Recently, The World Wide Fund for nature (WWF) in collaboration with the Zoological Society of London released the ‘Living Planet Report 2020,’ which was the combined efforts of 120 experts who analyzed and studied over 20,000 communities of roughly 4,000 species. The report uncovered the horrifying losses in biodiversity around the world. According to it, …
As manufacture of ozone depleting substances slows down in the pandemic, the huge ozone hole above the Arctic has healed so much that it has stopped many worrying changes in the climatic conditions of the northern hemisphere. Read more about the ozone hole of the nothern hemisphere here: https://atmosphere.copernicus.eu/cams-tracks-record-breaking-arctic-ozone-hole
A mysterious 15-foot creature was found washed up on Ainsdale beach in England. Strangely enough, it had four flippers and was furry. According to a man who requested to be unnamed, it had an extra part attached to its body, which suggests that it might have died giving birth. The photos have gone viral on …
A mysterious 15-foot creature lands up on Ainsdale Beach Read More »
COVID-19 lockdown reduced roadkill levels drastically, by about 60% by keeping drivers away from the roads, especially highways. Animals crossing roads are crushed to death by speeding cars around sharp turns or sometimes due to lack of control over their speed. COVID-19 allowed animals to be free, to venture onto roads and into cities. The …
Why the amount of roadkill after lockdown will increase soon Read More »
A new and more advanced system, the lidar, allows researchers to study even greater depths of the ocean from the surface of the ocean. It will allow better study of underwater algae. Lead study author Brian Collister used the lidar system to study algae which satellites could not detect. The researchers and scientists were from …
Researchers can now look down deeper into the ocean thanks to new technology Read More »
Range: The red-vented bulbul, is found only in the indian subcontinent and the eastern coasts of the gulf. In fact, bulbuls are usually endemic to the indian subcontinent, but the red-vented being the most common, it is found outside that range too. It is also introduced into lands as far as Hawaii and New Zealand. …
Red-Vented Bulbul: The chirping we hear everyday. Read More »
The decrease of wildlife tourism led to a surge in poaching. Lockdown helped many animals, but those animals were primarily common, non-threatened animals, which live in abundance. For the most part, however, animals lost their habitats in large swathes as governments quietly gave clearance to mining and other industrial projects. In Asia The Indian MoEFCC …
Poaching and Habitat Loss Rates Soar in COVID-19 lockdown Read More »
As COVID-19 dominated the news, many climate disasters went unnoticed. The ones listed below are only a tiny glimpse of the events of the past two months. The ones which aren’t listed consist mainly of floods and storms Storms and Floods: Many people lost homes in the tornadoes that swept through Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas …
Popularly known as the ‘Snake man of India’ renowned herpetologist Romulus Whitaker founded the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station after winning the Whitley Award (known as the Green Oscar) in 2005. He also founded the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust and the Madras Snake Park. He helped rehabilitate the Irula tribe, who used to catch snakes but …
Renowned herpetologist Romulus Whitaker on the King Cobra Read More »
India had a very high number of vultures in the 1980s. The white rumped vulture alone had a population of about 60 million then. In total, India had 9 species of vultures, which were the following: Indian Vulture –Gyps indicus. Red-Headed Vulture –Sarcogyps calvus. Slender-Billed Vulture –Gyps tenuirostris. White-rumped Vulture –Gyps bengalensis. Cinereous Vulture –Aegypius monachus. …
For the first time ever, scientists from the College of Sydney have discovered Koalas licking water trickling down trees as it rains to get water. They released a video which can be found in the link given below. Earlier, koalas were believed to have obtained water through the gum in the leaves they chewed. The …
Initially, bats were believed to be the origin of COVID-19. However, this was followed by requests from many people for killing or removal of bats from their localities. To set this right, a group of conservationists and scientists from across South Asia has formed a collective to debunk myths. In a seven point press release, …
Founded in 1964, the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Redlist was established to ensure the correct amount of conservation focus is given to species according to their population. Every species discovered is given one out of seven tags, from least concern, to extinct extinct. These seven levels are: Least Concern: This status is …
The 7 levels of conservation focus: The IUCN Redlist Read More »
Dolphins are a vital part of our oceans and are commonly regarded as the friendliest creatures of the ocean. They have a wide range of emotions similar to those of humans and are visually appealing and cute. To celebrate their existence in our oceans, National Dolphin Day is now observed in several countries including, USA, …
World Bat day (April 17th) and National Dolphin day (April 14th) Read More »
Tapping Groundwater We can obtain groundwater from wells, springs and handpumps. Wells are holes that people dig or drill to obtain water. Springs are natural outlets from which groundwater flows. Wells and springs are very good sources of water but must be treated with care if they are to last. To obtain water from wells, …
Birding is an activity that can be done from anywhere, which is why many birders are now birding from their balconies and gardens. With everyone inside, more and more birds are coming out of the wild and are more active than usual. It is also the nesting season of several passerines (perching songbirds) like sparrows, …
Countries like India, Japan, Russia, China, Brazil and USA have an astonishingly high number of stray dogs. (10.2m, 12m, 15m, 27.4m, 35.7m and 75.5m respectively) Many people, do not like having stray dogs around them, and try to remove them. Earlier, governments used to cull dogs, but now it is banned in most parts of …
Coronavirus Disease 2019 or COVID-19, is a new type of viral pneumonia that originated in Central China in a city called Wuhan. According to most doctors and scientists, the disease was transmitted from a bat to a a pangolin before being transmitted to a human. However, this is almost impossible in the wild, as bats …
Swifts fly and eat during flight as their flying is energy efficient. Their body is automatically programmed to flap wings and glide just as our body breathes during sleep. Also, once a swift catches and insect, it eats it mid-air. Also, it is an evolutionary adaptation: swifts live longer because of these habits as they …
Have you ever seen a cormorant or Anhinga spread their wings? They do so because they do not have waterproofing oils in their wings, which enables them to dive deeper to catch fish. However, since they get completely soaked in the water, they cannot fly and thus need to spend a few hours or minutes …
Why do cormorants and Anhingas spread their wings? Read More »