February. A fly over Hwange National Park has revealed that there are 3 coal mining developments in and around the park; 2 adjoining the park and one actually inside the park.
The associated building of roads and increased human activity is bound to lead to an increase in poaching as the area is opened up, access becomes easier and there are more people in the area to carry out the poaching and to buy the poached meat.
Of even greater concern is the total devastation of large tracts of land in what was previously a wilderness area. It may not be possible to restore the wildlife once the habitat has been destroyed.
According to the Zimbabwe Park and Wildlife Act, nobody may mine within a national park unless they have a written agreement from the Minister of Environment and Tourism, and to date it has not been established whether any of the 3 mines has such an agreement.
In addition to this, before any development takes place, an Environmental Impact Assessment is required. The Provincial Environmental Manager for Matabeleland North and Bulawayo Provinces was not aware of the mining activities taking place, nor was she able to find any record of Environmental Impact Assessments being done.
The Park hosts 105 mammal species, including 19 large herbivores and eight large carnivores. All Zimbabwe's specially protected animals are to be found in Hwange and it is the only protected area where gemsbok and brown hyena occur in reasonable numbers. The population of African wild dogs to be found in Hwange is thought to be of one of the largest surviving groups in Africa today.
Showing posts with label conservation threat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label conservation threat. Show all posts
Friday, 3 February 2012
Saturday, 14 January 2012
Hundreds of seabirds caught in Cornish fishing nets in just one day
Death toll is rising
January 2012: Conservationists are saddened and extremely concerned about the continued deaths of seabirds caught in nets in west Cornwall. On just one day in early January, an estimated 200 birds were found in a net to the north of St Ives and others washed up on local beaches. The Cornwall Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (CIFCA) has now used a local bylaw to close part of the fishery due to birds being caught in nets nearby.
Paul St Pierre, RSPB Conservation Officer in Cornwall said: ‘This is of great concern. At this time of the year birds such as guillemots and razorbills are frequently found near the coast feeding on sprats in the same areas used by local fishermen.'
Birds are trapped in nets and then drownHe added: ‘Unfortunately conditions have conspired to bring them into greater proximity than normal with the result that large numbers of birds are being trapped in the nets and drowning.'
Cornwall Wildlife Trust picked up a number of dead birds from Porthmeor Beach over the weekend. These were examined by a local vet and their deaths were found to entirely consistent with drowning while feeding on sprats.
Ruth Williams, marine conservation manager at Cornwall Wildlife Trust said: ‘The birds that have been examined were healthy, had very recently been feeding, but had definitely died as a result of drowning in these nets.
‘We feel confident fishermen will act responsibly'‘This is a sad event, but we praise the CIFCA officers for their rapid intervention and enforcement of the by-law. Unfortunately, the area covered by this by-law is very small and the issue has continued outside the recently closed area of the bay, so we would hope that as part of their investigation and future discussions, the CIFCA may see fit to extend the area covered by it to give the protection needed to these seabirds.'
Conservationists are now urging local fishermen to work with CIFCA on a solution to the problem outside of the area covered by this bylaw.
Paul St Pierre said: ‘We have been talking with CIFCA and think there are a number of potential solutions to this immediate problem that should be explored such as restricting the setting of nets to the hours of darkness in the short term. Seabirds only feed by day so this could reduce much of this bycatch.
No clear plan to tackle problem in European waters‘We feel confident that we can rely on fishermen to act responsibly for the benefit of the birds with the encouragement of CIFCA. However, all parties do need to act quickly.'
The issue of bird bycatch around St Ives highlights a wider issue at a European level. Although much good work has been done in the southern oceans to prevent this with respect to albatross, there has to date been no clear and coherent plan to tackle bycatch of seabirds in European waters. This is of concern for a large number of seabirds, including the globally endangered Balearic shearwater that regularly feeds off north Cornwall at this time of year.
Paul St Pierre added: ‘The introduction of an action plan to tackle seabird bycatch in Europe is sadly much delayed, but we feel these awful incidents over the past week are a further reminder of the need for urgent action.'
Sunday, 1 January 2012
Extreme winter in Mongolia devastated Przewalskia's horse population
Don´t put all your eggs in one basket - or all your horses on one pasture
December 2011. Winters in the Gobi desert are usually long and very cold but the winter of 2009/2010 was particularly severe, a condition Mongolians refer to as "dzud". Millions of livestock died in Mongolia and the re-introduced wild Przewalski's horse population crashed dramatically. Petra Kaczensky and Chris Walzer from the Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology (FIWI) of the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna have used spatially explicit loss statistics, ranger survey data and GPS telemetry to provide insights into the effect of a catastrophic climate event on wild horses, wild asses and livestock that share the same habitat but show different patterns of spatial use.
Extreme winter in Mongolia
In Mongolia, extreme weather conditions - droughts followed by cold and snowy winters - occur at irregular intervals. However, the dzud of 2009/10 was the most extreme winter Mongolia had experienced in the past 50 years. Fifteen out of Mongolia's twenty-one provinces were declared disaster zones and over 7.8 million livestock, 17% of the national stock, are believed to have perished.
Przewalski's horse reintroduction
Przewalski's horses have been re-introduced into Mongolia since 1992 and there are now free-ranging populations in Hustai National Park in central Mongolia and in the Great Gobi B Strictly Protected Area (SPA) in south-western Mongolia. Due to its special location at the fringe of the Dzungarian basin, flanked by high mountains, the Great Gobi B SPA received particularly high amounts of snowfall in the winter of 2009/2010. Most snow came with weather from the west and when the snow clouds hit the Altai Mountains on the eastern edge of the Great Gobi B SPA they discharged large amounts of snow, resulting in a strong east-west gradient in snow depth. The high, tightly packed snow made it hard for animals to gain access to the vegetation under the snow.
60% Przewalski's horses died
Herders in and around the Great Gobi B Strictly Protected Area were severely affected by the dzud and lost on average 67% of their livestock. Although herders are semi-nomadic, it was hard for them to escape the worst of the weather as competition for the available winter camps was high. Przewalski's horses were found to use three different winter ranges, two in the east and one in the west. Losses averaged 60% but mainly affected the groups wintering in the east, with the group in the west suffering almost no mortalities. As spatial use of Przewalski's horses is extremely conservative, groups did not attempt to venture beyond their known home ranges.
Wild asses suffered few losses
In contrast, Asiatic wild asses seem to have suffered few losses. These animals roam over much larger areas than Przewalski's horses and are not restricted to any particular wintering areas. Petra Kaczensky, the first author on the PLoS paper, says that "wild asses were obviously able to outrun the worst of the dzud by moving west. The long-distance movements and shifts in range highlight how important it is to manage migratory or nomadic species on a landscape level, including multi-use areas outside of protected areas. Fragmentation of their range will reduce their flexibility and can easily result in local population crashes such as the one seen for the Przewalski's horses."
Limited range an issue
The severe effect of this localized catastrophic event was largely due to the small size and limited range of the present-day Przewalski's horse population. A large and continuous population would be much more robust as it could counteract local population lows or extinctions via re-colonization. The dzud winter of 2009/2010 is a textbook example of how vulnerable small and spatially confined populations are in an environment prone to fluctuations and catastrophes. Losses of this magnitude are difficult to model or predict. As long as populations remain small and spatially confined, their survival cannot be guaranteed, necessitating a long term conservation commitment to ensure the species' future.
"The winter disaster really highlighted how dangerous it is to have all our eggs in one basket or in this case all the horses on a single pasture," says Petra Kaczensky. "The national strategy for Przewalski's horse conservation in Mongolia should continue to aim at multiple re-introduction sites with spatially dispersed populations. Ideally the sites should cooperate closely and if necessary also exchange animals on a national as well as international scale. Such steps have already been initiated in Mongolia and the recent down-grading of the Przewalski's horse in the IUCN Red List from ‘critically endangered' to ‘endangered' shows that this strategy is paying off."
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/Przewalskis-horse%20.html
Generally, it is not feasible, either technically or financially, to breed and re-introduce all endangered species, as has been done for the Przewalski's horse. Chris Walzer explains, "More promising strategies involve timely science-based measures to reduce threats to fauna and flora. These may include the establishment of protected areas but it is also important to maintain natural spaces and structures that make multi-purpose landscapes ‘permeable' for wildlife, so that wide-ranging species can roam, as Asiatic wild asses tend to do".
Their results are now published online in the international Journal PLoS ONE.
December 2011. Winters in the Gobi desert are usually long and very cold but the winter of 2009/2010 was particularly severe, a condition Mongolians refer to as "dzud". Millions of livestock died in Mongolia and the re-introduced wild Przewalski's horse population crashed dramatically. Petra Kaczensky and Chris Walzer from the Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology (FIWI) of the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna have used spatially explicit loss statistics, ranger survey data and GPS telemetry to provide insights into the effect of a catastrophic climate event on wild horses, wild asses and livestock that share the same habitat but show different patterns of spatial use.
Extreme winter in Mongolia
In Mongolia, extreme weather conditions - droughts followed by cold and snowy winters - occur at irregular intervals. However, the dzud of 2009/10 was the most extreme winter Mongolia had experienced in the past 50 years. Fifteen out of Mongolia's twenty-one provinces were declared disaster zones and over 7.8 million livestock, 17% of the national stock, are believed to have perished.
Przewalski's horse reintroduction
Przewalski's horses have been re-introduced into Mongolia since 1992 and there are now free-ranging populations in Hustai National Park in central Mongolia and in the Great Gobi B Strictly Protected Area (SPA) in south-western Mongolia. Due to its special location at the fringe of the Dzungarian basin, flanked by high mountains, the Great Gobi B SPA received particularly high amounts of snowfall in the winter of 2009/2010. Most snow came with weather from the west and when the snow clouds hit the Altai Mountains on the eastern edge of the Great Gobi B SPA they discharged large amounts of snow, resulting in a strong east-west gradient in snow depth. The high, tightly packed snow made it hard for animals to gain access to the vegetation under the snow.
60% Przewalski's horses died
Herders in and around the Great Gobi B Strictly Protected Area were severely affected by the dzud and lost on average 67% of their livestock. Although herders are semi-nomadic, it was hard for them to escape the worst of the weather as competition for the available winter camps was high. Przewalski's horses were found to use three different winter ranges, two in the east and one in the west. Losses averaged 60% but mainly affected the groups wintering in the east, with the group in the west suffering almost no mortalities. As spatial use of Przewalski's horses is extremely conservative, groups did not attempt to venture beyond their known home ranges.
Wild asses suffered few losses
In contrast, Asiatic wild asses seem to have suffered few losses. These animals roam over much larger areas than Przewalski's horses and are not restricted to any particular wintering areas. Petra Kaczensky, the first author on the PLoS paper, says that "wild asses were obviously able to outrun the worst of the dzud by moving west. The long-distance movements and shifts in range highlight how important it is to manage migratory or nomadic species on a landscape level, including multi-use areas outside of protected areas. Fragmentation of their range will reduce their flexibility and can easily result in local population crashes such as the one seen for the Przewalski's horses."
