Wildlife | SilverScorpio.Com

Jumbos enjoy a day off at a wildlife sanctuary in West Bengal

September 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Jalpaiguri, Sep 18 (ANI): Captive elephants, used by the forest officials to supervise the area, enjoyed a royal treat at the Jaldapara Sanctuary in Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal.

The forest officials use elephants to supervise the area since most of the sanctuary is inaccessible by vehicle or on foot.

Every year on the occasion of Vishwakarma puja, the jumbos get the much-awaited annual holiday.

On this day, the elephants are given special treatment. The day starts with the bathing of the animals in the river. The mahouts then decorate the elephants and give them special food.

“The elephants are the ride of Lord Vishwakarma and Vishwakarma takes care of machine, elephants. That’s why we the staff members of Jaldapara Wildlife perform this puja (ritual),” said Kharke Bahadur, a mahout.

Wildlife officials said elephants played a big role in maintaining the sanctuary.

“Because at Jaldapara, it’s mainly wildlife area. Here, there is very important role for such captive elephants because some areas where vehicle movement and foot patrolling is not possible because there is risk to life and these areas are accessible (because of elephants). So we totally depend on these captive elephants,” said Buddhadev Mondal, range officer at the sanctuary. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: ANI, animals, area, bahadur, bathing, Buddhadev, captive, Captive Elephants, care, day, decorate, district, food, foot, forest, forest officials, holiday, Jaldapara, Jalpaiguri, jumbos, Kharke, life, Lord Vishwakarma, machine, mahout, mahouts, Mondal, movement, occasion, officer, patrolling, Puja, range, ride, risk, ritual, river, role, Sanctuary, Sep, staff, staff members, treat, treatment, vehicle, Vishwakarma Puja, west bengal, wildlife, Wildlife Area, wildlife officials, Wildlife Sanctuary, year

WII to host global deer conservation meet in Srinagar next month

September 17, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Srinagar, Sep 16 (ANI): The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) is hosting a five day global meeting of the deer experts here-from October 9 to discuss conservation plans for the Hangul, which is also known as Kashmir Stag.

The meeting is also expected to chalk out a long-term effective management plan for the conservation of Hangul habitat.

Hangul is one of the endangered species of the world and has been listed in the Red Data Book of International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

According to WII Director P.R. Sharma the experts would share their knowledge in the management and conservation of endangered deer species in general and Red deer and its subspecies such as Hangul in particular in the meeting.

Conservationists from Russia, East Tibet, Middle East, Afghanistan and China will deliberate on issues threatening the existence of the species and formulate strategies, take effective relocation and recovery plan at the meet.

The conference would help the Indian conservationists to enhance and updating scientific knowledge on globally successful species recovery, conservation programmes and aspects of deer ecology, Sinha said.

That the meet is being held in Srinagar itself mirrors the government’s concern to urgently save the Hangul, one of the four easternmost subspecies of Red deer that is endemic to Kashmir mountains in Jammu and Kashmir.

The population the Hangul, which is one of the four easternmost subspecies of Red deer, has declined from an estimated 2000 individuals in 1947 to about 170-200 individuals in recent years, due to poaching, excessive grazing of livestock, forest fires.

Deer are important part of woodland ecosystems and their effects are vital to the survival of plants and animals that depend on open woodlands. Their low numbers and restricted range is of great ecological concern amongst the conservationists throughout the world. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Afghanistan, ANI, book, chalk, China, concern, conference, conservation, conservation of nature, conservation plans, conservationists, data, day, Deer Conservation, Deer Species, Director P.R. Sharma, East Tibet, easternmost, Ecological Concern, ecology, Endangered Species Of The World, existence, forest, forest fires, Global Meeting, Government, grazing, habitat, Hangul, India, institute, international, IUCN, jammu, Jammu and Kashmir, Kashmir, knowledge, livestock, management, meeting, Middle East, month, Nature, October, part, plan, plants and animals, population, range, recovery, red, red deer, relocation, Russia, scientific knowledge, Sep, Sinha, Species Of The World, Species Recovery, srinagar, stag, subspecies, survival, union, wii, wildlife, woodland, Woodland Ecosystems, world

Even a simple road can turn subsistence communities into commercial hunting camps

September 14, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, September 13 (ANI): In a new study, scientists have found that even a simple road can turn subsistence communities into commercial hunting camps that empty rainforests of their wildlife.

The study was carried out by researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the IDEAS-Universidad San Francisco de Quito at Ecuador’s Yasuni National Park.

The researchers, in the park, found that the presence of a single road in a protected area and the subsidies provided by oil companies to local people can fundamentally change how indigenous communities use their resources by providing both access to deeper parts of the forest and a cheap means of getting meat to nearby wildlife markets.

“We’ve found that a road in a forest can bring huge social changes to local groups and the ways in which they utilize wildlife resources,” said WCS and USFQ researcher Esteban Suarez, lead author of the study.

“Communities existing inside and around the park are changing their customs to a lifestyle of commercial hunting, the first stage in a potential overexploitation of wildlife,” Suarez added.

“A simple, seemingly inoffensive road can have far-reaching effects on a landscape and its people,” said Dr. Avecita Chicchon, Director of WCS’s Latin America and Caribbean Program.

“It provides hunters with more access to a wider range of forest while providing a low-cost transportation route to markets. More importantly, it plugs communities more easily into the larger economic world while creating increased demand for numerous species of animals. It is the road to unsustainability,” he added.

In the study, WCS scientists measured the levels of wild meat sold in a market in Pompeya, located about 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) outside Yasuni National Park, between the years 2005-2007.

