Animals are not ours for entertainment

Behind the scenes, elephant trainer Tim Frisco instructs would-be trainers how to dominate elephants and make them perform circus tricks. “Sink that hook into ’em. When you hear that screaming, then you know you got their attention.” An elephant trumpets in agony as Frisco’s bullhook, with its sharp metal hook and spiked end, tears through her sensitive skin. Frisco, a Carson & Barnes elephant trainer, learned the trade from his father, a former trainer for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Click here to watch the video.

The fact is, animals do not naturally ride bicycles, stand on their heads, balance on balls, or jump through rings of fire. To force them to perform these confusing and physically uncomfortable tricks, trainers use whips, tight collars, muzzles, electric prods, bull hooks, and other painful tools of the trade.

We applaud trapeze artists, jugglers, clowns, tightrope walkers, and acrobats, but let’s leave animals in peace. Sweden, Austria, Costa Rica, India, Finland, and Singapore have all banned or restricted the use of animals in entertainment—it’s time for the U.S. to do the same.

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A battle with global warming is won…

In the times when global warming is the issue in every people’s mouth, with the help of their donors RAN frequently runs full page advertisements in national newspapers and magazines. The problem now is that we need solutions, awareness is no longer enough.

And RAN fights for solutions. And wins.

“Last Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Massachusetts v. EPA, produced what some are calling its most important environmental ruling in a generation, telling the EPA that unless it determines that global warming causes no harm, it must begin regulating CO2 emissions.

The case began with a lawsuit in 1999 by environmental groups, later joined by a number of states, asserting that under the authority of the Clean Air Act, the EPA had to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from cars. The auto industry then joined in the lawsuit, coming to EPA’s defense.

The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers also brought a separate suit against California after the state passed its own law regulating CO2 emissions in 2002. The bill, AB 1493, sponsored by California Rep. Fran Pavley, requires new cars and trucks sold in California to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 22 percent by 2012 and 30 percent by 2016.

Detroit maintains that California has no right to make its own CO2 regulations because regulating CO2 has to mean regulating fuel economy and that is the prerogative of the Department of Transportation. On that basis, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers sued California and two states that adopted its regulations, Rhode Island and Vermont.”

April 9, 2007, Kelpie Wilson

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Fishing crisis, Global fisheries crisis

Seafood lovers have a lot of concerns: Wild-caught or farm-raised fish? Sustainably harvested or whatever is fresh? High mercury levels? The good news is that for most adults—save for those pregnant or nursing—a recent Harvard School of Public Health study found that benefits of eating fish, particularly those rich with omega-3 fatty acids, outweigh risks from contaminants such as mercury often found in them. The bad news: We’re eating fish nearly out of existence, and major stocks could collapse by mid-century if nations don’t curtail the harvest. Advocacy groups offer seafood guides to help buyers make informed decisions about fish consumption. Though lists change from year to year and vary by region, a few species high in omega-3s and low in contaminants come from well-managed fisheries and tend to make the grade across the board.

Choose Safe, Sustainable Fish
• Wild Alaska salmon
• Canned pink or sockeye salmon
• Anchovies
• Sardines
• Alaska sablefish (black cod)
• Atlantic herring
• Atlantic mackerel
• Farmed oysters

Avoid High-mercury Fish
• Tilefish (golden bass)
• King mackerel
• Shark
• Swordfish
• Freshwater sport fish caught in contaminated waters

Not All Fish Are Created Equal
While there are a few species to avoid, such as tilefish, shark, king mackerel, swordfish, and contaminated sport fish, eating seafood is generally good for you. Mercury poisoning, however, can be deadly, and mercury contamination can lead to a host of neurological problems.

