We are, so often told how many species are near extinction and how many have gone extinct. We are made to feel very guilty, irresponsible, and bad. In many cases, we are justified in the guilt. However, what we are not told, by those who scare us about extinction levels, is how many animals and plants seem to ... come back from extinction. The quagga is but one animal that seems to have ... become unextinct.
Focus Magazine, December 2010, page 21.
"We can expect to rediscover one third of mammals we believe to be extinct, according to new researcch. Dr. Diana Fisher of The University of Queensland has published work that questions our ideas about animals long thought to have disappeared."
What this means is not that we can go on abusing animal life on earth, rather it is possibly not as dire as we have been led to believe.
The question is then - do the prognosticators of doom know with 100% certainty that their tales of woe are accurate - in which case they are simply misled and misleading others.
Or, do they know/believe that maybe things are not as dire as they predict - in which case they are liars.
extinction
Showing posts with label extinction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label extinction. Show all posts
Monday, January 24, 2011
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Science and Extinction
Extinction is not forever.
This fish is back and so is the Ocopy ... amazing how extinction works. Isn't science wonderful.
Scientist says he found Japan fish thought extinct
AP
December 15, 2010
TOKYO – A Japanese salmon species thought to be extinct for 70 years is alive and well in a lake near Mount Fuji, a science professor said Wednesday.
The black kokanee, or "kunimasu" in Japanese, was thought to have died out in 1940, when a hydroelectric project made its native lake in northern Akita Prefecture more acidic.
Before then, 100,000 eggs were reportedly transported to Lake Saiko but the species was still thought to have died off.
But Tetsuji Nakabo, a professor at Kyoto University, said his team of researchers found the species in Lake Saiko, about 310 miles (500 kilometers) south of the native lake.
"I was really surprised. This is a very interesting fish — it's a treasure. We have to protect it and not let it disappear again," he said.
He posed for pictures and video with a specimen that was dark olive with black spots on its back. The kunimasu grow to about a foot (30 centimers) in length.
Nakabo said the lake had sufficent kunimasu for the species to survive if the current environment is maintained, though he said in interviews he hoped fishermen would not catch it.
Lake Saiko is in a region popular with tourists for its Fuji views and hot spring baths.
The salmon is still listed as extinct in the public records of the Environment Ministry. Yobukaze Naniwa, an official at the ministry, said Nakabo's claim would be investigated before records are due to be updated in 2012.
Other species, including shellfish and plants, have also been discovered in Japan after being declared extinct, Naniwa said.
fish
This fish is back and so is the Ocopy ... amazing how extinction works. Isn't science wonderful.
Scientist says he found Japan fish thought extinct
AP
December 15, 2010
TOKYO – A Japanese salmon species thought to be extinct for 70 years is alive and well in a lake near Mount Fuji, a science professor said Wednesday.
The black kokanee, or "kunimasu" in Japanese, was thought to have died out in 1940, when a hydroelectric project made its native lake in northern Akita Prefecture more acidic.
Before then, 100,000 eggs were reportedly transported to Lake Saiko but the species was still thought to have died off.
But Tetsuji Nakabo, a professor at Kyoto University, said his team of researchers found the species in Lake Saiko, about 310 miles (500 kilometers) south of the native lake.
"I was really surprised. This is a very interesting fish — it's a treasure. We have to protect it and not let it disappear again," he said.
He posed for pictures and video with a specimen that was dark olive with black spots on its back. The kunimasu grow to about a foot (30 centimers) in length.
Nakabo said the lake had sufficent kunimasu for the species to survive if the current environment is maintained, though he said in interviews he hoped fishermen would not catch it.
Lake Saiko is in a region popular with tourists for its Fuji views and hot spring baths.
The salmon is still listed as extinct in the public records of the Environment Ministry. Yobukaze Naniwa, an official at the ministry, said Nakabo's claim would be investigated before records are due to be updated in 2012.
Other species, including shellfish and plants, have also been discovered in Japan after being declared extinct, Naniwa said.
fish
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Back from the Dead - Extinction
Back from the dead: One third of 'extinct' animals turn up again
David Derbyshire Environment Editor
29th September 2010
Daily Mail
Conservationists are overestimating the number of species that have been driven to extinction, scientists have said.
A study has found that a third of all mammal species declared extinct in the past few centuries have turned up alive and well.