The wild meat market emerged shortly after the construction of the road.

Although road access was strictly controlled, the oil companies operating this concession provided free travel along the road for hunters from local Waorani communities, according to the study.

The availability of cheap transportation is the biggest factor in determining the large amount of wild meat making it to market from Waorani communities.

In fact, the road’s very existence prompted many Waorani to abandon their semi-nomadic lifestyle; three Waorani communities now live along the road.

Between the years of 2005 and 2007, the researchers recorded more than 11,000 kilograms (24,000 pounds) of wild meat moving through the Pompeya market each year. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: access, amount, ANI, area, author, availability, Avecita, caribbean, Caribbean Program, Chicchon, communities, concession, conservation, construction, demand, director, Economic World, ecuador, Esteban Suarez, existence, fact, factor, forest, hunting, IDEAS-Universidad, Indigenous Communities, landscape, latin america, Lifestyle, local groups, market, meat, meat market, national, oil, oil companies, overexploitation, park, Pompeya, presence, program, Quito, Rainforests, range, researcher, road, route, San Francisco, September, September 13, simple, social changes, society, stage, study, subsistence, Subsistence Communities, transportation, Transportation Route, travel, unsustainability, USFQ, Waorani, Washington, WCS, Wild Meat, wildlife, wildlife conservation society, wildlife conservation society wcs, Wildlife Resources, world, Yasuni, Yasuni National Park, year

Gorilla-like creature resembling ‘Bigfoot’ photographed in Kentucky backyard

September 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, September 10 (ANI): A gorilla-like creature that resembles the mythical creature ‘Bigfoot’ is causing excitement on the web after being photographed in the back garden of a home in Kentucky in the US.

According to a report in the Telegraph, the large, hairy beast can be seen in a blurry picture taken on an automatic camera set up by an amateur hunter.

While flicking through images of rabbits and deer, Kenny Mahoney noticed a dark, humanoid creature that does not look like any of the southern US state’s known native species.

The mystery animal’s head appears too small for it to be a bear, leaving Mahoney wondering whether he had accidentally captured one of the clearest ever photos of Bigfoot.

“It looked like it had the outline of a head, and like gorilla type shoulders, and then the arms crossed is what it looks like to me,” said Mahoney.

“One of the explanations my brother-in-law said it may be a garbage bag blowed up in there, but all the smashed over vegetation in there – I really don’t know. I have no idea what it is,” he added.

Mahoney said he is very doubtful that the creature in the photo is Bigfoot.

His wife Margaret has sent the image to a wildlife expert in the hope of getting it identified.

The mythical ape-like creature Bigfoot is most regularly sighted in the forests in the northwestern states and provinces of North America, although last month a teenage girl in Poland reported seeing a similar beast.

Last year, two men in the US state of Georgia claimed to have discovered a body of Bigfoot, but subsequently confessed that photos they produced as “proof” of their find actually showed a rubber ape costume. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ANI, animal, ape, Automatic Camera, back, backyard, bag, bear, beast, Bigfoot, body, brother-in-law, camera, clearest, creature, dark, excitement, expert, explanations, forests, garbage, garden, Georgia, Girl, gorilla, Gorilla-like, Hairy Beast, head, Head Shoulders, home, hope, humanoid, Humanoid Creature, hunter, idea, image, Images Of Rabbits, Kenny Mahoney, Kentucky., London, margaret, month, mystery, Mystery Animal, Mythical Creature, native species, North America, northwestern, Northwestern States, outline, photo, picture, Poland, proof, Rabbits, report, rubber, September, southern US, state, State Of Georgia, teenage girl, Telegraph, type, US, vegetation, web, wife, wife margaret, wildlife, Wildlife Expert, year

World’s smallest parrot filmed in wild for first time

September 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, September 8 (ANI): The world’s smallest parrot, which is not much bigger than an adult person’s thumb, has been filmed in the wild for the first time.

According to a report by BBC News, an expedition team filming in Papua New Guinea for the BBC programme ‘Lost Land of the Volcano’ caught two of the buff-faced pygmy parrots on camera.

Another adult, which weighs less than half an ounce, was also trapped by the expedition team’s bird expert.

On average, buff-faced pygmy parrots (Micropsitta pusio) stand less than 9cm tall and weigh 11.5g (0.41oz).

They are found across the northern lowlands of the island of New Guinea from the west to the southeastern tip, up to an altitude of around 800m.

Males and females look similar, but females have less prominent markings on the head.

The birds have green feathers with yellowish plumage on their underparts; while their cheeks, face, and crown are more buff-coloured, hence their name.

BBC wildlife cameraman Gordon Buchanan first discovered a tiny nest belonging to two parrots deep within pristine rainforest.

The birds nest in termite mounds, using their beaks and claws to dig their way in before laying eggs in the hole created.

Buchanan staked out the nest from within a camouflaged hide, and was rewarded after a long wait when two birds returned.

He filmed the pair at their nest entrance, as the male and female reinforced their bond by rubbing against one another.

Later, another parrot was trapped unharmed by Dr Jack Dumbacher, an ornithologist from the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, US, who had accompanied the BBC expedition team.

Buff-faced pygmy parrots do not eat fruit and nuts but lichen and fungi.

