Extinction threat as eucalyptus becomes inedible
The Australian Apr 6, 08 5:45 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The koala and its marsupial cousins are in serious danger of extinction because greenhouse gases are rendering the eucalyptus leaves they rely on nutritionally worthless, reports the Australian. "What we're seeing is that the staple diet of these animals is being turned to leather," a professor said. "Life is set to become extremely difficult for these animals."
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Experts try to treat mystery ailment
in US zoos
Associated Press Apr 5, 08 7:50 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Gorillas in US zoos are dying from heart disease, and no one knows why, the AP reports. Zookeepers and scientists started a nationwide “Gorilla Health Project” 2 years ago to probe the causes of fibrosing cardiomyopathy, a condition that turns heart muscle into useless fibers and has left scores of gorillas dead in the last few years.
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Animal no longer under federal protection in northern Rockies
Associated Press Mar 29, 08 9:35 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Hunters in the northern Rockies will soon take aim at a rare target—the gray wolf. The animal lost its protected species status in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming yesterday, and wildlife agencies in the region are looking to reduce the population by granting hunting licenses for the first time since 1973. An estimated 1,500 gray wolves now roam the region.
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Puzzling 'white nose syndrome' may be deadliest ever
New York Times Mar 25, 08 5:57 AM CDT
(Newser)
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A mysterious syndrome is wiping out colonies of hibernating bats and baffling biologists, the New York Times reports. Experts don't know what causes the "white nose syndrome" or how it spreads, but they warn that bat populations in the Northeast are being devastated. Field researchers report bats flying out of caves in the middle of the day and dying in the snow. Some 90% of hibernating bats in four New York caves studied have died.
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Wildlife advocates sue to save animals
Washington Post Mar 23, 08 5:30 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The Bush administration for years has quietly established obstacles to listing new animals and plants on the endangered species list, the Washington Post reports. A total of only 59 domestic species have made it onto the list in the past seven years, compared to 58 each year under Bush's father and 62 per year under Bill Clinton. Critics charge that Bush appointees have barred staffers from using information that would support new listings and have ignored scientific advisers.
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Numbers plummet as WWF calls for quick action
BBC Mar 12, 08 8:51 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The World Wildlife Fund has warned that the world's tigers are in grave danger of extinction, reports the BBC. Experts believe tiger numbers have fallen in half over the last 25 years to as few as 3,500 worldwide, the WWF said. The South China tiger and the Sumatran tiger are in the most danger from habitat destruction and demand for tiger parts for use in Chinese medicine.
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Rare mammal not wiped out by wars, deforestation
BBC Mar 10, 08 10:27 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Rare pygmy hippos have been videotaped in the forests of Liberia, proving to a team of zoologists that the rare and elusive mammal has survived through two civil wars, illegal logging, and poaching thought to have wiped it out. Less than 3,000 pygmy hippos, which look like normal hippos only smaller, still live in their natural habitat, the BBC reports.
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Beck's petrel hadn't been seen since 1920s
Associated Press Mar 8, 08 10:45 AM CST
(Newser)
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The Beck’s petrel, a bird last seen in the 1920s and long thought extinct, appears to be very much alive, the AP reports. Spurred by unconfirmed sightings in Australia two years ago, an Israeli ornithologist set out for a group of islands off Papua New Guinea and brought back hard evidence: photos of about 30 of the birds (cousin to the albatross) and even the remains of one found at sea.
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Controlled deluge may help rebuild vanishing sandbars
Associated Press Mar 5, 08 6:27 PM CST
(Newser)
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Government officials sent a flood of water surging through the Grand Canyon today in a bid to mimic Mother Nature and rebuild sandbars and other natural habitat for endangered fish. The deluge will continue for three days, increasing by about four or five times the usual flow from the Grand Canyon Dam.
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US lawmakers to probe $10B wildlife trade in hearings this week
Newsweek Mar 2, 08 6:35 PM CST
(Newser)
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Shipments of African contraband such as ivory, tiger parts, and rhino horn are funding militant groups and perhaps terrorists, Newsweek reports. After the theft of $1.3 million in ivory in Chad last year and a reported rise in contraband smuggling, US lawmakers have become interested: A House hearing on the wildlife trade is scheduled to start next week.
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Activists bring attention to decline of amphibians
Florida Today Feb 29, 08 9:23 AM CST
(Newser)
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How could any zoo resist? Leap Day, in the Year of the Frog, is being celebrated by zoos and conservationists everywhere as the perfect time to draw attention to the plight of amphibians. "We want to get people talking about frogs and thinking about them," said one zookeeper. "But the main thing we want them to understand is that the frogs in their back yard are really, really important.”
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10-year effort is the first to help dying species
Guardian (UK) Feb 25, 08 5:00 AM CST
(Newser)
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Three African nations where the world's last 720 wild mountain gorillas live are finally working together to save the critically endangered animal, the Guardian reports. Until the 10-year plan was announced last week, mistrust and conflict had kept Rwanda, Uganda and the Congo from collaborating as another 10 apes were killed in the last 14 months.
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Wildlife groups say it's too soon to remove animals from endangered list
National Geographic Feb 22, 08 5:06 AM CST
(Newser)
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The gray wolf has been taken off the endangered species list in a multi-state area of the northern Rocky Mountains, National Geographic reports. "The wolves are back," said an official of the Department of the Interior. Just 66 of the animals were reintroduced to the region in 1996 and there are over 1,500 today. Environmental groups say it's too soon to take away the wolves' protection and believe many will soon be killed by hunters.
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