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Biodiversity news (Aggregated by the Netherlands Biodiversity Information Facility)

RDF feed: http://www.nlbif.nl/rss/biodiversity_news_en.xml
  • Uganda: Conserving Biodiversity - the Wildlife Conservation Society
    [released on: 23/05/2013]
    [New Vision]The Albertine Rift, which includes Western Uganda, is one of Africa's most biodiverse regions, with a great diversity of living plants and animals in a large range of different environments. [AllAfrica News: Wildlife]
  • Kenya urged to protect biodiversity
    [released on: 23/05/2013]
    Kenya joined the rest of the world in making the International Day for Biodiversity with call to prioritize biodiversity conservation to propel green growth, reduce poverty and transform rural ... [Africa News latest RSS headlines - The Africa News.net]
  • Scientists Announce Top 10 New Species
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    An amazing glow-in-the-dark cockroach, a harp-shaped carnivorous sponge and the smallest vertebrate on Earth are just three of the newly discovered top 10 species selected by the International Institute for Species Exploration at Arizona State University. A global committee of taxonomists -- scientists responsible for species exploration and classification -- announced its list of top 10 species from 2012 today, May 23. [Newswise: SciNews]
  • USGS Study Confirms U.S. Amphibian Populations Declining at Precipitous Rates
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    CORVALLIS, Ore. — The first-ever estimate of how fast frogs, toads and salamanders in the United States are disappearing from their habitats reveals they are vanishing at an alarming and rapid rate. According to the study released today in the scientific journal PLOS ONE, even the species of amphibians presumed to be relatively stable and widespread are declining. And these declines are occurring in amphibian populations everywhere, from the swamps in Louisiana and Florida to the high mountains of the Sierras and the Rockies. The study by USGS scientists and collaborators concluded that U.S. amphibian declines may be more widespread and severe than previously realized, and that significant declines are notably occurring even in protected national parks and wildlife refuges. 'Amphibians have been a constant presence in our planet's ponds, streams, lakes and rivers for 350 million years or so, surviving countless changes that caused many other groups of animals to go extinct,' said USGS Director Suzette Kimball. 'This is why the findings of this study are so noteworthy; they demonstrate that the pressures amphibians now face exceed the ability of many of these survivors to cope.' On average, populations of all amphibians examined vanished from habitats at a rate of 3.7 percent each year. If the rate observed is representative and remains unchanged, these species would disappear from half of the habitats they currently occupy in about 20 years. The more threatened species, considered 'Red-Listed' in an assessment by the global organization International Union for Conservation of Nature, disappeared from their studied habitats at a rate of 11.6 percent each year. If the rate observed is representative and remains unchanged, these Red-Listed species would disappear from half of the habitats they currently occupy in about six years. 'Even though these declines seem small on the surface, they are not,' said USGS ecologist Michael Adams, the lead author of the study. 'Small numbers build up to dramatic declines with time. We knew there was a big problem with amphibians, but these numbers are both surprising and of significant concern.' For nine years, researchers looked at the rate of change in the number of ponds, lakes and other habitat features that amphibians occupied. In lay terms, this means that scientists documented how fast clusters of amphibians are disappearing across the landscape. In all, scientists analyzed nine years of data from 34 sites spanning 48 species. The analysis did not evaluate causes of declines. The research was done under the auspices of the USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative, which studies amphibian trends and causes of decline. This unique program, known as ARMI, conducts research to address local information needs in a way that can be compared across studies to provide analyses of regional and national trends. Brian Gratwicke, amphibian conservation biologist with the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, said, 'This is the culmination of an incredible sampling effort and cutting-edge analysis pioneered by the USGS, but it is very bad news for amphibians. Now, more than ever, we need to confront amphibian declines in the U.S. and take actions to conserve our incredible frog and salamander biodiversity.' The study offered other surprising insights. For example, declines occurred even in lands managed for conservation of natural resources, such as national parks and national wildlife refuges. 'The declines of amphibians in these protected areas are particularly worrisome because they suggest that some stressors – such as diseases, contaminants and drought – transcend landscapes,' Adams said. 'The fact that amphibian declines are occurring in our most protected areas adds weight to the hypothesis that this is a global phenomenon with implications for managers of all kinds of landscapes, even protected ones.' Amphibians seem to be experiencing the worst declines documented among vertebrates, but all major groups of animals associated with freshwater are having problems, according to Adams. While habitat loss is a factor in some areas, other research suggests that things like disease, invasive species, contaminants and perhaps other unknown factors are related to declines in protected areas. 'This study,' said Adams, 'gives us a point of reference that will enable us to track what's happening in a way that wasn’t possible before.' Read FAQs about this research The publication, Trends in amphibian occupancy in the United States, is authored by  Adams, M.J., Miller, D.A., Muths, E., Corn, P.S., Campbell Grant, E.H., Bailey, L., Fellers, G.M., Fisher, R.N., Sadinski, W.J., Waddle, H., and Walls, S.C., and is available to the public. Read a USGS blog, Front-row seats to climate change, about 3 other recent USGS amphibian studies. For more information about USGS amphibian research, visit http://armi.usgs.gov/   [USGS Newsroom]
  • Scientist at Work Blog: A Forest Denizen at Risk
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Slow lorises in the deep dark of the Vietnamese forest are probably wise to avoid the scientist who wanders by with a flashlight and a notebook. There are other humans about with less noble intentions.     [NYT > Environment]
  • Mystery of Irish Potato Famine Solved
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Researchers identified the exact strain of plant disease that caused the devastating famine. [LiveScience.com]
  • 2012: An Endangered Species Odyssey - Caught On Video in China
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Camera traps captured rare footage of the giant panda, stumped tail macques and more roaming through their remote natural habitats in China’s southwestern Sichuan Province. [LiveScience.com]
  • Some 100 Species of Fungus Live on Our Feet
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Sole survivors: Up to a hundred fungi species flourish on our feet, a new study says. [National Geographic News]
  • ScienceShot: Feet Are a Treat for Fungi
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Scientists find large diversity of the microbes on our tootsies [News - Up to the minute news and analysis from Science.]
