By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Wendy_Moyer]Wendy Moyer
Forests are mostly celebrated for their timber, fodder, fuel wood and other non-timber forest products that they provide. What is not universally appreciated is just how much forests contribute to crucial ecosystem services.
Forests are indispensable as far as protecting watersheds that are upstream and separating carbon from the atmosphere is concerned. And they must continue intact in order to conserve gene pools and guarantee biodiversity so that future generations will be able to enjoy nature's bounty and beauty.
Forest environmental services include nutrient recycling, the regulation of the climate and the water cycle, soil formation, and plant pollination.
There is an ever growing demand for the goods that forests provide mankind. That's quite obvious. What's not as obvious or as widely recognized is that there is an increased need for the services that forests provide to our ecosystem.
One of the reasons is that society at large has not assigned any financial terms or financial measures to these values. As a result, forest environmental services are usually not included in our national GDP (Gross National Product) statistics. In addition, there are not many established, well developed markets for such services.
Luckily, things are beginning to change.
Our culture is becoming more aware of how we really need to pay more than lip service to these services. Many people are beginning to realize that we need to place a value on these services in order to make better decisions involving land use changes in our nation's forests.
As a result, decisions will be based on the true long term values that our forests offer instead of just the potential short term profits from the tangible goods that they provide.
In addition, there's an urgent need to cultivate the appropriate mechanisms, which may or may not be market based, that will facilitate the standardization of these approaches. What has to be done is to formulate a methodology that will offer direct incentives to institutions and communities that actively protect our forests and provide these services.
Amply demonstrating the entire range of the ecosystem and the potential economic benefits are only part of the equation.
Another part is discerning applicable methods to equitably capture the aforementioned values and benefits that our forests provide over the long term. Once this is accomplished various incentives for the private sector, local and national governments, and local communities that focus on promoting sustainable forest management can then be put into place.
It is of the utmost importance that responsible citizens who are truly interested in conserving what our forests have to offer are the people who are given the responsibility for formulating these criteria. That's because, as has been proven time and time again, economic instruments can be designed to either benefit or to undermine conservation efforts.
Next, to find out about Online Environmental Courses go to http://commonground.edrnet.com/pages/4de09aeab6
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Can-We-Conserve-Our-Forests?&id=6451382] Can We Conserve Our Forests?
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Genetic Techniques Being Developed for Parrot Conservation in Tambopata
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Danielle_Krautmann]Danielle Krautmann
Parrot species tend to be as endangered as they are charismatic. Threats such as habitat destruction and the capture of wild birds for the pet trade have resulted in nearly 30% of neotropical parrot species being threatened with extinction.
Major challenges to reversing this unfortunate trend include:
Low reproductive rates of many macaws, parrots, and parakeets
Not knowing how many birds are needed to maintain viable populations
Information is also needed regarding the susceptibility of macaws and other parrot species to forest fragmentation.
This latter concern has become particularly relevant for the Tambopata region because of the Interoceanic Highway. This new road abuts the northern edge of Tambopata and could result in higher levels of deforestation as it becomes an increasingly important conduit between Brazil and the Pacific coast.
George Olah hopes to develop genetic techniques that can assess population size of Scarlet Macaws in Tambopata, their movements, and the extent to which they are affected by forest fragmentation.
He does this by:
Using capture - recapture sampling on DNA extracted from blood and feather samples.
Using genetic variability to estimate population size.
Using genetic tagging to estimate territorial needs.
Capture - recapture sampling works like this: imagine you are in a small town, and you start jotting down license plates. It will not be too long before you come across the same license plates. Based on how frequently you come across the same license plates, you can estimate the total size of the license plate "population", by way of statistics. The same is true of genes in DNA. Think of selected genes as license plates.
Genetic variability is another important aspect of this study. Large variability means a population is either very large, very diverse or both. The more diversity, the healthier it will be, and the least susceptible to inbreeding.
This doctoral student from the Australian National University is collecting Red-and-green Macaw and Scarlet Macaw feathers at clay licks and nests near our lodges for a genetic study that will hopefully provide the answers to.
Determine the minimum territory required for genetically sustainable macaw populations.
Monitor the health of macaw populations over time in Tambopata.
Use similar techniques to conserve parrots in other parts of the world.
We are happy to have George carry out this important project at the Tambopata Research Center and are pleased that guests staying at the Tambopata Research Center between the months of November and April in 2011 and 2012 will have the chance to speak with him in person about this ongoing study.
