JV and THE BIG CATS


Home

Mission

Founder: John Varty

Tiger Canyons
Tiger Experiment
Invest in Tigers
Tiger Canyons tigers

Tiger Anatomy

Tourism

Volunteers
Merchandise
Research
JV Image Library
JV's Music

JV's Films

Poaching

Tiger Conservation

Tiger Subspecies

Tiger Newsletters

Tiger Photo Gallery

Contact us


 

 


Select newsletter in right column


Newsletter 130
31/03/16

Sylvester the Lion

Hello Friends

Once again a male lion is receiving global attention. Like Cecil the lion, this lion also has a name, he is called Sylvester.

As I wrote in a previous newsletter, once he has a name, people can relate to him. Like Cecil, Sylvester is a magnificent specimen and like Cecil, he is under pressure and in danger of losing his life (Cecil did lose his life to an American hunter).

People can relate to a magnificent animal running for his life, pursued by people, trucks and helicopters. In short, Sylvester is the underdog and millions of people around the world are determined that he should be caught, but not killed.

I have seen criticism leveled at the National Parks. However, they have tried their level best. Firstly, it is SAN Parks who put the lion there in the first place. It is not their fault that he has been unable to capture a territory. Once a male lion is under pressure from other males, there is no fence in the world that will hold him.

Sylvester has escaped twice, so he has learnt about fences. He was captured before from a helicopter, so he will be difficult to capture again.

If he hides in the mountains during the day, then he will be difficult to spot. If the Vet can get a dart into him, but there is no place to land, then people will have to go in on foot to find him. This will be dangerous especially it the dart malfunctions. If he does go down, at least 10 men will be needed to carry him out.

Conservationists will argue that SAN Parks have already spent R800 000 on capturing Sylvester. This money could be far better spent on more important conservation issues. They are correct.

If I take Sylvester, it will cost me in excess of R2 million to set him free. This money, it could be argued, should go into a more endangered species like the Tiger. (Tiger number about 1 500 in the wild, lions number about 30 000)

While chaos swirls around Sylvester's head and while SAN Parks battle to capture him, the canned lion hunters watch on with amusement. Why not capture the lion, give it to them and they will allow an overseas hunter to shoot it in a canned hunt for $50 000. Under this scenario, the problem is gone and money can be made, not lost.

In my world, it is amazing to me the emotion that Cecil and Sylvester are able to create worldwide. I truly believe that at last some human beings are evolving into a caring, sharing species.

I have seen in the last decade countries ban circus acts with wild animals in them. The zoos are coming under more and more pressure. Hunting is under the microscope and canned lion hunting has been described as a cancer to be eradicated by the South African Government sooner than later. The groundswell which has engulfed both Cecil and Sylvester, is an indicator that human attitudes are changing on Planet Earth.

For the record, if SAN Parks gives me Sylvester, I must fence and stock an area of 2000 hectares. Here Sylvester can be the dominant male (He will have no competition).

This will cost in excess of R2 million which I intend to raise through the Tigress Julie Foundation. It is at this point that it will be revealed how many people actually want to help Sylvester the lion.

Tread lightly on the Earth
JV


Cruelty Status:

Thanks you for your responses to the cruelty status idea:

Hi John, Great idea - cruelty status. Instead of just points, we should categorize every country and publish it every year. Countries with low scores should be made to feel ashamed and tourism should drop. 

Here is how I see it:

90 - 100 points - Great, Wonderful and Civilized nation - Highly respected people who cares for every other living being

75 - 90 points - Civilized nation - There's scope to improve

50-75 points - Average - Civilized nation - lot of scope to improve

25 - 50 points - Unsatisfactory - Uncivilized nation - attempting to progress 

0 - 25 points - Unsatisfactory - Uncivilized nation. Very unsafe for everyone including humans

As the great mahatma said "The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated"


Regards
Siva Baskaran
JV
 
This is an absolutely brilliant idea - but don't hold your breath waiting for the UN to respond.  However, it doesn't have to be done by the UN - and might actually have more weight in some quarters if it wasn't related to the UN.  From my perspective, the key question is whether there would be some way to quantify the information to make an index non-arbitrary.  If there is, as a quant, I'm more than willing to comb through whatever data would be available to help put together such an index.

