#Zoos, Aquariums and Their Visitors Are Critical Advocates for Conservation (Op-Ed) John Calvelli is executive vice president for public affairs at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and director of the 96 Elephants campaign.
If you've visited a zoo or aquarium in recent years there's a good chance that you've noticed something new.
In addition to providing up-close encounters with some of the planet's most magnificent species today's zoological parks are placing a growing emphasis on conservation awareness and action.
Indeed if you were to ask the staff of almost any zoo or aquarium about their primary mission they would underscore the education of guests regarding the conservation status of the animals they are observing
and the threats those species face in the wild. Zoos and aquariums are living museums where children
and adults alike are witness to the wonders of the natural world. Encounters with species both exotic and familiar fill guests with awe
and excite them to learn more about park animals'wild habitats many of which are in serious decline.
This was foremost on my mind as WCS executive vice president and Bronx Zoo director Jim Breheny vice president for species conservation Liz Bennett and
I attended the Winter Meeting of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) recently. We attended to provide senior zoo representatives from across the nation with an update on the forest-elephant poaching
and trafficking crisis in Central africa along with a programmatic overview of WCS's field work. We also led a discussion of our 96 Elephants public campaign.
That effort launched by WCS in 2013 and named for the number African elephants killed on average each day of 2012 seeks to bring attention
and consensus to a poaching crisis that has eliminated a stunning 65 percent of the entire African elephant population since 2002.
The campaign rests on three pillars we have identified to end the crisis: Stop the killing stop the trafficking
So far 115 different zoos and aquariums have signed on as 96 Elephants partners. All have the ability to spread the message of elephant conservation to their park-going audiences
and zoos and aquariums are making a difference. Each in their own way is helping to focus attention educate their visitors
and begin the process of changing the status quo. For example last fall the Indianapolis Zoo gathered 96 school children for a group picture to promote greater awareness of the elephant-poaching crisis. The Houston Zoo is incorporating campaign messaging into its promotion of the birth
of a new elephant calf and is currently working to collect 5000 signatures to hand over to local elected leaders asking them to push for a total ban on the sale of ivory and ivory products in the United States.
A bill to ban the commercial sale of ivory in New york originated over conversations at The bronx Zoo.
And over the next month three Chicago institutions the Chicago Zoological Society's Brookfield Zoo the Lincoln Park Zoo and Shedd Aquarium will likewise be working with local and state lawmakers to raise awareness
on the need for a moratorium on ivory sales. Clearly a movement is growing to protect elephants and other iconic species from devastating losses.
The 96 Elephants campaign underscores both the power of conservation to move people to take action
and the important role of zoos and aquariums and their visitors when working together to achieve public-policy goals.
To help elephants survive and thrive we must now work state by state to ensure there are adequate laws on the books to stop the sale of ivory.
So the next time you are visiting a zoo or aquarium you may want to listen a bit closer to zoo professionals
or read the exhibit material a bit more carefully. Chances are pretty good that you will be learning about the latest crisis befalling our wildlife partners on this planet
and how we can all work together to help make a difference. This Op-Ed was adapted from the article Zoos
& Aquariums and Their Visitors Can Be Critical Advocates for Conservation Action that appeared on Huffington Post.
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Starving Rats Ate Trees By now most of North america has thawed out from a brutal winter that introduced unhappy phrases such as polar vortex into the lexicon.
One surprise was the discovery that starving rats in New york city had attacked the trees in urban parks for sustenance.
So they went after the trees. 6 Invasive Pests Threatened by Cold weather The trees which even in winter have some carbohydrates mostly sucrose) in the vascular tissue beneath their bark had been gnawed by rats all the way around the base of the trunk a practice called girdling that usually kills a tree.
Invasive pests'march halted In addition to rats a number of other pests had a rough time during the winter of 2013-2014
which broke records for cold from New england to the Midwest. I'm probably one of the few people that really roots for an extremely cold day because
I really do think it helps with some of the major insect problems that we have Robert Venette a biologist with the U s. Forest Service in Minnesota told NPR.
