scholarly journals Snakes and ladders: A review of ball python production in West Africa for the global pet market

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
pp. 1-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren A. Harrington ◽  
Jennah Green ◽  
Patrick Muinde ◽  
David W. Macdonald ◽  
Mark Auliya ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Live Animal ◽  
Pet Trade ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Production Methods ◽  
Source Codes ◽  
Python Regius ◽  
Local Livelihoods ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Future Management

The ball python (Python regius) is the most traded, CITES listed, live animal exported from Africa. Recent studies have raised concerns as to whether production methods in Africa are sustainable, humane and compliant with legislation. To aid future management we explored export patterns, using the CITES and U.S. LEMIS database, for live ball pythons from across their range in West Africa to identify the main exporters and the main markets supplied, and to assess associated trends, and compliance with nationally-established export quotas. We found that export to supply the global pet trade remains almost exclusively carried out by three range countries – Benin, Ghana, and Togo. The USA was the largest importer from all three countries, although Ghana appeared to be less dependent on the USA market than either Togo or Benin, exporting to a more diverse range of countries, particularly in Asia. Between 2003 and 2017 there was a decline in annual importer-reported exports from Benin and from Ghana, but not from Togo. Ghana appears to operate as a regional trade hub, re-exporting ball pythons imported from Benin and Togo, and exports more ball pythons reported as captive-bred. Trade records from all three countries exhibited a switch from predominantly wild-sourced to predominantly ranched individuals. However, at a range-wide level, differences in the use of source codes among exporting range states, and inconsistencies in reporting of trade among range states, as well as inconsistencies in the use of source codes between exporting and importing countries, represent areas of potential concern. We recommend a regional-level policy approach for this highly sought-after species, to safeguard ball pythons and local livelihoods.

scholarly journals Searching for snakes: ball python hunting in southern Togo, West Africa

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 ◽  
pp. 13-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil D’Cruze ◽  
Lauren A. Harrington ◽  
Délagnon Assou ◽  
Delphine Ronfot ◽  
David W. Macdonald ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
West Africa ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Wild Population ◽  
Wildlife Trade ◽  
Detailed Data ◽  
Pet Trade ◽  
Python Regius ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Insight Into

The ball python (Python regius) is the single most exported live CITES-listed species from Africa, with a large proportion of snakes being sourced from Togo, West Africa, officially via a system reported nationally as “ranching”. This study represents the first in-depth review of ball python hunting being carried out by rural communities in Togo for nearly 15 years. Our approach, focused at the bottom of the trade chain, permitted extensive detailed data to be collected from hunters, and provides a unique insight into the practices, drivers and impacts associated with this type of large-scale commercial wildlife trade activity. We show that ball python hunting remains an economically valuable endeavour for these rural hunters. However, it also highlights a number of potential legal, conservation and animal welfare issues associated with the current hunting practices being carried out in Togo (and neighbouring range States) to supply the snake farms and ultimately the international exotic pet trade. Our findings suggest that the methods applied on the ground do not accurately reflect those being reported to national authorities and international regulatory mechanisms such as CITES. This irregular, if not illegal, trade may also be unsustainable, as suggested by hunters reporting that there are fewer ball pythons in the wild than there were five years previously. We recommend that additional scientific investigation (focusing on the size and status of the wild population), better management, and enforcement of regulations, are required to ensure that ball python populations are managed in a sustainable, legal and traceable way.

scholarly journals COVID-19 in West Africa: regional resource mobilisation and allocation in the first year of the pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. e004762
Author(s):  
Césaire Ahanhanzo ◽  
Ermel Ameswue Kpogbe Johnson ◽  
Ejemai Amaize Eboreime ◽  
Sombié Issiaka ◽  
Ben Idrissa Traoré ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
First Year ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Response Strategies ◽  
African Health ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Resource Mobilisation

