The “Taiping Four,” as they became known throughout the world, found themselves caught in a political storm. An international campaign was instigated to have them returned to Cameroon. They were seized by the Malaysian authorities in 2004 and first transported to the Pretoria Zoo in South Africa, where they lived until last week, while international diplomatic pressure to have them repatriated to Cameroon steadily increased. Finally, on November 29, 2007, they started their journey home, and I was present when they arrived in Limbe.

The journey from South Africa, via Nairobi/Kenya to Douala (by air), and finally by road to Limbe took 18 hours. Females Abbey, Oyin, Tinu, and the only male, Izan (pictured above), each weigh about 100 kilograms (220 pounds), and are all about 6 years old now. They were each transported in their own separate cage but together so they could see each other through the bars of the adjacent cages throughout the journey. Limbe Wildlife Center veterinarian Felix Lankester accompanied them throughout their journey from South Africa and ensured they had as comfortable a journey as possible.

They arrived at Limbe at 7 p.m., accompanied by a motorcade of government vehicles, including the minister of Wildlife and Forestry himself. They were coaxed into their new quarantine enclosure where they will remain for three months before attempting integration into the existing gorilla group. There was a huge posse of onlookers for this final maneuver, and I was amazed to see no less than six film crews from Cameroon, South Africa, Europe, and the United States documenting their arrival.

I went to see Abbey, Oyin, Tinu, and Izan today in their new home. They were sleeping on the cool floor, lazily playing with each other and seemed perfectly relaxed considering their mammoth journey only a few days ago. Access to them for the public will be limited until they are out of quarantine, but the posters, banners, and flags erected by the local schoolchildren to welcome them back to Cameroon will remain for some time yet.

Gorillas can live as long as many humans, so they have a good portion of their lives ahead of them. Although not free, they have hopefully forgotten some of the trauma of their capture. Probably taken from the bodies of their mothers, who may have been killed for the bushmeat trade, they will be in each other’s company, well fed, and receive good medical care for the rest of their lives. After the quarantine period they can expect to be integrated with the other 11 gorillas and there is the possibility of being released into a semi-natural release site in the coming years.

Diplomatic efforts by the government of Cameroon and the media attention of the return of these gorillas to Cameroon may well be an indication of an ever-increasing realization of the importance of wildlife to the country, both real and symbolic. If there is one expectant consequence of the homecoming of the ‘Taiping Four,’ it is that it will be regarded by future generations as a defining moment in efforts to conserve these most endangered of species in Cameroon.

Dr. Bethan Morgan is a Conservation Research Fellow for the San Diego Zoo.

Here’s more information about Bethan’s research project.
Read Bethan’s previous blog, Hepatitis E.

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Every morning our valiant leader, Robert Buchanan, woke us with a rousing round of “Oh, What A Beautiful Morning” from the musical, Oklahoma. This morning, however, we (the student ambassadors) decided we were going to turn the tables on the man we have grown to love despite his wake-up duties. At five this morning, I aroused all the girls in the bunkhouse and we silently traipsed into the boys’ bunks to wake them. Together we huddled around Robert’s bunk and bellowed to his infamous tune: “I hate to get up in the morning/ I hate to get out of bed/ I hate to get up in the morning/ I’d rather just sleep instead!—Good morning Robert!” He laughed and complimented our leadership in executing our prank, before all of us headed back to bed to catch a few more zzzzzzz’s before the seven o’clock rendition of “Oh, What A Beautiful Morning.”

Once again, we awoke to the sound of rain on the tundra, but by nine o’clock the temperature had dropped significantly and the droplets had changed to fluffy white snowflakes that blanketed the ground. We all were very excited to finally capture the coveted picture of a white polar bear in the first snow of winter. Although the snow was a definite distraction, we managed to focus on our morning’s task. Because each of us (students) came to Polar Bears International Leadership Camp to prepare for our return home as Arctic ambassadors, we each created an action plan for our communities back home.

My action plan includes activities that I hope to facilitate in schools and other organizations in San Diego. I also hope to initiate new programs in my city. The activities I want to lead include an Eco-Day at local elementary/middle schools that will engage students and their families in a carnival including food, fun, and eco-friendly, educational activities that demonstrate the benefits of an eco-friendly lifestyle. This is a program I hope to organize by the end of the school year. I plan to engage my high school’s Eco-Club to assist me in this endeavor.

