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Articles in: Conservation
Conservation, Nature, Sustainable living, Wildlife & Flora, Feb 4th, 2012,
Species: Giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) Status: Endangered (EN) Interesting Fact: The giant otter is also known as the ‘river wolf’. The giant otter is one of South America’s top carnivores, and is the largest of the otter species. The giant otter generally lives in family groups of three to ten individuals, composed of a monogamous, breeding pair and their offspring born during previous years. These groups rest, play, travel, fish and sleep together. When cubs are born, they are cared for in a den by both the adult pair, and the older siblings. At two to three weeks of age,…
Tags: ARKive.org, Conservation, endangered species, Giant otter, Pteronura brasiliensis, weird
Conservation, Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 28th, 2012,
Species: American burying beetle (Nicrophorus americanus) Status: Critically Endangered (CR) Interesting Fact: The American burying beetle buries a whole carcass to feed its young! The largest carrion beetle in North America, the American burying beetle is an attractive species with bright orange markings. These beetles are named for their specialised mechanism of parental care that involves providing the growing larvae with carrion upon which to feed. At night, beetle pairs will locate a suitable carcass and then cooperate to bury it in the soil, thus protecting their find from competition with other species. Once the carcass is beneath the soil,…
Tags: American Burying Beetle, critically endangered, endangered insect, endangered species, Nicrophorus americanus
Animals, Conservation, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 25th, 2012,
Alaska’s main animal predators are now at risk of being shot from helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. It is already legal to bait and snare bears in Alaska, a practice even some hunting advocates find inhumane. In order to increase the hunting of caribou and moose in the state, Alaska’s Board of Game has lifted a ban on the aerial shooting of grizzly bears, a threatened species in most US states. State wildlife officials may now cull grizzlies by shooting them Sarah Palin style – from the sky. But its not just the bears that are at risk. It is…
Tags: aerial, Alaska, bears, grizzly, shooting, wolves
Conservation, Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 22nd, 2012,
Species: Adelaide pygmy bluetongue skink (Tiliqua adelaidensis) Status: Endangered (EN) Interesting Fact: The Adelaide pygmy bluetongue skink shelters in burrows created by spiders! Surprisingly, the tongue of this skink is not blue as the name suggests, but is instead a rose pink colour. The mottled mixture of browns on the rest of its body enables this species to blend in perfectly with its surroundings in its native Australian habitat. During the heat of the day, the Adelaide pygmy bluetongue skink shelters in holes that, rather than being excavated by the skink itself, are quarried by wolf spiders and trapdoor spiders….
Tags: Adelaide pygmy bluetongue skink, ARKive.org, Conservation, endangered animals, endangered species, Tiliqua adelaidensis
Conservation, Natural disasters, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 16th, 2012,
We depend on honeybees to pollinate some 70 crops. Due to a phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), honeybees, mainly in North America, are dying off at a shocking rate – 30% every year since 2006. In the US, bee die-offs have qualified some beekeepers for disaster relief from the Department of Agriculture. Though the exact cause, or causes, of CCD are murky – it has been attributed to parasites and satellite communication – the most obvious culprits are pesticides, specifically insecticides. From the Guardian: Of particular concern is a group of pesticides, chemically similar to nicotine, called neonicotinoids…
Tags: beekeeper, beekeeping, bees, CCD, honeybee, pesticides
Animals, Conservation, Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 15th, 2012,
Species: (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus) Status: Endangered (EN) Interesting Fact: The hyacinth macaw is the world’s largest species of parrot! At up to a meter in length and with striking cobalt blue feathers, the hyacinth macaw is certainly a stunning parrot. This species lives in the forests and grasslands of South America, mainly in Brazil, where it feeds mainly on the nuts of native palms. While its powerful bill might make short work of most of these, the acuri nut is so hard that the parrots cannot feed on it until it has passed through the digestive system of cattle. The hyacinth…
Tags: anodorhynchus hyacinthinus, ARKive.org, endangered birds, endangered parrot, endangered species, hyacinth macaw, parrot
Animals, Conservation, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 13th, 2012,
