Burning problem Sep 25, 2009
A 40-year-study by the University of Leeds of African forests - which account for a third of the world's total tropical forest - demonstrates that Africa is, indeed, a significant carbon sink. Lee White, a climate change expert, concurs: "To get an idea of the value of the sink, the removal of nearly 5 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by intact tropical forests should be valued at around $25 billion a year. This is a compelling argument for conserving tropical forests.". (BBC News -- Africa)
Proposal could revolutionize value of forests Sep 23, 2009
Treaty based on finding that destroying tropical forests adds to global warming ... WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The world's tropical forests are disappearing, and one reason is simple economics: People, companies and governments earn more by logging, mining or farming places such as the Amazon jungle than by conserving them ... Global climate change treaty, scheduled for completion in December, is designed to protect tropical forests. (CNN)
Behaving badly Sep 9, 2009
Yet we continue to lose tropical forest cover and with that the services it provides, not least in the mitigation of droughts around the world. However far removed from nature the human race may seem, we are inextricably linked to it. (BBC News -- Science)
World's Last Great Forest Under Threat: New Study Aug 26, 2009
"Much world attention has focused on the loss and degradation of tropical forests over the past three decades, but now the boreal forest is poised to become the next Amazon," says Associate Professor Bradshaw, from the University of Adelaide's Environment Institute ... 8, 2006) Deforestation and habitat loss are expected to lead to an extinction crisis among tropical forest species ... Humans in rural settings contribute most to deforestation of extant tropical forests. (Science Daily)
Africa: Trade Carbon for Food Security Aug 26, 2009
"Poor farmers must receive increased payments and productivity or there will be no solution to global warming, no post-2012 treaty and no functioning tropical forest ecosystems by the end of the century.". Be the first to. (allAfrica.com)
ESA investigates new methods of mapping tropical forest from space Aug 25, 2009
Tropical forests play an important role in the terrestrial carbon budget by absorbing huge amounts of carbon from the atmosphere through photosynthesis and sequestering it as biomass ... Tropical forest biomass and its distribution across the world are currently poorly known ... Appropriately, how best to map tropical forest biomass from space using radar is the focus of ESA's Tropisar airborne campaign. (Scientific American)
Letters to the Editor Aug 12, 2009
Dr. Simon Lewis, a Royal Society research fellow, states, We are receiving a free subsidy from nature and adds, Tropical forest trees are absorbing about 18% of the CO2 added to the atmosphere each year from burning fossil fuels. With statistics like these, why doesn t our government try the simple approach. (Paragould Daily Press, AR)
White House chooses G20 venues around Pittsburgh Aug 4, 2009
President Obama will host a working dinner for world leaders at the Phipps, chosen in part because of the green-friendly features of the facility that include an earth-sheltered welcome center and a Tropical Forest Conservatory described as the world s most energy efficient. First Lady Michelle Obama will host a luncheon at the Andy Warhol Museum on the North Side, because of the worldwide popularity of Warhol s art and due to the museum s reputation as a hub for community dialogue, the White... (Pittsburgh Business Times, PA)
CARLSBAD: Plant enthusiasts seek land for botanic garden project Aug 3, 2009
Departing members wanted an elaborate tropical forest covering the entire 13-acre site, while current plans are call for walking trails connecting a variety of smaller garden areas. Call staff writer Barbara Henry at 760-901-4072. (North County Times)
New Theory On Why Male, Female Lemurs Same Size: 'Passive' Mate Guarding Influenced Evolution Of Lemur Size Aug 2, 2009
(May 14, 2008) Some Malagasy mouse lemurs are so similar that picking a mate of the right species, especially at night time in a tropical forest, might seem like a matter of pot luck. However, new research has. (Science Daily)
Alcoa Destroying Rain Forest in Court Battle Sparked by Brazil Prosecutors Aug 1, 2009
We are not going to reduce global warming if we dont do something about deforestation in the Amazon, says , director of the Tropical Forest and Climate Initiative at Concerned Scientists. Its that simple, and very alarming. (Bloomberg -- Latin America)
Beacon Hill Roll Call Jul 24, 2009
