I love to travel, mainly to Africa where I was born, I enjoy reading and playing bridge. I go for rambles in the countryside. I collect stamps and go to T'ai Chi classes. I love my two cats and my garden birds. I adore the African wildlife and try to help Conservation groups.
Wedding rings duties for barn owl !
A barn owl has been entrusted with a very special task at a wedding - flying in the rings for the bride and groom. Three-year-old Casber will swoop down the aisle to give the rings to the best man at the wedding of bird owner Islwyn Jones's daughter Jenni in Denbighshire. Mr Jones said Casber has been training hard and is confident the wedding will go smoothly at Ruthin register office.
Jenni, 22, who is marrying Stuart Desborough, said: "It will be unique". Mr Jones, of Llanfihangel Glyn Myfyr, near Ruthin, has been dubbed the bird man of north Wales. He said: "Casber is highly trained. He will not lose the rings. He knows what to do, "He will fly the rings in to the happy couple to complete their special day."
Handler Katie Townend will be in charge of flying Casber at the wedding on 20 January while proud Islwyn will give his daughter away. Jenni, a learning support assistant at Brynhyfryd School in Ruthin, said: "Casber will bring the rings in for the best man. It will be lovely. I can't wait." She said that she had every confidence in her father and his birds and knew nothing would go wrong.
"It will be lovely to see and very interesting," she said. "There is no chance of him disappearing with the rings. I have watched him train. It's going to be brilliant." The couple are getting married at Ruthin Register Office with a celebration at Faenol Fawr at Bodelwyddan. Mr Jones said it was only right that Casber should be at his daughter's wedding and taking part in the marriage service.
His birds of prey helped turn his life around after serious injury in a car crash and he now helps others get confidence to return to work through his birds. He had bred and collected various species of birds of prey on his farm, and organises falconry experience days.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Croatia minister goes in hunt row !
Croatian interior minister Ivica Kirin has resigned after being pictured on a boar hunt with a war crimes suspect. "I... offer my apology to all those that might have been harmed," Mr Kirin said in a resignation letter.
Croatian newspapers published pictures of him out hunting before Christmas with former police chief Mladen Markac, who is accused of massacring Serbs. The international war crimes tribunal has summoned Mr Markac to the Hague for breaking the terms of his parole. These included not leaving his home in the capital, Zagreb, without permission.
Croatian police say they have since arrested him without any problem. As interior minister, it was one of Mr Kirin's duties to ensure Mr Markac obeyed his parole conditions. Hence his difficulty when newspapers carried photographs of the two men in a boar-hunting party in Bilogora, in north-west Croatia. "I consider (resignation) it a moral act and my duty due to circumstances in which I was involved regarding the case of General Markac," Mr Kirin said in his letter.
Mr Markac, 52, is accused with several other former security figures with involvement in a plan to drive ethnic Serbs from the Krajina region in 1995, when he was commander of police special forces. More than 150 Serb civilians were killed in the operation, which came towards the end of Croatia's war of independence during the wars that accompanied the break-up of the former Yugoslavia.
Mr Markac surrendered to the international criminal tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in 2004. He was allowed to return to Croatia on parole pending trial.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Tiger man 'tried to save friend' !
Police in California say the man killed by a tiger in a San Francisco zoo on Christmas Day may have died trying to save his friend's life. Police say Carlos Sousa, 17, shouted in an attempt to distract the 300lb (136kg) tiger Tatiana as it clawed his friend Kulbir Dhaliwal. The animal then killed Mr Sousa with a slash across his throat, allowing Kulbir and his brother Paul to escape.
The zoo has admitted that the wall around Tatiana's enclosure was too low. Police are still investigating just how the four-year-old Siberian tiger escaped from her enclosure as the zoo was closing for the evening.
But city police chief Heather Fong distanced herself from reports that police believed the young men may have taunted or provoked the tiger. She said there was no evidence anyone had dangled a leg through a rail into the tiger's enclosure.
Instead, police said the two friends were trying to save Kulbir Dhaliwal's life as the tiger clawed and bit him. When the tiger turned its attention to Mr Sousa, the two brothers, aged 23 and 19, ran towards a cafe, where they apparently hoped to find help. After killing Mr Sousa the tiger then followed the trail of blood the Dhaliwals left.
Police shot it dead as it loomed over one of its victims before it could finish him off. The Dhaliwals were both badly wounded but are expected to make a full recovery. Mr Sousa's father, Carlos Sr, is quoted as saying: "He didn't run. He tried to help his friend, and it was him that ended getting it the worst."
Zoo director Manuel Mollinedo says it is becoming increasingly clear that the tiger must have leaped or climbed out of its enclosure. And he admitted that that the wall around it measured 12.5ft (3.81m), and not 18ft (5.5m), as he previously said.
The main accrediting agency for United States zoos recommends that the minimum height for walls at a tiger exhibit should be 16.4ft (5m). But Mr Mollinedo said the enclosure had passed safety inspections without meeting any objections. "Obviously now that something's happened, we're going to be revisiting the actual height," he added.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Woman's river ordeal to save dog !
A woman has survived after jumping into the River Stour to rescue her dog, just weeks after another woman died in the same Dorset river rescuing her pet. A man found the 25-year-old woman, from Muscliffe, Bournemouth, clinging onto the river bank at Northbourne. She had dived in and saved the spaniel while out walking on Friday. Caroline Peck died trying to rescue her dog at Blandford, 14 miles further along the river on 10 December. Her golden labrador climbed out safely.
In the latest rescue, the woman managed to hoist her dog, Riley, onto the bank but then was unable to get out herself. Fortunately, a passer-by saw her go into the river and came across to help, using a discarded length of pipe for her to grab.
Richard Chave, from Dorset Fire and Rescue, said: "She was stuck in the mud and undergrowth about waist deep and was unable to get out - the river was very cold and swollen and would easily have carried her away.
"Sadly, this does happen quite often and a lady lost her life in a very similar situation just a few weeks ago trying to rescue her dog. "The message here is so very simple: Never, ever go into water to rescue any animal - call the RSPCA or fire service if it is urgent and we will judge each situation on its merits."
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Family dog kills one-year-old boy !
Archie-Lee Hirst died from multiple injuries.A one-year-old boy has died after being attacked by a pet rottweiler at his grandparents' home, police have said. Archie-Lee Andrew Hirst was snatched from the arms of a seven-year-old girl in the yard of the house in Chald Lane, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, on Friday. He was taken to hospital with serious injuries but died later.
The dog was shot at the scene by a police marksman. It was destroyed to ensure the safety of others at the address, a police spokesman said. The boy's family, including his teenage mother, are now receiving support from specially-trained officers, he said.