The world continues to battle the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Whereas many countries are currently experiencing the second wave of the outbreak; Africa, despite being the last continent to be affected by the virus, has not experienced as much devastation as other continents. For example, West Africa, with a population of 367 million people, had confirmed 412 178 cases of COVID-19 with 5363 deaths as of 14 March 2021; compared with the USA which had recorded almost 30 million cases and 530 000 deaths, despite having a slightly smaller population (328 million). Several postulations have been made in an attempt to explain this phenomenon. One hypothesis is that African countries have leveraged on experiences from past epidemics to build resilience and response strategies which may be contributing to protecting the continent’s health systems from being overwhelmed. This practice paper from the West African Health Organization presents experience and data from the field on how countries in the region mobilised support to address the pandemic in the first year, leveraging on systems, infrastructure, capacities developed and experiences from the 2014 Ebola virus disease outbreak.

scholarly journals Reptile smuggling is predicted by trends in the legal exotic pet trade

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oliver Stringham ◽  
Pablo García‐Díaz ◽  
Adam Toomes ◽  
Lewis Mitchell ◽  
Joshua V. Ross ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Time Lag ◽  
The United States ◽  
Wildlife Trade ◽  
Live Animal ◽  
Pet Trade ◽  
Reptile Species ◽  
The Us ◽  
Disease Risks ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Species Being

Western countries are less frequently implicated in illegal wildlife trade (IWT), contrasted with other transnational consumers, yet substantial evidence suggests that they contribute prominently. Live animal smuggling presents a suite of biosecurity concerns, including invasive species and disease risks. Here, we compared the live alien reptile species smuggled to Australia (75 species) to the legal trade of live reptile species in the United States (US) and constructed a Bayesian regularized model to predict the species most likely to be of greatest future smuggling risk to Australia. Australia has particularly strict import laws barring the entry and keeping of alien reptiles and maintains detailed biosecurity seizure records. Almost all smuggled reptile species were found in the legal US exotic pet market (98.6%), and we observed an average time lag of 4.2 years between a species first appearing in the US market and its subsequent detection in Australia. A species popularity in US pet stores, popularity on international online markets, and the number of years in US import-export records were all positively associated with the probability of species being smuggled to Australia. Our predictive model provides a much-needed early-warning guide for future biosecurity enforcement of the IWT and provides a framework for anticipating future trends in wildlife smuggling.

scholarly journals High-skilled female immigrants: career strategies and experiences

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (3/4) ◽  
pp. 258-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saba Colakoglu ◽  
Dilek G. Yunlu ◽  
Gamze Arman
Keyword(s):  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Support Network ◽  
Career Experiences ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Skilled Immigrants ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Female Immigrants ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Depth Interviews

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to uncover career-related issues that high-skilled female immigrants face and their strategies for rebuilding their careers upon migration for a diverse range of reasons including following a spouse, furthering education and self-initiated expatriation. Design/methodology/approach Using grounded theory to explore this topic, the authors performed 14 in-depth interviews with female immigrants that fit pre-determined inclusion criteria for high-skilled (e.g. educated, gainfully and professionally employed). The study context of immigration is the USA, and the authors performed interviews with high-skilled immigrants from Turkey – an underrepresented nation in the US migrant population. Findings Content analysis of in-depth interviews revealed five primary theoretical themes that captured the career experiences of these individuals: non-linear career entry, career orientation, strong commitment and will to succeed, socialization patterns at work and support network. Integrating these findings with theories on adult learning, the authors developed an experiential learning model of career reconstruction among high-skilled immigrants. Originality/value This study contributes to the global mobility literature by developing an experiential learning theory of careers and taking a gendered perspective to the career experiences of high-skilled female immigrants. It answers the questions: what are the individual and situation factors associated with career success among high-skilled female immigrants? and what is the process that high-skilled immigrants go through to rebuild their careers?