Protect rainforests (H 3506) The Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight held a hearing on a proposal that would prohibit the state from purchasing and using wood grown in a tropical forest except when a public necessity exists and no other alternative is available. Show ID before voting (H 583) The Election Laws Committee held a hearing on several bills that would require voters to present photo identification before being allowed to vote at the polls. (Hamilton Wenham Chronicle, MA)
The looming food crisis? How much is reality? (108) Jul 21, 2009
Millions of acres of pastureland in Brazil can be converted to farm ground without reducing a single acre of the Amazon tropical forest. In the eighties, U.S. land prices rose rapidly as farmers told each other, They aren't making any more Iowas. (Great Falls Prairie Star, MT)
Swiss explorer casts away in Pacific Tonga Jul 15, 2009
His island of choice was Tofua, a 64 square kilometre volcanic isle home to nothing except ``some pigs, lots of coconuts, a lake and tropical forest. . (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
U of A honored for research that could help 30 million Brazilians Jul 14, 2009
The area is classified as dry tropical forest. It's as vast as Canada's three prairie provinces, and supports 30 million people on a near subsistence level of agriculture. (EurekAlert! -- Business News)
News of zoos’ financial woes stuns Jul 12, 2009
He and his family crowded inside the Franklin Park Zoo s Tropical Forest exhibit yesterday morning with dozens of others to celebrate the birthdays of western lowland gorillas Okie and Gigi. Children pressed their faces against the glass, as Okie, who turned 16 yesterday, and Gigi, who will be 37 tomorrow, came barreling into their den, colorfully decorated with streamers, tiny paper umbrellas, and beach balls stuffed with popcorn. (Boston Globe)
Franklin Park Zoo gets Hollywood treatment for upcoming movie Jul 10, 2009
The set is forcing patrons in the back of the zoo to make their way to the other exhibits by walking through the Tropical Forest, which features Little Joe and the other gorillas, or on another side trail ... All it does is takes up the front of the Tropical Forest. (Boston Globe)
Plants' internal clock can improve climate-change models Jul 3, 2009
"A normal climate change model would forecast photosynthesis to be uniform between 6am and 10am in a tropical forest if environmental conditions (light, humidity, temperature, etc) are constant. However, as plants have a circadian clock, photosynthesis is seen to increase during that time of the day", the ecologist states. According to the scientists, the circadian clock may well be the key for plants to survive a rise in temperatures. (EurekAlert!)
Florida's Best Bars Jul 2, 2009
LE TUB, 1100 N. Ocean Drive, Hollywood: A 1959 gas station redone in the 1970s as a multilevel bar that feels like a tropical forest sprouted in and around it. Large wooden booths overlook the intracoastal waterway. (Fox News)
* World News Quick Take Jul 2, 2009
Jakarta committed to the conservation of its dwindling tropical forests in a multimillion dollar debt-swap deal signed on Tuesday with the US government, the US embassy said. Jakartas payments to Washington will be reduced by US$30 million over the next eight years under the US Tropical Forest Conservation Act, the embassy said in a statement. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
* FEATURE : Slum walls raise suspicion in Rio Jun 25, 2009
The wall would be an ecobarrier aimed at curbing the unchecked and damaging expansion of the favela slums into Rios lush tropical forest, state officials told them. But in the Brazilian city tainted by inequality and violence and sharply divided between hillside slum dwellers and middle-class residents, many in Rocinha saw something more sinister in the plan for a 3m high barrier. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Sports)
Saving our forests will reduce global warming Jun 24, 2009
5 million acres of tropical forest, a vital wildlife habitat and a source of livelihood for the local communities. The forests were incorporated into the Noel Kempff Mercado National Park, stopping the release of more than 1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
Amazon battle Jun 23, 2009
Largest continuous tropical forest Shared by nine countries 65% Brazilian territory Covers 6. 6m sq km in total Pop: 30m - 23. (BBC News -- Americas)
Nine new incredible summer adventures Jun 16, 2009
Here, thrill seekers hop into a bobsled on rails that tears through tropical forest and down a 3,200-foot track that, at one point, drops 400 feet at almost 30 mph. 876/974-3990, $62. (MSNBC -- Travel)
Cambodia's last frontier falls Jun 16, 2009
Independent estimates show that Cambodia lost 29% of its primary tropical forest in the five-year period spanning 2000 to 2005. "Whenever I see a nice piece of forest, I know it's doomed," said the former French soldier, who first came to Cambodia with the United Nations-backed peacekeeping authority in 1992. (Asia Times Online)
