Of The Events, Media & The Outcome

On the following day of 22th May, the International Biodiversity Day 2012, I looked for the news concerning the event in a national daily, and I was disappointed by a very brief news item running hardly 6 cm, single column: Just the briefest possible coverage of an important topic 'biodiversity' in relation to the oceanic theme of 'Marine Biodiversity'. This followed a half page commercial advertisement on Ridley Turtles; the advertisement, I believe, must have cost several thousands to the campaign, and earned the newspaper a handsome revenue!

The events like these are very important because they concern us all, and the response, if properly projected, can be expected to reach far and wide, and fulfil the objective. Environment concerns us all, and aberrations in it can cause severe consequences we are noticing globally: the climate change, extreme temperatures, aberrant rains, floods, Tsunamis. Man made influences have touched the mountainous heights, oceanic depths, tectonic plates' width.


The most notorious human endeavor as well as a pastime is to dig deeper and deeper for coal, oil, minerals, in name of development when better and cleaner alternatives do exist. The WWF report on cleaner sources of energy remains an unbelievable fact for the most of Earth's digging moles; the report provides an opportunity to explore renewable resources of energy to save environment.

The year's theme on marine biodiversity was as gigantic as the marine ecosystem (s). So it is something that we should strive to discuss beyond the datelines of calendar. The oceans host 32 of 34 known phyla on earth and contain somewhere between 0.5-10 million marine species.


In a project called 'Census of Marine Life' about 2700 scientists from over 80 countries carried out 540 expeditions around the world to map the species found in the seas.The exploration spreading over a decade (2000-2010) explored the seawater surface, the deepest and darkest depths, tropical seas, ice strewn oceans in Arctic and Antarctic regions.

The Census has added 1200 species to known lifeforms, and about 5000 specimens are under evaluation. The estimates of known species (identified, documented but not classified) has increased following the Census to 250,000. The census suggests at least a million species. But other estimates put the life in oceans to several million species. There are multiple marine habitats and there is no reason if estimates are only bottom line, and real figures may be beyond our estimation at least for now.

There are several interesting habitats in the marine environments: mangrove forests, coral reefs, sea grass beds, hydrothermal vents, sea mounts, soft sediments, estuaries in coastal areas. Each habitat has its own flora and fauna. These habitats are quite sensitive environments. Currently the overall effects to marine environment are known to be very severe from the land based pollution, eutrophication, overfishing, introduction of exotic species, climate changes. World's 20% coral reefs are already destroyed.

All that concerns environment, directly or indirectly, concerns us all. Those who do not heed or show sensitivity to it must follow the rule of the game. (You smoke fine, but I am affected by passive smoking. So no smoking please. This message should serve the 31st May 'World No-Tobacco Day' objective as well). Events aim that the outreach is maximally reached, making people aware and educate them about the cause.


The imbalance in news and the commercial advertisement relating to the biodiversity day struck me hard. I asked to myself, if the newspaper had an ethical and moral binding to cover the news concerning biological diversity in a little bigger size, at least to balance the paid advertisement on Ridley turtle! Though I know the answer was in negative. Newsprint is made from pulp derived from trees, imagine no trees, no newsprint, no newspaper. Sadly, for making one ton of newsprint needs a number of resources totalling 98 tons. Thanks to recycling (of mixed papers and used newsprint) to make one ton newsprint, it saves an equivalent to 12 trees!

There is a relative low understanding of the importance of biodiversity with respect to the goods and services it provides . The educated, the policy makers versus the illiterates, the rural folks and the traditional societies, the later group of people are more aware of the relative interdependence in daily life and cultural setting. The traditional societies are critically engaged in their protection and sustainable use. This is precisely the reason, why the civilized man has exploited and over exploited biodiversity resources but have not used, until recently, the goods and services rendered by biodiversity resources, in the development planning.

The global community has now realized that if biodiversity has to be protected and conserved, their services have to be accounted for. The forthcoming Eleventh Conference of the Parties (CoP-11) to the Convention of Biodiversity (CBD), scheduled to be held at Hyderabad (India) between 1-19 October, 2012, will be assessing the progress made in implementation of the Nagoya Protocol, Strategic Plan, and Strategy for Resource Mobilization. CoP-11 key issues for discussion are biodiversity and livelihood, integrating value of biodiversity good and services in national planning, coastal and marine biodiversity, operationalization of Nagoya Protocol.

