environment _ ecology jan 2015

RAJESH NAYAK

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY-JANUARY 2015

1. PETA announced to create Indias first fenced elephant sanctuary near Bengaluru

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) on 29 January 2015 announced to create Indias

first fenced elephant sanctuary within the Bannerghatta Biological Park in Karnataka. The forested space

will allow elephants to move around freely within the secure area.

The model of the sanctuary was designed by the PETA consultant and elephant expert Carol Buckley and

it will come up in an area of 49.5 hectare within the Biological Park which is an extension of the

Bannerghatta National Park.

The sanctuary will allow the herd to roam and bathe in ponds freely without being restricted by chains or

without any human interference and to allow elephants to live naturally.

PETA will train local caregivers in the principles of protected contact. Protected contact is a

method of ensuring safe interaction between human beings and elephants by keeping them separated by

a sturdy barrier and using positive reinforcement techniques instead of the age-old routine of

physical punishment to manage the elephants. Further, there is a provision for the elephant and mahout

training facilities and safety measures.

2. DRDO received approval to build missile launch testing facility in the Krishna Delta Complex

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on 29 January 2015 received the approval

to build a missile launch testing facility at a site adjacent to the Krishna Delta Complex in Andhra

Pradesh.

The site is a nesting site of Olive Ridley turtles, an endangered species.

The approval was granted by the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife chaired

by Prakash Javadekar, Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

However, the proposal was cleared with certain conditions. These include:

Activities should be restricted at the test site to daytime only No activity should be performed during the turtles nesting season Regeneration of mangroves should be done

Further, DRDO would be able to build the missile launch testing facility only after receiving a final

clearance from the Supreme Court (SC) of India.

SCs approval is required as some part of the land needed to build the facility falls inside the Krishna

Wildlife Sanctuary.

The project of DRDO seeks diversion of around 155 hectares of forest land.

This land will be used for setting up test site, technical facility, a road connecting the test and technical

facility.

Opposition to the Testing Facility

The testing facility proposed by DRDO has been opposed by the Andhra Pradeshs wildlife officials who

are not in favour of the project coming up at the site.

They argue that, the testing site is a mangrove forest with rivulet estuaries.

It is a habitat for various endangered and threatened species such as Olive Ridley turtles which is a

protected animal under Schedule 1 of Indias Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and a vulnerable species as per

the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

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Besides, it is home to smooth Indian otter, painted stork, spot-billed pelican, oriental white ibis and others.

Thus, according to environmentalists, the project will adversely affect nesting habits of Riddle turtles and

will also damage the habitat along with food chain and food web of the area.

3. Bhagabatpur Crocodile Project in Sunderbans got a fresh start with expert assistance

The Bhagabatpur Crocodile Project in Sunderbans was in news in January 2015.

It was in news because it got a fresh start with the help of renowned experts in herpetology who

introduced global best practices in crocodile conservation.

The project was started in mid-1970s with an aim to increase the number of saltwater crocodiles, a

Schedule-I species under Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

The project is situated next to the uninhabited Lothian Island, far from the mainland in the

Sunderbans archipelago.

Why expert assistance was needed?

In past few years, the project did not see a significant increase in the number of salt-water crocodiles.

The eggs to hatching ratio also declined to 40 per 100 eggs collected. This decline in hatching ratio raised

questions over their future.

The reason for the decline in eggs to hatching ratio was supported with increase in temperature caused by

the global warming. This in turn created a challenge in maintaining sex ratio of crocodiles. Thus it called

for expert assistance to give a fresh start to the project.

Expertise provided by experts to boost the project

The forest officials of the Sunderbans delta were provided inputs by the experts, which included among others

How to collect crocodile eggs

How to distinguish between fertile and infertile eggs

How to create the ideal hatching environment using mother nest substrate and artificial substrate

Apart from this, the experts also trained the forest officials on field training. The process of

training started in December 2013 and continued for a year.

Results

The inputs and training provided by the experts helped in raising the eggs to hatching ratio, which is now

over 70 from previous 40. Also in the last one year, nearly 75 sub-adult crocodiles in the Sunderbans have

been released.

Out of this at least 50 crocodiles have been tagged to keep a check on their condition in the wild.

4. Saltwater Crocodile

The saltwater crocodile (scientific name Crocodylus porosus) is estuarine crocodile has been kept under

least concern category of IUCN.

