Eco Tourism Blog

The role of tourism in wildlife conservation is well known. Armed with cameras, tourists are now shooting Sri Lanka’s elephants and bringing them back from the verge of extinction.

The elephant orphanage at Pinnawela in Sri Lanka is breeding elephants in captivity in a sprawling 25-acre coconut plantation. Before the orphanage was started in 1975, Sri Lanka’s elephant population had dwindled to near extinction due to habitat loss, and ruthless hunting. Thanks to the efforts of the Sri Lankan government and tourists the elephant population has risen from merely seven elephants in 1975 to 65 elephants today, including several bred in captivity.

Well, are you always ready to take the first road out? Do you love outdoor adventure and thrills: Rock –climbing, Trekking Expeditions, White Water Rafting, Skiing, Nature Trails, Wildlife Safaris and more. Do you believe that there’s an exciting new world waiting to be explored? If, yes, than, you definitely are an ardent traveler and nature lover. But, wait; does that make you an eco-tourist? Read this and find out for yourself!

The oldest painting in the world was unearthed underground in Syria by French archaeologists. The 11,000 yr old two square-meter painting that dates back to 9,000 BC is surprisingly modernistic with red, black and white squares all over.

Where do you think the colors came from? Hematite rock gave the red color, while crushed limestone and charcoal were used for the white and black.

Syrian artist, Mustafa Ali says that such patterns are commonly used in Persian carpets and rugs. The painting will be housed in the Alepp’s museum next year. The earlier officially declared oldest painting was a 1,500 year old one that was found in Turkey.

Source & Image

Libya is planning to build a green village to protect the Greek and Roman ruins in Cyrene from haphazard developments. Cyrene is one of the oldest and the richest Greek cities and lies in a lush valley in the Jebel Akhdar uplands. It is home to some of the most beautiful ancient structures like the Temple of Apollo, the temple of Demeter and the temple of Zeus. Most of these were damaged under the orders of Moammar Al Quadhafi in 1978.

The project, the Green Mountain Conservation , will be powered with wind and solar energy and the trash generated would be recycled and converted into biofuel. The architecture of the resorts, hotels, villas and residences would be in sync with the rugged landscape. The idea is to blend environmental and cultural tourism across the thousand miles of undeveloped coastlines.

For the very first time the stunning antiques, the Acropolis statues will be shifted from their original site to the specially built new musuem about 400 meters away from the original place.

The Indian Himalayas are extremely fragile. With zillions of regular tourists visiting the popular hill stations, places are becoming more crowded and nasty. Regular tourists destroy the local area. Although, eco tourists are different. Experts believe that ecotourism will do the Indian Himalayas good.

Few people are fortunate enough to go on a trip to a place that can bring drastic change in their life. I don’t know the names of such people but surely I know the name of a place where one can get close encounters with the abundant nature.

Ice thawing at the poles has been a big concern for scientists especially for the last decade – considering it a serious symptom of global warming, leaving the coastal regions at the risk of sinking under the seas and the polar animals’ going extinct.

Mauritius is no doubt one of the most spectacular holiday destinations. Swaying palm trees, dazzling blue ocean, balmy nights and the dazzling smiles of the local people are is enough words that describe this place. Anyone can be easily lured to plan a vacation in Mauritius.

An archaeologically rich, Mediterranean area in Libya might just be the next hot ecotourism destination. Saif Al Islam Gadafi, the son of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi has recently unveiled a £1.5bn ($3bn) sustainable development plan which is yet another step taken towards international rehabilitation.

Once the Thames of ‘Great Stink’ has emerged as a habitat to more than 100 species of sea animals today. Cleaner water is encouraging grey seals, dolphins, whales and porpoises to come up into the river and have become a common sight for the public around Tower Bridge and Westminster.

Are you planning to go for a walk with your dog? Thing twice if the trail leads into a conserved area. Dogs are the closest companions to humans amongst all animals, yet these loyal friends have emerged from wolves, one of the most competent predators in the wild. No wonder then that a study suggests that walking dogs in conserved areas has an adverse effect on other wildlife, especially birds.

The discovery of a vast and thickening web with million of spiders found in the North Texas, Lake Tawakoni State park has sparked a debate amongst scientists and visitors. The web which spread across miles has a lot of trees covered and is so thick that at some places it has blocked the sunlight also. Astonishing is the fact that where spiders are believed to be solitary creatures don’t usually make community webs. The intricate web as per the reports emits a faint odor, most probably coming from the dead insects stuck to the web.

A spider expert at Texas A & M University, Allen Dean describes this web as a “rather spooky, kind of like Halloween.” What amazes experts like Dean is that ‘social’ spiders or rather their species are not found outside of the tropics. The experts are speculating the web as a community web of cobweb spiders. However, cobwebs take more than a year to build such webs and this one has come up in just a few months. Some are also reasoning it as just a ballooning of the spiders which five years ago covered about 25 hectares of field in British Columbia in the same way. Mike Quinn, the state biologist who runs a Web site about Texas invertebrates said that there can be a relation between the web and the record-breaking rains that flooded Texas this season.

Source: IHT

Don’t be too sure that the atlas you are referring to gives you the right map of a particular area! Even the newest redrawn maps are finding it hard to cope up with developmental, infrastructural and environmental changes taking place around the world today. The more vivid the atlas is the greater problem it faces.

Love to camp outdoors? Why not try La Rosa camping caravans! Situated in the picturesque North Yorkshire Moors National Park, this environmentally sensitive campsite brings together a collection of classic caravans in 20 acres of woodland.