Wildlife Conservation Society

Obsession for .. Animals?

grrlscientist — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 03:59:35 +0000

Obsession for .. Animals?

tags: Obsession for .. Animals?, perfume, Obsession for Men, Bronx Zoo, Wildlife Conservation Society, conservation biology, behavioral ecology, animals, mammals, big cats, weird, strange, wow, streaming video

This fascinating video shows that Calvin Klein's "Obsession for Men" is NOT just for men! This is a great example of how careful observation of captive animals' behavior is directly impacting research with wild animals. When biologists at the Bronx Zoo started spritzing "Obsession for Men" cologne near heat-and-motion-sensitive cameras, the tigers, snow leopards, jaguars and cheetahs became curious ... very curious. And snuggly.

When zookeepers decided to get scientific about this by documenting how long cheetahs sniff a particular scent, they found that EstÃ©e Lauder's "Beautiful" occupied the cheetahs on average for just two seconds. Revlon's "Charlie" managed 15.5 seconds. Nina Ricci's "L'Air du Temps" took up to 10.4 minutes of the big cats' time. But the musky "Obsession for Men" triumphed: 11.1 minutes. That's longer than the cats usually take to savor a meal.

Wall Street Journal's Ellen Byron reports.

grrlscientist Mon, 06/07/2010 - 23:59

My cats have always liked my husband more than me, so now I know why - he uses Obsession for Men aftershave!

i guess it's time for you to start using it, also!

The World's Rarest Species

cwilcox — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 04:30:50 +0000

The World's Rarest Species

The Wildlife Conservation Society has just released their newest book, State of the Wild 2010-2011. It's a collection of essays that center around current and emerging issues in conservation from conservation experts and powerful nature writers. It's a must-read for anyone driven to understand and protect our ecosystems.

In this year's edition, there is a particularly interesting essay called "Rarest of the Rare." It highlights twelve of the most endangered species on the planet, only two of which are on the Road to Recovery. These are animals that may disappear in the next decade or two, and most of them you probably have never even heard of. So here they are! WCS's Rarest of the Rare:

Almost Extinct:

Image c/o Wikimedia Commons

Cuban Crocodile (Crocodylus rhombifer)
The Cuban Crocodile was once found throughout the Caribbean, but now it's last stronghold is Cuba's Zapata Swamp and the Isle of Youth. It's a small crocodile, only measuring up to about 11 feet long, and is more terrestrial than its larger cousins. It may also be the most intelligent of the crocodillians: one captive group has shown what is thought to be pack-hunting behavior, though this has yet to be observed in the wild. There are only an estimated 4,000 Cuban Crocodiles left, and a large number of these presumed to be hybrids.

Photo by Ralph Arwood

Florida Bonneted Bat (Eumops floridanus)

The Florida Bonneted Bat is only found in the southernmost parts of the state, and is one off the rarest bats on Earth. It has been seen only a few times since the 1960s. It was thought that these bats were extinct, with the last known roost was lost in 1979 when road construction crews chopped down a longleaf pine containing eight bats. However, they were rediscovered in 2002, and now an estimated 100 bats are thought to live in FL.

Photo from Andrew Gray

Green-eyed frog (Lithobates vibicarius)
Once common in Costa Rica and Panama, the green-eyed frog's numbers were decimated by Chytrid fungus. Now only an estimated several hundred are left. As if the fungus wasn't enough, these frogs are also threatened due to habitat loss and agricultural runoff. Already, some populations are showing signs of pesticide exposure, including deformities. Captive breeding may be the only way to save this endangered frog

Image c/o OAS.org

Grenada Dove (Leptotila wellsi)

Found only on the small island of Grenada in the West Indies, the Grenada dove is truly fighting the fight of its life. Habitat loss has acted synergistically with introduced predators like Indian mongooses to decimate this endemic bird's populations. The birds populations may number less than a hundred and are pushed into two tiny reserves. As if that isn't bad enough, the little territory they havet may be soon to be fragmented further to allow room for a resort. While the Grenada dove is considered one of the rarest birds in the world, almost nothing is known about this species. Most of what is known is held under lock and key by the Grenada government. Our lack of information may be the bird's ultimate demise.

Photo c/o Discovery.Com

Hirola (Beatragus hunteri)

As a rare species of antelope found only in one reserve in Africa, the Hirola was identified as one of the top ten focal species in 2007 by the Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered (EDGE) project which seeks to preserve the rarest animals in the world that represent a significant amount of unique evolutionary history. While 14,000 were counted in the 1970s, only half of those remained by the 1980s, and now, only 500 or so are left. Drought and competition with cattle are thought to have caused this dramatic downturn. Although the antelope are protected, enforcement is a problem, and poaching does occur. There are none currently in captivity.