Issues of Environment Degradation, Climate Change, Biodiversity Loss, Rise in Greenhouse gases , Deforestation are interlinked. There is a cause and effect relationship among these. One gives rise to the other. The mess made, is the result of misuse and overexploitation fuelled by human greed for development, but at what cost? Man-created mess is now the human society’s biggest dilemma, as we are threatened by climate change. It is not surprising that the problem being multi directional the issues are being attended to from multiple directions, but as the intended objective is restoration of the pristine beauty and overall balance of the nature reflected in its diverse ecosystems, in the geographies and climate, all solutions to issues must converge to preserve the Earth.

The 2012 Earth Summit agenda is Green economy, International Framework for Sustainable Development. There are 7 critical issues and sustainable development goals. The event accompanies several side activities. On 16^th June the world’s leading chefs and various thought leaders will explore ways of protecting biodiversity, while preserving and developing flavours and culinary methods for a new type of cuisine. The agenda will cover biodiversity, agriculture, sustainable production and consumption, resource efficiency. Other events are: A Czec Republic event, ‘ Measuring Green Economy ; Insights from Beyond GDP indicators’.

The World Environment Day-12 theme  ‘Green Economy: Does it Involve You?’ reflects global concern, that our focus ought to be on greener approach to development. The United Nation Environment Programme (UNEP), which runs the World Environment Day (WED), defines green economy as one that “results in improved human well being and social equity while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scaricities”. In other words green economy is low carbon, resource efficient, and socially inclusive. The green economy envisages that the growth in income and employment is derived from public and private investments that reduce carbon emissions and pollution, enhance energy and resource efficiency, and prevent the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services.

The Earth Day, the Earth Hour are other popular interventions. These events add to the awareness of issues related to the planet’s health  and are acts of green campaigns. The first  Earth Day was observed on 22 April, 1970, the day the modern environmental movement was borne. The ‘Earth hour ‘ has successfully united people in spreading awareness. People demonstrate solidarity for sustainable planet by switching  “light off” action as a symbol of support. On the last Earth Hour (30^th March, 2012; 8.30.PM) more than 6950 cities and towns in 152 countries and territories worldwide switched off their lights making it the largest climate campaign ever. It had started in 2007 as an initiative of WWF-Australia aiming at Sidney siders to show their support to climate change.

UN Decade on Biodiversity (2011-2020) allows concerted effort to focus and contribute to the conservation of biodiversity. The objective here is to attain the objectives of the CBD, as contained in seven thematic programmes, cross-cutting issues, and the awareness and education of the stakeholders and target groups. The Conference of Parties (CoP) has established seven thematic programmes which cover most of the Earth's biomes, namely: Agricultural Biodiversity, Dry and Sub-tropical Land Biological Diversity, Forest Biodiversity, Inland Waters Biodiversity,  Inland Biodiversity, Marine and Coastal Biodiversity, Mountain Biodiversity.

Media in any form plays important role in dealing with environment based programmes. Informed and educated people can in effect change the governments and structures. Conventional media, which is driven by profit motives, can substitute an important news for a paid advertisement. Here the social media on net can be effectively used by thought leaders to replace the conventional media, where ever the society's stakes are higher. Bloggers can definitely play their role to place their opinion that can take issues forward in the right direction.

Pardon us our Mother!

"A barren tree, no leaves, no flowers, it blooms

When birds of different hues flock it early morning!

The Sun, the source, smiles, on the beauty that the tree is

For it differentiates little between feathers, leaves, flowers!

Oh nature, you lose none, transform one to another

Only the eyes, that see with deception!

Separating stem from roots, feather from plume, hurts

The mother, the nature stays true as ever!

Oh, birds you fly, hovers the little dragon fly

All are one, risen from the womb of the ocean!

Oh my mother, the mother nature, pardon us all

For the great sin of our greed, and repeated assault!"


On Mother's Day, a tribute to the mother Earth . The thoughts of the poem are explained below:

There is a barren tree out there in the garden and it has no leaves or flowers. Though deprived of its parts it is blooming, because every morning birds of different colours frequent it. And these birds are in transformation of flowers, that is why the barren tree is blooming. The Sun, source of all energy on the planet Earth knows the truth and that is why it is smiling. For in nature any transformation (not talking of man-made ones) is meaningless, but natural. Even a barren tree is beautiful. As long as birds flock in they are those flowers.