Limited range an issue
The severe effect of this localized catastrophic event was largely due to the small size and limited range of the present-day Przewalski's horse population. A large and continuous population would be much more robust as it could counteract local population lows or extinctions via re-colonization. The dzud winter of 2009/2010 is a textbook example of how vulnerable small and spatially confined populations are in an environment prone to fluctuations and catastrophes. Losses of this magnitude are difficult to model or predict. As long as populations remain small and spatially confined, their survival cannot be guaranteed, necessitating a long term conservation commitment to ensure the species' future.
"The winter disaster really highlighted how dangerous it is to have all our eggs in one basket or in this case all the horses on a single pasture," says Petra Kaczensky. "The national strategy for Przewalski's horse conservation in Mongolia should continue to aim at multiple re-introduction sites with spatially dispersed populations. Ideally the sites should cooperate closely and if necessary also exchange animals on a national as well as international scale. Such steps have already been initiated in Mongolia and the recent down-grading of the Przewalski's horse in the IUCN Red List from ‘critically endangered' to ‘endangered' shows that this strategy is paying off."
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/Przewalskis-horse%20.html
Generally, it is not feasible, either technically or financially, to breed and re-introduce all endangered species, as has been done for the Przewalski's horse. Chris Walzer explains, "More promising strategies involve timely science-based measures to reduce threats to fauna and flora. These may include the establishment of protected areas but it is also important to maintain natural spaces and structures that make multi-purpose landscapes ‘permeable' for wildlife, so that wide-ranging species can roam, as Asiatic wild asses tend to do".
Their results are now published online in the international Journal PLoS ONE.
Sunday, 9 October 2011
Blue whales at risk off LA Harbor
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- Blue whales feeding off the Los Angeles/Long Beach port complex are at risk of being hit and killed by enormous ships using the port, researchers said.
The whales, which migrate along the coast of California, are congregating in feeding grounds near the port in such numbers the spot has become "the area of densest concentration close to shore in all of California," research scientist John Calambokidis told the Los Angeles Times.
The underwater buffet of krill, shrimp-like crustaceans that are the whale's preferred food, is in the path of a virtual freeway of ship traffic that puts them in danger of fatal collisions with huge cargo ships, the newspaper said.
The gathering of whales outside Los Angeles Harbor has been a huge draw for sightseers.
"While this is a unique and exciting opportunity to have these animals out here, it also puts them at great risk," said Calambokidis of the Olympia, Wash.-based Cascadia Research Collective.
Dozens of whales have been injured or killed by ships of the California coast in the last 10 years, and scientists think the slowly recovering population of about 2,500 West Coast blue whales is especially vulnerable.
The abundant food has the creatures coming back to the area of the port again and again, Calambokidis said.
"They're constantly in this mode of looking for a place to feed," he said. "So when they find a patch of prey, they stick around for a while."
Read more: http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2011/10/07/Blue-whales-at-risk-off-LA-Harbor/UPI-48311318023015/#ixzz1aHuwHQhp
The whales, which migrate along the coast of California, are congregating in feeding grounds near the port in such numbers the spot has become "the area of densest concentration close to shore in all of California," research scientist John Calambokidis told the Los Angeles Times.
The underwater buffet of krill, shrimp-like crustaceans that are the whale's preferred food, is in the path of a virtual freeway of ship traffic that puts them in danger of fatal collisions with huge cargo ships, the newspaper said.
The gathering of whales outside Los Angeles Harbor has been a huge draw for sightseers.
"While this is a unique and exciting opportunity to have these animals out here, it also puts them at great risk," said Calambokidis of the Olympia, Wash.-based Cascadia Research Collective.
Dozens of whales have been injured or killed by ships of the California coast in the last 10 years, and scientists think the slowly recovering population of about 2,500 West Coast blue whales is especially vulnerable.
The abundant food has the creatures coming back to the area of the port again and again, Calambokidis said.
"They're constantly in this mode of looking for a place to feed," he said. "So when they find a patch of prey, they stick around for a while."
Read more: http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2011/10/07/Blue-whales-at-risk-off-LA-Harbor/UPI-48311318023015/#ixzz1aHuwHQhp
Monday, 3 October 2011
Russian and US Veterinarians Collaborate to Solve Mysterious Wild Tiger Deaths
ScienceDaily (Sep. 30, 2011) — A team of Russian veterinary colleagues and health experts from the Wildlife Conservation Society's Bronx Zoo are collaborating to understand how distemper -- a virus afflicting domestic dogs and many wildlife species -- may be a growing threat to Siberian (Amur) tigers.
The team presented its results at the first-ever Russian symposium on wildlife diseases recently held in the Russian Far East city of Ussurisk. The symposium underscores the growing recognition of the importance of the health sciences to successful wildlife conservation efforts.
Working at WCS's Wildlife Health Center at the Bronx Zoo, Russian health experts and WCS pathologists used histology along with PCR and DNA sequencing to confirm and characterize the infection in two wild Siberian tigers from the Russian Far East. This diagnosis provides long-awaited genetic confirmation of the fact that distemper is impacting wild tigers, which WCS and Russian colleagues first documented in 2003.
The collaboration will enable conservationists to formulate health measures to counter this latest threat to the world's largest cat.
Read on...
The team presented its results at the first-ever Russian symposium on wildlife diseases recently held in the Russian Far East city of Ussurisk. The symposium underscores the growing recognition of the importance of the health sciences to successful wildlife conservation efforts.
Working at WCS's Wildlife Health Center at the Bronx Zoo, Russian health experts and WCS pathologists used histology along with PCR and DNA sequencing to confirm and characterize the infection in two wild Siberian tigers from the Russian Far East. This diagnosis provides long-awaited genetic confirmation of the fact that distemper is impacting wild tigers, which WCS and Russian colleagues first documented in 2003.
The collaboration will enable conservationists to formulate health measures to counter this latest threat to the world's largest cat.
Read on...
Saturday, 27 August 2011
Map highlights world’s most threatened coral reefs
Pinpoints places to focus conservation management August 2011: A map of the world's corals and their exposure to stress factors, including high temperatures, ultra-violet radiation, weather systems, sedimentation, as well as stress-reducing factors such as temperature variability and tidal dynamics has been created by Wildlife Conservation Society researchers and other marine scientists.
‘The study provides marine park and ecosystem managers with a plan for spatially managing the effectiveness of conservation and sustainability,' said Dr Caleb McClennen, director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's marine programme. ‘The information will help formulate more effective strategies to protect corals from climate change and lead to improved management of reef systems globally.'
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/coral-map2011.html
The study, say its authors, will help to conserve some of the world's most important coral reefs by identifying reef systems where biodiversity is high and stress is low - in other words, the ecosystems where management has the best chance of success.
The world's coral reefs are under pressure‘Coral reefs around the globe are under pressure from a variety of factors such as higher temperatures, sedimentation, and human-related activities such as fishing and coastal development,' said Joseph M. Maina, WCS conservationist and lead author on the study. ‘The key to effectively identifying where conservation efforts are most likely to succeed is finding reefs where high biodiversity and low stress intersect.'
DYING: Coral bleaching is becoming a worldwide problem
Using a wide array of publicly available data sets from satellites and a branch of mathematics known as fuzzy logic, which can handle incomplete data on coral physiology and coral-environment interactions, the researchers grouped the world's tropical coral reef systems into clusters based on the sum of their stress exposure grades and the factors that reinforce and reduce these stresses.
South East Asia is a ‘high-stress' areaThe first cluster of coral regions - South East Asia, Micronesia, the Eastern Pacific, and the central Indian Ocean - is characterised by high radiation stress (sea surface temperature, ultraviolet radiation, and doldrums weather patterns with little wind) and few stress-reducing factors (temperature variability and tidal amplitude). The group also includes corals in coastal waters of the Middle East and Western Australia (both regions have high scores for reinforcing stress factors such as sedimentation and phytoplankton).
The second cluster - including the Caribbean, Great Barrier Reef, Central Pacific, Polynesia, and the Western Indian Ocean - contained regions with moderate to high rates of exposure as well as high rates of reducing factors, such as large tides and temperature variability.Overall, stress factors such as surface temperature and ultraviolet radiation were the most significant factors - ones that ecosystem management has no control over. What is controllable is the mitigation of human impacts that reinforce radiation stress and where managers decide to locate their protected areas.
Reefs have little chance of surviving climate change‘When radiation stress and high fishing are combined, the reefs have little chance of surviving climate change disturbances because they both work against the survival of corals that are the foundation of the coral reef ecosystem,' said Dr Tim McClanahan, WCS senior conservationist and head of the society's coral reef research and conservation program.
The authors recommend that the study results be used to formulate management strategies that would include activities such as fishing restrictions, the management of watersheds through improved agricultural practices, and reforestation of coastal watersheds that play a role in healthy coral systems.‘The study provides marine park and ecosystem managers with a plan for spatially managing the effectiveness of conservation and sustainability,' said Dr Caleb McClennen, director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's marine programme. ‘The information will help formulate more effective strategies to protect corals from climate change and lead to improved management of reef systems globally.'
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/coral-map2011.html
Wednesday, 17 August 2011
Ecuador: four months to save the world's last great wilderness from 'oil curse'
Where the foothills of the Andes meet the vast Amazonian rainforest in eastern Ecuador there is a small town called Shell. It's a pockmarked, termite-eaten, one-street place which doubles as a missionary centre and a regional airstrip, but it was here in 1937 that the mighty Shell oil company based its crack Latin American oil-prospecting team. The prize was the vast deposits of crude oil believed then – and now known – to lie beneath some of the densest forests in the world.
Nearly 75 years later, Shell the company has long left Shell the town and half of Ecuador's estimated nine billion barrels of oil reserves have been extracted. Ecuador has earned $130bn from the oil found so far in its forests and it earns 40% of its income from it.
But Ecuador now faces a dilemma. Five years ago the state oil company Petroecuador found a massive new oil field containing nearly a billion barrels of oil in Block 31 of the Yasuní national park close to the Brazilian border. The find was equivalent to 20% of all the nation's reserves, worth a minimum $7-10bn.
The dilemma is that the oil in the Ishpingo Tambococha Tiputini (ITT) field is below one of the most biodiverse areas of the world and to extract it would devastate one of the last great wildernesses.
Because of its location right on the equator at the junction of the forest and the mountains, Yasuní is one of the last places on earth which is truly undisturbed. As well being home to the the Tagaeri and the Taromenane, two of the world's last uncontacted tribes, the park is thought to have more species of plants, animals and insects per hectare than anywhere else on earth.
One six-square-kilometre patch of Yasuní – chosen by scientists almost at random – was found to have 47 amphibian and reptile species, 550 bird and 200 mammal species living there. Another patch of land in the park breaks all the world records for bats and insects. More tree species grow in a single hectare of rainforest in Yasuní than in all of north America. A single hectare of rainforest there may contain as many as 100,000 insect species and most of the 2,000 species of fish known to live in the rivers of the Amazon region are believed to be there.
