New
species of scorpion found in Telangana region
WWF-India commissioned
biodiversity survey of the Warangal Cotton project area in Andhra Pradesh state
(India) has revealed a new species of scorpion. The new species measuring 66.53
belongs to the genus Heterometrus
Ehremberg, 1828, and has been designated, Heterometrus telanganaensis, after the
Telangana region from where it has been discovered.
The new species differs
from all other Indian species of the genus in being one of the smallest with a
relatively short metasoma. Specimens were collected at Regonda, Warangal
district, in September 2010, which did not match the known species reported
earlier from the state.
Study
revealed its resemblance to the genus Heterometrus. Yet it differed in
several aspects from all the known species from India. Specimens have been
deposited in the collection of the Zoological Survey of India, Freshwater
Biology Regional Center, Arachnid section, Hyderabad.
The species habitat Regonda is
located in the semi-arid part of Warangal District. Heterometrus
telanganaensis is a burrowing
species whose burrows were found on a hillock surrounded by agricultural
fields, constructed in a shady area. The individual burrows, 20 to 25 mm wide
at the entrance, are about 150 mm deep.
Scorpions
are found in all continents except Antarctica. Adapted to a variety of habitats
from grasslands and rainforests to deciduous forests, they are nocturnal (hunt
at night) and their carnivorous diet consists of a variety of smaller creatures
like insects, centipedes and spiders. Some of them display cannibalistic
behaviour and eat other scorpions.
Besides this scorpion species, WWF-India’s
field staff in Andhra have also reported many other new varieties of scorpions,
spiders and geckos as well as range extensions for many snakes and lizards as
part of the biodiversity studies in the Eastern Ghats.
WWF
Capacity Building in Education for Sustainable Development
Fulfilling
the larger objective of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development
(2005-2014), WWF- India, WWF- Sweden and UNESCO have joined hands to build
capacity for Sustainable Development in Education, in India.
Supported
by the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA), the project 2-day
workshops in four cities (Delhi, Kolkata, Bhopal and Raipur) in order to impart
training to master trainers of NCERT, CBSE, SCERT and DIETS on the necessity of
sustainable development. Follow-up 2-day workshops are also planned to be held
in 2012.
WWF- India’s Environment Education Division has been running 8 model ESD
schools in the tiger landscapes of Sunderbans, Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh
since 2008 in partnership with WWF Sweden.
University
of Virginia Starts Conservation Program
University of Virginia (UV) and the National Fish
and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) in the US have established a partnership for
graduate-level training and research aimed at developing conservation
professionals to tackle some of the biggest conservation problems facing the
US.
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, a
non-profit organization, was created by Congress in 1984 and directs public
conservation funding to pressing conservation needs and matches these with
private funds to protect and restore America’s native wildlife species and
habitats.
Among the nation’s largest conservation
organizations, the foundation has made 11,000 awards to more than 3,800
organizations, investing more than $2 billion for conservation, since 1984. The
foundations “Keystone” program which applies a “business plan”
approach to conservation by clarifying outcomes, obstacles, performance
measures and costs, is being credited having great potential for success.
UV and the foundation are
collaborating on an applied conservation science program which assess various
strategies for preserving biodiversity in threatened habitats, identify
knowledge gaps, and institutional barriers, for more effective solutions.
“The challenge is to allow
students to appreciate the depth of information needed to maintain healthy wild
populations of important species of animals and their habitats, and, at the
same time, gain a real-world impression of the complicated interface between
law, policy, ecology and the environmental understanding needed for the
sustainable management of biotic diversity,” Shugart said. “The program could
potentially develop a new type of scholar – different from the specialists
educated in a discipline who were the norm for an earlier generation of
students.”
The programs designed will
also take into consideration accelerating climate and environmental change and
population growth. The program will feature courses jointly taught by U.V
faculty members and the foundation staff, provision summer internships for U.V
students at foundation project sites.
This partnership will lead
to NFWF have a world-class research capability to better help preserve
America’s natural resources, and the UV aiding real-time conservation measures
to save the US fish, wildlife and fauna for future generations. The partnership
is a “synergistic marriage that has Mother Nature smiling.”
Biodiversity in
Ireland Under Threat
Ireland
is faced by the treat to its native species for all the known reasons of
biodiversity decline anywhere else in the world: pollution, over exploitation
and introduction and spread of non-native species.
The
Environmental Protection Agency has brought out this threat in its report
“Biochange”, published recently. This is the first comprehensive assessment of
the impact of the changing environment on ecosystems in Ireland.
The
report identifies four main drivers of biodiversity loss caused by human
activity – habitat destruction and fragmentation, the spread of non-native
invasive species, pollution and over-exploitation of natural resources.
Ireland’s
wealth of biodiversity includes peatlands to woodlands, hedgerows, sand dunes
and seas and includes animals and plants that depend on these habitats for
survival.
The
economic implications of biodiversity loss are significant. In 2008, the
European Commission reported that the value of annual loss in ecosystem
services resulting from the cumulative loss of biodiversity is estimated to be
€14 trillion globally by 2050.
At
a national level, a recent study valued ecosystem services in Ireland at over
€2.6 billion a year. The agriculture industry, for example, would not thrive
without essential ecosystem services such as pollination by insects and soil
conditioning by earthworms.
Lead
researcher on the EPA report, Dr Steve Waldren, said relatively small actions
can bring big benefits. “By ensuring that small fragments of habitat are
protected in developed areas and by conserving hedgerows in agricultural lands
we can take some immediate positive steps towards halting biodiversity loss,”
he said.
