When one thinks of animals and conservation, a range of iconic images come to mind: whales, sharks, polar bears, wolves. These tend to be larger species and, while they certainly deserve our attention, there is a large group of land-based animals that also deserve protection. Rodents.
Rodents, you say? Are we talking rats here? Protect the rat, save the rat? Well, yes and no. Of course, when one thinks of rodents, rats and mice and other pests that have thrived because of man's presence, particularly in our urban areas, come to mind. And they have been a problem through destruction of stored seeds and grains or through transmission of disease. However, rodents serve an important ecological role and, in so doing, deserve a measure of protection as much as any other land animal.
Of the approximate 4,000 species of mammals on the planet, about 1,500 fall into the rodentia family, primarily identified by having a single pair of incisors - front teeth that require continually 
being worn down through gnawing on hard surfaces. In fact, that's where the name comes from, "gnawing animal." In addition to rats and mice, rodents also include squirrels, beavers, porcupines, prairie dogs, and many more. In fact there is an incredible range of rodents in tropical and jungle environments from tiny little critters up to 110-pound capybaras found in South America.
Rodents constitute some of the earliest prehistoric mammals. While dinosaurs were stomping their way into eventual oblivion, as far back as the Paleocene era, rodents were scurrying about their feet. Actually, there were some incredibly large rodents in prehistoric times, some as large as a bear. However, those toothy behemoths, along with other over-sized animals like dinosaurs, couldn't survive the radical climatic changes that the earth has gone through, from ice ages to meteors.
Today, while rodents in developed countries can be pests, causing billions of dollars in crop losses or pest control expenses, in many parts of the world they provide food and fur for local or tribal populations. And in the big scheme of things, they are a major food source for a variety of other animals. Just like with the predator-prey pyramid for marine species wherein plankton and small bait fish are highly reproductive to balance out the fact that they also are prey to a wide range of other animals, rodents serve as a cornerstone and key foundation for the chain of life in the terrestrial world.
Conservation International recognizes the significance of the rodent in a properly maintained ecology. With a little humor, they are making the case that rodents deserve our understanding and protection. They have a Facebook page designed for visitors to choose a favorite rodent for Valentine's Day. Here's Conservation International's take on why rodents deserve something more that a trap baited with cheese:
"We share our planet with millions of incredible species.
Just consider the bright color of spring flowers, the morning calls of migratory birds, or the snow-covered plumage of emperor penguins. We're lucky to live in a world where these creatures exist.
At Conservation International (CI), we've been working since our founding to protect and preserve species around the world. And with Feb. 14 quickly approaching, I hope you'll join me in sending a valentine — to some amazing species of rodents.
Rodents? Amazing? Yes, amazing. Sure, they're sometimes household pests. But they underpin the ecosystems that provide us with clean air and water, regulate our climate, and give us medicines.
And in many cultures, species play an important role — yes, even rodents. The Chinese zodiac has not one but two rodent representatives (the rabbit and the rat). And in the U.S. and Canada, today is Groundhog Day, a quirky holiday that, folklore says, determines how long the continent will remain under a winter chill.
Some rodents are even kind of cute.
Yet around the world, on land and at sea, species like rodents are in trouble. It's estimated that one species goes extinct, on average, every 20 minutes. Human activity, such as habitat destruction and pollution, is largely responsible. And for every species of plant or animal that disappears, we forever lose the unique and sometimes critical benefits that people receive.
How can you get involved in protecting species like these? Join us in celebrating rodents this Valentine's Day — and help us spread the word that people need nature to thrive.
Visit CI's Facebook fan page and click on 'Vote Now' to vote for your favorite rodent: http://www.facebook.com/conservation.intl
You can also visit Crowdrise, an online fundraising site that makes it easy for you, your friends, and your family to donate small amounts of money to CI if you'd like. Each of our four rodents has its own Crowdrise page, so you can vote for your favorite not just with a click, but with your wallet!
The rodent with the most votes and dollars raised by Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, will be named the most loved rodent (as voted by CI supporters). So this Groundhog Day, send a valentine to a furry creature. Vote for your favorite rodents on CI's Facebook fan page and on Crowdrise."
Read more about rodents from UCMP.
Coral reefs continue to face challenges and occasional glimmers of hope. But they lead a perilous existence, with these important tropical marine ecosystems living on the edge of collapse. As remnants of geological island movements, coral reefs form important barriers to island erosion and other weather- and ocean-related conditions (storms, currents, etc.) while also providing a home for countless numbers of marine species.
Bad News: Toxic Algae Acts Quickly
On the down side, researchers are discovering that algae can not only crowd out corals when their growth explodes due to nitrate-rich pollution (as previously studied worldwide), but algae blooms can also prove to be toxic by reducing oxygen and sunlight. And it can happen with remarkable speed.
