Endangered Species Update articles from July - September 2005

Endangered Species Update archives from July - September 2005

Factors affecting population size in Texas' Golden-cheeked Warbler.
July 1, 2005... Abstract Populations of Golden-cheeked Warblers (Dendroica chrysoparia) are small apparently declining, and limited to breeding in oak-juniper in central Texas, a habitat threatened by urbanization and clearing for cattle pastures. In...

Big-leaf mahogany challenges CITES.(Opinion)(Convention on International Trade In Endangered Species (of wild fauna & flora) )
July 1, 2005... Abstract High demand for big-leaf mahogany creates pressure for unsustainable extraction. While mahogany logging provides foreign exchange for developing economies, inadequate regulations and resource conflicts exacerbate social injustice...

Encounter frequency with the urbanized San Joaquin kit fox correlates with public beliefs and attitudes toward the species.
July 1, 2005... Abstract A systematic public survey can prove vital to resource managers as a means of quantifying willingness to protect endangered species, helping to focus education, and evaluating the factors that influence public beliefs and...

A landscape-wide distribution of Pan-paniscus in the Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo.
July 1, 2005... Abstract A total of 15 discrete communities of bonobos (Pan paniscus) in the Salonga National Park (SNP) are reported: nine in the northern sector and six in the southern sector. These communities occupy about 1120[km.sup.2], representing...

U.S. gutting protections from destructive gillnet and longline fishing.(Report from the Field)
July 1, 2005... While international efforts are underway to explore high seas marine protected areas for the purpose of protecting highly migratory species, the U.S. government is increasingly gutting model marine closures that are protecting such species as...

Silk purse or sow's ear? The Pombo bill and the Endangered Species Act.(Opinion)
July 1, 2005... After more than thirteen years of gridlock, a bill to reauthorize the Endangered Species Act (ESA) finally passed the U.S. House of Representatives on September 29, 2005. The bill H.R. 3824, titled the Threatened and Endangered Species Recovery...

Insight into the lives of animals.(Focus on Nature[TM])(swimming style of marbled murrelet)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Diving into the cool, clear waters the robin-sized MARBLED MURRELET (Brachyramphus marmoratus marmoratus) swims adeptly using her strong wings like fins. She swims faster than the shiny, small fish she now catches in her sharp beak. Crustaceans...

Panda babies in AZA Zoos.(News from Zoos)(American Zoo and Aquarium Association)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Two same-species births don't typically make national headlines, but for the giant panda, 2005 was certainly an eventful year. The first birth occurred at Washington DC's National Zoo and brought recognition to the nation's capitol for the...

A benchmark in cloning at Audubon Nature Institute.(News from Zoos)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The AZA accredited Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans was home to a notable scientific first in July 2005. Two cloned African wildcat females each bred with the resident cloned wildcat male, Ditteaux, to produce two separate litters of...

Bermuda's waters: a green turtle haven.(News from Zoos)
July 1, 2005... Last summer, a joint effort between the Caribbean Conservation Corporation and the AZA-accredited Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo allowed a select group of University students from all over the world to participate in the identification and...

Southern California's amphibian revival.(News from Zoos)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The mountain yellow-legged frog is one of the most endangered creatures in southern California. An estimated 100 frogs are thought to be the only surviving members of this species, found in a few streams of the San Bernardino, San Gabriel and...

The Prairie Wetlands Learning Center.(educational programs on endangered species)
July 1, 2005... The Prairie Wetlands Learning Center, located near Fergus Falls, Minnesota, is a 325-acre (130-hectare) outdoor classroom operated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. It is composed of native and restored prairie, more than two dozen...

Reaching out to "Save Our Snakes".
July 1, 2005... Upon arriving at any of the scenic and popular islands of western Lake Erie, visitors encounter an unusual message: "Watersnakes welcome here!" More than 200 signs describing a unique creature, the Lake Erie watersnake (Nerodia sipedon...

Eider Journey.
July 1, 2005... Eider Journey is a comprehensive education and stewardship program addressing conservation and management issues of the North American breeding population of Steller's eiders (Polysticta stelleri). It was developed to help educate the young...

Slowing the flow.
July 1, 2005... Due to human activities, the salt marsh habitat in California's San Francisco Bay area has undergone major changes in the past 150 years. Over 85 percent of these wetlands have been lost to infilling for land-fills, urbanization, and the...