Invasive insects such as the emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis) and the hemlock wooly adelgid (Adelges tsugae) both of which have decimated native tree populations in the Northeast may have had their march across America slowed
or halted by extended periods of cold weather. Given that temps have gotten really cold and not for one night but for an extended period there's a tendency for a lot of people to hope for insect mortality Deborah Mccullough a professor of entomology
and forestry at Michigan State university in East Lansing told the Capital News Service (CNS). Other invasive pests vulnerable to subzero temperatures include the southern pine beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis) the brown marmorated stinkbug (Halyomorpha halys) and several species of ticks (Ixodes sp.
which can transmit Lyme disease and other illnesses. Sorry no rat Armageddon The population of Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) whose numbers are almost wholly dependent on humans for food may drop somewhat this year as a result of wintry blasts.
If the snow gets really deep and it's hard for young rats to jump across the snow
and get to the food then cold temperature might actually cause some mortality urban ecologist Steve Sullivan of the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museumin Chicago told Fox news Chicago.
But urbanites who are hoping that last winter's unusually bitter weather resulted in a rat Armageddon may be disappointed.
Sullivan doesn't expect a major die off from cold for a tough smart animal like the rat.
Norway rats are a very adaptable species Sullivan told Fox news. Follow Marc Lallanilla on Twitter and Google+.
and behavior of spider monkeys but not until today have I been able to claim such a huge victory for a place
and it's already starting to change These protected areas are vital to ensure that species like those spider monkeys I studied have plenty of forest habitat
and using HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air filters to trap pollen. Mistake 3: Not taking steps to keep pollen away Your shoes clothes hair
Pets also bring pollen inside so keep them clean. You should keep your own hair clean too.
New england Gets New'Hotel'for Pollinators An unusual hotel in New england is generating a lot of buzz in scientific circles.
but for the region's pollinators it's as appealing as any five-star resort.
Gallery of the Cutest Bugs The study will establish the first complete diversity assessment of native bees in the region
and also provide a better understanding of pollinator diversity and ecology Sandra Rehan lead NHAES researcher and assistant professor of biological sciences at the University of New hampshire's College of Life sciences and Agriculture (COLSA) said in a statement.
The study called Sustainable Solutions to Problems Affecting Bee Health was launched to coincide with National Pollinator Week (June 16-22) an annual event sanctioned by the U s. Secretary of agriculture that highlights the urgent issue
of declining pollinator populations in the United states. Basic data on species diversity and habitat preferences will be fundamental to future studies to ameliorate declining bee populations
In addition to helping protect native bees in New england Rehan said the project is designed to raise awareness about how humans are affecting pollinator populations in the region as well as across other areas of the country.
or even extinction of a species. John Wraith NHAES director and dean of the College of Life sciences and Agriculture expressed enthusiasm for the bee hotel project and its related studies noting the impact that pollinators
but a few ways to improve healthy pollinator communities. Follow Elizabeth Palermo on Twitter@techepalermo Facebook or Google+.
Ibex are herbivores; they only eat vegetation such as shrubs bushes and grasses. Grazing accounts for a significant part of their eating habits.
Ibex make their homes on cliffs that would be dangerous for predators. The Walia ibex can live at altitudes as high as 8200 to 14800 feet (2500 to 4500 m) in the cliffs of the Ethiopian highlands according to the BBC.
but scientists are hopeful that this cloned ibex will pave the way for the successful cloning of extinct animals.
About 8000 to 10000 years ago in Southwest asia and the Middle east humans began domesticating wild goats according to the San diego Zoo.
During a recent trip to Utah I came across an iconic gnarly tree clinging to the top of the canyon wall at Dead Horse Point State Park and
And because there's no soil there's a lot less need to spray for pests. Fruits and vegetables including cherry tomatoes lettuce cucumbers
but also don't consume anything derived from animals including eggs dairy honey and marshmallows which contain gelatin a protein obtained from animal byproducts.
and cleaning solutions that were tested on animals or have related animal ingredients such as lard beeswax and lanolin (a waxy substance in sheep's wool).
