The Critical list Are endangered species protections in danger of being swept aside by government indifference? Paul Cox reports
Ancient eyes of Greenland
The Critical list Are endangered species protections in danger of being swept aside by government indifference? Paul Cox reports
Greenland shark eye with Ommatokoita parasite
Ancient eyes of Greenland
A study published in Nature Communications has suggested that Greenland sharks may have a DNA repair mechanism for their eyes. The sharks are the world’ s longest-living vertebrates and are believed to live to up to 400 years, but suffer from parasitic copepods that attach themselves to the sharks’ eyes. There is now evidence that they maintain their vision with no signs of retinal degeneration. Scientists have long suspected the large sharks to be functionally blind, given the frequent presence of the parasite and its exceptionally dim visual environment. However the paper’ s author Skowronska Krawczyk realised that in many videos they can be seen moving their eyeballs towards light, indicating that the sharks have a way of regenerating their eyes.
For many years the Endangered Species Act has been the cornerstone of domestic biodiversity protection across the United States and in US waters. In recent years, we’ ve seen protections for several shark species beefed up, arguably setting the global standard and influencing international policy. Protected species include scalloped hammerheads, white shark, smalltooth sawfish, mantas and oceanic whitetips. But, as we all know, changes are afoot in the US, and nothing is sacred. And seemingly that includes protection of endangered and vulnerable species.
While a pushback from public and interested parties is in full swing, it looks like some of these protections are going to be changed in subtle but meaningful ways. Experts fear that the four proposed changes will weaken the ESA’ s core protections, undermine science-based decision-making, and make it harder for species to receive the safeguards they urgently need. A worrying development and a step in the wrong direction for wildlife. But that’ s the US for you.
Thankfully, things here are much better. Or are they? Just before Christmas, we had a rather disappointing government response to a long-awaited five-yearly review of the Wildlife and Countryside Act( WCA), leaving hundreds of species of highly threatened UK wildlife without much needed legal protection.
Proposed changes should have teed-up over 270 species of Critically Endangered domestic plants and animals for a much-needed boost in protective status. These include Critically Endangered blue skate, flapper skate, and porbeagle.
Yet the government has responded that they will not be following the report’ s recommendations and do not intend to implement the proposed amendments to the Act, despite recognising the value of the data and evidence.
The response states:“ The government is committed to taking action to recover our threatened native species … include [ ing ] actions to help meet the legally binding environment act targets.” At the moment, it’ s a little unclear what this means.
And so we wait, with interest, to hear from the government as to their next steps and how they will deliver appropriate protections for threatened British sharks. www. sharktrust. org
measuring about 27.7m long, 8.8m wide, and 5.7m high, with a cargo capacity of 300 tons. Named Svælget 2 after its find location, the 15th Century craft represents the largest cog ever unearthed. The depths have also preserved the wreck such that the team was able to study its surviving construction, including a good amount of its rigging.
“ It is extraordinary to have so many parts of the rigging,” said lead archaeologist Otto Uldum.“ We have never seen this before, and it gives us a real opportunity to say something entirely new about how cogs were equipped for sailing.”
Cogs emerged in the Middle Ages as a safe and efficient means to transport massive quantities of goods. Their substantial cargo holds bested those of Viking vessels such as knarrs, while their towering sides made them harder to board during sea skirmishes. From the 10th Century, the cog revolutionized long-distance trade, making it possible to transport everyday goods across great distances.
Flapper skate, Dipturus intermedius
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