It is the largest of all living reptiles, as well as the largest terrestrial and riparian predator in the world.

These crocodiles are found in India, Bangladesh, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia,

Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka,

Vanuatu and Vietnam.

It is believed that the animal has possibly extinct from Thailand, while has regionally extinct in Singapore.

Scientists developed two new global maps to provide help in search for fresh farmland

RAJESH NAYAK

Scientists from International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) developed two new global

maps to provide help in search for fresh farmland.

The maps were released in the third week of January 2015 in the journal Global Change Biology.

It offered two types of data that experts argue is essential for the search. Now, two new global maps may

provide some help in the search for fresh farmland.

The first map was created using a great deal of international and vetted crowdsourced data,

showing global cropland percentages at one kilometer resolution for the year 2005.

This data, cross-checked for accuracy and combined with pre-existing large-scale maps, created

something researchers are claiming is more intergraded than anything else seen before.

A second map, based entirely off crowd-sourced data through the Geo-Wiki project, helps verify the rate

of change that cropland goes through.

This map was produced after a global network of citizen scientists looked at thousands of high-resolution

images of land cover to determine whether cropland was present or not in regions that likely had land back

in 2005.

This can help them determine where and when cropland remained, and if it is still in use.

Comment

Current sources of information on cropland extent are not accurate enough for most applications. With the

world growing increasingly warmer, the global cropland map is a low cost solution to fill this need.

However, finding this land so that it can quickly be put to use remains a challenge. The trouble with being

certain about farmland distribution is that there are not many detailed records in developing countries,

especially when smaller lands often look no different that the surrounding vegetation from planes or

satellites.

However, where maps agree there is cropland, there is a higher likelihood that cropland is actually present.

5. Year 2014 ranked as Earths hottest year since 1880

The year 2014 was ranked as the Earths hottest year since 1880 as per the two separate analyses done by

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) scientists and National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration (NOAA) scientists.

The findings of NASA and NOAA were released on 16 January 2015.

Both NASA and NOAA conducted independent analyses based on satellite and ground readings, but

they arrived at similar conclusions.

The global average temperature for 2014 was roughly 1.24F (or 0.69C) warmer than the 20th-century

average that included record heat in the western United States, Europe, Australia, and much of the Pacific

Ocean.

Rankings of 10 warmest years

1. 2014

2. 2010

3. 2005

4. 2007

5. 1998

6. 2002

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7. 2013

8. 2009

9. 2003

10. 2006

Findings

As per GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMP), since 1880, Earths average surface temperature

has warmed by about 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit (0.8 degrees Celsius), which was caused by the

increase in carbon dioxide into the planets atmosphere.

The 2014 temperatures were the warmest ones, but scientists still expect to see year-to-year

fluctuations in average global temperature caused by phenomena such as El Nino or La Nina.

The phenomena El Nino and La Nina in the Pacific Ocean played an important role in the flattening of the

long-term warming trend over the past 15 years. Moreover, 2014s record warmth occurred during an El

Nino-neutral year. Regional differences in temperature are more strongly affected by weather dynamics

than the global mean temperature.

Study Process

The scientists at NASAs Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York mapped the five-year

global temperature averages from 1880 to 2014.

The GISS analysis incorporated surface temperature measurements from 6300 weather stations, ship-

and buoy-based observations of sea surface temperatures and temperature measurements from Antarctic

research stations.

This raw data was analyzed using an algorithm that measures the varied spacing of temperature stations

around the globe.

The result is an estimate of the global average temperature difference from a baseline period of 1951 to

1980.

6. Critically endangered Forest Owlet sighted in Betul, Madhya Pradesh

Critically endangered forest owlet (Athene blewitti) was sighted in Betul district of Madhya Pradesh.

The bird was traced in a new location by a Pune-based conservation society in second week of January

2015.

Forest Owlet (Athene blewitti or Heteroglaux blewitti) is an owl and is endemic to the forests of central

India. The species that belongs to the typical owls family, Strigidae is on the verge of extinction.

How this critically endangered species was spotted?

A team of a Pune-based Wildlife Research and Conservation Society (WRCS) sighted the owlet during

their course of extensive research in Khandwa in the adjoining district of Betul. At present, the society is

carrying out a long-term ecological study on the Forest Owlet in the Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh.