Det Supt Steve Payne, from West Yorkshire Police, said the boy was staying with his grandparents during the Christmas holidays. He said: "What we know at this time is that the dog was a family pet, a two-and-a-half year old female rottweiler, which the family had owned for about six months.
"Although the dog lived in the yard of the premises, it had interacted with members of the family including children, and another dog and cat at the house, and had shown no previous signs of any aggression."Police said the dog lived in the back yard of the house
Mr Payne said the boy's aunt, aged 16, was caring for him and her two sisters, aged six and seven, in the house. The 16-year-old girl was upstairs when the seven-year-old carried the baby outside to stroke the dog. Mr Payne said: "Without any warning, the dog snatched the baby from the youngster's arms and carried him into the yard." He said the 16-year-old tried to rescue the baby but was unable to do so, despite striking the dog several times.
Paramedics and police arrived within six minutes following an emergency call to police at 1530 GMT, he said. The baby was taken to Pinderfields General Infirmary where he was pronounced dead. The boy's parents were at a nearby property at the time. A post-mortem examination has shown Archie-Lee died from multiple injuries consistent with a dog attack.
The death follows the unlawful killing of five-year-old Ellie Lawrenson who was killed by her uncle's dog in St Helen's on New Year's Day 2007. The illegal pit bull terrier called Reuben attacked Ellie at the home of her grandmother, Jackie Simpson, who was later found not guilty of manslaughter through gross negligence.
Ellie's uncle Kiel Simpson, 24, was jailed for eight weeks at Liverpool Magistrates' Court in May after admitting owning a dog banned under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991. Chris Window, from the Rottweiler Club, said it was very uncommon for attacks of this nature to take place. But he said young children should never be left alone with any large breed of dog.
"All breeds of dogs are animals. They do revert to animal instincts. If a dog is confronted with a situation they are not used to, they can react unexpectedly."
NNC NEWS REPORT.
Rare birds hit by poisoning rise.
Red kites are scavengers which eat already dead animals. Some of Scotland's rarest birds have been hit by an increase in poisoning cases, according to nature campaigners. New figures have showed that 2007 was one of the worst years for the poisoning of red kites. The Scottish Agricultural Science Agency confirmed that 11 red kites died as a result of deliberate poisoning this year.
However RSPB Scotland believes the total could be higher, with many birds being deliberately hidden. Officials have also pointed out that some remains were too badly decomposed for a conclusive post-mortem examination to be held.
Five of the dead birds were found in Perthshire, two in Stirlingshire, and one each in Inverness-shire, South Lanarkshire, Nairn and Moray.The RSPB Scotland also said that nine of the birds who had been killed in this way were found on shooting estates, claiming that illegal poison baits are still put down on a small number of estates.
Duncan Orr-Ewing, head of species and land management at RSPB Scotland, said:"2007 has seen a big resurgence of poisoning activity which has had a devastating impact on some of our rarest birds of prey. "This regrettable activity has hit red kites particularly hard, but they are not the only victims. "Everyone will recall that in August this year the poisoners succeeded in killing one half of the last remaining breeding pair of golden eagles in the Scottish Borders." He added: "We have seen recent welcome statements from land-owning bodies condemning wildlife crime. "It is time for this to be turned into real action on the ground, and landowners must take more responsibility for the actions of their employees to stamp out this practice once and for all."
Environment Minister Mike Russell said: "This was an appalling year for the persecution of birds of prey in Scotland, not least the red kite. "Since its reintroduction, this iconic bird has become a vital part of our biodiversity and deliberately killing them is totally unacceptable." He added: "A review of the investigation and prosecution of wildlife crime is under way, which I hope will go some way to stamping out these disgraceful incidents."
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Beavers could be released in 2009.
About 20 beavers would be brought to Scotland from Norway.Plans are in the pipeline for beavers to be released into the Scottish wild for the first time in 500 years. Wildlife bodies have asked the Scottish Government for a licence to allow about 20 beavers to be set free in Argyll in 2009. The Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland believe the animals will improve the eco-system and boost tourism. Beavers were hunted to extinction in Scotland in the 16th Century.
The mammals, best known for their dam building and tree felling skills, have been successfully reintroduced elsewhere in Europe, including parts of Germany and the Netherlands. The licence application submitted to the Scottish Government is for a trial reintroduction of European beavers in the Knapdale Forest in Mid-Argyll. The bid follows the publication of the results of a two-month long local consultation.
The survey showed almost three quarters of people in Mid-Argyll backed the beaver plan, but more than half of those living directly around Knapdale were opposed to the scheme. Beavers are thought to play an important role in aquatic and wetland eco-systems, and on the wider biodiversity of the area in which they live.
Allan Bantick, chairman of the Beaver Project Steering Group and trustee of the Scottish Wildlife Trust, said: "We are delighted that this licence application has now been submitted and we look forward to conducting a full scientific trial of the first formal reintroduction of a native mammal into the wild in the UK.
"The first beavers could be reintroduced to Mid-Argyll in spring 2009. "Once we get the green light from the Scottish Government we will develop the detailed plan for the trial taking into consideration issues raised during the consultation." David Windmill, Chief Executive of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, said: "We are very keen to see this trial go ahead. "We will work with all the various stakeholders involved in the project to make it a success and to benefit from the contribution the beaver can make to improving our natural ecosystems and habitats as well as encouraging tourism. "We are very pleased to have so much support for this project and anticipate a great deal of public interest in the long awaited return of the beaver to Scotland."
Approval for the trial reintroduction would see 15 to 20 beavers from Norway introduced to the trial site following a period of quarantine. The ultimate aim of the trial would be to monitor the success and impact of the beaver reintroduction before the animal is released elsewhere in Scotland. In January 2007, the Scottish Government and Scottish Natural Heritage launched a wildlife strategy that included restoring the European beaver to Scotland.
The Scottish Beaver Trial partnership hopes that the government will make its decision on the licence application in spring 2008. A previous licence application for a trial reintroduction of beaver in Knapdale, submitted by Scottish Natural Heritage was rejected in 2005.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Fat squirrel trapped behind bars !
A grey squirrel had to be rescued from a bird feeder as it had gorged on so many nuts it could not squeeze back out through the bars. A resident in Christchurch, Dorset alerted the RSPCA after finding it stuck in the peanut-filled feeder. Insp Graham Hammond said that the squirrel had "eyes bigger than its stomach" and had lost its figure while feasting in the wire-frame last week. He said it was "quite an unusual rescue".
