A joint China-Hong Kong research team has discovered a genetic link between SARS in civet cats and humans. The research project was jointly conducted by the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the Guangzhou Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, and Hong Kong University. The research has conclusively proved that SARS coronavirus found in human victims is the same as the SARS coronavirus found in civet cats. The civet cat is a delicacy in Southern China.
The loss of habitat had led to steep drop of Dormice (Muscardinus avellanarius) in Britain. The efforts to stem this tide are coming to fruition. Reintroduction trials in Linconshire are on way to success. Dormice are good indicators of the environment's health. Common dormice may spend up to three quarters of their life asleep. They hibernate to conserve energy when food is scarce. . Dormice breed once or twice a year, with four being the typical size of a litter. They can live for as long as five years. Little is known about their social behaviour.
The first meeting of the new Western Gray Whale Advisory Panel and Sakhalin Energy Investment Company, which was convened by IUCN the World Conservation Union, recently, has come up with some firm proposals. Decisions on how to tackle oil spill prevention and response and the way ahead with a photographic identification programme for the Western Gray Whale are amongst the outcomes of the first meeting. In addition to the panel members, IUCN representatives, and officials from Sakhalin Energy, observers from financial institutions and environmental NGOs attended the meeting.
Scientists have captured what is believed to be the rarest big cat on Earth, the Far Eastern leopard(Panthera pardus orientalis) in the remote forests of southeastern Russia. The bonanza occurred while the scientists of the New York based Wildlife Conservation Society were studying Siberian Tigers. Only 30 animals are thought to survive in the wild. The scientists did a thorough series of tests on the leopard, from studying its teeth to collecting sperm samples, before releasing the animal back into the wild. Scientists hope that the information gained will help them to devise appropriate conservation measures.
The 2006 Reuters-IUCN Media Award for Excellence in Environmental Reporting goes to Marina Walker Guevara of Argentina for her story “The children of lead” (Los ni?os del plomo). The Awards Ceremony was held at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Nairobi; Kenya.Walker Guevara was presented with the USD 5,000 prize. The reporting brings to life the moving story of Mischell Barzola, a six year-old girl from La Oroya, Peru, who has stopped growing because of lead contamination. "Los Niños del Plomo" also highlights the dilemma of the 4,000 families whose livelihoods depend on the lead industry, even though it threatens the health of their own children. Walker Guevara currently works as a reporter for the Center for Public Integrity, an investigative reporting organization in Washington, DC.
Fires on the island of Borneo have killed up to 1,000 orangutans. The fires have been raging across central Borneo for months. There has been severe erosion of Orangutans habitat in recent years for making oil palm plantations. This means there are few places for them to go to avoid the fires. Local people have killed several animal that entered oil palm plantations. This is a Very sorry state of affairs for one of the world’s most adorable animal. Environmentalists have blamed farmers and logging companies clearing land for oil palm plantations for this predicament
According to conservationists, urgent attention is needed to save the reclusive Balkan lynx. Only around 100 of the big cats are thought to remain in existence. The largest numbers are found in the remote hills of western FYR Macedonia, where they are considered a national symbol. They are also found in Albania, Serbia and Greece. The main problem according to conservationists is that major chunk of Albania's formerly dense forests, the lynx's preferred habitat, had been cut down for firewood and were now used for grazing. Efforts are on to reverse this trend.
The Dingo (Canis lupus dingo) is a much-maligned animal in Australia particularly in sheep rearing areas. Sheep farmers attempt to completely eliminate them as they prey on sheep. Poison is the most common method of controlling dingo populations. Now research carried out by Professor Chris Johnson of James Cook University in Queensland shows that Australia's last native "top predator" perform an essential role in maintaining biodiversity He has found that marsupial populations have a much better chance in areas that also have stable populations of dingoes. In cattle country, by and large, dingoes will hunt kangaroos or rabbits. They also keep fox and feral cat numbers in check, say researchers. The findings are reported in the latest issue of the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society
Cayman blue iguana (Cyclura lewisi) is one of the critically endangered species in the world. The wild population of blue iguanas is expected to be extinct within 10 years. There is however new hope on the horizon. Three eggs laid by a Grand Cayman blue iguana that had been released into a nature reserve on the Caribbean island have successfully hatched. Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust. UK Is heading this successful captive breeding and release programme
The greater horseshoe bat, a very rare bat facing extinction threat has been discovered at the National Trust’s Dolaucothi Gold Mines in Carmarthenshire, south Wales,England. The name horseshoe bat comes from the distinctive horseshoe-shaped plate of skin around the nostrils of this bat. It is in a highly endangered state in Britain and the rest of northern Europe. The discovery in a new site is encouraging according to Carmarthenshire Bat Group, which regularly monitors the birds.
Reuters Foundation and the World Conservation Union (IUCN) have announced the regional winners of the 2006 Reuters-IUCN Media Awards for Excellence in Environmental Reporting. The six regional winners will receive a trophy at the ceremony co-hosted by Reuters and IUCN on 14 November 2006 in Nairobi, Kenya.The recipients will vie for the global prize of US$ 5,000.
This year’s regional winners competing for the global prize are:
Asia: Richard Stone and Hawk Jia of Science Magazine
English-speaking Africa and the Middle East: Anjam Sundaram of Associated Press
Europe: John Bohannon of Science Magazine
Francophone Africa: Dalia Abdel-Salam of Al Ahram Hebdo
Latin America: Marina Walker of Revista GatoPardo
North America, Oceania & the Caribbean: Sara Philips of Cosmos Magazine
The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (Ices) has said in its latest report that stocks of cod remained below sustainable limits in North Sea. Stocks have been reduced to a stage where productivity has been impaired. ICES have recommended that a total ban should be in force till 2007. The minimum desired level is 70000 thousand Tons. Ideally it should be 1500000 Tons.
According to researchers from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), poaching has brought the hippopotamus population in Democratic Republic of Congo to within a few months of extinction. Mai Mai militia, which has set up camp in Virunga National Park, is catching the animals for meat and ivory. The numbers now are below 400. Twenty years ago there were about 22,000 hippos in Virunga Park.
The crest on the head of prehistoric flying reptiles was a puzzle for the scientists. Now UK scientists say they have resolved the mystery. A rare skull specimen found in Brazil shows the crest appeared at puberty, suggesting it was used to attract attention from the opposite sex. Dr Naish and colleague Dr David Martill who led the study examined the skull and found that the crest was different in the juvenile.Dr Naish said This is a significant find as it links the growth of the crest to physical maturity and therefore presumably to sex. The findings are published in the journal Palaeontology
