Recent trends & Overhunting/captivity

Elephants Hunting 

Elephant is the animal that once was on Thailand flag which means that it represents Thai people ,but its also one of the wild animal that has been hunted for a long time.

When did it start?

Its believed that people have been hunting elephants for thousand of years already

Where?

Most common places that people will hunt elephants and trade out are in South Africa(Kenya Algeria etc.) and Asia (India Thailand China Japan Korea etc.)

Why?

People hunt elephants because they want to steal their ivory and sell out to become accessory to human and take away elephants baby to train and become circus elephant. 

How?

Now adays humans technology is really advance such as gun. We have a a specific gun to beat down an elephant just in less that 2 minutes. 

Pictures (visual support)

How is it connecting/resulting in overhunting/captivity/cruelty?

According to the question How? We human use guns to take them down so easily and the demand of baby elephants and ivory keep increasing every year mostly in  Asia just to use them to become accessory and part of the holy rite. For this reason inspire local people to hunt them down and sell out because its an easy way to get money .

Create a COMPASS analysis on this current trend. N.E.S.W

• Nature - Elephant eats about 150 kilograms per day which 60% elephant dung has become food for other animals. And because it doesn't digest elephants become a transporter for plants seed to spread in distance. Elephants like to dig out small trees make a small seedling comes out and grow replace the big tree. 
• Economy - Elephants hunting creates so many jobs for people such as hunting trading or carving but it also destroy the beauty of the wild animal for other career such as guide or people who's taking care of these animals. 
• Society - People won't be able to experience how does it feel to ride an elephant. Some people doesn't feel right that elephant the symbol of Thai walking around the street being force but they still do nothing about it. 
• Well-being - It's good to have a good and new style looking accessories that comes from ivory and to have pianos key to play.

Do you have any personal connections/experience towards this current trend?

Yes, I have seen people keeping elephants and train them to let the tourist ride in Ayutthaya. And I have seen a person walking with an elephant selling banana or sugarcane to people and feed them to the elephant. 

Are there any local organizations/awareness campaign/etc supporting a more balanced option for this current trend?

http://www.elephant-soraida.com/main/th/

How can we reach a more balanced and sustainable solution?

We offer people a better jobs and educate them how important the elephants are. Or find the replacement for things that are made by ivory such as piano keys we use plastic instead and accessory  there are so many other jewelry that's  prettier than ivory why don't we use them like emerald.

Discussion Questions for class 

1. In my opinion we can't actually stop this cruelty on elephants because the more we protect them the more rare they become and it will increase the demand and their price up ,so is there any other way we can actually do anything about this ?
2. If we sees elephants walking aside the street what can we do other than support them by buying a food to feed itself?

• People catch baby wild elephant and sell out. Mostly this will happens around the border between Thailand-Burma because baby elephants are easy to catch and transport also the demand of baby elephants are more than adult elephants. Most of the buyers are elephant training group that will train these elephants to be Circus Elephant Show.

• Hunting elephants to take their ivory. There has been ivory trading in Thailand for a thousand years ,most of the ivory will be brought to carve as decoration or part of the rite.

• Hunting elephants to take their organs such as ivory tails and genital of males elephants which these are just a byproduct of hunting for ivory or baby elephants 

Old Traditions Resulting in Overhunting - Summary & Analysis Assessment Stage 2

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1A_BiY9xr6d_wluAc2Bt90Y8q2Pej5fFGMCWSKdTaAT4/pub

Old Traditions Resulting in Overhunting - Summary & Analysis Assessment Stage 1

Pangolin

In present days this animal called Pangolin is very popular for men because they believed that fresh blood , and their meat of pangolin when cook as food or medicine have to ability to make us live longer or elixir and dried scales can cure variety of ills .Also can increase the sexual strength. These beliefs keep on going around from China to around most Asia countries which including Thailand cause the increment of pangoilin's price and diminish the number of pangolin. 

Citations 

http://onca.org.uk/chinese-medicine/
"Pangolins and Chinese Medicine." ONCA. N.p., 23 June 2013. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.

http://www.e-travelmart.com/club_07.html

Reading Task: TCM and Species Protection

Traditional Chinese Medicine and Endangered Animals

Traditional medicines are widely used all around the world mostly derived from plants and animals. The number of population is growing faster and cause the demand of these remedies and medicines to rise along.

Chinese people believe that natural plants ,animals and minerals remedies relate to vital energy or force (qi) and yin and yang which is to balance humans body. We don't know the exact time of the origins of TCM but it believed to be born around 28th century BCE which had a compiling catalogue of 365 species of medical plants which later became the basis of later herbological studies. During the time the development of these remedies ,the medicines have been pass on to other countries from China to Japan Korea and South East Asia and continues to today .

Tiger (Panthera tigris)

In TCM the bones of Panthera tigris have been used in wines, plasters, and manufactured medicines to treat arthritis and other joint ailments .Which increase the tiger bones trading business and that also means the number of tiger decrease as well ,now there are only about 5000 - 7000 tigers in a wild .they are designated as endangered on the 2007 World Conservation Union Red List of Threatened Species. About 5,000 tigers are being raised on farms in China as well. In 1993, China banned the domestic trade of tiger bones

In June 2007, under pressure from tiger farm owners, China announced a plan to lift its trade ban on parts from farmed tigers but it is being opposed by India , Nepal, Bhutan, and Indonesia as well as by tiger conservation groups around the world

  Rhinoceros

Rhinoceros horn decoration is used to treat fever ,convulsions and delirium .According to the report there have been a reduction of many species of Rhino in Africa and Asia though there are protective laws but Rhinoceros horn business still continues because of the need from Asians market.