Last month I mentioned a ‘celebrity wolf’, who has been making a solo journey of hundreds of miles (over 1,000 km) throughout the American State of Oregon – the great state in which I was born if anyone cares… didn’t think so. Anyway, the lone Gray Wolf, until now known by the clinical moniker OR-7, has made his way – like so many disillusioned loners in search of stardom – into California. He’s the only wild wolf known to set foot in the state in over 80 years. OR-7 has also got himself a new, infinitely more marketable, celebrity name:…
Tags: California, coyote, gray, journey, lone, or-7, Oregon, wild, wolf
Conservation, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 10th, 2012,
Ladybird, or ladybug as the Yanks call it, is a collective term for the family of beetles with the scientific name Coccinellidae. We know ladybirds as cute, round, flying insects that usually have a bright red shell with black polka dots. Harlequin ladybugs were introduced in North America from their native Asia to combat aphid infestations, but are now the most common ladybug species there. The same is now occurring in Europe, including the UK. Harlequin ladybirds eat all 46 of the UK’s native ladybird species. They also leave orange stains on curtains and wallpaper. This is a particular problem…
Tags: harlequin, invasive, ladybird, ladybug, species, UK
Conservation, Nature, Sustainable living, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 8th, 2012,
Species: Saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica) Status: Critically Endangered (CR) Interesting Fact: The large proboscis-like nose of the saiga antelope is thought to help with body temperature control. The strange looking saiga antelope has an extremely distinctive appearance, with an enlarged nose that hangs down over the mouth. This impressive nose is thought to warm and moisten inhaled air during the winter, and act as a filter against dust during the dry summer. Saiga antelope feed by grazing on various plants, and are usually active during the day. They are nomadic, and undertake long seasonal migrations of up to 1,000 kilometers….
Tags: ARKive.org, endangered species, nature conservation, saiga antelope, Saiga tatarica
Conservation, Natural disasters, Videos & Documentaries, ,
Leave it to ITN to come up with some short and (sometimes) sweet videos with which to catch up on some of the week’s environmental news. We’ve gathered three (yes, three) bite-sized eco-news reports in one place. Why? Because, like the Mouseketeers, we like you! First, check out Italy’s Mount Etna as she spectacularly spews forth molten lava and ash into the Sicilian sky. Next there’s a report on antipodean wildfires raging across New Zealand and Australia. Finally, Sea Shepherd and Japanese whalers fight for both whale rights and whaling rights on the high seas. Guess who fights for which.
Tags: etna, Japanese, Sea Shepherd, whalers, wildfires
Conservation, Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Jan 4th, 2012,
Species: Spotted handfish (Brachionichthys hirsutus) Status: Critically Endangered (CR) Interesting Fact: The spotted handfish has hand-like ‘paired fins’ that enable it to ‘walk’ along the seafloor! The unusual looking spotted handfish is one of the world’s most endangered marine fish. It has an extremely distinctive, almost pear-shaped body which is marked with a myriad of dusky brown to yellow-brown spots, the pattern of which is unique to each individual. During the spawning season, the male spotted handfish entices the female with a courtship display. The female then produces around 80 to 250 eggs, and these are often positioned around the base of a jelly-like…
Tags: Brachionichthys hirsutus, Spotted Handfish
Climate & Change, Conservation, Politics, Jan 2nd, 2012,
A combination of individuals and corporations, along with local, regional and national governments, has raised enough cash to temporarily halt the drilling of oil from the Yasuní National Park in Ecuador. The collection of money is being facilitated by the UN Development Group in a ‘crowdfunding’ project called the Ecuador Yasuní ITT Trust Fund. So far $116m (€89.5m) has been raised to help preserve this 722 square mile area of Amazonian rainforest. From the Guardian: The park, which is home to two tribes of uncontacted Indians, is thought to have more mammal, bird, amphibian and plant species than any other…
Tags: amazon, Ecuador, rainforest, Yasuni
Climate & Change, Conservation, Pollution, Dec 27th, 2011,
The original Green Revolution was essentially a Cold War tactic of the United States to win over Third World countries by supplying them with agricultural technology, thereby dramatically increasing their food production. The main recipients of Green Revolution techniques were India, Mexico and the Philippines, as well as some African countries (with markedly less success). Although the Green Revolution increased food production, it has its drawbacks and criticisms: unsustainable population growth – leading to mass starvation; genetically weak and less biodiverse monoculture farming – meaning crop failures are more likely, requiring more chemical pesticides to compensate for this risk. Monoculture…
Tags: biodiversity, Brazil, Cerrado, farming, Green Revolution, monoculture
Conservation, Nature, Weird & Wonderful, Wildlife & Flora, Dec 26th, 2011,
