Biodiversity

ENVIRONMENT-EUROPE: Dangerous Waters – Even for Sharks

By IPS Correspondents
Despite the widespread reputation that associates sharks with death, this fish species is very vulnerable, and some varieties are at risk of extinction. Of the 40 shark species found in European seas, one-third are threatened by intensive and illegal fishing, sport fishing and accidental capture, according to the World Conservation Union (IUCN).

ENVIRONMENT-LATIN AMERICA: Frogs Fading Into Silence

By Stephen Leahy
Frogs and other amphibians are rapidly becoming extinct around the world and in Latin American countries in particular. In the Caribbean as many as 80 percent of these species are endangered, while in Colombia there are 209 and in Mexico 198 amphibians may soon disappear.

ENVIRONMENT: Ocean Fisheries Maxed Out

By Stephen Leahy
Two-thirds of fish stocks in the world's high seas are overfished, while most of those closer to shore are failing or fished to the maximum, a new U.N. report said Monday.

ENVIRONMENT-MEXICO: Farmers and Scientists See Risks in Wind Energy

By IPS Correspondents
With the blessing of development agencies, transnational corporations and environmentalists, the Mexican government is breaking ground for a big wind energy project. But peasant farmers and bird experts aren't too happy about it.

ENVIRONMENT: Understanding Climate Change in Drake Passage

By Marcela Valente
Infamous for its storms and shipwrecks, Drake Passage, which separates South America from Antarctica, will now be the focus of a multidisciplinary study by scientific researchers from nine countries, with the aim of assessing the impact of climate change on the ecosystem.

ENVIRONMENT: Fighting Warming Key to Anti-Poverty Goals

By Haider Rizvi
Driven by increased concerns and mounting evidence of the threats posed by global warming, some of the world's most eminent scientists are telling policymakers to get their act together before it is too late to avoid a doomsday scenario.

ENVIRONMENT-ARGENTINA: When One Ocean Is Not Enough

By Marcela Valente
Thanks to satellite tracking, a team of Argentine scientists found that southern elephant seals need much more ocean space to survive than previously thought. They can dive to a depth of 1,200 meters in search of food in the southwest Atlantic, and cross the Strait of Magellan to the Pacific.

BIODIVERSITY: DNA Bar-Coding Could Rewrite Book of Life

By Stephen Leahy
Fifteen new species of birds have been discovered in North America following the first ever genetic analysis of nearly all 690 known species. A similar DNA profiling or "bar-coding" of Guyana's 87 bat species revealed an additional six genetically distinct bats.

ENVIRONMENT-US: Slow Rescue for Famed River of Grass

By IPS Correspondents
Both the state of Florida and the U.S. federal government agree that the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Project (CERP), the largest wetlands restoration project in the world, is a critical endeavor that must be carried out.

ENVIRONMENT: Scientists Put an Ear to the Ocean Floor

By Stephen Leahy
Canada will spend 38 million dollars to install thousands of undersea listening posts along the continental shelves of North America, the Mediterranean, Gulf of Mexico and Australia.

ANTARCTICA: Argentina to Study Effects of Spill

By Marcela Valente
The fuel spilled from a Norwegian cruise ship in Antarctica won't leave dramatic images of penguins covered in petroleum. But the spill is indeed a threat to the region's fragile biodiversity, warn experts.

JAPAN: Leading Biodiversity Conservation

By Suvendrini Kakuchi
A call by the United Nations to restore and protect biodiversity in the world through a global convention is seen as being of particular importance to Japan, a leading importer of natural resources.

SCIENCE: Primordial Ocean Ooze May Hold Wonder Drugs

By Enrique Gili
A new breed of prospector is hunting for buried treasure on the sea floor, this time looking for breakthrough drugs derived from the natural heritage of the world's oceans.

PERU: Amazonian Communities Fight New Oil Wells

By Emad Mekay
Conservation groups are warning international investors that a Peruvian government offer to explore for oil in pristine Amazon land is fraught with risks, lacks community support and violates international laws protecting indigenous communities.

ENVIRONMENT-ARGENTINA: Alarm Sounded for Patagonian Seas

By Marcela Valente
Some believe it was exaggerated; others that it will help prevent future environmental tragedy. These are the two extremes in reactions in Argentina to a report on the impact of anchovy fishing in the seas off the Patagonia region.

IRAQ: Amid Sectarian Chaos, Bird Lovers Persevere

By Stephen Leahy
Can Iraqi dreams for a better future be glimpsed in the publication Thursday of the first-ever field guide to the country's 387 bird species?

ENVIRONMENT: Evangelicals, Scientists Team Up on Warming

By Jim Lobe
One year after the launch by nearly 100 evangelical Christian leaders of a major initiative on global warming, the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) has announced a joint effort with scientific groups to urge stronger efforts by the government to protect the global environment.

MEXICO: Tourism Projects Trigger Conflict in Preserve

By IPS Correspondents
A golf course, hotels, luxury residences, stables and a private marina will occupy land next to a valuable biodiversity reserve in the western Mexican state of Jalisco. With official permission, the project developers have begun work, but opponents have sworn to stop them.

ENVIRONMENT: Hungry Whaling Ships Set Sail

By Stephen Leahy
Japan's controversial whaling fleet has arrived in the Southern Ocean, around Antarctica, and anti-whaling activists are promising to ram and sink any vessels attempting to kill whales.

BIODIVERSITY: Plumbing the Secrets of the Ocean Depths

By Stephen Leahy
Incredible new forms of life have been discovered around super-hot 400 degree C seafloor vents, as well as under 700 metres of Antarctic ice, by the 20th scientific expedition of the Census of Marine Life of 2006 now underway.

ENVIRONMENT: The Ides of March of the Penguins

By Stephen Leahy
Ice-loving penguins have never been more popular, but few people realise they are threatened with extinction from climate change and industrial fishing.
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