A fish’s mercury level depends on a number of factors, including where the fish lives, how old it is, how big it is, and what it eats. Mercury travels up the food chain, so fish that eat other fish are more likely to be contaminated. Mercury levels accumulate over time, so older fish are more likely to have larger concentrations of mercury than younger members of the same species. That means smaller aquatic species (shrimp, scallops, tilapia) are safer bets to guard against contamination. Anchovies and sardines, being small and short-lived, also have low mercury levels. Large, predatory fish (large tuna, sharks, swordfish) contain higher levels of mercury. In fact, fish at the top of the food chain can contain mercury levels that are 10,000 to 100,000 times higher than those of their environments. This helps explain why sharks are on the list of high-mercury foods and wild salmon are not.

While the Harvard study stressed that the benefits of eating fish outweigh the risks, note that—in addition to pregnant and nursing women—small children and women of childbearing age should also be careful to avoid contaminated fish.

Subscribe to National Geographic magazine.

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Fish and Wildlife Service Granted Extension on Final Decision to Delist Bald Eagle

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that the final decision on whether to remove the bald eagle from the federal list of threatened and endangered species will be postponed. The Service has reached a court-approved agreement allowing the agency to make a final determination on the eagle’s status no later than June 29, 2007.

baby eagleThe Service had been under a court ordered deadline of February 16, 2007, to make a final decision on the eagle’s status. In January, the Service approached the plaintiff in that case to request an extension of the deadline. With the agreement of the plaintiff, the Service requested and the court approved the extension until June 29, 2007.

During the extension, the Service expects to develop a proposed rule that would authorize incidental take of bald eagles under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. The Service also intends to finalize voluntary Bald Eagle Management Guidelines and a regulatory definition of “disturb” under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.

The national symbol of the United States was in danger of extinction throughout the last 30 years. But how is it going now?

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Interspecies Sex: Evolution’s Hidden Secret?

The act of mating with a species other than your own may not be as ill advised or peculiar as it seems. Recent research indicates that hybridization is not only widespread in nature but it might also spawn many more new species than previously thought.

A growing number of studies has been presented as evidence that two animal species can combine to produce a third, sexually viable species in a process known as hybrid speciation. Newly identified examples include both insects and fish.

This evolutionary process, while known to be common in plants, has long been considered extremely rare among animals.

Animals are generally thought to evolve the opposite way, when a single species gradually splits into two over many generations.

But some scientists now believe that the behavior that has been called animals’ sexual blunders could be an important force in their evolution.

“Given the fact there have been several reported cases of hybrid speciation in animals, I think it’s possible that’s just the tip of the iceberg,” said biologist James Mallet of University College London in the United Kingdom.

Mallet said that advances in technologies for decoding genes are only now giving scientists the opportunity to make such discoveries.

Hybrid-formed species are usually extremely difficult to detect because of their close physical resemblance to their parent species, he said.

But today scientists are able to collect the detailed molecular data needed to identify previously unrecognized hybrids.

And the story goes on
James Owen for National Geographic News

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Is cloning an answer for the endangered species?

The gray wolf—a predator once hunted to near extinction in the United States—now joins a small but growing number of endangered species that have been cloned. South Korean scientists announced Monday that they duplicated two gray wolves using the same method that produced Dolly the sheep, the first successfully cloned mammal.

The process is known as somatic-cell nuclear transfer (SCNT).

“This study demonstrated that SCNT is a practical approach for conserving endangered canids [which include dogs, wolves, andfoxes],” wrote the research team, led by Byeong Chun Lee, a professor at Seoul National University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

In South Korea, the researchers said, gray wolves are rarely found in the wild and only a small number live in captivity.

The clones, named SnuWolf and SnuWolffy, were born in October 2005.

Researchers reportedly delayed the announcement because disgraced stem-cell researcher Woo Suk Hwang is listed as one of the study authors, which prompted additional verification to confirm the clones were real.

An investigation by Seoul National University officials last year found that Hwang fabricated key stem-cell research, including claims to have cloned the first human embryo in 2004.

News of the world’s first cloned wolves didn’t impress Peter Siminski, director of conservation and education at the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens in Palm Desert, California. More on National Geographic

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