Past Evidences of Forest Owlet in India

The species was first discovered in 1872 (Chhattisgarh), however it was not seen for 113 years and was

believed that it has become extinct.

It was rediscovered in 1997 in Toranmal Reserve Forest in the Satpura ranges and was once again sighted

in 2004 in Toranmal of Nandurbar district of Maharashtra.

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The most recent evidence of the bird happened in October 2014 in the Tansa wildlife sanctuary of Western

Ghats.

It was spotted by naturalist Sunil Laad of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS).

NGT gave directions to clean Yamuna under Maily se Nirmal Yamuna Revitalization Plan 2017

7. National Green Tribunal (NGT) on 13 January 2015 gave directions to clean River

Yamuna under Maily se Nirmal Yamuna Revitalization Plan 2017.

The directions were given by the principal bench of NGT presided over by Chairperson Justice Swatanter

Kumar.

The tribunals judgment came on a petition by Manoj Misra of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan against pollution in

the Yamuna and covering of drains in Delhi.

Directions given by bench are

Impose a fine of 5000 rupees on individuals for throwing waste or religious items into the river

Banned the dumping of construction material into the Yamuna while imposing a fine of 50000 rupees on the

violators

Restrained real estate developers from carrying out any construction work on the floodplains

It also directed states where Yamuna and its tributaries flow to come up with an action plan to ensure

environmental flow to revive the Yamuna stretch in Delhi.

The bench directed that 4000 crore rupees, as estimated by the expert committee be made available from the

20000 crore rupees Budget of Delhi Government.

Constitution of a committee to implement the directions

The bench decided to constitute a principal committee which will be responsible for implementation of the

judgment.

The committee will consist of the Special Secretary of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF),

joint secretary of the Ministry of Water Resources, chief secretary of Delhi, vice-chairman DDA,

commissioners of all corporations and the state secretaries of Haryana, UP, Himachal Pradesh and

Uttarakhand.

Members of the expert committees earlier constituted by NGT including professor emeritus of DU C R

Babu, former professor of JNU Brij Gopal and IIT Delhi professor A K Gosain were also made

members of the principal committee.

The Union government has been implementing Yamuna Action Plan (YAP) for cleaning of Yamuna

River with assistance from Japan International Cooperation Agency, without much success.

8. Sultanpur National Park shut down after migratory birds found dead

Forest and wild life department on 11 January 2015 shut down the Sultanpur National Park for one week.

The park was shut down after 47 migratory birds were found dead in the park on 10 January 2015.

The dead birds included Eurasian coots (36) and common moorhen (9) and one each of spot-billed duck

and jungle babbler.

Deaths of these birds had triggered fears of bird flu outbreak in the park but real cause of their death is not

clear. The real cause is not known because the common feature of flu was not spotted in any of these

birds. In case of bird flu, the legs of birds develop red spots.

To know the real cause, samples of the dead birds have been sent to the National Institute of High Security

Animal Diseases in Bhopal to verify the real cause of deaths.

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About Sultanpur National Park

Sultanpur National Park, a bird sanctuary on Gurgaon-Farrukh Nagar Road is a seasonal wetland

that attracts around 200 species of migratory birds every year between October and March from

Europe, Siberia and Central Asia.

The park is also a home of several species of insects, amphibians, reptiles and mammals

The park is located on the Sultanpur Jheel (an area of 1.21 sq. Km.) and the jheel was accorded Sanctuary

status on 2 April 1971 under section 8 of the Punjab Wildlife Preservation Act of 1959.

The decision of granting the Sanctuary status was taken after the 1969 Conference of the International

Union of Conservation of nature and Natural resources (IUCN) in New Delhi.

The status of the park was upgraded to National Park under Section 35 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act,

1972 on 5 July 1991. Simultaneously the area was increased to 1.42 sq. Km.

The National Park has been carved out of the land of Sadhrana, Chandu, Sultanpur and Saidpur villages.

9. Rare plant species Chlorophytum palghatense found in Palakkad district of Kerala

The Scientists at the Centre for Medicinal Plants Research, Kottakkal in Kerala discovered a rare

plant species named Chlorophytum palghatense at the Dhoni hills in Palakkad district of Kerala.

The findings were published in the journal Phytotaxa on 17 December 2014.

