AFP: World's 103 wild mountain antelopes face extinction: Kenya

AFP: World's 103 wild mountain antelopes face extinction: Kenya: "NAIROBI — Wildlife officials in Kenya warned Thursday that an antelope species, whose entire global wild population of 103 exists only in the east African country, was on the verge of extinction.
Habitat loss, genetic factors, predation and disease were threatening to wipe out the mountain bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci), the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) said in a statement.
The elusive mountain bongo is the largest mountain antelope and weighs up to 300 kilogrammes (660 pounds). It has white stripes against a chestnut brown hide and both males and females have twisted horns."

BioOne Online Journals - Tapirus pinchaque (Perissodactyla: Tapiridae)

BioOne Online Journals - Tapirus pinchaque (Perissodactyla: Tapiridae): "Tapirus pinchaque (Roulin, 1829), the mountain tapir, is considered the smallest and least specialized of the 4 species of Tapirus. It is restricted to parts of temperate areas from Colombia and Ecuador to extreme northwestern Peru."

BioOne Online Journals - Procapra picticaudata (Artiodactyla: Bovidae)

BioOne Online Journals - Procapra picticaudata (Artiodactyla: Bovidae): "Procapra picticaudata Hodgson, 1846, is commonly called the Tibetan gazelle, goa (=Tibetan), or zang yuan ling (= Chinese) and is monotypic. It is a high-elevation specialist endemic to the Tibetan Plateau where it prefers alpine meadow and alpine steppe but uses other lower-elevation plains and valleys."

Phylogenetic diversity does not capture body size variation at risk in the world's mammals — Proceedings B

Phylogenetic diversity does not capture body size variation at risk in the world's mammals — Proceedings B: "Mammals contribute to important ecosystem processes and services, but many mammalian species are threatened with extinction. We compare how global patterns in three measures of mammalian diversity—species richness, phylogenetic diversity (PD) and body mass variance (BMV)—would change if all currently threatened species were lost."

World Environment News - Woolly Mammoth Hunters Helped Change Climate - Planet Ark

World Environment News - Woolly Mammoth Hunters Helped Change Climate - Planet Ark: "Ancient hunters who stalked the world's last woolly mammoths likely helped warm the Earth's far northern latitudes thousands of years before humans began burning fossil fuels, according to a study of prehistoric climate change.

The demise of the leaf-chomping woolly mammoths contributed to a proliferation of dwarf birch trees in and around the Arctic, darkening a largely barren, reflective landscape and accelerating a rise in temperatures across the polar north, researchers at the Carnegie Institution for Science concluded"

ScienceDirect - Current Biology : Hyena societies

Current Biology : Hyena societies: "Although the family Hyaenidae contains only four living species, and is therefore one of the smallest among mammalian carnivores, it is remarkable for its ecological and social diversity, which surpasses that of much larger families such as canids and felids. The four extant hyena species represent the last remnants of a family that was once large and diverse"

2nd carcass of endangered rhino found in Indonesia

The Associated Press: 2nd carcass of endangered rhino found in Indonesia: "JAKARTA, Indonesia — Authorities have recovered the carcass of a Javan Rhinoceros, world's most endangered mammal, in a national park in Indonesia, the second found dead in less than a month, a conservationist said Tuesday.
The remains were discovered Monday in Ujung Kulon National Park on Java island,"

CBC News - World - Rare rhinos victims of Nepal's instability

CBC News - World - Rare rhinos victims of Nepal's instability: "Eight rhinos have been killed in less than a month, according to the Times of India, which reported that dozens of school children attended a gathering in Kathmandu on Sunday, bearing placards demanding action against poachers. Twenty-eight rhinos have been killed in the past 11 months.

The animals are poached for their horn which is believed to have medicinal value and is coveted as an ornamental dagger handle.

At their most critical point, there were only 200 left in the wild. Stronger and better-enforced conservation laws over the last few years have helped increase their numbers to just under 500 in Nepal's tall grasslands and its forests in the Himalayan foothills. Another 2,000 live in the adjacent jungles of India."

Lessons Learned from Human Dimensions of Chronic Wasting Disease Research - Human Dimensions of Wildlife: An International Journal

Lessons Learned from Human Dimensions of Chronic Wasting Disease Research - Human Dimensions of Wildlife: An International Journal: "Although the human dimensions (HD) of chronic wasting disease (CWD) research is relatively new, at least 38 journal articles have been published in the last seven years. This article synthesizes seven lessons learned from HD of CWD research (e.g., hunters vary in their behavioral response to CWD and perceived human health risks; agency trust can influence behavior and acceptance of management actions; not all management actions are equally acceptable and/or effective)"

Protector of African Elephants Awarded Top Animal Conservation Prize | Africa | English

Protector of African Elephants Awarded Top Animal Conservation Prize | Africa | English: "A man who’s devoted his life to saving Africa’s elephants is the winner of this year’s Indianapolis Prize. Iain Douglas-Hamilton receives $100,000 for “outstanding achievement in animal conservation.”