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A Major Sea Turtle Nesting Site, on Bijagos Islands, Is Worlds Away From Crowds

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Monday, April 22, 2024

Sign up for the Travel Dispatch newsletter.  Essential news on the changing travel landscape, expert tips and inspiration for your future trips. Each year, thousands of baby green sea turtles clamber across a beautiful, white-sand paradise that is one of the largest hatching sites of this species in the Atlantic, adorably making their way to the sea. There’s one noticeable absence: people.The spectacular hatching events take place between August and December on Poilão Island, a tiny, uninhabited speck off the coast of Guinea-Bissau in West Africa. It is the southernmost island of the 88 that make up the Bijagós archipelago, a UNESCO biosphere reserve. Last year, turtles laid more than 44,000 nests on its 1.4 mile-long beach.While the masses of turtles seem to have little trouble finding the spot to lay their eggs — some swim more than 600 miles across the North Atlantic — it’s hard to imagine somewhere more challenging for human turtle-lovers to reach.The country’s tourism minister, Alberto Demba Touré, said that access is a main challenge. “We want to increase the tourists who go to the Bijagós,” he said. Last year, UNESCO declared its support for the Bijagós Islands to seek World Heritage List status, which, if successful, would increase its visibility and strengthen its environmental protections.Turtle conservation programs have become a staple of resorts in many popular destinations, including in Hawaii, Mexico and throughout the Caribbean. Guinea-Bissau may like to capture a meager sliver of that pie, but it would be with steep challenges.Politically fragile Guinea-Bissau has very little infrastructure and is one of the world’s poorest and least touristed nations. Most flights to Bissau, the country’s sleepy capital on the mainland, require a connection in Lisbon or Dakar, Senegal. Then, from Bissau, it’s a bumpy one-hour drive to the coast, and five to seven hours in a speedboat (depending on the route) to Poilão Island.Subscribe to The Times to read as many articles as you like.

Green sea turtles swim hundreds of miles to nest on a spectacular West African archipelago. Getting there is quite a journey for humans, too.

Sign up for the Travel Dispatch newsletter.  Essential news on the changing travel landscape, expert tips and inspiration for your future trips.

Each year, thousands of baby green sea turtles clamber across a beautiful, white-sand paradise that is one of the largest hatching sites of this species in the Atlantic, adorably making their way to the sea. There’s one noticeable absence: people.

The spectacular hatching events take place between August and December on Poilão Island, a tiny, uninhabited speck off the coast of Guinea-Bissau in West Africa. It is the southernmost island of the 88 that make up the Bijagós archipelago, a UNESCO biosphere reserve. Last year, turtles laid more than 44,000 nests on its 1.4 mile-long beach.

While the masses of turtles seem to have little trouble finding the spot to lay their eggs — some swim more than 600 miles across the North Atlantic — it’s hard to imagine somewhere more challenging for human turtle-lovers to reach.

The country’s tourism minister, Alberto Demba Touré, said that access is a main challenge. “We want to increase the tourists who go to the Bijagós,” he said. Last year, UNESCO declared its support for the Bijagós Islands to seek World Heritage List status, which, if successful, would increase its visibility and strengthen its environmental protections.

Turtle conservation programs have become a staple of resorts in many popular destinations, including in Hawaii, Mexico and throughout the Caribbean. Guinea-Bissau may like to capture a meager sliver of that pie, but it would be with steep challenges.

Politically fragile Guinea-Bissau has very little infrastructure and is one of the world’s poorest and least touristed nations. Most flights to Bissau, the country’s sleepy capital on the mainland, require a connection in Lisbon or Dakar, Senegal. Then, from Bissau, it’s a bumpy one-hour drive to the coast, and five to seven hours in a speedboat (depending on the route) to Poilão Island.

Subscribe to The Times to read as many articles as you like.

Read the full story here.
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Costa Rica Seeks Redemption Against Panama in CONCACAF Clash

Costa Rica faces old foe Panama on Thursday night in the first leg of their two-legged CONCACAF Nations League quarter-final at the Estadio Nacional, with the return leg scheduled for next Monday in Panama. The two countries met at the same stage of the tournament last year, with Panama producing a devastating 6-1 aggregate victory […] The post Costa Rica Seeks Redemption Against Panama in CONCACAF Clash appeared first on The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate.