Nonhuman primates and other wild animals rarely get dental diseases Warinner said which raises the question What is it about humans that allows these pathogens to grow?
Rhino Horn and Tiger Bone Vietnam could be the latest country to destroy its stockpiles of illegal wildlife products.
Officials with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural development of Vietnam say they are considering crushing rhino horn elephant ivory
and tiger bone the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) announced. In recent years the international community has recognized that Vietnamese citizens have emerged as key players in global illegal wildlife trade as traders transporters traffickers
Despite international bans wildlife products like ivory and rhino horn remain in high demand fueling poaching
WCS estimates that 96 elephants are killed each day for their ivory in Africa contributing to a 76 percent decline in elephant populations since 2002.
Last year a record 1004 rhinos were killed in South africa for their horns. Follow Megan Gannon on Twitter and Google+.
Apart from a few ants the dead tree trunks were unscathed largely when we first encountered them Mousseau who is also co-director of the Chernobyl
and stuffed the leaves into bags lined with panty hose (to keep out insects). They then distributed these bags around the Chernobyl area
Animal studies show whey protein supplements fed to rats can prevent inflammation and early signs of complications from obesity and diabetes according to a 2012 review published in the journal Lipids in Health and Disease.
In their study Brandt and her colleagues also used a mouse model as proxy for humans
Mice fed a diet where a fifth of the food was powdered carrot had fewer and smaller tumours than mice who were fed a normal diet.
and Democracy at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) where she focuses on food and drug safety protections for scientist whistle-blowers and government transparency and accountability.
The author's most recent Op-Ed was Why Whistle-Blowers Should Watch out for New Loophole.
#Parrot Facts: Habits, Habitat & Species Parrots are members of the Order psittaciformes which includes more than 350 bird species including parakeets macaws cockatiels and cockatoos according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information system (ITIS).
Though there are many types of parrots all parrot species have a few traits in common. For example to be classified as a parrot the bird must have curved a beak
and its feet must be zygodactyl which means there are four toes on each foot with two toes that point forward and two that point backward.
Because the parrot order includes so many different species parrot sizes vary widely. Parrots can range in size from about 3. 5 to 40 inches (8. 7 to 100 centimeters)
and weigh 2. 25 to 56 ounces (64 g to 1. 6 kg) on average. The world's heaviest type of parrot is the kakapo
which can weigh up to 9 lbs. 4 kg. The smallest parrot is faced the buff pygmy parrot
which is only about 3 inches (8 cm) tall and weighs just 0. 4 ounces (10 g). Most wild parrots live in the warm areas of the Southern hemisphere
though they can be found in many other regions of the world such as northern Mexico.
Australia South america and Central america have the greatest diversity of parrot species. Not all parrots like warm weather though.
Some parrots like to live in snowy climates. A few cold-weather parrots are maroon-fronted parrots thick-billed parrots and keas.
With their colorful plumage and ability to mimic human speech parrots are very popular pets.
Some parrot pets have escaped their owners and bred in unusual areas. For example a popular bird in the pet trade the monk parakeet a native of subtropical South america now resides in the United states after some of them escaped
and reproduced in the wild. Most parrots are social birds that live in groups called flocks.
African grey parrots live in flocks with as many as 20 to 30 birds. Many species are monogamous
and spend their lives with only one mate. The mates work together to raise their young.
Parrots throughout the flock communicate with one another by squawking and moving their tail feathers. Some parrots like the kakapo are nocturnal.
They sleep during the day and search for food at night. Parrots are omnivores which means that they can eat both meat and vegetation.
Most parrots eat a diet that contains nuts flowers fruit buds seeds and insects. Seeds are their favorite food.
They have strong jaws that allow them to snap open nutshells to get to the seed that's inside.
Keas use their longer beaks to dig insects out of the ground for a meal
and kakapos chew on vegetation and drink the juices. Parrots are like most other birds
and lay eggs in a nest. Some species though lay their eggs in tree holesground tunnels rock cavities and termite mounds.
