Deadly fungal threats a growing concern, scientists say

Deadly fungal threats a growing concern, scientists say

Fungi are causing disease that are causing mass amphibian extinctions (chytrid fungus), massive bat die-offs (white nose syndrome), a decline in bees, killing turtles, and affecting crops. Studies have been done and are showing that fungi are causing more damage to flora and fauna than other pathogens. Fungi is a generalist and can spread very quickly. According to the article, people have a huge role in the spread of these fungi. It also states that people haven't been too concerned with fungi in the past. So let's get concerned!!!

Montana judge blocks more Yellowstone bison moves

http://soc.li/O95SWmU

A Montana judge has blocked the relocation of bison from the park to places that were once their home range. Do what!? This is in response to ranchers who are saying that bison destroy their fences and eat hay meant for their cattle. Cattle, destructive beasts that they are, are taking precedent over the iconic bison? I don't understand why people are objecting to allowing bison to be moved and reintroduced into their native land. Instead they are going to be kept in fences? The bison was once a symbol of the great American west and the wilderness available there. It was slaughtered to near extinction. Why don't they just put a couple in a zoo and be happy, there's not much difference between a cage and a fence.  

9th Circuit clears amendment that shielded wolf delisting from court review

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Comments coming soon!!!

Pickens County Museum Field School Announces Schedule for Spring-Summer Plant Appreciation Classes

Pickens County Museum Field School Announces Schedule for Spring-Summer Plant Appreciation Classes: Registration now open

This has nothing to do with policy, but more to do with environmental ethic. These are classes that are available to the public to learn more about the areas regional native flora. There are classes from wildflower propagation to edible and medicinal plants of the area. By learning more about our native flora we can better identify and protect it. It is good that this is being done to teach the locals about their environment.

Jury Rules on Killer Snake | Petside

Jury Rules on Killer Snake | Petside

Jury Rules on Killer Snake Petside

This is very sad. People really need to learn how to take care of their pets or just not have them. What's the point of having a pet if you aren't going to feed it or shelter it properly? This woman paid dearly for not paying attention to her pet's needs. The poor 2 year old child didn't stand a chance against this huge, malnourished snake. Following this incident, Florida made it illegal to own Burmese pythons and other large snakes. It's just sad that something like this had to happen first.

http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nbc-news/46401715/?from=en-us_msnhp#46401715

President's Budget Underscores Need for Strong Conservation Funding

http://www.ammoland.com/2012/02/13/presidents-budget-underscores-need-for-strong-conservation-funding/

This is very interesting. Sportsmen all over the US are pushing for Congress to sustain funding for many programs that support wildlife/natural resource conservation. They are pushing for long-term management of natural resources. The article states, "Combined, outdoor recreation, natural resources conservation, and historic preservation support 9.4 million American jobs, result in $1.06 trillion in economic impact and generate $107 billion annually in tax revenue. Of these totals, hunters and anglers account for close to $100 billion in economic activity." $100 BILLION! It is the hunters and the sportsmen (and women) who truly care for America's wildlife, and sadly their numbers are dropping. This is a time when we need to rally together and push for continuance of policies that protect our rights and our resources!

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The Washington Post

January 28, 2012 Saturday 

Suburban Edition

Markey criticizes endangered species proposal

BYLINE: Juliet Eilperin

SECTION: A-SECTION; Pg. A02

LENGTH: 491 words

The Obama administration is setting too high a threshold for listing an imperiled plant or animal under the Endangered Species Act, according to Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass).

Markey, one of the White House's closest congressional allies, late Thursday sent a letterto Dan Ashe, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, questioning a draft policy the agency issued last month with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The policy, which seeks to clarify a 2007 Bush administration proposal that was ruled illegal, redefines what constitutes a "significant portion of its range" for a given species. It says that a plant or animal deserves listing only if its disappearance from one area threatens the entire species' survival. It also defines a species' range as its current distribution, as opposed to its historic one.

When the agency issued the policy Dec. 8, Ashe released a statement: "This proposed interpretation will provide consistency and clarity for the services and our partners, while making more effective use of our resources and improving our ability to protect and recover species before they are on the brink of extinction."

In the proposal, which is subject to public comment until Feb. 7, the agency predicted that it would lead to the additional listing of species, but "only under  a limited set of circumstances."

Markey questioned the agency's assessment, saying that under the proposed approach, the bald eagle would not have qualified for protection in the 1970s because the bird was faring better in Alaska than in the lower 48.

"This proposed threshold for protecting species is simply too high under the ESA," Markey wrote. "Even during the worst era of DDT-pesticide usage, healthy populations of eagles lived in Alaska, meaning that, even if the eagle had completely disappeared from the lower 48 states, the 'viability' of the species was never in doubt."

The policy the Bush administration put forward was even more limited, saying that if a species was found to be threatened in a part of its range, federal protections would only be extended to the area where the species was in trouble.

Noah Greenwald, who directs the endangered species program for the advocacy group Center for Biological Diversity, called the Obama administration's move a "regulatory sleight of hand" that undermines the Endangered Species Act.

The act "allowed for species to be protected if they weren't at risk everywhere," said Greenwald, whose group successfully challenged the Bush policy in federal court.

But in a statement, Fish and Wildlife Service spokesman Chris Tollefson said the new policy "will make it possible to protect species before they are at risk of disappearing everywhere."

