Latest news with #InternationalUnionforConservationofNature
NBC News
2 hours ago
- NBC News
Millions of years of evolution could be wiped out on 'Galapagos of the Indian Ocean,' conservationists warn
Sitting off the Horn of Africa, the Yemeni island of Socotra was largely left to its own devices for centuries, its few guests arriving to trade for aromatic frankincense, the healing plant aloe and the crimson sap of the dragon's blood tree, used for dyes. Roughly the size of New York's Long Island, Socotra is about 140 miles off the coast of Somalia, a remote location that has allowed a unique ecosystem to flourish. It has a rich array of bird and animal life, and the coral reefs off its shores teem with colorful marine of its 825 plant species cannot be found anywhere else on Earth, according to UNESCO. Some, including conservationist Kay Van Damme, have called it the Galápagos of the Indian Ocean and along with other experts, he is warning that millions of years of evolution on Socotra could be under 'serious threat.' 'Climate change is by far the biggest threat to the island's biodiversity,' Van Damme, who has worked on Socotra for more than two decades, told NBC News in a call last month. 'It is a relatively small island with a predominantly arid climate. Even small additional impacts from climate change can have an outsized effect, putting further pressure on fragile ecosystems.' Prolonged droughts brought on by climate change are compounding damage from devastating cyclones in 2015 and 2018 that destroyed reefs, eroded soil and uprooted rare plants. The island's lifeblood, endemic species of frankincense trees, are also under threat. Four of the 11 recognized species on the island were classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in March. Five were recognized as endangered.'Their decline reflects the wider degradation of terrestrial habitats across the island and the ecosystems they support,' said Van Damme, adding that overgrazing — predominantly from goats — is another significant challenge, leading to habitat degradation and 'leaving behind overmature trees with fewer younger trees to replace them.' Tourism's growing footprint Attracted by Socotra's pristine beaches, turquoise waters and surreal flora, tourists are also placing mounting pressure on the island's fragile ecosystem. While there is only a handful of hotels, mostly in the capital Hadibo, a growing number of tour operators offer luxury camping and 4x4 tours around the island, some of which are packaged as ecotourism. Authorities have agreed to limit the number of tourists to around 4,500 per year, Ali Yahya, a local conservationist and tour operator, said in an interview last month, adding that when it came to 'very sensitive areas in terms of ecosystems, biodiversity and cultural heritage, it's strictly not allowed to build any big buildings or large-scale hotels.' But despite Socotra's UNESCO World Heritage designation — requiring preservation under international agreements — violations occur frequently, another local guide, Abdulraoof al-Gamhi, said in a series of voice and written messages last month. 'Some tourists build fires under dragon blood trees, carve inscriptions into rare trees, leave trash behind them and scare birds with their drones,' he said. But he added that many of the island's residents benefit from tourism and that it is 'very important' for 'tour companies, car owners, drivers, restaurants, hotels and sellers of handcrafts.' Echoing his concerns, Van Damme also said endangered species were 'being killed just for a selfie,' with rare species like chameleons being captured so tourists can take pictures with them. Al-Gamhi also said he expected the number of tourists to rise as more people discover the unique locale, and 'that will put a lot of pressure on our environment.' 'It will be a big challenge,' he added. A cautionary tale Although the Galápagos comparison is often used to celebrate Socotra's biodiversity, it can also serve as a warning, according to Van Damme, who co-authored a 2011 study on human impacts on the island. Since the 19th century, the Galápagos, remote islands some 600 miles off the coast of mainland Ecuador known for their unique flora and fauna, have lost numerous endemic species to habitat disruption, overtourism and invasive species. 'Perhaps Socotran ecosystems,' Van Damme wrote at the time, 'could now be considered as having at least, a similar state of health of those in the Galápagos at the time of [the Ecuadorian islands'] nomination as world heritage site 30 years ago.' He added that Socotra risked a similar fate without 'timely conservation efforts.' 'If we consider the present-day condition in the Galápagos, we might catch a glimpse of Socotra's future, or better, what could happen if trends and threats continue in parallel,' the paper added. That assessment 'turned out to be very predictive,' particularly in terms of climate change, he told NBC News. The Galápagos Islands now host over 250,000 annual visitors, under strict controls including visitor caps, mandatory guides, designated trails and substantial tourism fees, which fund conservation. Socotra needs to implement similar protections before damage becomes irreversible, Van Damme said. Culture and tradition Beyond the environment, there are signs that tourism is also eroding the island's social fabric, according to Yahya, who said there was already a 'cultural shift' among its 60,000 residents, many of whom remain deeply traditional and speak Soqotri, an ancient, unwritten language with pre-Islamic roots. 'International behaviors are influencing locals, and we worry about the erosion of our traditions,' he said, adding that while tourists were welcome, some of them needed to be more respectful. An Instagram picture of a woman posing in a bikini beneath a dragon's blood tree had upset residents of one mountain village, he said, adding that it was seen as highly disrespectful by the conservative residents. Despite the pressures, there are reasons to be positive, Van Damme said, noting that authorities on the island are open to collaboration and local conservation projects are gaining traction. 'Community-led and other ongoing initiatives are vital,' he said. 'As long as they continue, there's genuine hope for the island's future.'
