The World Meteorological Organization’s State of the Climate in Asia 2024 report warns that the region is warming nearly twice as fast as the global average, driving more extreme weather and posing serious threats to lives, ecosystems, and economies. In 2024, Asia experienced its warmest or second warmest year on …
In the old days, miners carried canaries with them when they went to the shafts to dig out coal. Canaries were to serve as an indicator for the presence of the toxic methane gas in the mines. When the canaries showed any sign of discomfort, miners were forewarned of the …
Losing colourFrom central America to Austrelia, from the 2,000-km Great Barrier Ref to the small, reefs in Pacific islets, bleaching takes the life out of corals the world over Corals, the rainforests of the oceans, are dying. Victims of global warming, scientists say 10 per cent of the Earth's coral …
The zooplankton community of the salt pans of Bhayandar and Thane was studied based on the contribution of microzooplankton and meso-macrozooplankton. Population of microzooplankton was about 4 times more in Bhayandar as compared to Thane salt pan. The protozoan ciliate Fabrea salina dominated the microzooplankton community. Original Source
it seems that the first manifestations of global warming have already induced damages to the planet's ecosystem. However, scientists are yet to confirm if global warming indeed caused the recent decline in the krill population in the icy waters of the Antarctic Peninsula. Scientists supported by the us National Oceanic …
THE us National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has come out with alarming findings about corals, tiny marine organisms which secrete calcareous shells that combine to form coral reefs. Record-breaking depletion of corals and extremely warm waters occurred throughout the tropics during the first half of 1998, the NOAA announced …
israel , Jordan and Palestine have reached a consensus to protect the Dead Sea basin. In the last 50 years, the level of the Dead Sea has gone down by nearly 40 metres. According to Ayman Rabi, director of EcoPeace, a non-government orga- nisation, about one-third of the basin has …
The United Nations Development Programme has planned to provide a grant of US $280,000 for setting up a conservation education centre in Goa. The project will be implemented by the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF). In this regard, the government of Goa has already allocated 1,500 square metres of land …
scientists and marine biologists have warned that catching of species that other fishes prey on will lead to collapse of marine ecosystems in the years to come. In eastern Canada, fisherfolk generally fish cod. As cod populations are depleting, they have resorted to catching shrimp, the cod's natural prey. In …
thousands of fish in North Carolina and the Chesapeake Bay in the us have been killed by Pfiesteria , a dinoflagellate (unicellular, pigmented, aquatic organisms). This phenomenon is being attributed to an increase in the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and other nutrients that wash off the land from fertilisers and …
disruption of marine ecology is being blamed for cases of food poisoning leading to paralysis in a large number of people in the southern state of Kerala during September and October. More than 1,000 people were hospitalised with symptoms of food poisoning. Many people collapsed, felt dizzy, and their nervous …
ANCIENT coral reefs containing rich bio-diversity in the north Atlantic are being threatened due to deep sea drilling by oil companies. Marine scientists are concerned that the oil industry is trying to exploit an area off northwest Scotland known as the Atlantic Frontier even before biological surveys are completed. British …
the unique biological heritage of the Galapagos islands would soon disappear if illegal fishing continues in their waters. Commercial fishing fleets from mainland Ecuador, the us and the Far East continue to fish in the Galapagos marine reserve despite an official ban. According to Jack Grove, a fish biologist and …
the picturesque islands of Mentawai along the southern coast of Sumatra may be a tourist's delight, but the coral reefs surrounding them tell a story of ecological disaster. Their destruction is suspected to have been caused by the use of explosives and sodium cyanide poison to kill fish in the …
european, Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese and Russian ships have today become a common phenomenon along coastal waters all over the world. This means a heavy blow to both the local eco-systems and the fisherpeople and fish processors. Social Watch, a Netherlands-based informal network of ngos concerned with social development published a …
the urge to protect and conserve shared waters, the ecosystem and natural resources within a sub-African region, recently propelled five west-central African nations to enter into a marine pollution pact. The nations involved in the new joint initiative, which include Nigeria, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Benin and Ghana, tagged the venture, …
In a bid to salvage its depleting shores, Hong Kong recently earmarked its first marine parks and marine reserve. On September 30, three coastal areas were placed under protection: a 20 ha marine reserve encompassing Lobster Bay at Cape D' Aguilar, a 260 ha marine park covering the whole of …
SERVING these lesser known, 'exotic', deep sea delights, restaurant owners are pocketing a neat sum, while fisherfolk too are receiving a handsome price for their catch. The craze for deep sea cuisine, according to scientists, is beginning to upset the delicate ecosystem of the dark oceanic world which covers more …
Aboriginal communities in Australia are elated over a new ruling by the Australian High Court: on March 16, the Court declared the federal government's Native Title Act, passed in late 1993, valid. It summarily tossed out a challenge to the Act by Western Australia's conservative government. The judgement has also …
DEVIANT behaviour is not limited to humans: a sponge found in the Mediterranean Sea is a killer carnivore. Unlike other sponges that feed primarily by filtering small particles from seawater, this creature preys on small crustaceans (Nature, Vol 373, No 6512). French scientists J Vacelet and N Boury-Esnault of the …