However, so little is still known about their dietary habits that it has proved difficult to rear the birds in captivity. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ''wait, academy, adult, Adult Person, altitude, ANI, bbc, Beaks, bird, Bird Expert, Birds Nest, Bond, Buff-faced, California, California Academy Of Sciences, camera, cameraman, captivity, crown, dietary habits, dr jack, Dr Jack Dumbacher, entrance, expedition, expert, face, female, fruit, Gordon Buchanan, Guinea, head, hole, island, land, lichen, London, males and females, Micropsitta, name, nest, nest entrance, New, NEWS, Northern Lowlands, ornithologist, ounce, pair, Papua New Guinea, parrot, person, plumage, Pristine Rainforest, programme, pusio, pygmy, Pygmy Parrots, rainforest, report, San Francisco, September, Southeastern Tip, team, termite, Termite Mounds, thumb, time, tip, two birds, US, volcano, way, west, wildlife, Wildlife Cameraman, world, yellowish

Rat as big as a cat found in extinct volcano in Papua New Guinea

September 7, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, September 7 (ANI): An expedition team has found a new species of giant rat in an extinct volcano in the jungle of Papua New Guinea, which at 82cm length, is as big as a cat.

According to a report by BBC News, the creature, which has not yet been formally described, was discovered by an expedition team filming the BBC programme ‘Lost Land of the Volcano’.

The rat, which has no fear of humans, is among the largest species of rat known anywhere in the world.

Like the other exotic species, the rat is believed to live within the Mount Bosavi crater, and nowhere else.

“This is one of the world’s largest rats. It is a true rat, the same kind you find in the city sewers,” said Dr Kristofer Helgen, a mammalogist based at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History who accompanied the BBC expedition team.

Initially, the giant rat was first captured on film by an infrared camera trap, which BBC wildlife cameraman Gordon Buchanan set up in the forest on the slopes of the volcano.

The expedition team, from the BBC Natural History Unit, recorded the rat rummaging around on the forest floor, and was awed by its size.

Immediately, they suspected it could be a species never before recorded by science, but they needed to see a live animal to be sure.

Then trackers accompanying the team managed to trap a live specimen.

“I had a cat and it was about the same size as this rat,” said Buchanan.

The trapped rat measured 82cm in length from its nose to its tail, and weighed approximately 1.5kg.

It had a silver-brown coat of thick long fur, which the scientists who examined it believe may help it survive the wet and cold conditions that can occur within the high volcano crater.

The location where the rat was discovered lies at an elevation of over 1,000m.

Initial investigations suggest the rat belongs to the genus Mallomys, which contains a handful of other out-sized species.

It has provisionally been called the Bosavi woolly rat, while its scientific name has yet to be agreed.

Mount Bosavi, where the new rat was found, is an extinct volcano that lies deep in the remote Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea.

The expedition team entered the crater to explore pristine forest, where few humans have set foot.

The island which includes Papua New Guinea and New Guinea is famous for the number and diversity of the rats and mice that live there. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: 5kg, ANI, animal, bbc, camera, cameraman, cat, city, City Sewers, coat, Cold Conditions, crater, creature, diversity, Dr Kristofer Helgen, elevation, expedition, Extinct Volcano, fear, film, floor, foot, forest, Forest Floor, fur, genus, Giant Rat, Gordon Buchanan, Guinea, handful, history, infrared camera, initial investigations, island, jungle, kind, Kristofer, land, length, location, London, Mallomys, mammalogist, Mount Bosavi, museum, museum of natural history, name, national, National Museum Of Natural History, natural, Natural History Unit, New, NEWS, nose, number, Papua New Guinea, programme, rat, report, Science, September, size, Smithsonian, Smithsonian National Museum, Smithsonian National Museum Of Natural History, Southern Highlands, specimen, tail, team, trap, unit, volcano, Volcano Crater, wildlife, Wildlife Cameraman, world

World’s smallest satellite tags to track rare Kittlitz’s Murrelet seabirds

September 6, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, September 6 (ANI): Scientists have attached the world’s smallest satellite tags to the members of the rare and rapidly declining Kittlitz’s Murrelet seabirds, in order to track them.

Most of these birds are found in remote, glaciated regions of Alaska, but their wintering grounds have long been unknown.

Thanks to tiny solar-powered satellites tags that can be attached to small seabirds, researchers from the USGS (US Geological Survey) and US Fish and Wildlife Service can now study their nesting, foraging and migration ecology.

This new technology is even capable of operating successfully in the most extreme subarctic marine environment.

Data collected from these tags may help inform conservation strategies for this rare species.

Scientists report that all tags are functioning and they expect to see birds migrate soon to their wintering grounds. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: alaska, ANI, birds, conservation, Conservation Strategies, data, ecology, environment, fish, Fish And Wildlife, Fish And Wildlife Service, geological, Kittlitz, marine environment, members, migration, Migration Ecology, Murrelet, new technology, order, Rare Species, satellite, Satellite Tags, satellites, Scientists, seabirds, September, service, Subarctic, survey, Technology, US, us geological survey, usgs, Washington, wildlife, world

Scientists identify ‘tipping points’ at which sudden shifts to new conditions occur

September 3, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, September 3 (ANI): In a new research, scientists have identified ‘tipping points’ at which sudden shifts to new conditions occur in the world.

The research was done by Martin Scheffer of Wageningen University in The Netherlands and co-authors, including William Brock and Stephen Carpenter of the University of Wisconsin at Madison and George Sugihara of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, California.

They found that abrupt changes in ocean circulation and Earth’s climate, shifts in wildlife populations and ecosystems, the global finance market and its system-wide crashes, and asthma attacks and epileptic seizures share generic early-warning signals that indicate a critical threshold of change dead ahead.

The team found that similar symptoms occur in many systems as they approach a critical state of transition.

“It’s increasingly clear that many complex systems have critical thresholds – ‘tipping points’ – at which these systems shift abruptly from one state to another,” according to the scientists.

