Grey Wolf (Canis lupus)

48x48 Acrylic painting of the Grey Wolf - SOLD (Prints Available HERE)

10% of the sale price was donated to the California Wolf Center and their “dedication to the return of wild wolves to their natural habitat and to the people who share the landscape with them.”

Canis lupus, Grey Wolf

Conservation Status: Federally listed as endangered throughout the lower 48 states, except for Minnesota and a portion of the Northern Rocky Mountain Distinct Population Segment (DPS) encompassing Idaho, Montana and parts of Oregon, Washington and Utah.

MORE on listing status for California

MORE on listing status for Nevada

Major threats: Human / animal conflict.

Sightings:

In 2011 a lone grey wolf, made its way into California from Oregon. In August of 2015, it was confirmed that California has its first wild wolf pack in almost 100 years! The Shasta pack includes a breeding pair and five puppies. Before this wolves had been absent from California since 1924. Read about it : HERE

Nevada has also had good news! “The Nevada Department of Wildlife has confirmed a wolf from the Shasta Pack in Northern California was spotted near Fox Mountain in northwestern Nevada in November 2016. Fox Mountain is in northern Washoe County, west of the Black Rock Desert.” Read more : HERE

Reintroduction

Wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone in the 1990s and now the wolf has begun to return to California on its own! Yellowstone says, “Wolves are causing a trophic cascade of ecological change, including helping to increase beaver populations and bring back aspen, and vegetation.” HERE ….But USA Today says, “Yellowstone is still not 100% back to normal – and it may never be.” Read why: HERE

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Losing an animal to extinction is tragic, but the tragedy doesn’t stop there. There is a ripple effect that changes the ecosystem too.

“The conditions that changed while wolves were absent created conditions that made it very difficult to restore willows.”-Tom Hobbs, a Colorado State University ecology professor.

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What can we do?

We can become aware!

"The lesson is let’s not let things get as bad as they did with 70 years without wolves."-Bill Ripple, professor of ecology at Oregon State University,

The California Wolf Center’s “is dedicated to the return of wild wolves to their natural habitat and to the people who share the landscape with them. We foster communities coming together to ensure wolves, livestock, and people thrive in today’s world.” Find out how to get involved: HERE

The Endangered Wolf Center ‘s mission is, “To preserve and protect Mexican wolves, red wolves and other wild canid species, with purpose and passion, through carefully managed breeding, reintroduction and inspiring education programs.” Find out how to get involved: HERE

AND….If you haven’t read about the meaning behind, SCARCE, take a look HERE!

ALI

Great Gray Owl (Strix nebulosa)

(LEFT) SOLD | 48x48 acrylic painting of the Great Gray Owl

10% of the sale went to Yosemite Conservancy

(Right) $5,400 | 48x48 acrylic painting of the Great Gray Owl with 24k Gold.

10% will be donated!

*prints and pillows available

Great Gray Owl (Strix nebulosa)

Conservation Status: endangered to the state of California

Main Threats: habitat Loss and development pressures

Population: 200-300

“Yosemite, today, is the southernmost range and last sanctuary of almost all of California's great gray owls, listed as California State Endangered Species. Researchers estimate there are only about 200 to 300 individuals in California, and about 65% of the state's population resides in Yosemite. Great gray owls nest in the middle elevations of the park where forests and meadows meet. They can be active at any time of the day or night, preferring to hunt in open meadows and clearings within the forest.Then, in winter, they move downslope to snow-free areas where they can more easily access their rodent prey.

This rare and endangered owl is the largest North American owl but also can be found in Asia and Europe. It stands as tall as 2 feet with a 5-foot wingspan and has distinctive piercing yellow eyes accented by large facial disks.”

Read more from the National Park Services’ article HERE

Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus)

Asian Elephant. 48x48. Acrylic Painting. $4,800

*Prints and pillows available

Inspiration/reference photos from this painting are credited to Boon Lott's Elephant Sanctuary  

Meet Wassan! She lives at Boon Lotts Elephant Sanctuary (BLES).  BLES is passionately devoted to creating a safe and natural home for Thai elephants.

"We care for rescued and retired elephants, allowing them to interact freely within 600 acres of forested land. There are no performances — just elephants.”

10% of the sale of this painting will go to BLESS for the adoption of this exact elephant!. 

For more information on BLES visit: http://blesele.org/ 

Asain Elephant Facts:

Conservation Status: Endangered

Population: 40,000 -50,000

Major Threats: Human-wildlife conflict, habitat loss, and poaching

Process Photos:

Adoption Day!

The Northern White Rhino painting was purchased last month and we were able to donate 10% of the proceeds to the International Rhino Foundation.

Through the donation of the Northern White Rhino painting, we were able to adopt two Sumatran Rhinos; Rosa and Harapan!

Rosa's Story

Beginning in late 2003, Rhino Protection Units working in Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park began receiving reports from local villagers that a young Sumatran rhino, Rosa, had been observed walking along roads and browsing for vegetation. Most Sumatran rhinos are very shy and solitary, but this unique rhinoceros was comfortable living and feeding in close proximity to people. A special protection unit was permanently assigned to observe and protect this unusual animal who they named "Rosa", as there were serious concerns that Rosa’s habituation to humans could put her at risk. Eventually, Rosa was transferred to the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary in Way Kambas National Park where she could be better protected and may one day reproduce.

Rosa

Rosa had adapted well to her life at the sanctuary and still exhibits all of the behaviors that make her so unique. Because she is habituated to humans, Rosa regularly takes long walks in the forest with sanctuary staff. She is a particularly loud rhino, and often vocalizes, especially when people are close by, or when her regular feeding time is approaching. Rosa also likes to “sing” when she is happily wallowing in the mud.

