By Wade Davis From the September 2010 issue of Scientific American Over the past decade geneticists have proved that all people alive today are descendants of a relatively small number of individuals who walked out of Africa some 60,000 years ago and carried the human spirit and imagination to every corner of the habitable world. […]
By Rhishja Larson A disturbing incident in Eket, Nigeria reveals that unsuspecting roadside barbecue patrons may have been eating vulture meat instead of chicken. Hungry buyers tempted by the scrumptious sizzle of meat cooking over a charcoal fire may want to think twice before buying a snack from one of these outdoor roasting vendors. What […]
Europe’s largest slaughter of fin whales for decades was carried out this summer with 93 of the endangered species killed by Iceland according to the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. The conservation group said at least 93 endangered fin whales were killed this summer, more than at any time since an international ban on commercial […]
By John Platt in 60-Second Extinction Countdown Urban growth is quickly driving one of the world’s most bizarre creatures into extinction. According to a new study, the axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum), a Mexican amphibian that never metamorphoses past its larval stage, has seen a 90 percent population drop in the last four years. Only an estimated […]
By MARIA SUDEKUM FISHER (AP) KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The world’s only naturally migrating whooping cranes, and the species’ best chance for survival, died at about twice their normal rate last year and will likely see an overall drop in their numbers, a worrying sign for the once near-extinct bird that has been making a […]
At least 20,000 orangutans have been killed or captured for the illegal pet trade in the past ten years in Indonesia without a single prosecution, according to a report published by Nature Alert and the Centre for Orangutan Protection, groups that campaign on behalf of orangutans. The report, titled The Indonesian Chainsaw Massacre, blames the […]
By Guy Dinmore Like bovine torpedoes, a trapped shoal of bluefin tuna, some two metres long, swirl in ever decreasing circles within the “chamber of death” as an intricate maze of nets closes around them. The signal is given and the mattanza – slaughter – begins. Two dozen Italian fishermen on longboats haul the final […]
Rhett A. Butler, mongabay.com Camels are among the most recognizable animals on the planet, yet few realize that wild populations are at a high risk of extinction. Of the world’s two camel species, the Dromedary camel, characterized by a single hump, has already gone extinct in the wild. The second species, the two-humped Bactrian camel, […]
By Jeremy Hance The state of Idaho has set a quota of 220 individuals for the wolf hunting season which begins on September 1st. If the quota holds, a quarter of Idaho’s estimated 880 wolves will be killed. The 220 quota is actually a reduction from an earlier proposal that called for a quota of […]
By John Platt Who stole 83 loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings from their nest on Ocean Isle Beach in North Carolina? A $5,000 reward has been posted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the turtle-napper(s). Loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) are protected as a threatened species […]
