Shark fins contain high levels of a potent neurotoxin that scientists have linked to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, according to a recent study published in the journal Marine Drugs. The study was the first to find the toxin, BMAA, or Beta-methylamino-L-alanine, in sharks, said the lead author, Deborah C. Mash, a researcher at […]
Category: News
A New Species of Leopard Frog in New York City
On a foray into the wilds of Staten Island in 2009, Jeremy A. Feinberg, a doctoral candidate in ecology and evolution at Rutgers University, heard something strange as he listened for the distinctive mating call of the southern leopard frog — usually a repetitive chuckle. But this was a single cluck. “I started hearing these […]
Wyoming Tribe gets OK to Kill 2 Bald Eagles for Ceremonies
In a rare and potentially landmark decision, a Wyoming Indian tribe has received federal approval to kill two bald eagles for religious ceremonies, the Associated Press reports. The Northern Arapaho Tribe had sued the government last year, arguing its members’ religious freedom was being violated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s refusal to issue […]
Breeding success for Orkney hen harriers
Conservationists are hailing the breeding success of hen harriers on Orkney as the population has reached a 20-year high of 100 breeding females producing over 100 chicks – a remarkable recovery for the species which is facing tough challenges in other parts of the UK. The resurgence of the hen harrier on Orkney, a red […]
New Conservation Area in Peru Protects Rare Cat, Birds, and Disappearing Cloud Forests
A new conservation area established in central Peru will help protect the area’s shrinking cloud forest, as well as a rich biodiversity of wildlife that includes numerous endemic bird species and the endangered Andean cat. The new, 1,977-acre Monte Potrero Municipal Conservation Area is located in the department of Huánuco, in the municipality of Umari […]
Advisers warned government on badger cull
UK badger culling plans could kill tens of thousands of the animals, worsen the cattle tuberculosis problem, and put the country in breach of a European wildlife treaty, advisers have warned. The government is to allow culling in England to curb cattle TB, with a similar move possible in Wales. Read full article, which was […]
Critical New Protected Area Established in Colombia for Endangered Species
American Bird Conservancy (ABC), World Land Trust (WLT), and their Colombian partner Fundación ProAves, have inaugurated a new reserve to protect one of the last strongholds for the endangered Gold-ringed Tanager. Worldwide, the bird is known to inhabit only five locations, all along 150 miles of ridge top on the Pacific slope of the western […]
Return of the Waldrapp Part 1
The Northern Bald Ibis, or Waldrapp, is one of the most endangered birds in the world. Once common in Central Europe, it became extinct here by the end of the 16th Century Revered by the Ancient Egyptians, today there are very few wild birds left in North Africa and the Middle East. In 1997 a […]