Costa Rica faces old foe Panama on Thursday night in the first leg of their two-legged CONCACAF Nations League quarter-final at the Estadio Nacional, with the return leg scheduled for next Monday in Panama. The two countries met at the same stage of the tournament last year, with Panama producing a devastating 6-1 aggregate victory over two legs, winning 3-0 away and 3-1 at home. So, Los Ticos will have an added incentive to exact some revenge. Panama Profile Bordered by Costa Rica to the west and Colombia to the southeast, Panama is the bridge between North and South America. They are colorfully nicknamed “Los Canaleros” (The Canal Men) due to the nation’s association with the Panama Canal, a significant waterway that connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Los Tico’s longest border, measuring 348 km (217 mi), is with its southeastern neighbor, Panama, and the two countries share a strong bond; both are bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west, have similar population sizes—with Costa Rica at approximately 5 million and Panama at 4.5 million—and are both renowned for their rich biodiversity and commitment to environmental conservation. It’s been quite a decade for Los Canaleros national team, long seen as the underachievers of CONCACAF, with a lowly 97th FIFA ranking in 2010 and an average ranking of 86th overall; since then, they have achieved their highest ranking of 29th in 2014, qualified for their first FIFA World Cup in 2018, reached two Gold Cup finals in 2013 and 2024, and had an impressive showing at this year’s Copa América, defeating hosts USA and Bolivia en route to the quarter-finals. Many national heroes who played a pivotal role in the countries golden age of international football are still in the squad, including captain and talisman Aníbal Godoy, winger Yoel Bárcenas, Marseille right-back Michael Amir Murillo, left-back Eric Davis and center-back Fidel Escobar (who is teammates with Tico players Joseph Mora, Jefferson Brenes at Deportivo Saprissa), who have an incredible 490 international caps between them. They are complemented by a crop of exciting young players, such as Norwich City defender José Córdoba, center-back Edgardo Fariña, and tricky winger Kahiser Lenis. Current head coach Thomas Christiansen has been in charge since 2020, and the Dane has produced adequate results, with 33 wins, 14 draws, and 19 defeats in his 66-game tenure. He has also provided Panama with a distinctive playing style: a ball-dominant team that incorporates positional play from a 3-4-3 formation. Besides the decent showing at the Copa América, 2024 has been an unforgettable year for Los Canaleros, suffering 7 defeats in 11 fixtures. They are also on a three-match losing run, so this tie will be a big chance for Christiansen and his men to end the year on a high. Costa Rica Team News After the successful shift from 4-3-3 to a revamped 4-4-2 in last month’s 3-0 win over Guatemala, interim coach Claudio Vivas may be inclined to stick with the new-look formation and, consequently, opt for a more attacking selection of players. After netting his first senior international goal against Guatemala, Kenneth Vargas is expected to retain his position on the right wing. And Vivas will likely opt for a similar lineup to last month’s victory. However, he will be forced into at least one change, with regular right-back Haxzel Quirós missing due to injury, so Sporting San José’s Yostin Salinas will likely deputize. Possible Starting 11 Sequeira; Salinas, Mitchell, Vargas, Calvo (C); Vargas, Aguilera, Bran, Madrigal; Martínez, Ugalde. Head-to-Head History Costa Rica has historically had successful results against Panama, with La Sele’s having an astounding ten-match winning streak that spanned 13 years (1992-2005) against their southeastern neighbor. However, that now seems like a distant memory, as Los Canaleros have won five consecutive matches against Los Ticos and eight of their last ten, dating back to 2017—a perfect illustrationof Panama’s meteoric rise in international football. In fact, Los Canaleros will go into the contest as favorites due to their superior current FIFA ranking at 37th, 13 spots above Costa Rica, as well as their empathic 6-1 aggregate victory against La Sele just under a year ago. Nonetheless, a lot can change in a year; since those dark defeats, Costa Rica has a new coach, as well as introducing an array of exciting new players such as Patrick Sequeira, Haxzel Quirós, Jeyland Mitchell, Warren Madrigal, and Josimar Alcócer. And history is on Los Tico’s side. The two countries have faced each other 62 times, with their first meeting taking place in 1938. La Sele has emerged victorious on 31 occasions, Panama 12 times, while the remaining 12 encounters ended in draws. Kick-off is at 20:00 CDT (20:00 UTC−6) on November 15th at Estadio Nacional in San José, Costa Rica. The post Costa Rica Seeks Redemption Against Panama in CONCACAF Clash appeared first on The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate.

