Bankocracy

Scientists: Legalize horn sales to save endangered rhinoceroses

"Attempts to discourage the use of rhino horn have failed, the scientists said, and, without a legal avenue to obtain the ingredient, the black market has stepped in. 'Rhino horn is now worth more than gold,' the scientists noted, saying that a kilogram that cost $4,700 in 1993 would fetch around $65,000 in 2012. Poachers, enticed by the high price tag, have swarmed, and 'poaching in South Africa has, on average, more than doubled each year over the past 5 years.' They liken their proposal to the legal trade in farmed crocodile skins, which has saved the endangered reptiles from over-hunting. A similar proposal for the rhinoceros was rejected 20 years ago." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingScientists: Legalize horn sales to save endangered rhinoceroses

The war on African poaching: is militarization doomed to fail?

"Governments have given game rangers better weapons, engaged intelligence analysts, and put spotter planes, helicopters, and unmanned drones into the air. Some have deployed their national defense forces into national parks. Private wildlife custodians have spent millions on their own armed anti-poaching guards, sniffer dogs, mini-drones, and informants. The continental-scale slaughter of rhinos and elephants continues to intensify, despite rising arrests and killings of poachers and increasing interdiction of illegal shipments of rhino horn and ivory. Some drug policy experts liken the uphill battle against African poaching to the war on drugs, an extraordinarily expensive, bloody failure." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe war on African poaching: is militarization doomed to fail?

Invasive starfish species threatens Philippines coral reef

"A coral-killing starfish has begun infesting a channel of water in the Philippines famed for having some of the most diverse marine life in the world. The appearance of the crown-of-thorns starfish in the Verde Island Passage could cause great damage to the area’s biodiversity, Jacob Meimban, head of the wildlife bureau’s coastal marine management office, told AFP. 'The crown-of-thorns starfish really kills the corals. It eats the polyps of the corals, leaving the bleached, white bodies. Then it moves elsewhere… until it leaves the reef dead,' Meimban said. Environmentalists have warned for years that the passage, a popular dive location, is under grave threat from pollution and overfishing." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingInvasive starfish species threatens Philippines coral reef

More than 200 manatees killed in Florida by ‘red tide’ algae

"Wildlife officials in Florida are facing an especially stiff challenge this year in saving the state’s manatee population from a poisonous brand of algae that has spread around the coast. CBS News reported on Friday that 207 manatees have died this year after being infected by toxins released by 'red tide' algae. The poisonous materials found in the algae attach themselves to the manatees’ food, and can paralyze manatees after digestion, causing them to drown. 'When you do find them it’s almost too late,' said Virginia Edmonds, director of a manatee critical care facility at Lowery Park Zoo in Tampa. 'They’re out there struggling. They’re going to end up drowning.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMore than 200 manatees killed in Florida by ‘red tide’ algae

Plants use underground fungus network to send ‘distress signals’ to each other

"The scientists isolated the plants from each other above ground, covering them with bags and thereby preventing airborne chemicals (one form of plant communication) from traveling from one plant to the other. Then, the team introduced the aphids. In the plants that were connected by fungi, when a single plant was infected with aphids, the other two plants began to mount their chemical defenses, secreting aphid-repelling substances that also attract the wasps that feed on aphid larvae. The plants that were not connected by mycorrhizae were apparently not warned of the attack on the single plant in their group because they secreted no defensive chemicals." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPlants use underground fungus network to send ‘distress signals’ to each other

Scientists: Plants communicate with one another through ‘nanomechanical vibrations’

"A study reveals that plants are able to communicate with each other even when light, scent and touch have been removed from the equation, leading scientists to speculate that there’s a wholly different mechanism they use to encourage each other’s growth. It’s long been known that planting basil near other species can tend to encourage its neighbor’s growth, and it’s not new that plants communicate with each other through shade, chemical smells, root structures and other forms of touch. By planting chili pepper next to basil, then separating them from all known methods of plant interaction, the chili plant still grew as if it knew the basil was there." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingScientists: Plants communicate with one another through ‘nanomechanical vibrations’

Millions spent to begin razing of 7,000 abandoned properties in Dayton

"Kevin Powell, the city’s acting manager of housing inspection, says officials plan to use $5.2 million to raze 475 abandoned properties by the end of September. The city knocked down 1,172 abandoned structures - single-family homes, strip malls, multi-unit buildings, commercial properties etc. — between 2009 and 2012, using money that included $8 million in federal funds. The average cost for a demolition, which includes asbestos removal, is $11,000. Abandon properties have a negative impact on the city’s tax collection, which are used to remove abandon properties and pay for other city services. 'It’s a complete circle that keeps eating upon itself,' Powell said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMillions spent to begin razing of 7,000 abandoned properties in Dayton

Predators in Your Backyard?

"This 2010-11 BBC documentary, Predators in Your Backyard, shows how 'Rewilding' is being accomplished in the US and other places. They state up front that this is a dangerous experiment but strangely fail to show the real downsides to the actual project. For instance, the BBC film would leave you believing that the reintroduction of wolves in the west has been an unparalled success. The Predators in Your Backyard gives the viewer the impression that efforts to reintroduce predators such as the wolf, bear and panther, into areas of human habitation are edgy projects but also entirely noble ones." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPredators in Your Backyard?

Wildlife trafficker kills 5 crocodiles, 90 rare birds as police descend on his compound

"Five dead crocodiles, 14 critically endangered turtles and a cache of other rare species have been found in the home of a suspected wildlife trader in one of the Philippines’ biggest slums, the government said Friday. The juvenile saltwater crocodiles, as well as 90 birds, were killed by the trader or his aides shortly before police and environment officials raided the place Wednesday, Environment Secretary Ramon Paje said. He denounced the unnamed suspects’ 'cruelty'. 'What’s particularly alarming about this poaching incident is that there were reports that most of these endangered animals were intentionally killed to avoid detection by authorities,' Paje said in a statement." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWildlife trafficker kills 5 crocodiles, 90 rare birds as police descend on his compound

Government plans to euthanize hundreds of desert tortoises after budget cuts to refuge

"The Desert Tortoise Conservation Center — a 23-year-old federal refuge in Las Vegas for the threatened species — has collected only $290,000 from its primary funding source of local developer fees over the last 11 months, the AP reports. The center can’t count on the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or Nevada Department of Wildlife to make up the shortfall on the center’s $1 million annual operating budget because of federal and state budget constraints. The result? Center administrators are planning to close the 220-acre facility in 2014 and euthanize about half of the 1400 tortoises under their protection." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGovernment plans to euthanize hundreds of desert tortoises after budget cuts to refuge