The researchers led by scientist Konickal Mambetta Prabhu Kumar came across this new species in the

grasslands of the Palamala hills in the Dhoni mountain range during an expedition to study the floristic

diversity of the high mountains in the southern regions of the Western Ghats.

Besides, another team of scientists from the Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi also found the this

species of plant in the Elival hills of Muthikulam in Palakkad.

About Chlorophytum palghatense

The plant belongs to the genus Chlorophytum of the Asparagaceae family. The Chlorophytum genus is

represented by 17 species in India, of which 15 occur in the Western Ghats.

It was named Chlorophytum palghatense after the place of discovery- Palakkad district of Kerala.

The plant is a perennial herb endemic to the grassland ecosystem of the Dhoni and Muthikulam forests at a

height above 6000 feet.

The plant flowers and fruits from September to November.

The plant shows affinities with C. sharmae that is widespread in Munnar, but shows many morphological

differences.

10. Tropical forests absorb more Carbon Dioxide than thought: NASA

A new study of NASA highlighted that tropical forests may absorb more carbon dioxide (CO2) in

response to rising atmospheric levels of the greenhouse gases than earlier thought by scientists.

The new research was published online on 28 December 2014 in the Proceedings of National Academy of

Sciences. Lead author of the paper of the research is David Schimel.

Main Finding of the Study

The study suggests that the tropical forests absorb 1.4 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide out of a total

global absorption of 2.5 billion, which is more than that absorbed by forests in Canada, Siberia and other

northern regions, called boreal forests.

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In other words, carbon absorption by boreal forests has slowed down, while in case of tropical forests, it

may continue to take up carbon for many years.

Whats New in the Study

The new study is the first to devise a way to make head-to-head comparison of carbon dioxide

estimates from many sources at different scales.

It reconciles results at every scale from the pores of a single leaf, where photosynthesis takes place, to the

whole Earth, as air moves carbon dioxide around the globe.

The findings are advancement over the theory of carbon fertilization which says that as human-caused

emissions add more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, forests worldwide use it to grow faster, reducing

the amount that stays airborne.

All else being equal, the carbon fertilization effect is stronger at higher temperatures, meaning it will be

higher in the tropics than in the boreal forest.

Comment

Forests and other land vegetation currently remove up to 30 percent of human carbon dioxide

emissions from the atmosphere during photosynthesis.

If the rate of absorption were to slow down, the rate of global warming would speed up in return.

The findings have big implications for understanding whether global terrestrial ecosystems might

continue to offset carbon dioxide emissions or might begin to exacerbate climate change.

11. ICRISAT launched Green PHABLET for small farmers

International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) on 29 December 2014

launched Green PHABLET for small farmers.

Green PHABLET is a customized low-cost combination of phone and tablet computer.

The device was powered by Green SIM. The Green PHABLET is dust- and shatter-proof, readable

under bright sunlight; operates from -20C to +60C.

The device has been developed by the ICRISAT Centre of Excellence in ICT Innovations for Agriculture

in collaboration with NUNC Systems.

Features of Green PHABLET

The Green PHABLET will allow information to be precisely targeted to individual smallholder

farmers.

This will help farmers purchase inputs at lower price, get a better price for their produce, and link them to

markets.

The device will act like a mobile village knowledge centre/common service centre which enables farmers

to benefit from contemporary information and communication technologies and expanding Internet

connectivity in remote rural regions.

The device will enable to share real time information between farmers and researchers which would help

to improve crop productivity and researchers to collect accurate data in real time.

Apart from regular phone services developing world smallholder farmers receive free messages about the

weather and pest problems while sharing the most competitive agricultural input and crop prices.

About GreenSIM

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The GreenSIM is a special SIM card that can be used with any mobile phone.

The GreenSIM was created under partnership between ICRISAT, mobile phone service provider Airtel,

and the IFFCO (Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative) Kisan Sanchar Limited (IKSL).

Through the GreenSIM, a farmer will be entitled to receive five voice messages.

These messages are in Telugu, covering various fields like agriculture, animal husbandry, horticulture,

insurance, government policies and schemes, mandi prices, weather forecast, sericulture, pisciculture,

crop loans, plant protection and health.

About International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid-Tropics (ICRISAT)

ICRISAT is a non-profit agricultural research organization headquartered in Patancheru in Hyderabad,

Telangana.