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Genetic-Techniques-Being-Developed-for-Parrot-Conservation-in-Tambopata&id=6436448] Genetic Techniques Being Developed for Parrot Conservation in Tambopata
Parrot species tend to be as endangered as they are charismatic. Threats such as habitat destruction and the capture of wild birds for the pet trade have resulted in nearly 30% of neotropical parrot species being threatened with extinction.
Major challenges to reversing this unfortunate trend include:
Low reproductive rates of many macaws, parrots, and parakeets
Not knowing how many birds are needed to maintain viable populations
Information is also needed regarding the susceptibility of macaws and other parrot species to forest fragmentation.
This latter concern has become particularly relevant for the Tambopata region because of the Interoceanic Highway. This new road abuts the northern edge of Tambopata and could result in higher levels of deforestation as it becomes an increasingly important conduit between Brazil and the Pacific coast.
George Olah hopes to develop genetic techniques that can assess population size of Scarlet Macaws in Tambopata, their movements, and the extent to which they are affected by forest fragmentation.
He does this by:
Using capture - recapture sampling on DNA extracted from blood and feather samples.
Using genetic variability to estimate population size.
Using genetic tagging to estimate territorial needs.
Capture - recapture sampling works like this: imagine you are in a small town, and you start jotting down license plates. It will not be too long before you come across the same license plates. Based on how frequently you come across the same license plates, you can estimate the total size of the license plate "population", by way of statistics. The same is true of genes in DNA. Think of selected genes as license plates.
Genetic variability is another important aspect of this study. Large variability means a population is either very large, very diverse or both. The more diversity, the healthier it will be, and the least susceptible to inbreeding.
This doctoral student from the Australian National University is collecting Red-and-green Macaw and Scarlet Macaw feathers at clay licks and nests near our lodges for a genetic study that will hopefully provide the answers to.
Determine the minimum territory required for genetically sustainable macaw populations.
Monitor the health of macaw populations over time in Tambopata.
Use similar techniques to conserve parrots in other parts of the world.
We are happy to have George carry out this important project at the Tambopata Research Center and are pleased that guests staying at the Tambopata Research Center between the months of November and April in 2011 and 2012 will have the chance to speak with him in person about this ongoing study.
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Genetic-Techniques-Being-Developed-for-Parrot-Conservation-in-Tambopata&id=6436448] Genetic Techniques Being Developed for Parrot Conservation in Tambopata
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Is The Animal Brain Capable Of Thinking?
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=D._Lips]D. Lips
In the scientific study of language and thinking, humans have always been the focus point of the attention, but where do animals fit in the scheme of things? Research on animals shows us that animals are often more intelligent than we realize; a baboon is able to recognize everyone's voice within its 70-member troop. Sheep are able to memorize and recognize specific faces. Brain research has even shown that great apes and monkeys are able to form mental concepts. An illustration of this is when monkeys categorize dogs and cats; specific areas in the frontal lobes of their brains fire differently in response to doglike images than to catlike images.
Humans are also not the only ones to display insights (that sudden 'aha' moment). In a cleverly designed experiment, researchers showed that a chimpanzee was capable of creative thinking. The researchers placed a piece of delicious watermelon and a long stick beyond the reach of the monkey, but a short stick was place in the cage with the chimpanzee. After trying to reach for the fruit with the short stick, the monkey, after carefully analyzing the situation, jumped up and used the short stick to reach for the long stick, which he then used to obtain the piece of juicy fruit.
Animals thus exhibit remarkable hidden capacities. They form concepts, and display insights and creative thinking. Greater primates, elephants and dolphins have even demonstrated self-awareness by cleverly recognizing themselves in a mirror. However, do they also exhibit one of our most precious concepts, language?
It can definitely not be doubted that animals communicate in several different ways. These ways can be rather complex; certain monkey species have different alarm sounds related to a specific type of predator; a barking sound for a tiger and a coughing sound for a snake. Honeybees on the other hand, perform a dance that instructs other bees on the distance and direction of a food source. Or think of a dog's amazing capacity to understand human instructions! Record-holder is a bolder collie that has learned to fetch 200 different items by name.
None of this can really be categorized as language though, but nonetheless chimpanzees have challenged humanities claim to be the only language using species by showing the capacity to learn sign language, as was shown by a team of researchers. The capacity of chimps for sign-language is limited though and equals the simple vocabulary of a 2 year-old. Many researchers are skeptical when it comes to the language capacities of monkeys. Some of the concerns exhibited by researchers include:
Monkeys only obtain their very limited vocabularies with great difficulty
Monkeys' signing might be nothing more than learning that certain arm movements result in a nice reward
Interpreting monkeys' signs as language might be nothing more than the trainer's wishful thinking.