‘Very bad precedent’: China and Russia team up to undermine krill fishing restrictions in Antarctica

Conservationists warn actions and ambitions of two super powers could lead to overexploitation of vital food source for whales, penguins and sealsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastChina and Russia are working together to block new Antarctic marine parks and loosen krill fishing restrictions, undermining a major international convention designed to protect the region from overexploitation, according to analysts and conservationists.With the support of Russia, China reportedly used its veto rights at a meeting of the 26-nation Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) in Tasmania to prevent the renewal of an agreement restricting krill fishing. Continue reading...

China and Russia are working together to block new Antarctic marine parks and loosen krill fishing restrictions, undermining a major international convention designed to protect the region from overexploitation, according to analysts and conservationists.With the support of Russia, China reportedly used its veto rights at a meeting of the 26-nation Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) in Tasmania to prevent the renewal of an agreement restricting krill fishing.The two countries also blocked the declaration of four marine parks around the southern continent.Experts said it reflected a push to resist and reverse environmental protections in Antarctica. Krill is an important food source for keystone species including penguins, seals and whales, and fishing restrictions have previously been backed by scientists and member countries to ease pressures on wildlife as the region is affected by global heating.Dr Tony Press, a former head of the Australian Antarctic Division and adjunct professor at the University of Tasmania, said the precautionary principal that had been supported by countries at CCAMLR meetings for three decades had “gone backwards” at the meeting that finished last week. “That sets a very bad precedent for the future,” he said.The commission has a rule restricting the annual krill take in four neighbouring zones around the west Antarctic peninsula to 620,000 tonnes a year. The four zones cover the west Antarctic peninsular, neighbouring waters in the Weddell Sea and around the South Orkney and South Georgia islands.A separate rule, known as measure 51-07, says no more than 45% of that catch can be taken from any one of those zones. Countries at the meeting were seeking to renew that rule, in place since 2009.Dr Lyn Goldsworthy, from the University of Tasmania and a longtime observer at CCAMLR meetings, said China had refused to support the renewal of 51-07 and been backed by Russia.She said the Chinese government’s most recent five-year plan included an expansion of international fishing and the country had committed to building five new vessels to catch krill, four of which were almost complete.“China has a long-term strategy. They have a directive to expand that krill fishery [in Antarctica],” she said.Goldsworthy said China was also seeking to exert its influence in the region for geopolitical reasons, with an eye on future exploitation. She said Russia’s interest was likely part of a broader strategy to “disrupt the world’s rules-based order” as the country had “very little skin in the game”.Press said other countries needed to resist. “The fact that Russia and China together worked to diminish that precautionary approach needs to be challenged diplomatically,” he said.A May report from the commission on the krill fishery found 14 vessels were planning to take krill in 2024, including four ships each from China and Norway, three from South Korea and one each from Chile, Russia and Ukraine. China and Norway use a factory fishing method that continuously pumps krill from nets on to the vessel.skip past newsletter promotionSign up to Breaking News AustraliaGet the most important news as it breaksPrivacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.after newsletter promotionThe fishery report showed the amounts taken in recent years were the highest on record. The annual average take of krill from 2019 to 2023 was 415,800 tonnes, compared to 266,000t for the previous five years.An Australian Antarctic Division spokesperson said it had pushed for a system of marine protected areas, wide-ranging krill management rules and improved data collection and monitoring. They said the three elements were a “package deal” that should be adopted together.“We will not consider increased catches for krill without the proper data collection and conservation measures in place. It was disappointing that some members were pushing for adoption of revised krill measures without any intention of agreeing to [marine protected areas],” they said.“Most concerning though, was the failure of some members to support the extension of existing krill management measures while the harmonisation process is progressed.“This is a backwards step for CCAMLR and puts krill, and the ecosystems and predators it supports, at risk.”Guardian Australia approached the Chinese government for comment.

Bringing the Deep Sea to Seattle

How a Girl Scout project became a widespread community effort to inspire deep sea conservation. The post Bringing the Deep Sea to Seattle appeared first on The Revelator.