Carbon Payments Help Protect Threatened Tropical Mammals Jun 6, 2009
3 million hectares of tropical forest in Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo), which is home to orangutans, elephants and other endangered species ... Countries with tropical forests, such as Indonesia, are pushing hard to develop ... If REDD is successful at harvesting some of these funds to protect tropical forests by giving them value, this could fundamentally change conservation in these countries, and provide benefits for mammals at a scale that we've never before seen. (Science Daily)
Big Island waterfalls make a splash Jun 5, 2009
Bonus points: Driving between Hilo and 'Akaka Falls gives you the excuse to take the four-mile Onomea Scenic Drive off Highway 19, a detour that's best taken when you're heading north (so you can really hug the coast) and no later than mid-day (so you can really see the lush tropical forest and tiny coves along the way). And once in you're in 'Akaka Falls park, past the verdant farmland around Honom , head first on the pathway to Kahuna Falls, which drop about 400 feet over two tiers. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Travel)
* Inquiry highlights concerns over ranching in the Amazon Jun 4, 2009
Illegal deforestation is not the only problem: farms are regularly exposed as using slave labor, and, like many tropical forest regions, there are regular and violent clashes over land ownership. The problem is clear a three-hour flight across the patchy forest from Maraba, where a clearing on the side of the river is home to a few hundred Parakana people, a tribe with no contact with the outside world until 1985. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Sports)
Nine breathtaking summer thrills Jun 3, 2009
In Jamaica, thrill seekers tear through tropical forest in a bobsled on rails ... Here, thrill seekers hop into a bobsled on rails that tears through tropical forest and down a 3,200-foot track that, at one point, drops 400 feet at almost 30 mph. (CNN)
Deforestation 'faster' in Africa May 26, 2009
Action on land tenure could help to halt deforestation, slow climate change and alleviate poverty, says the report, entitled Tropical Forest Tenure Assessment: Trends, Challenges and Opportunities ... The authors compared the distribution of land ownership in 39 tropical countries, which represent 96% of global tropical forests. (BBC News -- Africa)
Amazon hit by chaos of floods, drought May 26, 2009
"I think we should be preparing for this to become more the norm, and there's a need to look at what the future Amazon will look like," said Daniel Nepstad, a tropical forest ecologist and chief program officer for the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation's environmental conservation program. It is already grim for the poorest Amazon residents, the "ribeirinhos" (riverbank dwellers in Portuguese), many of whose families were drawn to the spongy land by the 19th-century world rubber boom and have... (MSNBC -- International)
Will Tropical Forests Play a Role in Cutting U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions? May 21, 2009
Will Tropical Forests Play a Role in Cutting U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions ... Will Tropical Forests Play a Role in Cutting U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions ... TROPICAL FORESTS: New accounting for cap-and-trade legislationFLICKR/URBANSHOREGIRL. (Scientific American)
A living, breathing gallery with an argument to make May 19, 2009
Then, outlying displays devoted to seven different ecosystems - coral reef, arctic, western Atlantic, grasslands, Great Lakes, boreal forest and tropical forest - provide the examples, such as a chilling photo of a dead coral reef or a stuffed bison calf, cute little reminder of a mammalian holocaust. Bull the white rhino joins living creatures such as leaf-cutter ants, a coral reef and endangered animals at the ROM.. (Globe and Mail -- Entertainment)
Decreasing Deer Damage To Trees, Shrubs And Crops May 11, 2009
(July 8, 2008) Dutch ecologist Marijke van Kuijk has studied the regeneration of the tropical forest in Vietnam. Abandoned agricultural land does regenerate to tropical forest, but only slowly. (Science Daily)
EU to conclude deal to stop illegal timber extraction from Republic of Congo May 10, 2009
Such a drop would put more pressure on forests in the fragile Congo Basinthe world's second largest tropical forestto provide much needed export earnings, thus boosting the incentive for illegal harvests ... The European Forest Institute (EFI) is funded by the European Commission and the Governments of the UK and Finland to provide technical support to the preparation, negotiation and implementation of FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreements in a number of tropical forest countries. (EurekAlert! -- Business News)