Image c/o the British Chelonia Group

Ploughshare Tortoise (Astrochelys yniphora)

The Ploushare tortoise gets its name from its unique shell protrusion between its front legs that males use when wrestling over females. It's endemic to Madagascar, and is so rare that it is not only classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN's Red List, it's also listed on Appendix I of CITES. The tortoises are sought after by exotic animal collectors, and despite the extensive protections, animals are still taken from the wild or even captive breeding programs to satisfy consumer desires. On the positive side, captive breeding programs have been established since the late 1980s, and reintroductions seem to be successful, which gives this rare species a fighting chance.

Photo from Blue Planet Biomes

Island Grey Fox (Urocyon littoralis)

The island grey fox is so named because it is only found on six of California's Channel Islands. The fox split from its ancestor, the grey fox, during the last ice age 16 to 18 thousand years ago, when low sea levels created a land bridge to the islands. It is the smallest fox in the USA, weighing in at only 3 to 4 pounds, and is only a hair bigger than the smallest fox species in the world, the Fennec Fox. It turns out to be even smaller organisms that are killing off this tiny species; the island grey fox populations have been hit hard by disease and parasites brought over with pets. Having been isolated for so long, these little canids had no natural immunity to the variety of canine pests that live in modern dogs. Their populations are considered conservation-dependent, and only our constant protection will save this unique little species.

Photo by Michael Steden c/o The Daily Green

Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo abelii)

The Sumatran orangutan is the smaller, and rarer, of the two species of orangutan. It's found on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia, and a survey in 2004 estimated that only around 7,300 Sumatran orangutans still live in the wild, while over 50,000 of their sister species can be found on the island of Borneo. Sumatran orangutans are most threatened by habitat loss. It's estimated that every day, six football field's worth of Indonesian forest disappears. With nowhere to go, the orangutans are threatened further by poaching. It's thought that these relatives of ours may go extinct within the decade, even with our current conservation efforts fighting to save them.

Image from Wikimedia Commons

Vaquita (Phocoena sinus)

The Vaquita is a little known species of porpoise. They are endemic to the northern portion of the Sea of Cortez, and there are only up to 300 left. It's hard to know their exact population numbers, as they are hard to find in the first place. As the smallest cetacean species, looking for them is truly like finding a needle in a haystack. Very little is known about this tiny marine mammal. They avoid boats of all kinds, and few interactions with people have been recorded. They are rumored to be quite aggressive, attacking people brutally when given the chance. Despite their general avoidance of people, their biggest threat is fishing activities in their home range, which both the US and Mexico are striving to limit for the sake of these rare porpoises.

Photo from The New York Times

White Headed Langur (Trachypithecus poliocephalus)

The White Headed Langur (or "leaf monkey", due to their vegetarian diet) is the rarest primate in Asia, as an estimated sixty individuals are left in the wild. They are found only on the island of Cat Ba off the coast of Vietnam. Their populations have dropped 98% in the last four decades, largely due to poaching for a chinese medicine called "monkey balm" and an increasing human population on Cat Ba Island, leading to habitat fragmentation. A sister species lives in China, but the Chinese white-headed langur is also in hot water. It's thought that the mainland langurs are recovering, but the Cat Ba Island ones are further declining, and are likely to disappear in the next decade.

On The Road To Recovery

Image c/o Compunicate.Com

Romer's Tree Frog (Liuixalus romeri)
Measuring less than an inch long, the Romer's Tree Frog is the smallest amphibian known in its native homeland of Hong Kong. It was named after J. D. Romer, who discoverd the frog in a cave in 1952. When the cave collapsed in 1953, it was presumed that the frog was extinct, but surveys in the 1980s rediscovered the little amphibian. Captive breeding efforts have since introduced the frogs to eight sites in Hong Kong, and the frogs have established themselves in seven of them. From a handful of eggs in the '80s have come thousands of frogs, many of which are still surviving. The reintroduction of these little frogs is seen as one of the few success stories, and a small population, once thought to be lost, is now able to have a fighting chance of recovery.

Photo from Shoarns.Com

Przewalski's Horse (Equus ferus przewalskii)
Many wild horses today are the offspring of once-domesticated horses like Mustangs that broke free and survived. Not so of the Przewalski's Horse, native to the steppes of central Asia. These stocky wild horses have never been domesticated. They were once extinct in the wild, but now they have been successfully reintroduced to their native habitat in Mongolia. The entire world population descended from nine captive horses. Despite the low genetic diversity, over 300 are now thought to roam the nature preserves that have been established for them in their native range. It is thought that, soon, the wild populations will become self-sustaining, making the reintroduction of this once-extinct animal an amazing conservation success story.

cwilcox Mon, 04/12/2010 - 00:30

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Elusive half-man half-ape caught on video!!!

kthompson — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 01:39:17 +0000

Elusive half-man half-ape caught on video!!!

