Learning to respect wild animals again
In recent years, there have been regular reports of inappropriate and other ill-advised behavior by tourists around wild animals in various parts of the world.
DW: ‘In the 1969 movie Kes, a young English teenager called Billy Casper learns the craft of falconry so he can train a wild kestrel. In one scene, he explains why he hates people asking him if his “pet hawk” is tame. “Is it heck tame! Hawks can’t be tamed,” he says in exasperation. “It’s wild and it’s fierce and it’s not bothered about anybody.”
Young Billy would surely despair at reports this week from Australia of wild kangaroos being fed junk food by tourists. In recent years, there have been regular reports of inappropriate feeding and other ill-advised behavior by tourists around wild animals in various parts of the world.
Dr Jan Schmidt-Burbach is a wildlife veterinarian who has worked for the international non-profit animal welfare organization World Animal Protection for more than 10 years. He spoke to Global Ideas about his concerns with the way in which humans interact with wild animals in the smartphone age’. SOURCE…
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