There have been more species of frogs and toads recorded in the park than are native to the United States and Canada combined; more insect species have been found living on one tree than in all of the United States; more birds seen there than in all Europe.
What to do with Yasuní was left to oil minister Alberto Acosta. A European-trained economist, he had spent years in the state oil company, was a friend of the president, Rafael Correa, and has long been part of Ecuador's political establishment. At the time he was an elected senator (MP), and president of the national assembly, and had helped rewrite Ecuador's constitution.
But Acosta admits now that finding so much oil in Block 31 terrified him. "It is one of the last places on earth which is truly undisturbed. It is simply a paradise," he says.
Acosta is one of the few people ever to have visited Yasuní but his dilemma was how to assess the full costs and benefits of drilling for oil there. On the one hand, the find presented the country with perhaps its last great chance to develop in the traditional 20th-century way, by building roads and industrialising. The money could be used for vitally needed housing, infrastructure, health and education.
On the other hand, the former oilman knew drilling for oil would push the oil frontier far deeper into the Amazon, release 400m tonnes of climate-changing CO2 and make the total destruction of a vast and pristine area inevitable.
"To extract oil on that scale from Yasuní," says Acosta, "would lead to contamination, deforestation, extinction of cultures and destruction of social structures. It would need a vast infrastructure including roads, river ports, tracks, airstrips. Villages would have to be constructed, pipelines laid and millions of tonnes of contaminated waste buried."
In addition, Acosta also knew that the oil industry inevitably attracts corruption, violence and social problems when it works in poor countries such as Ecuador.
"As with everywhere else in the world, the oil company roads will attract settlers in search of land and work, leading to more forest destruction. You only need to see the crime, pollution and poverty in Ecuador's other oilfields to know that to extract the oil [there] would mean the extinction of a paradise," he says. Acosta and his team, backed by scientists and non government groups, considered the options. "Oil is very important in a country like Ecuador. We have extracted 4.5bn barrels so far, which has given us around $130bn. We are at the top of the curve. We have consumed half and we have half our oil left.
"But the reality is that oil has not brought development. It has brought us immense contamination and environmental destruction. Since the 1950s the impact on people has been dramatic. Pollution and deforestation bring problems everywhere the oil is. Oil has not solved the problems of Ecuador.
"I knew the oil industry. I could see the monster from the inside. I began to think perhaps we were poor because of our resources. I called it the curse of abundance. I thought we must have a less extractive economy. We want oil to be used to benefit the country, to transform living conditions."
Acosta and the ministry prepared two plans: plan A was a revolutionary scheme to leave the oil in the ground in perpetuity in return for half of its value from the rich countries of the world; plan B was for business as usual. For the first time in history, a nation would seriously consider accepting a binding agreement not to extract fossil fuels.
"We said that Ecuador should approach the world with a deal. We will leave the oil in the ground and save the forest and the people if you, the world, make a financial contribution. If countries and individuals put up just half the "value" of the 960m barrels of oil – around $3.6bn – in Yasuní then Ecuador would guarantee to leave it there," he says. The money earned from the world would then go to protecting Yasuní and Ecuador's other national parks and towards education and hospitals.
Acosta's thinking was in fact a shrewd response to the economic phenomenon called "oil curse". Experience shows that developing countries who strike oil invariably stay poor. Rather than bringing wealth to many, it enriches a few, fosters corruption, encourages dictatorships and distorts the economies of nearly every poor country it has been found in. The story has been repeated from Nigeria to Sudan, Equatorial Guinea to Gabon and Angola to Venezuela.
Plan A was received with scepticism in government circles, says Acosta. "But I debated it with the president, showed him the benefits, told him he would be seen as a global statesman."
But crucially, it was backed strongly by powerful indigenous groups in the country, as well as the many social movements and the public. President Correa went along with it but at the same time has been enthusiastic about the oil.
Acosta left the government in 2009 and is now a professor at the University of Quito and an open supporter of leaving the oil underground. "One day the president said yes, the next no. I received attacks, people I know lied to defend the interests of the oil companies, and tried to weaken my position."
But polls showed that 90% of the Ecuadorian people backed Plan A and it was endorsed by government.Last year the UN development programme declared Plan A to be a safe environmental investment, and agreed to administer the fund. If a downpayment of $100m is made by December, the forest and the indigenous groups will be left alone. If the money is not found, then a Chinese company is expected to move in within months and the destruction of Yasuní will begin.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/aug/14/ecuador-oil-yasuni-national-park
Nearly 75 years later, Shell the company has long left Shell the town and half of Ecuador's estimated nine billion barrels of oil reserves have been extracted. Ecuador has earned $130bn from the oil found so far in its forests and it earns 40% of its income from it.
But Ecuador now faces a dilemma. Five years ago the state oil company Petroecuador found a massive new oil field containing nearly a billion barrels of oil in Block 31 of the Yasuní national park close to the Brazilian border. The find was equivalent to 20% of all the nation's reserves, worth a minimum $7-10bn.
The dilemma is that the oil in the Ishpingo Tambococha Tiputini (ITT) field is below one of the most biodiverse areas of the world and to extract it would devastate one of the last great wildernesses.
Because of its location right on the equator at the junction of the forest and the mountains, Yasuní is one of the last places on earth which is truly undisturbed. As well being home to the the Tagaeri and the Taromenane, two of the world's last uncontacted tribes, the park is thought to have more species of plants, animals and insects per hectare than anywhere else on earth.
One six-square-kilometre patch of Yasuní – chosen by scientists almost at random – was found to have 47 amphibian and reptile species, 550 bird and 200 mammal species living there. Another patch of land in the park breaks all the world records for bats and insects. More tree species grow in a single hectare of rainforest in Yasuní than in all of north America. A single hectare of rainforest there may contain as many as 100,000 insect species and most of the 2,000 species of fish known to live in the rivers of the Amazon region are believed to be there.
There have been more species of frogs and toads recorded in the park than are native to the United States and Canada combined; more insect species have been found living on one tree than in all of the United States; more birds seen there than in all Europe.
What to do with Yasuní was left to oil minister Alberto Acosta. A European-trained economist, he had spent years in the state oil company, was a friend of the president, Rafael Correa, and has long been part of Ecuador's political establishment. At the time he was an elected senator (MP), and president of the national assembly, and had helped rewrite Ecuador's constitution.
But Acosta admits now that finding so much oil in Block 31 terrified him. "It is one of the last places on earth which is truly undisturbed. It is simply a paradise," he says.
Acosta is one of the few people ever to have visited Yasuní but his dilemma was how to assess the full costs and benefits of drilling for oil there. On the one hand, the find presented the country with perhaps its last great chance to develop in the traditional 20th-century way, by building roads and industrialising. The money could be used for vitally needed housing, infrastructure, health and education.
On the other hand, the former oilman knew drilling for oil would push the oil frontier far deeper into the Amazon, release 400m tonnes of climate-changing CO2 and make the total destruction of a vast and pristine area inevitable.
"To extract oil on that scale from Yasuní," says Acosta, "would lead to contamination, deforestation, extinction of cultures and destruction of social structures. It would need a vast infrastructure including roads, river ports, tracks, airstrips. Villages would have to be constructed, pipelines laid and millions of tonnes of contaminated waste buried."
In addition, Acosta also knew that the oil industry inevitably attracts corruption, violence and social problems when it works in poor countries such as Ecuador.
"As with everywhere else in the world, the oil company roads will attract settlers in search of land and work, leading to more forest destruction. You only need to see the crime, pollution and poverty in Ecuador's other oilfields to know that to extract the oil [there] would mean the extinction of a paradise," he says. Acosta and his team, backed by scientists and non government groups, considered the options. "Oil is very important in a country like Ecuador. We have extracted 4.5bn barrels so far, which has given us around $130bn. We are at the top of the curve. We have consumed half and we have half our oil left.
"But the reality is that oil has not brought development. It has brought us immense contamination and environmental destruction. Since the 1950s the impact on people has been dramatic. Pollution and deforestation bring problems everywhere the oil is. Oil has not solved the problems of Ecuador.
"I knew the oil industry. I could see the monster from the inside. I began to think perhaps we were poor because of our resources. I called it the curse of abundance. I thought we must have a less extractive economy. We want oil to be used to benefit the country, to transform living conditions."
Acosta and the ministry prepared two plans: plan A was a revolutionary scheme to leave the oil in the ground in perpetuity in return for half of its value from the rich countries of the world; plan B was for business as usual. For the first time in history, a nation would seriously consider accepting a binding agreement not to extract fossil fuels.
"We said that Ecuador should approach the world with a deal. We will leave the oil in the ground and save the forest and the people if you, the world, make a financial contribution. If countries and individuals put up just half the "value" of the 960m barrels of oil – around $3.6bn – in Yasuní then Ecuador would guarantee to leave it there," he says. The money earned from the world would then go to protecting Yasuní and Ecuador's other national parks and towards education and hospitals.
Acosta's thinking was in fact a shrewd response to the economic phenomenon called "oil curse". Experience shows that developing countries who strike oil invariably stay poor. Rather than bringing wealth to many, it enriches a few, fosters corruption, encourages dictatorships and distorts the economies of nearly every poor country it has been found in. The story has been repeated from Nigeria to Sudan, Equatorial Guinea to Gabon and Angola to Venezuela.
Plan A was received with scepticism in government circles, says Acosta. "But I debated it with the president, showed him the benefits, told him he would be seen as a global statesman."
But crucially, it was backed strongly by powerful indigenous groups in the country, as well as the many social movements and the public. President Correa went along with it but at the same time has been enthusiastic about the oil.
Acosta left the government in 2009 and is now a professor at the University of Quito and an open supporter of leaving the oil underground. "One day the president said yes, the next no. I received attacks, people I know lied to defend the interests of the oil companies, and tried to weaken my position."
But polls showed that 90% of the Ecuadorian people backed Plan A and it was endorsed by government.Last year the UN development programme declared Plan A to be a safe environmental investment, and agreed to administer the fund. If a downpayment of $100m is made by December, the forest and the indigenous groups will be left alone. If the money is not found, then a Chinese company is expected to move in within months and the destruction of Yasuní will begin.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/aug/14/ecuador-oil-yasuni-national-park
Monday, 14 February 2011
The 'weird' predatory fossa of Madagascar is threatened
By Matt Walker
Editor, Earth News
It is one of the most unusual of all big predators, but the odd-looking, cat-like fossa, the largest carnivore on the island of Madagascar, faces an uncertain future.
Few fossa can now be found in a place that was once a stronghold, as villagers hunt the animal as bushmeat and in a bid to protect their own livestock, which the fossa eats.
Its population may be declining rapidly, says one of the few scientists to have studied it in the wild, and it could already be critically endangered.
Fossa are a highly specialised predator.
Secretive and cat-like, they are expert climbers and well equipped for chasing down lemurs in the forest, preying on even the largest lemur species.
But they also take small shrew-like creatures called tenrecs and almost any other vertebrate animal living in Madagascar's forests, with the exception of humans, crocodiles and possibly wild boar.
