Western Ghats unveil its amphibian diversity

T. Nandakumar, Thiruvananthapuram The Hindu, November 17, 2016 Reinforcing the importance of the Western Ghats as a valuable reservoir of amphibian diversity, researchers from the University of Delhi have reported two new species of leaping frogs from Kerala and Karnataka. The new species - Indirana paramakri and Indirana bhadrai -...

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New fish species in Kerala waters

K.S. Sudhi.KOCHI,   The Hindu, August 29, 2016 Fishery resources of Kerala have become richer with the addition of a new edible and economically important species. A Working Group of the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), Kochi, has recently identified the establishment of Indian Chub mackerel, a new fish species, in Kerala waters. The meat texture of the species is soft and tastes similar to that...

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74 tiger deaths since January drive home poaching, other threats

 Avijit Ghosh |   Times of India, Jun 29, 2016 NEW DELHI: At least 74 tigers died between January 1 and June 26 this year in India. Worryingly, there is also a spike in poaching-related fatalities as 2016 reaches its halfway mark, statistics collated from different parts of India by a well-known wildlife NGO shows.Among these,...

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Pampa River Action Plan gets a new lease of life

T. Nandakumar, Thiruvananthapuram The Hindu, April 1, 2016 The Pampa River Action Plan for pollution abatement and conservation of the river basin has received a fresh lease of life, with the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change sanctioning the release of grant-in-aid of Rs.5 crore. The aid was sanctioned on March...

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Sand-eating tadpoles found in Western Ghats

The Hindu, March 30, 2016  NEW DELHI,   Adding to the burgeoning cache of frog-finds in India, researchers have discovered a sand-eating tadpole that lives in total darkness, until it fully develops into a young frog. S.D. Biju from the University of Delhi said in a statement: “We provide the first confirmed report...

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Greens set manifesto for parties

The Hindu, March 31, 2016 Thiruvananthapuram,  The Kerala Paristhithi Aikyavedi, an umbrella organisation of environmental groups in the State, has released a green development agenda for political parties to incorporate into their manifesto for the forthcoming elections to the Assembly. Releasing the document here on Wednesday,...

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UNESCO updates protected biosphere reserves list

The Hindu,  March 21, 2016 Lima,   The United Nation’s cultural body UNESCO has added 20 new sites to its network of protected biosphere nature reserves, including two in Canada and two in Portugal. The status was conferred during a two-day meeting in Lima that ended on Saturday, which brought the total number of biosphere reserves to 669 across 120 countries. In Canada, the Tsa Tue area in the country’s Northwest...

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Eco-friendly boating at Mattupetty

Giji K. Raman,  IDUKKI,   The Hindu, March 21, 2016 Boating in Mattupetty lake in Munnar will soon be eco-friendly, with wildlife being least disturbed. As part of its efforts to develop responsible tourism in Munnar, the Hydel Tourism Centre has purchased a solar-powered boat, which will be a marked change from kerosene-powered boats and petrol speed boats. Kerosene-run boats Kerosene-powered boats...

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Eco-restoration drive remains a non-starter

K.A. Shaji, Palakkad The Hindu, March 21, 2016 The much-hyped Palakkad Gap eco-system restoration efforts initiated by the Kerala State Biodiversity Board last year with the active involvement of 17 local bodies and the Social Forestry wing of the Forest Department continues to remain a non-starter in spite of the claims that it would help address escalating heat in the region in the coming years. Though a number of tree...

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On alert, to check poaching during summer

G. Anand,  Thiruvananthapuram The Hindu,  March 15, 2016 The Forest Department has stepped up surveillance in Idukki and Wayanad districts in the wake of intelligence forecasts that hunting of tigers and leopards for their pelts and body parts could escalate in summer. A wildlife enforcer said that there was lot of tiger movement in Tholpatti, Muthanga, Kurichiyadu, and Batheri ranges this season. Many of the...

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Project to conserve vultures in Wayanad

E.M. Manoj, KALPETTA The Hindu,  March 14, 2016 The Forest and Wildlife Department has launched a comprehensive project to conserve the existing vulture population in the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, a major habitat of different species of vultures in South India. The Union Ministry of Environment and Forest has earmarked Rs.50...

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Villagers oppose move to permit quarrying

Radhakrishnan Kuttoor PATHANAMTHITTA The Hindu, March 13, 2016  The People’s Action Council has taken strong exception to a move by the grama panchayat to permit resumption of granite quarrying on the environmentally fragile Chembanmudy hill in Naranamoozhy panchayat in Ranni taluk. Action council convener Shaji Pathalil told The...

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‘Eco nod for 943 projects in 21 months’

The Hindu, March 12, 2016  Mumbai: Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar on Saturday claimed that in the 21 months of the NDA government at the Centre, his Ministry has given environmental clearances to 943 projects, unlocking investments of up to about Rs 6.72 lakh crore. Mr. Javadekar said the NDA government focussed on three key principles — make new sustainable development policies, making the process...

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Nod for paddy field reclamation kicks up a row

The Hindu, March 6, 2016 Thiruvananthapuram:  Clearances accorded by the Revenue Department for reclaiming 420 acres of Methran Kayal backwater paddy fields at Kumarakom village in Kottayam taluk and 47 acres of paddy field at Kadamakkudy grama panchayat in Ernakulam district for private ventures have triggered a row. The order...

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Illegal razing of hills rampant in Pathanamthitta

Radhakrishnan Kuttoor, PATHANAMTHITTA, The Hindu, March 3, 2016    With the government machinery sliding into preparations for the forthcoming Assembly polls, unauthorised demolition of environmentally sensitive hills has become rampant in many parts of the district. Functioning of the Police Department too has been...