Japan Today
16 hours ago
- General
- Japan Today
Eel-eating Japan opposes EU call for more protection
Eel is eaten worldwide but is particularly popular in Japan, where is called 'unagi' and traditionally served grilled after being covered in a sticky-sweet sauce Japan's agriculture minister said Friday the country would oppose any call by the European Union to add eels to an endangered species list that would limit trade in them. Eel is eaten worldwide but is particularly popular in Japan, where it is called "unagi" and traditionally served grilled after being covered in a sticky-sweet sauce. Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters that the country carefully manages stock levels of the Japanese eel in cooperation with neighbouring China, Taiwan and South Korea. "There is a sufficient population, and it faces no extinction risk due to international trade," he said. Japanese media have reported that the EU could soon propose that all eel species be added to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) which limits trade of protected animals. There are 19 species and subspecies of eel, many of them now threatened due to a range of factors including pollution and overfishing. In 2014, the Japanese eel was listed as endangered, but not critically endangered, by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which cited factors including habitat loss, overfishing, pollution and migration barriers. Protecting the animal is complicated by their complex life cycle, which unfolds over a vast area, and the many unknowns about how they reproduce. © 2025 AFP
The Sun
a day ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Japan opposes EU push to protect eels as endangered species
TOKYO: Japan's agriculture minister said Friday the country would oppose any call by the European Union to add eels to an endangered species list that would limit trade in them. Eel is eaten worldwide but is particularly popular in Japan, where it is called 'unagi' and traditionally served grilled after being covered in a sticky-sweet sauce. Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters that the country carefully manages stock levels of the Japanese eel in cooperation with neighbouring China, Taiwan and South Korea. 'There is a sufficient population, and it faces no extinction risk due to international trade,' he said. Japanese media have reported that the EU could soon propose that all eel species be added to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) which limits trade of protected animals. There are 19 species and subspecies of eel, many of them now threatened due to a range of factors including pollution and overfishing. In 2014, the Japanese eel was listed as endangered, but not critically endangered, by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which cited factors including habitat loss, overfishing, pollution and migration barriers. Protecting the animal is complicated by their complex life cycle, which unfolds over a vast area, and the many unknowns about how they reproduce.
France 24
a day ago
- General
- France 24
Eel-eating Japan opposes EU call for more protection
Eel is eaten worldwide but is particularly popular in Japan, where it is called "unagi" and traditionally served grilled after being covered in a sticky-sweet sauce. Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters that the country carefully manages stock levels of the Japanese eel in cooperation with neighbouring China, Taiwan and South Korea. "There is a sufficient population, and it faces no extinction risk due to international trade," he said. Japanese media have reported that the EU could soon propose that all eel species be added to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) which limits trade of protected animals. There are 19 species and subspecies of eel, many of them now threatened due to a range of factors including pollution and overfishing. In 2014, the Japanese eel was listed as endangered, but not critically endangered, by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which cited factors including habitat loss, overfishing, pollution and migration barriers.
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- General
- Boston Globe
‘Naughty' bears escape, steal a week's worth of honey and take long nap
Advertisement But the 5-year-old bears, much like most human 5-year-olds, appeared to want snacks more than anything else. The bears never made it beyond the staff-only food storage area, where park staff monitored them both on the ground and via CCTV until they voluntarily returned to their enclosure. Related : The food delivery had just arrived an hour before, Habben said in an interview, and the bears bypassed the vegetables to head straight for the sweet treats. 'Just like kids,' he laughed. The brother and sister plowed their way through the apples, bananas, and peanut butter before discovering the honey. They ripped the lid off the plastic container and took turns dipping their paws into the golden goo, 'making a right old mess,' Habben added. Advertisement European brown bear siblings Mish and Lucy were rescued from a snow drift in the Albanian mountains when they were just cubs. Wildwood Trust With all the park's carnivores, the keepers do what is called recall work to condition them to return to their enclosures, Habben said. Hence, Mish and Lucy understand to return at the sound of a bell followed by the sound of their enclosure door sliding open, Habben explained. Mish immediately ran back into the enclosure at the sound of door sliding open, Habben said, with Lucy following at the sound of the bell. They then proceeded to romp around their enclosure in the throes of a sugar rush before promptly falling asleep in what appeared to be a sugar crash coma. 'They're naughty bears,' Habben said. 'They're very naughty bears.' This sort of 'incredibly inquisitive, playful, and adventurous' behavior is fairly typical for Mish and Lucy, who are still considered young bears, said Paul Whitfield, director general of the Wildwood Trust, in an interview. 'Them doing exactly what they're not supposed to is sort of what we expect from them.' Related : Mish and Lucy are European brown bears, which are classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as a species of least concern, although the group notes that 'there are many small, isolated populations that are threatened.' In Albania, where Mish and Lucy were rescued, European brown bears are classified as vulnerable. The bears were so young when they were found abandoned in a snow drift that their rescuers had to bottle-feed them, according to Whitfield. Their rescuers tried to release them back into the wild after they were weaned, 'but all they did was look for the people who were trying to release them,' Whitfield said. They arrived in Wildwood Devon in 2021, where they now live in a 1.5-acre natural enclosure where they can play, climb trees, and be fed fresh salmon in the autumn, in addition to the nuts and berries they receive year-round, Whitfield said, describing them as 'incredibly pampered and spoiled bears.' Advertisement Mish and Lucy will soon be living with two more cheeky young bears. Malenky and Nanuq are 2-year-old siblings who were born in a sanctuary in Belgium to a mother bear who had been rescued from the conflict in Ukraine.