 
Rich

Tread Lightly on The Earth
John Varty


Tread lightly on the Earth

[email protected]
Copyright 2007 @jvbigcats  All rights reserved


Newsletters


Newsletters 162
23/07/18
Raising 200

Newsletters 161
22/05/18
Reach for 200

Newsletters 160
06/05/18
The Power of the Photograph

Newsletter 159
14/04/18
Predator Aggression

Newsletters 158
19/02/18
Open letter to Cyril Ramaphosa

Newsletter 157
14/02/18
SCI bans canned lion hunting

Newsletters 156
26/01/18
Tibo produces white cubs

Newsletters 155
13/11/17
The Indian Connection

Newsletters 154
28/10/17
Desertification

Newsletter 153
20/10/17
Supermarket Shopper vs. Hunter Gatherer

Newsletter 152
14/10/17
JV's response to Elayna Kinley letter

Newsletters 151
29/09/17
Running on empty

Newsletter 150
14/09/17
The Survivor

Newsletters 149
05/09/17
In pursuit of Alan Root

Newsletters 148
09/08/17
Open letter re schools plus Panna cubs

Newsletters 147
17/07/17
It's Finished

Newsletters 146
31/05/17
Hunters

Newsletter 145
20/05/17
King Corbett

Newsletter 144
08/05/17
Hunting versus Non Hunting

Newsletter 143
14/03/17
If it Pays, it Stays

Newsletters 142
14/02/17
Best Photographs at
Tiger Canyons

Newsletters 141
16/01/17
Lady Hunters

Newsletter 140
10/12/16
Londolozi and Love

Newsletter 139
23/11/16
Life is Not Fair

Newsletter 138
17/11/16
The Trump Card

Newsletter 137
22/10/16
Most Admired People on the Planet

Newsletters 136
13/10/16
Captive vs Wild

Newsletter 135
08/10/16
To trade  or not To Trade

Newsletter 134
08/08/16
A Defining Moment

Newsletter 133
08/07/16
I Have Lost A Friend

Newsletter 132
13/05/16
The World is Changing

Newsletter 131
08/04/16
Icon Cats

Newsletter 130
31/03/16
Sylvester the Lion

Newsletter 129
22/03/16
An Open Letter to Head United Nations

Newsletter 128
15/03/16
An Open Letter to Carte Blanche

Newsletter 127
28/11/15
Satellite Tracking

Newsletter 126
12/11/15
Lightning strikes 3 times

Newsletter 125
28/10/15
The Break Out

Newsletter 124
05/10/15
Bad Tigers

Newsletter 123
01/10/15
Tiger Boy's Journey

Newsletter 122
13/09/15
Give it a Name

Newsletter 121
10/09/15
Driven Hunts

Newsletter 120
01/09/15
Creative Conservation

Newsletter 119
12/08/15
Sariska from birth till death

Newsletter 118
11/08/15
Real Hunters

Newsletter 117
07/08/15
An Open Letter to the President: Operation Wild Lion

Newsletter 116
03/08/15
An Open Letter to Theo Bronkhorst

Newsletter 115
28/07/15
Cruel Nations

Newsletter 114
08/07/15
Subspecies or no subspecies

Newsletter 113
11/06/15
Tigers Moving Forward

Newsletter 112
13/04/15
Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Newsletter 111
26/03/15
Don't Shoot the Messenger

Newsletter 110
22/03/15
The Hunters

Newsletter 109
09/03/15
Gaia or God?

Newsletter 108
26/02/15
The Healing Power of Cats

Newsletter 107
18/02/15
Goddess Gaia

Newsletter 106
03/02/15
Ambassador Cats

Newsletter 105
24/01/15
Blondes have more fun

Invitation
09/01/15
Gaining ground for tigers

Newsletter 103
14/12/14
Tibo's Dilemma

Newsletter 102
05/12/14
Wilderness Man

Newsletter 101
25/11/14
Sariska fathers cubs with white Tigress Tibo

Newsletter 100
20/11/14
Cheetah Survival

Newsletter 99
30/09/14
Extract from JV's speech on Corbett's Freedom Day

Newsletter 98
15/08/14
The Power of the Picture

Newsletter 97
18/07/14
Tiger Corbett's Release

Newsletter 96
11/07/14
Corbett's Journey

Newsletter 95
18/06/14
Bush School: Where are they now?

Newsletter 94
12/05/14
Open letter to Jani Allen: Oscar Pistorius

Newsletter 93
07/05/14
John Varty interview with Sizie Modise

Newsletter 92
20/04/14
Marion's Big Cat Safari

Newsletter 91
24/02/14
Full energy flow

Newsletter 90
10/02/14
Investing in wild tigers

Newsletter 89
05/02/14
Where are the Champions?

