By Shawn Gaynor

Three glass frogs of the Nymphargus, Cochranella and Centrolene genera are among the 60 species of amphibians identified by scientists during a three-week expedition in Colombia. Photo by Marco Rada, courtesy of Conservation International

Feb. 3 (GNT) — A team of scientists exploring Columbia’s Darien region announced the discovery of ten new amphibian species today.

The expedition, a three-week long project in this remote region near the Panama boarder, was undertaken by Conservation International as part of its Rapid Assessment Program, and was aided by the local indigenous Emberá community of Eyakera.

The newly recorded species include three glass frogs of the Nymphargus, Cochranella and Centrolene genus; three poison dart frogs of the Dendrobatidae family (Colostethus, Ranitomeya and Anomaloglossus genera), one harlequin frog of the Atelopus genus, two species of rain frogs of the Pristimantis genera and one salamander of the Bolitoglossa genus.

Two species of rain frogs (Pristimantis genus) potentially new to science were discovered in an expedition in the hills of Tacarcuna, a mountainous area of the Darien in the border limit of Colombia with Panama. Photo Marco Rada, courtesy of Conservation International

Salamander (Bolitoglossa taylori) potentially new to science discovered in Colombia. The country is home to over 754 species of amphibians-one of the highest in the world. Photo by Marco Rada, courtesy of Conservation International

According to Conservation International, Columbia is one of the worlds most biologically diverse countries in the world, with one of every 10 species of animals and plants found there.

“This region is a true Noah’s Ark. The high number of new amphibian species found is a sign of hope, even with the serious threat of extinction that this animal group faces in many other regions of the country and the world,” said Jose Vicente Rodriguez-Mahecha, Scientific Director of Conservation International-Colombia.

In reaction to the new discoveries, Colombia’s Minister of Environment Juan Lozano said, “Without a doubt this discovery represents a great milestone for science and human health.”

Worldwide amphibians have suffered declining numbers, due to their sensitivity to pollution. With porous, absorbent skin, they are particularly sensitive to acid rain, heavy metals, and agricultural chemicals.

Too little is known about the new species to label them as endangered or threatened, however the Darien region is undergoing rapid changes as this relatively pristine area faces expanded logging, mining, and cattle ranching. Between ¼ and 1/3 of the area is threatened by deforestation.

Over the last five years, Columbia has been participating in a Debt-for-nature swap. In return for strengthening its protection of critical habitat, Columbia receives some relief from its debt to the US.

GreenNewToday.org

By Shawn Gaynor

Jan. 30 (GNT) — The Icelandic Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture announced this week that it would be raising catch quotas for whaling over the next five years.

This endangered Finn whale, harpooned in 2006, signaled Iceland's return to whaling. Iceland announced this week a dramatic increase in whaling quotas. Photo courtesy of Greenpeace International.

The Icelandic whaling fleet will now take 150 Finn whales and 100 mink whales per year, in what Icelandic officials are calling “a continuation of sustainable whaling.”

The quotas are a dramatic increase over last year, when Icelandic whalers were authorized to catch nine Finn and 40 Minke whales.

Conservation groups have decried the move, with some calling for a boycott of Iceland’s already devastated economy over the issue.

Sara Holden of Greenpeace International called the decision a “shameless stunt that has nothing to do with use of natural resources.”

Holden said that a loss of tourism dollars will far outweigh the boost in revenue that whaling could bring. According to Greenpeace, over 100,000 tourists per year go whale watching in Iceland.

Capt. Paul Watson of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, whose group claimed responsibility for the 1986 sinking of two Icelandic whaling ships in Reykjavik harbor, took a harsher stance on the new quotas.

“Iceland has spat in the face of marine conservationists around the world with their extremist announcement,” said Watson.

The two whaling ships scuttled by the Sea Shepherds were never repaired, and Icelandic whaling was shut down for two decades. Iceland resumed its whaling program in 2006.

The Sea Shepherds have responded to the new rules by calling for a boycott on Iceland’s products and tourism.

According the Sea Shepherds, Jeff Skoll, the founder of E-Bay, and Hollywood Producer Bob Yari both signaled support for the boycott, informing Iceland officials that they will no longer be using Iceland to refuel their private jets en route to Europe.

The Finn Whale is listed as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, whose “red list” tracks endangered species around the world.

Iceland, Norway and Japan are the only nations who still engage in whaling.

