful temperament and skill at climbing trees. Arrival: 14 February 2002 Age: 2 years. Weight: 60 kg
Milagros is a survivor of a tragedy.
In January 2003 a commercial airliner with 56 passengers crashed on Mt. Coloque in Chachapoyas, in the Dpeartment of Amazonas.
This accident mobilized innumerable rescue squads. The rescue attempts lasted several days due to bad weather and difficult geography (transition between the cloud forest and the paramo at 2900 meters above sea level).
One of those patrols encountered a two month old bear cub, born in the immediate vicinity of the accident.
It is amazing she survived and this is how she came to be named “Milagros” or “Miracles”.
The mother
was never found, and was presumed killed from the explosion of the plane’s impact.
This bear has not had major contact with humans y maintains her wild spirit.
She is another candidate for release to the wild. Arrival: 4 March 2003 Age: 12 months Weight: 5 kg
Cholita was confiscated by the Peruvian authorities from a family that held her illegally 60 km from
Chaparri. The most credible story is her mother was killed and Cholita was sold to a circus.
Circuses are the principal
market for commercialization of live bears in Peru. Cholita arrived 10 months ago in Chaparri when she was 4 months old.
She lived with Daria, a loving bear who adopted her. Cholita is our best candidate for future release.
Her health is excellent and we are working to break the bond between her and humans.
Cholita loves wild fruit such as zapote, overo,
the algarroba, and figs. Arrival: 3 April 2002 Age: 14 months Weight: 8 kg
ROSITA
Rosita was held illegally in a Chilean circus that displayed her in Bolivian cities.
Her secret passage to Peru was possible thanks to the help of Melissa Edwards, who for 2 years coordinated actions with the Chancelleries of Chile,
Bolivia, and Peru and with organizations that administered wildlife in these three countries.
Rosita left Santiago, Chile, and lived for 2 years in the hospital of the Lima Zoo before coming to Chaparri in September 2001.
In Lima she had been living with Tongo, a subadult male. Rosita loves to eat corn and pacaes, a two foot long bean that grows on a tree. Arrived: 7 September 2001 Age: ~ 12 years Weight:
70 kg
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June 2007 - new wild tigers photographed and second school opens in Sumatra funded by STT MORE May 2007 Latest news from Spectacled Bear Project - Peru MORE May
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report from Ecolombia. New babies latest photos 2007 Latest reports from Tiger patrol teams in Sumatra MORE 2007 Niger prepares emergency food aid for 1 million 2007
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Chaparri 2007 Are Niger's giraffes a fading spot on the horizon latest Peru November 2006 Two new young Andean Bears rescued and being reared for release into the wild. Motorbike and Cameras provided for Bear release programme Indonesia October 2006 New area of Sumatra is supported by Tiger Protection units (Bukit Duabelas NP and a very positive new management proposal for Sumatra put forward to the Indonesian government for providing tiger protection and monitoring in existing Four large areas in Sumatra. Colombia August 2006 Peru May 2006 Andean Condor release platform complete more |
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