Recently, in the Gulf of Oman, scientists were conducting a coral reef study and upon returning to their research area three weeks after an algae bloom, they found the corals seriously impacted. Several species of hard corals, including cauliflower and tabletop hard corals, were completely destroyed.
"We were surprised at the extent and speed at which changes to the coral reef communities were affected," said marine ecologist Andrew Bauman in the BBC News. Scientists have known that climate change in the form of warmer waters can adversely affect the coral, causing "coral bleaching" whereby the coral is severely and often fatally weakened from the loss of the symbiotic zooxanthellae algae that literally lives in the coral tissue.
While warmer temperatures can stress the corals to the extant that coral bleaching occurs, the scientists in the Gulf of Oman now have dramatic evidence of the impact of algae blooms in open water, literally choking the life from the coral - not to mention the impact on other sealife including fish, whose gills can be become clogged with algae particulates.
Good News: Island Nations Work Together
On the more positive side, tropical island nations are becoming more proactive in their efforts to protect their national treasures - the coral reefs. In 2007, the governments of Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands formed the Coral Triangle Initiative to establish policies to protect their marine reef ecosystems. Realizing the importance of the reef ecosystem not only as a component of a healthy ocean but also of economic importance as a source of food and tourism for developing nations, the Coral Triangle Initiative is a government-led program supported by leading conservation organizations like Conservation International.
In the Indian Ocean, the Maldives - a nation of over 1,100 coral islands - recognizes the economic power of conserving its surrounding coral reefs. The reefs are the lure to worldwide scuba divers, snorkelers, and swimmers, making tourism a major component of the nation's economy. In addition, the need to protect its ecology - in fact, that of the world - is of critical importance to the Maldives. The islands are, at most, just under five feet above sea level. With sea levels rising due to global warming, scientists estimate that the Maldives will be uninhabitable by 2100.
The government has taken steps to both protect its citizens and the environment by instituting a variety of eco-friendly policies including installation of wind turbines, rooftop solar arrays, and phasing out fossil fuel-burning boats and cars. In July, 2010, they also outlawed shark fishing and the sale or export of shark fins. But the government is also reluctantly prudent and developing plans for the relocation of its entire population of 400,000 as sea levels rise.
Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed warned, “Climate change is a global emergency. The world is in danger of going into cardiac arrest, yet we behave as if we've caught a common cold. Today, the Maldives has announced plans to become the world's most eco-friendly country. I can only hope other nations follow suit.”Read about toxic algae in the BBC Earth News.
Read about the Coral Triangle Initiative at Conservation International.
Read about the Maldives at Mother Nature Network.
Conservation. The word has different meanings and consequences in different parts of the world. In many developed countries it serves as a means to protect natural resources for future generations to see and enjoy. Global implications might enter into the picture, promoting conservation so as not to disrupt large-scale ecosystems. Or perhaps it's a cause du jour; it's just good manners.
But in underdeveloped or developing countries, conservation can be an intimate matter of life and death, having a profound impact on poverty. But a good or a bad impact? Does conservation help to eliminate poverty or exacerbate it? Or are the two not linked at all in any way?
To the conservationist, it would seem an obvious benefit and many worldwide organizations - like the United Nation's Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) - have adopted that position. But studies to date have not yet provided a clear path to that conclusion. According to Nature.com's NatureNews, past small scale studies were inconclusive, "Many studies have simply shown that poverty frequently overlaps with areas that are a high priority for biodiversity conservation."
With the U.N. coming up short in its two goals of stemming the loss of biological diversity by 2010 and lifting at least half of the world's poorest out of poverty by 2015, considerable attention is being drawn to upcoming CBD meetings later this month. Convention members will be turning to research studies for answers and there have been a few large scale studies that provide an indication that a connection does exist between conservation and the reduction of poverty.
Conservation International conducted a massive global study of a group of ecosystems including water from rivers and streams. Using data and maps from sources ranging from the World Wildlife Fund to NASA, Conservation International combined that with population and human distribution data derived from LandScan data from the U.S. Department of Energy to determine whether any relationships exist between areas of poverty and possible biological diversity conservation efforts.
NatureNews reported, "The study, as yet unpublished, showed that water conservation projects could aid poverty alleviation. The 16 other ecosystem services they assessed, including crop pollination by insects and waste treatment, showed similar results. 'This suggests we should continue to push for biodiversity conservation and sustainable development where these synergies exist,' says [Conservation International researcher Will] Turner."
All well and good, but another study from a London-based research group brought up an important issue when conservation measures are initiated in countries as an economic stimulus to eliminate poverty, IE: eco-tourism. The study by the International Institute for Environment and Development questioned whether the economic benefits were actually reaching those in greatest need. As an anecdote to this study, I was reading about efforts to improve the controlled hunting of lions in African reserves. At issue was that, while considerable fees were being charged to the trophy hunters, local villagers who staffed the park reserve were still drastically underpaid.