  • Elusive Pandas Caught on Camera in China Habitat
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Camera traps captured footage of pandas and their neighbors in a remote part of China. [LiveScience.com]
  • Research Reveals Yeasty Beasts Living On Our Skin
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    While studying microorganisms on humans is not new, tracking fungi is. In a census of sorts, scientists checked the skin of healthy volunteers. They found an expansive ecosystem of silent inhabitants. [Science]
  • Atlantic Research Expedition Uncovers Vast Methane-Based Ecosystem
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Scientists hope to learn more about how life thrives in these harsh environments [Newswise: SciNews]
  • Why are big cats' eyes round and domestic ones slitted?
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Readers answer other readers' questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific conceptsI'd have thought that with common ancestors, the eyes would have evolved in similar ways.Carole Atkinson, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria• Post questions and answers below or email them to nq@guardian.co.uk. Please include name, address and phone numberCatsZoologyBiologyAnimalsPetsguardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds     [Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk]
  • Growing Peas and Greens to Maximise Water Usage
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Amid warnings that Kenya’s agricultural water use is surpassing sustainable levels and adversely affecting food security, biodiversity researchers say that agrobiodiversity should be considered as a vital tool to combat this. “In order to feed the nation, the country must explore agrobiodiversity, specifically (the growing of) vegetables and fruits, which have been neglected in favour [...] [Inter Press Service » Environment – IPS Inter Press Service News Agency Journalism and Communication for Global Change]
  • How Genomics Solved The Mystery Of Ireland's Great Famine
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Although scientists have known that a funguslike organism caused the potato blight that triggered the Great Famine in Ireland in the 1840s, they didn't know which strain was the culprit. But they do now, thanks to the genes in some 19th century potato samples. [Science]
  • International Day for Biodiversity - 22nd May 2013
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Biodiversity is the term given to the variety of life on Earth and the natural pattern it forms. The biodiversity we see today is the result of millions of years of evolution, initially shaped by natural processes, but in modern times increasingly as a result of human intervention. We are an integral part of the web of biodiversity and we depend on this web, as does every other life form on the planet. [Covering Environmental Issues and Green News | The Earth Times]
  • Pangolin Paradise in Vietnam
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    When Chinese people eat scales of pangolins, they are destroying several species of a unique and precious mammal in the forest food web. Vietnam has begun the slow process of re-education and also getting the animals back into a depleted number of habitats. [Covering Environmental Issues and Green News | The Earth Times]
  • It's NOT a jungle out there - (any more)
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    The tropical forests of the whole of South East Asia have been disappearing fast for years. The WWF and the EIA are now questioning just how long making a quick buck will take precedence over essential conservation. [Covering Environmental Issues and Green News | The Earth Times]
  • Thinking 'big' may not be best approach to saving large-river fish
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Large-river specialist fishes -- from giant species like paddlefish and blue catfish, to tiny crystal darters and silver chub -- are in danger, but researchers say there is greater hope to save them if major tributaries identified in a University of Wisconsin-Madison study become a focus of conservation efforts. [EurekAlert! - Breaking News]
  • NIH researchers conduct first genomic survey of human skin fungal diversity
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    In the first study of human fungal skin diversity, National Institutes of Health researchers sequenced the DNA of fungi at skin sites of healthy adults to define the normal populations across the skin and to provide a framework for investigating fungal skin conditions. The study appears in the May 22, 2013, early online issue of Nature. [EurekAlert! - Breaking News]
  • Small, speedy plant-eater extends knowledge of dinosaur ecosystems
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Dinosaurs are often thought of as large, fierce animals, but new research highlights a previously overlooked diversity of small dinosaurs. In the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, a team of paleontologists from the University of Toronto, Royal Ontario Museum, Cleveland Museum of Natural History and University of Calgary have described a new dinosaur, the smallest plant-eating dinosaur species known from Canada. [EurekAlert! - Breaking News]
  • 10% of UK wildlife 'endangered'
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    A 'stocktake' of UK nature suggests 60% of animal and plant species have declined in the past 50 years - and one in 10 could end up disappearing. [BBC News - Science & Environment]
  • International Day for Biological Diversity - Message from Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    As the international community strives to accelerate its efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and define a post-2015 agenda, including a set of goals for sustainable development, water and biodiversity are important streams in the discussion. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Message from Naoko Ishii, CEO of the Global Environment Facility
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    In observance of the International Day of Biodiversity, Naoko Ishii, CEO and Chairperson of the Global Environment Facility, urged a renewed, energized effort to address growing threats to biological diversity worldwide. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Cities are a ray of hope on biodiversity front
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Today (May 22) is yet another United Nations-designated International Day for Biodiversity. Cities occupy only 2 per cent of earth's surface, but their inhabitants use up 75 per cent of the planet's resources building concrete jungles. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Snake show held on International Biodiversity day
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    A painting competition was organised by the Prakrithi Mitra National Green Corps on the occasion of International Biodiversity day on Tuesday. The theme was 'Water and Biodiversity' as this year has been designated as the international year of water cooperation by the United Nations. [CBD News Headlines]