Harapan's Story

Harapan, a young male Sumatran rhino, was born at the Cincinnati Zoo in 2007 to mother Emi and father Ipuh. Harapan spent time in three U.S. zoos over his first 8 years of life:  the Cincinnati Zoo, White Oak Conservation Center in Florida, and the Los Angeles Zoo.  ‘Harry,’ as he’s known to his friends, was moved to the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary (SRS) on 1 November 2015. Harapan will be gradually introduced to life in the rainforest.  Like the other rhinos at the SRS, Harapan will eventually have access to a 20-acre open forest area where he can experience a semi-natural habitat while remaining safe from humans.  For now, Harapan will be confined to a smaller area where he can become familiar with his new surroundings and keepers.  After a bit of time, SRS staff will begin introducing Harapan to the resident females.  Hopefully, Harapan will soon be an active participant in the Sumatran rhino breeding program.  We can’t wait to meet Andatu’s future cousins!

Harapan

Harpan is particularly special to me because I had the chance to meet the guy before he flew to the Island of Sumatra. I also had the opportunity to paint his portrait and donate it to the Cincinnati Zoo to help raise money for their conservation efforts. 

To find out more about how you can help visit www.rhinos.org

Black Rhino (Diceros bicornis)

*SOLD | 48x48. Gallery wrapped acrylic painting of the critically endangered Black Rhino. (LEFT)

10% of this sale went to WildAid and their fight against the illegal wildlife trade. *prints available

*SOLD | 36x48. Gallery wrapped acrylic painting of the critically endangered Black Rhino. (RIGHT)

10% of this sale went to the International Rhino Foundation and their fight for saving Rhinos across the world.

The Black Rhino

Conservation status: Critically endangered

Location: Southern and eastern Africa, including: Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe

Population: 5,000 – 5,400

Major threats: Illegal poaching - (The illegal wildlife trade of horns, tusks and body parts is 20 billion dollar industry. The rhino horn is often used in traditional Chinese medicine. It is ground to a powder and ingested as a treatment for everything from cancer to sea snake bites and hangovers. ) 

Between 1970 and 1992, the population of this species decreased by 96%. Since then Intensive Anti-poaching efforts have been made. We've seen great results since 1996. The population is now between 5,042 – 5,455 in the wild.

How are we helping? 

10% of the sale will go to the International Rhino Foundation and their program for black rhinos. The Zimbabwe Lowveld Rhino Program is protecting and growing Zimbabwe’s largest population of black rhinos through monitoring and anti-poaching efforts, combined with treating, rehabilitating and translocating rhinos as needed.

Fun Facts :

How can you tell the difference between the black and white rhino? Their mouth.  Black rhinos have a pointed lip. This helps them pick fruit from branches and select leaves from twigs. White rhinos graze on grasses so they have a flat, wide lip.

CITES: Appendix I

https://www.savetherhino.org/rhino_info/species_of_rhino/black_rhinos/black_rhino_factfile

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/b/black-rhinoceros/

http://rhinos.org/species/black-rhino/

Snow Leopards (Panthera Uncia)

48x48 gallery wrapped acrylic painting of endangered snow leopards. Reference photo taken by my husband.

*****SOLD*****

%10 of this sale went to the Snow Leopard Trust. "Our community-based conservation programs aim to break this cycle of poverty and create incentives for herders to protect local wildlife and ecosystems"" 

*prints and pillows available

Every day at least one snow leopard is killed. These beautiful cats live in the high mountains of central Asia. They live in twelve countries including, Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

Conservation Status: Endangered

Estimated population: 4,080-6,590. 

Major threats: Competition with humans over natural food sources, hunting, habitat loss and illegal trade. 

Snow leopards are perfectly designed to live in the frigid, high-altitude climate of the Himalayas. They have huge furry paws that act as natural snowshoes, a long furry tail that helps them balance (and double as a scarf), and an enlarged nasal cavity to breathe the thin air and thick fur for insulation. 

To find out more about these cats visit:

https://www.snowleopard.org/snow-leopard-facts/

http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/snow-leopard

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/s/snow-leopard/

Northern White Rhino (Ceratotherium simum cottoni)

 48x48. Gallery wrapped acrylic painting of the critically endangered northern white rhino. 

10% of Proceeds from this painting will go to the International Rhino Foundation and their fight for saving Rhinos across the world.

******Update******

Sold!  Check out the new blog post on what we were able to do with our 10% donation !! HERE

*Pillows and prints available

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There are only three Northern White Rhinos left on this Earth! They are all at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Armed guards are watching over them 24/7 in response to intense poaching pressure. There are two females and one male. They are considered too old to reproduce naturally. However, scientists have harvested sex cells from the rhinos and are planning IVF in a related southern white rhino surrogate. This is a great effort to help save this subspecies!

Northern white rhinos and southern white rhinos are genetically distinct subspecies. 
The Northern White Rhino once lived in southern Chad, the Central African Republic, southwestern Sudan, northern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and northwestern Uganda. Poaching has led to their extinction in the wild. 

The illegal wildlife trade of horns, tusks and body parts is 20 billion dollar industry. The rhino horn is often used in traditional Chinese medicine. It is ground to a powder and ingested as a treatment for everything from cancer to sea snake bites and hangovers.  

To find out more about the northern white rhinos visit:

http://www.poachingfacts.com/faces-of-the-poachers/buyers-of-rhino-horn/

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/11/151123-nola-northern-white-rhino-dies-conservation-animals/

http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/rhinoceros/african_rhinos/white_rhinoceros/