CONGRATULATION GREENPEACEl SANTANDER STOPPED DESTRUCTION OF RAINFORESTS -- Update 12 June, 2015

ORANG  UTAN

LATEST NEWS -  12 June, 2015 -- Greenpeace had further talks with APRIL and they decided now to stop the deforestation completely. It is fantastic good news because hundred thousands of acres of ancient rainforest will be saved.


UPDATE:  27 February, 2015 --  Good News UK Santander promised to pull out backing APRIL.  Whether that means all the backing and if their promise is true and immediately, remains to be seen. At least Greenpeace received that promise. It also remains to be seen whether the other backers are pulling out. Banks and Financials world seem to have lost principles these days. 

UPDATE: 20 February, 2015 -- As much as Greenpeace keeps pressuring Santander they still buying time  by saying they awaiting APRIL's report. This is not good enough because every day another piece of rainforest is lost forever. It has to be stopped immediately to avoid another part of the rainforest  gone forever. Greenpeace is trying to get an appointment with the top chief executive but, unfortunately, it is still another day lost and with that a piece of rainforest.  Santander could have stopped it weeks and months ago when Greenpeace started contacting them.

Right now, digger are cutting down Indonesia’s rainforest and pushing Oran Utan, tigers, sun bears and many other species towards extinction.

The banking group Santander is backing APRIL a pulp and paper company with millions of pounds to destroy Indonesia’s rainforest.

Tell Santander to stop final extinction or you will withdraw your account but tell them why.

Over the last few years Santander have loaned millions to APRIL which chopping down Indonesia’s rainforest at an alarming rate. If Santander wants to be responsible company, it needs to end the loans now and this would hot APRIL where it hurts most – in the pockets.

If you like to sign the competition please click on 

 www.greenpeace.org.uk/santander

which takes you straight to the competition to sign.  It would be great to receive signatures, as many as possible. It would increase the pressure to stop. 

IF THAT DOES NOT MAKE YOUR 

HEART BLEED, NOTHING WILL

Greenpeace forced already Santander to admit that they support APRIL financially but the High Street branches say it’s monitoring the situation and will act accordingly. It is nothing but a white wash and playing for time. So far Santander used to deny them financial support to APRIL. While all this was and is going on the rainforest has been cut down and that was exactly what they were playing at. Only after 75,000 of Greenpeace took action Santander admitted their financial support but still refuses to stop.

According to Greenpeace APRIL had been destroying rainforest for years. It is not known how long Santander advanced loans to them.

Santander said it is waiting for APRIL’s results of a sustainable forest management which is an again a white wash and playing for time. It still does not give the result of stopping cutting down the rainforest which Greenpeace and all of us want. The rainforest is such a complicated environment which only nature could make links between many species and plants and once it is destroyed it can never be established again. It will affect not only Orang Utans, tigers, sun bears and many other smaller species and many plants and birds which are all relying on each other.  Once the chain is broken it would result into                                                                                                  extinction of many.

                               WHICH PICTURE IS BETTER !!!!!! 
  IT HAS TO STOP NOW NOT WAITING FOR THIS REPORT AND THAT REPORT.  ALL A NAME OF THE GAME AND  IN THE MEANTIME THE DESTRUCTION GOES ON.  THAT IS THEIR AIM.                                                     

KPMG assessed APRIL last year.  A leaked report
says that not one of APRIL’S suppliers has met its policy and that includes Santander.

APRIL gave another promise to rectify it but APRIL is known to make and break promises and al the time another piece of rainforest has gone and that is their real policy.

Now we come to the final point; unless the backers all pull out immediately and it has to be immediately APRIL will not stop to destroy Indonesia’s rainforest and drive Orang Utans, tigers, sun bears, rare pygmy elephant and many other species driven to extinctions.

Indonesia's rainforests are home to untold number of plants and animals. Over the years, scientists uncover more rare species that can not be found anywhere else. Yet, the forests are disappearing fast, as greedy companies chop down the trees to make paper and packaging.

BIG CATS -- FAMILY FELIDAE -- ENDANGERED SPECIES

SNOW LEOPARD

All the big cats are carnivores and belong to the family of felidae. They evolved from a weasel-like miacids. Miacids lived on earth 50 million years ago in the Eocene period. They became so widespread that around 25 million years ago the period was named the Miocene. The most well-known of that period was the sabre tooth tiger. The fangs measured up to 20cm.  It is assumed that these creature hunted big plant-eating animals by slashing them

Nowadays, they developed a stalk and pounce method. With their retractable claws they move soft on their pads in a typical cat fashion. Then they spring at their victims with their powerful hind-legs and back.

The big cats are divided into seven species. They are the lion, leopard, tiger, snow leopard, clouded leopard, cheetah and the jaguar belonging to the Panthera genus. They all live in Africa and Asia with one exception the jaguar which lives in South America as well as in the south west of the United States of America.

The difference between the big cats and small cats is that the big cat lie with their front legs stretched out and the small cat tucks it under the front legs. Big cats lie down to eat and the small cats eat crouching down. Small cats burr breathing in and out but big cats roar breathing out.

