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The Kimberley Throws Out Another New Species

Acanthophis cryptoamudros kimberley death adder

You would think that all the snakes in Australia are known. However a new species has been found. It is a death adder in the Acanthopis family. Official named Acanthophis cryptoamudros the Kimberley death adder is two thirds of a meter long. Like many snakes its head is diamond shaped.

Adders hide and blend in with the underbrush then ambush prey. Four legged reptiles and small mammals are the main food. Oddly, the new adder does not look like other adders. It is similar to snakes of other species.

Australia has been a happy hunting ground for scientists recently. Many new animals have been identified. The search goes on in this sparsely populated region of the dry continent. New species include: shark, dolphin, antechinus, seadragon, lizard, fish and spider, , A new water flower has also been discovered.

◆Biology by Ty Buchanan ◆

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THE KIMBERLEY IS THE CENTER OF DISCOVERY FOR NEW SPECIES

Wedge-Tailed Eagle Diet Identified

It is amazing how little we know about supposedly common animals, ones that are easily seen and in contact with us. Rabbits were thought to be the main diet for the wedge-tailed eagle. However, the bird consumes other things as well. It should be noted that rabbits were introduced and the eagle must have have relied on other prey before the nuisance animal arrived.

When viral haemorrhagic disease (VHD) wiped out the rabbit population the wedge-tailed eagle actually fared better. Castings, the vomit of eagles, showed that their diet consisted of 20 bird species, seven reptiles, 19 mammals and a crustacean.

Some mammals they ate were large such as the eastern grey kangaroo. The common Galah was a native bird high on the diet. Rabbits are easy to catch when they are plentiful. A fall in rabbit numbers pushed them back to their traditional food sources. Despite the move, native animals have survived. Nature seems to be in balance.

Conservation by Ty Buchanan

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Replace the International Whaling Commission

The problem with the International Whaling Commission (IWC) is that it is too bureaucratic and pussy foots around still toying with the concept of "scientific" whaling. All research on whales should be banned and have done with it. Leave the mammals alone and they will look after themselves. They do not need human intervention.

Of course, finding that Japan was not practicing scientific whaling left the door open for them to change their methods and continue slaughtering the defenseless creatures. Unfortunately, the IWC was never set up to stop the killing. It was meant to manage the widespread industry in the 1940s.

The moratorium and having whale sanctuaries in the Antarctic have failed, as Japan keeps bending the rules. Japan continues to rave and jump up and down about their culture. Since when has culture been part of lawmaking - it never has been.

The IWC is far too soft and it exists because the industry still exists. Set up a completely new body with tough laws that completely bans interference in the life of whales. Even whale watching should be banned. People do not have the right to such a "freedom". Do they have the freedom to shoot elephants? No they don't!

Environment by Ty Buchanan

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Northern Australia Has a New Dolphin

There are many species of dolphin. To most people they do look much alike. We know that they are very intelligent and like to be in the presence of Man, even if it is only following boats

A new species has been identified off northern Australia. It could have always been there or moved there from somewhere else. They are in the "hump" class, having a raised portion below the dorsal fin.

Scientists are treating the dolphin as a new species which makes three species of Indo-Pacific humpback. There are four kinds of humpback in total including the eastern Atlantic type, Sousa teuszil.

Apparently, naming of the "new" species is a complex process based on the previously used naming practice, behavior of the animal itself and its habitat.

Discovery of the northern Australian dolphin came about by the first intense study into the humpback genus. It involved examination of 180 skulls and 235 tissue samples.

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Evolution by Ty Buchanan

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Gene Bank Needed to "Save" Endangered Native Animals

There is no way that Australia can prevent the extinction of some native animal species. Some can be preserved with a national gene bank. Though a seed bank has already been set up to save native flora, nothing is planned for fauna.

Present debate is centered on the loss of the northern and southern gastric brooding frog. If a gene bank had existed the frog would have been preserved. Australia has the worst record of native animals going extinct than anywhere else, not something to be proud of. Over 40 birds and mammals have disappeared since European settlement.

Because government has been slow in allocating resources, private organizations have started gene banks. Indeed Taronga Conservation society Australia has stored genes from 20 native animals. This is far from adequate. Over 2,000 species need preservation.

