There is a world somewhere between reality and fiction. Although ignored by many, it is very real and so are those living in it. This forum is about the natural world. Here, wild animals will be heard and respected. The forum offers a glimpse into an unknown world as well as a room with a view on the present and the future. Anyone able to speak on behalf of those living in the emerald forest and the deep blue sea is invited to join.
I’m really excited to be a part of this forum. My love for nature, especially marine life, has always inspired me. I’m particularly interested in ocean conservation, marine ecosystems, and how we can protect the creatures that call the ocean home.
I look forward to learning from all of you and sharing thoughts on preserving the environment!
In the heart of Inner Asia, where the rugged Borohoro Shan mountains touched the sky and the mist swirled around like a shroud, lay vast expanses of wilderness, breathing quietly. Here, ancient secrets slumbered beneath the undergrowth, waiting for the touch of a curious soul to awaken them.
Dr. Nvelara Beaumont, a young and ambitious zoologist and Iwan Bohun armed with a passion for discovering the unseen, had heard whispers about the enigmatic tetrapods rumored to inhabit the uncharted regions of Ouroumtsi Valley and Bositeng Swamps. Supported by European institutions committed to wildlife conservation, she had set out on a journey to uncover the natural history of this remote, storied land.
*This image is copyright of its original author
As her team prepared for the expedition, a palpable sense of anticipation filled the air. Nvelara’s mind buzzed with thoughts of the relic animals, possibly descendants of creatures that had roamed before the age of humans. Guided by legends and ethnozoological interviews with local villagers, she yearned to corroborate these tales with concrete evidence.
Setting off from the bustling Yining city, Nvelara traveled through densely forested hills and vast plains. The rugged terrain gradually surrendered to the mesmerizing landscapes of Ouroumtsi Valley. Although little was known about this area, reports of mysterious large tetrapods lingered in the air like the fragrance of wildflowers after rain. Some locals, aged and wise, claimed to have spotted shadowy figures in the mist—imposing, secretive creatures that chose to evade the prying eyes of humanity.
Arriving at the edge of the valley, the team started their inventory, capturing the delicate tapestry of life hidden in this ecosystem. Camera traps were set in strategic locations to monitor wildlife movement, while ethnozoological surveys were conducted to gather ancient knowledge from communities residing on the outer fringes of society.
*This image is copyright of its original author
Weeks went by, with stunning encounters punctuating their days. Nvelara and her team documented migratory birds, wild canine races, and an elusive asiatic lynx fleeting through the dense underbrush. Still, there was a growing restlessness—no sight of the rumored giants. Their hair-raising stories and the fur scraps salvaged from colonials’ past lingered teasingly in the air.
Then, one mist-laden morning while reviewing data collected from camera traps, they received what seemed like a blessing from the heavens—a series of blurry images revealed a colossal form moving through the swamp. Heartbeats raced as hope ignited within the researchers. Were they finally witnessing the presence of a relic tetrapod?
Eager to pursue the lead, the team set out toward Bositeng Swamps, a labyrinth of water and reeds that thrummed with vitality yet was enigmatic in its concealment. The landscape was harsh; weather-beaten and worn, as if resisting the encroachment of civilization.
As they traversed the swamp, night fell, enveloping the area in a veil of darkness. Just when the weight of dread began to settle, a low rumble echoed through the trees. Nvelara's heart pounded; was it a mirage born from exhaustion? The team huddled together, eyes wide and breathless. They quietly moved toward the sound.
And there it was—a magnificent creature towering above the reeds, a sight that would forever be etched in their memory. It was a large tetrapod, possibly a type of wild equid thought to be extinct, exhibiting a coat that shimmered even under the moonlight. Time slowed as Nvelara watched, a mix of exhilaration and solemnity flooding through her.
Capturing this presence on film felt almost sacrilegious; this was not merely an animal—it was a link to a natural world that had remained untouched. For Nvelara and her team, it marked a turning point; they were guardians of this wilderness, entrusted with preserving its secrets. Each image taken was not just a record, but a promise to advocate for the conservation of these relics, ensuring that they continued to roam freely.
Returning to their base, the sighting kindled new resolve. Nvelara forged a plan, rallying local communities and researchers to advocate for a conservation program. It became paramount not only to protect the unique biodiversity but also to honor the wisdom of those who had coexisted with these creatures, the self-declared stewards of the wilderness.
