794 species on the brink of extinction

A study conducted by scientists working with the 52-member Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE) has identified 794 species on the brink of extinction. The list includes the Bloody Bay poison frog of Trinidad and Tobago, the monkey-faced bat of Fiji, the ivory-billed woodpecker in the United States, the cloud rat of the Philippines, the Spatuletail, a hummingbird limited to one Peruvian valley and Mexico's volcano rabbit. 595 sites have been identified. Only one-third of the sites are known to have legal protection. It is worth mentioning that almost 800 species have become extinct since 1500.The study is published in the US-based Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (www.pnas.org)

New Books - Tigerland: And Other Unintended Destinations — Eric Dinerstein

In this fascinating book Eric Dinerstein, now chief scientist for the World Wildlife Fund–U.S chronicles his field studies of majestic and endangered animals and plants - Tigers in Nepal,threatened tropical-dry forests of New Caledonia, the lions and rhinos of the miombo region of East Africa and the bison of the U.S. Great Plains. He also writes about the need for balance between conservation and economic development.

Shearwater Books, 2005, 288 p., hardcover, $25.95. -
ISBN: 1559635789

Endangered Animals Given Conservation Boost

The just concluded eighth conferences of the parties to the United Nations Environment Programme’s Convention on Migratory Species (UNEP/CMS), has given a boost to the conservation of the Mediterranean population of the Short-beaked common dolphin, Henderson’s petrel, the Basra reed warbler; the Large-eared free-tailed bat or Giant mastiff bat; the Strange-tailed tyrant; the Basking Shark and the Saffron-cowled blackbird. Governments and delegates also backed a seven-point plan to improve knowledge and understanding of avian flu as it relates to wild migratory birds.

Elephant prompts United States government security warning.

A United States government security warning has further fueled fearsome reputation of Mutware, an elephant in Akagera National Park, Rwanda. The elephant has terrified visitors and destroyed vehicles. US citizens have been advised, "to exercise extra caution" in Akagera.

Fiji – Efforts on to save Vesi

Vesi (Intisia bijuga) a high-value native timber, is being overexploited and facing extinction on the island of Kabara as a result of commercial logging and wood carving trade. The tree is of great cultural and economic significance. There is hardly any regeneration going on. To reverse this trend, WWF and the government of Fiji have set up the first tree nursery on Kabara, which will enable the community to collect and nurture Vesi seedlings. A reforestation programme is on way. The idea is to develop a community-based forest reserve.

CRISTAL - A new tool to help communities and projects in reducing climate change impacts

CRISTAL (Community-based Risk Screening Tool - Adaptation and Livelihoods) was tested in the World Conservation Union’s field project in the Inner Delta of the NigerRiver in Mali, the widest continental wetland in West Africa and an area of remarkable biological diversity. The tool is being developed by the World Conservation Union (IUCN), the International Institute for
Sustainable Development, the Stockholm Environment Institute-Boston Center and Intercooperation. The aim is to get a thorough understanding of the links between livelihoods and climate change impacts, and thereby help communities and project managers to maximise opportunities to adapt to climate change

Switzerland - Return of the Brown Bear

After a 100-year gap, bears may be coming back to Switzerland. The first brown bear was sighted in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. This has generated lot of excitement. The bear is believed to have come from Trentino region of Italy. Their comeback is a sign that the overall alpine environment has improved. Bear populations were once found in healthy numbers throughout Switzerland

Researchers Decode Dog Genome

Researchers at Broad Institute in Cambridge have decoded the dog genome. Tasha, a female boxer was selected for the experiment. Researchers chose to sequence Tasha's genome because boxers are quite inbred. Tasha being a female, the scientists did not have to bother with a Y chromosome, whose long palindromic regions make work a bit tedious.The findings have been reported in the latest issue of journal Nature .

New Transboundary Protected Area

Lake Skadar, the biggest lake in the Balkans will become a new transboundary protected area between Albania and Montenegro covering almost 900 km2. Lake Skadar hosts some of the most important bird habitats and migratory areas of the region. 250 recorded bird species, including the Dalmatian pelican and golden eagle, and 45 fish species inhabit the lake

Claude Martin hands over reins at WWF International

After 34 years of service to conservation and WWF, Claude Martin has stepped down as Director General of WWF International. At the WWF Board meeting held in Gland on Monday Martin handed over the reins to his successor Jim Leape.