However, very little is known about them, as only a handful of scientists have been able to study fossa closely in the wild.
For example, it was once thought to be closely related to civets and their relatives, but genetic evidence suggests it is actually related to other Malagasy carnivores that together are related to mongooses.
Little is also known about how many fossa exist on Madagascar, with official estimates suggesting that fewer than 2500 survive and the animal should be considered as Endangered.
But according to one scientist studying it, the fossa could be in an even more perilous state.
Ms Mia-Lana Lührs is currently studying the fossa for her PhD at Germany's University of Göttingen and the German Primate Center.
She has also helped the upcoming BBC natural history series Madagascar film the creatures in the wild.
Within the past three years, she has recorded a substantial fall in the numbers of fossa living in Kirindy, a reserve within forests on the west of the island.
This area was considered to be a stronghold of the fossa.
In 2007, Ms Lührs recorded 18 different males regularly visiting a particular tree that male and female fossa use to mate in.
In 2008, she recorded 14 males, and in 2009 just ten.
Last year, only two males were sighted.
"Fortunately, I have seen seven males shortly before in another part of the forest where I observed, so I know that at least nine males are still alive," she told BBC News.
But overall, her studies, which use GPS tracking collars to follow individual fossa, suggest no more than 30 fossa of either sex now exist in Kirindy.
A forest fragment that size would be expected to be home to many times that number.
"That is not sufficient for the population to survive without management," she says.
Habitat destruction is one significant cause of the fossa's recent decline reason.
But the large predator is also coming into conflict with people, as it leaves the dwindling forest in search of food.
A survey conducted last year by colleague Moritz Rahlfs in villages surrounding Kirindy found that 12 fossa had been killed recently by people living in just eight villages, to prevent the fossa from stealing their chickens.
"If the killings continue at such high rates, we have three years left to see fossas in Kirindy," says Ms Lührs.
The carnivore also faces other threats.
A separate recent piece of research by PhD student Christopher Golden of the University of California, Berkeley, has already found that fossa are hunted for food by people within 55 to 60% of those villages studied in northeastern Madagascar.
Fossa body parts are also used in traditional medicines in some parts of the island.
Ms Lührs suspects the fossa may already be critically endangered.
"There is this fascinating weird creature at the other end of the world and it might soon go extinct," she says.
The story of the fossa will be told in the natural history series Madagascar, which broadcasts on BBC Two on Wednesday 9 February at GMT 20.00.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9385000/9385018.stm
Saturday, 12 February 2011
Shark-Catching Nations Fail To Protect Threatened Species
NICOLE WINFIELD
01/27/11 03:10 PM
ROME — Two environmental groups on Thursday accused the 20 countries that catch the most sharks of failing to fulfill promises made to the U.N. to better conserve the animals that are increasingly threatened with extinction.
In 1999, more than 100 governments adopted a plan of action at the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization to try to stem overfishing of sharks, pledging, among other things, to develop national action plans to ensure that shark catches are sustainable.
The non-governmental groups Traffic and the Pew Environment Group said Thursday that only 13 of the top 20 shark catching countries had developed national plans, and that it was unclear if such plans had done any good where they were adopted.
They issued their report ahead of a meeting next week of government members of the FAO's fisheries committee, which will discuss the state of the world's fisheries in detail.
Some 73 million sharks are killed annually, primarily to meet the high demand in Asia for fins which are used in shark fin soup.
Because sharks are slow growing, late to mature and produce few young, they are unable to replenish their populations as quickly when they are caught. As a result, some 30 percent of all shark species are now threatened or nearly threatened with extinction.
Traffic and Pew analyzed fisheries data and made a list of the top 20 shark catchers which account for nearly 80 percent of the total shark catch reported globally. In order, the top 10 are Indonesia, India, Spain, Taiwan, Argentina, Mexico, Pakistan, United States, Japan, and Malaysia. Yet according to the two groups, Indonesia has only made a draft national plan and India is developing one. Other countries have adopted them but, because reporting is voluntary, it's not clear if they've been implemented or have done any good.
The groups urged governments at the FAO meeting next week to have the U.N. agency complete a thorough review to determine what countries have and haven't done to comply with their pledges to manage their fisheries.
"The fate of the world's sharks is in the hands of the top 20 shark catchers, most of whom have failed to demonstrate what, if anything, they are doing to save these imperiled species," said Glenn Sant, Traffic's global marine program leader.
Jill Hepp, manager of shark conservation for Pew, said sharks play a critical role in the ocean environment.
"Where shark populations are healthy, marine life thrives; but where they have been overfished, ecosystems fall out of balance," she said.
The report suggests that national action plans with lofty goals that are never implemented might not be the answer to saving sharks. Rather, countries that take smaller, incremental steps toward conservation might achieve better results.
It noted that Palau had announced in 2009 it would create the world's first shark sanctuary by banning all commercial shark fishing in its territorial waters and that Honduras had announced a moratorium on shark fishing last year.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/30/sharkcatching-nations-fai_n_815064.html
01/27/11 03:10 PM
ROME — Two environmental groups on Thursday accused the 20 countries that catch the most sharks of failing to fulfill promises made to the U.N. to better conserve the animals that are increasingly threatened with extinction.
In 1999, more than 100 governments adopted a plan of action at the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization to try to stem overfishing of sharks, pledging, among other things, to develop national action plans to ensure that shark catches are sustainable.
The non-governmental groups Traffic and the Pew Environment Group said Thursday that only 13 of the top 20 shark catching countries had developed national plans, and that it was unclear if such plans had done any good where they were adopted.
They issued their report ahead of a meeting next week of government members of the FAO's fisheries committee, which will discuss the state of the world's fisheries in detail.
Some 73 million sharks are killed annually, primarily to meet the high demand in Asia for fins which are used in shark fin soup.
Because sharks are slow growing, late to mature and produce few young, they are unable to replenish their populations as quickly when they are caught. As a result, some 30 percent of all shark species are now threatened or nearly threatened with extinction.
Traffic and Pew analyzed fisheries data and made a list of the top 20 shark catchers which account for nearly 80 percent of the total shark catch reported globally. In order, the top 10 are Indonesia, India, Spain, Taiwan, Argentina, Mexico, Pakistan, United States, Japan, and Malaysia. Yet according to the two groups, Indonesia has only made a draft national plan and India is developing one. Other countries have adopted them but, because reporting is voluntary, it's not clear if they've been implemented or have done any good.
The groups urged governments at the FAO meeting next week to have the U.N. agency complete a thorough review to determine what countries have and haven't done to comply with their pledges to manage their fisheries.
"The fate of the world's sharks is in the hands of the top 20 shark catchers, most of whom have failed to demonstrate what, if anything, they are doing to save these imperiled species," said Glenn Sant, Traffic's global marine program leader.
Jill Hepp, manager of shark conservation for Pew, said sharks play a critical role in the ocean environment.
"Where shark populations are healthy, marine life thrives; but where they have been overfished, ecosystems fall out of balance," she said.
The report suggests that national action plans with lofty goals that are never implemented might not be the answer to saving sharks. Rather, countries that take smaller, incremental steps toward conservation might achieve better results.
It noted that Palau had announced in 2009 it would create the world's first shark sanctuary by banning all commercial shark fishing in its territorial waters and that Honduras had announced a moratorium on shark fishing last year.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/30/sharkcatching-nations-fai_n_815064.html
Year Of The Rabbit Zodiac Threatens Rabbits In Asia
DENIS D. GRAY 01/27/11 04:58 AM
BANGKOK — Many Asians believe the Year of the Rabbit means good luck for those born under that zodiac sign, but conservationists warn that the furry creatures themselves are being loved to death in Asia and some species are dying away altogether.
As the Lunar New Year approaches, rabbits are being snapped up from pet stores and farms but some are warning that the animals will be dumped once the novelty wears off and the cost and trouble of keeping them kicks in.
"It's believed that feeding rabbits in their zodiac will bring luck in love and everything else, so especially young people are looking for little, cute bunnies," says Piyalak Sariya, owner of the Bunny Delight rabbit farm in Thailand.
Predicting many will eventually be cast off in Buddhist temples and parks, she recommends buying rabbit dolls instead "because these fluffy animals need more care than dogs or cats."
"People think they are small and cute, (but) they are a lot of work. They just can't be stuffed into a cage," says Ashley Fruno, Asia representative for the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA.
She says rabbits often live up to 12 years, need space to roam, have fragile physiques and are prone to diseases like cancer, which means hefty veterinarian bills.
The new year – the fourth in the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac that is used across Asia – begins Feb. 3.
Fruno said it's not known exactly how many rabbits are being bought because of the New Year.
But she said her group has seen similar trends before, including the scouring of oceans for clownfish after the 2003 release of the animated film "Finding Nemo" and the rush to buy Dalmations – that were subsequently dumped at animal shelters – after movies in the Disney franchise "101 Dalmations."
A far more ominous warning came from the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which tracks the health of species worldwide.
IUCN is using the occasion to stress that, despite their reputation as prolific love-makers, nearly one in four rabbits, hares and pikas are threatened with extinction – mostly due to mankind's inroads.
"Year of the Rabbit – species hopping out of view?" asks the Switzerland-based IUCN.
An IUCN report says that several Asian species are under serious siege, as elsewhere, the victims of overhunting, habitat loss, invasive feral animals and viral diseases. These include the Sumatran striped rabbit, hispid hare, Amami rabbit and the Annamite striped rabbit, only discovered by scientists in 1995.
Declines have been rapid and dramatic.
The endangered ili pika has disappeared from half of its previously known locations in northwestern China since it was first described some 30 years ago.
Rabbits and their kin "include some of the most endangered species on the planet," says IUCN's Andrew Smith, adding that their decline often has also been catastrophic to their predators like eagles and lynxes.
Animal activists, and just mere bunny lovers, are hoping the new year will help turn the spotlight on the species' plight.
PETA has launched an ad campaign imploring Chinese movie star Gong Li to curb her penchant for wearing rabbit and other furs and switch to a "kinder wardrobe."
The ad shows a woman's foot stepping on the neck of a dead rabbit next to the words, "Where Does Gong Li Stand on Fur?"
PETA says its investigations have revealed that on rabbit farms in China, the animals are pulled from their cages by their ears and shot in the head with electric stun guns as they kick and scream. The rabbits are then hung upside down and decapitated.
___
Associated Press writers Julia Zappei in Kuala Lumpur and Robin McDowell in Jakarta contributed to this report.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/28/rabbits-threatened-by-zod_n_814822.html
BANGKOK — Many Asians believe the Year of the Rabbit means good luck for those born under that zodiac sign, but conservationists warn that the furry creatures themselves are being loved to death in Asia and some species are dying away altogether.
As the Lunar New Year approaches, rabbits are being snapped up from pet stores and farms but some are warning that the animals will be dumped once the novelty wears off and the cost and trouble of keeping them kicks in.
"It's believed that feeding rabbits in their zodiac will bring luck in love and everything else, so especially young people are looking for little, cute bunnies," says Piyalak Sariya, owner of the Bunny Delight rabbit farm in Thailand.