Post-expedition, Nvelara’s and Iwan's findings garnered attention from the international scientific community. The whispers of Ouroumtsi Valley and Bositeng Swamps echoed far beyond their borders, inspiring a new wave of conservation efforts in Central Asia. The Asyle of wilderness was no longer a hidden page in the annals of time but a vibrant chapter alive with promise.
In the weeks and years that followed, the program, backed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), flourished and educated a new generation of naturalists. Nvelara, alongside her team, continued to explore the hidden realms of Central Asia, a testament to the idea that often, the greatest discoveries awaited patiently in the veils of the mist—where the wild still whispered.
abstract thanks totoolbaz.com. IT IS HONEST FICTION GENERATED BY AI, SUPPORTED BY MY GUIDELINES. record: 2012-2016
terrasilveste /issuu /calameo
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// FRENCH: La recherche et la conservation des tétrapodes Asie Centrale NORSK: Forskning og bevaring av Sentrale Asiatiske tetrapods POLSKI; Badania i ochrona czworonogów z Azji Środkowej
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Hello friends of wildfact! I'm honored with the responsability of creating the Ximhungwe pride thread.
Before introducing the current pride members, we are going to review the nearly 30 years old history of the Ximhunwge pride. I will be posting the chapters one by one, for easier reading.
Without further ado, let’s begin...
CHAPTER 1 – ORIGINS AND TURMOIL: THE BIRTH OF THE XIMHUNGWE PRIDE
The Legacy of the Castleton Bloodline
Before the rise of the Ximhungwe Pride, the Castleton Pride reigned as one of the most fruitful and influential prides in the Sabi Sands. During the rule of the legendary West Street Males, the Castleton Pride flourished, producing strong generations of cubs and establishing a bloodline that would leave a deep imprint on the region.
In 1996, a group of six male cubs born into the Castleton Pride would later form the Rollercoaster Coalition, also known as the Shaw’s Males. Then, in 1998, two Castleton lionesses broke away, believed to be pregnant after mating with the West Street Males. They denned their cubs near Taylor’s Crossing on the Sand River. After a deadly clash with the Sparta Pride that left three cubs dead, and later tragedies involving hyenas and injury, the pride came to be known as the Tsalala Pride.
But while the Tsalala Pride was carving its identity in the eastern territories, another powerful branch of the Castleton lineage was about to emerge in the west—the Ximhungwe Pride.
From 2000 to 2004 the famous Castleton/Ximhungwe Pride faded out of the limelight with clear lack of updates or information of any kind during this time. The Ximhungwe Pride began its rise in 2004, when the six lionesses from the Castleton Pride were taken over by a male known as the Sand River Male or Dzunani. Under his leadership, the pride quickly became productive, with 18 cubs born between 2004 and 2005. However, scarcity of food and the size of the pride made survival difficult. The number of cubs dropped to 16, then 12, and the lionesses were frequently seen in poor condition, recovering only temporarily after large kills.
As the pride spent less and less time on Castleton property and more in the surrounding open grasslands, it was renamed after the area it now occupied: Ximhungwe.
Collapse and Survival
The year 2006 was catastrophic. A combination of bovine tuberculosis and the arrival of the Mapogo coalition decimated the pride. By the end of the year, five of the six original lionesses and Dzunani were dead. Of the many cubs, only three subadult females and one young male remained. Two females became known as Long Tail & Short Tail.
Simultaneously, the Ravenscourt Pride—another offshoot of the Castleton line—was also in decline. A male from that pride began interacting with the Ximhungwe survivors. When a young Ximhungwe lioness was killed by hyenas, observers noted that the pride’s number remained the same, leading to the discovery that a young Ravenscourt lioness had joined the group, merging the remnants of two Castleton descendants.
Soon after sadly, the two young males associated with the pride were euthanized after feeding on a rabies-infected domestic dog, just days before they were due for vaccination.
New Alliances and Bloodline Reconnections
In 2008, under increasing pressure from the Mapogo, the Tsalala Pride moved into Ximhungwe territory. While the lionesses began mating with the Mapogo, a sub-adult Tsalala female called Queen, survivor of the Mapogo takeover of the Tsalala Pride, eventually joined the Ximhungwe Pride, reuniting distant Castleton relatives and reinforcing Ximhungwe’s numbers.