With the Taronga Conservation Society Australia, the Animal Gene Storage and Resource Centre of Australia at Monash University has a total of 100 endangered species in storage. Funding from the public and enterprise supports these "frozen" storage facilities. Nothing has been added for four years due to lack of resources. Looking the other way is not the solution.

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Conservation by Ty Buchanan

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Global Warming Threatens Native Marine Species

As meteorologists tell us that natural disasters are becoming regular occurrences due to climate change, so the threat to certain animals species increases. Marine animals are in serious danger. The sea is warming up.

It is accepted that whales beaching themselves is "normal". However, dugong doing the same thing is not. CSIRO which is always at the forefront of Australian research says that south-eastern and north-western sea regions around Australia have become significantly warmer.

As some species move or even die out and new species arrive the ecological dynamic is disrupted. Death from new diseases becomes the norm. New species eat the food that native creatures eat, so marine animals that have been in the same place for thousands of years are doubly threatened.

The future looks bleak. The climate could level off and remain changed but stabilize. On the other hand, change could be ongoing and the variation in marine species could decline. This could affect food supplies for people.

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Conservation

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Climate Change Could Make Timid Animals More Aggressive

Climate change can cause changes in behavior. As water becomes warmer so some species of fish become aggressive. Some fish are inherently timid while others are bold. In experiments on fish from the Australian Barrier reef, when water was slowly warmed normally timid fish became aggressive. Their rate of activity increased as well. Evolution has created fish that fit into a niche where survival depends on a fish being very careful about its surroundings. If they openly attack larger fish it could mean the smaller ones will be eaten.

It is possible that similar changes will occur with reptiles, amphibians, ectotherms and even mammals. If timid animals become bold then they could be killed off by predators or by humans using harvesting equipment trying to catch other animals for food. Only a very small increase in temperature led to the change.

In the tests, fish were bred in captivity then released into holding tanks where the water was slowly warmed. They had no chance to socialize with wild fish. When the water was cool the fish hid in plastic pipe. As the water heated up the fish ventured further from the protective pipe.

Certain assumptions can be made from this research. As the Arctic ice disappears, Polar bears wandering near small towns in Alaska, Canada and Northern Europe could become more brazen in their search for food from garbage cans and dump sites. They could kill humans more frequently in their anger. Similarly, rats living in these cold climes may not just die of shock when hit. They could turn on people and fight back.

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Conservation

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Whales Continue to Beach Themselves

Why do Whales beach themselves? The theory is that some coastal regions are shallow so sonar does not bounce back to the animals to tell them to keep away. This is only a theory. There seems to be no way of stopping the mammals from laying themselves on the sand to die a painful death. Dragging them out to sea is an attempt to save them, but they continue toward the beach again within hours.

A few days ago killer whales beached themselves on sandbars near Fraser Island. Three of them died. Fishermen have been told to keep their boats well away from the animals. They are trying to find deeper water. The hope is that open sea will attract them and they will move away from the shallow sand.

Apparently when a whale beaches, the whole pod panics. The presence of boats, particularly motorized ones, stresses them more. One would have thought that evolution would have "bred" out the beaching trait. The numbers who die each year on beaches is obviously not high enough to affect the breeding population so those with the trait pass it on to the next generation.

It is feared by many people that beaching could lead to extinction of species. There is no possibility of this as the number who swim safely along the coasts remains very large. It is good for people to try to save them. Unfortunately, humans cannot change nature.

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Conservation

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Reserves Are Not Working: Extinctions Continue

Australia's slaughter of wildlife continues despite warnings from CSIRO. Nearly half of Australian mammals will end their existence very soon. Zoologist Fred Ford said 11 extinctions have occurred in recent years in the south-eastern forests of Australia. The reserve system is not working. They are just for show. Plants are doing well because they are surviving outside and inside reserves. Nothing is being done to protect small native mammals.

Reserves are havens for introduced feral animals and invasive weeds. Rangers are not being trained to look after the endangered species. Money should be allocated more efficiently. With all the money put into reserves there must be more positive outcomes.

Native animal need to be researched and the data must be analyzed. Records should be kept to formulate action. An astounding 65 per cent of reptiles in Australia have been discovered in the last 35 years. The public has not been adequately informed of this.

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Conservation