Ocean enthusiasts and random passersby alike came together in Seattle this past August to explore and celebrate their connection to the deep sea. Two years in the making, the Deep Sea Conservation Festival started as my idea for a free community event centered around the deep sea and its relevance in our daily lives. After months of work, it blossomed into a massive collective effort with the support of dozens of people and complete with speakers, booths, food, and musical performances. The line for Creature Coffee, which offered ocean-themed latte art. Photo © Griffin Hart. Used with permission Starting this process as a 16-year-old with no formal deep sea or scientific experience, I had no idea my dream for this event would find so much support and success. I envisioned this festival just a few hours after randomly attending a National Geographic Live talk about the deep ocean by marine biologist Diva Amon. There I heard for the first time about this remarkable, crucial, and threatened habitat. Somehow this one inspiring spark was enough to ignite my love of the deep sea and motivate me to share this passion with my broader community, setting me on a trajectory that would change my entire high school experience. Now, as I enter my senior year of high school, I find it remarkable that one hour, one piece of information — bundled with excitement — could have had such a profound influence on me. It makes me wonder if this event allowed me to pay that forward. A Deep Realization The Deep Sea Conservation Festival was my Girl Scout Gold Award Project, the highest award available to Scouts and earned for completing a “take action” project that addresses the root cause of an issue they perceive in their community. At the time the inspiration for this festival came to me, I wasn’t a total stranger to ocean conservation. I had grown up along the water and had served as a youth volunteer at the Seattle Aquarium for more than a year. In that role I’d begun to track how conservation messages diffused through more general audiences. I found that facilitating connection is a crucial part of inspiring preservation. Festival attendees learning about counter illumination through an art activity. Photo © Griffin Hart, used with permission. Even with this foundation, as I listened to Diva speak, I was shocked by my own ignorance about the marvels of the deep sea and the impending doom facing it. At the same time, my feelings of inadequacy helped me realize that if I’d never explored my connection with the ocean beyond the surface level, then the members of my community who were also juggling other passions — like those I consistently talked to at the aquarium — wouldn’t have their attention turned to the deep sea either. At first look, the deep sea and my local community appeared to be two separate entities. But the more I learned, the more I began to poke holes in this “out of sight means out of relevance” worldview. That’s why I centered my Gold Award project on addressing the lack of awareness surrounding how what we do impacts the deep sea — and vice versa. Swimming Together Throughout the process of organizing this event, I met so many incredibly kind and generous people, from policy experts to attendees and from conservation advocates to community organizers. Countless individuals and organizations dedicated their time and expertise to show up for me and this common dream of deep-sea conservation. Bolstered by their support, this festival grew from an amorphous blob of inspiration and fuzzy mental images into a detailed and effective plan to enact change. The first event of its kind, the Deep Sea Conservation Festival invited people from around the community to show up and celebrate the vibrant and unexplored corner of our planet that is the deep ocean. On the day of the festival, more than 500 people from around northwest Washington came to explore their relationship with the deep sea. The Seattle clouds parted, and under a gleaming sun people of all ages and backgrounds engaged with the deep ocean and their role in its preservation. After attendees got their Deep Sea Passport upon entry, they moved between booths, speaker sessions, and activities; designed their own deep-sea fish; discovered counterillumination; and talked with volunteers at tables covering subjects such as deep-sea mining and current deep-sea policies. The combination of basic activities — like creating personalized anglerfish hats — and more intensive opportunities, like learning about seawater electrolysis, enabled people of all backgrounds and interest levels to explore their relationship with the deep. Guests, who traveled 50-plus miles to attend the festival, posing with their anglerfish hats. Photo © Griffin Hart, used with permission. Through the experience of organizing this event, I was able to watch my community solidify behind me and the ocean in a massive way. I felt a new energy and excitement about the deep sea, particularly as I spent the day of the festival talking to so many passionate attendees who were enthusiastically engaged in learning and dedicating themselves to taking action. And act they did: During the event, 176 people emailed Washington state senators encouraging them to support a national deep-sea mining moratorium, our target action item for the festival. In this way, the project went beyond fostering individual connections to the deep ocean to encompass advocating for political change as well. From Interest to Action To gauge the effectiveness of the event, we surveyed as many of the participants as possible — both as they arrived and after they left the festival. While walking into the event, only a little more than 40% of 140 presurvey takers agreed that ocean conservation felt accessible to them. Comparatively, upon leaving the festival, nearly 70% of attendees reported the same. This data shows two main trends: one, that marine science and environmental preservation continue to be daunting fields to break into; and two, that by engaging in informal ocean education, festival attendees were able to better see themselves as a part of the collective effort to protect the oceans. These results echo back to a lesson I first learned while volunteering at Seattle Aquarium: I discovered that many people were eager to help protect our planet, but their willingness to accept the research laid out in front of them didn’t transfer to their ability to actively parse out and interpret data on their own. Marine science remains inaccessible for many reasons, particularly because it takes a significant amount of time and knowledge to interact with and because many people assume they need a degree to get involved. It’s consistently evident that so many people care about conservation. But people still need help crossing the many time and educational barriers that prevent them from effectively participating in the conversation. The festival proved that by making science and environmental preservation more accessible and attainable, we can effectively tap into a large and passionate force of potential changemakers. After the festival, 90% of 60 postsurvey participants reported that they agreed or strongly agreed with this statement: “The Deep Sea Conservation Festival helped increase my understanding of the deep sea and the threats that it is facing.” Similarly, 76.7% of attendees agreed or strongly agreed with this statement: “My experience here has motivated me to become more involved in the world of deep sea/ocean research and conservation.” It’s been amazing to see the impact of my vision and the efforts of my entire community to realize it. I’ve found myself incredibly motivated by how my event empowered my community and how large something like this could be scaled. Since the event, I’ve found myself dreaming about how it could have looked if it had double its 500 attendees, or if it was adopted by a larger group and became something that could have a legacy larger than myself and my team. I’ve caught myself hoping that my work to organize this celebration of the deep sea has inspired other people to put in the effort to share their dreams, research, and missions with others and mobilize a broad range of communities to take action. Scroll down to find our “Republish” button Previously in The Revelator: As Deep-Seabed Mining Ramps Up, Scientists Race to Study the Environmental Effects The post Bringing the Deep Sea to Seattle appeared first on The Revelator.

