Green Earth Africa

HONG KONG — Hong Kong customs agents have confiscated a shipment of rhino horns and ivory worth about 17.4 million Hong Kong dollars ($2.2 million) – their biggest seizure of smuggled endangered species products, officials said Tuesday.

Officials said they seized 33 rhino horns, 758 ivory chopsticks and 127 ivory bracelets concealed in a shipping container that arrived Monday at Hong Kong’s port from Cape Town, South Africa. They would not name the container’s final destination.

Customs agents X-rayed the container because its listed cargo – scrap plastic – raised a flag, said Acting Head of Ports and Maritime Command Lam Tak-fai. They found the rhino horns and ivory after peeling away layers of tinfoil, paper and plastic wrapped around the items.

Wai-king Yik, a spokeswoman for the customs and excise department, said it was a record seizure of endangered species products for Hong Kong.

The seizure tops one in August of $1.6 million worth of African ivory.

Several rhino subspecies are believed to have recently become extinct. Rhino horns are prized by Vietnamese and Chinese who believe they can cure an array of ailments, and the horns can fetch up to $50,000 per pound (about $100,000 per kilogram). Some 190 pounds (86 kilograms) worth of rhino horns were found Monday by the Hong Kong officials, who said they would have required the deaths of around 17 rhinos.

Lam told reporters it was a record seizure of rhino horns for Hong Kong. He said customs agents have occasionally found single rhino horns being smuggled in luggage by visitors to Hong Kong but this is the first time they have found a large batch hidden in a shipping container.

No one has been arrested.

The Red list of Threatened Species has just been updated. New Scientist takes a closer look at some of the species unfortunate enough to find themselves on the list.

(Image: Richard Emslie)

Rhino’s end
From now on, the only place you’ll see this subspecies of black rhino from western Africa is in photographs or stuffed in museums. That’s because this year, the Western Black Rhino (Diceros bicornis longipipes) is officially extinct, and others are clinging on by a thread. In all, the IUCN says that a quarter of all mammals are at risk of extinction. It’s not all bad news though. One of conservation’s success stories is (Ceratotherium simum simum), a subspecies of the African southern white rhino, which has soared in number from less than 100 individuals to 20,000 since the end of the 19th century. 

(Image: Jörn Köhler)

Tarzan’s chameleon
Named after the town of Tarzanville in Madagascar where it was discovered in 2009, Tarzan’s chameleon is one of the most colourful of the 61,900 species on this year’s updated Red List, released today by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).Calumma tarzan is critically endangered and one of 22 terrestrial reptiles listed as threatened in Madagascar, mainly because tropical forests are being cleared. 

(Image: Jean-Christophe Vie)

Coconut poachers
Prized for its supposed aphrodisiac properties, the infamous Seychelles plant Coco de Mer (Lodoicea maldivica) is in even greater danger than before, moving up the list from vulnerable to endangered. IUCN says the plant is under threat from fires and illegal harvesting of its kernels. Despite strict regulations governing collection and sale of its seed, a significant black market exists for its kernals. Globally, a fifth of plants face extinction. 

(Image: © OCEANA /Keith Ellenbogen)

Tuna warning
Five of eight species of tuna are now in the threatened or near-threatened categories, including the endangered Atlantic bluefin (Thunnus thynnus) pictured here. The others in trouble are the southern bluefin, the bigeye, the yellowfin and the albacore. The hope is that the listings will help governments introduce and enforce safeguards to preserve them. 

(Image: Jason Brown)

Hopping pharmacies
Amphibians got this name because they are rich in natural, medically useful substances. Now many are endangered, and the 26 newly discovered amphibians added to the Red List this year include the blessed poison frog (Ranitomeya benedicta), discovered 2008 in Peru, imperilled by habitat loss and the international pet trade.

A group of 19 critically endangered black rhinos have been moved from South Africa’s Eastern Cape to a new range in the Limpopo province to encourage increased breeding and population growth.  The location is the seventh new habitat established by the WWF’sBlack Rhino Range Expansion Project. 