The lion, tiger and leopard are typical big cats. The jaguar, snow leopard and clouded leopard differ from them because they do not roar. The snow leopard feeds crouching down like a small cat. The clouded leopard lies down with the front-paws tucked under like the small cats. They all have retractable claws but not the cheetah.

Since they are carnivorous they have to catch their prey either by stalk and pounce or scavenge their meat. Apart from the cheetah, the rest can only give chase for a short distance. The cheetah is remarkable because it is the fastest animals on earth. It also can chase its victim over a long distance and easily outrun it.

When the cat caught its prey it grips it with its jaws until the animal can't breathe anymore.  Another, they use to cover the prey's nose and mouth with its own mouth to stop it breathing and dies.

Most cats are solitary hunters. The tiger can bring down animals bigger than themselves. The cheetah, having a lightweight body, cannot bring down prey bigger than themselves. Lions hunt in group and have a technique that two of them panic the prey and chase it into the waiting group laying in ambush.

The future of those beautiful big cats is greatly in jeopardy. To begin with, one of their declines was the reason to be hunted for their beautiful coats. Nowadays, the reason is loss of habitat. Apparently, for some subspecies it is already too late. The big cats are mostly are vulnerable and some other are an endangered species. One thing which helps, the public is aware and the other through conservationists, land is declared as nature reserves in which no hunting is allowed, nor logging.

LIONESS

THE LIONS

The lion is the only big cat which lives in groups. The family groups are called a pride. All the other big cats are solitary animals and live in forests and bush. It could be because they live on the open plains that they adapted to this live style and with not a lot of cover they changed into hunting in a group. Each pride has up to 12 related females and up to five or six males.

The biggest and strongest of the males is the dominant over the pride. He also mates mostly with the female. If a male takes over a pride he usually kills the young ones of his predecessor. The male is a lot bigger than the female. It is the male who defends the territory. The females hunt for the whole pride. The male often steals the kill of other cats.

Lions do not have a specific mating season. The female gives birth after 100 to 119 days. Each female has about three to four cubs and all females in the pride have the task to help to rear them all. After about three months the cubs are being weaned and start on meat. They still suckle at the same time for another three months. They are mature enough to mate when they are about three or four years.

THE TIGER

The tiger has several subspecies and they are all endangered. The Siberian tiger is the largest cat of them all and can weigh up to 380kg. It develops a layer of thick fat to protect itselves against the harsh environment it lives in. It has to travel long distances in search of food in the winter.

The Indian and Bengal tiger is numerous. It marks its territory by spraying it with urine. It also scratches trees to mark it. The territory of the Bengal Tiger overlaps with two or three females and he will challenge any male trying to move in. The female brings up the cubs alone and they stay with her until they are about two years old. At the same time she will show them to hunt and defend themselves. Tigers live up to 15 years in the wild.

THE JAGUAR

Jaguars are one of the big cats living in the Americas. They live in dense woods, forest and open grasslands close to water. It lives solitary and hunts anything from deer to frogs. It also eats fish. It can climb well but mostly catches its prey on open ground. The jaguar is territorial and will defend it. The cubs also stay with the mother for about two years.

THE LEOPARD

The leopard is the most widespread and it is because it is so adaptable in habitat and food. It eats any meat and even scavenges from dustbins. When it gets challenged the leopard carries his heavy prey up the tree and puts it safely onto the branches.  It is a great climber.

It is ready to mate at about 30 months and the female gives birth to three or four cubs. She rears them by herself. When they are 18 months they leave her protection and start living on their own. The female cubs usually stay closed and sometime share the territory. Some leopards are black and called black panthers.

THE CHEETAH

The cheetah has a lot of problems. It needs an open ground with enough cover to conceal itself. It also has a restricted diet. It is timid and shy and will be dominated by lions and leopards. When challenge it will leave the kill to them without a growl. Yet she has a unique grace when chasing prey.

The cheetah's claws are retractable and therefore blunt. It uses its powerful dew claw to trip up the prey.

The cubs are very vulnerable and often fall prey to lions and leopards. They are even in danger from their own kind. When a male wants to mate with the female, he holds her prison and let the cabs starve to death or their cry for food are heard and killed by other predators

THE SNOW LEOPARD

The snow leopard lives in a cold climate and at a high altitude between 3000m and 4000m. Even sometimes as high as 6000m. It lives in woodland. In the winter it moves down to a lower altitude in search of food. He eats mammals from a size of gazelles to hares.

It hunts at night and is very shy. It adapted itself to the harsh environment. His coat is thick and long and his paws are covered with hairs. In the winter it turns whiter for camouflage. During the mating season the snow leopard hunts in pairs and this adds to a successful hunt to feed the cubs.

THE CLOUDED LEOPARD

The clouded leopard is classed as a species between the big cats and the small cats. It lives in the forests of south-east Asia and lives mostly up in the trees. It hunts monkeys and tree dwelling animals. It is a superb climber and descends head first. It 'bat' its prey with its strong paws. When it hunts on the ground it uses the same method. It swings from the tree and drops down onto its prey.