"I think this squirrel had eyes bigger than its stomach but after it had stuffed itself with nuts, it had a stomach too large to escape the feeder - one which ironically, was designed to be squirrel-proof," he said. Insp Hammond said he managed to widen the gaps between two of the bars with the aid of a crow-bar and a grasper - to release the squirrel, which was not hurt. "As soon as the gap increased he shot off. I was slightly insulted," he added.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Hindus protest over cow slaughter !
Hundreds of Hindus staged a protest over allegations that the RSPCA killed their 13-year-old sacred cow by lethal injection while they worshipped. The group was accused of secretly putting down a Belgian blue-jersey cross, while Hindus at Bhaktivedanta Manor, Herts, were at prayer.
But the RSPCA denied the allegation, stating they informed staff on site "exactly" what would happen. It added that it avoided killing the cow during prayer hours.
Some 200 delegates were sent to RSPCA headquarters in Horsham, Surrey, on Wednesday after the cow called Gangotri was given a lethal injection. Another 700 Hindus held prayers at the Manor.
Vinay Tanna, temple spokesperson, said: "The RSPCA professes to be a compassionate organisation, but their starting point is to kill first. Ours is to tend the animal's needs and treat it to get better.
"Gangotri was taken care of by two herdsmen 24 hours a day, and was under the supervision of two vets, both of whom did not recommend the cow be euthanised."
Cows are sacred to Hindus, and the killing of one is considered sacrilege.
The temple runs The Cow Protection Project and allows old cows and bulls to die naturally.
Gangotri was described by Hindu community leader Gauri Das as being sick but not suffering from any disease.
The RSPCA said it was sympathetic towards to representatives of Bhaktivedanta Manor, but that it put animal welfare first.
In a statement, it said: "It is sad we had to take this action, but the most important things was that this animal was suffering and to allow this situation to continue would have been wrong.
"The RSPCA acted on the advice of three competent veterinary surgeons, all of which concurred that the animal was suffering and should be euthanised immediately.
"The cow was put to sleep under veterinary supervision and the method used was completely humane, causing the cow no extra suffering.
"The allegation of a history of mercy killings is entirely unsubstantiated. The RSPCA puts animals to sleep only as a last resort and then only to prevent them suffering further."
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Fox hunters claim strong turnout !
Boxing Day hunts have been taking place across the UK on what is traditionally the busiest day of the hunting year. The Countryside Alliance said more than a quarter of a million people participated in over 300 such events. Hunting with dogs was banned in 2005. Under the ban, dogs can still be used to follow a scent - but cannot be used to kill the fox.
Hunt supporters want to see the law repealed, but anti-hunting groups say public opinion strongly backs the ban. People who support the ban say the practice is cruel and outdated.
However, Richard Dodd, of Countryside Alliance described the legislation as a "dog's dinner" and was "dreamt up by people who know nothing about the countryside". Calling for the ban to be repealed, he said: "The law is so bad we found loopholes. We found ways round it and we continue in the hope that we get it changed."
And Tim Bonner, also of the group, said more people than ever are getting involved. He told the BBC: "We're seeing hunting as optimistic as it has been for a decade - and looking forward to this law being scrapped. "A lot of the support you'll see today is about people who don't like the fact that this is an illiberal piece of legislation, they don't like the fact that the reasons for it were completely unjustified. "So they're coming out to support the rights of individuals to carry out a perfectly reasonable activity in the countryside."
However, Mike Hobday - who speaks for The League Against Cruel Sports - said that he was sceptical of claims that hunting is undergoing a revival and doubted that the Countryside Alliance would succeed in getting the ban overturned.
He told BBC Radio 5 Live: "What we hope is that the British public will continue to take the view that just as there are laws to support domestic animals from cruelty, that there are [laws protecting] farm animals from cruelty, so will support the laws that protect wild animals from cruelty.
"There is no reason for people to go out there and break the Hunting Act. They can go drag hunting, they can follow an artificial scent. They can have all the fun they want in the countryside without engaging in cruelty."
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Tiger attacks visitors at US zoo !
The injured victims are described as being in a critical condition. One person has been killed and two others injured after a tiger escaped from its cage at San Francisco Zoo. All of the victims were visitors to the zoo, a spokesman for San Francisco emergency services said.
The Siberian tiger, named Tatiana, was the same one that mauled a keeper just before Christmas last year. It has now been shot dead. The incident occurred as the zoo was closing around 1700 (0100 GMT). It is not clear how the cat escaped its pen.
Emergency services spokesman Lt Ken Smith said that they were called to the zoo at 1715 following a report that a person had been attacked by a tiger. In response the zoo was evacuated and armed police officers and firefighters sent to the scene.
There were not many visitors to the zoo on Christmas Day, and it was dark by the time police arrived. A police spokesman said officers found the dead body of one of the victims right outside the tiger's enclosure. Then they saw the second victim, spokesman Steve Mannina told the Associated Press news agency.
He was about 300 metres away, in front of a cafe, sitting on the ground, with blood running from gashes in his head. Tatiana sat next to him, and suddenly attacked him again, Mr Mannina said. Officers approached, and fired at the animal when it began to advance towards them. The spokesman did not confirm, but it was reported the third victim was found in the cafe. The three victims were men in their 20s, the spokesman said.
The two injured people were described as being in a critical condition. Margie Shafer, a reporter from local radio station KCBS, said that there were unconfirmed reports that the tiger had jumped a moat to make its escape.
San Francisco Zoo is home to both Siberian and Sumatran tigers. In December 2006, a keeper at the zoo had her arm severely lacerated when Tatiana reached through the bars of her cage and mauled her during a public feeding. As a result of that attack the zoo built a new feeding enclosure in its Lion House to protect the trainers as they carried out feedings.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Tiger urine to scare killer elephant !
By Amarnath Tewary
Forest officials in eastern India have advised villagers to stock tiger urine and excrement to scare away a killer elephant and his marauding herd. The elephant, named after al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, and his herd have trampled seven people to death in the past three months in Jharkhand. Forest officials say elephants stay away from areas frequented by tigers.
Humans and elephants have come into greater conflict in recent years as man encroaches on jungle territories. Jhrakhand forest officials said they would collect the tiger excreta from the state's zoos and distribute it to the villagers in areas where Laden's herd is active.
"Elephants usually don't venture into the areas where tigers live. And the elephants can smell from far away places," district forest officer Paritosh Upadhayay told the BBC. Tribal villagers in areas where the rogue elephants are active have already begun going into the jungle to collect tiger excreta. Forest officials have also asked them not to store mahua, a local brew, inside their huts as Laden and his herd have attacked homes storing the alcohol in the past.