Who got the job? May 7, 2009
"I used to go there before school every day and set up a fish display and in the evenings come take it down. I had to take a shower before school. A tropical paradise awaits... Hamilton Island is in the Whitsunday Islands archipelago and is just five square kilometres in size, much of it tropical forest. Located on the same latitude as Honolulu and Mauritius, it has a year-round tropical climate. Main activities are tourist-related snorkelling, fishing, scuba diving, waterskiing and... (iAfrica.com)
Bill splits environmentalists Apr 29, 2009
Some environmental and climate groups have objected to widespread use of palm oil, because plantations can lead to tropical forest deforestation, endangering native species and contributing to climate-warming gases, according to the Worldwatch Institute ... " The conference committee on the measure is scheduled to resume tomorrow. While environmental groups rallied at the state Capitol in support of a measure to prohibit building any new fossil-fuel power plants in Hawaii, at least one... (Honolulu Star-Bulletin)
Global Warming: Heat Could Kill Drought-stressed Trees Fast Apr 16, 2009
9, 2009) The Amazon is surprisingly sensitive to drought, according to new research conducted throughout the world's largest tropical forest. The 30-year study provides the first solid evidence that drought. (Science Daily)
Fruit trees can beautify a garden Apr 16, 2009
Pawpaw (Asimina triloba) is a lush tree whose large, dark green leaves would look at home in a tropical forest. The fruit has a creamy texture and flavor similar to banana, along with hints of pineapple, avocado and mango. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
Reserves Found To Be 'Effective Tool' For Reducing Fires In Brazilian Rainforests Apr 15, 2009
Fires in humid tropical forests are always caused by people, Adeney says they typically start on farms or ranches and spread to the nearby forest. Since tropical forest trees have no natural protection against fire, even a small fire can kill most of the trees ... 27, 2006) Though conservation scientists generally agree that many types of protected areas are needed to protect tropical forests, little is known about the comparative performance of inhabited and. (Science Daily)
Study finds biofuels could hasten climate change Apr 15, 2009
In 2006, 85 percent of the global palm-oil crop was produced in Indonesia and Malaysia, countries whose combined annual tropical forest loss is around 20,000 square kilometers ... Any biofuel plantations in tropical forest regions should be considered only in former forestland which has already been severely degraded to support only grassy vegetation ... Tropical forests contain more than half of the Earth's terrestrial species. (Xinhuanet, China)
Beautiful,0000214E endangered butterflies Apr 13, 2009
Nearly 3,200 species of butterflies exist in this tropical forest. A lot of species are endangered. (Xinhuanet, China)
New rare orangutan find in Borneo Apr 13, 2009
Much of the orangutan's tropical forest habitat in Indonesia and Malaysia has been cut down for timber extraction and to create palm oil plantations. About 50,000 orangutans are thought to remain in the wild. (BBC News -- Science)
Nature, Human and Otherwise: All happening at the zoo Apr 11, 2009
A landscaped path from which one can catch a rare glimpse the real city beyond the zoo walls leads to the Tropical Forest, home to a family of gorillas as well as snakes, a pygmy hippopotamus, a dwarf crocodile, various birds and small critters, tapirs, and wild dogs. The gorillas are fascinating to watch so similar to humans in their gestures and expressions. (Marshfield Mariner, MA)
Tropical Forest Seed Banks: A Blast From The Past Apr 10, 2009
9, 2009) Seeds of some tree species in the Panamanian tropical forest can survive for more than 30 years before germinating ... But in the tropical forests of Barro Colorado Island (BCI), Panama, Brown and Dalling found the seeds of some pioneer trees remain viable for many years ... When disturbance kills canopy trees in tropical forest, light reaches the forest floor triggering the germination of seeds of pioneer tree species buried in the soil. (Science Daily)
Pristine land Apr 7, 2009
It is the size of Costa Rica and an island of verdant, undulating tropical forest and open pasture land. "In a country as large and geographically diverse as Peru, there should be enough room for more than one vision," says lawyer Octavio Alvarado, who with his colleague Jaime Bustamante, came out as victors after opposing a government-backed plan for oil and gas exploration in a sensitive environmental area of San Martin. (BBC News -- Business)
The Look: Demonicon Diar... Apr 4, 2009
Although expansive enough that its environments range from tropical forest to perpetually frozen tundra, it's one of the world's smaller continents. Occupying much of the northern half, the largest domain is the Holy New Empire of the Griffin Throne and Gareth. (IGN PC Games)