  • International Biodiversity Day to focus on water
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    The world marks International Biodiversity Day tomorrow, May 22 with the theme, 'Water and Biodiversity'. [CBD News Headlines]
  • PMNH to organise speech contest today
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Speech competition, nature photography and painting competitions among students from twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad will be held here at Pakistan Museum of Natural History (PMNH) today (Wednesday). [CBD News Headlines]
  • The international day for biodiversity
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Water, these life-giving and life-sustaining natural resources, takes center stage today as the 2013 International Day for Biodiversity (IDB) focuses on the theme 'Water and Biodiversity.' The theme supports the United Nations designation of 2013 as the International Year of Water Cooperation. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Saplings planted on International Biodiversity Day
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Kohima: Saplings were planted on International Biodiversity Day today in Nagaland as stress was laid on the importance of conserving forests for the services it provides to the people. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Ministry calls for more protection to biodiversity
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Luanda - The Ministry of Environment Tuesday in Luanda appealed to all Angolans to contribute with a patriotic feeling and national citizen spirit to the protection and preservation of the large biological diversity, with a view to the country's sustainable development. [CBD News Headlines]
  • World Biodiversity Day: It's time for celebration
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    'If we pollute the air, water and soil that keep us alive and well, and destroy the biodiversity that allows natural systems to function, no amount of money will save us' - David Suzuki. [CBD News Headlines]
  • IDEA arranged seminar on occasion of ' International Biodiversitity Day'-PHOTOS
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    IDEA (International Dialogue for Environmental Action) campaign held a seminar on the occasion of 'International Biodiversity Day'. The seminar took place in the IDEA Resource Center, which is situated at the Academy of Public Administration under President of the Republic of Azerbaijan with the participation of more than 20 young people having a special interest in environment and protection of biodiversity. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Message from Anada Tiéga, Secretary General of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    On this Biodiversity Day, the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands joins in worldwide celebrations and calls for more actions to conserve wetlands for the planet's biodiversity and human well-being. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Planet Ocean
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Biodiversity is life itself, from the tiniest elements to the largest ecosystems. It is all around us, in the air we breathe, the soil that feeds us and in every drop of water - this year's theme for the International Day of Biological Diversity. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Message from Julia Marton Lefevre, Director-General of IUCN
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    If biodiversity is life on Earth, then water is the lifeline for biodiversity. IUCN scientists estimate that up to one million species rely on freshwater habitats, and millions more, including human beings, rely on food, freshwater and many other services supplied by these precious ecosystems. [CBD News Headlines]
  • The Carpathian Convention at 10: On the map, but much left to do
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    By Andreas BeckmannThe Carpathians turn 10 years old this month. The venerable mountains have of course been around for longer – at least 66 million years in fact. But it has been only relatively recently that the Carpathians, which stretch across seven countries in Central and Eastern Europe, have really come into focus and gained a common identity as a mountain range with unique qualities, traditions and way of life, as well as challenges shared by people living across the region. Ten years ago, on 22 May 2003, representatives of the governments of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Ukraine, Romania and Serbia put their signatures to the 'Framework Convention for the Protection and Sustainable Development of the Carpathians.' Over the past decade, the 'Carpathian Convention,' as the agreement is more often referred to, has created a common focus and framework for identity and cooperation across the region.Record-breaking agreementThe idea for the convention was first broached in Bucharest in 2001 at a summit of regional leaders organized by WWF and the Romanian government. Within two years, and with the support of the United Nations Environment Programme, the governments of the seven Carpathian countries had completed negotiations and inked the agreement. As far as conventions go, the Carpathian Convention was negotiated and agreed in record time. The original framework convention has spawned a series of additional, more specific agreements between the member countries. In the past 10 years, the seven member states have adopted formal protocols on the protection of biodiversity, tourism and forests. Implementation strategies for these protocols have been agreed or are under development. Protocols on cultural heritage and transportation are already well advanced. Strategic guidance on adaptation to climate change is also underway and expected to be formally adopted by ministers when they meet next year. Further agreements are expected in the future, relating to agriculture, energy and regional development and spatial planning.Paper over practice?Critics say that, to date at least, the convention has been more about meetings and paper than actual practice. Indeed, there have been many meetings, and not all have been productive. Even where commitments have been achieved, it is fair to ask to what extent those commitments have actually changed anything. It is simply too early to know, for example, whether the Carpathian Convention commitment to protect Europe's greatest remaining areas of virgin forest will become reality. Definitions of virgin forest will be discussed in June, to be followed then by discussion of actual protection measures to be taken. A basic problem is that the Carpathian Convention is 'soft' legislation – that is, legislation without a real bite – in contrast to EU directives and regulations, where there is the real possibility of diplomatic embarrassment and even financial fines and sanctions. Also, while most progress has been made in terms of commitments to biodiversity protection, the key to securing this protection lies in addressing pressures in other areas, such as development of infrastructure for