Black rhinos moved to new home by helicopter from WWF on Vimeo.

“This was possible because of the far-sightedness of the Eastern Cape Provincial government who were prepared to become partners in the project for the sake of black rhino conservation in South Africa,” said WWF’s project leader Dr Jacques Flamand. 

“The operation was difficult due to the number of animals and the long distances involved. But wildlife veterinarians, conservation managers and capture teams from WWF, Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency, SANParks and Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife worked cooperatively to ensure the success of the translocation. We all learned from one another and were united in a common cause.” 

“We are a young organisation and this is a great opportunity to be giving something back to the national conservation effort,” said Dave Balfour, conservation director of the Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency. 

“We are excited about getting ourselves integrated into national conservation. A critical element of future conservation success will be the ability of agencies with a common interest to work together. This was a great example of that.” 

A relatively new capture technique was used to airlift some of the rhinos out of difficult or inaccessible areas by helicopter. This entails suspending the sleeping rhino by the ankles for a short trip through the air to awaiting vehicles. 

“Previously rhinos were either transported by lorry over very difficult tracks, or airlifted in a net. This new procedure is gentler on the darted rhino because it shortens the time it has to be kept asleep with drugs, the respiration is not as compromised as it can be in a net and it avoids the need for travel in a crate over terrible tracks,” explains Dr Flamand. 

“Another advantage is that rhinos can be more easily removed from dangerous situations, for example if they have fallen asleep in a donga or other difficult terrain after being darted. The helicopter translocations usually take less than ten minutes, and the animals suffer no ill effect. All of the veterinarians working on the translocation agreed that this was now the method of choice for the well-being of the animals.”

Security of rhinos is a major concern given the current poaching onslaught. 

Project partners receiving rhinos on their land are only chosen if their security systems are of a high standard. 

“Translocating rhinos always involves risk, but we cannot keep all our eggs in one basket. It is essential to manage black rhino populations for maximum growth as it is still a critically endangered species and this is what the project does by creating large new populations which we hope will breed quickly,” concludes Dr Flamand.

The WWF Black Rhino Range Expansion Project aims to increase the range and numbers of black rhino in South Africa and has created seven significant black rhino populations in eight years. Close to 120 black rhino have been translocated to date.

Researchers at Brown University in the US have combined predictions of climate change with the geographic ranges of well-studied amphibians.

While the animals will try to migrate to areas with more suitable weather, short-term temperature fluctuations can cut them off.

The findings suggest more effort should be made to relocate vulnerable species.

It has been recognised for the past decade that the continuing future trend of global warming may drive species to permanently migrate in order to stay in an ideal habitat.

Amid concerns that this long-term migration may be disrupted by towns and cities, scientists at Brown University Dr Regan Early and Prof Dov Sax set out to predict the shifts in species’ ranges over the next century.

Predictions of global climate change generally show warming trends, though both global annual oscillations and local climatic effects will play a role for given species.

The researchers combined these climate models with information on the ranges and tolerances of various species of frogs, toads and salamanders in the western US, with results that “really surprised”, said Dr Early.

While they set out to find the disrupting effect of urban areas, they instead saw that the short-term climate fluctuations were enough to stop a species’ migration in its tracks, cutting it off from ideal habitats and driving it to extinction.

They have published their results in the journal Ecology Letters.

Physical tolerance

Fifteen species of amphibians native to the western US were modelled in the study, as their ranges are well-known and their tolerances to physical extremes have been well-studied.

While none of these species is currently at risk, they predicted that over half of them would become extinct or endangered in the next 100 years due to these climate fluctuations.

Among the factors determining whether a species would survive were the speed at which it can migrate and its persistence, or robustness, in the face of climatic change.

For example, the models suggested that the Foothill Yellow-Legged frog would be able to make it into a new area, despite climate fluctuations, while the California newt would not fare so well in its migration across the Californian Central Valley.

