White-handed gibbon

Take it easy

DE-14573762

Take it easy!

Relaxed white-handed gibbon

Sent by Bernd from Germany

The lar gibbon (Hylobates lar), also known as the white-handed gibbon, is an endangered primate in the gibbon family, Hylobatidae. It is one of the better-known gibbons and is often kept in captivity.

 Their distinct fur color can vary from black and dark brown to a lighter cream color. 

Conservation. Lar gibbons are threatened in various ways: they are sometimes hunted for their meat, sometimes a parent is killed to capture young animals for pets, but perhaps the most pervasive is the loss of habitat. 

 

Endangered

Karhu / Brown bear / Ursus arctos

Finland is home to more than 1,700 bears ( Luke 2016), though they are only seldom seen, since they are shy of people. Several wildlife tour operators run excursions out into the forests of Eastern Finland where you can stay overnight in a hide and watch and photograph wild bears who come to feed on fishy or meaty scraps put out to attract them.

 Ilves / Lynx /  Lynx lynx

These beautiful big cats have become more common  (over 2,600 Luke 2016 ) in Finland’s forests in recent years, though they are hard to spot, as their excellent senses of sight, smell and hearing enable them to keep well away from humans.

 Liito-orava / Siberian flying squirrel / Pteromys volans

The Siberian flying squirrel (Pteromys volans) is an Old World flying squirrel with a range from the Baltic Sea in the west to the Pacific coast in the east. It is the only species of flying squirrel found in Europe. It is considered vulnerable within the European Union where it is found only in Finland, Estonia and Latvia.

Merikotka / White tailed eagle  / Haliaeetus albicilla

Thanks to the efforts of Finnish nature conservationists, majestic white-tailed eagles have returned from the brink of extinction, and today they are a common sight soaring over the waters and islands of Finland’s beautiful Baltic archipelagoes.

Mustakurkku-uikku /  Horned grebe / Podiceps auritus

The horned grebe is an attractive, little grebe. It is a migratory bird and returning to Finland in mid-April. It is a protected species under the European Union bird directive and a vulnerable species according to Finland's threat classification system.