transportation and energy. Habitat fragmentation is a major concern to the future of bears and other large carnivores, but so far, there has been limited progress in integrating wildlife migration corridors into transportation planning. Similarly, the planned construction of thousands of hydropower stations across the Carpathian Mountains present an imminent threat to hundreds of streams and rivers. Guidance for development of these projects is urgently needed to ensure that any gains in clean energy does not come at too great a cost in terms of biodiversity and other ecosystem services. Yet it is unclear the extent to which a Carpathian Convention protocol on energy, which in any case is in the future, could address the intense pressure from investors and related political interests. A common homeBut even relatively blunt tools can be effective – for example in focusing efforts, and mobilizing cooperation and resources.The Carpathian Convention has spawned networks of cooperation across the mountain range. Recently, 140 protected area managers and supporters came together to meet, inspire and learn from one another. Across the Carpathians, protected area managers do important work, safeguarding many of Europe's greatest natural treasures. Indeed, over the years, a community of people and organizations has developed around and in support of the Carpathian Mountains, from government authorities to international organizations like the United Nations Environmental Programme, which currently leads the secretariat, and non-profit organizations like WWF. Cooperation has been fostered not only across the Carpathians, but also to the Alps, with a strong partnership with the Alpine Network of Protected Areas, and the European Academy in Bolzano, an Alpine think-tank that has been giving strong support to the Carpathian Convention secretariat. Also not to be underestimated is the importance of creating an identity and idea, and networking behind it. Ten years ago, no one spoke of the Carpathians or saw them as one range of mountains shared by different countries. Differences prevailed over things in common. Over the past decade, this has clearly changed. The Carpathians today have become a term like the Alps, a badge of identity and pride for the countries and the people living in these areas. Nevertheless, the Carpathian Mountains are an area of extraordinary qualities and treasures, part of WWF's Green Heart of Europe initiative, and those treasures are being lost. The extent to which they survive will be the ultimate test for the convention. A good start has been made, but much remains to be done.Andreas Beckmann is director of the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme, which has been closely involved in the development of the Carpathian Convention. Learn more about the Carpathian Convention at: http://www.carpathianconvention.org/ [WWF - Environmental News]
  • International day for Biological Diversity:International day for Biological Diversity
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    KARACHI: Deforestation, soil erosion coupled with water-logging have hastened the rate of extinction of range animals - bird, reptiles, mammals, fish and plant species - which are already endangered due to climate change, cautioned environmental experts. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Photos offer rare glimpse into panda habitat
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    Beijing – WWF today released dozens of photographs and video footage of endangered species captured by camera traps in the mountainous giant panda reserves in China, marking this year's International Day for Biological Diversity. The images and footage, rarely seen before, showcase an array of endangered species in their remote habitats in southwestern Sichuan Province, including giant panda, red panda, Tibetan stump-tailed macaque and leopard cat. 'The multimedia materials are obtained under circumstances, where there was little external disturbance and therefore they truly reflect the conditions of those species in the wild,' said Jiang Zeyin, species programme officer at WWF-China. The materials were filmed since 2011 by more than 100 infra-red camera traps set up in six nature reserves by WWF and its partners from the local forestry authority as part of the monitoring effort under the giant panda conservation programme. With the footage, WWF conservation officers have gained a better understanding of the identification of animal traces and areas of their activities, the study of the impact of human activities on the species and management of nature reserves, according to Jiang. 'The images demonstrate that through the conservation of the giant panda, a flagship umbrella species, we can also protect other threatened wildlife from the same habitat and preserve biological diversity,' said Fan Zhiyong, director of WWF species programme in China. It is a tried method in WWF's biodiversity conservation and the reason why WWF would underscore the value of protecting flagship species, he said. China has more than 6,500 species of vertebrates representing 14 percent of the global total, making it one of the 12 globally recognized 'mega-biodiversity' countries. However, the population of more than 10 flagship and keystone species in China, which include Amur tigers, musk deer and the Yangtze finless porpoise, have undergone a marked decline that was particularly severe between the 1960s and 1980s. 'The overall biodiversity in China is in decline despite partial improvement in some places. The main threat has been the habitat loss and fragmentation due to invasive human activities,' said Fan. 'Conservation of flagship species would not only benefit the ecological system, but also human development. Large-scale planning and implementation aimed at establishing a network of habitats should always be considered,' said Fan. [WWF - Environmental News]
  • Most UK species in decline, wildlife stocktake shows
    [released on: 22/05/2013]
    The unprecedented analysis shows that many animals, birds, insects, fish and plants are in trouble• UK wildlife winners and losers - in picturesAn unprecedented stocktake of UK wildlife has revealed that most species are struggling and that one in three have halved in number in the past half century. The unique report, based on scientific analysis of tens of millions of observations from volunteers, shows that from woodland to farmland and from freshwater streams to the sea, many animals, birds, insects, fish and plants are in trouble.The causes include the intensification of farming, with the consequent loss of meadows, hedgerows and ponds and increased pesticide use, as well as building development, overfishing and climate change. Three in every five of the 3,148 species analysed for the report have declined in the last 50 years and one in 10 are at risk of extinction.But the report also reveals a few bright spots, such as the reduced water pollution that has allowed otters to return to every county in the UK, and the numerous new ponds created by restored gravel pits.'This groundbreaking report is a stark warning – but it is also a sign of hope,' said Sir David Attenborough. 