In nature you lose nothing. It is due to the deception that we see the difference. But basic changes (Man made) hurt nature when you separate the integral parts, the stem and root, feather from plume. The mother nature is the only truth  for it does not tell lies by differentiating  what is one. A bird or a dragon fly, both fly and are one and the same, they are derived from the same source, the life evolved from the oceans. But man's sins against the Earth (the Mother) due to its continued greed, only leave one option, that to ask for the pardon.

By Zaka Imam

Draw A Creature Of Your Imagination and Win A Prize

Do you love drawing and painting?

                         

SpectacularConehead Katydid  (Loboscelis bacatus) discoverd during Surinam expedition

(Copyright: Conservation International)

If yes, you must have noticed life forms of different shapes, sizes with different physical features.


What is the extent of your imagination ? Can you imagine an invertebrate or a vertebrate animal of unique features that you believe does not exist today.


While you identify a creature of your imagination, first identify its class and remember it should not violate basic features of that class, for example, an insect must have three pairs of legs, a mammal must have hair.


Draw, paint and submit the picture, and we will publish it on this blog, and request our readers to identify if it resembles any currently known animal of the particular class.


The partcipant will retain the copyright of the Artwork and shall be free to use it.


Only original work is to be submitted alongwith personal details: Name, Address, Contact Phone/Mobile, Certificate: "the art work submitted is original", and signed.


A rupee two thousand five hundred (US $ 50) worth of Books on wildlife/animals/plants will be given by the blogger, as a token of appreciation for the effort, to the best of artworks, selected by readers.


Entry Deadline: 31 August, 2012.

Rhodoliths:The Under Sea Red Algae Calcium Deposits

Heard of corals, the creatures found in the ocean? And the answer is, yes! Those coelentrates that build big deposits of calcium, sometimes structures as large as Great Barrier Reef of Australia. Know about algae, the tiny little plants building deposits of calcium around themselves thus creating deposits spreading kilometers of undersea landscape!

These unique plants build their hard layers out of calcium carbonate (CaCO₃), which provides them rigid structure, and gives the beds they are located in structural complexity, and enables them to create stable habitats for other species. Called  rhodoliths, these calcium deposits have been recently reported following a joint study by Conservation International and Brazilian scientists of the Abrolhos Shelf in Brazil. Rhodoliths accounts for approximately 5 percent of the world's total carbonate banks.

 

Undersea exploration of rhodoliths. (Courtesy: Conservation International)

Rhodoliths are colorful, unattached, branching, crustose benthic marine red algae that resemble coral. 

Often mistaken as coral, rhodoliths are roughly spherical objects on the ocean floor that are made of many layers of hard red algae. Together with kelp beds, seagrass meadows, and coral reefs, rhodoliths are one of Earth’s largest seabed primary producer communities. 

 

 A two-year seabed study off the eastern coast of Brazil confirmed that the Abrolhos shelf is home to the largest known continuous bed of rhodoliths in the world. The study  conducted by scientists with Brazil's National System of Biodiversity Research (SISBIOTA) and Conservation International, was published  in April in the online journal PLoS ONE.

 

Using remote operated vehicles (ROVs), side scan sonar and SCUBA diving, the researchers measured the size of the rhodolith bed to occupy 20,902 square kilometers, an area nearly the size of El Salvador.

 

According to Prof. Rodrigo Moura of Rio de Janeiro Federal University and co-author of the study the finding of largest rhodolith bed in the world on the seabed of Brazil’s Abrolhos shelf makes this part of ocean very important. "Rhodoliths play a critical role in a healthy marine ecosystem by providing primary habitat that can yield diverse and abundant communities of fish and invertebrates of high commercial value."

 

"Rhodolith beds like this one are major carbonate factories, and could play a significant role in regulating global climate," said Les Kaufman, a senior marine scientist with Conservation International. "But in order to understand what that role might be, and how significant a role, we must learn more about them."

 

Rhodolith beds face threats from ocean acidification, sedimentation from land-based sources and large scale dredging and mining. Acidification looms the largest and cannot be managed regionally, but the other threats to the health of the rhodolith bed of Abrolhos shelf can be managed on a local scale.