A Sentiment Analysis of the 2014-15 Ebola Outbreak in the Media and Social Media

2020 ◽  
pp. 202-212
Author(s):  
Blooma John ◽  
Bob Baulch ◽  
Nilmini Wickramasinghe
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
West Africa ◽  
Sentiment Analysis ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Social Media Platform ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Media Platform ◽  
The Media ◽  
Precautionary Measures ◽  
Increased Pressure

The negative and unbalanced nature of media and social media coverage has amplified anxieties and fears about the Ebola outbreak. The authors analyse news articles on the Ebola outbreak from two leading news outlets, together with comments on the articles from a well-known social media platform, from March 2014 to July 2015. The volume of news articles was greatest between August 2014 and January 2015, with a spike in October 2014, and was driven by the few cases of transmission in Europe and the USA. Sentiment analysis reveals coverage and commentary on the small number of Ebola cases in Europe and the USA were much more extensive than coverage and commentary on the outbreak in West Africa. Articles expressing negative sentiments were more common in the USA and also received more comments than those expressing positive sentiments. The negative sentiments expressed in the media and social media amplified fears about an Ebola outbreak outside West Africa, which increased pressure for unwarranted and wasteful precautionary measures.

The rise of calypso feminism: gender and musical politics in the calypso

Popular Music ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 409-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cynthia Mahabir
Keyword(s):  
Great Britain ◽  
West Africa ◽  
Hip Hop ◽  
Pop Music ◽  
The Usa

The sky is the limitWe rising, we rising, we woman rising,(Easlyn Orr, cited in Ottley 1992, p. 154)In February 1999, two women of Afro-Caribbean ancestry won their respective societies' highest musical honours. On 14 February, Singing Sandra was crowned Trinidad-Tobago's Calypso Monarch 1999 – the second woman ever to win this coveted title, a full twenty-one years after the country's first woman calypso monarch, Calypso Rose. Two weeks later in the USA, Lauryn Hill received five Grammy awards, the most in any single year for a female performer or a hip-hop artist. This trend continues in Great Britain, where ‘rude girl’ DJ Patra has a growing posse of fans, and in West Africa where the pop music stylings of Benin's Angelique Kidjo and Mali's Oumou Sangaré enjoy mass followings.

ATALM annual conference on Indigenous Archives, Libraries, and Museums

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 14-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maitrayee Ghosh
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Annual Conference ◽  
Indigenous Culture ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cultural Sovereignty ◽  
Palm Springs ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Indigenous Archives

Purpose – This paper aims to summarize the Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries and Museum’s (ATALM) 7th annual conference events and focus on best practices in indigenous archives, libraries and museums. The city Palm Springs, California, played host to an “eventful” ATALM 2014 international conference which featured diverse range of activities, namely, poem reading from personal collection, melodious flute playing by native players, an open house and cultural evening at a tribal museum, etc. The conference brought together 520 registered delegates from the USA, Canada and Mexico. Design/methodology/approach – This report is an outline of selected ATALM 2014 conference events in Palm Springs based on the theme “Indigenous Archives, Libraries and Museums”. It summarizes selective events, namely, onsite workshops and poster session. Findings – The conference focused on indigenous culture, as the participants discussed challenges and opportunities in sustaining cultural sovereignty of native nations. The hands-on or interactive labs/workshops were centered on the activities and needs of tribal archives, especially on preservation of cultural heritage. As a Fulbright scholar, the author was interested to know about American tribal history, indigenous culture, native archives and libraries, and excited to see the country’s desert scenery. Additionally, ATALM scholarship/financial support encouraged the author to attend the conference, and finally, the heat of the desert which accentuated the beauty of Palm Springs makes a complete experience. Originality/value – The ATALM conferences are the important conference because of the participation of large number of tribal libraries and cultural heritage keeping organizations serving indigenous population. The ATALM 2014 covered areas like successful collaborations between tribal and non-tribal organizations, and building strategic networks among outside and within the communities.

scholarly journals Legal or unenforceable? Violations of trade regulations and the case of the Philippine Sailfin Lizard Hydrosaurus pustulatus (Reptilia: Squamata: Agamidae)