'We should all be proud of the beauty we find on our own doorstep; from bluebells carpeting woodland floors and delicately patterned fritillary butterflies, to the graceful basking shark and the majestic golden eagle soaring over the Scottish mountains. Our species are in trouble, with many declining at a worrying rate, but we have a network of passionate conservation groups supported by millions of people who love wildlife.'The State of Nature report was compiled by 25 conservation groups including the Wildlife Trusts, the Mammal Society, Buglife and the Marine Conservation Society. 'This report shows we can do things – it gives the conservation examples – but we need to do a huge amount more,' said Dr Mark Eaton, a scientist at the RSPB and one of the lead authors of the report. 'We need a root-and-branch rethink of how we integrate conservation with how we live and run our businesses.' He paid tribute to the army of tens of thousands of conservation volunteers: 'They have played a massive role in making this report far more comprehensive than anything done before and knowledge is the most essential tool that conservationists have.'While 31% of species have lost half their population, only 20% have doubled. Invertebrates such as moths, butterflies and beetles have been particularly affected. Eaton highlights the plight of the spectacular garden tiger moth, numbers of which have fallen by 95%. 'This is a big, beautiful moth that was quite common once,' he said.On farmland, which covers 75% of the UK, birds fell by half and butterflies by a third since 1970. Eaton said conservation successes, like the cirl bunting in Devon which was down to its last 100 pairs in the 1980s and are now at around 1,000 pairs, were often very limited in scale, where funding can be targeted. 'Skylarks have plummeted in the same way, but as they live all over the country it is hard to tackle. We can't wave a magic wand over the entire countryside,' he said.Cities and towns are important areas because many people only experience wildlife there, according to the report. 'Avoiding the loss of sports fields and gardens is very important if we want to have wildlife in our cities,' said Eaton. 'It is about connectivity, so bats, hedgehogs and so on can move around. If you isolate areas you will greatly impoverish urban areas.'Grassland and heaths, traditionally rich with species like reptiles and orchids, have seen two in three species decline and were already at a low point decades ago, with 97% of lowland meadow having vanished between the 1930s and 1980s. The nation's uplands, home to eagles, mountain hares and rare lichens, have suffered from intensive grazing and burning regimes, and 14 mosses and liverworts have become extinct already. Woodlands have increased, but mainly due to conifer plantations, which do not support much native wildlife.Coastal birds, such as overwintering geese, are increasing due to lower persecution, but many coastal species of insect and plant that rely on dunes, shingle and saltmarsh are declining as large areas have been developed, as are harbour seals, especially in Scotland. Out at sea, UK fish stocks have improved recently, the report found, though across the EU, 75% continue to be overfished.In freshwater habitats, Atlantic salmon and water voles have declined but bitterns and otters have benefited from efforts to clean up rivers and recreate lost habitats. Restored gravel pits have been important new wetland habitats, although vast swaths of fen and marsh were drained in previous centuries.Eaton said the value of wildlife was not just the pleasure it brings: 'We know wildlife provides clean air, clean water, stops erosion, pollinates crops and more.' He said it was not known how much more could be lost before these 'ecosystem services' are drastically affected. Eaton added that the report only covered those species for which data existed, just 5% of the estimated 59,000 species that inhabit the UK, leaving huge gaps in knowledge.'Wildlife will inevitably change, especially with climate change, but what we want is a landscape that is rich in wildlife, even if they are different things to those in the past,' he said.WildlifeEndangered habitatsConservationEndangered speciesAnimalsZoologyPlantsDamian Carringtonguardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds     [Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk]
  • Stressed Ecosystems Leaving Humanity High and Dry
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    Everyone knows water is life. Far too few understand the role of trees, plants and other living things in ensuring we have clean, fresh water. This dangerous ignorance results in destruction of wetlands that once cleaned water and prevented destructive and costly flooding, scientists and activists warn. Around the world, politicians and others in power [...] [Inter Press Service » Environment – IPS Inter Press Service News Agency Journalism and Communication for Global Change]
  • Big-cat sightings: is Britain suffering from mass hysteria?
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    In 1995, government inspectors spent months on Bodmin moor in Cornwall looking for evidence of a 'beast' roaming wild there. They found nothing. Yet every year there are 2,000 similarly spurious big-cat sightings in Britain. What's going on?The setting was unimprovable. Across the fields, Maiden Castle, a turretted fortress of living rock, clawed at the sky. Beyond it was the village of Wolf's Castle – Casblaidd – distinguished as one of only 20 places in which Owain Glyndwr was born (he died in quite a few as well), and said to be the spot where the last wolf in Wales was killed. Below us a tangled willow carr smothered the valley.'This gap in the hedge here: that could be where it came through. Then it came down the bank, sauntered across the road and disappeared into the scrub.'I peered into the woods on the other side of the lane. The trees were hooded with ivy. Their mossy trunks sprawled over the ground, or leant on each other, dark-cowled, like drunken friars. Beneath them was an impenetrable thicket of brambles and ferns.'You wouldn't see him in there, would you?''You have no doubt about what it was?'Michael Disney looked around and shrugged. 