Regardless, it has definitely been shown effectively that animals are more than living robots without any moral rights. Research has empirically shown that animals have the ability to express insight, altruism and complex communication concepts. Translating these findings into moral implications is work for the future.
In order to get the most of out life, you have to get the most out of your brain. Nowadays, this is becoming more and more feasible though the use of [http://www.ebrainsupplements.com]nootropics and [http://www.ebrainsupplements.com]cognitive enhancers!
The author writes about various topics related to the brain and cognition. On his blog, the concept of brain science and cognitive optimization is discussed in many different ways.
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Is-The-Animal-Brain-Capable-Of-Thinking?&id=6443978] Is The Animal Brain Capable Of Thinking?
In the scientific study of language and thinking, humans have always been the focus point of the attention, but where do animals fit in the scheme of things? Research on animals shows us that animals are often more intelligent than we realize; a baboon is able to recognize everyone's voice within its 70-member troop. Sheep are able to memorize and recognize specific faces. Brain research has even shown that great apes and monkeys are able to form mental concepts. An illustration of this is when monkeys categorize dogs and cats; specific areas in the frontal lobes of their brains fire differently in response to doglike images than to catlike images.
Humans are also not the only ones to display insights (that sudden 'aha' moment). In a cleverly designed experiment, researchers showed that a chimpanzee was capable of creative thinking. The researchers placed a piece of delicious watermelon and a long stick beyond the reach of the monkey, but a short stick was place in the cage with the chimpanzee. After trying to reach for the fruit with the short stick, the monkey, after carefully analyzing the situation, jumped up and used the short stick to reach for the long stick, which he then used to obtain the piece of juicy fruit.
Animals thus exhibit remarkable hidden capacities. They form concepts, and display insights and creative thinking. Greater primates, elephants and dolphins have even demonstrated self-awareness by cleverly recognizing themselves in a mirror. However, do they also exhibit one of our most precious concepts, language?
It can definitely not be doubted that animals communicate in several different ways. These ways can be rather complex; certain monkey species have different alarm sounds related to a specific type of predator; a barking sound for a tiger and a coughing sound for a snake. Honeybees on the other hand, perform a dance that instructs other bees on the distance and direction of a food source. Or think of a dog's amazing capacity to understand human instructions! Record-holder is a bolder collie that has learned to fetch 200 different items by name.
None of this can really be categorized as language though, but nonetheless chimpanzees have challenged humanities claim to be the only language using species by showing the capacity to learn sign language, as was shown by a team of researchers. The capacity of chimps for sign-language is limited though and equals the simple vocabulary of a 2 year-old. Many researchers are skeptical when it comes to the language capacities of monkeys. Some of the concerns exhibited by researchers include:
Monkeys only obtain their very limited vocabularies with great difficulty
Monkeys' signing might be nothing more than learning that certain arm movements result in a nice reward
Interpreting monkeys' signs as language might be nothing more than the trainer's wishful thinking.
Regardless, it has definitely been shown effectively that animals are more than living robots without any moral rights. Research has empirically shown that animals have the ability to express insight, altruism and complex communication concepts. Translating these findings into moral implications is work for the future.
In order to get the most of out life, you have to get the most out of your brain. Nowadays, this is becoming more and more feasible though the use of [http://www.ebrainsupplements.com]nootropics and [http://www.ebrainsupplements.com]cognitive enhancers!
The author writes about various topics related to the brain and cognition. On his blog, the concept of brain science and cognitive optimization is discussed in many different ways.
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Is-The-Animal-Brain-Capable-Of-Thinking?&id=6443978] Is The Animal Brain Capable Of Thinking?
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Four Wonderfully Weird Animal Adaptations
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Ryan_J_Pilling]Ryan J Pilling
In the quest for survival, animals have developed some very unique tricks to give them the upper hand. These adaptations may help them find food, or keep them from becoming food.
Why The Zebra Is Black and White
To your eyes, it is pretty easy to spot a zebra on the African plain. The sharp contrast of the black and white stripes stands out against the otherwise yellow landscape. However, effective camouflage is in the eye of the hunter.
The zebra's biggest threat is the lion which, it just so happens, is color blind. Lions see the world in black and white. While this doesn't make a zebra invisible, the strong black lines seen throughout a herd of zebra can look very confusing. The lion has trouble seeing where one zebra ends and the next one begins. It is very hard to bite a moving target when you can't tell where it is.
The Seal Who Can Blow A Balloon Out Of His Nose
Throughout nature you will find some very interesting displays put on by males to either attract a mate, or look more menacing. None is quite so gross as the Hooded Seal.