Dr Early said: “This species isn’t endangered now, and in the future there is more than enough suitable habitat for it to remain safe, but…the newt has a really hard time following its climate path to its future range because repeated climatic fluctuations cause it to retreat over and over again.”

The tolerance of an animal to less-than-ideal climatic conditions will determine whether it can survive long enough to complete its migration.

“There is a lot of uncertainty in the ability of species to persist, and this is an under-appreciated factor,” said Dr Early.

“For example, if an animal lives for a long time, it may fare better,” she said. “If its eggs don’t survive one year, being able to lay again the following year will increase the chances of survival.”

Managed relocation

While the study was carried out on only a few species in a limited geographic range, the researchers are confident that the global climate fluctuations will drive similar patterns all around the world.

Small mammals, insects and plants are expected to react in a way similar to the amphibians, as they have similar tolerances to climate change; larger mammals may be less affected as their habitats are less climate-specific, the researchers believe.

The findings from this research are expected to add some clarity to discussions on whether to actively relocate species at risk from climate change.

There is concern over this “managed relocation” from conservation groups and governmental organisations, as the reactions of an ecosystem to the sudden introduction of a non-native species are poorly understood.

But research published in the journal Nature in 2004, which suggested that climate change-driven habitat loss could result in the extinction of 15-37% of all species, lends support to the idea of managed relocation as a way of maintaining biodiversity.

This new study from Dr Early and Prof Sax highlights the specific risks to species from climate fluctuations cutting off their migration paths.

“There are a lot of species that won’t be able to take care of themselves,” Prof Sax said. “We may instead need to consider using managed relocation more frequently than has been previously considered.”

One of the world’s largest species of bird is on the brink of extinction according to the 2011 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ for birds, just released by BirdLife International, an IUCN Red List partner.

Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps)

Photo: Asad R Rahmani

The Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps) has been uplisted to Critically Endangered, the highest level of threat. Hunting, disturbance, habitat loss and fragmentation have all conspired to reduce this magnificent species to perhaps as few as 250 individuals.

Standing a metre in height and weighing in at nearly 15 kg, the Great Indian Bustard was once widespread across the grasslands of India and Pakistan but is now restricted to small and isolated fragments of remaining habitat.

Great Indian Bustards (Ardeotis nigriceps)

Photo: Asad R Rahmani

“In an ever more crowded world, species that need lots of space, such as the Great Indian Bustard, are losing out. However, we are the ones who lose in the long run, as the services that nature provides us start to disappear,” said Dr Leon Bennun, BirdLife’s Director of Science and Policy.

This year’s update brings the total number of threatened bird species to 1,253, an alarming 13% of the world total.

“In the space of a year another 13 bird species have moved into the threatened categories”, said Jean-Christophe Vié, Deputy Director, IUCN Global Species Programme. “This is a disturbing trend; however the figure would be much worse if conservation initiatives were not in place. The information collected by the BirdLife partnership is crucial in helping us to continue improving conservation efforts. This is now more important than ever as the biodiversity crisis is already affecting our wellbeing and will continue to do so unless we do more to stop it.”

“Birds provide a window on the rest of nature. They are very useful indicators of ecosystem health: if they are faring badly, then so is wildlife more generally,” said Dr Stuart Butchart, BirdLife’s Global Research and Indicators Coordinator. “The changes we have documented in this year’s update will feed into the Red List Index for birds, a measure of trends in the state of the planet used by the world governments, global businesses and the United Nations, among others”.

Bahama Oriole (Icterus northropi)

Photo: C.Ward

Another species on the edge is the Bahama Oriole (Icterus northropi)also newly listed as Critically Endangered. Recent survey work suggests the population of this beautiful black and yellow Caribbean bird could be as low as 180 individuals. The orioles live in mature woodland, and nest in coconut palms. Lethal yellowing disease of these palms has wiped out nesting trees in areas where the oriole was previously common but is now absent. However, apart from losing nesting habitat, the oriole is also threatened by the recent arrival of the Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis) a brood parasite that lays its eggs in other species’ nests.

