Stranded by War, Forest Yields Treasures

Purdue auctions rights on newly discovered bats, turtles to raise research cash

(NEWSER) - Purdue University has some recently discovered bats and turtles to name, and you can be the one to do it—if you’re willing to pony up some cash, the Chicago Tribune reports. The university is auctioning off naming rights to a number of species, planning to use the money to support research into new species, a professor said. More»

Syndrome could devastate population

(NEWSER) - Experts are still in the dark about what’s causing the deaths of vast numbers of bats in the Northeast, but some theories have emerged, Salon reports. Some scientists believe white-nose syndrome is driven by global warming, while others are looking hard at pesticides. In either case, humans may have instigated the threat, and the illness looks like a bad ecological omen. More»

(NEWSER) - Scientists from the University of Amsterdam have discovered a population of giant, near ape-size chimpanzees in the Congo. Long rumored to exist, they are referred to by local hunters as lion-eating chimps. And while the scientists could not confirm the lion-eating, they did see a band of the chimps eating a leopard. More»

Internal memo reveals plan to reduce protection

(NEWSER) - The Bush administration is quietly rewriting the rules on enforcing the Endangered Species Act, drafting changes that some environmentalists say will fatally weaken protections for threatened wildlife. A 117-page internal proposal obtained by Salon would limit which animals could be effectively protected, cut back on the size of habitats preserved, and shift enforcement from the federal government to the states. More»

Bats appear to be resistant to devastating white nose syndrome

(NEWSER) - White nose syndrome has killed millions of bats over the past five years, decimating the little brown bat population by more than 90% in some areas, but scientists have found reason to hope: In Vermont and Pennsylvania, there are surviving colonies of the threatened species. “I’m cautiously hopeful that eventually these animals can be recovered,” says one conservationist. But the crisis isn’t over yet: Though “bats haven’t entirely fallen off the cliff yet,” they’re hanging on by just “a tiny little fingernail,” she says. More»