Parrots typically lay two to eight eggs at one time. A parrot's egg needs 18 to 30 days of incubation before it can hatch so the parents take turns sitting on the eggs.
A parrot chick is born with only a thin layer of thin wispy feathers called down.
Parrot chicks are blind for the first two weeks of their lives. At three weeks they start to grow their adult feathers.
The chick will not be matured fully for one to four years depending on its species. According to the Integrated Taxonomic Information system (ITIS) the taxonomy of parrots is:
Many species of parrots are endangered. The kakapo (Strigops habroptila) is endangered a critically parrot according to the Kakapo Recovery Organization.
There are fewer than 150 left. The there are only 50 orange-bellied parrots (Neophema chrysogaster) found in Australia making it one of the most endangered parrots in the world.
The yellow-headed Amazon (Amazona oratrix) is endangered another parrot though there are more of them than kakapos or orange-bellied parrots.
According to International Union for Conservation of Nature there are 7000 yellow-headed Amazons left in the wild.
Parrots are very good mimics and can copy sounds that they hear in their environment;
they can even copy human words and laughter. The African grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus) is the best at this
and one named Alex is said to be the world's smartest parrot. The kakapo is one of the world's longest-living birds;
they can live more than 90 years. Cockatoos have a group of feathers on top of their heads that they can move.
When on full display these feathers resemble a mohawk. The cockatoo can also retract the feathers
so they lay flat against their heads r
#Chasing Alligators, Dodging Parrots: A Zookeeper's Life (Op-Ed) Christopher Scoufaras is a zookeeper at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)' s Queens Zoo.
He contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Growing up I regularly visited the WCS's Bronx Zoo
and New york Aquarium and knew from a young age that I was interested in working with animals.
I would sit in front of the primate exhibits for hours and watch their behavior it was exciting to see up close
and in person what I'd only seen on television. I studied animal biotechnology and conservation at Delaware Valley College in Pennsylvania but
I was on track to being a zookeeper even before that as a student at John Bowne High school in Queens.
During my teen years I was involved in the agricultural program at the school working with chickens goats lizards and other animals.
I even interned at a pig farm in New jersey. I began my career as a zookeeper interning at the Queens Zoo
while in college and was hired full time after graduating. Our zoo is small enough that keepers get to work with a wide range of animals from bison and mountain lions to tropical birds Andean bears and Roosevelt elk.
At the Queens Zoo we're always outside no matter the weather. During Hurricane Sandy in 2012 we came
and checked in on the animals. While many people were snowed in earlier this year I would shovel my car out
and make it to work only to shovel some more to ensure the animals were fed and cared for.
And during times when we have high winds we place the big cats off-exhibit to a secure holding area to safeguard against anything that could fall.
Sometimes the potential dangers are not environmental but from the animals themselves. Part of my job is transporting alligators on and off exhibit during the changing of the seasons.
We've trained them to walk into crates. Like any animal alligators are motivated by food:
We've conditioned them to run toward the sound of clanking tongs since they know they'll get a treat (either a rat
or a fish to munch on). We'll put tongs at the end of the crate to draw the alligators in
and then close the sliding doors. I'm not scared of the alligators but I do sometimes get goose bumps from a few of the parrots.
There's one in particular who will fly at you if he doesn't get fed in a timely manner.
I actually have been bitten scratched kicked and tail-slapped by them it comes with the territory
though safety is always our priority. I've also had an opportunity to work with rhea (flightless birds native to South america) that we raised
since they were week-old chicks. They soon began to grow from knee-high to over five-feet-tall.
They follow us and opportunistically pick at our keys and pockets when we go in to feed
and clean them though otherwise they are harmless. One day as I was walking into their area
I heard one of the rheas running towards me. I turned to look and saw a male completely fluffed up
and charging. I quickly grabbed the base of his neck in order to keep him from kicking
me but at the same time was conscious of not harming the animal. I soon made my way to the door leaving the hissing puffed-up kicking rhea behind.
That was the day we realized he had hit sexual maturity. He still reacts in such a manner
whenever any male keepers are present. He pays no attention to any of our female zookeepers.