Predicting many will eventually be cast off in Buddhist temples and parks, she recommends buying rabbit dolls instead "because these fluffy animals need more care than dogs or cats."
"People think they are small and cute, (but) they are a lot of work. They just can't be stuffed into a cage," says Ashley Fruno, Asia representative for the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA.
She says rabbits often live up to 12 years, need space to roam, have fragile physiques and are prone to diseases like cancer, which means hefty veterinarian bills.
The new year – the fourth in the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac that is used across Asia – begins Feb. 3.
Fruno said it's not known exactly how many rabbits are being bought because of the New Year.
But she said her group has seen similar trends before, including the scouring of oceans for clownfish after the 2003 release of the animated film "Finding Nemo" and the rush to buy Dalmations – that were subsequently dumped at animal shelters – after movies in the Disney franchise "101 Dalmations."
A far more ominous warning came from the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which tracks the health of species worldwide.
IUCN is using the occasion to stress that, despite their reputation as prolific love-makers, nearly one in four rabbits, hares and pikas are threatened with extinction – mostly due to mankind's inroads.
"Year of the Rabbit – species hopping out of view?" asks the Switzerland-based IUCN.
An IUCN report says that several Asian species are under serious siege, as elsewhere, the victims of overhunting, habitat loss, invasive feral animals and viral diseases. These include the Sumatran striped rabbit, hispid hare, Amami rabbit and the Annamite striped rabbit, only discovered by scientists in 1995.
Declines have been rapid and dramatic.
The endangered ili pika has disappeared from half of its previously known locations in northwestern China since it was first described some 30 years ago.
Rabbits and their kin "include some of the most endangered species on the planet," says IUCN's Andrew Smith, adding that their decline often has also been catastrophic to their predators like eagles and lynxes.
Animal activists, and just mere bunny lovers, are hoping the new year will help turn the spotlight on the species' plight.
PETA has launched an ad campaign imploring Chinese movie star Gong Li to curb her penchant for wearing rabbit and other furs and switch to a "kinder wardrobe."
The ad shows a woman's foot stepping on the neck of a dead rabbit next to the words, "Where Does Gong Li Stand on Fur?"
PETA says its investigations have revealed that on rabbit farms in China, the animals are pulled from their cages by their ears and shot in the head with electric stun guns as they kick and scream. The rabbits are then hung upside down and decapitated.
___
Associated Press writers Julia Zappei in Kuala Lumpur and Robin McDowell in Jakarta contributed to this report.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/28/rabbits-threatened-by-zod_n_814822.html
Sunday, 9 January 2011
Turtle Road Toll Mounting in Queensland, Australia (Via HerpDigest)
AAP, 12/24/10 Queensland, Hundreds of freshwater turtles have become roadkill in recent weeks as downpours filled lagoons and floodplains across Queensland.
Motorists should slow down and be on the lookout for turtles crossing roads to find their mates and nesting areas, Capricorn Conservation Council spokesman Michael McCabe said.
Mr McCabe told AAP he estimated the turtle road toll to be in the hundreds, particularly around Rockhampton in central Queensland.
''We are receiving reports of turtles being killed or badly injured by vehicles when they try to cross roads,'' he said.
He said some vulnerable Fitzroy River turtles had been killed along the Ridgelands Road, west of Rockhampton.
''This species is already under enormous pressure from dams, mining and agricultural water use, (hunting) by feral animals and trampling of nests by stock accessing the river,'' Mr McCabe said.
Motorists should slow down and be on the lookout for turtles crossing roads to find their mates and nesting areas, Capricorn Conservation Council spokesman Michael McCabe said.
Mr McCabe told AAP he estimated the turtle road toll to be in the hundreds, particularly around Rockhampton in central Queensland.
''We are receiving reports of turtles being killed or badly injured by vehicles when they try to cross roads,'' he said.
He said some vulnerable Fitzroy River turtles had been killed along the Ridgelands Road, west of Rockhampton.
''This species is already under enormous pressure from dams, mining and agricultural water use, (hunting) by feral animals and trampling of nests by stock accessing the river,'' Mr McCabe said.
Wednesday, 29 December 2010
New species abound in Peru, but so do threats
By Roberto Cortijo (AFP)
LIMA — Each year, a new bird is found and every four years a new mammal discovered in the Peruvian Amazon, a haven for biodiversity where conservation and danger often go hand in hand.
Although Peru is known for its Andes mountain range, the Amazon actually covers 60 percent of the country's territory. It is a hotbed of bio-activity and is home to 25,000 species of plants -- 10 percent of the world's stock.
Thanks to the Amazon, Peru has the world's second-largest bird population (1,800 species) and is among the top five countries for mammals (515 species) and reptiles (418 species).
This year alone, scientists stumbled upon a previously unknown leech and a new type of mosquito.
The animal population has grown in recent years, namely adding a mini poison dart frog with a fire-red head and blue legs (Ranitomeya amazonica), a purple-throated Sunangel hummingbird (Heliangelus viola) and a "tyrannosaurus leech" with eight teeth (Tyrannobdella reina).
More than 1,200 new species of plants or animals have been discovered in 10 years in the Amazon, according to the Worldwide Fund for Nature. But paradoxically, the novel species are often discovered during the very activities that threaten the Amazon the most.
"Most of these discoveries don't happen during scientific expeditions, which are often costly. They most often come when workers are digging exploration sites for oil, mining or lumber companies," said WWF Peru's Amazon program director Michael Valqui.
"This type of discovery is also simultaneously endangering the species that is being discovered in its one and only habitat."
Peru, home to one of the biggest forest lands -- 700,000 square kilometers (270,270 square miles) -- is also a magnet for resource extraction.
The number of concessions granted has doubled since 2006 to cover 16 percent of the territory, according to the Observatory of Mining Conflicts in Latin America.
At the same time, Peru boasts of being on the cutting edge of conservation, with 15 percent of its territory under protected status.
"And we're aiming for 30 percent," said Environment Minister Antonio Brack.
Environmentalists, though, worry about the future of biodiversity and the species living outside these protected zones.
"There are no clear signals as to what the country intends to do to protect biodiversity," said Ivan Lanegra, representative of the influential government-funded Peruvian ombudsman office.
Gerard Herail of France's IRD research and development institute in Lima noted that "a mining or hydrocarbons firm is not innately destructive. The key is whether or not it is 'clean'," or uses cleaner methods and technologies.
More species are disappearing than are being discovered around the world, noted Ernesto Raez, who heads the Sustainable Development Center at Cayetano Heredia University in Lima.
"In other words, species are disappearing before we discover them," he added.
But the IRD says the very context of their disappearance allows the group to "develop biodiversity conservation strategies," such as those deployed successfully for the huge arapaima or paiche fish (Arapaima gigas), one of the largest freshwater fish in the world.
Twenty-one species remain in "critical danger" of extinction in Peru, according to 2004 numbers, including the short-tailed chinchilla (Chinchilla brevicaudata) and the sharp-eared bat (Tompoeas ravus). The leaf-eared mouse (phyllotis andinum) is believed to have already disappeared.
The Lima gecko (Phyllodactylus sentosus), a minuscule nocturnal lizard also in critical danger, illustrates the sometimes complex relationship between threat and conservation.
The gecko finds its habitat in the darkest corners of the huacas, pre-Hispanic burial grounds or ritual sites that dot Lima and the coast.
"But archeologists' maintenance work, crucial for conservation, is exactly what's destroying the gecko's habitat" and triggering its downfall, said Valqui.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g_3zOtgQRjjeXOrm-Ds2PlylB39Q?docId=CNG.081ed8ef951580bf2ea69716935b211d.441
LIMA — Each year, a new bird is found and every four years a new mammal discovered in the Peruvian Amazon, a haven for biodiversity where conservation and danger often go hand in hand.
Although Peru is known for its Andes mountain range, the Amazon actually covers 60 percent of the country's territory. It is a hotbed of bio-activity and is home to 25,000 species of plants -- 10 percent of the world's stock.
Thanks to the Amazon, Peru has the world's second-largest bird population (1,800 species) and is among the top five countries for mammals (515 species) and reptiles (418 species).
This year alone, scientists stumbled upon a previously unknown leech and a new type of mosquito.
The animal population has grown in recent years, namely adding a mini poison dart frog with a fire-red head and blue legs (Ranitomeya amazonica), a purple-throated Sunangel hummingbird (Heliangelus viola) and a "tyrannosaurus leech" with eight teeth (Tyrannobdella reina).
More than 1,200 new species of plants or animals have been discovered in 10 years in the Amazon, according to the Worldwide Fund for Nature. But paradoxically, the novel species are often discovered during the very activities that threaten the Amazon the most.
"Most of these discoveries don't happen during scientific expeditions, which are often costly. They most often come when workers are digging exploration sites for oil, mining or lumber companies," said WWF Peru's Amazon program director Michael Valqui.
"This type of discovery is also simultaneously endangering the species that is being discovered in its one and only habitat."
Peru, home to one of the biggest forest lands -- 700,000 square kilometers (270,270 square miles) -- is also a magnet for resource extraction.
The number of concessions granted has doubled since 2006 to cover 16 percent of the territory, according to the Observatory of Mining Conflicts in Latin America.
At the same time, Peru boasts of being on the cutting edge of conservation, with 15 percent of its territory under protected status.
"And we're aiming for 30 percent," said Environment Minister Antonio Brack.
Environmentalists, though, worry about the future of biodiversity and the species living outside these protected zones.
"There are no clear signals as to what the country intends to do to protect biodiversity," said Ivan Lanegra, representative of the influential government-funded Peruvian ombudsman office.
Gerard Herail of France's IRD research and development institute in Lima noted that "a mining or hydrocarbons firm is not innately destructive. The key is whether or not it is 'clean'," or uses cleaner methods and technologies.
More species are disappearing than are being discovered around the world, noted Ernesto Raez, who heads the Sustainable Development Center at Cayetano Heredia University in Lima.
"In other words, species are disappearing before we discover them," he added.
But the IRD says the very context of their disappearance allows the group to "develop biodiversity conservation strategies," such as those deployed successfully for the huge arapaima or paiche fish (Arapaima gigas), one of the largest freshwater fish in the world.
Twenty-one species remain in "critical danger" of extinction in Peru, according to 2004 numbers, including the short-tailed chinchilla (Chinchilla brevicaudata) and the sharp-eared bat (Tompoeas ravus). The leaf-eared mouse (phyllotis andinum) is believed to have already disappeared.
The Lima gecko (Phyllodactylus sentosus), a minuscule nocturnal lizard also in critical danger, illustrates the sometimes complex relationship between threat and conservation.
The gecko finds its habitat in the darkest corners of the huacas, pre-Hispanic burial grounds or ritual sites that dot Lima and the coast.
