Vegan News 7.3.13

Sumatran orangutan beaten to death in Indonesia. “Indonesian villagers have beaten a Sumatran orangutan to death, an animal protection group said Tuesday, the latest case of one of the critically-endangered primates being killed by humans. In some cases, people kill female orangutans when the apes are trying to stop their offspring being taken away to be sold as pets, he said, although in this case no baby was found. Orangutans have also been attacked by workers on palm oil and paper plantations on their native Sumatra island who view them as pests.”

Humane Myth Watch: Quiznos Bolsters Animal Welfare Program by Eliminating Controversial Pig Cages from Pork Supply Chain. “The HSUS applauds Denver-based restaurant company.”

End turtle derbies for animals’, humans’ sake, activists, experts say. “The Arizona-based Center for Biological Diversity sent a letter Friday to the Bel Air Kiwanis Club, sponsor of the derby, saying it poses a threat to struggling native turtle populations and a health hazard to the children handling the animals. The group’s concerns echo those raised earlier by local herpetologists, the Susquehannock Wildlife Society, and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. ‘This is not what you want to be doing if you want to have turtles around for the next generation,’ said Richard Seigel, a Towson University biology professor who studies amphibians and reptiles. Organizers say they have no plans to call off the derby, at least not this year. The day-long Independence Day celebration, begun in 1963, which also features a parade, fireworks and frog-jumping contest, is one of the most heavily attended events of its kind in Maryland. ‘Everyone knows it shouldn’t really go on anymore, and it should have ended a long time ago,’ said Scott McDaniel, president of the Susquehannock Wildlife Society, a local conservation group.”

Photo credit: Cory Schadt, gr8dnes via Flickr