Citizens mobilise to kill raging carnivorous animal Apr 2, 2009
He suspected that the animal could be hiding in the caves in the vast Gbefi-Tarve-Tafi-Ve tropical forest and savanna land. Meanwhile, farming activities have not been affected by the news of the lion, as evidenced by the unavailability of Akpene, who spotted the animal, as it was said she was busy tilling the land at the time of visit by GNA. This brings to three the appearance of a suspected lion in the Volta Region, in the last two months, including the Adaklu-Wuakpe near Wumenu in the... (Ghana Web, Ghana)
COLD FEAT: Dangling By A Rope Apr 1, 2009
An awkward rope strung me up from my belly to an endless steel cable, holding me between life on this planet and the hush of the tropical forest deep below. I could hear a troop of howler monkeys lumbering somewhere down startling a flock of toucans, dangling up there in a fetal pose with my hands gripping a pulley. (India Times, India)
Palm Oil Development May Threaten Amazon Apr 1, 2009
31, 2009) Oil palm cultivation is a significant driver of tropical forest destruction across Southeast Asia ... 23, 2008) Including carbon emissions from tropical deforestation in a future international climate regime will not suffice to protect the world's remaining tropical forests from expanding palm oil. (Science Daily)
Wild grass became maize crop more than 8,700 years ago Mar 24, 2009
Probably domesticated in the Mexican tropical forest ... "Finding early human settlements in this part of Mexico is also very important, as it shows people were becoming well-adapted to tropical forest settings early on," said Piperno ... Starch grains and phytoliths are microscopic particles that occur in leafs, stems and roots of many plants, and unlike whole seeds and roots are well-preserved in tropical forest environments, such as those in lowland areas of Mexico and Panama. (EurekAlert!)
Second growth forests Mar 23, 2009
Regarding the news article As jungles grow over, a new rain forest debate (Jan. 31): Do so-called new secondary forests really indicate less urgency for protecting primeval rainforests. (International Herald Tribune -- Ed/Op)
Used Tires, Beer Kegs Keep Zoo Animals Healthy Mar 22, 2009
The food fell throughout the tropical forest exhibit, forcing Gigi and the other gorillas to search for the food as they would in the wild ... "It's like opening a Christmas gift," said Jeannine Jackle, assistant curator of the tropical forest exhibit. (CBS News -- US)
How 'GMA Weekend's' Kate Snow Vacationed in Costa Rica on the Cheap Mar 22, 2009
And if you do enjoy the sounds of thickest nature and love, the thought of jumping into a waterfall in a dense tropical forest or zip-lining above the canopy, then by all means, get yourself to Costa Rica. "When I grew up here there were no roads in Osa," Merlyn told us after he picked us up at the tiny airstrip in Puerto Jimenez. (ABC News)
ISU researchers & Maya finds Mar 15, 2009
The discoveries, announced March 7, include major finds in the ancient city of El Mirador and the newly discovered ancient city in the southern part of the Basin known as El Pesquero, Spanish for "The Fishermen." The area, which was known anciently as the "Kan" (serpent) Kingdom, consists of about 810,000 acres of pristine tropical forest in northern Guatemala and contains a concentration of very large and early ancient Maya cities, dating to the Middle and Late Preclassic periods of Maya... (Pocatello Idaho State Journal, ID)
Amazonian Amphibian Diversity Traced To Andes Mar 10, 2009
The finding runs counter to the idea that Amazonian diversity is the result of evolution only within the tropical forest itself ... Because of the lack of an extensive fossil record for the tropical forest, their work used DNA sequences to discover the frogs' evolutionary history ... Evolution and diversification of the poison frogs is ongoing, especially in the Amazon rainforest, the Choc; (a narrow region of tropical forest along the northwest Pacific Coast of South America) and in adjacent... (Science Daily)
Amazon drought created CO2 emissions Mar 8, 2009
But the UN Climate Panel projected in a 2007 report that rising temperatures may cause more drought and "lead to gradual replacement of tropical forest by savannah" in the eastern Amazon by mid-century. The study by a group known as RAINFOR said the 2005 drought especially affected soft-wooded species. (India Times, India)
If plants could talk, what would they say? Mar 7, 2009
Over a quarter of western medicines contain plant toxins some deriving from tropical forest species. Forest plants have been the source of the most effective drugs in the history of pharmacology but only two per cent have been screened for their pharmaceutical potential. (EurekAlert!)