"But archeologists' maintenance work, crucial for conservation, is exactly what's destroying the gecko's habitat" and triggering its downfall, said Valqui.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g_3zOtgQRjjeXOrm-Ds2PlylB39Q?docId=CNG.081ed8ef951580bf2ea69716935b211d.441
Tuesday, 5 October 2010
Climate Change Hits Southeast Australia Fish Species
ScienceDaily (Sep. 27, 2010) — Scientists are reporting significant changes in the distribution of coastal fish species in south-east Australia which they say are partly due to climate change.
CSIRO's Climate Adaptation and Wealth from Oceans Flagships have identified 43 species, representing about 30 per cent of the inshore fish families occurring in the region, that exhibited shifts thought to be climate-related.
These include warm temperate surf-zone species such as Silver Drummer and Rock Blackfish that are breeding and have become more abundant, and range increases in Snapper and Rock Flathead. There is also a greater abundance of warm water tunas and billfishes and occasional visits from Queensland Groper and Tiger Sharks.
"Furthermore, up to 19 species, or 5 per cent, of Tasmanian coastal fish fauna have undergone serious declines or are possibly extinct locally," says the Curator of the Australian National Fish Collection, Dr Peter Last. "At the same time many warm temperate species have moved in and colonised the cool temperate Tasmanian region.
"
Shifts in the distribution of marine animals in response to climate change can be detrimental to some species. The problem is that in southern Tasmania, shallow cold water species have nowhere to escape warmer conditions in the sea," Dr Last says.
Particularly at risk are species such as the Maugean Skate, which is now confined to Port Davey and Macquarie Harbour in Tasmania's southwest.
Dr Last and his colleagues from CSIRO and the Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute outline the changes in a research paper published in the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography.
Their data come from a range of sources -- published accounts, scientific surveys, spearfishing and angling competitions, commercial catches and underwater photographic records -- from the late 1800s to the present. The findings support information provided in Australia's first Marine Climate Change Impacts Report Card, released in 2009, which describes recorded and projected changes to marine species from shifts in climate.
Dr Last says south-eastern Australia is a climate change hotspot with well-documented changes already occurring over the past 70 years, including; southward penetration of the East Australian Current by about 350 kilometres and a temperature rise of almost 2ºC.
"Increased water temperatures in the Tasman Sea are likely to have a cascading effect through local marine ecosystems and, for example, the Bass Strait islands act as stepping stones or distributional pathways south. Already we are seeing biological responses to these changes in the increased presence of sea urchins and fishes from further north."
Co-authors of the paper were: CSIRO's Will White, Dan Gledhill and Alistair Hobday, and Rebecca Brown, Graham Edgar and Gretta Pecl from the Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute at the University of Tasmania.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100928092839.htm
CSIRO's Climate Adaptation and Wealth from Oceans Flagships have identified 43 species, representing about 30 per cent of the inshore fish families occurring in the region, that exhibited shifts thought to be climate-related.
These include warm temperate surf-zone species such as Silver Drummer and Rock Blackfish that are breeding and have become more abundant, and range increases in Snapper and Rock Flathead. There is also a greater abundance of warm water tunas and billfishes and occasional visits from Queensland Groper and Tiger Sharks.
"Furthermore, up to 19 species, or 5 per cent, of Tasmanian coastal fish fauna have undergone serious declines or are possibly extinct locally," says the Curator of the Australian National Fish Collection, Dr Peter Last. "At the same time many warm temperate species have moved in and colonised the cool temperate Tasmanian region.
"
Shifts in the distribution of marine animals in response to climate change can be detrimental to some species. The problem is that in southern Tasmania, shallow cold water species have nowhere to escape warmer conditions in the sea," Dr Last says.
Particularly at risk are species such as the Maugean Skate, which is now confined to Port Davey and Macquarie Harbour in Tasmania's southwest.
Dr Last and his colleagues from CSIRO and the Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute outline the changes in a research paper published in the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography.
Their data come from a range of sources -- published accounts, scientific surveys, spearfishing and angling competitions, commercial catches and underwater photographic records -- from the late 1800s to the present. The findings support information provided in Australia's first Marine Climate Change Impacts Report Card, released in 2009, which describes recorded and projected changes to marine species from shifts in climate.
Dr Last says south-eastern Australia is a climate change hotspot with well-documented changes already occurring over the past 70 years, including; southward penetration of the East Australian Current by about 350 kilometres and a temperature rise of almost 2ºC.
"Increased water temperatures in the Tasman Sea are likely to have a cascading effect through local marine ecosystems and, for example, the Bass Strait islands act as stepping stones or distributional pathways south. Already we are seeing biological responses to these changes in the increased presence of sea urchins and fishes from further north."
Co-authors of the paper were: CSIRO's Will White, Dan Gledhill and Alistair Hobday, and Rebecca Brown, Graham Edgar and Gretta Pecl from the Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute at the University of Tasmania.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100928092839.htm
Thursday, 23 September 2010
Warning issued after chipmunks sighted
RIGHT: A photograph of one of the chipmunks sighted in Waterford. The rodents are regarded as a threat to the survival of red squirrels.The Irish Times - Thursday, September 23, 2010
WILDLIFE EXPERTS have issued an “invasive species alert” following sightings of Siberian chipmunks on the loose in Co Waterford. The striped rodents, native to northern Asia, are regarded as a “significant threat” to the survival of the Irish red squirrel, which is already imperilled by the grey squirrel.
Colette O’Flynn, manager of the National Invasive Species Database, explained that “Co Waterford remains a stronghold for red squirrels as the invasive grey squirrel has not as yet, penetrated into the heart of the county” but the chipmunk has “similar habitats and food requirements”.
She said the authorities were “alarmed” by sightings of chipmunks last month in Colligan Woods near Dungarvan. It is believed the creatures were bought as pets and escaped or were deliberately released into the wild. The first sighting occurred on August 10th when a member of the public spotted and photographed a chipmunk crossing a road.
The sighting sparked concern among officials at the National Biodiversity Data Centre and the National Parks and Wildlife Service. There was relief three days later when a dead chipmunk was found in the area. Officials hoped the sighting was “a one off”. However, a fresh sighting occurred on August 15th when a local resident, Dina Walshe saw and photographed another chipmunk whose behaviour suggested it might have been a former pet “as it did not shy away from close human contact”.
She submitted photographs to the National Biodiversity Data Centre, which then issued the invasive species alert. The Siberian chipmunk (Eutamias sibiricus) is normally found in woodlands in northern Russia, China, Korea and Japan and is distinguished by five longitudinal stripes along its back. The rodent can grow to a length of 25cm and lives on a diet of shrubs, mushrooms, berries, birds and other small animals.
Chipmunks can spread rabies and also carry the ticks which harbour Lyme disease. In Russia, they are regarded as pests which cause widespread destruction of nut and grain crops and can also threaten ground-nesting birds.
Ms O’Flynn confirmed it was “illegal to release any non-native species into the wild in Ireland without a licence” and that it was also “cruel to release a pet into the wild”. She pointed out that “Siberian chipmunks do not make ideal pets” as they “do not suit confinement and are difficult to contain”.
She also appealed to people who spot a chipmunk in the wild to take a photograph if possible and report the sighting. Ms O’Flynn added, “during 2009 and 2010, we have seen a number of species associated with the pet trade end up in the wild in Ireland”.
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/0923/1224279504217.html
Monday, 20 September 2010
Sad demise of Cedric the Tasmanian devil sets back fight to save species
In spite of their ferocious reputation, Tasmanian devils have a timid nature. Australia Zoo / EPAPhil Mercer, Foreign Correspondent
September 18. 2010
SYDNEY // With a spine-chilling scream that terrified Australia’s early European settlers, the carnivorous Tasmanian devil has a fearsome reputation. But in recent years it has been humans, in the form of scientists, who have been trying to save the animals from extinction.
An aggressive cancer is slowly wiping out the species, with its population falling by 60 per cent in the past decade.
Last week scientists said they had made a breakthrough in the fight to save the animals by mapping its genome for the first time. There is hope that charting the devils’ full DNA sequence will open new paths to understanding and combating the mysterious cancer that causes disfiguring facial tumours.
“This sequence is invaluable and comes at a crucial time,”said the lead researcher Elizabeth Murchison. “By comparing our draft sequence with samples taken from many hundreds of devils suffering from this cancer, we can begin to look at the spread of the disease.”
Ms Murchison, from the Australian National University, said the information would allow scientists to identify which mutations had actually caused the devils’ cancer “and perhaps allow us to target those mutant genes with particular drugs”.
The breakthrough comes after researchers suffered a setback last month when a Tasmanian devil that showed rare signs of resistance to the cancer died.
For several years the animal, named Cedric, was a beacon of hope for researchers after showing signs of immunity to the tumours.
The unique marsupials exist in the wild only in Tasmania, Australia’s rugged southern island state, where they are listed as endangered. The size of a small dog, the stocky, dark-furred marsupials have powerful jaws and a scream that led to their demonic name.
For scientists working to unlock the secrets of the virus that threatens to render devils extinct within 25 years, the untimely death of Cedric was a blow.
“He had genetic differences that we thought might lead us to find a solution to the facial tumour disease,” said Dr Barrie Wells, a veterinarian and animal welfare officer at the University of Tasmania. “It looked like Cedric might have special properties. He was a valuable animal and he did resist this disease in a way that other devils did not.”
Cedric was born in captivity and spent his whole life in research facilities, where over six years he was subjected to various tests and injected with malignant cells. He was euthanised by Dr Wells’s team at the end of August after finally succumbing to cancer.
“His death has set us back because when we thought we were close to an answer, we were not,” Dr Wells said.
The highly contagious cancer, which first emerged in the mid- 1990s and has never been seen in nature before, is transmitted between animals during rowdy communal squabbles over food or aggressive mating rituals. The search for a cure has been hampered by the contagion’s ability to mutate into several different strains.
While science struggles to find an effective treatment, breeding centres have been set up across the Australian mainland to establish “insurance” populations of healthy devils. Sydney’s Taronga Zoo is home to a small group of six adults and four juveniles, which could hold the key to the long-term survival of a species in peril.
“They have big personalities. They are very outgoing and get up to a lot of mischief,” explains Lisa Cavanagh, a keeper at the zoo, as two energetic juveniles tear into an early-morning meal of raw rabbit meat, emitting the occasional growl and squeal, while their father soaks up the sun in a nearby enclosure.
Bunyip, aged 18 months, and Devitt are unlikely to ever be released into the wild and are part of a 50-year “Noah’s ark” project to protect vulnerable captive specimens from the seemingly unstoppable sickness.
“It is an amazing disease when you see what it can do to an animal. It affects their mouth and their eyes. It is an open wound once it gets to the final stages. They live with it for about three to six months. They die not only from the cancer but from starvation. It is just the most devastating disease,” Ms Cavanagh said.
The image of the endangered Tasmanian devil has been given a makeover at a new exhibition at Taronga Zoo to raise awareness of the plight of a flesh-eating marsupial that has a fearsome reputation.
Portrayed as crazed by the Warner Brothers cartoon character Taz, the animal has never attracted the sort of public sympathy afforded to Australia’s koalas or kangaroos.
