Turtles in trouble: New report identifies the 25 most endangered turtle species

By John PlattFeb 25, 2011 Asian appetites are rapidly driving the world’s tortoises and freshwater turtles toward extinction, and some species might only be savable through costly and labor-intensive conservation efforts, according to both a new report and speakers at a workshop about conserving Asian turtles. “It’s going to take some intense management, both to […]

Gulf of Mexico oil spill was a deadly time for sea turtles, report finds

By Matt Sedensky of The Associated Press Published: Wednesday, January 26, 2011, 7:10 PM More sea turtles were killed or injured in the Gulf of Mexico in the months following the BP oil spill than in any similar period during the past two decades, a report released Wednesday found. While the report suggested many of […]

WWF: Global biodiversity down 30 percent since 1970 — 60 percent of tropical species extinct

WWF’s 2010 Living Planet Report [pdf] is the world’s leading, science-based analysis on the health of our planet and the impact of human activity on the planet.   The  biennial report explores the changing state of biodiversity, ecosystems and peoples’ consumption of natural resources. It also explores the implications of these changes for the future of […]

Turtle, dugongs ‘at risk under climate change’

ScienceDaily (Oct. 8, 2010) — The “turtle and dugong capital of the world”, the northern Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait region, faces increased pressure under climate change from human actions such as fishing, hunting, onshore development and pollution. “Depletion of turtle and dugong numbers increases their vulnerability to other threats and lowers their ability […]

1000 rare tortoises poached each week in Madagascar

www.wildmadagascar.org September 30, 2010 One thousand endangered tortoises are being illegally collected each week in southern Madagascar, reports WWF. The trade, driven by international demand for the endemic radiated tortoise (Astrochelys radiata) and the spider tortoise (Pyxis arachnoids) as well as local consumption, is driving the slow-to-reproduce species toward extinction in the wild. Additionally, tortoise […]

World’s rivers in crisis, study says

By Alister Doyle, Environment CorrespondentWed Sep 29, 2010 3:50pm EDT OSLO (Reuters) – The world’s rivers are in crisis including in North America and Europe where governments have invested trillions of dollars to clean up freshwater supplies, a study showed Wednesday. “Threats to human water security and biological diversity are pandemic,” Charles Vorosmarty of the […]

The catastrophic decline of the world’s freshwater turtles

By Jonathan Amos, Science correspondent, BBC News  10 September 2010 Freshwater turtles are in catastrophic decline, according to a new analysis by Conservation International (CI). The group says more than a third of the estimated 280 species around the world are now threatened with extinction. The unsustainable collection of turtles for food and to supply […]

Cold empties Bolivian rivers of fish — ‘There’s just a huge number of dead fish’

Antarctic cold snap kills millions of aquatic animals in the Amazon. By Anna Petherick27 August 2010 With high Andean peaks and a humid tropical forest, Bolivia is a country of ecological extremes. But during the Southern Hemisphere’s recent winter, unusually low temperatures in part of the country’s tropical region hit freshwater species hard, killing an […]

Gulf of Mexico still in crisis four months after BP explosion

By Kierán Suckling, (520) 275-5960August 20, 2010 NEW ORLEANS— Today marks the end of the fourth month since BP’s negligence and lack of government oversight caused the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig to explode, sending more than 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. To assess how much damage was done and […]

Graph of the Day: Daily Recovery Numbers for Oiled Birds and Turtles, 9 June 2010 – 5 August 2010

By Paul Rioux, The Times-Picayune Sunday, August 08, 2010, 10:00 AM More than three weeks after BP capped its gushing oil well, skimming operations have all but stopped and federal scientists say just a quarter of the oil remains in the Gulf of Mexico. But wildlife officials are rounding up more oiled birds than ever […]

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