Wasps Could Replace sniffer Dogs

Trained wasps could in the immediate future replace dogs for sniffing out drugs and bombs. A species of non-stinging wasps known as Microplitis croceipes can be trained in only five minutes and are just as sensitive to odours as dogs. Dogs require up to six months of training for the same job. U.S. Department of Agriculture entomologist Joe Lewis and University of Georgia agricultural engineer Glen Rains are at the helm of research. The researchers believes that Wasp Sniffers could be available for sale in three to five years

'New mammal' discovered in Borneo woods

A research team led by biologist Stephan Wulffraat has discovered a new mammal in the dense central forests of Kayan Mentarang National Park,Borneo. The animal is bigger than a domestic cat, dark red, and has a long muscular tail. Two images have been caught on infrared cameras. Efforts are on to capture the new species in a live trap so it can be properly studied.

Japan - Green tax supported

A poll by Environment Ministry in Japan indicates that, majority of Japanese would accept the idea of an environment tax on the carbon produced by burning fossil fuel. The ministry and environmentalists have long urged the introduction of such a tax, which would help curb energy use and reduce the greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming, But the Japanese business houses are against any such move. A tax of 2,400 yen (US$19.92) per ton of carbon emitted from fossil fuels would cost each household roughly 2,100 yen a year.

Creating a “Digital Earth” – a new Conservation initiative to integrate

Very few attempts have been made to integrate taxonomic and geographic (or geospatial) data, and effectively put these assets to work for conservation, The “digital earth” idea is a new initiative to address this challenge, presented at the 11th meeting of SBSTTA, the technical body of the Convention on Biological Diversity currently taking place in Montreal, Canada. In partnership with the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and in conjunction with theWorld Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), an advanced geographic model – “digital earth” - will be applied to the challenge of integrating widely disparate biodiversity data and geospatial information. This will be available on demand and in real time.

Endangered species and flawed research

In the latest issue of the journal Conservation Biology UC Davis conservation biologists, professors Tim Caro, John Eadie and Andrew Sih examine the research practice of using surrogate animals to predict what is endangering another species. The authors say population disturbances affect common and rare species in different ways and advocate making every possible effort to examine the target species directly before resorting to substitute species.
Flagship substitutes are often chosen because they are biologically similar to the troubled species or can be used to develop a predictive model.

China – Environmental Chief gets the axe

The chemical spill that has seriously polluted the country's northeastern Songhua River in China has set the heads rolling. China's cabinet has approved the resignation of Xie Zhenhua, director of the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA). Xie is the highest-ranking official to be removed from office for an environmental incident in China.

World’s largest Wildlife law enforcement network launched

Southeast Asian countries have launched the world’s largest wildlife law enforcement network in an effort to tackle growing illegal wildlife trade. The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations to be known as ASEAN-WEN, for ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network .will promote cross-border cooperation, information exchanges, cooperation between national environmental and law enforcement officials, and training for wildlife trafficking agencies.

Early birds had Dinosaur Feet,new Study reveals.

A 150 million-year-old fossil of Archaeopteryx,found in Germany's Bavaria region, strengthen theories that birds descended directly from dinosaurs. The first known bird had feet like a dinosaur. The creature could hyperextend its second toe in a dinosaur-like way. The discovery was made by Gerald Mayr of the Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg in Frankfurt, Germany, and colleagues at the Wyoming Dinosaur Center in Thermopolis.

Changes in Bird Song patterns gives warning of habitat fragmentation

Reserch byDr Paola Laiolo and Dr José Tella, of the Estación Biológica de Doñana in Seville shows that birds in Spain and Morocco are having trouble hearing and copying each other's songs because of the way their habitat has been broken up, Habitat fragmentation has led to the birds living in more isolated groups and only learning songs from their closest neighbours. Researchers fear that this will lead to genetic erosion. Increase in agricultural land, forest plantations and roads have contributed to the fragmentation. Dr Laiolo and Dr Tella believe that their song matching technique could be used in other places to measure how fragmented a habitat has become.

330 million years Tracks of Extinct, Giant Scorpion discovered in Scotland

Martin Whyte, a geologist working at the University of Sheffield has discovered Tracks made 330 million years ago by a six-legged water scorpion bigger than a human, in Scotland. This is the largest terrestrial track of a walking arthropod to be discovered so far. According to Whyte the now extinct giant scorpion had at least three pairs of appendages of different lengths. The report appears in the current issue of the journal Nature.