The elephant population in Jharkhand is declining.Forest officials have also asked them not to venture into forests after dusk, and sought the installation of solar powered lights in the affected villages. "These instructions have worked a bit as the numbers of deaths have been reduced," said Mr Upadhayay.
The governments of Jharkhand and neighbouring West Bengal state have been working jointly to trap Laden and his herd, but the killer elephant is proving to be elusive. Officials said about 400 people had died of elephant attacks and more than 700 had been injured in the last six years in Jharkhand. About 10 elephants have been killed by poachers in the area during the same period, officials say.
According to a census conducted in May, the number of elephants in Jharkhand has declined from 772 to 622 animals. A killer elephant, also named after the al-Qaeda leader, was shot dead in north-eastern Assam state in May last year.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Rare Siberian tigers found dead !By Quentin Sommerville -BBC News
Two Siberian tiger cubs have been found dead in a refrigerator at a Chinese zoo less than a week after another incident involving the endangered species. They were found in a ticketing office at a wildlife park in China's central Hubei province. Tiger body parts are treasured as medicines in China.
On Thursday a female Siberian tiger was found dead in the same area. Thieves had broken into its cage, tranquillised the animal, then butchered it. That tiger's remains were found by zoo keepers. It had been beheaded and skinned, and its legs had been removed. Only an estimated 400 Siberian tigers still remain in the wild.
China was once the biggest market for tiger parts, which are prized for their medicinal qualities. Tiger fur is also a status symbol in some parts of the country. But Beijing banned domestic trade in all tigers in 1993. Tiger parts are now largely unavailable from traditional chemists.
However, the country has pushed for a reopening of the business, based on farm-bred, captive animals.
Around a dozen private tiger farms operate under government licence. Most have been heavily criticised for the poor conditions of their animals.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Wild boar killed in French shop.
French police have riddled a wild boar with bullets after it got into a clothes shop in the city of Poitiers, forcing customers to flee. The boar, weighing 90kg (198lb), was shot after it began charging at police, the French news agency AFP reported.
The incident happened on Saturday near a busy hypermarket on the edge of the city, in central France.Fifteen people were evacuated and the shop reopened two hours later. Two other boars were seen in the area. The boars are believed to be part of a larger group that forestry workers are trying to relocate.
Local police said the officers who opened fire were not used to dealing with such incidents.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Not one but 'six giraffe species' !
Anna-Marie Lever - Science and nature reporter, BBC News.
The world's tallest animal, the giraffe, may actually be several species, a study has found. A report in BMC Biology uses genetic evidence to show that there may be at least six species of giraffe in Africa. Currently giraffes are considered to represent a single species classified into multiple subspecies.
The study shows geographic variation in hair coat colour is evident across the giraffe's range in sub-Saharan Africa, suggesting reproductive isolation. "Using molecular techniques we found that giraffes can be classified into six groups that are reproductively isolated and not interbreeding," David Brown, the lead author of the study and a geneticist at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), told BBC News. "The results were a surprise because although the giraffes look different, if you put them in zoos, they breed freely."
The study also found that the two giraffe subspecies that live closest to each other - the reticulated giraffe (Currently: Giraffa camelopardalis reticulate) in North Kenya, which has reddish round spots; and the Maasai giraffe (Currently: Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) in South Kenya - separated 0.5 to 1.5 million years ago.
SOME GIRAFFE FACTS
The familiar animals can grow up to 6m (20ft) in height
Their remarkable tongues grow up to 45cm (18in) long
Adult giraffes can weigh in excess of 1,000kg (2,200lbs)
Long legs enable speeds of up to 35miles/hour (55km/h)
These results are interesting as giraffes are highly mobile animals. They frequently range over several hundred square kilometres and are capable of long distance movements of some 50-300km (30-170 miles), which means different populations are likely to meet.
Mr Brown added: "There are no rivers or forests to prevent breeding, but some evolutionary process is keeping the two groups reproductively separated." The researchers have suggested this separation may be being driven by ecological differences, such as differences in vegetation at a micro-level, or even sexual selection. "The female Maasai giraffe may be looking at the male reticulated giraffe and thinking, 'I don't look like you; I don't want to mate with you'," Mr Brown explained.
Mr Brown also highlighted the conservation implications of this study: "Lumping all giraffes into one species obscures the reality that some kinds of giraffe are on the brink. "Some of these populations number only a few hundred individuals and need immediate protection." Over the past decade there has been a 30% drop in giraffe numbers, with total numbers under 100,000.
It is hoped that classifying current subspecies as fully fledged species will help inform conservation plans to save the most threatened populations. These include:
The Nigerian giraffe (Currently: Giraffa camelopardalis peralta). The last 160 individuals are found in found in West and Central Africa.
The Rothschild giraffe (Currently: Giraffa camelopardalis rothschildi). The last few hundred can only be found in a few protected areas in Kenya and in Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda.
The animals' status is currently under review by an International Giraffe Working Group (IGWG). Its evidence will inform the IUCN Red List of threatened and endangered species. The genetic research was supported by the US-based Wildlife Conservation Society.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Japan drops humpback whale hunt.
Japan has said the hunt would be too small to affect whale numbers. A controversial Japanese mission to hunt humpback whales in the Antarctic has been temporarily abandoned, a top government official says. Nobutaka Machimura said the humpback hunt would not go ahead - although the fleet will still hunt about 1,000 other whales in the area.
The BBC's Chris Hogg, in Tokyo, says Japan is now unlikely to chase the humpbacks for at least a year. The move comes after pressure from the International Whaling Commission (IWC). Japan is regularly condemned for its annual whaling missions.
But this year's Antarctic expedition was particularly controversial because, in addition to 935 minke whales and 50 fin whales, the fleet intended to kill up to 50 humpbacks. It was the first time Japan had targeted the humpbacks since a moratorium was introduced in the mid-1960s - Foreign Minister Stephen Smith welcomed Japan's decision. But he reiterated Canberra's view that there was no credible reason for Japan to hunt any species of whale, and pledged to keep up diplomaticwhen the species had been hunted almost to extinction.
Japan says whaling is necessary for scientific research, but other countries say the same goals could be achieved using non-lethal techniques. "Japan has decided not to catch humpback whales for one year or two," Mr Machimura told reporters. He said the decision had been reached after a meeting with the IWC.
Mr Machimura said the IWC had not been "functioning normally", claiming that the commission had been distorted by ideology. He said Japan would suspend the humpback whale hunt while the IWC held talks on "normalising" its functions.
Australia had been particularly critical of the humpback hunt, and efforts to prevent further missions.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Whale 'missing link' discovered !
