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POPSSpecies of the Day 7th February 2010 - Trachypithecus-delacouri
Delacour’s Langur, Trachypithecus delacouri, is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM. Found only in north-central Vietnam, Delacour’s Langur is one of the rarest and most threatened primates on Earth. With a population estimated to be less than 250 mature individuals, fragmented into numerous subpopulations, most of which are unviable in the long-term, this species is dangerously close to extinction. The level of hunting has reduced in recent years as a result of increased legal protection, but continues to pose a significant threat, whilst ongoing habitat loss is contributing to the further isolation of the remaining populations. Recent commitments by the Vietnamese government and several international conservation organisations to do more to protect Delacour’s Langur have greatly improved the chances of saving this rare and remarkable species. The main priority is to increase the level of protection and law enforcement within tho
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POPS The Nuclear Bluff Obama budget exposes nuclear lie http://michellemalkin.com In his State of the Union Address, President Obama purported to reach across the aisle by endorsing a “new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants”…before pushing cap and trade. The nearly $4 trillion budget he released today exposes his nuclear lie. President Barack Obama will propose eliminating funding for the Yucca Mountain project in a new budget he will submit to Congress on Monday, according to Nevada lawmakers who were notified over the weekend. It zeroes out funds for the besieged Yucca Mountain nuclear storage facility in Nevada " one of the few, prominent Obama campaign pledges that he looks like he’s actually fulfilling: Following the State of the Union, in a conference call with reporters on the same day the nuclear financing plan was unveiled, Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced the creation of a special panel to find a solution for storing nuclear waste.
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POPS'The Empathic Civilization': Rethinking Human Nature in the Biosphere Era The point in short: "Recent discoveries in brain science and child development, however, are forcing us to rethink these long-held shibboleths about human nature. Biologists and cognitive neuroscientists are discovering mirror-neurons--the so-called empathy neurons--that allow human beings and other species to feel and experience another's situation as if it were one's own. We are, it appears, the most social of animals and seek intimate participation and companionship with our fellows."
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POPSAncient tribal language becomes extinct as last speaker dies "The Great Andamanese were first massacred, then all but wiped out by paternalistic policies which left them ravaged by epidemics of disease, and robbed of their land and independence," said Survival International's director, Stephen Corry. "With the death of Boa Sr and the extinction of the Bo language, a unique part of human society is now just a memory. Boa's loss is a bleak reminder that we must not allow this to happen to the other tribes of the Andaman Islands." - more @ clip source
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POPSSpecies of the Day - 4th February 2010 - Ailuronyz-trachygaster The Giant Bronze Gecko, Ailuronyx trachygaster, is listed as ‘Vulnerable’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™. Found only on the Seychelles islands of Silhouette and Praslin, the Giant Bronze Gecko’s sandy-bronze colouration provides it with good camouflage against the branches of its tree habitat. Although not thought to be currently undergoing a decline, this species is vulnerable to extinction due to its small and restricted distribution. Any habitat degradation within its limited range, for example due to the plausible spread of invasive species, could have disastrous consequences for the survival of the Giant Bronze Gecko. The Giant Bronze Gecko and its habitat are protected within Praslin National Park, and efforts to control invasive plants are also underway on Praslin Island. On the island of Silhouette, habitat restoration is being undertaken to help this gecko, and the establishment of a new protected area has been recommended to further benefit the specie
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POPSExplore Endangered Species using Google Earth An award-winning site,ARKive provides free multimedia fact-files – drawing content from leading academic institutions, conservation organisations, individual filmmakers, and photographers – for over 16,000 animals, plants and fungi currently threatened with extinction. Also, using a Google Earth plug-in provided on the site, you can dive beneath the oceans and explore threatened marine species!
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POPSWanted: two miracles Do you believe in miracles? One of my criticisms of Avatar is that a miracle was needed to make the happy ending possible. A belief in miracles is like hope, it stops people from taking personal responsibility ... from taking things into their own hands.
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POPSCan Genetics Bring an Extinct Species Back to Life? Imagine the possibilities: Jurassic Park, an opportunity to resurrect and bring to justice history's great mass murderers, revive the greatest scientific minds, etc. Puts a whole new picture on whether one opts for internment or cremation.
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POPSGiant cattle to be bred back from extinction more: "You would need to interbreed animals that are very close to the auroch in their genetic make-up. The closest you could find in Britain are two semi-feral breeds: the Chillingham and the Vaynol. If there are breeds which maintain many of the attributes of an auroch, then it could well be feasible. It's certainly a very exciting project." If the Italian-led project is successful, it will raise questions of what to do with an animal which boasts a size and temper akin to a tetchy rhinoceros. "Even the wild cattle we have today are very hard to handle and an auroch would be even more difficult," said Dr Barber. "Aurochs were significantly larger than any cattle in existence and they would be potentially dangerous.
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POPSDozens of New Species Found In Threatened Ecuador Jungle Scientists are excited about the discovery of frogs that lay their eggs in trees rather than water and hatch into smaller versions of the adults. "The rise in temperatures and drought are forcing animals to move to higher elevation in search of cooler, wetter climates. Indeed, sites like Pata de Pájaro are under siege from countless ecological disturbances, from widespread deforestation for cattle grazing to timber harvesting and hunting." MailOnline
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POPSAvatar Half-Tells a Story We Would All Prefer to Forget 'The Earth Shall Weep", which, using really prodigious research, tells the story of the extermination from the point of view of the exterminated. So painful was it to read that I couldn't finish it. The greatest dishonour done to these innocent people is to ignore what happened. Then the first step towards some kind of redemption becomes possible by rejecting the values which make this kind of behaviour possible, not just towards human people, but to all the non-human living world, too
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POPS2010 Is The International Year of Biodiversity "Australia has failed to achieve its 2010 Biodiversity Target. We are experiencing an extinction crisis with ongoing major threats to terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments..." boobook.org.au I watch this happen daily... it saddens me greatly...
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POPSYear of Biodiversity focuses on Extinction Crisis If the term 'extinction crisis' became as widely known as 'global warming' would anyone get an organisation together to buy rain forest and protect it? If there was a charity that bought and protected tracts of land to allow it to remain 'wild' I would support it!
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POPSThird Baby Rhino Born in Uganda Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary was established in 1997 to reintroduce the rhinoceros into Uganda. The rhinos are protected by an electric fence that surrounds the sanctuary, as well as rangers and askaris who are with the rhinos 24 hours day. To learn more about how you can help Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, please visit rhinofund.org.
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POPSMann's New Year's Surprise (of Climategate'$ Hockey Team Fame)
in this case perhaps as much as $50 million. (Hat tip: John O'Sullivan of the wonderful new campaigning site www.climategate.com) http://bit.ly/5GXss6 I wonder what took so long and how many other labs will be getting similar letters. An online friend reports that the BBC's science section, a former flogger of AGW has not mentioned one word about the subject so far this year--probably because the journos there are freezing as Britain and much of Europe faces bitter cold weather. The Guardian, however, ignores the freezing cold affecting so much of the globe in a story about how Peru's mountain people are dying out under the cold, reporting risibly that this group stands out in a world which is becoming increasingly warmer. Perhaps those reporters phoned in the story from a sauna in Lima. In a world growing ever hotter, Huancavelica is an anomaly. These communities, living at the edge of what is possible, face extinction because ..... by Clarice Feldman americanthin
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