The
report highlights that much remains to be done to create an awareness of the
importance of biodiversity and that biodiversity conservation makes good
economic sense. Easy-to-access information was identified as being crucial to
halting biodiversity loss. As part of the biochange project, a database of
Irish living organisms has been created which currently documents some 16,000
Irish species.
A
native of southeast Russia, zebra mussel, is a freshwater mussel which arrived
into Ireland in 1994 attached to the hulls of boats brought in from either
Britain or the Netherlands, where it was already widely found. It has now
spread by deliberate and accidental introductions to other areas.
The
mussels are filter feeders, and so increase water clarity, which is thought to
be the reason they are deliberately introduced into lakes by anglers. However,
they have a negative impact on fish populations because they alter the natural
ecosystem that provides food for juvenile fish.
Zebra
mussel also causes an increase of plant growth around lake margins. They have
caused a decline in native freshwater mussel by attaching to their shells and
“smothering” them. The zebra mussel is also responsible for causing blockages
to freshwater intake pipes and boat engines.
Not
a native to Ireland, the grey squirrel was deliberately introduced in 1911, and
since then has spread to about 20 counties. It is larger and more adaptable to
the available food source than the native red squirrel, whose decline can be
directly correlated to the rise in the grey squirrel population.
ADB funds biodiversity conservation
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has provided a 7.96 million USD loan to
help the central province of Thua Thien-Hue conserve its biodiversity.
The project is estimated to cost 8.83 million USD, of which 487,000 USD will be
sourced from the province’s budget and the rest of 410,000 USD will be
contributed by the project’s beneficiaries. It will be carried out in 10
communes in the mountainous districts of Nam Dongand A Luoi. The project is
designed to enhance institutional
and community capacity in managing the biodiversity corridor; restore the
biodiversity corridor, protect the ecosystem and sustainably manage natural
resources; and improve livelihood and infrastructure for local residents.
Tamil Nadu Launches Biodiversity Conservation Project
Continuing its attempt
for an increased green cover in the state, Chief Minister Jayalalitha has
ordered to implement Tamil Nadu Biodiversity Conservation and Greening Project.
The Rs. 686.28 crore new project, planned with financial
assistance from Japanese International Cooperative Agency (JICA), would be
implemented in eight years between 2011-19 in forest areas not covered under
the state’s earlier afforestation schemes, according to government press
release.
The project is in
continuation with the state government’s earlier collaboration with JICA –
Tamil Nadu Afforestation Project- II, which is coming to an end in 2012-13, it
said.
A high level authority headed by Chief Secretary would decide
the functions of the project, which would focus on biodiveristy conservation,
increasing the natural resource base, institutional capacity development and
consulting services, it said.
As part of this scheme, elephant pits will be dug in Dharmapuri,
Erode, Dindigul and Tirunelveli districts at a total cost of Rs 5.19 crore, to
avoid man-animal conflict in these areas, it said.
Filmmakers
connect with nature for WWF
Earlier this month at New Delhi, the WWF awarded the two winners of its short film competition
“Life. Nature. You. Make the Connection” launched in the context of WWF’s 50th
anniversary celebrations at a film festival.
The
award presentation was followed by the screening of the winning entries and a
panel discussion that broadly dealt with 'Environmental Filmmaking’.
WWF objective was to looking for films that would inspire people to value and
protect their natural environment. The winner of the jury’s prize “The Runner”
is a film by Neil Losin and Nathan Dappen that focuses on breaking down the
distinction between the man-made world and the natural one.
The
other winner “Life, Nature, You” is a film by Myles Thompson. This film
encourages people to connect with nature, starting with places or things which
are close by, in this case, a small patch of grass in a back yard.
Human-induced Global Warming
The
Indian Ministry of Environment & Forests had published early this year
(January 2011) two discussion papers entitled “Contribution of Changing
Galactic Cosmic Ray Flux to Global Warming” and “Galactic Cosmic Rays, Low
Clouds and Global Warming”.
The
papers examined the issue relating to contribution of changing galactic cosmic
rays and low clouds to global warming. Papers report that there exists strong
evidence to show that the radiative forcing component due to the decrease in
primary cosmic ray intensity during the last 150 years is 1.1 Watt per square meters,
which is about 60% of that due to Carbon dioxide increase.
The
papers suggest that the future prediction of global warming presented by
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change requires relook in view of the effect
due to long term changes in the galactic cosmic ray intensity.
The
Government is of the view that more studies are required at global level to
enhance understanding of the issue. (Source:
PIB/20.12.11)
om of Form
Pledge
on Emission Cut
The
results of a recent study on comparison of developed and developing country
pledges under the Cancun Agreements conducted by Stockholm Environment
Institute indicate that developing country pledges amount to more mitigation on
an absolute basis, than developed country pledges.
During
the climate change talks held under the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change, India has consistently called upon the developed country
parties to raise their ambition to a level that is consistent with science.
India
has insisted that equity and Common but Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR)
should remain the basis of new arrangements that aim to enhance actions of all
parties under the Convention. These arrangements will be finalized in 2015 with
a view to implement the arrangements from 2020.
The
Indian Minister of State for Environment and Forests, Jayanthi Natarajan, gave
this information in a written reply to a question in the upper house of
Parliament. (Source: PIB/20.12.11)
