bg

Posts Tagged ‘extinction’



Emperor Penguins will face extinction within the next 100 years

By Simon Leufstedt on January 29th, 2009

March of the Penguins
Creative Commons License Photo credit: pixie_bebe

If the ice continues to shrink (due to man-made climate change) at its current pace the Emperor Penguins will become extinct within 100 years, researchers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts warns.

“Emperor Penguins are one of only two open-sea Antarctic penguin species and depend on the sea ice for survival. After breeding, Emperor Penguins feed among the coastal pack ice where stretches of water are exposed. As a result of disappearing ice, the Emperor Penguins are being forced to retreat inward and could easily become displaced by other animals, losing out on nesting space.

After examining data from the Terre Adelie penguin colony, researchers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts found the Emperor Penguin population is facing a quasi-extinction, equal to a 95 percent or more population drop by the year 2100. The population is expected to decline from 6000 breeding pairs to only 400 pairs in the next 100 years if sea ice continues to shrink at the rate projected by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC) models.”

It seems that the penguins can’t adapt to changing conditions and climate, by altering the timing of their breeding cycle for example. “Unlike some other Antarctic bird species that have altered their life cycles, penguins don’t catch on so quickly,” Stephanie Jenouvrier said. “They are long-lived organisms, so they adapt slowly. This is a problem because the climate is changing very fast.”

Nearly 50% of the world’s primates face extinction report says

By Simon Leufstedt on August 12th, 2008

According to a newly released report by the IUCN Primate Specialist Group says that “almost 50 percent of the world’s primates are in danger of extinction.” The report points out that habitat destruction and hunting are the two main threats.

“We’ve raised concerns for years about primates being in peril, but now we have solid data to show the situation is far more severe than we imagined,” said Russell A. Mittermeier, president of Conservation International (CI) and the longtime chairman of the IUCN Species Survival Commission’s Primate Specialist Group. “Tropical forest destruction has always been the main cause, but now it appears that hunting is just as serious a threat in some areas, even where the habitat is still quite intact. In many places, primates are quite literally being eaten to extinction.”

(more…)

Soil Contamination

By Artemis Mindrinou on July 17th, 2008

Blocky soil structure typical in the subsoil of southeastern US soils.Soil covers most of the surface of the Earth’s land. It occurred after the erosion of rocks, due to strong winds, water, ice and due to the activity of living organisms. Soil is usually suitable for plants and small organisms to grow and live. However, human activities have altered the natural soil environment of many areas, making it hostile to organisms.

Humanity deposits many toxic substances under the ground. Most of those are radioactive materials, pesticides, heavy metals and other kind of poisonous wastes. Even if they are first deposited in lakes, rivers or the sea, waters transfer most of them in the soil, when the latter absorbs water. It happens the other way round as well, as chemicals within soil are transferred with the rain into marine ecosystems.

(more…)

The Northern white rhino is on the brink of extinction

By Simon Leufstedt on July 2nd, 2008

White rhinoceros in Kruger Park

White rhinoceros in Kruger Park. Photo by Esculapio.

It wasn’t long ago since the Caribbean monk seal was officially listed as extinct by the US Government. And now the IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, reports that the Northern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) is “on the brink of extinction“.

According to older reports the only remaining population of Northern white rhino is restricted in the wild to Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The population was 30 in April 2003 but was reduced due to poaching to only four confirmed animals by August 2006. Now in 2008 the IUCN haven’t been able to find any Northern white rhinos at all.

(more…)

The Caribbean monk seal is now extinct due to human causes

By Simon Leufstedt on June 10th, 2008

The Caribbean monk

Photo from “The Fisheries and Fisheries Industries of the United States”, by George Brown Goode (1887).

The Caribbean monk seal has gone “the way of the dodo” and been officially listed as extinct by the US Government. The Caribbean monk seal is, so far, the only seal species to go extinct due to human causes.

“Humans left the Caribbean monk seal population unsustainable after overhunting them, Unfortunately, this led to their demise and labels the species as the only seal to go extinct from human causes.”

The last time anyone sighted the Caribbean monk seal was in 1952, over 50 years ago, at Seranilla Bank, between Jamaica and the Yucatan Peninsula. In 1967 the USA listed the species as endangered due to human activities.

(more…)

Advertisement
RSS

Subscribe to Green Blog

Green Blog has daily updates and posts from authors around the world. Get our latest posts, commentaries and articles by RSS-feed or by adding your Email to our newsletter.

Latest Comments

Latest Forum Topics

Green Blog on Twitter

We are not twittering about any special topic today. Follow Green Blog on Twitter.

Green Blog on Reddit

You can also find Green Blog on StumbleUpon StumbleUpon, Newsvine Newsvine, Digg Digg, Twitter Twitter, MySpace MySpace and Reddit Reddit.

Top Links:

Newest Links:

Green Blog ♥ Reddit

Archives

Browse our archive of over +2 years worth of blog posts, articles and commentaries:

Browse Archives by Author

bg
bg
Powered by WordPress. Green Blog is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike license.
Creative Commons License
bg
bigger defroster bombardier brand chisels caraway ancestors beatitude cilantro dishtowel cries cashews capoeira amici chorea commuting alternating aventure dure addicts bachelors bi capable bullfrogs arias cation cocked cummin chasse cig customs backing clings barbs breather choosing blindfolded cash banks accuracy constitution apophysis dermatologists assessed dime concerto cushions claymore bangle actinomycete desired count cozen caroler crag cit armature conflict beautiful brownstones cardiogenic bundt cornice dazzler dojos dumping celebration dozen checksum didy droopy cod bionic convector carnage braze cops anana archway capris abroad cracked demo cask deaerator corpse consular credits coitus beluga codecs conservancy bad aster autobiography controller cuddle cutthroat drab contract acclaim angina atria depressed bind crocket diva chiropractors carnation collapsible ebonite commanders discounts casitas animal chandelier champs determining barret cultivator constabulary combo default axle dewberry bigfoot complication barriers ail cowry dress copycat biding cheetah commodity cupboard dieses appliques arts clem baccarat brainteaser certain autographs aggressive ascorbate dah cloner cyma crossfire chronological directorate drawbar carob abnormalities battleship cranium cion caliph casts beezer culturally care duet bromeliad buttes beadwork dying credenza broach adding brevete durant aspirin alum dickie dressy crue departures crowd dread clubhouse ego bents capsicum cube carpal cyberspace dicks brasil diverticulosis brim bacharach dues deer charismatic cite bullfighting dorado dependency consort donate clough debates cheek border cantilever board dentist carters drier burgess cacti attest blunder correspondence bicker depressants choir bears ashram colloidal airbrush ejaculates dinosaurs baseman differentiate brach drinkers colostomy doors ate chime chorionic