Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. Earth Science News .




FLORA AND FAUNA
Planet of the dying apes: experts sound alarm over shrinking habitats
by Staff Writers
Nairobi (AFP) June 25, 2014


The accelerated and unsustainable exploitation of the earth's primary natural resources has become a major threat to apes in Africa and Asia, a major United Nations environment conference heard Wednesday.

Speaking on the sidelines of the UN Environment Assembly, conservationists said infrastructure development and extraction of natural resources -- including timber, minerals, oil and gas -- have devastated the prime habitat of apes and pushed chimpanzees, gorillas, bonobos, orangutans and gibbons closer to extinction.

"There's absolutely no doubt that extractive industries are severely impacting on apes and their habitats," said Helga Rainer, conservation director of the Great Apes programme at the Arcus Foundation, the world's largest private funder of ape conservation.

"Only five out of 27 ape (habitats) do not have a mining project within their range... and there is also an indirect impact associated with infrastructure development such as roads and railways," she added.

But while the cost to apes of economic development has been acknowledged for decades, researchers say more needs to be done to integrate their preservation into broader social, economic and environmental policies.

"We need to develop safeguards and environmental policies that can address these issues effectively," said Jef Dupain, director of the African Apes Initiative at the Nairobi-based African Wildlife Foundation.

Experts predict that at the current rate, human development will have impacted 90 percent of the apes' habitat in Africa and 99 percent in Asia by 2030, according to a new report titled "State of the Apes: Extractive Industries and Ape Conservation".

All species of apes are listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), some critically so.

There are about 880 mountain gorillas across Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo, while Cross River gorillas in Cameroon and Nigeria are thought not to exceed 250.

"There's a lot of pressure from mining activities, so you can see the pressure being exerted," said Andrew Seguya, executive director of the Ugandan Wildlife Authority.

In Asia, Sumatran orangutans are believed to have declined by 50 percent since 1992, and the entire population of Hainan black-crested gibbons in China amounts to just 21 individuals.

"A key message of 'State of the Apes' report is that the global systems of production, consumption and demography are interconnected, and that rapid globalisation will continue to exert intense pressure on natural resources and ape habitats," officials said in a joint statement.

.


Related Links
Darwin Today At TerraDaily.com






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








FLORA AND FAUNA
Evolution depends on rare chance events
Chicago IL (SPX) Jun 25, 2014
Chance events may profoundly shape history. What if Franz Ferdinand's driver had not taken a wrong turn, bringing the Duke face to face with his assassin? Would World War I still have been fought? Would Hitler have risen to power decades later? Historians can only speculate on what might have been, but a team of evolutionary biologists studying ancient proteins has turned speculation into ... read more


FLORA AND FAUNA
We Can Eliminate the Major Tornado Threat in Tornado Alley

Malaysia gets new transport minister amid MH370 crisis

Surviving without money, German woman's year-long adventure

NY homeless angry at China tycoon 'publicity stunt'

FLORA AND FAUNA
A breakthrough in creating invisibility cloaks, stealth technology

Oracle adds Micros for $5.3 bn to boost cloud effort

Ghost writing the whip

NASA's Science Mission Directorate Cubesat Initiative

FLORA AND FAUNA
New study reveals secrets of the disco clam

Familiar yet strange: Water's 'split personality' revealed by computer model

Are Fish Near Extinction?

Can Coral Save Our Oceans?

FLORA AND FAUNA
Study links Greenland ice sheet collapse, sea level rise 400,000 years ago

Penguin colonies may move and adapt to climate change

Japan considering new base on Antarctica

Melting and refreezing of deep Greenland ice speeds flow to sea

FLORA AND FAUNA
China govt money paid for French vineyards: auditor

Straw albedo mitigates extreme heat

Reorganization of crop production and trade could save China's water supply

IDing Livestock Gut Microbes Contributing to Greenhouse Gas Emissions

FLORA AND FAUNA
Online deluge washes away China 'piggyback' official

Strong quake strikes off N.Zealand's Kermadec Islands: USGS

14 dead in Bulgaria flash floods as rescuers search for missing

Flood damage to Bosnia estimated at 2 billion euros

FLORA AND FAUNA
Cameroon battles Nigeria's Boko Haram in remote border city

Suicide blast kills three in northeast Nigeria: residents

Chinese VP lauds better ties with African workers

Nearly 4,000 Eritreans flee each month: UN

FLORA AND FAUNA
Advanced CLARITY Method Offers Faster, Better Views of Entire Brain

Humans have been changing Chinese environment for 3,000 years

Skulls with mix of Neandertal and primitive traits illuminate human evolution

Brain syncs blood flow to match activities




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.