NOTE: The rescue scenes of the preliminary video were recorded years ago with a low quality camera. This documentary will be recorded in HD. Thank you for your comprehension. With english subtitles.
In Morocco and Western Sahara there are hundreds of cisterns and wells scattered widely over the territory. We have seen that thousands of animals die every year after falling inside of these, by drowning or starving. This problem affects various aspects of our lives. In the first place, the death toll of these animals. These animals should be taking part of wild populations. On the other hand, the cadavers are a health threat since they decompose in water used to quench the thirst of cattle and people.
This project is both a fauna rescue expedition and the shooting of a documentary about this problems and its impact, so that it is known about and there is one more reason to act against it. It is of utmost importance due to the fact that new cisterns are being built that should implement corrective measures to avoid this situation.
Some rescued animals: a colorful spiny-tailed lizard, some 50 amphibians and two horseshoe whip snake. Photographs: Baudilio Rebollo, Gabri Mtnez and Raúl León.
We want the people that help this project to feel part of saving these lives and that they discover the mysterious beings that live in the desert.
**This is a project filled with empathy towards life, respect towards everything that surrounds us, adventure and passion told in a dynamic and entertaining way. Humor is assured to confront this problem with optimism.
You will fall in love with it all.**
Examples of animals rescued from cisterns and wells: dogs, ground squirrel, turtles, amphibians, lizards and snakes. Photographs: Baudilio Rebollo, Gabri Mtnez and Raúl León.
Scenes will be filmed of the animal rescue, the state of conservation and interesting characteristics of the animal biology will be narrated, and detailed images will be shown to manifest the beauty of these animals and their return to nature. The documentary also wants the viewers to feel the dramatic situation these animals go through and to step in our shoes when we descend into these tanks in their search, when we camp under a different sky...
We assure you that this film will be packed with high doses of adrenaline, since rescuing a poisonous snake, large lizards like the monitor lizard, or even a dog, can sometimes entail difficulties and risks. However, we in no way intend to be sensationalist.
What will your contribution be dedicated to?
We have reduced our expenditure as much as possible.
The team, made up of 2 people ( minimum equipment to be able to fulfill fauna rescue) contribute to the project with their own money ( the trip via ferry from Spain to Morocco, basic needs during the first weeks (gasoline, food and drinks), required technical equipment ). Therefore, the financing will be used to fund our stay in the filming location for the least amount of time that we are required to stay.
Project expenses:
- Fuel to access the vast amount of scattered water containers.
- Food and drink: we spend the least amount possible on food (rice, canned food, etc.) which we carry in our vehicle. Other basic products (bread, fruit, etc.) are acquired on location, contributing hence to the local economy. We need potable water.
-Accommodation: We take camping tents with us to minimize expenses. For hygiene and technical equipment requirements, approximately once every ten days, we lodge at the most economical place available.
- Expenses derived from this campaign (Verkami services, taxes, bank administration fees, etc.) .
- Expenses derived from the rewards (photograph printing, the mailing of these and of DVDs, etc.).
The documentaries will be self-produced (in this way we avoid production expenses).
IMPORTANT: This is a campaign of "crowdfunding". Funding is achieved only if 100% of the project funding target is reached. If not achieved, the project is not funded. The collaborations that people do become effective only when the total required amount is achieved. There are 40 days to reach the funding target.
The first days are very important to build confidence about the campaign and it turns a good rate of funding.
Thanks for sharing and collaboration.
The formula is: Ideas + Micro inputs = Projects
Photographs of the region: A dromedary, a pool where numerous animals were found trapped, a recording of scenes for the previous documentaries and local residents. Photographs: Baudilio Rebollo, Octavio Jiménez and Raúl León.
Rewards for all of you
They are designed so you feel part of this project and with presents related to nature. Personalized tokens of appreciation from the filming location, dedicated photographs of the recued animals with thank you messages, nature DVDs, etc.
We are sure you will love them.
Rewards: photographs of animals that will be dedicated to you with a thank you message, BBC nature DVDs, gifts that retain the essence of the desert (rose of Jericho, fossils, curious looking rocks from each of the regions, bird feathers, snake shed). Photographs: Raúl León
Description of some of the rewards:
- BBC Nature DVD: DVD to choose from: Oceans, Galápagos Island, Challenges of the land, White Planet and others.