 

The rhodolith bed falls within the Abrolhos seascape, a 9,5000 square kilometer (37,000 square miles) area of ocean where Conservation International works with the Brazilian government and community organizations to conserve and manage ocean resources.

 

Based on high vulnerability of coralline algae to ocean acidification, the rhodolith beds are likely to face profound restructuring in the coming decades, believes the lead author of the study, Gilberto Amado-Filho, a researcher at Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden. "With the Abrolhos shelf bed producing an estimated 25 million metric tons of calcium carbonate a year, its protection and continued study should be prioritized", says Gilberto.

 

In addition to the rhodolith beds, the study also revealed huge areas of seabed covered by seaweeds, deep holes (buracas) harboring dense clouds of juvenile fishes, and deep reefs composed of corals and coralline algae. With the vast size of rhodoliths  revealed in seascapes, scientists are worried of dangers to the reefs  that hug the coast and islands, nourishing tourism and fisheries in coastal Bahia.

Time for Mangoes: The King of Fruits

Mango brings to mind a mixed feeling of sweet and sour, of a fruit found in hundreds of varieties, of different colour combinations of yellow, red, pink and green. Its size and shape varies with the variety of different tastes. Mango is a fruit which both rich and poor can afford, the only difference could be of the costly or common varieties.

A mango tree with unripe fruits

Mango belongs to the genus Mangifera and family Anacardiaceae. A fruit primarily belonging to Indian subcontinent it has spread to any part of the world which has warm and humid tropical subtropical climate. The Indian species Mangifera indica has hundreds of varieties or cultivars of different attributes.

Mango is a highly respectable tree. It is the national tree of Bangladesh. The mango fruit boasts of national fruit status in India and Pakistan.

The concern here is not of mango as a fruit alone. Visit a mango tree and you could find an awful variety of tiny insects on it, some good for the tree, and some having the distinction of being a pest. The mango farmers are scared of those pests. Some common ones are red ants moving forward and backward on tree trunk, branches and leaves. They even join leaves and make their nests. They are alert and fearsome. If the crop is infested by pests the crop yield can be reduced, and incur losses to the orchard owner.



Mango is an example of nature's ability to evolve and develop diverse life forms, the biodiversity for our benefit, due to its existence in the forms of different cultivars. The fruit is also an example of evolutionary anachronism because the fruit possibly coevolved with the now extinct megafauna of Pleistocene age because the large animals of that time could swallow the fruit and help in its dispersal, similar to Avacado.

True, a mango tree is a world of life forms thriving around it. There are some 492 species on insects, 17 species of mites, 26 species of nematodes which are reported globally to infest mango trees, flower, fruits, and roots. Out of those awesome numbers some 45 per cent are reported to be found in India. Besides mango trees are abode to birds, bats, wasps, bees, ants. Near the tree roots, in moist soil one can locate slugs, tiny mollusks, earthworms, centipedes. Some flies and bees are important to the mango crop as they are the main pollinators. Melipona Sp.  and Trigona Sp. are main pollinators of the mango flowers.

The dreaded pests of mango are: leaf webber (Orthaga euadrusalis), mango hopper (Idioscopus clypealis, Idioscopus nitidulus, Amritodus atkinsoni), mango mealy bug (Drosicha mangiferae), fruitfly (Daccus dorsalis, D. zonalus, D. correctus) which affect mature fruits, the stem borer (Apsylla cistellata), and shoot gall psylla (Apsylla cistellata).

A species of bird, the Asian Koel (Eudynamis scolopaceus) is almost synonymous with the mango season in northern India. Its breeding season coinciding with mango season, repeated male-bird song of Koo.Ooo and the females shrill Kik-Kik-Kik are reminders to the arrival of mango season.

Some 25 kilometers from Lucknow, the capital of India's most populous state, the Uttar pradesh, there is an Institute at Rehman Kheda, which had its beginning in 1972, as a mango research station, but now stands as a tall institution dedicated to research on  subtropical fruits like mango, guavas, papaya, litchi, Aonla, Bael, Jamun. Other fruits are being added to the list for further research and their economic utilization. The  Central Institute of Tropical Horticulture is now a pioneering institute for mango research and has developed several better varieties of mangoes.