Anytime he wants to show off he can blow a bubblegum-pink balloon out of his nostril. Not a little one, but at least the size of a football. To emphasize the matter he then waggles his head around, bouncing the balloon back and forth making a sound like a basketball on concrete.
The balloon is actually a rubbery membrane sac that spends most of its time inside the nose of the seal. Over time, this "stupid seal trick" of being able to inflate the sac has become both a threatening statement and attractive mating call.
Ladybugs Will Pee Blood When Frightened
If you've ever had a ladybug leave a little yellow spot on your finger you may be surprised to learn that is blood, not urine. The sticky yellow goo is actually excreted when the ladybug (or lady beetle) is feeling threatened. It has a rather displeasing odor that would fend off more bug-sized predators.
While it's not much of a bother to us, be careful where you wipe your finger. It will leave a strong yellow stain on your pants.
The Jellyfish Who Can Live Forever
Immortality may actually exist. Scientist have found a species of jellyfish, Turritopsis nutricul, who can regenerate its whole self. When the going gets tough it can degenerate from a jellyfish to a glob of goo on the ocean floor. That would be like a butterfly reversing the process and turning back into a caterpillar.
When it's good and ready, the Turritopsis can repeat the metamorphosis to become a jellyfish happily swimming through the Caribbean once again. There seems to be no sign of a limit on the number of times it can regenerate itself.
All these unique adaptations have developed through the generations to give the species a slight survival advantage. That is the wonder of evolution!
Ryan Pilling satisfies his curious mind as an amateur factologist researching and writing his blog; [http://lsned.com]Learn Something New Every Day.
If you enjoyed this article, have a look at more [http://lsned.com/topic/animals/]animal facts at LSNED.com.
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Four-Wonderfully-Weird-Animal-Adaptations&id=6452316] Four Wonderfully Weird Animal Adaptations
In the quest for survival, animals have developed some very unique tricks to give them the upper hand. These adaptations may help them find food, or keep them from becoming food.
Why The Zebra Is Black and White
To your eyes, it is pretty easy to spot a zebra on the African plain. The sharp contrast of the black and white stripes stands out against the otherwise yellow landscape. However, effective camouflage is in the eye of the hunter.
The zebra's biggest threat is the lion which, it just so happens, is color blind. Lions see the world in black and white. While this doesn't make a zebra invisible, the strong black lines seen throughout a herd of zebra can look very confusing. The lion has trouble seeing where one zebra ends and the next one begins. It is very hard to bite a moving target when you can't tell where it is.
The Seal Who Can Blow A Balloon Out Of His Nose
Throughout nature you will find some very interesting displays put on by males to either attract a mate, or look more menacing. None is quite so gross as the Hooded Seal.
Anytime he wants to show off he can blow a bubblegum-pink balloon out of his nostril. Not a little one, but at least the size of a football. To emphasize the matter he then waggles his head around, bouncing the balloon back and forth making a sound like a basketball on concrete.
The balloon is actually a rubbery membrane sac that spends most of its time inside the nose of the seal. Over time, this "stupid seal trick" of being able to inflate the sac has become both a threatening statement and attractive mating call.
Ladybugs Will Pee Blood When Frightened
If you've ever had a ladybug leave a little yellow spot on your finger you may be surprised to learn that is blood, not urine. The sticky yellow goo is actually excreted when the ladybug (or lady beetle) is feeling threatened. It has a rather displeasing odor that would fend off more bug-sized predators.
While it's not much of a bother to us, be careful where you wipe your finger. It will leave a strong yellow stain on your pants.
The Jellyfish Who Can Live Forever
Immortality may actually exist. Scientist have found a species of jellyfish, Turritopsis nutricul, who can regenerate its whole self. When the going gets tough it can degenerate from a jellyfish to a glob of goo on the ocean floor. That would be like a butterfly reversing the process and turning back into a caterpillar.
When it's good and ready, the Turritopsis can repeat the metamorphosis to become a jellyfish happily swimming through the Caribbean once again. There seems to be no sign of a limit on the number of times it can regenerate itself.
All these unique adaptations have developed through the generations to give the species a slight survival advantage. That is the wonder of evolution!
Ryan Pilling satisfies his curious mind as an amateur factologist researching and writing his blog; [http://lsned.com]Learn Something New Every Day.
If you enjoyed this article, have a look at more [http://lsned.com/topic/animals/]animal facts at LSNED.com.
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Four-Wonderfully-Weird-Animal-Adaptations&id=6452316] Four Wonderfully Weird Animal Adaptations
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)