Especially relevant, they discovered, is that “catastrophic bifurcations,” a diverging of the ways, propel a system toward a new state once a certain threshold is exceeded.

A system follows a trail for so long, then often comes to a switchpoint at which it will strike out in a completely new direction.

That system may be as tiny as the alveoli in human lungs or as large as global climate.

“These are compelling insights into the transitions in human and natural systems,” said Henry Gholz, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF)’s Division of Environmental Biology, which supported the research along with NSF’s Division of Ocean Sciences.

“The information comes at a critical time – a time when Earth’s and, our fragility, have been highlighted by global financial collapses, debates over health care reform, and concern about rapid change in climate and ecological systems,” he added.

It all comes down to what scientists call “squealing,” or “variance amplification near critical points,” when a system moves back and forth between two states.

“A system may shift permanently to an altered state if an underlying slow change in conditions persists, moving it to a new situation,” said Carpenter.

According to scientists, “In systems in which we can observe transitions repeatedly, such as lakes, ranges or fields, and such as human physiology, we may discover where the thresholds are.”

“If we have reason to suspect the possibility of a critical transition, early-warning signals may be a significant step forward in judging whether the probability of an event is increasing,” they added. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: alveoli, amplification, ANI, asthma, asthma attacks, biology, California, care, change, circulation, climate, Climate Shifts, concern, critical threshold, direction, director, division, Earth, environmental, Environmental Biology, epileptic seizures, event, finance, Foundation, fragility, George Sugihara, global climate, Health, health care reform, Henry Gholz, Human Lungs, information, institution, Institution Of Oceanography, Jolla, madison, market, Martin Scheffer, national, national science foundation, NSF, ocean, ocean circulation, Oceanography, physiology, possibility, probability, program, reason, reform, Research, research scientists, Science, Scripps, Scripps Institution Of Oceanography, September, situation, state, step, Stephen Carpenter, Sudden Shifts, switchpoint, system, team, the Netherlands, threshold, time, trail, transition, University, University Of Wisconsin At Madison, variance, Wageningen, Washington, wildlife, wildlife populations, William Brock, Wisconsin, world

Migratory birds in arrive Orissa

September 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Baijal Sagar (Orissa), Aug 31(ANI): The migratory birds coming into the country have found a safe haven in Orissa’s Baijal Sagar village, which surrounded by lush green forests provide an ideal habitat for these birds.

The villagers act as ideal hosts to the visiting birds, who arrive during the monsoon season, as they protect and provide a safe shelter to these winged beauties.

“No-no, nobody hurts these birds. No one kills them. They come here, as they feel safe here. Why should we kill them? They have never harmed us in any form as such no one dares to hurt them,” said Sambar Majhi, a villager.

The birds come here in at the advent of sowing season and stay here for 6-7 months. During this period they lay eggs, hatch the off-springs and once their young ones are ready to fly, return to their native countries.

In a state where cases of poaching are quite common and the migratory birds are often killed for their flesh, the instance of villagers turning protectors has been much appreciated by the forest officials.

“People are very cooperative. They are very much interested in protection of wildlife. With their help, birds are not being hunted. There are no instances of hunting,” said R K Sahu, Divisional Forest Officer of Bolangir Range.

Every year, nearly a million birds from upper regions of Asia, Europe and the Far East visit Orissa just prior to the winter and nestle as well as breed here till the season is over. By Sarda Lahangir(ANI)

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: 7 Months, advent, ANI, asia, asia europe, Aug, Baijal, Bolangir, breed, country, divisional, Europe, flesh, forest, forest officer, forest officials, form, green forests, habitat, hatch, haven, help, hunting, instance, instances, Lahangir, Majhi, migratory, migratory birds, Monsoon, monsoon season, Native Countries, Nestle, no-no, nobody, officer, One, Orissa, period, protection, R K Sahu, range, Regions Of Asia, return, safe haven, sagar, sambar, Sarda, season, shelter, sowing, state, the Far East, Upper Regions, village, villager, visit, wildlife, Winged Beauties, winter, year, young ones

World’s largest bats on the verge of extinction in Peninsular Malaysia due to hunting

August 26, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, August 26 (ANI): The world’s largest species of fruit bat, Pteropus vampyrus, could be driven to extinction in Peninsular Malaysia at the current hunting rate, scientists have warned.

They say that around 22,000 of these bats, also known as “large flying fox”, are legally hunted each year in Peninsular Malaysia, a level that is unsustainable based on their estimates of the number of bats in the country.

Dr Jonathan Epstein, a veterinary epidemiologist at Wildlife Trust, surveyed 33 roost sites across Peninsular Malaysia and repeatedly counted the numbers of bats at eight sites between 2003 and 2007.

Writing about their work in the British Ecological Society’s Journal of Applied Ecology, he and his colleagues revealed that they compared this data along with the number of hunting licenses issued by the Malaysian Department of Wildlife and National Parks using computer models to see whether the number of bats hunted each year was sustainable.

The researchers also used satellite transmitters attached to bats to see how far the species migrated, and found that they travelled from Malaysia to Indonesia and Thailand.

The Malaysian Department of Wildlife and National Parks, which regulates the hunting of flying foxes, also participated in the current study because there was interest in generating data to help assess the impact of current hunting rates.

It was observed that, based on the average number of licenses issued each year, around 22,000 flying foxes per year were allowed to be killed in Peninsular Malaysia, yet this rate was unsustainable even with the most optimistic population level of 500,000 assumed by their model.

The researchers reckon that this level of hunting will drive the species to extinction in between six and 81 years.