“Although the situation appears bleak for many species, this year’s update does highlight several species where targeted conservation work has turned around their fortunes,” said Andy Symes, BirdLife’s Global Species Programme Officer.

The Campbell Island Teal, Anas nesiotis, has benefitted from a massive programme to eradicate rats, plus captive-breeding of remaining individuals. The species has now returned to New Zealand’s Campbell Island and the majority of birds are now thriving, resulting in a reclassification of the threat status to Endangered.

Three species of Atlantic island pigeon are also benefitting from conservation. The Madeira, White-tailed and Dark-tailed Laurel Pigeon (Columba trocaz of Madeira and C. junoniae and C. bollii of the Canary Islands) have all been classified at lower threat levels after threats such as habitat loss and hunting were addressed, coupled with an increased protection of suitable habitat.

“Birds are so intertwined with human culture all around the world that they present a very visible picture of the state of nature. Good examples abound of how we can save threatened birds. We need to redouble our efforts to do so, otherwise we risk not just losing magnificent creatures like the Great Indian Bustard, but unravelling the whole fabric of our life-support systems”, said Dr Bennun.

Secretarybird (Sagittarius serpentarius)

Photo: Sergey Yeliseev

 
Other regional highlights

Americas
Pale-headed Brush-finch (Atlapetes pallidiceps) has been downlisted from Critically Endangered to Endangered. 
Black-backed Thornbill (Ramphomicron dorsale) has been uplisted from Least Concertn to Endangered.

Pacific
Collared Petrel (Pterodroma brevipes) has been uplisted from Near Threatened to Endangered. 
Samoan Flycatcher (Myiagra albiventris) has been downlisted from Vulnerable to Near Threatened

Asia
Sula Megapode (Megapodius bernsteinii) has been uplisted from Near Threatened to Vulnerable
White-throated Wren-babbler (Rimator pasquieri) has been uplisted from Least Concern to Endangered

Africa
Secretarybird (Sagittarius serpentarius) has been uplisted from Least Concern to Vulnerable.
Hooded Vulture (Necrosyrtes monachus) has been uplisted from Least Concern to Endangered.

Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni)

Photo: Sergey Yeliseev

Europe and the Middle East
Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni) has been downlisted from Vulnerable to Least Concern
Socotra Buzzard (Buteo socotraensis) is newly described and has been listed as Vulnerable.

To find out more about all these and other species visitwww.birdlife.org/datazone/species/search

Adult Socotra Buzzard (Buteo socotraensis)

Photo: Richard Porter

For more information or interviews please contact:
Martin Fowlie, Communications, BirdLife International t +44 (0)1223 279813 e martin.fowlie@birdlife.org

Borjana Pervan, IUCN Media Relations, t +41 229990115, e +41 79 8574072 e borjana.pervan @iucn.org

Rhinos are Critically Endangered from Green Renaissance on Vimeo.

Parthenium hysterophorous has invaded about 2 million ha. in Ethiopia including productive grasslands where it has displaced valuable pasture species to the detriment of livestock and wildlife.

Photo: Arne Witt

The Serengeti – Masai Mara ecosystem in Africa, which hosts the largest wildlife migration known to man, is under attack from a noxious weed from Central America, commonly known as feverfew (Parthenium hysterophorus). If left unchecked it could threaten the continued migration of millions of animals across the plains every year, including 1.5 million wildebeest, 500,000 Thomson’s gazelle and 200,000 zebra.

The Serengeti – Mara ecosystem hosts approximately 70 large mammal species and some 500 different bird species in highly diverse habitats ranging from riverine forests, swamps, grasslands and woodlands. Researchers from CABI Africa and IUCN, based in Nairobi, Kenya, found the weed, parthenium, during a recent survey, growing along parts of the Mara River and along some dirt tracks in the Masai-Mara National Reserve.

“Although this weed may look benign to most people it probably poses one of the most serious threats to the ecosystem, which is already under threat from illegal hunting, land conversion, fencing, disease and uncontrolled fires,” says Arne Witt, Invasive Species Coordinator, CABI Africa. “Research suggests that conditions in the Serengeti are highly suitable for this weed so we should all be very concerned.”

