In the thickly forested region near the Muir woods situated at the direct north of San Francisco, Bill Merkle plays recorded Spotted Owl noises hoping to get a response from a real owl. Merkle is an ecologist working at the National Park Service. These owls are getting spotted lesser and lesser in the present day. The population of spotted owls is dwindling, and that too at a fast rate. Northern Spotted Owl was first given the spotlight in the 1990s when millions of land acres were devoted for the protection of the species by the federal authorities. At the time, wildlife groups and loggers had a heated battle regarding the habitat of the owls. The species has not been seen much in the aftermath. Spotted  [...]

5 among the 21 whale pod that were beached and stranded in the shallow seas of Florida Keys in the recent week will be shifted to Key Largo. They will be rehabilitated at the facility here, and the transfer will take place in the next couple of days. This was revealed by the concerned officials on Monday. Karrie Carnes, spokeswomen for the NOAA ( National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said that at the rehabilitation facility, whales will be able to avail for better treatment as well as better food. It was since Thursday last week that the group of twenty one pilot whales were stranded over the 19 kilo meter ( 12 mile ) area in the flats and shallows of the waters off the Cudjoe Key, which is literally a labyrinthine  [...]

Australia has been witness to a new phenomenon in its Fur seals. The young of the species are losing their furs. These seals depend on their furs to keep them warm in the chilly waters in the winter season. The condition is only seen in female seals aged 1 to 3. This is seen in the island Lady Julia Percy Island close to Tasmania. This is a detrimental condition, and appears to be a reducing factor in their population.  The condition is affecting large numbers of animals, and is affecting their health as well as said by Michael Lynch, veterinarian at Melbourne Zoo commented on the shedding seals. Australian fur seals were a source of fur, and were hunted for their coats almost to extinction in the 1800s. The population slowly came back, and they received full protection in 1975. The  [...]

The sawfish can be easily recognized by the rostrum, or the toothy nose. It is however an elusive species found in tropical rivers of the world. The species is undergoing a critical endangerment stage and continued threat which is a result of commercial fishing bycatch and poaching. The numbers have been dwindling over the years right to the point of extinction. The toothed nose that is a characteristic of the saw fish is also responsible for making it tangling in nets. Sawfish fins are a delicacy for soups in Asia, and the rostrum and other parts are used as traditional medicines. Sawfish are very popular for aquariums; however, due to the immense challenge that breeding and keeping these alive poses, this is not common. In fact, only one sawfish has been given birth to in captivity.  [...]

A study reported recently that the number of penguins in the western Antarctic region is falling due to the declining krill population. In the last thirty years or so of information that the study dealt with, the researchers found that the numbers of Adelie as well as chinstrap specie of penguin has been on the decline ever since nineteen eighty six. Krill is a main source of food for penguins and their availability is falling as a result of certain. Krill or the Antarctic Krill, which is known as Euphausia Superba among biologists is a 2 inch (6 cm) creature shaped like a shrimp. Krill is said to be one of the species that are most abundantly found on earth. The species are to be found in such large densities as close to thirty thousand creatures in a one cubic meter volume of sea  [...]