Epstein says: “Our models suggest that hunting activity over the period between 2002 and 2005 in Peninsular Malaysia is not sustainable, and that local populations of Pteropus vampyrus are vulnerable to extinction. Now that we know that these bats migrate between Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, coordinated assessments of their status throughout their range will be important for developing effective management strategies. Any additional hunting pressure on this species that occurs in Thailand or Indonesia may hasten the population’s decline.”

Epstein and his colleagues suggest that a temporary ban be imposed on hunting flying foxes so that their population can recover, and the species can be saved from local extinction.

“Our study illustrates that bats, like other migratory species, require comprehensive protection by regional management plans across their range,” says Epstein.

The study’s findings have prompted the Department of National Parks and Wildlife to review their policy on bat hunting. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: activity, ANI, applied, August, ban, bat, bats, British, British Ecological Society, Computer, computer models, country, decline, department, Department Of Wildlife, Dr Jonathan Epstein, Dr Jonathan, ecological, ecology, epidemiologist, extinction, flying fox, flying foxes, fox, fruit, Fruit Bat, generating, hunting, Hunting Licenses, impact, Indonesia, interest, Jonathan Epstein, journal, level, Malaysia, management, migratory, model, national, National Parks, number, parks, Peninsular, Peninsular Malaysia, period, policy, population, Population Level, populations, pressure, protection, Pteropus, range, rate, rate scientists, satellite, society, Species Extinction, status, study, Thailand, trust, using computer, verge, Washington, wildlife, Wildlife Trust, work, world, year

Susta region at Indo-Nepal border becomes a haven for criminal activities

August 25, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Susta (Nepal)/Gorakhpur (UP), Aug 24 (ANI): The disputed region of Susta Indo-Nepal border has become a safe haven for criminals who are a threat to wildlife as they indulge in activities like poaching, and smuggling of timber and cane.

Criminals in the adjoining Indian states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are now residing in Susta.either the governments of India nor Nepal are acting against these criminals.

“Through news medium you must have seen forest animals are being hunted. Apart from this there are many criminal acts which we don’t have proof about but are taking place,” said Harsh Kumar Sinha, Professor, Department of Defense Studies, Gorakhpur University.

The criminals also indulge in poaching of tigers and cutting of trees in the adjoining Valmiki tiger reserve of Valmiki Nagar in Bihar.

Both Nepal and India accuse each other of land encroachment.

The dispute over the 14, 000 hectares of land of Triveni-Susta – of Nepal’s Nawalparasi district and Valmiki Nagar owes its origin to Gandak River changing its course recently. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: ANI, Aug, Bihar, border, cane, course, Criminal Acts, criminals, cutting, defense, department, department of defense, dispute, district, encroachment, forest, Forest Animals, Gandak River, gorakhpur, Gorakhpur University, governments, harsh, Harsh Kumar, haven, hectares, India, indian states, indo nepal, indo-, Kumar Sinha, land, medium, nagar, Nawalparasi, Nepal., NEWS, origin, place, pradesh, professor, professor department, proof, region, reserve, safe haven, smuggling, Susta, threat, tiger, tigers, timber, TRIVENI, University, uttar, Uttar Pradesh, valmiki, Valmiki Tiger Reserve, wildlife

Maharashtra minister apologises to Environment Ministry for entering tiger cage

August 25, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Nagpur, Aug. 23(ANI): Maharashtra’s Agriculture Minister Balasaheb Thorat has apologized to the Ministry of Environment and Forest for violating the Wildlife Protection Act by entering the cage of a tiger cub at Nagpur Zoo.

“I met Union Environment and Forest Minister Jairam Ramesh and explained him my side of the story. I had no wrong intention except the development of the zoo,” Thorat said.

“I also apologized for having violated any norms by entering the cage and the minister would decide further,” he added.

Thorat, who is also the district in charge minister of Nagpur, had visited the Maharajbagh Zoo on Independence Day along with city Congress officials.

The Maharashtra Congress unit claimed that Thorat acted at the behest of zoo officials.

His action drew flak from wildlife and environment conservationists. They have demanded action against Thorat as he violated zoo rules and the Wildlife Protection Act.

Meanwhile, member-secretary of the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) B. R.Sharma has given a clean chit to a Thorat and his associates saying they cannot be held responsible.

“Yes prima facie, there is a violation of the Act as the minister had entered the tiger cage on August 15, but the zoo administration is responsible for the Act,” Sharma said.

Sharma was deputed by the CZA and the Ministry of Environment and Forest to get first-hand details of the incident.

The Maharajbagh Zoo is maintained by the Punjabrao Deshmukh Agriculture University’s College of Agriculture. Thorat, who is also the Pro Chancellor of the University, in his capacity as Agriculture Minister, had entered the tiger cage during a routine inspection visit. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: act, action, administration., Agriculture, Agriculture Minister, agriculture university, ANI, apologises, Aug, August, authority, B. R.Sharma, Balasaheb, behest, cage, cannot, capacity, central, Chancellor, charge, chit, city, clean chit, college, College Of Agriculture, Congress, Congress Officials, cub, CZA, day, Deshmukh, Development, district, environment, facie, flak, forest, forest minister, Hand Details, incident, independence, inspection, intention, jairam ramesh, Maharajbagh, Maharashtra, Member Secretary, minister, Minister Jairam, ministry, ministry of environment, nagpur, prima, protection, Punjabrao, R Sharma, Ramesh, Routine Inspection, side, story, thorat, tiger, Tiger Cage, Tiger Cub, union, unit, University, violation, visit, wildlife, wildlife protection act, zoo, zoo officials, Zoo Rules

Varanasi’s photo exhibition highlights environmental hazards

August 20, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), Aug 20(ANI): A photo exhibition highlighting the ill effects of global warming and pollution on wildlife and human beings was held at the holy city of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday (August 19) on the occasion of World Photography Day. he objective of the event was to spread public awareness about the adverse impact on environment in the guise of ‘progress’ and sensitise them towards issues like pollution.