Black Bear

Bear bile is used to treat a wide variety of illnesses and injuries, including liver ailments and headaches .China in 1984 the farm that confined a lot of bears in a small cage to extract for their bile ,According to CNN, more than 7,000 bears are kept on 200 farms in China.

Musk deer (Moschus)

Musk deer is believed a various remedies in Western homeopathic medicine, and of some perfumes. It is used to promote circulation and to treat skin infections and abdominal pain. And from the report Musk deer in China's demand is alot that must use at least 100,000 deer a year .

Seahorse (Hippocampus kelloggi)

The seahorse, used as a treatment for kidney ailments, circulatory problems, and impotence. In the presence day approximately 90 health and medicine products containing seahorses are sold in China and elsewhere. The demand of Seahorse had reached 500 tons annually by the beginning of the 21st century. China’s demand alone was 200–250 tons per year, 95 percent of which had to be imported. Currently the seahorse is not listed as endangered and there are no international regulations on trade, a tragedy in the making. 

Discussion Points: Shark Bait

Purpose of the documentary

In this documentary Mr.Gordon is trying to persuade people to stop eating shark fin soup because the more we consume the more sharks will get killed. 

Connections you see with the documentary?

People are just eating Shark fin soup because of just social status and some belief from the generation to generation that its good without knowing what exactly are shark fins. And the same for most people that are doing business about shark fins ,they just know the grades and price because they are just this to make money to survive .

Feelings after watching the documentary?

• I feel like some people thought they already knew the consequence of eating these soups they will still eating it because it can benefit them a lot. 
• I myself never liked Shark fin soup and after watching this make me doesn't like it even more
• We use only 5% of sharks body but humans hunt and kill them like sharks are treasure.

What can we do as students?

• As a student first we start will ourselves stop eating shark fin soup and then try to convince people around like parents or relatives tell them how many lives do we have to kill just for our own satisfaction. 

Questions

1. Is it just a matter of time that shark will become extinct if we keep on hunting them like this ?
2. What's the benefit of sharks for other organisms under the water?
3. Is it true that they just throw sharks back into the ocean after they got their fins ?

Reflection: Old Traditions Resulting in Overhunting

How did you decide to pick your choice of old tradition to share in the first place?

Because Serow is one of the wild animal specie that is about to become extinct already though its under the protection of Thai Government and there is a law that forbid to hunt Serow but people are still hunting them for medicine which is not even true. 

Were you aware of this old tradition before your research?

No , before I do the research about this over hunting i knew only the existent of this wild animal that it is going to be extinct  but I didn't know that people are still killing them .

What is one most memorable and surprising share you have heard from the table?

Snake Wine  is one of the thing that made me quite surprise .But I have kind of heard about it before that people put the snake in the bottle with alcohol preserved them and drink usually they will use the venomous ones which believed that once they drink they will get the strength from the snakes too. 

 Do you see some connections and/or similar beliefs/traditions amongst your table? If yes, why do you think there is. If no, why not? 

For both Snake Wine and Serow hunting they both have a belief that it can be a medicine . Mostly all of these medicine belief came from China also which is the same for Serow and Snakes . 

Old Traditions Resulting in Overhunting

Serow  (Capricornis sumatraensis)

 Serow is one of the wildlife animal that is under the protection of Thailand government because it is close to an extinction ,but some people still trying to hunt it because of some belief. 

Other than their habitats being destroyed ,Serow are being hunted because it was believed that the animals oil can be used in the treatment of wounds, injuries from falls or wounds from being shot or heal broken bones which is not true at all .Each one of the Serow can make a lot of benefit for the entrepreneurs by boiling the heads and bones of the Serow with coconut oils and then put in the bottles 100 - 150 cc which is around 10 baht per bottle .

Other than hunting , destroying the habitats and invasion to change to agricultural areas. So in many areas Serow were driven to live on the high mountains , especially limestone mountains.In addition, the destruction of habitat limestone mountain Serow often come down to find the water and food in the lower area which will be easier for the hunters to hunt them .Because of this Serow population are decreasing greatly . And, the explosion of the mountains to the production of cement and crushed stone production. Destroying resident safety of Serow directly.

Water Log

Shark Guardian

Shark Guardian is a worldwide organization that helps protecting the sharks from being hunted for the use of human such as we people kill sharks just to take their fin . Shark Guardian presentation explores many topics related to sharks such as: why people are afraid of sharks, what media has done to the image of the shark over recent decades and recently, how often people are attacked by sharks compared to other wild animals, an introduction to shark evolution, shark biology, existing species and how sharks are in danger from becoming extinct because of humans.

Shark Guardian is a registered Charity with the UK Charity Commission as of 1 July 2013. Shark Guardian was founded as an organization since January 2009. Shark Guardian promotes shark conservation through education by visiting International schools, resorts, dive communities and participating in national environmental conferences.

Q: Do sharks sleep?
Q: Is shark meat found in supermarkets safe for human consumption?