(c) NDR Naturfilm

Well, almost. Here's some info from the Wildlife Conservation Society's press release:

"With the assistance of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Cameroon Program, a film crew from the Hamburg-based NDR Naturfilm managed to video the elusive Cross River gorilla earlier this year in a stand of montane trees after weeks of effort in the Kagwene Gorilla Sanctuary. The protected area was created in 2008, with the guidance of WCS, specifically to protect the world's rarest great ape.

"These gorillas are extremely wary of humans and are very difficult to photograph or film," said Dr. Roger Fotso, Director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Cameroon Program. "Eventually, we identified and staked out some of the gorillas favorite fig trees, which is where we finally achieved our goal."

"It's unbelievable that one great ape subspecies has never been filmed for TV so far," said JÃ¶rn RÃ¶ver, Head of NDR Naturfilm. "We hope that our international production helps to raise awareness for these magnificent creatures and the work of the WCS."

The only previous footage available of the rare apes was taken from a long distance with a shaky, hand-held camera in 2005 by a field researcher."

This clip is the first professional video of the elusive and highly endangered Cross River gorilla. It is the world's rarest great ape, numbering fewer than 300 individuals along the border of Nigeria and Cameroon.

(c) NDR Naturfilm

Too bad the only apparent video equipment the team had on hand was my dad's camcorder...

kthompson Fri, 12/18/2009 - 20:39

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Cross River gorilla

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probably not Big Foot

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Cross River gorilla

Bad Economy Causes Bronx Zoo to Evict Animals

grrlscientist — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:03:09 +0000

Bad Economy Causes Bronx Zoo to Evict Animals

tags: Bronx Zoo, Wildlife Conservation Society, NYC Life, economic hardships

Asia Entrance to the Bronx Zoo.

Image: Stavenn/Wikipedia.

New York City's Bronx Zoo, the largest metropolitan wildlife preserve in the United States, is being hit hard by the economy. To prevent a $15 million budget shortfall, zoo officials are closing four exhibits and evicting all their occupants, estimated to number in the hundreds of animals.

Zoo officials admitted in a New York City Cultural Affairs Committee meeting today that they are forced to relocate the suddenly homeless deer, bats, foxes, antelopes and other animals to zoos around the country.

"We had decisions that needed to be made about old exhibits, and at the same time we needed to deal with the fiscal reality which is upon us," said John Cavalli, of the Wildlife Conservation Society (Bronx Zoo).

The zoo will close the World of Darkness exhibit, which houses bats, porcupines, sugar gliders, and several primate species, including lemurs, bush babies (pictured below), and night monkeys.

Lesser Galago, Galago senegalensis, also known as the bush baby.

Image: Orphaned.

Another exhibit scheduled to close is the Rare Animal Range, home to the Arabian oryx and blesbok, two types of antelope. The other two exhibits that are slated to close are homes to foxes, lemurs, caimans, Formosan deer and guanaco (pictured below), a close relative of llama.

A wild Guanaco, Lama guanicoe.

Guanacos are one of the species being relocated by NYC's Bronx Zoo due to fiscal deficits.

Image: James Parker (courtesy Trek Nature

Zoo officials chose which exhibits to close based on maintenance costs and popularity among visitors.

Last year, the Bronx Zoo attracted more than 2 million visitors and is home to roughly 4,500 animals on 265 acres of land. It is 114 years old and is one of the oldest zoos in the United States.

Sources:

CBS News.

Bronx Zoo.

grrlscientist Fri, 04/24/2009 - 13:03

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Life Sciences

Gotta save money so we can build sewers in Iraq..
RIP America

That is very sad news, and strange given that (from what I read the other day) the full amount of state funding had been restored to the WCS parks and they had even received a donation from Fisher Price. I guess there was more going on than just the looming threat of state budget cuts.

It probably does make sense to close the "rare animal range", at least. They have not had very much on display there over the past year or more. I walk by every time I visit but there is rarely anything on display even though it makes up a significant part of the park. I also have to wonder if the Bronx Zoo is shifting funding to the construction project they have going on right near the aquatic birds building (which mainly look like administrative offices).

What a shame. I used to live a short distance away and visited that zoo quite often, and I loved the World of Darkness.

I am now imagining a polar bear standing on the street, holding a cardboard sign reading: "Will growl for food."

"Zoo officials admitted in a New York City Cultural Affairs Committee meeting today that they are forced to relocate the suddenly homeless deer, bats, foxes, antelopes and other animals to zoos around the country."

"Zoos around the country." That is precious little information. Are there any details on what qualifies as a "zoo" ... and what doesn't? It would be tragic if any of these hapless animals ended up on display alongside jackalopes and multi-headed snakes in East BumbleMuck. Even worse were they to find themselves in a misnamed wildlife sanctuary (read: "game ranch") that serves as a feeder for canned hunts.