By Helen Briggs - Science reporter, BBC News.
The animal was small, stocky and about the size of a raccoon. The whale is descended from a deer-like animal that lived 48 million years ago, according to fossil evidence. Remains found in the Kashmir region of India suggest the fox-sized mammal is the long-sought land-based ancestor of whales, dolphins and porpoises.
Research in Nature suggests the animal lived mainly on land but dived into water to escape predators. Whales are known to be descended from land-dwellers but the "missing link" has been a mystery until now. Although Indonyus, as it is known, looks nothing like the whales of today, it shares certain anatomical features.
The structures of its skull and ear are similar to those of early whales, and like other animals that spend a lot of time in water, it had thickened bones that provided ballast to keep its feet anchored in shallow water.
"We've found the closest extinct relative to whales and it is closer than any living relative," said study leader Professor Hans Thewissen of the Department of Anatomy at Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine in Ohio, US.
Indonyus belongs to an ancient order of mammals that had two or four toes on each foot. Modern day representatives of the group include camels, pigs, and hippopotamuses. DNA studies show that hippos are in fact closely related to modern whales. They do not appear in the fossil record, however, until about 15 million years ago, some 35 million years after the cetaceans originated in south Asia.
This led Professor Thewissen and his team to search for an older land-based ancestor that would fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge of the whale's dramatic evolutionary journey from land to sea.
After seeing loose teeth and fragments of jaw bones found by the late Indian geologist A Ranga Rao some 25 years ago, Professor Thewissen obtained rock samples from Rao's private collection. They harboured a treasure trove of complete Indohyus fossils, including skulls and leg bones.
The stable-oxygen-isotope composition of its teeth suggest that the animal spent much of its time in water. Some have assumed that the ancestor of whales first took to the water to feed on fish but the latest evidence suggests otherwise.
"The new model is that initially they were small deer-like animals that took to the water to avoid predators," Professor Thewissen told BBC News. "Then they started living in water, and then they switched their diet to become carnivores."
Although the behaviour and habits of Indohyus appear somewhat strange, there is a modern day parallel in the African mousedeer (chevrotain). The mousedeer lives on land, but is known to leap into the water to avoid predators such as eagles.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Racehorse winning secret revealed !
Breeders are prepared to spend vast sums on trusted stallions. The offspring of expensive stallions owe their success more to how they are reared, trained and ridden than good genes, a study has found. Only 10% of a horse's lifetime winnings can be attributed to their bloodline, research in Biology Letters shows.
Edinburgh scientists compared the stud fees, winnings and earnings of more than 4,000 racehorses since 1922. They found that the vast sums breeders are prepared to pay for top stallions do not guarantee the best genes. The research was carried out by evolutionary biologists Alastair Wilson and Andrew Rambaut at the University of Edinburgh. They found that while there was genetic variance in the quality of stallions at stud, this was not reflected in the size of the horse's stud fee.
"There are good genes out there to be bought but they don't necessarily come with the highest price tag," Dr Alastair Wilson told the BBC News website. "It seems much more likely that people who can afford to pay high stud fees can also afford to manage and train their horses well."
The offspring of expensive stallions did tend to win more over their lifetime, he said, but genes played only a small role. By far the biggest factor was the horse's environment - the way they were trained, the choice of races entered and which jockeys were employed, Dr Wilson added. The findings may have parallels in the natural world, he added, in how signals of male genetic quality - such as the size and shape of a peacock's tail - are used by females to select a mate.
In this context, where the breeder was selecting the horse, fees paid for a stallion were not an honest signal of genetic quality, the researchers said. Full details of the research are published in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Badger culls 'boost fox numbers' !
By Paul Rincon - Science reporter, BBC News.
Culling badgers in order to control bovine tuberculosis (bTB) can cause a doubling in fox numbers, UK government scientists have found. This could impact on livestock farming and conservation, the authors write in Biology Letters journal. The researchers looked at effects on foxes during the badger culling trials in England between 1998 and 2006. Their figures show that intensive culling of badgers resulted in roughly one extra fox per square kilometre.
Red foxes are of concern to farmers and conservationists alike because they prey on livestock, ground-nesting birds and brown hares. They are widely culled by farmers and gamekeepers. Many farmers blame badgers for a sharp increase of bTB in their herds. But culling the animals remains a controversial option. The Randomised Badger Culling Trial (RBCT) was set up to investigate how bTB spread between cattle, badgers and other wildlife. It also enabled scientists to assess the effects of badger culls on other species sharing the same ecosystem.
It was understood that red foxes might be affected because the foxes use badger setts as breeding dens and share a similar diet - suggesting the two species may compete for food. The researchers from Defra's Central Science Laboratory in York and the University of Aberdeen established four separate study zones across five English counties.
Each of the four zones contained a "treatment" area (where badgers were culled) and a "control" area (where no culling took place). They then compared what happened in the treatment areas with the control areas. Lead author Iain Trewby said the experiment had been designed to control other factors which can affect fox densities, so the researchers could ensure any changes they saw were due to the culling of badgers.
"What we saw was an increase of fox numbers in the culled areas," Mr Trewby, from the Central Science Laboratory, told BBC News. He added: "Whether this increase that we've seen here is enough to impact on other species in the ecosystem, we can't say. But all these factors need to be taken into account when you're considering badger culls."
The National Farmers' Union (NFU) believes a cull is necessary to curb TB in cattle. About 2,500 cattle a year get bTB, and some 30,000 stock are killed every year because of the disease, according to the NFU.
Mr Trewby said: "Obviously it is a contentious issue whether foxes have a significant impact on farming. They may have an impact, or there may be increased mortality, but that's something we can't comment on at the moment."
Rosie Woodroffe, senior research fellow at the Zoological Society of London, commented: "I think it is another aspect of badger culling that needs to be taken into account in deciding on the modest benefits of culling badgers set against a number of costs."
The RBCT produced mixed evidence on the likely impact of culls. The Independent Scientific Group (ISG) report on the trial found badgers were a continuing source of infection for cattle, but also said culling them would have to be so extensive and co-ordinated it would be uneconomical.
Dr Woodroffe, who is a member of the ISG, said: "What we concluded was that the only way you could have even a modest benefit for control of cattle TB was by culling badgers on an extremely large geographic scale, over long periods of time in a highly co-ordinated way.
She added: "If you don't do it in that way, you actually make it worse. Badgers are social and highly territorial. This limits the spread of disease because infected badgers are mainly going to interact with their own group.
"When you cull the badgers, you break down that territoriality, so the badgers are ranging more widely and meeting more herds of cattle. But they are also more likely to be interacting with what used to be neighbouring social groups."
