The bi-yearly environmental magazine Zwazo produced by Nature Seychelles and covering the period July to December 2005 has been released. A public service is offered through free copies to key sections of society. Members, wildlife clubs, government agencies, private companies, NGOs, libraries and international and regional organisations have already received copies of this colorful and information-packed publication.

The outbreak on a large commercial chicken farm in Nigeria is the first reported outbreak of “bird flu” in Africa and a serious development in the continuing spread of the H5N1 virus. Experts believe the bird flu arrived in Nigeria through infected chickens brought into the country in defiance of Nigeria’s import controls. This was admitted recently by Nigeria’s agriculture Minister Adamu Bello.

It is illegal to import live wild birds or birds for pets in Seychelles  After the spread of the avian flu, the local authorities have maintained the ban on imports of all live birds. We have been fortunate to avoid some of the more serious consequences of the irresponsible movement of wild birds. Although some species have been lost from these islands, the trade in live birds has not been one of the reasons. We had the foresight to outlaw these practices before any damage was done. Other countries have paid the price for not doing the same.

Did you know that what is possibly the world’s rarest bat lives only in Seychelles? The Sheath-tailed bat or Sousouri Banan is one of only two mammals occurring naturally in the granitic islands (the other is the Fruit bat or Sousouri). It is endemic – it cannot be found anywhere else in the world. There are only about 40-100 individuals left. It is believed that to have any chance of saving the species, a population of 500 bats is the viable number. The challenge for us all is how do we increase the bat population by as much as this?