The idea is that if visitors to the zoo see how endearing and unassuming the devil usually is, they will be encouraged to support breeding programmes.
“They’ve got massive teeth and can open their mouths very wide and if there’s a bit of sun behind them their ears actually appear to glow red because of how thin the skin is, so there are a few things that do fit the name.
“However, their behaviour doesn’t quite match it,” said Nick de Vos, manager of the devil breeding programme at Taronga Zoo. “They are actually quite shy and retiring.”
Kerry Addison, a tourist from Melbourne, and her 10-year-old daughter, Rosemary, were among those happy to see one of Australia’s most distinctive mammals at such close quarters.
“They are so cute. I want one,” enthused Rosemary, while her mother said: “I think preserving as many animals as we can is important. Using the zoo to tell children about how to look after animals is a great thing. They look sweet but because they are called devils you might think they are an aggressive animal but they are obviously not and bound around quite happily.”
foreign.desk@thenational.ae
* With additional reporting by Agence France-Presse
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100919/FOREIGN/709189890/1002/rss
Saturday, 18 September 2010
Tuna Imperiled by Overfishing, Oil Spill Clears First Hurdle to Endangered Species Act Protection
From: Center for Biological Diversity
Published September 17, 2010 01:20 AM
SAN FRANCISCO— The National Marine Fisheries Service announced Thursday it will consider protecting Atlantic bluefin tuna under the Endangered Species Act. The decision is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on Sept. 21 and comes in response to a Center for Biological Diversity’s petition last May to protect the tuna, in dramatic decline because of overfishing and habitat degradation, including from the BP oil spill. The Center issued a notice of intent to sue the agency earlier this week for failing to respond to the petition within the legally required timeline.
“As a result of this decision, the bluefin tuna could become the first species considered for federal protections in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill,” said Catherine Kilduff, an oceans program attorney at the Center. “Unfortunately, tuna epitomize the precarious position of many Gulf of Mexico species. Tuna were already on the brink of extinction before the oil spill from severe overfishing; then the spill drowned their breeding grounds in oil during spawning season.”
Overfishing of Atlantic bluefin tuna has caused a more than 80-percent decline from what the population would be without fishing pressure. The sushi market keeps prices for tuna high — a single individual sold for $177,000 in the fish market this year — and encourages illegal and unreported fishing. In 2007, fishermen reported catching 34,514 tons of eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna, exceeding the allowable catch by about 5,000 tons. Scientists estimated the actual catch was likely about double the reported amount.
“Our voracious appetite for sushi propelled tuna into a jaw-dropping decline, and BP’s disastrous spill only made their plight more urgent,” said Kilduff. “Tuna are in urgent need of the protections of the Endangered Species Act, which has a proven track record of success in protecting imperiled wildlife.”
The bluefin, a majestic fish weighing close to a ton and reaching 13 feet, is among the fastest of all species, capable of speeds over 55 miles per hour. There are two imperiled populations of Atlantic bluefin tuna, one that spawns in the Gulf of Mexico and another that spawns in the Mediterranean. The petition seeks endangered status for both populations, which are intensely overfished. Protection under the Endangered Species Act would require federal agencies such as the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement to avoid jeopardizing the bluefin tuna in permitting offshore drilling. Additionally, protections would safeguard critical habitat and ban the importation of bluefin.
Published September 17, 2010 01:20 AM
SAN FRANCISCO— The National Marine Fisheries Service announced Thursday it will consider protecting Atlantic bluefin tuna under the Endangered Species Act. The decision is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on Sept. 21 and comes in response to a Center for Biological Diversity’s petition last May to protect the tuna, in dramatic decline because of overfishing and habitat degradation, including from the BP oil spill. The Center issued a notice of intent to sue the agency earlier this week for failing to respond to the petition within the legally required timeline.
“As a result of this decision, the bluefin tuna could become the first species considered for federal protections in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill,” said Catherine Kilduff, an oceans program attorney at the Center. “Unfortunately, tuna epitomize the precarious position of many Gulf of Mexico species. Tuna were already on the brink of extinction before the oil spill from severe overfishing; then the spill drowned their breeding grounds in oil during spawning season.”
Overfishing of Atlantic bluefin tuna has caused a more than 80-percent decline from what the population would be without fishing pressure. The sushi market keeps prices for tuna high — a single individual sold for $177,000 in the fish market this year — and encourages illegal and unreported fishing. In 2007, fishermen reported catching 34,514 tons of eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna, exceeding the allowable catch by about 5,000 tons. Scientists estimated the actual catch was likely about double the reported amount.
“Our voracious appetite for sushi propelled tuna into a jaw-dropping decline, and BP’s disastrous spill only made their plight more urgent,” said Kilduff. “Tuna are in urgent need of the protections of the Endangered Species Act, which has a proven track record of success in protecting imperiled wildlife.”
The bluefin, a majestic fish weighing close to a ton and reaching 13 feet, is among the fastest of all species, capable of speeds over 55 miles per hour. There are two imperiled populations of Atlantic bluefin tuna, one that spawns in the Gulf of Mexico and another that spawns in the Mediterranean. The petition seeks endangered status for both populations, which are intensely overfished. Protection under the Endangered Species Act would require federal agencies such as the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement to avoid jeopardizing the bluefin tuna in permitting offshore drilling. Additionally, protections would safeguard critical habitat and ban the importation of bluefin.
For more information about the Center’s bluefin tuna conservation campaign, visit: http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/fish/Atlantic_bluefin_tuna/index.html.
http://www.enn.com/press_releases/3497
Wednesday, 8 September 2010
Gulf of Mexico oil spill threatens seahorse species with extinction: researchers
September 7, 2010
(PhysOrg.com) -- A species of seahorse unique to the waters of the Gulf Coast could face extinction because of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, warns marine conservation organization Project Seahorse. Without careful intervention, the dwarf seahorse (Hippocampus zosterae) could virtually disappear within a few years, while many other fish populations, including several other species of seahorse, face a similarly bleak future as cleanup continues.
“We’re very worried,” says Assoc. Prof. Amanda Vincent, director of Project Seahorse at the University of British Columbia and a leading expert on seahorse conservation “All of the seahorse populations in the area will be affected, but the dwarf seahorse is at greatest risk of extinction because much of its habitat has been devastated by the spill.”
Dwarf seahorses are tiny (less than 2.5 cm long), sedentary animals that feed and reproduce in shallow coastal seagrass beds for much of the year. Unusually, it is the males who give birth; they produce very few young, making the species particularly vulnerable to environmental change. The spill has exposed them to high levels of oil toxins and destroyed large swaths of their food-rich habitat. Their numbers are expected to drop, even as the cleanup gains momentum.
“While the spill itself was catastrophic for these animals and ecosystems, the cleanup poses considerable threats, too,” says Assoc. Prof. Heather Masonjones, a seahorse biologist at the University of Tampa. “The dispersants used to break up the oil cause some of the toxins to sink and spread, accumulating in their food sources and poisoning more animals.”
To slow the movement of the spill, BP has burned off the oil caught in seagrass mats floating in open water. While the majority of the animals live in seagrass beds in the coastal shallows of the Gulf, others live in these loose mats of vegetation offshore.
The burning of the mats has killed many marine animals while depriving others of their habitat and exposing them to further toxicity. Seagrass is vital to the long-term health of coastal ecosystems, sheltering marine animals, acting as fish nurseries, improving water quality, and preventing erosion.
Where possible, the use of chemical dispersants and the burning of oil should be avoided, urge the researchers. Booms have been, and should continue to be, used to isolate the slicks. They can then be skimmed, left to evaporate, or treated with biological agents such as fertilizers. These organic agents promote the growth of micro-organisms that biodegrade oil. In extreme cases where animals are at high risk of poisoning, seagrass mats and beds can be cut to reduce toxic exposure.
“It’s absolutely critical that measures be taken to preserve the seagrass mats and beds,” says Masonjones. “We must act quickly and carefully to give these fragile species the best chance of survival.”
The Gulf of Mexico spill — and the explosion last Thursday of the Mariner Energy platform — raise questions about the safety of oil extraction and transport closer to home, in British Columbia’s coastal waters.
“An oil spill in B.C. would present a grave threat to several species of pipefish, close relatives of the seahorse, and to plenty of other marine life,” says Vincent. “Because of the coastal topography and wind patterns, clean up could be extremely difficult, and here, too, we could see a number of species catastrophically affected.”
Provided by University of British Columbia (news : web)
http://www.physorg.com/news203098530.html
Tuesday, 7 September 2010
Wild boars must be contained or declared an invasive species
RIGHT: Feral pigs are a threat to agriculture. (Michigan Wildlife Conservancy)September 07. 2010
By most accounts, free-ranging feral swine are as much of an ecological threat as Asian carp. Leading agricultural and natural resources organizations in Michigan are worried enough to want them eradicated and banned from the state, but that would shut down at least 40 game ranches whose owners collect as much as $2,000 apiece from hunters eager to stalk and shoot them on the ranches.
A balanced approach that avoids putting these entrepreneurs out of business seems like a better option, provided the owners are willing and able to keep the critters contained. Such an undertaking would require stronger state regulation of the hunting ranches, the cost of which should be fully covered by user fees. Taxpayers shouldn't have to subsidize private hunts or pay for the disease and damage caused by feral hogs that escape.
Feral swine can be hunted at all times outside of the ranches on private land. If they are to be shot on public land, hunters must have a small game license.
Michigan residents already have been saddled with a $415,000 tab for actions to protect local pork production facilities when 19 wild hogs were diagnosed with Pseudo rabies (PRV) at a private hunting facility in Saginaw County in 2008, according to Michigan United Conservation Clubs.
There are an estimated 5,300 feral swine on the loose in Michigan and the population is growing, according to the Department of Natural Resources. Some escaped from hunting ranches, others from hog farms. They have easily adapted to Michigan's wilds and now are producing offspring that compete with other animals for food. They threaten the spread of PRV, brucellosis and other devastating diseases to $500-million-a-year pork production industry.
The United Conservation Clubs are among organizations pushing to have feral hogs listed as invasive species, which would simply outlaw them. A club official says the group believes the swine already meet legislated criteria for listing as an invasive species. Michigan's Natural Resources Commission considered doing so on Aug. 12, but held off after hearing from game farm owners who said they've invested millions setting up their operations and obtaining wild boar from Canada and elsewhere.
A popular YouTube video features hunters with wild boar they bagged at Bear Mountain Lodge near the Upper Peninsula's Negaunee. They compare the experience to stalking Russian boar in Siberia, a cutting-edge hunting adventure these days. Three Republican House lawmakers are proposing legislation to keep the ranches in business with increased state oversight. The bill would require ranch owners to pay a $1,000 fee every three years, install tougher enclosures, test all of their boars for diseases and keep detailed records of each animal.