More large-scale studies are taking place, but a final, definitive conclusion will be a difficult goal to achieve as there are so many variables at work in any particular situation. Population sizes, what specific ecosystems or natural resources would be conserved, what species are at risk, what economic benefits can be derived - all play a role and all can be different from place to place, situation to situation.
In the next few weeks, the United Nations will be struggling with strategies that can hopefully both lift the poverty levels of needy nations through economic development while preserving natural resources and enhancing biodiversity. It is a difficult tightrope to walk. Wrestling with finding solutions that will prevent conservation from being at odds with the reduction of poverty, Bill Adams from the University of Cambridge observed, "Maybe we can't stop biodiversity loss and lift people out of poverty at the same time, but we have to try to make it work."
Read article in NatureNews.
Visit the Convention on Biological Diversity website.
While generating positive public opinion for shark conservation is an important goal, it is also a slow process. And while it builds over time, sharks continue to be slaughtered in horrifying numbers. Therefore, the proactive steps - the moves that are less of a reaction to the situation but rather are strategic steps forward - are needed probably to a greater degree.
WildAid, Conservation International, and other groups, working in cooperation with the Ecuadorean government and the Galapagos National Park Service, have been supporting the efforts of ranger managing the Galapagos Marine Reserve with the use of both technology and outright gumshoe detective work. One of the greatest issues facing the Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR) is poaching of tuna, sharks, and even sea cucumbers - all to meet the ever-demanding Asian markets.
The GMR utilizes a high-tech satellite-based tracking system to keep tabs on fishing boats that are periodically allowed to pass through the reserve. The Vessel Monitoring System, or VMS, can detect whether a boat is proceeding at speed or whether it is changing speed, dillydallying and a clear sign that illegal fishing may be taking place. A boat is then dispatched to investigate.
Just like in the drug world, smugglers often try to hide their illegal catches. Wrapped in foil, shark fins, sea cucumbers, and other caught species are less likely to give off a telltale scent. Unless you are a trained sniffer dog from the K-9 Environmental Police Unit of Galapagos' Santa Cruz island. The K-9 unit - supported by WildAid, Sea Shepherd, and Conservation International - has been responsible for some significant "busts" of shark fins and other illegally fisher species.
According to WildAid's director, Peter Knights, "Marine reserves are the last great hope to save fish stocks. Marine enforcement is always difficult due to the distances involved and cost of marine operations, so illegal fishing has been an almost risk free crime. But tools like VMS can provide much better surveillance and the sniffer dogs can prove to be a great deterrent as well as assist in detection of smugglers. The sooner we can deploy these tools to more marine reserves the sooner we can secure the world's dwindling fish stocks."
Click here to read more about the Galapagos VMS and K-9 Unit.
When governments and policymakers listen to the scientists and listen to the voices of the people, every once in a while they get it right and something of value is truly accomplished. That would be the case with the recent announcement by a consortium of Pacific nations with the formation of the Pacific Oceanscape - a proposal to form a cooperative stewardship involving an enormous area of the Pacific Ocean equal to that of Canada, the U.S., and Mexico combined.
A result of the Pacific Islands Leadership Forum and heavily supported by the conservation and scientific research efforts of Conservation International, the Pacific Oceanscape, according to a recent press release, "aims to address all ocean issues from governance to climate change, as well as design policies and implement practices that will improve ocean health, increase resources and expertise, and encourage governments to factor ocean issues into decisions about economic and sustainable development. It represents perhaps the largest marine conservation management initiative in history, as measured by countries and area, and a new united Pacific voice on ocean conservation and management."
First introduced in 2009 by the president of Kiribati (read original proposal in PDF), the Pacific Oceanscape agreement includes the participation of nations from Australia and New Zealand to the Marshall and Solomon Islands, Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia, and many other Pacific island nations.
Commented Dr. Greg Stone, Chief Ocean Scientist and Senior Vice President for Marine Conservation with Conservation International, “It is, without doubt, the most ambitious, most innovative, and most well-grounded marine initiative I have seen in my 32 years as a marine biologist and conservationist. What we are seeing here is the dawning of a new era for marine management at such a massive, multi-national scale, and the kind of leadership that brings about real, positive change.”
With so many issues facing ocean ecosystems, particularly those fragile tropical environments that not only offer such beauty but are the backbone of survival for many island communities, this is certainly a major step in the right direction. To see this many nations in cooperation over a common goal and prepared to set policies and take steps to conserve precious marine resources, well, it certainly provides a welcome uplift and a measure of hope. The rest of the world needs to take notice.