"Queen". For five years, Londolozi were unaware of this change in pride until late 2011, and it was her reddish coloured eyes that one could trace her lineage back to the Tsalala Pride.
*This image is copyright of its original author
Mapogo Reign and the Young Core of Ximhungwe
By the end of 2008, the Ximhungwe Pride found itself under the control of the four Mapogo males who had split from Mr. T and Kinky Tail. These Mapogo males had established dominance over the western sector, and Ximhungwe territory fell within their sphere of influence.
At this stage, the pride was composed of five lionesses, but only one of them was fully mature. The rest were not yet of breeding age, and represented the next generation of Ximhungwe descendants from multiple lines:
The one older adult lioness, known as Kokwana.
Two sub-adult lionesses, Long Tail and Short Tail.
One sub-adult Tsalala lioness, survivor of the Mapogo takeover, known as Queen.
One sub-adult Ravenscourt female, who had integrated into the pride.
Dreadlocks mating with a Ximhungwe female in 2009
This created a temporary lull in reproduction for the pride, a moment of relative calm and consolidation, but one that would soon shift as the lionesses matured... to be continued...
I visited the famous Pattaya tiger park, home to around 80 captive tigers. I was fascinated by people being allowed to touch tigers there, and I was excited to move around. Here are the maximum number of tiger pictures I was able to get. All were healthy specimens. Got the opportunity to touch one medium sized tiger and click a picture by its side. I am on roaming. Will post large sized pictures after reaching India.
Does anyone know available data on the size and shape variation of the claws of one single individual cat?
Are dew claws always the largest ones? This is clear in the puma and the cheetah (just in case, in the Bone Clones sample picture [https://paoloviscardi.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/claws.jpg] the labels for Cheetah's dew and front claws are wrongly reversed, but corrected in other versions of the add).
Do jaguar, lion or tiger also show larger dew claws as in puma?
Is it possible to identify by shape and size the position of an isolated claw (attached to its bone), as coming from the front or hind paw, # I, II, III, IV or V; and from the right or left side?
I’ve always been fascinated by wildlife and have been reading about how animal behavior changes in response to environmental shifts—like climate change, urban expansion, and even human technology (surprisingly!). I recently came across a few documentaries and studies. but they left me with more questions than answers.
I’d love to hear your thoughts or suggestions on resources that go deeper into this topic. How do you think tech, like drones or data tracking, has impacted animal studies? And how are animals adapting (or not) to our increasingly tech-driven world? Any recommended reading, podcasts, or documentaries would be awesome!
We had a flying squirrel in our house and a local wildlife removal company concluded that we have flying squirrels in our attic (we do hear noises) and that we may have bats (we had been told a year ago that we had bats at the time but the noises stopped). It is important to us to hire a humane company so we went with a local humane wildlife removal company that seems to be a brand new company with no reviews online. They stated they would install a one way flying squirrel excluder as well as a bat cone and seal any potential access points. About a week after the initial installation, we noticed there is still animal noise coming from the attic/ceiling. Does anyone have any experience with this sort of this who can let me know if this device they installed is a bat cone or flying squirrel excluder, or potentially a makeshift device intended for one or both of these? We also noticed that they didn't fix or cover several potential entry points I had pointed out during the initial inspection. I am including photos of those as well - a 3/4 to 1 inch gap in the roofing and a hole in the bricks on the side of the house. I assume flying squirrels and bats could enter through these locations... Can anyone confirm this and let me know any more information about what type of device they installed? We paid about $1400 for this job, which included cleaning what they left in the attic. Does this sound like a fair price for this kind of service? Please let me know if you have any kind of experience with these sorts of things before! Thank you!
Hi, I am currently working on a design project on animal conservation, more specifically around creating a product to help places such as national parks and reserves monitor their land. Hopefully this will be able to better allow them to protect the animals and ecosystem. I need to decide between going forward with either a fixed tree camera or a fixed-wing drone, and I want to make sure that one I pick will be the most useful one. I would massively appreciate it if you could fill in this form I made: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd_xnIqYHm2seWPm3rS4ZsjqiXZlFgvpvmZVf3N8K5MtKC6-w/viewform?usp=sf_link. I would love to answer any questions you might have, and I would love any feedback or advice even more. Thank you!
The zoo is located in the Mexican town of Reynosa, which lies on the northern Mexican Border with the US, so authorities on both sides are looking out for the cat.
Hired a humane wildlife removal company - do you recognize this device?