Parthenium has gained notoriety in Australia, India and Ethiopia where it was accidentally introduced with what many would consider disastrous consequences. The weed, which can grow from seed to maturity in 4-6 weeks and has an ability to produce 10,000–25,000 seeds, is known to be allelopathic, which in layman’s language means that it produces chemicals which inhibit the growth of other plants. This means that if it invades natural pasture it can reduce the amount of available forage to such an extent that carrying capacities of grazing animals can be reduced by up to 90%. If allowed to grow without any weeding it can reduce yields of crops, such as sorghum, by up to 97%. It is also toxic, which means that animals will not eat it unless they are starving or stressed, with fatal consequences. This weed also has impacts on human health – many people who come into direct contact with the plant can develop severe skin allergies (dermatitis) and pollen production by the plant can result in respiratory problems.

The implications for wildlife conservation in the Serengeti ecosystem are potentially extremely serious. The movement of thousands of grazing animals means that the grasslands are often highly disturbed, making it easier for parthenium to invade. The displacement of palatable species means that, in time, the available food for wildebeest, zebra, gazelle and the pastoralists livestock will rapidly diminish.

“Unless action is taken immediately to eradicate known infestations in the Masai-Mara National Reserve it is not unrealistic to expect a drastic reduction in wildlife populations in the long term as the parthenium population rapidly expands as an invading species,” saysGeoffrey Howard, IUCN’s Global Invasive Species Programme Coordinator. “It is therefore possible for a little green plant to transform one of the greatest spectacles on earth.”

“However, we can stop the invasion in its tracks and protect this national and global treasure for our children’s grand-children if we all work together in support of the Kenyan government and national institutions which have indicated, based on their pronouncements at CABI’s 100 year celebrations held at Nairobi National Park, that they are committed to managing invasive species in Kenya,” says Arne Witt.

Habitat loss could cause a dramatic fall in dwarf seahorse populations, warn conservationists

A dwarf seahorse, found only in waters off the Gulf Coast. The species is at risk because of habitat loss, say conservationists. Photograph: Robert F. Sisson/NG/Getty Images

One of the world’s smallest seahorses faces extinction because of the BP oil spill, conservationists have warned.

The minute creatures, barely 2cm tall, were elusive even before the spill, found only among the seagrass in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Now conservationists from the Zoological Society of London’s Project Seahorse team are warning populations could fall precipitously because so much of their habitat could have been lost to the spill.

“We have very high levels of concern for this particular species because they have a narrower range,” said Heather Masonjones, a seahorse biologist at the University of Tampa.

Although most seahorses are believed to live in shallow water, some also cling to the seagrass mats that float in the open water. During the three months that oil was gushing from BP’s well, these mats become collection points for crude. Some of these were set alight in burn fields as BP tried to stop the oil washing on shore. Furthermore, thick clouds of oil in water typically starve seagrass of the light they need to survive, while toxic components of the oil as well as the millions of gallons of chemical dispersants used to break down the spill could also be shrinking suitable habitat for seahorses.

The dwarf seahorses, or Hippocampus zosterae, are particularly ill-suited to escape. They are poor swimmers, making the species extremely vulnerable to a sudden environmental impact such as the BP spill, said Heather Koldewey, the associate director of Project Seahorse. They also mate for life, and produce relatively few offspring, making it more difficult for them to recover from a cataclysmic event.

Masonjones said the experience of earlier oil spills suggested it could take five years for seagrass to make a complete recovery, which represents about three generations of seahorses. It is also unclear how dispersants, which can be hormone disrupters, will affect reproduction cycles, especially on seahorses where males carry the eggs.

Koldewey said it was crucial that BP take steps to help protect the seagrass in the oil spill clean-up in the months ahead to avoid further damage to seahorse populations: “We are urging BP to continue to use booms in the clean-up to isolate the oil slicks. These can be skimmed, left to evaporate, or treated with biological agents like fertilisers, which promote the growth of micro-organisms that biodegrade oil.”