Fun in Puerto Rico Mar 7, 2009
Hacienda Gripi;as, a former coffee plantation, offers shabby-chic accommodations while visiting the tropical forest of Puerto Rico s interior ... Spend the night in a tropical forest ... Because it was formed by volcanoes that have long since become dormant, Puerto Rico s mountainous interior features dramatic peaks thickly blanketed in dense tropical forest consisting of massive ferns, a variety of palm trees, bamboo, banana trees, orchids, impatiens and bromiliads. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
Study: Amazon carbon sink threatened by drought Mar 6, 2009
WASHINGTON, March 5 (Xinhua) -- The Amazon is surprisingly sensitive to drought, which causes massive carbon loss in tropical forests, mainly through killing trees, according to a 30-year study focusing on the world's largest tropical forest ... In fact, over recent decades the tropical forests have absorbed one fifth of global fossil fuel emissions. (Xinhuanet, China)
Tropical Lizards Can't Take The Heat Mar 5, 2009
However, new research that builds on data collected more than three decades ago demonstrates that lizards living in tropical forests in Central and South America and the Caribbean could be in serious peril from rising temperatures associated with climate change ... "The least heat-tolerant lizards in the world are found at the lowest latitudes, in the tropical forests. I find that amazing," said Huey, lead author of a paper outlining climate warming's threat to lizards published in the March 4... (Science Daily)
Lemurs: Secret Social Drama Among Humanity's Distant Cousins Mar 5, 2009
(May 14, 2008) Some Malagasy mouse lemurs are so similar that picking a mate of the right species, especially at night time in a tropical forest, might seem like a matter of pot luck. However, new research has. (Science Daily)
PNG moves to protect fluffy forest dwellers Mar 5, 2009
Once considered a lawless nation where loggers ran rampant, PNG has tried to overhaul its image, taking the lead on issues such as getting tropical forest included in a future United Nations climate pact. The latest move stems from an unusual agreement between the Government and 35 indigenous communities to protect 76,000 hectares of remote tropical forest, coastal reefs and mountains on the eastern Huon Peninsula. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Tree kangaroos get a refuge on Pacific isle Mar 4, 2009
The Pacific island nation, where illegal logging is rampant, has recently tried to overhaul its image in the conservation community, taking the lead on such issues as getting tropical forest protections included in a U.N. climate pact. The plan for a conservation area stemmed from an unusual agreement between the government and 35 indigenous communities to protect the 187,800 acres of remote tropical forest, coastal reefs and mountains on the island of New Guinea ... "Hopefully, other tropical... (MSNBC -- Environment)
Protecting unique habitats Mar 4, 2009
Named after the three main rivers -- the Yopno, Uruwa and Som of the Huon Peninsula -- the YUS Conservation Area covers 760 square kilometers of tropical forest, stretching from the country's northern coast to interior mountains. The lush forest ecosystem provides countless resources and services that sustain the 10,000 villagers living in the surrounding YUS ecosystem, and is a critical habitat for Matschie's tree kangaroos, a species listed as endangered by the IUCN.. (CNN -- International)