Some of the more reclusive creatures managed to hide from sight for 80 years only to reappear within four years of being officially named extinct in the wild.
The shy okapi – which resembles a cross between a zebra and a giraffe – was first discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1901.
After increasingly rarer sightings, it vanished from the wildlife radar for decades from 1959, prompting fears that it had died out.
But five years ago researchers working for the WWF found okapi tracks in the wild.
Other mammals ‘back from the dead’ include the rat-like Cuban solenodon, the Christmas Island shrew, the Vanikoro Flying Fox of the Solomon Islands, the Australian central rock rat and the Talaud Flying Fox of Indonesia.
The revelations come as the world’s leading conservationists prepare for a major United Nations summit on biodiversity in Nagoya, Japan, next month.
Many scientists believe the world is going through a new ‘mass extinction’ fuelled by mankind – and that more species are disappearing now than at any time since the dinosaurs vanished 65million years ago.
BACK FROM THE DEAD
•The Australian central rock rat (pictured)
•The rat-like Cuban solenodon
•The Christmas Island shrew
•The Vanikoro Flying Fox of the Solomon Islands
•The Talaud Flying Fox of Indonesia
.According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, 22 per cent of the world’s mammals are at risk of extinction. In Britain, more than two plant and animal species are being wiped out each year.
But while the report does not play down the threat from deforestation, overfishing or habitat destruction, it raises questions about the way species are classified as extinct.
Dr Diana Fisher, of the University of Queensland, Australia, compiled a list of all mammals declared extinct since the 16th century or which were flagged up as missing in scientific papers.
‘We identified 187 mammal species that have been missing since 1500,’ she wrote in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
‘In the complete data-set, 67 species that were once missing have been rediscovered.
More than a third of mammal species that have been classified as extinct or possibly extinct, or flagged as missing, have been rediscovered.’
Mammals that suffered from loss of habitat were the most likely to have been declared extinct and then rediscovered, she said.
Species spread out over larger areas were also more likely to be wrongly classified as extinct.
The mistakes cannot be blamed on primitive technology or old fashioned scientific methods.
‘Mammals missing in the 20th century were nearly three times as likely to be rediscovered as those that disappeared in the 19th century,’ Dr Fisher added.
extinction
David Derbyshire Environment Editor
29th September 2010
Daily Mail
Conservationists are overestimating the number of species that have been driven to extinction, scientists have said.
A study has found that a third of all mammal species declared extinct in the past few centuries have turned up alive and well.
Some of the more reclusive creatures managed to hide from sight for 80 years only to reappear within four years of being officially named extinct in the wild.
The shy okapi – which resembles a cross between a zebra and a giraffe – was first discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1901.
After increasingly rarer sightings, it vanished from the wildlife radar for decades from 1959, prompting fears that it had died out.
But five years ago researchers working for the WWF found okapi tracks in the wild.
Other mammals ‘back from the dead’ include the rat-like Cuban solenodon, the Christmas Island shrew, the Vanikoro Flying Fox of the Solomon Islands, the Australian central rock rat and the Talaud Flying Fox of Indonesia.
The revelations come as the world’s leading conservationists prepare for a major United Nations summit on biodiversity in Nagoya, Japan, next month.
Many scientists believe the world is going through a new ‘mass extinction’ fuelled by mankind – and that more species are disappearing now than at any time since the dinosaurs vanished 65million years ago.
BACK FROM THE DEAD
•The Australian central rock rat (pictured)
•The rat-like Cuban solenodon
•The Christmas Island shrew
•The Vanikoro Flying Fox of the Solomon Islands
•The Talaud Flying Fox of Indonesia
.According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, 22 per cent of the world’s mammals are at risk of extinction. In Britain, more than two plant and animal species are being wiped out each year.
But while the report does not play down the threat from deforestation, overfishing or habitat destruction, it raises questions about the way species are classified as extinct.
Dr Diana Fisher, of the University of Queensland, Australia, compiled a list of all mammals declared extinct since the 16th century or which were flagged up as missing in scientific papers.
‘We identified 187 mammal species that have been missing since 1500,’ she wrote in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
‘In the complete data-set, 67 species that were once missing have been rediscovered.
More than a third of mammal species that have been classified as extinct or possibly extinct, or flagged as missing, have been rediscovered.’
Mammals that suffered from loss of habitat were the most likely to have been declared extinct and then rediscovered, she said.