'It's not an issue for me. I saw what I saw and that's that. People can either believe it or not. I'm not trying to convince anyone.'He had heard the stories, seen pictures in the local paper of the prints found at Princes Gate, a few miles to the other side of Haverfordwest, and had not believed a word of it.'If I'd been dreaming or thinking about them at the time, it might have been another matter. But it was the last thing on my mind. I was just driving along – and one crosses the road. He was probably about 3ft high and 6ft long. I would say bigger than a medium-sized dog, but definitely not a dog. He was powerful-looking, with a black, glossy, shiny coat, incredibly muscular, like a horse's shoulders.'Michael Disney, former policeman, county council officer, had, to his own astonishment, become one of roughly 2,000 people who see a big cat in the wild in Britain every year.By the time Michael saw the beast, now known as the Pembrokeshire Panther, there had, according to Wales on Sunday, been 10 'confirmed sightings'. Some of those who claimed to have seen it were farmers or farm workers, familiar with the county's less exotic wildlife. Among them were the farmer and – independently – his wife, whose land bordered the lane in which we stood. All described it, as Michael had done, as huge, jet-black and glossy, with a long tail, definitely a cat. One person claimed to have seen it with a lamb in its mouth. It was blamed for the grisly carcasses of sheep and calves found in remote corners of the farms.But it was only when the former policeman reported it that the beast began to be taken seriously. Three weeks later, when five people saw it at Rudbaxton, the police sent out an armed response unit.I became certain that Michael is an honest, reliable, unexcitable man who has no interest in publicity – in fact he seemed embarrassed by it. I am certain that, in common with other people who claim to have spotted the Beast, he faithfully described what he saw. I am equally certain that the Pembrokeshire Panther does not exist.There is scarcely a self-respecting borough in Britain which does not now possess a Beast. Even the London suburbs claim to be infested with big cats: there is a Beast of Barnet, a Beast of Cricklewood, a Crystal Palace Puma and a Sydenham Panther. There have been occasional reports of mysterious British cats throughout history, but over the past few years the sightings have boomed. In her book Mystery Big Cats, Merrily Harpur finds that 'cat-flaps', as she calls them, are occurring at the rate of 2,000 to 4,000 a year.Harpur notes that around three-quarters of all the cats reported are black, and they are commonly described as glossy and muscular. She also makes the fascinating observation that while the most likely candidate is a melanistic leopard (the leopard is the species in which the black form, though rare, occurs most often) she has not been able to find a single account of an ordinary, spotted leopard seen in the wild in Britain.Some species of large cat are among the shyest and most cunning of all wild animals, but they are creatures of regular habits. They have territories, dens in which cubs are raised, spraying points and scratching posts. They scatter prints, dung and hairs wherever they go: the first are immediately recognisable, the provenance of the second and third can be confirmed by DNA testing.The 2008 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition was won by a photograph of one of the world's most elusive animals – the snow leopard – taken in one of the world's least accessible places: the Ladakhi Himalayas, 13,000ft above sea level. The photograph did not just document the existence of the leopard: after 13 months of experiments, and hundreds of less satisfactory pictures of his quarry, Steve Winter, through a cunning arrangement of camera traps and lights, eventually produced a perfectly composed portrait. 'I knew the animal would come,' he reported. His equipment 'was just waiting for the actor to walk on stage and break the beam'.Yet, despite camera traps deployed in likely places throughout Britain, despite the best efforts of hundreds of enthusiasts armed with long lenses and thermal imaging equipment, we have yet to see a single unequivocal image captured in this country. Of the photographs and fragments of footage I have seen, around half are evidently domestic cats. Roughly a quarter are cardboard cut-outs, cuddly toys, the result of crude Photoshopping or – as the surrounding vegetation reveals – pictures taken in the tropics. The remainder are so distant and indistinct that they could be anything: dogs, deer, foxes, bin liners, yetis on all fours.Nor have the tireless efforts to catch or kill these animals yielded anything more convincing. The hundreds of traps set for big cats in Britain have caught only two large predators. One, in 1980, was a tame puma, which had been released by a man about to be sent to prison. The other was a cryptozoologist called Pete Bailey, who had spent 15 years hunting the Beast of Exmoor, entered one of his traps to change the bait and accidentally tripped the mechanism. He was stuck there for two nights, eating the raw meat he had set for the cat, before he was rescued. We hunt the Beast, but the Beast is us.That is about the extent of it: no photos, no captures, no dung, no corpses (except a couple of skulls, which turned out to have gone feral after they had escaped from a leopardskin rug and a wall trophy), not even a verifiable footprint. The Beasts of Britain have evaded police helicopters and armed response teams (it beats logging car crime), a five-week hunt by the Royal Marines, a succession of big cat experts and bounty hunters and the mass deployment of tracking, attracting and sensing technologies.In 1995 the government sent investigators to Bodmin moor in Cornwall, where the evidence for big cats was said to be strongest. They spent six months in the field. There is something of the 19th-century royal commission about this investigation. The report contains photos of a strapping fellow with a large moustache and a measuring pole, demonstrating the heights of the natural features on which the creatures were photographed. The text reads in places like the final chapters of The Hound of the Baskervilles. It is thorough, exhaustive, and devastating to those who argued that, while other reputed big cats might not exist, the Beast of Bodmin was real.They examined the famous video sequence, broadcast widely on television, which shows a cat leaping cleanly over a drystone wall. It looks impressive, until you see the man from the ministry standing beside the wall with his pole, and realise that the barrier is knee-high. A monstrous cat sitting on a gatepost shrinks, when the pole arrives, from a yard at the shoulder to a foot. In one case, where the Beast was filmed crossing a field, the investigators brought a black domestic cat to the scene, set it down in the same spot and photographed it from where the video had been taken. The moggie looks slightly bigger than the monster.The investigators compared a chilling nocturnal close-up of the Beast with a picture of a real black leopard, and spotted an obvious but hitherto-unnoticed problem. The panther in the cage, like all big cats, has round pupils, while the creature in the photograph has vertical slits, a feature confined to smaller species, such as the domestic cat.They examined plaster casts of footprints taken from the moor. Two were made by a domestic cat; one by a dog. They attended the corpses of sheep that local people insisted had been ripped apart by the Beast. That they had been ripped apart was indisputable; but the villains were crows, badgers, foxes or dogs, and in most cases they had struck after the sheep had died of other causes. The scientists conceded that it was impossible to prove that a big cat did not exist but found no hard evidence to support the story.I would go a step further: if a breeding population of these animals existed, hard evidence would be abundant and