“Our wildlife is being adversely affected by the environment, global warming, depletion of the ozone layer, water pollution and air pollution. Both human beings and the wild life are gravely affected,” said U S Agarwal, the organiser of the photo exhibition.

Visitors found the exhibited photographs quite inspiring.

“We have learnt from this exhibition that we should take care of nature and animals. This exhibition is truly inspiring,” said Sudhir Singh, a visitor.

According to researchers, rising temperatures could wipe out more than half of the earth’s species in the next few centuries.

According to the UN Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change, the average global temperatures are likely to rise by between 1.8 and 4 degrees Celsius by the end of the century, partly as a result of greenhouse gas emissions.

The upper end of the forecast rise would heat the earth close to the temperatures of 250 million years ago, when 95 percent of all animal and plant species became extinct. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: adverse impact, agarwal, air, air pollution, ANI, animal, Aug, August, awareness, care, celsius, century, change, city, climate, climate change, day, depletion, Depletion Of The Ozone Layer, Earth, effects of global warming, end, environment, Environmental Hazards, event, exhibition, Exhibition Visitors, forecast, Gas, global temperatures, greenhouse, greenhouse gas emissions, guise, half, holy city, ill effects, impact, inter-governmental, layer, learnt, life, Nature, objective, occasion, organiser, ozone, panel, percent, photo, photo exhibition, photography, plant, plant species, pollution, pradesh, progress, result, rise, sensitise, sudhir, Sudhir Singh, U. S, uttar, Uttar Pradesh, varanasi, visitor, warming, water, water pollution, Wednesday, wild life, wildlife, world, World Photography

Scientists discover deadly plant that eats rats

August 18, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, August 18 (ANI): British scientists have discovered a deadly plant that eats rats, and is believed to be the largest meat-eating shrub.

According to a report in The Sun, the giant pitcher plant lures rodents into its slipper-shaped mouth and dissolves them with acid-like enzymes.

Scientists, led by botanists Stewart McPherson and Alastair Robinson, tracked it down on Mount Victoria in the Philippines after hearing that missionaries had seen “whole rats” being eaten.

“The plant produces spectacular traps which catch not only insects, but also rodents. It is remarkable that it remained undiscovered until the 21st century,” said McPherson, of Poole, Dorset.

The research team named the incredibly rare species after legendary wildlife broadcaster Sir David Attenborough.

“My team and I named it in honour of Sir David whose work has inspired generations toward a better understanding of the beauty and diversity of the natural world,” said McPherson.

“I was contacted by the team shortly after the discovery and they asked if they could name it after me. I was delighted and told them, ‘Thank you very much’,” said Sir David.

“I’m absolutely flattered. This is a remarkable species the largest of its kind. I’m told it can catch rats then eat them with its digestive enzymes. It’s certainly capable of that,” he added.

The plant, now dubbed Nepenthes attenboroughii, is green and red and can grow a stem more than 4ft long. It is found only in the scrub high on the windswept slopes of Mount Victoria.

McPherson and former Cambridge University botanist Robinson made their discovery during an expedition in 2007.

But, they have only just described the killer shrub in a journal after a three-year study of all 120 species of pitcher plant. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: Alastair, Alastair Robinson, ANI, attenboroughii, August, beauty, botanist, Botanists, British scientists, broadcaster, cambridge, cambridge university, century, digestive enzymes, discovery, diversity, dorset, expedition, honour, journal, killer, kind, London, Mcpherson, Missionaries, Mount Victoria, mouth, Nepenthes, Philippines, pitcher, Pitcher Plant, plant, poole, poole dorset, Rare Species, rats, Remarkable Species, report, Research, robinson, rodents, scrub, shrub, Sir David, Sir David Attenborough, slopes, stem, Stewart McPherson, study, Sun, team, understanding, University, wildlife, windswept, work, world

PM to address National Conference of Ministers of Environment and Forests today

August 18, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Aug 18 (ANI): For a comprehensive stock taking of the implementation of policies and programmes concerning protection of environment, forests and wildlife, the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests has convened a National Conference of the Ministers of Environment and Forests of all the States and Union Territories here today.

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh will deliver the inaugural address.

Union Minister of state (Independent charge) Jairam Ramesh, Secretaries of Environment and Forests from all states, Chairman of Central Pollution Control board, Chairman of State Pollution Control Board, Principal Chief Conservators of Forests, Chief Wildlife Wardens, Members, Planning Commission, Chief Ministers, Secretaries, Government of India, Dr R K Pachauri, Director General, TERI, India, NGOs will participate in the conference.

The conference assumes significance in the context of the emerging and continuing challenges in respect of protection of environment, forests and wildlife.

The conference seeks to forge enhanced synergies between the efforts of the Central and State Governments for effective implementation of policies and programmes in this regard.

The conference will deliberate on several items.

