Sat, Mar 22, 2008 from FishUpdate.com: North Sea protected area network would devastate industry, claims trade body According to the WWF UK report, published today, a network of marine reserves, that cover at least 30 per cent of the North Sea, is needed to help rebuild populations of many fish species, and protect the habitats upon which these, and other species depend.
In the report, 'A Return to Abundance: A Case for Marine Reserves in the North Sea', WWF-UK suggests a network of five experimental marine reserves that it says will improve the sustainability of fisheries, protect biodiversity, and help establish a healthy ecosystem....
Describing the proposals as "flawed", Bertie Armstrong, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen�s Federation said "The sweeping assumption is made that very large fixed marine protected areas would prove beneficial in the North Sea based on evidence gained from elsewhere. Such an assumption cannot safely be made, given the unique nature of the mixed fisheries in the North Sea." ...
What a laughable concept: using evidence from elsewhere to protect a common resource. Besides, the fish are getting more valuable all the time!
Sat, Mar 22, 2008 from US Fish and Wildlife Service: White-Nose Syndrome in Bats (video)
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service endangered species biologist Susi von Oettingen talks about white-nose syndrome in bats and investigates a hibernaculum in an abandoned mine and the area around it. ...
Fri, Mar 21, 2008 from Science Daily (US): Dissolved Organic Matter May Influence Coral Health The composition of dissolved organic matter surrounding Florida Keys coral reefs has likely changed in recent decades due to growing coastal populations.
Bacterial communities endemic to healthy corals could change depending on the amount and type of natural and man-made dissolved organic matter in seawater, report researchers... "When coastal ecosystems are physically altered, the natural flow of dissolved organic material to nearby coral ecosystems is disrupted with potentially harmful consequences for the corals," said Shank, assistant professor of marine science. ...
Unlike dogs, it looks like coral systems don't like rolling in shit. Strange. Isn't that a nutrient?
Wed, Mar 19, 2008 from The Adirondack Daily Enterprise: Bat die-off is serious Of the nearly 20 caves and mines that state Department of Environmental Conservation biologist Al Hicks is aware of the DEC surveying this winter, all but three had bats with white-nose syndrome in them, he said. That breaks down to about 400,000 bats affected.
"It's almost everything we have," Hicks said. "It's about as bad as we can get."
The mortality rate of bats with white-nose syndrome is 90 to 97 percent, Hicks said.... "a progression that is much faster than expected..." Darling estimated that, if half a million bats died, "that would add up to two billion insects per night that would not get eaten." ...
Break out the DEET and protect your woolens. That's serious buggage.