Mango is a nutritious fruit full with  vitamin C, vitamin B6, folate, potassium, copper, provitamin A carotenoids, prebiotic dietary fiber, amino acids, omega-3 and-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids. The mango triterpene lupeol is known to be effective in controlling skin and prostate cancers !

Blogging for Conserving Biological Diversity: Connecting People to Nature

Blogging on a subject like biodiversity, I have learnt my lessons. There are experts, volunteers, wildlife enthusiasts, they all have their own levels of passion and involvement. Their knowledge and expertise are valuable to conserve biodiversity. But, is it possible to achieve the objective unless we involve the general public or the masses?

Conservation of biological diversity, in true sense, can be achieved only after reaching a certain level of understanding of its importance in the mind of the general population. The knowledge acquired by experts through research, expeditions, surveys, etc. remains confined to domains of personal expertise and in the annals of scientific literature, so useful for formulating guidelines, policies, projects for further research, etc.

The real benefit of scientific research emerges when the common citizens get informed and educated about the importance of the subject. Though the common citizens are some what involved in the subject, due to the reasons of our mutual interdependence, but the masses are not aware of the connections that exist in the variety of foods (be it plant or animal driven), the climate, the flora and fauna, the geography. They are sometime unaware of the finer links that lead to food productivity in a region. For example, killing some insects which carry out pollination can lead to low productivity of  crops, fruits or honey.,

What does the loss of a species, a bird, an insect or a fish in the oceans, means. The populations of a species can fluctuate round a year but should not reach levels where extinctions become imminent. The common masses have to be sensitized about the importance of biological diversity, though they may not better appreciate their scientific and economic importance, but may be facinated by outwardly appearance and awesome beauty, adaptation, shape, size or forms.

The first lesson to conserve biological diversity is the  necessity to understand the importance of  mutual existence and respect for all life. Does the sight of a snake or a scorpion frighten you and your reaction is to kill. Or, you stand and watch its colour, size, and are excited to identify the species, whether it is poisonous or non-poisonous, what is its habitat, are there more of it nearby! And ultimately let it go unharmed!

There were some labourers' huts nearby, they never killed scorpions though they were there in plenty, in their surroundings.They will simply pick them and leave at some distance in the forest.  I never heard their children playing in the soil having been stung by the arachnid. Their belief is that if they kill snakes and scorpions they will be stung more often, otherwise not. What a mutual and respectful coexistence. True they still reconcile to mutual survival.

                                                                                                                                   Photo by: Zaka Imam

                Children playing unmindful of scorpions in the surrounding area.

Shortly I will give this blog a new flavour keeping in mind the interests of  the common people as well as the experts, if they wish to share their work. We will soon have posts on gardening, trekking, bird watching, bee-keeping, sericulture, backyard pharmacy, etc. Such subjects I believe will connect people to the subject and allow them appreciate the importance of biological diversity and need to conserve it.

Our backyard garden is, in fact, the first classroom for understanding form and variety of the living forms around and help in understanding concepts in the study of biological diversity. Just count how many types of lives are existing in our backyard garden, and in our homes: lizards, cockroaches, ants, crickets, centipedes, mosquitoes, bed bugs, lice, snakes, birds, etc. Can you identify or find their common names, and more particularly, their scientific names, species, and the family? Try it. And you will love them all.

Biological diversity provides a huge scientific resource, a bank of unlimited number of genes coding for unlimited number of substances, many being potential drugs, future resource for new foods, materials of unexplored attributes, etc.

Writing this post I am reminded of two masters who touched my heart and sole, Charles Darwin, who proposed the theory of evolution and Libbie Henrietta Hyman the great American zoologist, who produced creditable work on invertebrates. Such wonderful people remind you, and touch your heart. Because they worked with real passion, tirelessly. And such unparallell work makes scientific pursuits respectable, and motivates generations of researchers and scholars.

Over a period of time this blog will be changing drastically bringing more valuable information to readers: projecting biodiversity of life in its true relationship with man! Establishing and highlighting all connections that man is surrounded with but does not fully appreciate.


This blog, I hope, will find its place it aims to achieve: conservation of biological diversity by connecting to people, no matter how little in measure!

Identify the insect?

Can anyone identify this insect photographed recently:

                                                                                                Photograph by: Zaka Imam

A large size insect with total length head-to-wing measuring about an inch. Seems noctural, resistant to fly in daylight. When pushed, flew away very fast leaving no trace of direction.