They are i. Monitoring compliance with environmental and forestry related laws and regulations and road map for institution building;

ii.River cleaning – innovative models and enhanced co-ordination among the centre, states and local bodies;

iii. Strategies for increasing forest cover and enhancing synergies between Green India Mission, National Afforestation Programme and CAMPA Funds;

iv. Strengthening of State Forest Departments and Capacity Building of Forest Officials;

v. Protection of forests in the context of the implementation of Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forests Rights) Act, 2006;

vi. Wildlife management including Tiger Conservation and issues related to Man-Animal conflict. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: act, address, afforestation, ANI, animal, Aug, board, building, CAMPA, capacity, Central Pollution, central pollution control board, centre, chairman, charge, Chief Conservators, chief ministers, commission, compliance, conference, conflict, context, control, cover, departments, Director General, Dr R K Pachauri, Dr. Manmohan Singh, dwellers, environment, forest, forest cover, Forest Departments, forest dwellers, forest officials, Forestry, forests, Government, government of india, green, III, implementation, independent, India, india mission, institution, Jairam, man, management, Manmohan Singh, map, ministry, ministry of environment, Ministry of Environment and Forests, mission, monitoring, national, New Delhi, ngos, planning, pollution control board, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan, principal, programme, protection, protection of environment, Protection Of Forests, Ramesh, recognition, regard, respect, rights, river, road, scheduled, Secretaries, significance, Singh, state, state governments, State Pollution Control Board, stock, strengthening, taking, TERI, tiger conservation, today, traditional, Traditional Forest, Tribes, union, union ministry, Wardens, wildlife

Leopard rescued in West Bengal

August 13, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Jalpaiguri (WB), Aug 13 (ANI): Wildlife officials rescued a male leopard from a tea garden in Jalpaiguri of West Bengal.

Locals from in and around the tea garden crowded the cage to have a glimpse of the wounded animal that had unleashed fear in the area.

Dipendra Nath Saha, the range officer of the Khunia said the leopard was trapped as it was terrorising the garden workers.

“This is the fourth rescue of its kind from this region in a span of two months. This leopard was doing damage to the garden workers,” Saha added.

With tiger population dwindling in recent years as a result of poaching, wildlife officials say hunters have increasingly set their sights on leopards, killing them for their skins as well as bones, claws and penises for use in traditional Asian medicines.

Depletion of their habitat has also threatened the leopards, forcing them to stray into human settlements-attacking people and cattle-and often getting killed in return.

India had about 7,300 leopards in the wild according to a 1997 census, but conservationists say the number is now likely to be much lower. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: ANI, animal, area, Aug, bones, cage, cattle, census, conservationists, damage, depletion, Dipendra, fear, garden, glimpse, habitat, human settlements, India, Jalpaiguri, Khunia, kind, Leopard, leopards, locals, Male Leopard, Nath, number, officer, Penises, population, range, region, rescue, result, return, saha, skins, span, tea, tea garden, tiger, tiger population, Traditional Asian Medicines, use, wb, west bengal, wildlife, wildlife officials

121 breeding tigers in Nepal spells new ray of hope for the species

July 29, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 28 (ANI): Conservationists worrying about the fate of the majestic tiger can now breathe a sign of relief as about 121 breeding tigers are estimated to have been found in Nepal.

The figures announced by the Nepal Government’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) shows the presence of 121 (100 – 194) breeding tigers in the wild within the four protected areas of Nepal.

The 2008 tiger population estimate was jointly implemented by the DNPWC, Department of Forests (DOF), WWF, National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) with support from Save The Tiger Fund (STF), WWF-US, WWF-UK, WWF International and US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).

“To obtain reliable population estimates of wide ranging species like the tiger, it is important to undertake the survey simultaneously in all potential habitats,” said Dr. Rinjan Shrestha, Conservation Biologist with WWF Nepal.

Previous studies had been undertaken in different time periods and at different spatial scales.

“To derive information on both abundance and distribution of tigers, the current survey employed two methods – Camera Trapping method inside the protected areas and Habitat Occupancy survey both inside and outside the protected areas,” said Dr. Shrestha.

“The tiger numbers have increased in Chitwan but decreased in Bardia and Shuklaphanta,” said Anil Manandhar, Country Representative, WWF Nepal.

“In spite of the decade long insurgency, encroachment, poaching and illegal trade, the present numbers is a positive sign, but we can’t remain unworried.

The declining numbers in western Nepal has posed more challenges, needing a concerted effort to save this charismatic endangered species focusing on anti-poaching and illegal wildlife trade,” he added.

The Government of Nepal has approved and launched the ‘Tiger conservation Action Plan 2008- 2012′.

A comprehensive management plan has been devised in which the target is to increase the population of tigers by 10 per cent within the first 5 year period of the plan implementation.

“Tigers can not be saved by the effort of a single individual or a single organization,” said Gopal Prasad Upadhyay, Director General, DNPWC.

“The transboundary relation with India needs to be strengthened further and all organizations should work together to conserve tigers,” he added. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: abundance, action, ANI, anil, Bardia, biologist, camera, cent, chitwan, conservation, Conservation Action Plan, conservation biologist, country, country representative, decade, department, Director General, distribution, DNPWC, DOF, Dr. Shrestha, effort, encroachment, estimate, fate, fish, Fish And Wildlife Service, forests, fund, gopal, Government, government of nepal, habitat, illegal wildlife trade, implementation, India, information, insurgency., international, July, Majestic Tiger, management, Manandhar, method, national, National Parks And Wildlife, Nature, nepal government, Nepal., NTNC, occupancy, organization, parks, period, plan, population, population estimate, Population Estimates, prasad, presence, ray, relation, relief, representative, Rinjan, service, Shrestha, Shuklaphanta, sign, spatial, Spatial Scales, spite, STF, support, survey, target, the, tiger, tiger conservation, Tiger Fund, tiger population, tigers, time, time periods, trade, Trapping, trust, U.K, Upadhyay, US, USFWS, Washington, Western Nepal, wildlife, WWF, Wwf International, WWF-UK, WWF-US, year

A tigress released with animal tracking chip in Sundarbans

July 6, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Sundarbans (WB), July 6 (ANI): Wildlife authorities released a tigress with animal tracking chip to keep an eye on the psychological behaviour of the big cat in Sundarbans forests in West Bengal.