- On air acknowledgements: A special and original personalized thank you, mentioning your name and everything that your contribution has meant.
- Photographs thanking you for your help: Personalized with your name.
- Reading or mentioning something of your creation on camera: poetry, a song to which we will add music, haha, a positive message, something about animals or the desert, etc. Anything you would like, we will interpret it in a beautiful way and you will help enrich the documentary.
NOTE ABOUT SHIPS: in principle, packets (BBC Nature DVD, present from the desert and printed photogrhaps) are sent only to Spain for economic reasons . It will compensate the people from other areas with extra in other rewards. If you are outside of Spain you can give the address of the home of a familiar or friend in Spain to collect your rewards later.
Production Calendar
The trip will be from July 1st to the beginning or middle of August, depending on the amount of funding received. If we do not reach the necessary funding we would have to return earlier and we would not be able to film enough scenes for a complete documentary nor get to a large number of cisterns to rescue the highest amount of animals possible.
Summarizing, we are leaving without knowing if we will reach our funding goal and will interrupt or continue the expedition depending on the results of the campaign.
If the campaign is successful, upon our return, the production of the documentary will start and so would the delivery of rewards. An estimated amount of 1 to 2 months will be required once we return.
We are not wasting a single minute!
We are also going to record scenes of the flora and fauna of the area to produce a second Nature Informative Documentary about the inhabitants of the arid areas of the north of Africa, so you can meet these wonderful living creatures and get rid of many of the harmful myths about them.
This second project will be carried out, especially, if together we surpass the 2700€ goal.
Some examples of the interesting, beautiful and not well known fauna of the region. Many of them rescued from cisterns and wells. Photographs: Raúl León.
Infinite thanks for your attention and support.
You can ask me anything about the project by contacting me via email: [email protected] or this project's blog.
Social network:
Raulophis facebook
Raulophis twitter
Raulophis youtube
Moroccoherps (Amphibians and Reptiles of Morocco and Western Sahara)
You can follow us on:
facebook.com/moroccoherps
twitter.com/moroccoherps
www.moroccoherps.com
More information about the problem and this project
The falling of animals in cisterns and water containers represents the biggest conservation problem for a great part of the fauna of the area. There are traps where animals continuously fall year round. An extraordinary amount of animals fall in these pits, from dogs, foxes, hedgehogs, gerbils, lizards, snakes, turtles, frogs, and toads to hundreds of invertebrates. In the past we found a cistern with up to 10 lifeless snakes and 2 alive. We also found another one with more than 50 trapped amphibians, and a panic-stricken gerbil with its offspring, which tried to climb on our clothes to escape, etc.
The definitive solution is to install ramps so that trapped fauna can find their way out and to make corrections to avoid animal entry. However, applying these measures, although relatively economical, is not an easy task in countries where there are many other worries and priorities. Even thus, we are walking in the correct direction. It is possible that in a not far off future, corrective measures will be implemented to save thousands of lives and so that the water in these containers is not a health threat. Meanwhile, what we can do, is let this problem be known to everybody and manually rescue as many living creatures as possible, that will receive a second chance, and instead of dying in these traps maybe reproduce and give rise to more life.
2 comments
If you are already a sponsor, please Log in to comment.
Raúl León
Author
Hola "Animal Life". Gracias por tu atención.
Podéis difundir el proyecto por cualquier red social, por vuestros facebook, etc.Cualquier acción de este tipo que haga llegar a la gente el proyecto para pueda salir adelante será de gran ayuda.
Para colaborar económicamente podéis aportar 5, 10, 25 euros y más cantidades, como veréis en la parte derecha de la página del proyecto. Cada aportación económica tiene sus recompensas asociadas como veréis, que os enviaría al ser colaboradores del proyecto, si el proyecto llega recaudar todo el dinero.
Muchas gracias por vuestra ayuda!
Animal Life
Muy buenas, Raúl. Vengo recomendado por un amigo. Tu proyecto me parece muy interesante. Tenemos un canal de fauna ibérica en YouTube llamado "Animal Life". Si podemos ayudar en publicidad o económicamente con las visitas, no dudes en decirnos algo.