Species spread out over larger areas were also more likely to be wrongly classified as extinct.
The mistakes cannot be blamed on primitive technology or old fashioned scientific methods.
‘Mammals missing in the 20th century were nearly three times as likely to be rediscovered as those that disappeared in the 19th century,’ Dr Fisher added.
extinction
Thursday, September 2, 2010
EXTINCTION: Claim is we are undergoing Extinction Process Now
Earth 'facing mass extinction'
AAP
September 03, 2010
THE world is facing a mass extinction event that could be greater than that of the dinosaurs, new Australian research shows.
Macquarie University palaeobiologist Dr John Alroy used fossils to track the fate of major groups of marine animals throughout the Earth's history.
He compiled data from nearly 100,000 fossil collections worldwide, tracking the fate of marine animals during extreme extinction events some 250 million years ago.
The findings, published this week in the international journal Science, showed a major extinction event was currently underway that had the potential to be more severe than any others in history.
"Organisms that might have adapted in the past may not be able to this time," Dr Alroy said.
"You may end up with a dramatically altered sea floor because of changes in the dominance of major groups. That is, the extinction occurring now will overturn the balance of the marine groups."
The research shows a combination of human behaviour and climate change could have devastating affects on species across the planet.
"When there's mass extinction all bets are off and anything could happen," Dr Alroy said.
"So what we're basically doing as the human species collectively is we're running this gigantic experiment with nature."
There have been three major mass extinction events throughout history and biologists widely agree the world is currently suffering from another.
The last mass extinction was an estimated 65 million years ago when an asteroid smashed into Mexico and wiped out the dinosaurs, making room for mammals to thrive.
Dr Alroy said a new mass extinction wouldn't be the result of a single horrific event such as an asteroid hitting Earth.
Instead, it would be the result of a factors from introduced foreign species, run-offs from fertilisers and pesticides, pollution and deforestation, he said.
Climate change and an accelerated growth in the worldwide population were also playing a part.
But Dr Alroy said the current situation was not yet as bad as the worst mass extinction 250 million years ago, known as Permian-Triassic extinction or The Great Dying.
"It's safe to say that we have not yet lost nearly as much as what was lost during that event but it's also reasonable to say that we could end up losing as much as was lost in that event," he said.
"We're currently playing games with evolution on a epic scale.
"Really, really big mass extinctions happen very, very rarely and they have very important long-term consequences."
extinction
AAP
September 03, 2010
THE world is facing a mass extinction event that could be greater than that of the dinosaurs, new Australian research shows.
Macquarie University palaeobiologist Dr John Alroy used fossils to track the fate of major groups of marine animals throughout the Earth's history.
He compiled data from nearly 100,000 fossil collections worldwide, tracking the fate of marine animals during extreme extinction events some 250 million years ago.
The findings, published this week in the international journal Science, showed a major extinction event was currently underway that had the potential to be more severe than any others in history.
"Organisms that might have adapted in the past may not be able to this time," Dr Alroy said.
"You may end up with a dramatically altered sea floor because of changes in the dominance of major groups. That is, the extinction occurring now will overturn the balance of the marine groups."
The research shows a combination of human behaviour and climate change could have devastating affects on species across the planet.
"When there's mass extinction all bets are off and anything could happen," Dr Alroy said.
"So what we're basically doing as the human species collectively is we're running this gigantic experiment with nature."
There have been three major mass extinction events throughout history and biologists widely agree the world is currently suffering from another.
The last mass extinction was an estimated 65 million years ago when an asteroid smashed into Mexico and wiped out the dinosaurs, making room for mammals to thrive.
Dr Alroy said a new mass extinction wouldn't be the result of a single horrific event such as an asteroid hitting Earth.
Instead, it would be the result of a factors from introduced foreign species, run-offs from fertilisers and pesticides, pollution and deforestation, he said.
Climate change and an accelerated growth in the worldwide population were also playing a part.
But Dr Alroy said the current situation was not yet as bad as the worst mass extinction 250 million years ago, known as Permian-Triassic extinction or The Great Dying.
"It's safe to say that we have not yet lost nearly as much as what was lost during that event but it's also reasonable to say that we could end up losing as much as was lost in that event," he said.
"We're currently playing games with evolution on a epic scale.
"Really, really big mass extinctions happen very, very rarely and they have very important long-term consequences."
extinction
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