A Photographer and a Human Being you should know about

Rescue Apes Take To The Skies In Cover Story
Conservation photographer Joe Zammit-Lucia's images featured in the cover story of the August edition of Southwest Airlines' Spirit Magazine.Rescued Apes Founded by Patti Ragan, The Center for Great Apes provides a shelter for orangutans and chimpanzees most of whom come from the entertainment industry after they have been discarded because they have grown too big and strong and are no longer 'cute' - a requirement for them to appear in movies or commercials.Joe Zammit-Lucia visited the center and created portraits of the rescued apes for the I AM portfolio of images. Besides the cover image, portraits of the animals appear in the magazine as a gallery entitled "Great Apes" (download here). The gallery follows "Back To Nurture" an article on the work of Patti Ragan and her staff at the Center for Great Apes (download here). Founded in 1993 in Miami, the Center moved to central Florida in 1997 and now cares for over 40 apes providing them with care and attention and a comfortable lifestyle."It is hard to imagine that these and many other animals are used for entertainment for a short period of their lives and then discarded", said Joe Zammit-Lucia. "What I was trying to capture in my images was the fact that these are individuals with different personalities and emotions. They are creatures with feelings, not products that we should be using to market a health drink and then discarding when they become inconvenient."Donated FeesThe photographer's fees for use of the images in Spirit Magazine will be donated to the Center. The article has also already resulted in sales of fine art photographic prints of the ape portraits. All proceeds will also be donated to the Center for Great Apes.About The CenterThe Center for Great Apes in Wauchula, FL has an annual budget of $800,000 excluding capital expenditures. Each ape costs $14,000 to $15,000 to maintain. The Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and all donations are tax deductable.
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______________________________________________________________________________Joe Zammit-Lucia is a photographic artist whose work focuses on Heritage, Conservation and the Environment.He is currently working with environmental organizations on multiple projects around the world.Download Bio

Good News (for some ....)

Judge Restores Protection for Wolves

July 18, 2008, 5:19 pmJudge rules gray wolf be returned to federal protection http://www.lmtribune.com/breaking-news/636/ A federal judge in Montana has ruled that gray wolves in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming be returned to federal protection under the Endangered Species Act.Judge Donald Molloy of Montana ruled Friday the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner when it removed wolves in the Northern Rockies Region from the endangered species list in March.He agreed with arguments made by environmental and animal rights groups that wolf populations in Yellowstone National Park do not yet interbreed with wolves in Idaho and western Montana to an extent that ensures genetic diversity. He also ruled the agency approved Wyoming's state wolf management plan last year despite previously saying the basic tenants of that plan that allow wolves to be killed without regulation in 90 percent of the state, was inadequate to protect wolves. Lastly, Molloy ruled the groups proved that wolves were likely to be harmed by public hunting seasons planned in each state this fall.Molloy granted a preliminary injunction reversing the delisting of wolves while the entire case is being heard and also said the plaintiffs were likely to succeed in a majority of their claims.The ruling is a setback for the Fish and Wildlife Service that has said wolves are biologically recovered and decided earlier this year that adequate state regulations were in place to keep the wolves from becoming imperiled. There are estimated to be about 2,000 wolves in the three states and about 800 in Idaho.

Noted Photographer Tom Vezo Dies

Tom Vezo, a widely known and admired professional wildlife photographer, died Friday, July 18th while hiking with a friend in the Rincon Mountains near his Arizona home. Tom was 61 and is survived by his wife Dorothy and 2 stepdaughters.

Tom is widely known for his superb bird photography but has amassed an impressive photo collection of over 40,000 images featuring a wide variety of subjects and has been widely published in both the US and Europe.

He has been an ardent supporter of the preservation of the Madera Canyon near his home in Green Valley, Arizona. His wife, Dorothy, has asked that memorial contributions be made to the Defenders of Madera Canyon. http://www.friendsofmaderacanyon.org/default.htm

To find out more about Tom and his lifetime of excellent photographic work, visit his website.
http://www.tomvezo.com/

He will be missed.