Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of In Re: News Item titled "Nayar river is vanishing - a yatra reveals conservation goes beyond science and policy" appearing in ‘The Down To Earth’ dated 03.06.2025. The original application was registered suo-motu based on the news item titled "Nayar …
BE IT plant or animal, introduction of a foreign species to an environment has more often than not put the native ones at risk. At places, while competing for food and space, foreign species become so invasive that they push the region’s predominant organisms to extinction. In case of animals, …
This national action plan was developed through a series of multi-stakeholder consultative workshops with representations from national, regional and international biodiversity organizations. The goals, objectives and actions outlined in this action plan are based on the threats (observed and predicted) and gaps identified by various working groups, stakeholder meetings and …
Understanding the dimensions of pathways of introduction of alien plants is important for regulating species invasions, but how particular pathways differ in terms of post-invasion success of species they deliver has never been rigorously tested. We asked whether invasion status, distribution and habitat range of 1,007 alien plant species introduced …
Reliable estimates of the impacts and costs of biological invasions are critical to developing credible management, trade and regulatory policies. Worldwide, forests and urban trees provide important ecosystem services as well as economic and social benefits, but are threatened by non-native insects. More than 450 non-native forest insects are established …
The establishment rate of invasive alien insect species has been increasing worldwide during the past century. This trend has been widely attributed to increased rates of international trade and associated species introductions, but rarely linked to environmental change. To better understand and manage the bioinvasion process, it is crucial to …
Six Great Lakes states that unsuccessfully sought a court order to seal off the lakes from invading Asian carp on Wednesday asked other states to apply pressure on Congress to act. The plea was sent to 27 states that could suffer or have suffered from the impact of foreign species …
The Western Ghats is one of the world’s most heavily populated biodiversity hotspots providing for and supporting 400 million people. However, these diverse freshwater ecosystems face many threats because of untrammelled economic development. In most instances the development planning process does not consider the requirements of these freshwater ecosystems, mainly …
Broad-scale studies of climate change effects on freshwater species have focused mainly on temperature, ignoring critical drivers such as flow regime and biotic interactions. We use downscaled outputs from general circulation models coupled with a hydrologic model to forecast the effects of altered flows and increased temperatures on four interacting …
Sri Lanka’s national flower (Nil Manel) is under threat of extinction due to hybridizing with a foreign species. This was reveled by Peradeniya University Botany Department Senior Lecturer Prof. Deepthi Yakandawala. She said that the native Nil Manel flower is small and bluer than the larger purple imposter which may …
The courtyard of Retnamma’s house resembles a battlefield. There are dead giant snails strewn around, slime oozing from their brown conch-shaped shells. “These are the ones I killed last night with salt,” says the 60-year-old resident of Konni village in the foothills of the Western Ghats in Kerala. “I was …
About two years ago, a fire broke out in the Biligiri Rangaswami Temple Wildlife Sanctuary in Karnataka. The police arrested 35 community leaders of Soliga tribe for causing the fire. Five people still have cases against them. Yet the forest community recently submitted a bold proposal to the Centre advocating …
The high demand for frogs’ legs for consumption leads to the extinction of the species, says a report by international wildlife conservation groups. The report titled ‘Canapés to Extinction: The international trade in frogs’ legs and its ecological impact’ is the first ever rstudy on the frog leg market.
Invasive species can displace natives, and thus identifying the traits that make aliens successful is crucial for predicting and preventing biodiversity loss. Pathogens may play an important role in the invasive process, facilitating colonization of their hosts in new continents and islands. According to the Novel Weapon Hypothesis, colonizers may …
A group of Indian scientists may have found the solution to an issue of global concern: disturbance of eco systems because of the growing maritime traffic across the world. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) had been perennially concerned over the transportation of marine species between different parts of the world …
The purpose of these guidelines is to update and expand the original guidelines on protected areas legislation published in 1980 and to reflect new developments and emerging issues. These developments include significant advances in international environmental law, and an improved scientific understanding of the role of protected areas in nature …
Among all forest types on Earth, the greatest diversity of living organisms is found in the tropical rainforest. Also called tropical wet evergreen forest, this forest type occurs in those parts around the equator with over 2,000 millimetres of annual rainfall distributed over most of the year. Dry periods with …
THE Himalayas are warming at a rate higher than the global average. A recent study documents how this has affected cropping patterns and vegetation in the past 10 years. The questionnaire-based study examined changes people observed between the altitudes of 600 metres and 2,200 metres in the Himalayas. Published in …
Why are bees important to humans? The 20,000 or so species of bees are the principal pollinators of plants, both in gardens and in the wild. If you like having flowering plants around, for the most part you need to have bees around. There is a need to create awareness …
Biological invasions cause ecological and economic impacts across the globe. However, it is unclear whether there are strong patterns in terms of their major effects, how the vulnerability of different ecosystems varies and which ecosystem services are at greatest risk. We present a global meta-analysis of 199 articles reporting 1041 …
