Bones recovered from gorilla slaughter

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Bones belonging to a mother gorilla, missing after a family of mountain gorillas slaughtered in July have been recovered.

Her infant has not been found, but wildlife officials are not optimistic of the young gorilla surviving.

The mother and infant were part of a 12 strong family of mountain gorillas, living in the north west of the Congo, which were attacked by gunmen in July with at least 4 confirmed shot dead at the time.

Sickeningly, it has been suggested that they were shot for the sake of it, as poachers would normally be expected to recover parts of the bodies for sale - something that did not happen here.

It is estimated that there are less than 400 mountain gorillas alive in the wild - and the death toll from human encroachment this year al already 9.

The plight of the mountain gorillas illustrates both the worst and the best about human beings - the worst in the wanton killing of an intelligent and endangered species, but the best in the heroic efforts of park rangers to put up with a difficult job in order to protect them, for all humanity.

New mammals discovered in Congo

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It’s not always bad news - while Extinction Watch may be a reminder of the problems of the loss of biodiversity, sometimes good news actually comes in of recent fauna discoveries.

Usually these involve discoveries of new species, alongside warnings of their imminent disappearance - but this time it’s the other way around.

In the Republic of Congo, in a biologically isolated area of forest already long used as a rebel base - and off-limits to researchers since 1960 - reports have come in of no less than 4 new species of mammal and 2 of frogs being discovered.

Larger fauna such as chimpanzees, bongos (antelope), buffalo, elephants, leopards and several species of monkey show diminished numbers because of the conflict, but there were enough samples of the smaller new species to begin the classification process.

What’s especially encouraging is that the research only covered a single kilometre square of forest as well:

Lost forest reveals new species

The survey, led by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), was carried out between January and March 2007.

WCS researcher Dr Andrew Plumptre said: “If we can find six new species in such a short period it makes you wonder what else is out there.

“The block of forest has probably been isolated from the rest of the Congo forest block for about 10,000 years.”

Of the two new amphibian species discovered, one, a small bright green frog, is in the Hyperolius genus, the other, a 1-2cm-long black frog may belong to a completely new genus.

The conservationists believe they might also have found several new plant species in the forested region, which includes the Misotshi-Kabogo Forest.

The expedition’s botanists were unable to identify about 10% of the new plant samples they collected. The specimens will now be examined by specialists to confirm if they represent new species.

Yangtze river dolphin could be extinct

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A study aiming to find out more about the Baiji - a rare freshwater dolphin in the Yangtze river - has failed to locate any sign of the species.

Last spotted in 2004, a six week acoustic survey at the end of 2006 was unable to find any trace of the animal, and have since reported in Society Biology Letters journals that the species is “likely to be extinct”.

The species (Lipotes vexillifer) was the only remaining member of the Lipotidae, an ancient mammal family that is understood to have separated from other marine mammals, including whales, dolphins and porpoises, about 40-20 million years ago.

“The Yangtze river dolphin was a remarkable mammal that separated from all other species over 20 million years ago,” Dr Turvey explained.

“This extinction represents the disappearance of a complete branch of the evolutionary tree of life and emphasises that we have yet to take full responsibility in our role as guardians of the planet.”

If confirmed, it would be the first extinction of a large vertebrate for over 50 years.

Frog killer chytridiomycosis - airborne?

Permalink: Frog killer chytridiomycosis - airborne?

It’s been no secret that for the past few years - even decades - amphibians around the world have been in serious decline.

Facing a doubly whammy of habitat destruction on a huge scale, coupled with a killer disease ravaging populations globally, it really is a serious situation for this entire animal group.

The disease itself - chytridiomycosis - has already been identified and continues to be studied.

However, disturbing news reported today is that the infection may not simply be water-borne - but may also disperse via fungal spores in the air:

A fungus that is devastating amphibian populations around the world is a relatively new disease that is spreading rapidly, rather than an old disease that has recently become more virulent, according to research on frogs in California’s Sierra Nevada.

Worse, not only is the fungus being spread by infected water, it may also be transmitted in the form of spores carried on the wind or birds’ feathers, for example, a genetic analysis of the Californian frogs suggests. This would help to explain outbreaks of the disease, called chytridiomycosis, in remote, inaccessible habitats like the Sierra Nevada lakes.

It’s a disturbing kicker of a revelation - and all the more reason why we should look to especially protect amphibians where possible against this killer disease.