It was founded in 1972 by a consortium of organisations convened by the Ford and the Rockefeller

Foundations.

Its charter was signed by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and United Nations

Development Programme (UNDP).

12. Excessive concentration of antibiotics found in three Chinese rivers

An excessive amount of antibiotics was found in Chinese rivers namely Yangtze, Huangpu and

Pearl Rivers. The situation threatens to cause widespread antibiotic resistance.

The report related to this was released by China Central Television in the last week of December 2014.

Main Findings of the Report

High concentration of antibiotics in the rivers was caused by illegal discharges by Shandong Lukang

Pharmaceutical, one of Chinas largest drug producers, and the abuse of antibiotics by poultry farmers.

The Shandong Lukang Pharmaceutical has been discharging polluted water containing over 50000

nanograms of antibiotics per litre, which is 10000 times above the level of antibiotics in untainted water.

In a water sample taken randomly, two types of antibiotics were detected. The concentration of amoxicillin, a

drug that is used to treat ear or bladder infections, was 8 nanograms per liter.

In rivers like the Pearl, which empties into the South China Sea, and Shanghais Huangpu River, every liter of

sampled water was found to contain several hundred nanograms of antibiotics, compared with less than 20

nanograms in water in developed countries.

Effects of excessive antibiotics in groundwater

The antibiotics traced in rivers can enter the food chain through soil and groundwater and lead to resistance to

treatment of even common ailments.

The drugs can cause bacterial resistance to antibiotics in humans and damage ecological systems.

Excessive amounts of antibiotics in water will cause drug resistance and reduce the effectiveness of drugs.

Comment

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Seventy percent of all drugs produced in China are antibiotics, compared with 30 percent in Western

countries. At least 15000 tons of drugs expire and end up in trash bins every year.

According to a report published in science journal Chinese Science Bulletin in May 2014, Chinas surface

water contains 68 kinds of antibiotics.

13. Chrysopelea taprobanica, the Sri Lankan flying snake, sighted in Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve

Chrysopelea taprobanica, the flying snake of Sri Lanka was sighted in Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve of

Andhra Pradesh, India.

This was the first time that the snake was sighted outside the island nation. Previously it was considered

that the snake is epidemic to the dry and intermediate zones of Sri Lanka. This discovery was published in

Check List, a Journal of Biodiversity Data.

The study was conducted by researchers Bubesh Guptha, Nimmakayala Venkata Sivaram Prasad,

Simon T. Maddock and V. Deepak.

This discovery of the Chrysopelea taprobanica extends the known range of distribution of the species.

This discovery also highlights that probably the species moved to India when the dry zones of peninsular

India and Sri Lanka were connected, about 17000 years ago.

Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve

Seshachalam Hills the hilly ranges part of the Eastern Ghats in southern Andhra Pradesh was

designated as the 17th biosphere reserve by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests on 20

September 2010.

Seshachalam Hill Ranges covers parts of Chittoor and Kadapa districts and contain seven peaks namely,

Anjanadri, Garudadri, Narayanadri, Neeladri, Seshadri, Venkatadri and Vrishabhadri.

These hills were formed during the Precambrian era (3.8 billion to 540 million years ago).

These hills are a home of many endangered animals and are also rich in plant diversity.

A study suggests that the region is a home of an estimated minimum 1700 species of plants that belongs to

178 families of vascular plants.

178 species of birds have been identified in the region, like globally-threatened Yellow-throated

Bulbul Pcynonotus Xantholaemus, Pompadour Green Pigeon Treron Pompadora (a bird generally found in

the Himalayan region) and the large HawkCuckoo Hierococcyx Sparverioides.

Apart from this, the famous Asian Elephant maximus was discovered in the southern parts of Chittoor

district in the year 1984.

Before its re-discovery, this species of elephants were not seen for nearly 300 years.

Other species of animals residing in the reason includes leopard, hyena, wild dog, golden jackal, Indian

fox, jungle cat, sloth bear, spotted deer, mouse deer, four-horned antelope, Indian giant squirrel and small

Indian civet.

Reptiles of the region includes the Gliding Lizard (primarily inhabits evergreen biotopes in the Westren

Ghats), the Golden Gecko Calodactylodes Aureus and others.

The area also houses 63 species of butterflies belonging to five families