Activists alert Instagram after 292 per cent hike in wild animal selfies

In October, the World Animal Protection alerted Instagram that there has been a 292 per cent increase in the number of selfies with wild animals posted on the site since 2014. More than 40 per cent of the selfies indicated bad interactions with wild animals. 

Hashtags like #SlothSelfie and #MonkeySelfie are some of the commonly used ones on the photo sharing app. Instagram has now announced that when users search for a hashtag associated with harmful behaviour to animals, they will see a content advisory screen: Animal abuse and the sale of endangered animals or their parts are not allowed on Instagram. 

Dawn Williams from Blue Cross, says, “People have to understand that even the sound of the click of a camera or the flash can cause distress to animals and birds. For instance, people visit the Pallikaranai marshland with their expensive cameras. There have been instances where tourists go inside the marshland to get the close-up of the birds, without realising that they are disrupting the peace of the creatures.” 

He further adds that even inside the Blue Cross premises, special permission is required to click photos. “It is different to take pictures with a domestic animal which is people-friendly. We have various types of animals at our shelter and not all of them are comfortable. Even while shooting our rescues, we mount the camera on a tripod and shoot. These videos are for training and educational purposes only.” 

Arun Prasanna, G, Founder of People For cattle in India (PFCI), also points that there is a sudden surge of the so-called wildlife photographers, who do not seem to exhibit ethics. “The craze for social media is such that everyone is chasing those ‘likes’. Anyone with a camera calls himself/herself a photographer. When it comes to wildlife photography, we see what is shown to us and not what happens behind the scenes. To get the monkey selfie, people often attract the animals with food that is not suitable for them. Not many people realise that some so-called photographers hold the snake from behind or put a heavy rock on the tail to get the frontal shot. They must realise that this is illegal and the Wildlife Protection Act is a stringent one.”