Conservation groups question Queensland commitment to renewables after hydro scheme scrapped

LNP urged to release details of its alternative energy plans within first 100 days of governmentFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastConservation groups say the new Queensland government must quickly announce details of its alternative energy plans, after confirmation the new LNP administration will scrap the state’s attempts to build the “world’s largest” hydroelectricity project.The premier, David Crisafulli, has confirmed the LNP would, as promised during the election campaign, end planning for a proposed 5GW Pioneer Burdekin pumped hydro scheme that would have constructed a massive energy storage dam in central Queensland.Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

Conservation groups say the new Queensland government must quickly announce details of its alternative energy plans, after confirmation the new LNP administration will scrap the state’s attempts to build the “world’s largest” hydroelectricity project.The premier, David Crisafulli, has confirmed the LNP would, as promised during the election campaign, end planning for a proposed 5GW Pioneer Burdekin pumped hydro scheme that would have constructed a massive energy storage dam in central Queensland.The LNP criticised the project as “not feasible” and a “hoax”. It has said it will now “investigate opportunities for smaller, more manageable pumped hydro projects”.Those could include privately funded projects, or government-backed construction.The Queensland Conservation Council said the new government should release details of those plans as a priority, within the first 100 days of government, given how critical such storage projects were to meeting energy transition targets.The Crisafulli government also committed to meeting Labor’s renewable energy targets, which require 50% of the state’s generation to be sourced by renewables by 2030; 70% by 2032; and 80% by 2035.Long-duration storage would be required to meet those targets.“It’s really important that the new state government is upfront about which pumped hydro projects they’re considering,” said Dave Copeman, the director of the Queensland Conservation Council.“Queenslanders want to know they’re serious about getting on with the energy transition, but also, critically, we need to be able to assess the potential environmental impacts of their plans.”Government sources and experts have said the Pioneer Burdekin site was ideal for pumped hydro storage, but the plan had met with significant local opposition.Others have questioned the lack of detail, including the total cost, of the project.Dr Dylan McConnell, an energy systems analyst at the University of New South Wales, told Guardian Australia during the election campaign that mega projects such as the Pioneer Burdekin would probably result in cost blowouts and delays.He said several smaller projects could help “diversify the risk” of delays; but that the falling cost of batteries could mean that, by the time pumped hydro projects were built, “it could be cheaper to build chemical storage”.Copeman said the QCC had sought more transparency from the previous state government about why it chose the Pioneer Burdekin project.“Transparency is vital so Queenslanders can make an informed decision,” he said.skip past newsletter promotionSign up to Breaking News AustraliaGet the most important news as it breaksPrivacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.after newsletter promotion“Unfortunately, the debate about Pioneer Burdekin became a political one as opposed to one based on data.“We absolutely support the energy transition because climate change is one of the biggest threats to our biodiversity and the places that Queenslanders love, but development needs to be well planned and done right.“The worst outcome would be if the cumulative environmental impact and cost of building multiple smaller pumped hydro projects is significantly greater.“We can’t know that until the LNP government is upfront about their plans.”Crisafulli has said the new government may look to “partner with” proponents of smaller pumped hydro projects already in the pipeline, and to bring these online sooner than Pioneer Burdekin would have been.The new government remains supportive of the 2GW Borumba pumped hydro project, which has progressed further than Pioneer Burdekin, and is already at the early works phase.It is understood the state has already acquired more than 50 properties as part of its planning to build Pioneer Burdekin.“We are working through the process [with landholders] … but it’s going to be what the people want,” the deputy premier, Jarrod Bleijie, said.“I have asked the department and Queensland Hydro to … stop any progress on that project, which they have done.”

