Elephants – Page 2 – TINA CHIARELLI, PHD, FRGS

Poaching: New Year, New Problems

January 17th, 2013tinalc0 Comments

The last 365 days have proved to be one of the worst years for poaching since the 1980s. In 2012, it is estimated that over 17,000 elephants and 700 rhino were lost during this ongoing global war against wildlife poaching. Keep in mind these are but two out of hundreds of species that were affected. The last year has been filled with both triumphs and failures as conservationists fight to conserve these magnificent creatures. Unfortunately, as we are only 14 days into a new year, the killing continues. Already reports out of Kenya reports an entire African elephant family has …

Dr. Tina Dow Featured in University Graduate Catalog

November 7th, 2012tinalc0 Comments

The 2012-2013 West Virginia University Graduate Catalog has featured Dr. Tina Dow as a mentor for prospective students. While attending University, Dr. Dow was awarded a Graduate Teaching Fellowship and Tuition waiver. She was the first person in her family to attend college.

Big Impact, Big Research — Dr. Tina Dow’s Research Highlighted in WVU Alumni Magazine

May 14th, 2012tinalc0 Comments

It was certainly a weekend of celebrations in West Virginia. In addition to participating in the 143rd Commencement at West Virginia University, Dr. Tina Dow’s research was highlighted in the latest edition of the WVU Alumni Magazine. Big Impact, Big Research Written By Jake Stump/ Photographs By Scott Lituchy The story of Tina Dow’s love of elephants began in another story, tucked away in the pages of her first Little Golden Book — The Saggy Baggy Elephant. Never Could she predict that someday she’d work with the same creatures that fascinated her as a girl growing up in Cumberland, Maryland. …

Researching the Researcher– Dr. Tina Dow Featured in the Latest Edition of JEMA

April 1st, 2012tinalc0 Comments

Recently, Dr. Tina Dow was featured in the Researching the Researcher section of the latest edition of the Journal of the Elephant Managers Association (JEMA). The article highlighted Tina’s doctoral research while at West Virginia University and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute.

A Trunk of Love Wins Telly Award for WVU

March 28th, 2012tinalc0 Comments

Award-winning videos feature WVU’s true story on YouTube Six WVU University Relations-produced videos honored with prestigious Telly Award. Yes, substantive content does exist on YouTube. Beyond the guitar-shredding cats, personal pleas to Justin Bieber and brouhahas in fast food parking lots, the true stories of West Virginia University’s academic heart and soul can be seen, heard and experienced on the world’s most popular video-sharing website. This month, a New York-based awards institution has sifted through the cyber debris to celebrate six tales of academic achievement and graduate student life at WVU. The Telly Awards honor the finest film and video productions by top …

The Changing Face of Poaching

March 11th, 2012tinalc0 Comments

In the past, poaching of wildlife for bushmeat or sale of animal products was typically carried out by people living locally to wildlife habitats. Particularly in severely impoverished areas, poaching was done to feed and support families. In the last few years the face of poaching has changed. Poaching has become very sophisticated utilizing GPS, helicopters, and tranquilizers instead of tracking animals on foot and using snares or automatic weapons. Rangers, veterinarians, and researchers who have sworn to protect and conserve vulnerable and endangered species are the very ones who are now participating in their demise. Carcasses are left to …

Wildlife Management: To Cull or Not to Cull?

February 26th, 2012tinalc0 Comments

I have always thought that “Wildlife Management” was a loose term. Regardless of geographical location, wildlife lives in fragmented habitats, held inside imaginary borders meant to protect and conserve. It is a daily struggle for humans and wild animals to co-exist. As the human population continues to increase, wildlife is pushed to the edge of extinction. Animals are culled to keep numbers in check according to management plans, as well as illegally poached for their parts or killed out of ignorance and fear. So what does it mean to manage wildlife? In the early 1900s, the United States government initiated …

WVU Promotional Video Includes Elephants

February 10th, 2012tinalc0 Comments

A new West Virginia University promotional video includes Tina Dow and a few of her elephant friends. You can check it out in the video below at the 14 second mark.

WVU Doctoral Student Pursues Passion

February 1st, 2012tinalc0 Comments

WVU Doctoral Student Pursues Passion By: Kaidy Murdock For the Charleston Daily Mail MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Tina Dow has always had an interest in elephants. From her first Little Golden Book and frequent visits to the Pittsburgh Zoo as a girl, the Cumberland, Md., native’s love for the creatures has transformed into a career and a passion. “In my backpack I still carry the first Little Golden Book that I was given as a child, and that was ‘The Saggy Baggy Elephant,’” said Dow, a doctoral student at West Virginia University. “I keep that around with me all the time. …

The Ivory War Continues: 22 Years After the Ban

January 7th, 2012tinalc0 Comments

2011 was considered the bloodiest year for elephants since 1989, the same year the ivory ban began. Confiscated ivory from illegal sales estimate over 3000 elephants were killed by poachers to fuel the black market demand; and that is just what was found. In a single month, Malaysian authorities seized over $1.3 million US worth of ivory that was being shipped out of Kenya and into Cambodia. It is well documented that the illegal trade in wildlife and their parts is a multi-billion dollar a year business; third only behind drugs and weapons trafficking. Trade in rhino horn and tiger …