GreenNewToday.org

By Shawn Gaynor

Jan. 22 (GNT) — While President Barrack Obama was whisked from ceremony to celebration on inauguration day, his cabinet had already gotten down to business, freezing last-minute Bush administration federal policy changes that have not yet made it into the Federal Register. Among those midnight rulings was the changed endangered species status for the gray wolf.

Federal protection of the grey wolf will continue, for now, under an Obama order. Photo courtesy of US FWS.

The freeze, issued in a memorandum by White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, is a temporary measure that will allow the new administration time to review last minute Bush decrees, and move forward with or abandon them on a case-by-case basis.

“We are grateful the Obama administration has taken this important first step towards undoing the numerous midnight regulations advanced by the Bush administration,” said Noah Greenwald, biodiversity program director at the Center for Biological Diversity. The CBD was one of over a dozen environmental groups that voiced strong criticism of the last-minute delisting of the grey wolf.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service had announced on Jan. 14 the removal of the gray wolf from federal endangered species protection in all Midwest and Northern Rocky Mountain areas excepting Wyoming.

Environmentalists contended that the wolf population had not reached a suitable size to ensure the survival of the population in many areas. They point out wolves in Idaho and Montana were set to be removed from federal protection even though those states house only 75 breeding pairs of wolves.

“Wolves should not be removed from protection until they are secure and recovered in a larger and more viable portion of their range,” said Michael Robinson of the CBD.

Gray wolves are gone from over 95 percent of their historic range. Gray wolves were extirpated in the western portion of the lower 48 states, and were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho 1995 and 1996.

It will now be up to incoming Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to review and approve or decline endangered species protection changes for the gray wolf.

GreenNewsToday.org

Gov. Palin of Alaska announced today that her state will challenge recent federal protection for the Cook Inlet beluga whale. Greennewstoday.org

By Shawn Gaynor

Jan. 14 (GNT) — Gov. Sarah Palin announced today that the state of Alaska intends to challenge the federal government’s decision to list beluga whales in Cook Inlet as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

The notice of the state’s intent to sue was sent to the U.S. Secretary of Commerce and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). It asserts that the listing decision should be withdrawn due to failure to adequately consider conservation or protection efforts by Alaska.

“The State of Alaska has worked cooperatively with the federal government to protect and conserve beluga whales in Cook Inlet,” said Governor Palin. “This listing decision didn’t take those efforts into account as required by law.”

The National Marine Fisheries Service listed the Cook Inlet beluga as a threatened species over the objections of Gov. Palin in October of 2008.

“Once again Governor Palin has demonstrated either a complete lack of understanding or lack of concern over the plight of endangered species,” said Brendan Cummings, oceans program director at the Center for Biological Diversity.

The Cook Inlet beluga population received federal endangered species protection in late 2008. Photo courtesy of NOAA.gov

The group warns that the Cook Inlet is the most populated and fastest-growing watershed in Alaska, and is subject to significant proposed offshore oil and gas development in beluga habitat — plans that the federal listing may complicate.

The sounds issuing from the high explosives used in underwater resource exploration has long been known to affect marine mammals, and the noise is carried far distances by the dense ocean waters.

Though marine biologists estimate the worldwide population of beluga whales to be more than 80,000, the NMFS ruling recognizes the Cook Inlet beluga whale as threatened because it is genetically distinct and geographically isolated — one of five such populations in Alaska.

The Cook Inlet’s beluga population has recently seen a dramatic decline. There were an estimated 1,300 Cook Inlet belugas during the 1980s. By 1993, when regular surveys of the Cook Inlet population began,there were an estimated 643 individual whales. Between 1994 and 1998, the abundance of belugas declined again — by about 50 percent — to 347 whales. The 2006 population estimate for Cook Inlet belugas is approximately 300 animals.

Much smaller than many of their whale cousins, beluga whales average only 14 feet in length and weigh about 3,000 pounds. Characterized by their unique creamy white color, belugas have an extensive vocal repertoire and have long been called the “sea canary” by seamen who heard their myriad of sounds.

Alaska ’s legal action against the beluga whale marks the second time in recent months that Governor Palin’s administration has launched legal attacks against endangered species on behalf of the oil industry; in August 2008, Palin filed suit seeking to overturn federal protection for the polar bear.

Source: GreenNewsToday.org