Newsletter 88
27/01/14
Managing the Genes

Newsletter 87
16/01/14
Capture the Moment

Newsletter 86
07/12/13
The Princess Diana of Tigers - Julie:
 Sept 1999 - 5 Des 2013

Newsletter 85
26/11/13
The Communicators

Newsletter 84
26/11/13
A Letter to All Conservationists in SA 
Sparked by the whole Melissa Bachman Debacle
by Maxine Gaines

Newsletter 83
16/11/13
Tell me what happened

Newsletter 82
04/11/13
Profit is the Name of Your Game

Newsletter 81
30/10/13

Big Cat Cub Safari


Newsletter 80
18/10/13
In the Jaws of the Tiger

Newsletter 79
11/10/13
Open letter to Vice President Cyril Ramaphosa about rhino crisis

Newsletter 78
06/10/13
Open letter to Min of Defense, South Africa about rhino crisis

Newsletter 77
30/09/13
Digital Photography

Newsletter 76
06/09/13
Zoochosis

Newsletter 75
20/07/13
Rhino Horn Trade - Response

Newsletter 74
09/07/13
Raw Power

Newsletter 73
02/07/13
The Evolution of the Tracker

Newsletter 72
02/07/13
An Open Letter to the Honourable Edna Molewa, Minister of Water Affairs and Environmental Affairs

Newsletter 71
06/06/13
Using flash or spotlight on cats at night

Newsletter 70
14/05/13
Mirror mirror on the wall, who has the best eyesight of them all?

Newsletter 69
12/04/13
Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fastest of them all?

Newsletter 68
25/03/13
Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the best fighter of them all?

Newsletters 67
07/03/13
Wild Cheetah return to the Free State after 100 years

Newsletter 66
28/02/13
Seeking the genes

Newsletters 65
06/02/13
Corbett's Journey

Newsletters 64
22/01/13
In Search of a Mate

Newsletters 63
11/01/13
Rumble in the Jungle

Newsletters 62
30/10/12
Voronin Big Cat Safari Breaks All Records

Newsletters 61
09/12/12
A Journey to Nowhere

Newsletter 60
03/10/12
The John Hume Approach

Newsletter 59
28/09/12
Response to Rhino Horn Auction

Newsletters 58
24/09/12
A Letter to John Hume, SA biggest Rhino Breeder

Newsletters 57
05/09/12
Newsletters 56
01/08/12
Indian Government -
the wrong decision

Newsletter 55
11/07/12
What price must beauty pay?

Newsletter 54
21/04/12
Corbett's Freedom

Newsletter 53
15/04/12
Lethal injection or Freedom

Newsletters 52
04/04/12
The anatomy of an aggressive tiger

Newsletters 51
14/02/12
Majestic, breathtaking pictures

Newsletters 50
04/11/11
Tigress Calendar

Newsletters 49
19/11/11

Let your pictures do the talking

Newsletters 48
26/09/11

Rhino Wars

Newsletters 47
06/09/11
A Letter to the President

Newsletters 46
08/08/11
The Body Parts Scam

Newsletters 45
11/07/11
Tiger Subspecies

Newsletters 43
01/05/11
Your future and the Tiger

Newsletter 42
08/05/11
Talk to Me

Newsletter 41
26/01/11
Gaian Reminder

Newsletter 40
18/11/10
Ron's Journey

Newsletter 39
20/10/10
"Descreprimate"

Newsletter 38
06/09/10
Beauty comes at a price

Newsletter 37
18/08/10

The Light Has Gone Out


Newsletter 36
08/07/10
The Beautiful Game

Newsletter 35
05/07/10
The Ethics of
Tiger Green Hunting

Newsletter 34
21/06/10
Tiger Hunt

Newsletter 33
26/05/10
The Year of the Tiger

Newsletter 32
11/02/10

Riding the Tiger


Newsletter 31
24/01/10

Runti's Journey


Newsletter 30
12/01/10

To intervene or not to intervene -
that is the question...

Newsletter 29
07/12/09

Lion - Tiger - Human Communication


Newsletter 28
12/11/09

Emotional humans, emotional cats


Newsletter 27
03/11/09

Julie gives birth to 5 tiger cubs


Newsletter 26
24/09/09

International Tiger Day


Newsletter 25
17/08/09

To all Photographers


Newsletter 24
16/07/09

A Shot in Anger


Newsletter 22
24/04/09


Newsletter 21
24/03/09


Newsletter 19
14/01/09

Tiger Birth
at Tiger Canyons


Newsletter 16
10/10/08

Tiger Courting


Newsletter 11
29/01/08

Privatizing the Tiger


Newsletter 9
27/10/07

Newsletter 8
28/09/07

Newsletter 7
14/09/07

Water Cats


Newsletter 6
14/08/07

Tiger Intelligence


Newsletter 5
16/05/07

Tiger language
Tiger Boma


Newsletter 3
09/03/07

Interspecies communication


Newsletter 2
06/02/07

Cub relocation


Londolozi
Newsletters

Death of a Legend
17/08/09


Newsletter 20
10/02/09

Newsletter 15
17/08/08

Painted Wolves


Newsletter 13
11/04/08

Response to Elephant Trust
by Daryl Balfour


Newsletter 12
09/04/08

Elephant Trust