News & More
Are you one of those people who thinks they’re not a cruise person? Do you think cruises are too boring and not active enough for you, and do you shudder at the idea of being cooped up on a floating city with a thousand other passengers for days?
Nature & Wildlife
The video below of a teenage boy in Florida riding a whale shark is a perfect example of what NOT to do when swimming with whale sharks. Chris Kreis, 19, seemed to have no qualms about hopping on and riding the 30-foot long, 50,000 pound whale shark for a good 20 seconds or so.
Conservation
On Monday, May 6, 2013, 17 heavily armed poachers entered Dzanga-Ndoki National Park in the Central African Republic. They then proceeded to a large clearing known as Dzanga Bai, or “village of elephants,” where between 50 and 200 of the animals congregate daily to drink in the mineral salts found in the sands.
Nature & Wildlife
I’d like to tell you that I just returned from a totally off-the-grid vacation. Somehow, I feel more adventurous when I say that to you. I’d like to tell you that, but it wouldn’t exactly be true.
Conservation
When images of a wild giant panda gnawing on a takin carcass in China’s Sichuan Province were recently captured on motion-sensor cameras, researchers were caught by surprise. Although pandas are technically carnivores, their diets today consist almost entirely (99 percent) of bamboo leaves, stems and shoots.
Conservation
The Uganda Minister for Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, with the support of The Wildlife Conservation Society, recently checked in with the mountain gorilla population in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and found the primates doing well.
Nature Photography
The gift-giving-and-receiving season has been over for a few weeks now, and the chances that you were the recipient of at least one electronic gadget of some kind or another—such as a smartphone, laptop computer or tablet—are good.
Conservation
As an ecotourist, you know that your travels can do a lot of good in the world. They can help boost the economies of local communities, fund preserves and deter poaching. You also know that your presence can sometimes be a detriment to the very lands and wildlife you wish to protect.
Travel Tales
The lands that we come from are certainly a big part of who we are. When people ask at first meeting, “Where are you from?,” they’re trying to get a sense of who you are in a shorthand way—what influences have shaped your thinking and which issues are important to you.
Nature & Wildlife
Feeling pressed for time? Silly question, right? With smartphones, tablets, computers and other electronic devices constantly competing with our real-world lives and work and family obligations, who doesn’t feel rushed? We all know that nature can make us nicer, healthier and happier individuals.
Conservation
As wildlife seekers and nature enthusiasts, we tend to rank state and national parks high on our lists of favorite travel destinations.
Travel Tales
Yeah, I know. You think this is Photoshopped. It’s not. Wildlife in the Galapagos really is nonchalant about human presence, like this sea lion at Gardner Bay on Espanola. And you really can get this close, like Jennifer Bravo did during her recent visit to the islands. Jennifer is Nat Hab’s Galapagos Destination Manager.