Creative partners, creative solutions.
July 1, 2005... The San Diego National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Complex in southern California is continually challenged to create programs that have a positive impact on a community whose human population is diverse and growing at an incredible pace. We've...

Teaching the children: a Hawaiian tradition.
July 1, 2005... "If you plan for a year, plant kalo. If you plan for ten years, plant koa. If you plan for 100 years, teach the children." Hawaiian Proverb Such sentiments are found in many cultures, many lands, and many languages, but they all speak...

All it takes is a little mussel.
July 1, 2005... Just as reducing the number of species on the endangered list seems to be an uphill battle for naturalists, closing the achievement gap that exists between various groups of students can be an overwhelming struggle for educators. The marriage...

Bird watchers flock to Michigan.
July 1, 2005... The endangered Kirtland's warbler (Dendroica kirtlandii) is a small, blue-grey and yellow bird that weighs less than half an ounce but has attracted the attention of bird watchers from all over the world to the two small northern Michigan towns...

The year of the fish.
July 1, 2005... Our first thought about raising fish was, "We're going to raise what?" We were one of 10 lucky classrooms chosen to raise the endangered razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus) as part of a program to help save native Colorado River species. ...

The Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan for Kids.(Pima County Board of Supervisors )
July 1, 2005... For several decades, Pima County in southern Arizona has experienced rapid population growth. At the same time, the Sonoran Desert is identified by the Nature Conservancy as one of the world's most important ecological regions. Due to the...

The Sewee Earth Stewards.
July 1, 2005... We've all seen children enthralled when someone brings out an educational animal or when they have the chance to explore on our public lands. They get that wide-eyed look of discovery and you sense that this experience will stay with them for a...

This bird is no chicken.
July 1, 2005... "Piping Plover: Tastes Like Chicken" reads a bumper sticker affixed to a four-wheel drive vehicle in my home town of Eastham, Massachusetts. Here on Cape Cod, the piping plover (Charadrius melodus) is loved by most, but to some people this...

In our dreams....(wildlife conservation)
July 1, 2005... If one were to dream up a list of the attributes of an outstanding environmental education partner, it might include: * an ability to reach a large audience; * experts in species life history, habitat, and conservation; * a...

Raising awareness of sea turtle habitat.
July 1, 2005... Florida's natural coastal environments are being put under increasing pressure as the population in coastal communities grows and development encroaches on wildlife habitats. Florida's Atlantic and Gulf coasts provide vital nesting habitat for...

Sea turtle trails.
July 1, 2005... The barrier islands of North Carolina's Outer Banks provide important nesting habitat for the loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta). Each year, Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) offers sanctuary to many of these threatened turtles....

"Habitat trunks" delight teachers.
July 1, 2005... What does it take to put a smile on the face of a fourth-grade teacher? Well, there are more than 350 smiling fourth-grade teachers in classrooms around North Dakota, thanks to a project spearheaded by the Education Committee of the U.S. Fish...

Welcome to Wildlife University.
July 1, 2005... How do salmon find their way back to the streams where they were born? Why are endangered species called "nature's fire alarms"? Does the Houston toad actually live in Houston? How is the Karner blue butterfly connected to the wild lupine? Now...

Butterfly Conservation and Management course.
July 1, 2005... Twenty-two butterfly species are federally listed as endangered or threatened in the United States. There are also candidates for federal listing and others that have been identified as species of state concern in their native ranges. Most of...

Celebrating groundwater and cave critters.
July 1, 2005... What do endangered cave critters, drinking water, and fourth graders have in common? They are all linked by a two-day festival held each spring in Madison County, Alabama. For the past six years, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has...

The Nature of Learning.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... "The Nature of Learning" is an education partnership involving the National Wildlife Refuge System, the National Conservation Training Center, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the National Wildlife Refuge Association, and the Keystone...

What a difference good outreach makes.
July 1, 2005... "You are going to destroy a very lucrative recreational fishery," said Tom Smith, president of the Truckee River Fly Fishermen. "You consider the fish that are in the river now as invasive species; well, we consider you federal employees...

Rulemaking actions.
July 1, 2005... From January through April of 2004, the Fish and Wildlife Service published the following proposed and final rules in accordance with the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The full tech of each action can be found on the internet at:...

Box score.(Illustration)
July 1, 2005... BOX SCORE Listings and Recovery Plans as of November 1, 2004 ENDANGERED THREATENED U.S. TOTAL SPECIES GROUP U.S....