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Wildlife
The Pygmy Nile Crocodile
February 13, 2012 09:47 AM - David A Gabel, ENN
A new study from researchers at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has uncovered secrets of the mysterious pygmy Nile crocodile. Once thought to be a unique population of the more well-known Nile crocodile, the pygmy Niles are in fact a very distinct crocodile species of West Africa. A couple years ago, their existence was confirmed within the nation of Uganda. The recent WCS study found that their habitat extends into more areas, shedding insight upon this beautiful rare creature.
Charles Darwin's Birthday Feb 12th
February 12, 2012 07:10 AM - Laura Sutherland, ARKive.org
Sunday 12th February 2012 marks what would have been Darwin’s 203rd birthday, so we have decided to take a look back at the life of the father of evolutionary biology, Charles Robert Darwin. Quite possibly the most famous biologist in history, Darwin was born on February 12th 1809 in Shrewsbury. His father was a doctor and Charles looked to be following in his footsteps when he enrolled at the University of Edinburgh to study medicine in 1825. However neither medicine nor theology, which he later studied at Cambridge, was able to captivate the young Darwin as much as his passion for natural history — which can only be seen as a good thing for the advancement of science!
Wolves return, will they be hunted in National Parks?
February 11, 2012 08:06 AM - Elizabeth Shogren, NPR
Gray wolves were taken off the endangered species list in Idaho and Montana last year and put under state control. But they're still on the list in neighboring Wyoming. That's because Wyoming has been the most aggressive about wanting to kill wolves.
Wild Lions Live in Constant Fear
February 10, 2012 04:38 PM - Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News
Some lions in the wild now live within a "landscape of fear" as a result of threats posed by humans. Lions have drastically changed the way they behave and perceive their environment because of new, numerous and deadly clashes with humans, according to a new study, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology.
The Decline of Wild Salmon
February 10, 2012 08:12 AM - Andy Soos, ENN
The Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, is the largest species in the pacific (Oncorhynchus) salmon family. Other commonly used names for the species include King salmon, Quinnat salmon, Spring salmon and Tyee salmon. Chinook are an anadromous fish native to the north Pacific Ocean and the river systems of western North America ranging from California to Alaska. Scientists have found that only about ten percent of the fall-run Chinook salmon spawning in California's Mokelumne River are naturally produced wild salmon. A massive influx of hatchery-raised fish that return to spawn in the wild is masking the fact that too few wild fish are returning to sustain a natural population in the river. The study, published in the online journal PLoS ONE, highlights the danger of relying on ordinary census techniques to evaluate the health of wild salmon populations and their habitats. Most hatchery fish in California are unmarked and therefore undetectable in population surveys. For this study, the researchers were able to identify hatchery fish by using a novel technique to detect traces of a hatchery diet preserved in the ear bones of adult fish.
Sturgeon Thunder
February 9, 2012 11:24 AM - AndySoos, ENN
A giant among Wisconsin's inland freshwater fishes, the bottom dwelling lake sturgeon is a living fossil - a relic from the Middle Ages of fish evolution. This ancient species made its first appearance about 100 million years ago in the Upper Cretaceous period of the Mesozoic era, just about the time that the dinosaurs made their abrupt exit from Earth's ever-changing stage. Today the lake sturgeon retains many primitive characteristics that have been lost or modified in other modern-day fishes. Research into the mysterious sounds that lake sturgeon produce resumes in April, or whenever the water warms to a temperature conducive for fish spawning, which is the best time to experience sturgeon thunder. In spring, Ron Bruch, a biologist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and Chris Bocast, an acoustic ecologist with the UW Sea Grant Institute, will conduct additional biological examinations and collect detailed field recordings of the infrasonic sounds of this ancient fish.
Zebra Stripes as Bug Repellant
February 9, 2012 09:46 AM - David A Gabel, ENN
On the plains of Africa, the zebra are not the only creature roaming in herds. There are a great number of other species, not least of all, the dreaded horsefly. Zebras, like all horse species, have large bodies which they cannot always reach with their mouths, hooves, or tails, making them an inviting prey for blood-sucking, flying insects. More than the lion, the horsefly is the bane of zebra's existence. This, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, is why zebras evolved to having stripes. The black and white stripes effectively deter the horseflies by making the zebras less attractive.
Housecats Susceptible to Wild Feline Disease
February 8, 2012 10:13 AM - David A Gabel, ENN
There are really two types of cats out there: the cute and cuddly house cat and the vicious predator wildcats. However, for bacteria and viruses, there is no difference. The domestic cats are equally vulnerable to the same diseases that afflict wild bobcats, cougars, and others. A new study led by Colorado State University found that all cats living in the same area share the same diseases. In fact, domestic cats can act as a bridge to spread feline diseases to human households.
Price of gorilla permit increases to $750/day
February 7, 2012 08:14 AM - Rhett Butler, MONGABAY.COM
Rwanda has raised the price of a permit to see mountain gorillas to $750 per day starting June 1, 2012, up from $500. While the price is steep, the program each year raises millions of dollars in revenue for gorilla conservation, including $8 million in Rwanada alone in 2008, according to a 2011 study published in PLoS ONE.
Jellyfish explosion may be natural cycle
February 7, 2012 07:09 AM - Jeremy Hance, MONGABAY.COM
Evidence that jellyfish are taking over the oceans is currently lacking, according to a new study published in Bioscience. Complied by a number of marine experts, the study found that while jellyfish have been on the rise in some regions it is likely due to a natural cycle of jellyfish populations and not a global boom. Researchers, including a number of marine biologists, have warned for years that jellyfish numbers may be exploding due to human activities, such as overfishing, warmer oceans due to global climate change, and the rise of oxygen-depleted, so-called "dead zones."