Nature News, Vol. 5, Issue No.1 (January 2016)
BIRDS
The Hindustan Times 12 Jan 2016Waterbird census at Okhla sanctuary records 46 species: The presence of 46 water bird species with a total population of 3,113 were confirmed at the Okhla Bird Sanctuary as part of the Asian Waterbird Census 2016, considered as the largest such exercise in Australasia. The new figures come at a time when Delhi is witnessing its warmest winter in many years, Read more
The Hindustan Times 14 Jan 2016
Unique birdsong leads experts to discover new species in Arunachal: A birdsong has led a team of scientists to India’s first new bird species in a decade and the fourth since 1947. The bird, which has been named the Himalayan Forest Thrush, has been described from Read more
The Pioneer 22 Jan 2016
New bird species identified from its song, named after Salim Ali : A bird species from eastern Himalaya has been identified as a new species. A team of scientists from India, Sweden, China, US and Russia has described this species from northeastern India and adjacent parts of China as Himalayan Forest Thrush (Zoothera salimalii). Read more
The Hindustan Times 27 Jan 2016
Owls to blame for maximum bird hits near airports: Barn owls, red-wattled lapwings and little swifts are likely to have struck an aircraft in midair most often than any other bird in India, finds a one-of-a-kind study. In addition to these three, the study found black kites and three bat species were also involved in most bird strikes. Read more
CLIMATE CHANGE
The Hindu 28 Jan 2016After Paris, keep the heat on: In order to have a chance of limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, we need suitable technologies to make low-carbon transitions in development right away. Now that the Paris Conference of the Parties (COP) meet is long over Read more
ENVIRONMENT
The Pioneer 29 Jan 2016The federal way to green living: India had adopted a comprehensive strategy in 2009 to tackle environmental challenges. It is now up to the respective State Governments to encourage and recognise the efforts to implement the action plan on climate change. A growing awareness on the relevance of climate change within the Government, civil society and the corporate sector, coupled with mounting international pressure, had led India to adopt a comprehensive strategy to tackle environmental challenge in 2009.Read more
FOREST AND BIODIVERSITY
The Tribune 2 Jan 2016
Felling of trees sets alarm bells ringing for Forest dept: Illegal felling of large number of trees in the Krishnawati region has set alarm bells ringing for the Forest Department. Mahendragarh DC Atul Kumar has submitted his report to the higher authorities, seeking a probe into the case. Read more
WETLANDS, RIVERS & WATER
The Hindu 17 Jan 2016Wetland diversion will harm food security, say experts: The absence of a land policy for conservation of natural resources could have serious implications for Kerala’s food security, according to experts participating in a national seminar on land use planning which concluded here on Thursday. Read more
The Hindu 28 Jan 2016
Water harvesting, conservation movement launched in Rajasthan: Mukhya Mantri Jal Swavlamban Abhiyan (MJSA), described as the country's largest campaign of its kind towards water harvesting and conservation in rural areas, was launched by Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje on Wednesday. Read more
WILDLIFE & ENDANGERED SPECIES
The Hindustan Times 5 Jan 2016NTCA data puts tiger deaths at 69 last year, up from 2014: The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) revealed that 69 tigers died across the country in 2015, a marginal increase from the corresponding figures for 2014. According to tigernet, the official database on tiger mortality maintained by the NTCA Read more
Explaining how and why a man-eater tiger kills : The Rajasthan Forest Department has admitted to having declared Ranthambhore’s Tiger-24 a man-eater and moving it to an enclosure in Udaipur under public pressure, without following the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) laid down by the Read more
The Pioneer 7 Jan 2016
MM Hills can be declared tiger reserve: Study - A first ever study conducted by conservation biologist Sanjay Gubbi of the Nature Conservation Foundation at the Male Mahadeshwara (MM Hills) Wildlife Sanctuary and Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary, traditionally not known for tigers Read more
The Indian Express 14 Jan.2016
Why beaching of whales still baffles science: More than 100 short-finned pilot whales were stranded along a 15-km stretch of Manapad beach south of the port city of Thoothukudi (Tuticorin) in Tamil Nadu this week, and at least 60 died. How did the giant creatures show up in these shallow waters? How do whales find their way around the oceans? Read more
The Hindustan Times 20 Jan 2016
Project Tiger in danger as Centre cuts funding and states won’t step in: A massive fund crunch is starving India’s flagship tiger conservation programme. The Centre has decided to reduce its allocation from this financial year for the project to save the big cats with a clutch of national parks Read more
The Pioneer 28 Jan 2016
Indian rhino’s last refuge falls prey to poachers: The year began on a brutal note for the Asian one-horned rhinos with three incidents of poaching reported in a row in January. These consecutive killings of the species classified as vulnerable under the Red list of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) occurred in UNESCO heritage site of Kaziranga in Assam. Read more