Status: Critically Endangered (CR) Interesting Fact: The axolotl has the ability to re-grow whole limbs! While the bizarre axolotl may look like it comes from another planet, it is actually a type of salamander. This fascinating amphibian exhibits a trait known as neoteny, where, instead of transforming from the juvenile form to an adult as in other species of amphibian, it retains some of its juvenile features. The most obvious of these is the branch-like gills projecting from the neck on each side of the head. These allow the axolotl to remain permanently in water. However, if conditions become unfavourable, the axolotl…
Tags: ARKive.org, axolotl, Conservation, endangered species, Nature, salamander
Conservation, Videos & Documentaries, Wildlife & Flora, ,
In Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) orangutans are being hunted and driven into possible extinction. Indonesia, which is home to 90% of the world’s orangutan population, is also home to rampant unregulated and illegal palm plantations, deforestation and logging. Loss of habitat has pitted villagers against the orangutans, who may venture into gardens for food. Locals are known to kill great apes for food and out of fear. But the real culprits are the industries who see orangutan conservation as a threat to their business. These firms are not only destroying the orangutans’ habitat, but have allegedly paid villagers to hunt and…
Tags: borneo, Indonesia, Kalimantan, kill, orangutan, palm oil
Climate & Change, Conservation, Videos & Documentaries, Wildlife & Flora, Dec 23rd, 2011,
According to a UN report an increase in global temperatures puts up to 1/3 of all Earth’s animals at risk of extinction. The gorillas of Rwanda’s Virunga Mountains in central Africa are already at risk from rising temperatures. Changes in rainfall and hotter weather mean the vegetation the gorillas depend on changes growth patterns, moving up the mountain into higher altitudes. The gorillas provide Rwanda with tourist revenue and the rainfall in the Virunga Mountains feeds rivers and provides hydro electricity for the already poor and vulnerable African nation. From Reuters: Many ecosystems have already been stressed by increasing population,…
Tags: Africa, climate change, gorillas, Rwanda, Virunga
Conservation, Wildlife & Flora, Dec 20th, 2011,
On Wednesday United States federal wildlife managers shot and killed one of only around 50 remaining wild Mexican Wolves living in the respective southwest and southeast portions of the US states of New Mexico and Arizona. The female wolf was raised in captivity and had only been released into the wild earlier this year as part of a government effort to reintroduce Mexican wolves into their former habitat. From the Associated Press: Numerous attempts were made to dart the wolf so she could be returned to captivity, but wildlife managers were not able to get close enough, said agency spokesman…
Tags: Arizona, Gray Wolf, killed, Mexican Wolf, Oregon, shot
Conservation, Nature, Wildlife & Flora, Dec 17th, 2011,
Species: Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis) Status: Endangered (EN) Interesting fact: The Ethiopian wolf is the only species of wolf in Africa. Similar to a coyote in appearance, the Ethiopian wolf is a long-legged species with a long, pointed muzzle. It lives in the mountains of Ethiopia where it forms close-knit territorial packs numbering between 3 and 13 adults. Individual pack members tend to forage alone, hunting for small mammals such as the big-headed mole rat. They skilfully stalk their prey before pouncing or digging them out of their burrows. All the adults gather to patrol and mark the territory at dawn…
Tags: ARKive.org, Canis simensis, Conservation, endangered species, Ethiopian Wolf
Conservation, Politics, Pollution, Sustainable living, Dec 16th, 2011,
Several dozen men ran naked around the University of Manila. They wanted to draw attention to the need for greater environmental protection. Bare runs have become a tradition at this Filipino University. Every year a group of students meet to fight in defense of the environment. The tradition started over 40 years ago. Then, the students were running around in protest against President Ferdinand Marcos. This year, runners fought for purification of the local rivers. Although the message was not clear for all, this year’s event has been watched by hundreds. “Whatever their advocacy was, I think it will definitely…
Tags: Manila University, naked men, Philippines, rivers pollution
Conservation, Nature, Weird & Wonderful, Wildlife & Flora, Dec 10th, 2011,
Another endangered fellow deserves some attention today. Check out the below video of a Giant Weta, a cricket-like insect with a wingspan of nearly 18 inches. The animal is almost exclusively found in New Zealand. Although New Zealand is a perfect habitat for this insect, rats introduced by Europeans in the region hunt the Giant Weta to a point it’s now facing extinction. The Giant Weta in the video weights almost as much as three mice. Incredible!
Tags: endangered species, Giant Weta, largest insect in the world
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