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 18532-18543
Author(s):  
Sarah Heinrich ◽  
Adam Toomes ◽  
Jordi Janssen
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Habitat Destruction ◽  
Pet Trade ◽  
Online Sales ◽  
Lacey Act ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Apparent Violation ◽  
Special Circumstances

The Philippine Sailfin Lizard (Agamidae: Hydrosaurus pustulatus) is a nationally protected Philippine endemic species.  It is threatened by habitat destruction, pollution and overexploitation for the domestic pet trade, yet less is known about the international component of the trade.  Here we investigate the international trade in Hydrosaurus spp. (H. weberi, H. amboinensis, and H. pustulatus) with an emphasis on H. pustulatus.  We analysed international seizures combined with international online sales and trade data for the United States of America (USA).  The export of H. pustulatus from the Philippines has been prohibited since 1991, except under special circumstances, yet they continue to be traded internationally, and we found evidence for trade in Asia, Europe, and North America.  Most of these animals, however, were declared to be captive-bred.  While imports to and exports from the US consisted mostly of other species of Hydrosaurus, H. pustulatus was by far the most coveted species online, with prices significantly higher for H. pustulatus than any of the other species.  While not many seizures have occurred outside the Philippines, even wild-caught individuals were found to be ‘legally’ imported to the USA – in apparent violation of the Lacey Act.   We recommend H. pustulatus to be listed in CITES Appendix III, in order for countries other than the USA to have a legal basis to seize wild-caught animals trafficked from the Philippines and to monitor trade in captive-bred specimens.  Further, we suggest the use of automated cross-referencing between imported species and the national protection status of the species’ native range states to ensure that legislation violations are detected at the point of import.

scholarly journals ‘Walking in the shoes of our patients’: a scoping review of healthcare professionals learning from the simulation of patient illness experiences

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Milda Karvelytė ◽  
Janet Rogers ◽  
Gerard J. Gormley
Keyword(s):  
Scoping Review ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Embodied Experience ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Illness Experiences ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Health professionals who have experienced ill-health appear to demonstrate greater empathy towards their patients. Simulation can afford learners opportunities to experience aspects of illness, but to date, there has been no overarching review of the extent of this practice or the impact on empathic skills. Objective To determine from the evidence—what is known about simulation-based learning methods of creating illness experiences for health professions and the impact on their empathic skills. Study selection Arksey and O’Malley’s methodological framework informed our scoping review of articles relevant to our research question. Three databases (MEDLINE, Embase and Web of Science) were searched, and a sample of 516 citations was screened. Following review and application of our exclusion criteria, 77 articles were selected to be included in this review. Findings Of the 77 articles, 52 (68%) originated from the USA, 37 (48%) of studies were qualitative based and 17 (22%) used a mixed-methods model. Of all the articles in our scope, the majority (87%) reported a positive impact and range of emotions evoked on learners. However, some studies observed more negative effects and additional debriefing was required post-simulation. Learners were noted to internalise perceived experiences of illness and to critically reflect on their empathic role as healthcare providers. Conclusions A diverse range of simulation methods and techniques, evoking an emotional and embodied experience, appear to have a positive impact on empathy and could be argued as offering a complementary approach in healthcare education; however, the long-term impact remains largely unknown.

scholarly journals Professional Internships for PhD Students

2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 44-45
Author(s):  
Christopher Penny
Keyword(s):  
Biological Sciences ◽  
Research Council ◽  
Academic Work ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Tenure Track ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Tenure Track Faculty ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Research Councils

According to NIH statistics, only 8% of people that begin a biology PhD in the USA become tenure-track faculty members. Anecdotally, this number can vary between 1 and 10%, depending on the institution and field. For those young scientists who want a career within academia, these statistics can be both daunting and depressing. For those who can't wait to leave, or for those who choose to leave with perhaps less enthusiasm, there is a world of opportunities in a diverse range of sectors. However, many non-academic jobs require experience or skills that are difficult to obtain or apply while studying for a PhD. Recently, the research councils within the UK, and in particular the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), have made some large investments to provide PhD students with additional skills and experience beyond their academic work.

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