The seven-year old tigress, which had entered Satjelia village under Gosaba block of the Sundarbans delta a few days ago, was trapped on July 2.

The sensitive microchip, fixed on an ear of tigress, will be monitored remotely and provide information about the movement of the tigress.

The chip system is being used for the first time in West Bengal.

India has half the world’s surviving tigers, but conservationists say the country is losing the battle to save the big cats. There were about 40,000 tigers in India a century ago, but decades of poaching had cut their number to about 3,700, according to a count conducted in 2001 and 2002. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: ANI, animal, battle, behaviour, big cat, big cats, block, cat, century, chip, chip system, conservationists, count, country, decades, delta, ear, eye, few days, forests, Gosaba, Half The World, India, information, July, Losing The Battle, microchip, movement, number, Satjelia, Sundarbans, system, tigers, tigress, time, village, west bengal, West Bengal India, wildlife, wildlife authorities, world

Energy intake reaches a limit despite abundant food supply

July 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 1 (ANI): Contradicting Charles Darwin’s theory, scientists have now shown that despite abundant food supply, energy intake reaches a limit even in animals with high nutrient demands, such as lactating females.

Darwin and his contemporaries postulated that food consumption in birds and mammals was limited by resource levels, which meant that animals would eat as much as they could while food was plentiful and produce as many offspring as this would allow them to.

Scientists at the Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology in Vienna have now suggested that energy intake reaches a limit due to active control of maternal investment in offspring in order to maintain long-term reproductive fitness.

The new research led by Dr Teresa Valenca showed that Brown hares could increase their energy turnover and rate of milk production above normal levels when their energy reserves were low, or when their offspring were kept in cooler temperatures.

That indicated that, ordinarily, the hares were operating at below their maximum capacity.

It also showed that this is not due to any kind of physiological constraint, such as length of digestive tract or maximum capacity of mammary glands.

As the hares were also provided with plentiful food, there could be no limitation of energy turnover due to food availability.

The way that females regulated their energy expenditure according to pup demand and their own fat reserves but did not exceed certain levels was in line with the group’s theory that using energy at close to the maximum rate has costs for animals which may compromise their ability to successfully reproduce in the future.

For example, if a hare puts most of its energy into a litter of pups then it will have little left over for growth and body repairs, which may shorten its life or make it less able to produce or care for young in the future.

Thus, by actively limiting the rate of energy turnover, a mother can prevent this and maintain a higher level of reproductive success over her lifetime.

The study will be presented at the Society for Experimental Biology Annual Meeting in Glasgow. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ability, Abundant Food Supply, ANI, availability, biology, body, brown, Brown Hares, capacity, charles darwin, constraint, consumption, Contradicting, control, darwin, demand, Dr Teresa, Dr Teresa Valenca, ecology, energy, Energy Expenditure, energy intake, energy reserves, Energy Turnover, example, expenditure, Experimental, fitness, food, food availability, food consumption, future, glasgow, group, growth, hare, institute, intake, investment, July, kind, length, level, life, lifetime, limit, limitation, line, litter, Mammary Glands, maternal, maximum, maximum capacity, Milk, mother, nutrient, Nutrient Demands, offspring, order, Plentiful Food, production, Pup, rate, Reproductive Fitness, Research, resource, Resource Levels, society, study, success, supply, Supply Energy, theory, tract, turnover, Using Energy, Valenca, Vienna, Washington, way, wildlife, wildlife ecology

Heat wave hits wildlife in Jammu

July 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Jasrota, Kathua, July 1 (ANI): Acute water shortage in Jammu has led to death of a number of animals in and around the Jasrota Wildlife Sanctuary.

The natural water reserves have all dried up due to the heat wave and the authorities have been unable to arrange drinking water for the zoo inmates.

Due to the lack of drinking water, many animals and birds have been found dead in the sanctuary.

Thirsty animals are now being found roaming in the populated areas around the sanctuary.

The villagers have launched a campaign to save the wildlife by providing drinking water to them.

“We saw that for the past few days many animals were found dead due to the lack of water. So, we have started a movement to save them. We will fill all the dried ponds situated outside the sanctuary so that they can drink the water,” said Amit Kumar, a villager.

The residents from the villages of Kathua district showed their love for the thirsty animals and took initiative to protect them from heat and shortage of water.

“There are thousands of animals in this sanctuary but there is hardly any arrangement of drinking water for them inside the sanctuary. Thus most of them are turning towards the villages. We villagers have started keeping water in pots outside our homes,” said Varinder Kumar, another villager.

The animals are now being adopted by the villagers, who serve them food and water for survival. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: acute, acute water shortage, Amit Kumar, ANI, arrangement, authorities, birds, campaign, death, district, drinking, drinking water, due, few days, food, heat, heat wave, initiative, inmates, jammu, Jasrota, July, July 1, kathua, kumar, lack, lack of water, love, movement, Natural Water, number, Ponds, pots, Sanctuary, shortage, Shortage Of Water, survival, Thirsty, Thirsty Animals, Varinder, villager, water, Water Reserves, wave, wildlife, Wildlife Sanctuary, zoo