"We can act on the basis of threats in only a portion of the range of a species, but only when that portion is so important that without it, the species would be in danger of extinction everywhere," he added.

eilperinj@washpost.com

LOAD-DATE: January 28, 2012

LANGUAGE: ENGLISH

DISTRIBUTION: Every Zone

PUBLICATION-TYPE: Newspaper

Copyright 2012 The Washington Post

All Rights Reserved

I don't agree with this new definition. It seems that under this new definition that very few species would be added to the Endangered Species Act. How can you make a definite decision that a species disappearance from one area would threaten the entire species population? How do you know that if you let an animal disappear from one habitat that the other will survive? We could never say for sure that the other population will continue to exist. Why are we letting it go that far? We should protect species whose entire populations are endangered not just select groups. The article says that it would help us protect species before they are on the brink of extinction but it seems that this new definition would let populations disappear in some areas on the hope that others will live. 

Pythons apparently wiping out Everglades mammals

Pythons apparently wiping out Everglades mammals

This is a follow up to the earlier article that placed a ban on certain snakes entering Florida. This article further shows the devestation and issues caused by these invasive reptiles.

Isolated Peru tribe makes uncomfortable contact

Isolated Peru tribe makes uncomfortable contact

I'm excited to find out that there are still some idigenous tribes left. What it must be like to live unabated by society, economy, and government. It's hard to say what Peruvian authorities should do concerning this tribe. The article talks about how the tribe is "endangering" tourists and people traveling down the river, but who's to say that they are? Their culture and their laws are not the same as ours. They are living as they have done for probably hundreds of years. Farmers and foresters are impeding on their hunting grounds and I'm sure the tribes-people see that as a threat. Who are we to say that our way of life and our beliefs are any better?

WWF - Illegal ivory trade booms during Egypt's Arab Spring

WWF - Illegal ivory trade booms during Egypt's Arab Spring

Elephants are being hunted and killed for their ivory only. With the recent political unrest in Egypt it would difficult for the Egyptian Widlife Service to prevent illegal trade of animal products. According to the article there have been few ivory seizures since 2005. CITES is working with the EWS to help educate people on illegal animal products and how to identify them. Tom Milliken, TRAFFIC's ivory trade expert said, “Tourists buying ivory are potentiating this illegal trade, making a mockery of CITES and fuelling the poaching of Africa’s elephants.”

TRAFFIC is the wildlife trade monitoring network, which works to ensure that trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to the conservation of nature (www.traffic.org/overview 2012). It is a global network that works with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The main goal of CITES is to "ensure that the international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival" (www.cites.org/eng/disc/what.php 2012).

It is very important for countries to work together to stop market hunting and trade of endangered species because if we fail to work together than we fail to save the Earth's species.

http://www.cites.org/eng/news/pr/2011/20111221_cites_za_elephant.php

This press release was issued December of 2011 and includes details about African elephants and the newly developed African Elephant Action Plan. The plan calls for a stop to illegal trade of ivory, poaching, and a plan to maintain elephant habitats.

Smuggling bust: 1,495 live turtles found in 2 suitcases

Smuggling bust: 1,495 live turtles found in 2 suitcases

Illegal trade of animals is a rising issue.

House vote backs permanent federal electronic duck stamp

House vote backs permanent federal electronic duck stamp

Yay! I'm very excited to see that 98% of the costs for duck stamps are spent on wetland refuges. There is little to no legislation regarding wetlands and wetland status. At least now the House is getting involved to help protect the countries wetlands. Wetlands are very important ecosystems that sustain many rare and endangered fauna and flora. and they are very quickly disappearing (especially with the growing matter of global warming).

What does a bear do in the woods? Now we know

What does a bear do in the woods? Now we know

This is cool!

US bans import of snakes plaguing the Everglades

US bans import of snakes plaguing the Everglades

It's about time! Why didn't they do this before? The Florida Key deer is already endangered, it doesn't need anymore help going extinct.

Project to pour water into volcano to make power

Project to pour water into volcano to make power

This sounds like a really good alternative to fossil fuels. The question is how long would this heat source potentially last? Could the volcano become active again? The article states that they have no plans to develop a power plant right now, but one could be built and running within the next ten years. It also says that projects like this could provide over half of the countries power supply, but most volcanoes are located in the West, so what could people in the East do as a safe alternative? If this project is successful and the costs are low then it would be an excellent idea. It sounds like a great theory at the moment with only 2 places in the world currently using geothermal energy this way. The thing that worries me is that they are cracking the bedrock almost 11,000 ft in the Earth's surface and it has been known to cause earthquakes. What is this doing to the environment? I will do further research and comment again later. Hopefully with answers to some of these questions.

NC: Red wolf comeback in N.C. helps other animals thrive, Aug 13, 2011

Yay! Red wolves make a comeback in the SE and people are happy about it!

Gray Wolf Facts - Defenders of Wildlife - Defenders of Wildlife

Gray Wolf Facts - Defenders of Wildlife - Defenders of Wildlife

pdf
This is the Cattle Death Loss for 2010 from the USDA website.

Federal use of aerial sharpshooters to kill wolves draws fire

Federal use of aerial sharpshooters to kill wolves draws fire

This article is outrageous. Gunning down wolves out of a plane? And then broadcasting your kills on the side of the plane via paw print stickers? That's a little cruel. The agencies responsible for protecting wildlife are the ones that are unfairly killing them. People automatically blame wolves for damage to livestock and elk population declines, but studies from 2011 by the USDA have shown that feral dogs and coyotes kill more livestock than wolves do. Over a million cattle a year die from respiratory problems versus the 8100 wolves kill. Out of the total percent of predator kills wolves make up only 3.7%. Wolf populations are on the rise but isn't that the whole reason why wolves were saved from extinction and reintroduced?