I live in Alaska where we have surely problems of our own when it comes to wildlife, but perhaps those of you who live nearby and have loved this zoo over so many years can monitor the situation and insist on some accountability on the matter.

"It would be tragic if any of these hapless animals ended up on display alongside jackalopes and multi-headed snakes in East BumbleMuck."

I share your sentiments. However unfortunate, a worse fate than death could await these relocated animals.

Sadly, much of our Nation's zoo overstock goes to brokers (who never see the animals prior to sale but profit from them nonetheless) and on the exotic animal auction block where anyone with the means to purchase the animals can do so regardless of their qualifications. I am in no way anti-private sector provided that the caretakers are knowledgeable and the animals are tended to properly, but I am somewhat tainted as I live in Texas and there are all too many of those terrible and underqualified roadside establishments and thus the animals are trafficked in the worst of ways.

The most heinous offenders are the "non-profits" and psuedosanctuaries who are anything but charitable organizations and use their 501(c)3 status as a ploy to get public donations to support their expensive hobby. The stories I could tell on that subject alone would require a novel. I once heard directly from the mouth of the owner of a large "non-profit" facility near Dallas which breeds Albino Eastern Grey Kangaroos (way to keep the gene pool intact and untainted with deficient traits and inbreeding) that he was going to release some of his breeding stock gradually to keep prices high (at a meager 200K plus per animal) and then before the purchasing parties had a chance to breed their stock, he would then flood and subsequently crash the market so that only his facility profited from the venture. The lives of the animals and the inevitable "dumping" of individuals which this business proposal would create were of no consequence to this man, nor was the genetic integrity of his charges. Pathetic.

I hope for the sake of the Bronx Zoo animals that they were placed in well-qualified facilities. I am almost certain that the Lesser Galagos would stay within the AZA accredited zoo circuit as they are uncommon in captivity and in high demand, but I question the fate of the others.

That's Supernanny Mayor Bloomberg for you. New York City has paid out over $100 million in settlements to victims of police brutality and false arrests ('way outdoing even that tough old bird Rudi Giuliani), so I guess they had to make up for it somewhere. Of course, it would have been much better if the cops were actually made to obey the laws that apply to the rest of us and all that money and grief could have been saved, but Hizzoner insists on running the city for the prissy rich co-op and corporate types who support him, no matter the cost. Then again, it can be said that there really isn't any animal shortage there anyway, what with all those pigs running around doing their thing with impunity. (Which is why I'm glad to be an EX-New Yorker!)

I loved this article. Thanks for posting. haha..
evicting animals due to the recession.

If I lived in New York I would get people together to try and help the zoo. They could start by having a baazar they always make good money at a bake sale and ask people for donations. There are other things they could do to help those Animals get stores and restaurants to donate fruits and vegies for some of the animals. I wished I lived in New York I really feel for the animals that have to be moved.

Are you hiding 125,000 western lowland gorillas in your pants or are you just happy to see me?

zooillogix — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 08:55:46 +0000

Are you hiding 125,000 western lowland gorillas in your pants or are you just happy to see me?

Wildlife Conservation Society researchers in the remote northern jungles of the Republic of Congo have made a startling discovery: approximately 125,000 western lowland gorillas - more than twice the previous worldwide estimate. Coined "the Green Abyss" by scientists and explorers eager to do some coining in a world running increasingly short on coinable areas, these remote forests are extremely swampy, making tent sites nearly impossible to find. Apparently the lack of KOA campgrounds accounts for the previous lack of research in the area and oversight of the vast majority of the population.

Luckily for the gorillas, this challenging terrain also accounts for a lack of loggers and poachers resulting in the highest ever recorded densities for this gorilla. In some areas gorilla density is eight individuals per half square mile, making this the Co-op City of Central Africa.

Per the WCS website:
The new census was the result of intensive fieldwork carried out by WCS and the Government of Republic of Congo. Across an area covering 18,000 square miles, researchers tracked the animals by counting their nests, which nomadic gorillas build each evening to sleep in before rising the next morning in search of browse and a new overnight campsite.

Despite this obviously uplifting new report, the pristine Green Abyss may not stay that way for long. While conservationists have won some promises to turn much of the area into parkland, logging rights have also been sold for some of the areas. Even if it was to be preserved as parkland, the cost of patrolling the area would be high. Luckily the WCS seems to have gotten to the area before the loggers and poachers, but now the real work begins.

Thanks to Bryan Leblang for forwarding along.

(Damning footage the WCS doesn't want you to see below the fold)

zooillogix Tue, 08/05/2008 - 04:55

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western lowland gorilla

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