Additionally, other ambassadors suggested several programs that I hope will create future tradition in my community, including:
· “Green Line” fashion show that promotes the style of eco-friendly clothes
· “Power Down for Polar Bears”—a day where my school/community would turn off all electricity to conserve energy
· Climate Change Leadership Summit to inspire, inform, and empower concerned teenagers on global climate issues

Finally, throughout this trip I have toted Aurora, a stuffed penguin. I have snapped pictures of Aurora doing everything I have done on this trip. I am planning to write a children’s story about Aurora’s travels in the Arctic to inform youngsters about what they can do to help the cause, using Aurora, the “traveling penguin,” as my emissary to their age group. I also hope to visit Antarctica someday, so that will be Aurora’s “homecoming.” Maybe there is a whole line of children’s books in the works….

Through my experiences over the past two weeks, I have acquired so many leadership skills from my fellow ambassadors and from the scientists and teachers who have facilitated the camp. Everyone brought a different skill to the camp. Tomorrow, when we depart the tundra, we will retain and bring home a part of each other that will contribute to our work as Arctic Ambassadors. I realize, more than ever, the power and obligation I have to INSPIRE, INFORM, and EMPOWER my peers, my community, and my world toward the goal of acknowledging and addressing the issues of global climate change.

From the last day on the tundra,
Ronit

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When we finally arrived at the site of the maternal den, we piled out of the helicopters to find ourselves in the midst of a snow-covered mossy field. We immediately commenced in a flurried, frantic snowball fight, which only ceased when we discovered the softness of the moss and collapsed in a pile onto it. When it was my turn to don a headlamp and crawl into the maternal den, I was astounded at the immense complexity of the construction and the dampness of the peat into which the den was built. The journey back to the Lodge by helicopter was just as awesome and really made me appreciate the vastness of the tundra and gave us an excellent view of the Lodge. Upon returning to the Lodge, we had a heart-to-heart discussion about the future and what we as ambassadors hope to bring back to our communities from this trip. Our last night is coming to a close but my arctic family and I still have some time together so I won’t say goodbye yet!

Love from the chilly tundra,
Ronit

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This morning we again worked on presenting the information from our required reading, Impacts of a Warming Arctic, to specific audiences. My group chose to present the impacts of global climate change on coastal climates to a Parent/Teacher Association (PTA) at a school in the Midwest USA. These mock performances are giving us chances to prepare presentations that we can use when we return home. Our group created a plan for the PTA to host an Eco-Day at the school that would provide environmentally educational activities and information. I am really excited about the many activities we made for this Eco-Day and am planning to bring the plans back to local elementary schools in San Diego. I think I would provide a very effective platform for education in younger children and families.

Unfortunately, the Internet connection went down because of the strong winds and storm on Thursday. It really doesn’t affect our daily business, except that we were scheduled to have a videoconference with a 5th grade class from Oregon. We couldn’t make the connection even though many people in the Lodge worked through the night in an attempt to fix the link. We didn’t want to disappoint the kids so we decided to video record our answers to the questions they had sent us and then we will send the tape to the class. Not quite how we wanted it, but as our wise leader Mr. Robert Buchanan said, “Mother Nature always wins!” In the tundra, you must get up and keep going after you fall, no matter what happens—a lesson I will always carry from this trip.

Learning lots from the Tundra and my arctic family,
Ronit

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Today’s moment of humor occurred as I was standing outside on the patio, marveling at the strength of the wind. There was a window that was leaking from all the rain, so we had positioned a pitcher underneath the drip to catch the water. Connor followed me out onto the patio to empty the pitcher and didn’t consider the direction of the wind. He tossed the water right into the wind so that the droplets of water froze and flew right into my face! Omar happened to be standing just inside the door, watching the incident, and we burst out laughing! Connor stammered an apology as we teased him about his computer brilliance yet inability to understand the basic laws of physics.

Anyway, today was especially exciting because we had our first videoconference. We talked to a class of Grade 4 students from Manitoba, Canada and answered their many creative questions including “Why do polar bears have to go to zoos?” and “Why are polar bears orange when the sun sets?” We learned a lot from this experience, especially an appreciation for the teamwork that goes into executing a videoconference. I am amazed at how well our group of student ambassadors works as a cohesive unit. We were able to bounce ideas around and rely on each other to complete concepts during the conference. We also had a presentation about zoo regulations for polar bears and how we can advocate and use our leadership skills when we return to our respective countries and cities.

I hope that the snow continues through the night and tomorrow morning because I think seeing polar bears in snow will be a extraordinary experience. Yet, I also hope it stops soon so that we can go out into the Buggy and see active wildlife!

Never a dull day on the Tundra Buggy, and my arctic family is more than entertaining!

Ronit

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We left this morning to spend a couple of hours on the tundra. We saw a polar bear as well as several species of birds. We returned to the buggy to listen to a presentation by Michael Goodyear from the Northern Studies Research Center regarding the ringed seals, which is the primary prey of the polar bear. He described the natural habits of the seals and their reliance on the ice for birthing. Their “livelihood” is supporting the polar bear population and the Inuit community so their presence is crucial in the arctic biome.