Nonetheless, Professor Sir David King, then the government's chief scientist, advised ministers to push ahead with a cull. In November, Sir David told BBC News: "If we don't do this, we are actually leaving a disease to spread through the animals in the UK at increasing cost to the taxpayer and at a devastating cost to the farming community."
Foxes are also of concern because they would be principal vectors in the event of a rabies outbreak and a source of the parasitic worm Trichenella.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Giant rat found in 'lost world' !
A giant rodent five times the size of a common rat has been discovered in the mountainous jungles of Indonesia. The 1.4kg Mallomys giant rat is one of two species of mammal thought to be new to science documented on an expedition to an area described as a "lost world".
Conservationists also found a pygmy possum - one of the world's smallest marsupials - on the trip to the remote northern region of the Papua province.
Both are currently being studied to establish whether they are new species. Scientists on the trip, organised by Conservation International (CI), also recorded the mating displays of several rare birds for the first time. "It's comforting to know that there is a place on Earth so isolated that it remains the absolute realm of wild nature," said Bruce Beehler, who led the expedition.
The trip was the second time that CI had visited the Foja Mountains, part of the Mamberamo Basin, the largest pristine tropical forest in the Asia Pacific region. In 2005, the area was dubbed a "lost world" after scientists discovered dozens of new plants and animals in the dense jungle.
During the most recent trip, in June of this year, scientists accompanied by a film crew managed to capture courtship displays of the golden-fronted bowerbird (Amblyornis flavifrons) and of the black sicklebill bird of paradise (Epimachus fastuosus).
They also recorded the wattled smoky honeyeater (Melipotes carolae), documented for the first time on the 2005 expedition and known only from the Foja Mountains. The bird, with a bright orange patch on its face, was then the first new bird species to be sighted on the island of New Guinea in more than 60 years.
The team also captured an old friend on film - the "lost" Berlepsch's six-wired bird of paradise (Parotia berlepschi). The iridescent gold-breasted bird was "rediscovered" in 2005 by CI experts after 20 years without a confirmed sighting by a western scientist.
However, the most surprising finds of the trip were the two new species of mammal - the Cercarteus pygmy possum and Mallomys giant rat. "The giant rat is about five times the size of a typical city rat," said Kristofer Helgen, a scientist with the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. "With no fear of humans, it apparently came into the camp several times during the trip."
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Do goats make great gifts?
By Stephanie Busari - BBC News Website.
Ethical gifts are billed as the perfect antidote to the conspicuous consumerism of the festive season. Whether buying a goat for a family in Africa, or the materials to build a toilet, we are told that these simple items can make a big difference to people in developing countries. Such presents have been growing with people such as shanty town dwellers and media professionals airing their views. In Keeping Africa Small, one man says he was given a grasscutter, a rodent like animal, to breed and sell to provide food for his family.
Charity director Ceri Dingle claims this is a prime example of how aid workers do not take into account the dreams and ambitions of people in developing countries. Worldwrite director Ceri Dingle says ethical gifts are patronising.She says: "Giving someone a grasscutter to feed their family reinforces the assumption that these people are not like us. "Would you like a grasscutter for Christmas? People in the developing world are like us - they know the sorts of things we have and they want them too. "Giving these things assume they want to continue to scrape by on the land. Survival is not development."
As local teacher Godbless Ashie puts it in the film: "Africans have big brains, big aspirations and want to live in liberty." Ms Dingle also argues that far from encouraging development, buying someone a goat or a hoe for Christmas only conspires to keep recipients at the same subsistence levels year after year,The film portrayed Ghanaians who had aspirations beyond living in mud huts and toiling the soil with hoes and cutlasses to survive.
The filmmakers also claimed that however well intentioned NGOs and charities were, they felt some projects epitomised "low horizons" and irritated locals who say they are offered "peanuts" with endless "accountability" and "target" forms to fill out.
Worldwrite's views are echoed by Ghanaian De Roy Kwesi Andrew, a teacher and translator, who says: "Our people and government have become merely the passive, obedient pupils to be preached to."However, development organisations claim they do listen to local communities and provide what they ask for only after extensive consultation. Jane Moyo of ActionAid said: "We don't impose our solutions on people, everything we give, whether it be money or in kind would be what the communities have asked for."
One of ActionAid's bestsellers last year was a donkey and a cart, which were supplied to women in Ghana, Guatemala and Mozambique, she said. Ms Moyo explained that even though people buy an animal from ActionAid's catalogue, sometimes the cash will be used on a related project instead. "We are always clear in our catalogues that it may not be an actual animal that you are buying. We were able to raise £300,000 in this way last year," she says. She added that buying ethical presents allowed people in the UK to show "solidarity" with those in developing countries.
"People buying these gifts in the UK want to send a message to those in developing countries that we support you and want to help you and they feel they are making a real difference to people's lives," she says "Also let's not forget that there is huge poverty in the developing world and eight million people go to bed hungry every night and anything that can help has to be considered."
But as the debate continues Adam Rothwell, from charity watchdog Intelligent Giving, says the choice should be ultimately up to the consumer. "For those people who are wondering how to give, they have to decide whether they like the Worldwrite approach or that favoured by the big players like Oxfam," he says. "Do you trust people you are trying to help and give the cash to them directly or do you give gifts in kind where you know how the gifts will be used?
"But it is important to be aware that the gift might not be what the community resents have been growing in popularity and last year Oxfam sold £3.9m worth of ethical gifts from its Unwrapped range. The charity has this year launched a celebrity-led campaign to encourage more of us to send useful gifts - which may include items such as dung, condoms or even a can of worms - to help communities in the developing world.
However UK-based education charity Worldwrite says that far from being welcome, these gifts are often seen as "demeaning and patronising". Volunteers from the charity travelled to Ghana to make a series of documentaries investigating life at the receiving end of these gifts.
Two of the films, called Keeping Africa Small, and I'm A Subsistence Farmer - Get Me Out of Here premiered at the Rich Mix cinema in London on Sunday. The films offer a critical look at the work of charities and Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in the country,wants".
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Mini pigs are big success on farm !
A Devon fun farm is reaping the rewards of a nine-year breeding programme for miniature pigs. The pigs, which are about a fifth of the size of ordinary pigs, have been a hit with visitors at Pennywell Farm. TV celebrity Jonathan Ross bought two of the pint-sized porkers as pets at £150 each and there have even been offers from as far away as Australia. The pocket pigs are a variant of the rare kune kune breed, which are found in New Zealand.