commonplace. Its absence shows that there is no such population. With the possible exception of the very occasional fugitive, the beasts reported by so many sober, upright, reputable people are imaginary.None of this has made any difference, either to the volume of sightings or to the breathless credulity with which they are reported in the papers. My favourite story, from the Daily Mail, was headlined: 'Is this the Beast of Exmoor? Body of mystery animal washes up on beach'. It reported that 'great fangs jutted from its huge jaw, gleaming in the afternoon sun. Then there was the carcass. Up to 5ft long, powerful chest, and what could be the remains of a tail.' The paper interviewed a local police sergeant, who made the cryptic observation that 'it almost definitely looks like it could be a Beast of Exmoor'. Only at the bottom of the page did the report reveal that it was a putrefying seal.Beast fever has doubtless been heightened by these stories, but many of those who claim to have seen big cats in Britain also maintain that they had never heard of them before their own encounter. While a few are hoaxers, most report their sightings in good faith. In many cases an animal has been seen by a group of people, all of whom give similar accounts. So what is going on? Why, over the past three decades, have reports of big cats in Britain risen from a few dozen a year to thousands?There is no discussion of this phenomenon in the scientific literature: I cannot find a single journal article on big-cat sightings. None of the psychologists I have contacted have been able to direct me to anyone studying it. But in his book Paranormality, the psychologist Professor Richard Wiseman tells us this: 'Many people think that human observation and memory work like a video recorder or film camera. Nothing could be further from the truth … At any one moment, your eyes and brain only have the processing power to look at a very small part of your surroundings.'The brain, he says, scans the scene like a torch searching a darkened room. It fills in the gaps, to construct what appears to be a complete image from partial information. We then treat this image as if it were as concrete and definitive as a photograph in an album. If we focus on a cat and not on its surroundings, perhaps the process of singling out the beast magnifies it and shrinks the setting.I wonder, too, whether there might be a kind of template in our minds in the form of a big cat. As these were once our ancestors' foremost predators, we have a powerful evolutionary interest in recognising them before the conscious mind can process and interpret the image. Perhaps anything that vaguely fits the template triggers the big cat alarm. But none of this explains why big-cat sightings appear to have become more common in recent years.Certain paranormal phenomena afflict every society, and they appear to reflect our desires; desires of which we may not always be fully conscious. In Victorian Britain, large numbers of people believed that they were communicating with the dead. Walk around any graveyard of that era and you will read a tragic story of premature loss: ours was a nation in perpetual mourning. The notion that the dead could return in this life must have been almost as comforting as the belief that we would be reunited with them in the afterlife.As the space race between the US and the Soviet Union gripped the world's imagination, sightings of UFOs and aliens, little known in previous eras, multiplied. This was a period in which we entertained great hopes for the transformative potential of technology. It was also an epoch in which the world was shrinking. The age of terrestrial exploration and encounters with peoples unknown to us was ending; planet Earth was perhaps a less exciting place than it had been. Aliens and their craft filled a gap, while promising that we too would achieve the mastery of technology we ascribed to extraterrestrials. Today, perhaps because our belief in technological deliverance has declined, we hear less about UFOs.Could it be that illusory big cats also answer an unmet need? As our lives have become tamer and more predictable, as the abundance and diversity of nature has declined, could these imaginary creatures have brought us something we miss?Perhaps the beasts many people now believe are lurking in the dark corners of the land inject into our lives a thrill that can otherwise be delivered only by artificial means. Perhaps they reawaken vestigial evolutionary memories of conflict and survival, memories that must incorporate encounters – possibly the most challenging encounters our ancestors faced – with large predatory cats. They hint at an unexpressed wish for lives wilder and fiercer than those we now lead. Our desires stare back at us, yellow-eyed and snarling, from the thickets of the mind.This is an edited extract from George Monbiot's Feral, published on 30 May by Allen Lane.AnimalsPsychologyWildlifeGeorge Monbiotguardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds     [Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk]
  • Trees on farms: challenging conventional agricultural practice
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    Farmers know that shrubs and trees can increase yields and act as a ready source of firewood. But the lack of data means the scientific and extension community are yet to be convincedThere's a received wisdom that tree stumps, shoots and bushes should be cleared from a field before planting crops. It seems logical, but the experience of farmers in southern Niger suggests otherwise. There, the practice of Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) has been found to significantly improve soil quality and crop yields, along with additional resources and income from tree products.FMNR takes advantage of living underground root systems of previously cleared trees. Rather than remove new shoots, farmers practicing FMNR will nurture five or so of the strongest, most upright stems, pruning the rest away. These stems are allowed to grow, and some are harvested for firewood and timber.The presence of shrubs and trees helps fix nitrogen in the soil and lessens wind erosion so that seeds don't blow away and have to be replanted, while falling leaves scattering around fields enrich the soil.The practice was first introduced in Niger in the 1980s on a small experimental scale in response to widespread drought and land degradation, and a new publication by the World Agroforestry Centre describes how transformational this straightforward practice has been.It cites a farmer from the Maradi region in southern Niger who estimates that most farmers were getting yields of around 150kg of millet per hectare before FMNR became widespread. Many now get more than 500kg.'The trees also increase the infiltration rate, and farmers are finding their local water table is going up,' says Dennis Garrity, UN Drylands Ambassador and a senior fellow at the World Agroforestry Centre.'This is all counter-intuitive to the paradigm of conventional agriculture, where we segregate crops and trees so they don't compete. Extension services have generally been brought up in the