After a delicious lunch of pizza, we headed out once again on the Tundra Buggy. Each time we head out, the facilitators remind us to bring our books and notebooks because we will be having a discussion about ambassador presentations or an activity when there isn’t any wildlife around. Yet all of our trips have had a constant presence of wildlife, each more exciting than the next! Our discussions turn to polar bear tagging and species migration and our activities turn to taking pictures, filming wildlife, and awing at the tundra beauty.

Today we saw a bear lunge after a swimming muskrat in the middle of a tundra lake. The muskrat got away and the gasps of disappointment were audible from the whole group. We are still hoping to see a polar bear’s predatory skills in action although this time of year they are mostly languid. It was exciting nonetheless to witness the bear’s agile movements and patience in tracking a possible source of food. The behavior of the muskrat was also intriguing as it nimbly swam out of the polar bear’s reach and stayed downwind of the bear so that it remained undetected. The experience really made me appreciate the adapted survival behaviors of these animals.

Tonight we are all looking forward to an AFAP (as Fancy as Possible) dinner, which is being cooked by the Red-Yellow group. We have witnessed their extensive labors for this feast…namely their folding of 32 paper napkin swans. We will be meeting in a couple minutes for “before dinner” appetizers and entertainment before being cordially invited into the dining car. I can’t wait. Well, I’d better go get dressed for dinner.

From the wild Arctic tundra,
Ronit

Caption: The Applied Animal Ecology Division of Conservation and Research for Endangered Species (CRES) and Polar Bears International are working together to collect polar bear vocalizations in order to create a sound library.

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It began to rain early this morning, waking me up with a pitter-patter on my window. We decided not to go out on the Tundra Buggy today because of the rainy weather; the bears and other wildlife tend to hunker down behind rocks and seek refuge from the cold rain and wind. Instead, we started working on practice presentations on various topics suggested in our required reading, Impacts of a Warming Arctic. We chose an audience in addition to our presentation topic. My team focused our presentation about the observations, consequences of, and responses to a warming arctic to engage a civic group of businesspeople. Other groups focused their talks to engage elementary school kids, senior citizens, and corporate leaders.

In the middle of the critique of the final group, however, Robert Buchanan (our valiant leader) politely interjected, “Bear Break!” and everyone scrambled to the windows to watch a curious female polar bear wander into camp. (I am learning to carry my camera 100% of the time for fear of missing out on the constantly amazing experiences!) The bear was splattered with dirt, in patterns that suggested she had been scratching her back in the soil. She was very active; entertaining us for over an hour as she busily licked the water from the sides of the Lodge and rolled playfully in the grass. She has remained beside the buggy for several hours and even now as I am writing, she is laying in the brush, scratching her belly. I was severely saddened, however, when she began to chew on a large white piece of Styrofoam that is sitting out on the tundra outside. It was a heart-wrenching reminder of how much of an impact humans are having on the daily life of these beautiful bears.

Well, I have to go for now because I am due for dinner duty…

More tomorrow,
From beside the Hudson Bay aboard the Tundra Buggy,
-Ronit

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We started off the day by visiting the polar bear “jail” in Churchill, which is a facility that Manitoba Conservation officers use to hold polar bears that enter the town or cause trouble. It was reassuring to see the humane traps made from giant metal tubes they use to capture the bears without having to tranquilize them first. The people of Churchill care about the polar bears but they also have to live here too, so this is the system they have to coexist. At the time of our visit, there were 8 bears there waiting to be transported to somewhere far away from town so they can wait for the Hudson Bay to freeze over a safe distance from humans.

I wish I could capture the feeling of being in the tundra. There is so much more than polar bears and snow (actually there is no snow right now). At the Parks Canada headquarters, which is also the train station, I found out so much more about this complex and fragile ecosystem. There are actually different kinds of permafrost, and it’s not all permanent! But, some of the permafrost is melting in places that it hasn’t before and it is causing problems for people. For example, the historic Fort Prince of Wales that was built here in the 1700s is cracking and the Parks Canada Department is doing a wall reinforcement project.

Finally, we embarked on our Tundra Buggy adventure! We stepped off the “launch pad” and into a buggy containing our pile of luggage and all the food supplies we will need for the next week. The first hour of our journey was rather uneventful and we saw little wildlife. Suddenly we saw a large flock of ptarmigans. The entire group went really crazy: jumping up to click their cameras and record on their video cameras.

We set off again; however, a few minutes later the Captain stopped the buggy and pulled out his binoculars. We all wondered aloud, “Why did he stop?” Then somebody yelled, “It’s a polar bear! And a caribou!” The flurry of activity began again as we witnessed our first polar bear of the trip! It was incredible.