Peanut the Instagram-famous squirrel is seized by New York officials

Wild squirrel that was taken in by Mark Longo seven years ago was confiscated after conservation officials received reports of ‘potentially unsafe housing of wildlife’ A New York man who turned a rescued squirrel into a social media star called Peanut is pleading with state authorities to return his beloved pet after they seized it during a raid that also yielded a raccoon named Fred.Multiple anonymous complaints about Peanut – also spelled P’Nut or PNUT – brought at least six officers from the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to Mark Longo’s home on Wednesday, Longo said. Continue reading...

A New York man who turned a rescued squirrel into a social media star called Peanut is pleading with state authorities to return his beloved pet after they seized it during a raid that also yielded a raccoon named Fred.Multiple anonymous complaints about Peanut – also spelled P’Nut or PNUT – brought at least six officers from the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to Mark Longo’s home on Wednesday, Longo said.“The DEC came to my house and raided my house without a search warrant to find a squirrel!” said Longo,from Pine City. “I was treated as if I was a drug dealer and they were going for drugs and guns.”The officers left with Peanut, who has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram, TikTok and other platforms during his seven years with Longo. They also took Fred, a more recent addition to the family.By Thursday night, Longo had gathered nearly 20,000 signatures urging the return of Peanut, and says he has hired a legal team to get Peanut back.A spokesperson for the DEC said in a statement that the agency had started an investigation after receiving “multiple reports from the public about the potentially unsafe housing of wildlife that could carry rabies and the illegal keeping of wildlife as pets.”Longo, who runs an animal refuge inspired by his squirrel buddy called P’Nuts Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary, took to Instagram to mourn Peanut’s loss and said he fears that Peanut has been euthanised. “I don’t know if Peanut is alive,” he said in a phone interview on Thursday. “I don’t know where he is.”The DEC spokesperson did not respond to a question about whether Peanut had been euthanised.Longo said he took in Peanut seven years ago after seeing Peanut’s mother get hit by a car in New York City. Longo brought Peanut home and cared for him for eight months before trying to release the squirrel. “A day and a half later I found him sitting on my porch missing half of his tail with his bone sticking out,” Longo said.Longo decided that Peanut lacked the survival skills to live in the wild and would remain an indoor squirrel.Internet fame followed, after Longo posted videos of Peanut playing with his cat.An Instagram account dedicated to Peanut shows the animal leaping on to Longo’s shoulder, wearing a miniature cowboy hat, and eating a waffle while wearing crocheted bunny ears.Over the years Peanut’s story has been featured on TV and newspapers including USA Today.Longo, who works as a mechanical engineer, was living in Norwalk, Connecticut, until he decided to move to upstate New York last year to start an animal sanctuary. P’Nuts Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary opened in April 2023 and now houses about 300 animals including horses, goats and alpacas, said Longo, who runs the sanctuary with his wife, Daniela, and other family members.Longo is aware that it’s against New York state law to own a wild animal without a licence. He said he was in the process of filing paperwork to get Peanut certified as an educational animal.“If we’re not following the rules, guide us in the right direction to follow the rules, you know?” Longo said. “Let us know what we need to do to have Peanut in the house and not have to worry about him getting taken.”As for Fred, Longo said he had had the raccoon for only a few months and was hoping to rehabilitate the injured creature and release him back into the woods.Longo is not the first animal owner to protest against the confiscation of a pet by New York authorities. A Buffalo-area man whose alligator was seized by the DEC in March is suing the agency to get the 750lb (340kg) reptile back.

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