Twenty-one per cent of freshwater species in continental Africa are threatened with extinction, putting the livelihoods of millions of people at risk. With so much to lose, inland waters must be managed not just for their supply of freshwater but also to sustain the abundant life within.

Oreochromis karongae. Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Found in lake Malawi, East Africa

Photo: Pr. George F. Turner

In the most comprehensive assessment of its kind, 5,167 African freshwater species were evaluated by 200 scientists over a five-year period for the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™, including all known freshwater fish, molluscs, crabs, dragonflies and damselflies, and selected families of aquatic plants. Some of the biggest threats to African freshwater species come from agriculture, water abstraction, dams and invasive alien species.

This study highlights the perilous state of our natural environment and will provide vital information for decision-makers as they plan to greatly expand the use of Africa’s inland water resources. The results are particularly important for resource managers as, for the first time, species have been mapped to individual river basins.

“Freshwaters provide a home for a disproportionate level of the world’s biodiversity. Although they cover just one per cent of the planet’s surface, freshwater ecosystems are actually home to around seven per cent of all species,” says Jean-Christophe Vié, Deputy Head of IUCN’s Species Programme. “This latest IUCN Red List assessment clearly shows that lakes, rivers and wetlands haven’t escaped the grasp of the current extinction crisis.”

Even the loss of a single species can have a dramatic impact on livelihoods. In Lake Malawi, a group of fish, known as ‘chambo’ by locals, forms an extremely important source of food. Of these,Oreochromis karongae, an Endangered species, has been hugely overfished, with an estimated 70 per cent reduction in the population over the past ten years. In Lake Victoria, a decline in water quality and the introduction of the Nile Perch (Lates niloticus) have caused a reduction in many native species over the past thirty years, threatening traditional fisheries. This IUCN Red List assessment studied 191 fish species in Lake Victoria and found that 45 per cent are threatened or thought to be extinct.

Around the great lakes of Africa, fish provide the main source of protein and livelihoods for many of the continent’s poorest people. The livelihoods of an estimated 7.5 million people in sub-Saharan Africa depend on inland fisheries. These new data will be invaluable in helping to safeguard these fisheries, freshwater supplies and the many other associated resources.

“Africa is home to an astonishingly diverse range of freshwater species, many of which are found nowhere else on earth,” saysWilliam Darwall, leader of the project and Manager of IUCN’s Freshwater Biodiversity Unit. “If we don’t stem the loss of these species, not only will the richness of Africa’s biodiversity be reduced forever, but millions of people will lose a key source of income, food and materials.”

Priority areas of highly threatened and restricted range species can now be identified. For example, in the waters of the crater-lake Barombi Mbo, in Cameroon, 11 species of fish are highly threatened and live a precarious existence as deforestation increases the risk of lake ‘burping’, where large levels of carbon dioxide are released from deep within the lake, suffocating the fish. Without management intervention these species, some of which are important food sources, may be lost forever.

Fish are clearly important to people, both as a source of food and income. But other freshwater species such as molluscs, dragonflies, crabs and aquatic plants also play vital roles in maintaining functioning wetlands and these should not be ignored. In the rapids of the lower reaches of the Congo River 11 species of mollusc, found only within a 100km stretch of water, are highly threatened due to upstream pollution. Molluscs such as these provide important functions including water filtration.

“This new study gives us a unique opportunity to try to influence developers and governments when they’re planning freshwater infrastructure projects, which are still in the early stages in most of Africa,” says Anada Tiéga, Ramsar Secretary General. “Until now we’ve not had the information we need about species and the threats they face but, armed with these IUCN Red List assessments, we hope that decision-makers in Africa will now make the right choices to develop their water resources in a sustainable manner whilst protecting and valuing global biodiversity.”

The findings of this assessment are also being published in a series of regional reports. The Northern and Western Africa reports are published today.