The problem is that stronger enforcement proposed in the bill would cost $2.3 million a year, according to DNR estimates -- far more than the $40,000 or so the proposed fees would raise over a three-year period. With the state budget more than $1 billion out of whack, taxpayers can't afford to make up the difference. If the disparity can't be resolved through higher fees, invasive species listing might be the only alternative.
http://detnews.com/article/20100907/OPINION01/9070303/1007/rss07#ixzz0yrSZpaHy
Monday, 6 September 2010
Whaling and fishing for the largest species has altered carbon sequestering in oceans
September 6, 2010
(PhysOrg.com) -- Decades of whaling and fishing for the largest species have altered the ability of oceans to store and sequester carbon, according to a team of marine researchers from the University of Maine, the University of British Columbia and the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI).
An individual whale contains a huge amount of carbon, an amount only exceeded by the largest trees, says Andrew Pershing, a research scientist with a joint appointment at UMaine and GMRI who led the team. A century of whaling equates to burning more than 70 million acres of temperate forest or 28,000 SUVs driving for 100 years, he says.
“We tend to think of carbon storage in peat bogs, trees and grasslands, not in animals,” Pershing says. “By removing whales, sharks and large fish, we’ve reduced the amount of carbon stored in these populations.”
Conserving larger marine vertebrate species and the largest individuals in the species should be a top conservation priority, according to the researchers, whose findings on the impact of whaling on the ocean carbon cycle were published last week (week of Aug. 30) by the international Public Library of Science (PLoS).
Carbon credits could provide additional incentive to rebuild fish and whale populations, Pershing says.
Ocean iron fertilization is the most widely discussed idea for sequestering carbon in the ocean. But calculations by Pershing and the other researchers — Line Christensen at the University of British Columbia; Nicholas Record and Peter Stetson from UMaine and GMRI; and Graham Sherwood from GMRI — suggest that rebuilding whale and large fish populations would be even more efficient means of storing carbon.
“The big surprise was in our calculations comparing carbon exported by sinking whale carcasses to the carbon exported by iron fertilization,” says Pershing, whose research was supported by NASA and the National Science Foundation. “If we had all the whales we used to have, they would remove the same amount of carbon in a year as 200 of the most efficient iron fertilization events. What that tells me is that we can get significant carbon savings by conserving resources in the ocean, protecting whales, larger fish and sharks.”
Dead, sinking phytoplankton cells are the primary means of removing carbon from the ocean’s euphotic zone near the surface. Marine vertebrates play a much smaller role in the movement and storage of inorganic and organic carbon in the ocean ecosystem. However, their contributions cannot be underestimated, considering the inherent metabolic efficiency of the large animals.
A blue whale has a biomass of 90 tons, with 9 tons of carbon stored in its tissues. Only a large tree has more carbon, Pershing says.
Compared to phytoplankton that have life spans measured in days, whales and large fish live for decades. Carbon accumulated in their bodies is sequestered — out of the atmosphere — for the life of the animal. Because of their potential to store carbon for years, marine vertebrates such as whales are comparable to trees.
And because of their size and few predators, whales and other big marine vertebrates can efficiently export carbon from the surface waters to the deep sea. Those that die natural deaths transport their carbon to the ocean depths, away from the atmosphere.
To study the consequences of removing these large animals on the ocean’s ability to store carbon, the researchers looked at populations of whale species, reconstructing their pre-whaling and modern abundances. Those species include blue whales in the Southern Ocean, whose numbers have been reduced by more than 99 percent.
The researchers estimate that 100 years of whaling removed 23 million tons of carbon from marine ecosystems. Populations of large baleen whales now store only 15 percent of the carbon they had before whaling.
In those ecosystems heavily impacted by whaling, the populations of smaller species increased. But such a shift toward smaller animals could decrease the total community biomass by 30 percent or more, according to the researchers. The larger animals require less food per unit mass, more efficiently storing carbon than smaller animals.
Compared to smaller animals, bigger species require less food (carbon) per day to support each gram of tissue. The same amount of food can support a greater tonnage of whales than penguins, Pershing says.
“In many ways bigger is better,” Pershing says. “Larger organisms are more efficient, requiring less food per unit in their bodies.”
Provided by The University of Maine
http://www.physorg.com/news202985104.html
(PhysOrg.com) -- Decades of whaling and fishing for the largest species have altered the ability of oceans to store and sequester carbon, according to a team of marine researchers from the University of Maine, the University of British Columbia and the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI).
An individual whale contains a huge amount of carbon, an amount only exceeded by the largest trees, says Andrew Pershing, a research scientist with a joint appointment at UMaine and GMRI who led the team. A century of whaling equates to burning more than 70 million acres of temperate forest or 28,000 SUVs driving for 100 years, he says.
“We tend to think of carbon storage in peat bogs, trees and grasslands, not in animals,” Pershing says. “By removing whales, sharks and large fish, we’ve reduced the amount of carbon stored in these populations.”
Conserving larger marine vertebrate species and the largest individuals in the species should be a top conservation priority, according to the researchers, whose findings on the impact of whaling on the ocean carbon cycle were published last week (week of Aug. 30) by the international Public Library of Science (PLoS).
Carbon credits could provide additional incentive to rebuild fish and whale populations, Pershing says.
Ocean iron fertilization is the most widely discussed idea for sequestering carbon in the ocean. But calculations by Pershing and the other researchers — Line Christensen at the University of British Columbia; Nicholas Record and Peter Stetson from UMaine and GMRI; and Graham Sherwood from GMRI — suggest that rebuilding whale and large fish populations would be even more efficient means of storing carbon.
“The big surprise was in our calculations comparing carbon exported by sinking whale carcasses to the carbon exported by iron fertilization,” says Pershing, whose research was supported by NASA and the National Science Foundation. “If we had all the whales we used to have, they would remove the same amount of carbon in a year as 200 of the most efficient iron fertilization events. What that tells me is that we can get significant carbon savings by conserving resources in the ocean, protecting whales, larger fish and sharks.”
Dead, sinking phytoplankton cells are the primary means of removing carbon from the ocean’s euphotic zone near the surface. Marine vertebrates play a much smaller role in the movement and storage of inorganic and organic carbon in the ocean ecosystem. However, their contributions cannot be underestimated, considering the inherent metabolic efficiency of the large animals.
A blue whale has a biomass of 90 tons, with 9 tons of carbon stored in its tissues. Only a large tree has more carbon, Pershing says.
Compared to phytoplankton that have life spans measured in days, whales and large fish live for decades. Carbon accumulated in their bodies is sequestered — out of the atmosphere — for the life of the animal. Because of their potential to store carbon for years, marine vertebrates such as whales are comparable to trees.
And because of their size and few predators, whales and other big marine vertebrates can efficiently export carbon from the surface waters to the deep sea. Those that die natural deaths transport their carbon to the ocean depths, away from the atmosphere.
To study the consequences of removing these large animals on the ocean’s ability to store carbon, the researchers looked at populations of whale species, reconstructing their pre-whaling and modern abundances. Those species include blue whales in the Southern Ocean, whose numbers have been reduced by more than 99 percent.
The researchers estimate that 100 years of whaling removed 23 million tons of carbon from marine ecosystems. Populations of large baleen whales now store only 15 percent of the carbon they had before whaling.
In those ecosystems heavily impacted by whaling, the populations of smaller species increased. But such a shift toward smaller animals could decrease the total community biomass by 30 percent or more, according to the researchers. The larger animals require less food per unit mass, more efficiently storing carbon than smaller animals.
Compared to smaller animals, bigger species require less food (carbon) per day to support each gram of tissue. The same amount of food can support a greater tonnage of whales than penguins, Pershing says.
“In many ways bigger is better,” Pershing says. “Larger organisms are more efficient, requiring less food per unit in their bodies.”
Provided by The University of Maine
http://www.physorg.com/news202985104.html
Thursday, 2 September 2010
An Aruba without Troupial, Prikichi, Patrushi or Shoco?-Invasive Boa Constrictor Serious Threat to Aruba's Beloved Bird Populations!
An Aruba without Troupial, Prikichi, Patrushi or Shoco?-Invasive Boa Constrictor Serious Threat to Aruba's Beloved Bird Populations!
Americas, News Posts, Bird Life International, 8/11/10
The presence of the invasive Boa constrictor was first documented in Aruba in April of 1999. Ever since, the numbers of boas caught by the Park Rangers has been impressive. Hundreds are caught each year and only those seen in areas frequented by persons who then notify the Rangers for their assistance. It is safe to presume that a multifold of those caught actually live in Aruba's wildlife.
Quite some places in the world have been confronted with invasive snake situations. The saddest being that of the Brown Three Snake in Guam. Insufficient action was taken to keep the snake's population under control. The consequences now are that several endemic species of animals, including birds have become extinct.
Scientists, up to this day, have no off-the-shelf solution for such undesired intrusions. Many researches are being conducted and the hope is that one day they might find an effective and efficient solution. Reality of the matter is that if we take a passive stance in Aruba towards the boa while waiting for others to come with a solution, that we will live to regret it. Such a day may come sooner than we could imagine. The boa gets more offspring than the Brown Three Snake.
Aruba Birdlife Conservation is in discussion with Parke Nacional Arikok on developing a practical plan to keep the boa numbers in check. In the coming weeks we hope to present at least a temporary solution to help save our birds and other fauna species. We are also working on an analysis of the estimated impact of the boa on our bird populations and we hope to publish these findings shortly.
The scenario that one day in our future an Aruban grandmother has to explain to her grandchildren that we used to have birds named Troupial, Prikichi, Patrushi and Shoco, but that since the boa got loose in our wildlife they have became extinct because we did nothing about it, is simply not an acceptable story. We must act soon or regret later.
Americas, News Posts, Bird Life International, 8/11/10
The presence of the invasive Boa constrictor was first documented in Aruba in April of 1999. Ever since, the numbers of boas caught by the Park Rangers has been impressive. Hundreds are caught each year and only those seen in areas frequented by persons who then notify the Rangers for their assistance. It is safe to presume that a multifold of those caught actually live in Aruba's wildlife.
Quite some places in the world have been confronted with invasive snake situations. The saddest being that of the Brown Three Snake in Guam. Insufficient action was taken to keep the snake's population under control. The consequences now are that several endemic species of animals, including birds have become extinct.
Scientists, up to this day, have no off-the-shelf solution for such undesired intrusions. Many researches are being conducted and the hope is that one day they might find an effective and efficient solution. Reality of the matter is that if we take a passive stance in Aruba towards the boa while waiting for others to come with a solution, that we will live to regret it. Such a day may come sooner than we could imagine. The boa gets more offspring than the Brown Three Snake.
Aruba Birdlife Conservation is in discussion with Parke Nacional Arikok on developing a practical plan to keep the boa numbers in check. In the coming weeks we hope to present at least a temporary solution to help save our birds and other fauna species. We are also working on an analysis of the estimated impact of the boa on our bird populations and we hope to publish these findings shortly.
The scenario that one day in our future an Aruban grandmother has to explain to her grandchildren that we used to have birds named Troupial, Prikichi, Patrushi and Shoco, but that since the boa got loose in our wildlife they have became extinct because we did nothing about it, is simply not an acceptable story. We must act soon or regret later.
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