16 Ways Technology Will Fight Wildlife Crime

From traditional soup to the hottest pets to traditional medicine, illegal wildlife products make up one of the biggest black markets in the world. Valued at billions of dollars, the illicit trade is undoing decades of conservation work and undermining economic development and national security in countries around the world. But new technologies are being developed every day to combat the poaching and trafficking of wildlife.

To encourage innovation, the National Geographic Society partnered with the Smithsonian Institution, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring organization, in hosting the Wildlife Crime Tech Challenge. It’s a competition to solicit proposals for new ways to harness science and technology in the fight against wildlife crime.

Read the National Geographic story and see the innovative ideas here

Man to be Executed for Texas Game Warden's Death in Shootout

HOUSTON (AP) - A man who led authorities on a chase followed by a shootout that left a Texas game warden dead is scheduled to be executed this week in the busy death penalty state.

James Freeman was suspected of illegally hunting at night from his truck in Southeast Texas' Wharton County when a game warden spotted him. Freeman drove off, leading authorities to pursue him for 90 minutes. The chase reached 130 mph at one point and ended near a cemetery with Freeman stepping out of his disabled pickup truck and shooting at officers.

With three of his tires flattened, Freeman kept firing until he emptied his 11-shot .357-caliber handgun. He switched to an AK-47 assault rifle with a 30-round clip.

When it was over, Freeman had been shot four times and Justin Hurst, a Texas Parks and Wildlife game warden who had joined the March 17, 2007, chase, was fatally wounded. It was Hurst's 34th birthday.

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North Carolina Wardens Find 26 Dead Deer in Poaching Investigation

PINETOPS, N.C. — When a tip led wildlife officers to a home in Pinetops Sunday morning, they could not believe what they found - 26 dead deer.

"The deer were in various states of decay," said Lt. Sam Craft, with North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. "Some were just the heads with the antlers, and others were whole deer left to lie in the field."

Sixteen heads, mostly of bucks, were found in the yard. Ten additional deer were found in various fields across the county.


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