Chris Murray, co-owner of the farm near Buckfastleigh, began cross-breeding the pigs nine years ago and believes he has the perfect pet pig. He said: "Pigs are very cute when they are young, but they outgrow a home environment and can be aggressive when they get older. "These pigs are just at home indoors or outdoors."
Some pet pigs, such as the Vietnamese pot-bellied variety, have in the past been bought for their cuteness. But they fell out of fashion when it became clear how big they grow. The world's smallest pig is thought to be the 28in-long wild pygmy hog, an endangered species which lives in wildlife sanctuaries in Assam, India. Mr Murray said: "They are easy to house train and have a good temperament.
"A sow would normally snap at you if you picked up one of her litter, but these are amazingly content." Mr Murray doubts if they will be appearing on restaurant menus. "They are too small, he said. "It would be uneconomic so it's unlikely they will be used for meat and there is already a huge amount of different pig meat available."
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Vets issue animal vaccine warning !
Veterinary surgeons are warning that cat and dog owners are spending tens of millions of pounds on unnecessary and sometimes dangerous vaccines. More than 30 vets have signed an open letter warning many vaccines for pets given in yearly doses last much longer. They have accused the pharmaceutical industry of "fraud by misrepresentation, fraud by silence and theft by deception".
But drugs companies say they are bound by rules from licensing authorities. Because of a lack of research it can only give a minimum period of immunity - usually 12 months. The vets are warning the pharmaceutical industry and their own profession about the issue.
In their letter they say that vaccinations for many conditions including distemper, cat flu and parva virus, last a lot longer than a year and sometimes for life. The letter said: "The present practice of marketing vaccinations for companion animals may constitute fraud by misrepresentation, fraud by silence and theft by deception."
BBC correspondent Angus Stickler said that vets send out computer-generated letters telling people to take their pets in for vaccinations "every year, year in, year out". He said: "With £20 to £40 to pay and about 13m dogs and cats in the country it's an industry worth tens of millions of pounds." The letter also talks about an increase in the risk of "adverse post-vaccination events" including a list of problems such as auto-immune disorders, transient infections and a risk of cancer in cats.
Vaccination manufacturers say that, although they can test animals for one or two years so they can give a minimum cover or immunity, it is difficult to perform lifelong tests. They say that to prove immunity lasts for three or four years, or for life, would mean keeping and testing a large number of cats and dogs for years on end.
David Sutton, a spokesman for Intervet, one of the world's largest veterinary drug manufacturers, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We base our recommendations on the science and the science we have tells us that we don't know how long immunity lasts in any individual animal.
"What we do know is there are some animals that need more frequent vaccination than others and our vaccine recommendations have to be based on taking account of those animals." The vets' warning comes as more than 6,000 vets from all over Europe gather in Birmingham for the world's largest congress devoted to domestic pet welfare.
One of the techniques up for discussion at the four-day event is pheromonotherapy, used to help cats and dogs overcome fears and phobias. The treatment is based on a study of chemicals, called pheromones, secreted by canines and felines through glands on their body. These convey messages to members of the same species about ownership of territory, gender and mating availability.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Shark attacks man at Bondi Beach.
A swimmer has been attacked by a shark at Australia's Bondi Beach, a favourite with tourists from around the world. The shark reportedly grabbed the man by the arm but he escaped after punching it on the nose. The man reached the Sydney shore before collapsing in a cave in which he was said to be living temporarily. He was later found by his girlfriend.
A lifeguard spokesman said the man had gone swimming in the dark on Friday, which was strongly discouraged. Sharks were often seen in the area but rarely made it through protective net barriers to come close to swimmers, he added.
According to news agency reports, the victim named Scott Wright told Channel Ten News: "The shark attacked me, grabbed hold of my arm and wouldn't let go. "So I ended up punching him in the nose and trying to fight him off," he said. "I thought I was a goner, I thought I was going to die."
Mr Wright, a tourist from the southern island state of Tasmania, is understood to have been left with a deep gouge in his arm which will need surgery. Channel Ten reported it was believed to be the first shark attack at Bondi Beach for 70 years.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Teams recover dead humpback whale.
A humpback whale has been found dead off the south Wales coast near Aberavon. The animal, which is about 15ft (4.5m) long, was reported floating in the Port Talbot harbour area at 0920 GMT.
A spokesman for Swansea coastguard said Port Talbot lifeboat and a coastguard team were sent to tow the animal back to shore. Strandings Co-ordinator for Wales, Rod Penrose, is on his way to the scene to examine the whale. He said it was possible the dead animal was the same humpback whale which had been spotted in Swansea Bay last month.
However Mr Penrose said he was not certain it was the same one. He said if the animal had recently died a pathologist from London Zoo was on standby to carry out a post mortem examination on the whale on Sunday. If it has been dead for some time, Mr Penrose said he would take some samples from the animal himself.
Mr Penrose said he understood a large number of people had gathered on the beach to see the whale. He said humpbacks were not common around Wales. "There has been an example of one or two in the Irish Sea but it's quite a rarity in UK waters."
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Flatulent cow puts wind up locals.
A smoke machine ensures the cow emits its gas at set times.A mechanical cow that breaks wind on the hour has become Edinburgh's latest tourist attraction. The bovine backside has been attached to the side of the Rowan Tree pub in the city's historic Old Town. It lifts its tail and shoots out a cloud of white smoke at passers-by throughout the day.
Pub landlord Norrie Rowan, a former Scotland international rugby star, said the cow was becoming as popular with tourists as nearby Greyfriars Bobby. It was installed on the side of the pub earlier this year, but the mechanics that allow it to break wind at 1100 GMT, noon and 1300 GMT are a new addition.
A dry ice machine ensures the flatulent beast is regular and helps locals keep track of time in a similar way to the city's famous One O'clock Gun. Mr Rowan said the cow was a bit of fun that had already become a popular landmark in the Cowgate area of Edinburgh.
He added: "The cow is already famous around Edinburgh and I get hundreds of tourists coming by and taking pictures of it."
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Dog attack woman loses left arm.
A kennel worker who was attacked by a Rottweiler dog has had her left arm amputated, and may lose the other one. The animal turned on her and sank its teeth into her arms while she was exercising it at the Knightwood Kennels in West Grimstead, near Salisbury. The woman was airlifted to Salisbury District Hospital where she is reported to be in a stable condition.
Kennel owner Judith Wykeham said she was not told the abandoned dog may have had a troubled history. Wiltshire Police said the woman was in intensive care but is said to be in a stable condition. It did not show any aggression either at the time it was seized or when it was seen at the kennels by our dog warden - New Forest District Council spokesman.