Only Zookeepers Get to Feed the Penguins (Op-Ed) Just the fact that my career is not a regular office job that every day is different and exciting makes me love what
I do. Whether it's a challenging day or a smooth one it's exciting regardless.
It's hard to get bored when you're never sure what an animal under your care is going to do.
Editor's Note: This article is the second in a series from WCS on Live Science celebrating the contributions of zookeepers for the American Association of Zookeepers'National Zookeeper Week (July 21-27.
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and Chief Earl Old person of the Blackfeet Nation is advisor for the National Mammal Campaign and a Tribal Council member.
and recycled nutrients created habitat variability that benefited grassland birds insects and small mammals and provided abundant food resources for grizzly bears wolves and humans.
More than any other species the buffalo American bison or iiniiwa in Blackfoot linked native people to the land provided food
That loss has diminished the rich deep relationship that existed before the extermination of these animals.
He whipped his horse and broke through to Liang among ten thousand men of his army.
Last week at a coffee farm in Costa rica I stumbled upon hundreds of butterflies probably some kind of Heliconius species all fluttering around a particular spot.
It's like that with butterflies. But as we stood and watched they eventually settled on almost everything around.
For many butterfly species finding a good place to stop and rest isn't easy.
Deforestation drought and shifts in global temperature are all altering butterfly habitat. Monarch butterflies in particular face a highly specific threat from humans:
the weed-killer commonly known as Roundup or glyphosate. In the past decade as the use of this potent chemical has skyrocketed monarch populations have plummeted.
and find ways to help protect monarch butterflies. Over the past decade Roundup has become the most popular weed-killer in the country.
One of the plants it's wiping out is milkweed the sole source of food for monarch butterfly larvae.
what particular plant attracted the butterflies at the coffee farm but there are a number of sweet-smelling plants around the area.
This knowledge gives the EPA an opportunity to muzzle a direct threat to butterflies. Immediately limiting the use of glyphosate
A new Department of agriculture initiative offers up to $3 million to improve the food supply for honeybees.
Commercial honeybees alone pollinate some $15 billion of produce each year according to the Associated press a number that doesn't include the economic impact of native bees that also pollinate crops.
But both native bees and imported honeybees are struggling in the face of colony collapse disorder a mysterious ailment that kills off whole hives.
Feeding bees may help them stave off illness the agency hopes particularly in an agricultural landscape dominated by corn soybean and cotton not the insects'preferred plants.
However previous studies on people and animals have shown that Garcinia cambogia may indeed increase serotonin levels.
And one study in rats suggested that extremely high doses of Garcinia may cause testicular atrophy and toxicity.
The abuse of antibiotics in the livestock industry where animals that aren't sick are fed low doses of antibiotics day after day to try to compensate for unsanitary conditions risks impairing the effectiveness of those essential medicines
Some studies in the past few years have suggested also that Neanderthals weren't just red-meat-gnawing carnivores;
Archaeologists found residues of fish scales bird feathers and starchy plants at a Neanderthal cave in the Rhone Valley in France.
Another group of researchers discovered seal dolphin and fish bones near a Neanderthal hearth on the Rock of gibraltar located on the Iberian peninsula.
All poop samples indicated that Neanderthals ate animals; evidence came in the form of coprostanol a lipid created
when the body metabolizes cholesterol a molecule made by all animals. But two samples also had a dash of 5b-stigmastanol a chemical produced
Ainara Sistiaga a graduate student at the University of La Laguna in Spain who led the investigation as a visiting student at the Massachusetts institute of technology said the results aren't all that surprising as Neanderthals are primates
and most primates are omnivores. We cannot say anything about what kind of plants they were actually eating
In pointing a finger at these human cousins the authors of the paper may have been too quick to rule out bears wild boars
We know that modern bears are attracted by abandoned hearths and they would probably leave droppings behind without any afterthoughts Bocherens told Live Science in an email.
He added that scientists need a much better reference database for the profile of chemicals they should expect to see in the fossilized feces of different animals such as bears and humans.
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