medicinal plants going extinct

Plants that are used as traditional medicines to combat diseases, such as cancers and malaria, are going extinct according the New Scientist.  And, they believe overexploitation is the cause.

Most people worldwide, including 80 per cent of all Africans, rely on herbal medicines obtained mostly from wild plants. But some 15,000 of 50,000 medicinal species are under threat of extinction, according to a report this week from international conservation group Plantlife. Shortages have been reported in China, India, Kenya, Nepal, Tanzania and Uganda.

Most of the harm done to the plants is through over-harvesting, because commercial growers care little about the sustainability.  Other causes are climate, insect infestations, and habitat destruction.  

It is felt that by encouraging local communities, through incentives, that would do more to protect the plants from harm.  By giving them a competitive income to increase their quality of living, they may take greater care in the treatment of the crops and their sustainability.

i HATE this

World Famous Wildlife Sanctuary in Zimbabwe Faces Closure

It’s not just closure. Closure implies being closed for business. Due to lack of donations to keep the sanctuary running, and lack of food, in part because of the political climate of the country… the animals are starving. There is not enough food.

The wildlife orphanage, which has been featured in several documentaries promoting tourism in Zimbabwe, relies on donations to provide sanctuary to the 300 animals from different species that have been orphaned, abandoned, injured, born in captivity or brought up unsuccessfully as pets.

Chipangali is home to lions, leopards, baboons, snakes, owls, and crocodiles, among other animal species.

you can go to PlanetSave to get more information.

i don’t need to explain

The Bush administration on Thursday eliminated one step in the effort to protect endangered species, as it will now allow federal agencies to bypass consultation with government scientists about whether new rules will harm threatened wildlife.

The U.S. Interior Department issued a rule that allows agencies to avoid consulting with the Fish and Wildlife Service or the National Marine Fisheries Service if Interior concludes that any actions they fund would not harm an endangered species.

buffer zone

New data suggests that the ocean acidity levels are raising 10 times faster than previously thought.

Professor Timothy Wootton from the department of ecology and evolution, University of Chicago, in Illinois, says such dramatic results were unexpected as it was thought that the huge ocean systems had the ability to absorb large quantities of CO2.

“It’s been thought pH in the open oceans is well buffered, so it’s surprising to see these fluctuations,” he said.

The findings showed that CO2 had lowered the water pH over time, demonstrating a year-on-year increase in acidity.

As a result, mollusks like barnacles and muscles are being affected. Most of their shells are made of calcium carbonate, which cannot be sustained in high acid environments. The populations are shrinking at very high rates. In fact, the scientists feel that all of our past models on ocean acidification need to be erased, since the ocean is not buffering the CO2 absorption as thought.

The entire article can be found HERE, via BBC.

not just the bumble bees

Yes… polar bears, pandas, penguins, and bumble bees get all the hype, but there are other insects that need a little love, too.

In an article, “Insecticide! (An ecological disaster that will affect us all), via The Independent, the issue of all insect extinction is addressed.

The population declines among invertebrates in general and insects in particular are now greater than among any other group of living things, greater than declines in mammals, birds and plants. “There are more extinctions among invertebrates than in any other groups, and a greater proportion of the species are in decline, and the decline is steeper, than in plants, birds and mammals, wherever there is data.”

The point of telling you this: bees are not the only ones who go about pollinating. All insects, whether we like them or not, have a function that benefits us. Whether it is pollinating a plant or decomposing a tree back into the earth, insects evolved to have functions that are a net positive on the environment. And, we just don’t know what the impact will be with their extinction.

I guess the moral of the story… as much as you may want to whip out the vacuum when you see a spider, maybe you shouldn’t.

Boy, do I have an event for you!

A new study came out today estimating that one third of all species will be extinct by 2100 if we do not do something about it now.

You can read the article HERE.

“Extinction events”, as they are known amongst scientists, are not rare. This planet has had a few… in approximately 540 million years, we have had five. The last one occurred 65 million years ago and is the most well known as it killed off the dinosaurs.

Currently we are in the Holocene Extinction Event. Most scientists agree that this is the only event that is man made and is the most rapidly occurring.