northern paradigm, so we still run up against that conventional paradigm that you ought to clean your fields and grow your crops like a nice crop of corn in Iowa.'That approach makes sense for northern climates with a short growing season, but in sub-Saharan Africa there's more scope for mixing tree and field crops. The local Faidherbia albida (or 'gao') tree, for instance, sheds its leaves just before the planting season, enriching the soil.'You can choose appropriate species such as these that are compatible with crops and if you manage the density and canopy appropriately you can get these dramatic benefits, which increase household income and crop production,' says Garrity.Tree management has been practised for centuries in Africa and elsewhere but the integration of existing trees into farms fell away as a result of extension practices which encouraged 'clean' fields.Since FMNR began to be encouraged in the 1980s, a previously barren area of around 5m hectares has now returned to significant levels of tree cover. These trees translate into income: the World Agroforestry Centre estimates the value of tree products among sampled households practising FMNR in Niger at about $1,000 (£650) each per year.Crucially, the system also frees women from having to search off the farm for firewood. Instead, firewood and other tree products can be harvested on the farm itself, and also sold for additional income.One of the drivers for scaling this up in Niger was the relaxation of strict forestry codes. Previously, farmers had no legal right to trees on their land. The enforcement of these laws gradually faltered from the 1980s, which emboldened farmers to adopt techniques such as FMNR, and by 2004 Niger's forestry law had been revised.This is a common issue in many countries, and according to Chris Reij, a senior fellow of the World Resources Institute, it's one area where development actors can make a difference.'Farmers are motivated when they perceive ownership of their on-farm trees,' he says. 'We are trying to create a grassroots movement around regreening, involving CSOs and NGOs, and are also discussing with national policymakers the need for adequate forestry legislation.'Another important issue is how to encourage adoption of the practice. In Niger, scaling up has been achieved through farmer-to-farmer learning and radio-based awareness raising. The spread can be rapid, because once a farmer adopts the practice, the impact is seen quickly, says Reij.'Once a farmer decides to protect and manage natural regeneration, he will have to prune a tree possibly in the first year, and certainly the second year. The prunings can then be used as firewood in the kitchen. The first benefits in the field can be visible in the second year.'FMNR has also been taken up by farmers in other countries including Senegal, Burkina Faso and Mali. However, a paucity of strong data on it is still a stumbling block for development actors, according to Garrity, although DfID's recent UK climate week award for its Evergreen Agriculture project signals growing recognition of agroforestry techniques in the donor community.'We know it's attractive to farmers, but convincing the scientific and extension community is more difficult. Development organisations want solid data to base their judgements on. We're increasingly doing research on yield, soil and water conservation benefits to fill those gaps.'As that evidence base grows, more widespread adoption of FMNR may depend on development actors continuing to help advocate for supportive forestry legislation where necessary, and also helping to develop supportive institutional environments within communities.'As soon as farmers start to protect and manage trees, they need an affinity institution such as village organisations around it to set the rules for managing and protecting those trees, or farmers expose themselves to the risk of theft by those who don't do so,' says Reij. 'FMNR is low-cost and high-impact, and the actual technical part is simple. It's the institutional part that is a bit more complex.'This content is brought to you by Guardian Professional. To get more articles like this direct to your inbox, sign up free to become a member of the Global Development Professionals NetworkFarming and food securityTrees and forestsAgricultureFarmingguardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds     [Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk]
  • Namibia: Biodiversity Action Day Marked
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    [New Era]Gobabeb -Namibia's environment has started turning into an enemy that conspires with nature, while poor farming practices, excessive mining and deforestation have contributed to environmental degradation, according to the Minister of Environment and Tourism, Uahekua Herunga. [AllAfrica News: Environment]
  • Conservationists release manual on protecting great apes in forest concessions
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    A new report from the International Union for Conservation of Nature highlights the plight of great apes in the forest concessions of Central Africa and recommends actions to improve protection for gorillas and chimpanzees in these mixed-used landscapes, according to authors from the Wildlife Conservation Society, WWF, IUCN, Lincoln Park Zoo and Washington University. [EurekAlert! - Breaking News]
  • Origins of human culture linked to rapid climate change
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    Rapid climate change during the Middle Stone Age, between 80,000 and 40,000 years ago, sparked surges in cultural innovation in early modern human populations, according to new research. The research, published this month in Nature Communications, was conducted by a team of scientists from Cardiff University's School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, the Natural History Museum in London and the University of Barcelona. [EurekAlert! - Breaking News]
  • Encouraging signs for bee biodiversity
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    Declines in the biodiversity of pollinating insects and wild plants have slowed in recent years, according to a new study. [EurekAlert! - Breaking News]
  • Irish potato famine pest identified
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    Scientists have used plant samples collected in the 19th Century to identify the pathogen that caused the Irish potato famine. [BBC News - Science & Environment]
  • Blue whales making comeback in New Zealand waters
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    WELLINGTON, New Zealand, May 20 (UPI) -- Blue whales, the world's largest animal almost hunted to extinction in the 19th Century, are making a comeback in waters off New Zealand, scientists say. [CBD News Headlines]
  • Plague of deforestation sweeps across south-east Asia
    [released on: 21/05/2013]
    In 1968, during the six-month siege of Khe Sanh - one of the most bitterly fought battles of the Vietnam War - a special U.S. Air Force outfit flew defoliation missions. Called the Ranch Handers, their motto was: 'Only you can prevent a forest.' [CBD News Headlines]