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Bees are vanishing: U.N. report

The Hindu, February 27, 2016 Many species of wild bees, butterflies and other insects that pollinate plants are shrinking toward extinction, and the world needs to do something about it before our food supply suffers, a new United Nations scientific mega-report warns. The 20,000 or so species of pollinators are key to growing fruits, vegetables and cash crops. Yet two out of five species of invertebrate pollinators,...

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Wildfire destroys Marayur sandalwood

 IDUKKI, The Hindu, February 27, 2016 Wildfire destroyed forest wealth across 50 hectares of land in the Pothadimala area in the Marayur sandalwood division on Friday. The fire, which broke out at 11 a.m. in the lower area of Pothadimala, consumed the dried-out vegetation and spread to a large area. A 50-member team, including...

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Industry throws a spanner in the KSBB works

T. NANDAKUMAR The Hindu, February 27, 2016 Faced with stiff resistance from industry, the Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) has turned to the government for help in implementing the Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) mechanism for commercial utilisation of biological resources. According to officials, certain sectors of industry...

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Bid to fix radio collars on jumbos

E.M. MANOJ KALPETTA,  The Hindu, February 20, 2016 The Forest and Wildlife Department has launched an operation to attach radio collar on rogue elephants in the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (WWS) to keep them off human settlements. “We are planning to attach radio collar telemeter on rouge elephants after tranquillising them,...

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Wetland turns a ‘weedland’

Radhakrishnan Kuttoor PATHANAMTHITTA,  The Hindu, February 2, 2016 Varaalchal, a vast wetland in the flood plain area of the Pampa river at Koipram, near Aranmula, heavily weeded and silted, could do with a few immediate steps for rejuvenation. World Wetlands Day, celebrated on February 2 every year, should serve as a reminder...

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Alarming destruction of tiger, elephant habitats: expert

E.M. ManojKALPETTA,   The Hindu, February 2, 2016 The significance of conserving Asiatic elephants and tigers were stressed at an international veterinary workshop on Asian elephants and tigers that began at Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU) headquarters at Pookode in the district on Monday. The four-day workshop, being organised by the Centre for Wildlife Studies under KVASU in association...

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Rare bird sighted at Achenkovil

KOLLAM,   The Hindu, February 1, 2016 A black-and-orange flycatcher (Ficedula nigrorufa), which is a high altitude endemic resident of the central and southern evergreen forest areas of the Western Ghats, was chanced upon by wildlife photographer Mahesh Ambelil in the low altitude Achenkovil forest area which has an altitude...

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Positive tidings for waterbirds

The Hindu, January 30, 2016 There has been a 30 per cent increase in the number of waterbirds in Thiruvananthapuram district, the Asian Waterfowl Census, a comprehensive water bird count, says. The census, carried out on Tuesday, also records spotting of 49 species of birds from Punchakkari, Vellayani, Aruvikkara Reservoir, Akkulam-Veli...

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Wetlands attract more winged visitors

Thiruvananthapuram,  The Hindu, January 26, 2016 The five major wetlands in Kerala, including the Vellayani, Sasthamkotta, Vembanad, Ashtamudi and Pookode lakes, and their surrounding areas are attracting more migratory birds this year, a survey conducted by the Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) has revealed. Check list The board is preparing a check list of birds, as part of the biodiversity assessment...

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Sand-mining monitoring to go hi-tech

T. Nandakumar,  The Hindu, January 26, 2016 Monitoring of river sand-mining and transport is set to go hi-tech. The guidelines on sustainable sand mining notified by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFs) earlier this month prescribe a modern, technology-assisted system to keep an eagle eye on mining...

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Central norms, State law in a mismatch

T. Nandakumar,  Thiruvananthapuram,   TheHindu,January 25, 2016 A notification issued by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change prescribing regulations on river sand mining is feared to result in a mismatch with the State legislation on the issue, sparking concern over its implications on the protection...

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District panels to keep tabs on mining

T. Nandakumar The Hindu, January 23, 2016 The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has issued a notification delegating the regulatory powers for mining of minor minerals to district-level authorities, evoking mixed reactions from environmentalists and members of regulatory bodies in Kerala. The final notification...

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An unusual visitor flies in

The Hindu, January 22, 2016  During the course of their annual Asian waterfowl census of Kollam and Thiruvananathapurm districts last week, members of the Thiruvananthapuram-based Warblers and Waders, a nature and bird lovers’ forum, chanced upon a flock of slender-billed gulls ( Larus genei ) along the Vellanathuruthu beach in...

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Survey reveals butterfly diversity of Wayanad

T. Nandakumar Thiruvananthapuram,   The Hindu, January 12, 2016 A three-day butterfly survey organised by the Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) and the Forest and Wildlife Department in North Wayanad has revealed 178 species, including at least four rare species. The survey which covered portions of the North Wayanad forest...

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Soft coral poses threat to marine biodiversity

T. Nandakumar, Thiruvananthapuram,   The Hindu, January 5, 2016 Colonies of snowflake coral ( Carijoa riisei ), an invasive species recently documented off the coast of Thiruvananthapuram and Kanyakumari, could pose a serious threat to the marine ecology of the region, according to scientists. Scuba divers working for Friends...

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Mangrove forest on chopping block again

Ignatius Pereira, KOLLAM,   The Hindu, January 4, 2016 The Ayiramthengu mangrove forests at Alapad panchayat in Kollam district, restored by the government eight years ago, is now being destroyed by a government agency for another scheme. Environment activist V.K. Madhusoodanan said that in the past couple of weeks at least...

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