Read press release about the Pacific Oceanscape.
Read the original proposal from Kiribati.
On Earth Day 2010, the famous Christie's auction house held an event to benefit several conservation organizations - Christie's Green Auction: a bid to save the Earth. With an auction to bid on a long list of luxury items ranging from a trip to the Galapagos Islands with National Geographic to lunch with Vera Wang, the well-heeled participated (with an additional silent auction that will conclude on May 6th) in support of Oceana, Conservation International, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), and the Central Park Conservancy.
A little too rich for your blood? Only for the celebrities and upper-crust who only care about the environment if there's an opportunity to enjoy a day of sailing with the Rockefellers as a reward?
SO . . . WHAT!
Conservation and research groups around the world struggle for every bit of funding they can get. Whether it's scrambling for pennies or going for high society gold, it all ends up in the same place, with organizations who need funding to bring about public awareness and provide critical information for policy and decision-makers. So, if you're a down-in-the-trenches, scrounging-for-what-you-can-get kind of conservationist, please don't view these types of events with disdain.
Yeah, I too couldn't afford to bid on a pair of tickets to the pit suites at the Singapore Grand Prix or a walk in Central Park with Candice Bergen. Maybe next year . . . or many years after that. But in the meantime, according to a recent press release, the auction has raised $1,387,000USD, with more to come after the silent auction concludes.
Fundraising is as challenging in many ways as the environmental issues these organizations are confronting. As long as it is well spent (and that is a critical criteria: Is the organization accomplishing anything?), then VIP events for the well-to-do are just as valid as grass root campaigns.
I was watching a re-run of the PBS program series, Nature, and there was an interesting episode on monster crocodiles. The researcher was traveling the world in search of 20-foot+ crocs, most of which having been hunted over decades either as trophies, for their hides, or in defense of cattle and, in some cases, local villagers. The net effect was that these super-size reptiles were becoming a rarity, if not all together extinct.
Then today I read an interesting follow-up on the Conservation International (CI) web site. CI has been involved in working with government officials in Columbia and members of the IUCN in getting local villagers to help conserve remaining populations of American crocodiles that inhabit Columbian wetlands and mangroves. Although illegal to catch, subsistence-level villagers are enticed to catch crocodiles and sell them on the black market.
"Within the mangrove wetlands, the crocodile is an important umbrella species which helps to sustain the functioning of the ecosystem; among other benefits, crocodiles often eat dead fish, keeping the water clean for the other species that rely on it – including humans."
With the new government-sponsored approach, by locating crocodile egg nests, retrieving the eggs, incubating and raising them in a hatchery for the first year or so, then releasing them later 
into the wild, the hunters-turned-conservationists are improving the odds for the survival of the crocodiles, compared to how their dwindling numbers would survive on their own. Maintaining a healthier balance in the wetland/mangrove ecosystem means allowing nature's predators and scavengers to thrive, producing a stronger and healthier population of fish and better water quality - which benefits both the ecosystem and man.
Much like what happens when sharks are protected, rather than hunted, in reef areas, local villagers benefit from a healthier ecosystem that is a food source and there is also the ancillary economic benefit derived from ecotourism - crocodile tours have sprung up in Columbia.
Once again, protecting the environment pays off in more ways than one.
Read the entire Conservation International article.
The Galapagos Islands - an oceanic oasis that was one of Darwin's key research sites for his seminal work on evolution - is feeling the pressure of its unique status. With increased tourism and island population, combined with international demands for seafood, the Galapagos has been showing signs of this negative impact on its natural resources.
The Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR) was created in 1998 to provide protection to the islands' surrounding waters. And in the next few months, through the support of Conservation International and WildAid, the GMR will be taking a hi-tech step forward in managing major ship traffic in the area.
Utilizing GPS satellite tracking equipment, the activities of ships greater than 20 metric tons will be monitored by the Galapagos National Park Service (GNPS). This will provide the GNPS with greater ability to manage and regulate ships in no-take zones, tourism itineraries, and commercial shipping. Besides "tagging" ships, the computer-based system will enable the GNPS to tag and track migratory species and monitor environmental/climate changes.
Hats off to Conservation International and WildAid for supporting this important example of cost-effective marine research and management.
When one thinks of animals and conservation, a range of iconic images come to mind: whales, sharks, polar bears, wolves. These tend to be larger species and, while they certainly deserve our attention, there is a large group of land-based animals that also deserve protection. Rodents.
being worn down through gnawing on hard surfaces. In fact, that's where the name comes from, "gnawing animal." In addition to rats and mice, rodents also include squirrels, beavers, porcupines, prairie dogs, and many more. In fact there is an incredible range of rodents in tropical and jungle environments from tiny little critters up to 110-pound capybaras found in South America.
"We share our planet with millions of incredible species.