None of us (students) had ever seen polar bears in their natural habitat before and we marveled at how different the wild bears seem from those in zoos. Again, we stopped for a long time, as pictures were snapped and movies made. But again, when we started off we were greeted with an even greater sight…two polar bears came right up to the buggy! Both bears even stood up on their hind legs against the buggy! We were ecstatic at our good fortune and spent almost half with the bears. After our cheeks were red and fingers frozen, the sun began to set and we drove to the Lodge. Settling into our bunks was an adventure in itself, as was making dinner in our new home for the next week.

More to come from the Tundra Buggy….
and stand by for more photos!
Ronit
(Arctic Ambassador Cesar contributed to this blog)

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During our descent, I was awed by the wide spectrum of color in the arctic tundra. From the air, I could see the orange, yellow, and green blends across the landscape—in stark contrast to the barren gray I expected. I have seen pictures of the colors and heard stories of tundra beauty but until I took my first breathtaking steps in the tundra, I did not understand what I was missing.

Stepping off the plane, I was greeted with a lashing wind that slapped my face and hands. The wind is fierce on the tundra with a chill factor that makes the 7 Celsius (about 44 Farenheit) feel more like 4 C (39 F). Once we dropped off our duffel bags and received a warm welcome from the Tundra Inn, we ventured out into Churchill to explore. Guided by Stephen, the student ambassador from Churchill, we toured many parts of Churchill including “the Complex” which encloses and connects the elementary school, high school, library, skating rink, gym, pool, and community center. I admire the efficient design that creates a gathering and play place that is protected from the elements in Churchill.

We also explored the shipping port, which is a major part of the Churchill economy (the port exports grains harvested from the central U.S. and Canadian plains). We then headed to Hudson Bay, a beautiful pebbled beach that opens out to the Arctic ocean and is where the polar bears descend onto the ice during the winter. As we were hiking along the beach, however, a natural resource officer from Manitoba Conservation’s Polar Bear Alert System directed us off the beach. We were confused and disappointed that our stroll was cut short until the officer informed us that a polar bear had been sighted less than half a mile from the beach and was heading along the coast in our direction! It was amazing to witness the reaction to the presence of the polar bears in the community, and their dedication to protecting these bears, as well as the visitors, is inspiring. I am even more anticipatory of our adventure on the Tundra Buggies tomorrow after our close call—at least then we can observe the bears up close but out of reach!

Just now as I am writing this blog I got up and ran outside when someone announced, “The northern lights are out!” Tonight we had our first glimpse of the beautiful Northern Lights in both green and purple colors. They are absolutely breathtaking and I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to witness them. I hope to be able to see even more once out on the Tundra Buggy Lodge, away from city lights. I’m a little nervous that we have used up all our luck today, but the tundra is full of surprises. Hope to have something surprising to report tomorrow.

From the “Polar Bear Capital of the World,”
Ronit

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I have to admit that the biggest culture shock for me has been the switch to the metric system. I really appreciate the ease of measuring with metrics because we use it in science classes in the USA, but I am still somewhat unsure about measuring temperature in Celsius. For example, the temperature here in Winnipeg has been around 27 degrees, which I expected to be cold, forgetting that in Celsius, 27 degrees is hot! But I am adjusting; I am beginning to do all my measurements in metrics, now that I have been here for three days. The majority of the camp is in metrics so I am learning quickly and I hope to be completely “fluent” by the end of camp!

Anyway, today we toured Winnipeg, stopping at the Leo Mol Sculpture Gardens in Assiniboine Park and the Assiniboine Zoo. Because we are taking this big trek to see the polar bears in their wild habitat, being at the zoo sparked a discussion about the responsibilities of humans when we have animals in captivity. Many important and eloquent points were made by some of the other campers, a director of a Scandinavian wildlife park, and simply by watching the zoo visitors marvel at the animals. The general consensus seemed to be that captivity provides an important opportunity for education, but the discussion also highlighted the importance of maintaining aspects of an open and realistic environment in the exhibit to protect the natural behaviors of the animal. I am thrilled to be traveling with this amazing group of people, and I cannot wait for more intriguing conversations with my fellow ambassadors.

I have been surprised and excited by how diverse our group is. I must admit that I thought Canadians would be “just like” Americans. I can’t quite put my finger on it but I am enjoying the differences. And of course there are students from Australia and Denmark, and Cesar moved to the U.S. from Guatemala a few years ago!

We are gearing up for our trip to Churchill tomorrow, and you can feel the excitement in the air. We are getting closer and closer….

From just south of the Arctic Circle,

Ronit

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