A spokesman said: "She has lost one arm and surgeons are fighting to save the other one."
New Forest District Council, which brought the animal to the kennel, said it had shown no previous signs of aggression. Ms Wykeham said the dog would have been treated differently if she had known its background. "Apparently there was a history with the owner who abandoned the dog and the police are investigating," she said. "We have heard that she'd been banned from keeping dogs for 10 years, but we didn't know this, we weren't told this."
The dog was destroyed by police.
A New Forest District Council spokesman said the Rottweiler was captured as a stray roaming the streets. "Whenever we have concerns that a dog may be dangerous, we pass the information on as a matter of course," he said. "In the case of this dog, it did not show any aggression either at the time it was seized or when it was seen at the kennels by our dog wardens."
A spokesman for Salisbury District Council said environmental health officers were investigating events leading up to the attack to determine whether any breach of law took place. "Their role is to ascertain the circumstances that led up to the attack and whether there was any breach of health and safety regulations.
"However, the key witness is, of course, the victim herself." A police spokesman said the Health and Safety Executive was also looking into the attack.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Mass deaths of rare croc in India.
At least 21 endangered crocodile-like gharials have been found dead over the past three days in a river in northern India, wildlife officials say. The reptiles died in the Chambal River, and one official said that cirrhosis of the liver was the cause of the deaths.
Tests are now being carried out on the water for the presence of any liver-damaging toxins. The gharial, with its long, narrow snout adapted for eating small fish, is critically endangered in South Asia. The reptiles died in the Chambal River, which runs along the border between the states of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
"Autopsies confirm liver cirrhosis as the cause of death," DNS Suman, Uttar Pradesh's top wildlife official, told Reuters news agency. He said poisoning was not suspected as fish in the river had not died.
The gharial, also known as the Indian crocodile, is one of the longest of all living crocodilians - an adult male can approach 6m (20ft) in length. The gharial was on the verge of extinction several decades ago. In 1986, some 500 reptiles were released into the wild under a project funded by the Indian government, but wildlife officials say only a few of them have survived.
Some experts believe the gharials are unable to cope with the change in their water habitat when they leave the zoo. Other factors such as fishing and pollution of the river by industrial effluents are thought to have contributed to the decline in the number of the reptiles.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Knut mastermind leaves Berlin Zoo.
Knut has become a celebrity phenomenon. The man credited with turning polar bear cub Knut into a global brand has left his job at Berlin Zoo. The zoo decided on Monday not to extend Gerald Uhlich's contract beyond 2007, but he has already cleared his desk, German newspapers reported. Former finance director Mr Uhlich told reporters he had reached an "amicable" agreement to leave early.
However, media reports said he left over a dispute with colleagues over how the zoo should be run. It comes weeks after Knut celebrated his first birthday, amid much media coverage. It is thought that Mr Uhlich's co-director at the zoo, Bernhard Blaszkiewitz, had become increasingly uneasy at the effect Knut's popularity was having on the zoo. Mr Blaszkiewitz was quoted earlier this year as saying that the zoo was turning into an amusement park.
The bear cub was rejected at birth by his mother.
Mr Uhlich told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur news agency that he was not ashamed of the work he had done at the zoo. "The zoo has become profitable and it has gained a very positive image in Germany and across the world," he said. Mr Uhlich is said to be responsible for boosting the zoo's revenues during his tenure, licensing Knut's image for use on t-shirts, toys posters and even sweets.
Visitor numbers have soared since the birth of the bear, who has his own blog and has appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair magazine. More than a million people visited the zoo to watch Knut frolic with keeper Thomas Doerflein in twice-daily shows, until the bear grew too big.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Breeding woes for lonely seahorse.
Just one seahorse has survived from a Scottish breeding programme intended to help replenish endangered populations in the wild. The seahorse is the sole survivor from hundreds born at the Scottish Sealife Sanctuary near Oban in February.
The sanctuary manager said further attempts would be made to nurture the hippocampus reidi species, otherwise known as the slender seahorse. The creature, which is just one inch tall, has been named Rocky by staff. The centre manager, Alex Blackman, said: "There were 200 to 300 born and the vast majority died in the first 24 hours. "Only 70 originally survived and now we have only got this one baby left. "But this is really an achievement, because seahorses are really fragile and delicate and are so difficult to keep alive."
Mr Blackman said the parent seahorses, brought to the centre from the Sea Life group's HQ in Weymouth in 2004, did well to survive so long. Staff are now making regular checks on the baby seahorse, which has a tank to itself, and are feeding it brine shrimp. Mr Blackman said: "It has survived almost one year now, and is only about an inch tall, so it looks like it will stay alive.
"There are hundreds born in every birth - up to 600 in some species - and this little baby must have been the fittest one. "Even in the wild only a few would survive." The seahorse has been named Rocky, after Sylvester Stallone's movie character. Mr Blackman added: "We view Rocky's survival as a success story, not a failure because it is incredibly difficult to breed seahorses in captivity.
"We will use what we have learned this time round and hopefully we will have greater success with our next batch." About 20 million seahorses are caught every year to supply ingredients for traditional Chinese medicines.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Mumbai arrests over flamingo hunt !
By Prachi Pinglay - BBC News, Mumbai.
The Lesser Flamingo is considered a "near threatened" species. Police in India have arrested two men in Mumbai (Bombay) in connection with the killing of several Lesser Flamingos, a protected species. Two bird spotters happened to video two men shooting the birds at the Sewri mangrove swamp in central Mumbai and gave their pictures to the police.
About 150,000 Lesser Flamingos breed at Sewri from November to March each year. People in the surrounding villages sometimes hunt the birds and may not know it is illegal, police said. The two men face a maximum jail sentence of three years if found guilty of charges under the Wildlife Protection Act.
Sudip Athawale and Nikhil Pophale were at Sewri videotaping the newly-arrived flamingos on 9 December when they heard shots. "We saw a man coming out of the wetlands and fire shots again," said Mr Athawale. "We went and spoke to him. He said he killed the birds to sell the meat, which is good for joint pains."
The two registered a complaint at the local police station and handed in their pictures of the incident. Mumbai police confirmed that two men had been arrested in connection with the incident. A conservation officer from Bombay Natural history Society said the Sewri area needed to be better protected. "The hunter has to be punished," said Rushikesh Chavan.
International conservationists consider the Lesser Flamingo a "near threatened" species due to threats to its habitat from pollution and industrial development.
There are estimated to be around two million Lesser Flamingos. They are distinguished from the Greater Flamingo by extensive black on the bill. Flocks live throughout sub-Saharan Africa and across the Arabian peninsula to Pa