Wildlife

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November 13, 2019 News this week
A cyclonic storm that hit India in 2016. (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
October 18, 2019 A study using remote sensing techniques assesses significant changes in land use in Loktak lake.
A home on Loktak lake in Moirang, Manipur (Image: Sharada Prasad CS, Wikipedia Commons)
October 11, 2019 Mumbai’s citizens came out in droves to save trees from being felled in Aarey to make way for the metro. Collective action is crucial to save the green lungs of India's rapidly urbanising cities.
Aarey, the green lungs of Mumbai (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons)
September 30, 2019 The recently concluded 4 day conference in Bangalore looked at the current state of global water resource challenges & future pathways to achieve the SDGs, while ensuring equity in access to all.
Charles Vorosmarty, Chair, COMPASS Initiative, Water Future at the opening plenary on advanced water system assessments to address water security challenges of the 21st century.
September 24, 2019 Policy matters this week
Despite the ban, manual scavenging continues. (Image courtesy: The Hindu)
Sunderbans tagged under Ramsar Convention
News this week Posted on 05 Feb, 2019 05:41 PM

Indian Sunderbans gets recognition under Ramsar Convention on Wetlands 

Mangroves of the Sunderbans (Source: Nature Environment & Wildlife Society - NEWS)
Gangetic river dolphin habitats under threat
A study finds that rise in salinity level of water threatens Gangetic river dolphin habitats. Posted on 11 Jan, 2019 12:45 PM

A five-year study conducted in the Sundarbans region has found that the rising water salinity level is threatening the habitat of Gangetic river dolphins. 

Gangetic river dolphin habitats are threatened by rise in salinity levels. (Pic by ISW)
Kerala, HP, TN top development goal index
Policy matters this week Posted on 26 Dec, 2018 03:08 PM

Himachal, Kerala, TN front-runners in NITI Aayog index on development goals

Sustainable Development Goals adopted in 2015 as a part of the 2030 agenda. (Source: Wikipedia Commons)
The Naga Pride
The film, The Naga Pride tells the story of the transformation of a Naga tribe from being Amur falcon hunters to protectors. Posted on 17 Dec, 2018 08:42 PM

Amur falcons are among the strongest fliers in the avian world. Since the last 25 years, they have been migrating to the Northeast especially Nagaland from Siberia en route to their final destination—Somalia, Kenya and South Africa. 

Amur Falcons (Screenshot of the film The Naga Pride, Source: Sumanth Kuduvalli)
Green gold on fire
The film Green Gold on Fire provides insights into the impacts of forest fire on communities and environment in Jammu and Kashmir. Posted on 15 Dec, 2018 05:54 PM

Jammu and Kashmir is the only state in India where forest fires are reported almost every season. As per Indian state of forest report 2017, India saw a 46 percent increase in the number of forest fires in the last 16 years. Forest fires not only affect the flora and fauna of the region but they also pollute the environment and lead to climate change by increasing greenhouse gases.

Forest fire (Source: Abdul Rashid)
The Birdman of Chorao
The documentary, Birdman of Chorao tells the story of Uday Mandrekar’s selfless efforts in protecting the mangroves in Chorao. Posted on 14 Dec, 2018 09:33 PM

Uday Mandrekar (40) is a popular boatman on the Chorao island of Goa. He is known for his formidable knowledge on birds in the area so much so that he is often referred to as the bird man of Chorao. He is a private boatman and a tourist guide who can take you deep into the mangroves and waterways of the island.

Uday Mandrekar (Source: Shashank Bhosale)
Saving Ganga: Just clean-up won’t do
River Ganga’s uninterrupted flow is as important as making the river pollution free if the Ganga rejuvenation drive has to show desired results. Posted on 13 Dec, 2018 02:37 PM

Until a few decades ago, the Ganga flowed with gay abandon and descended with rapidity into the plains. Today the waters have withdrawn from its banks and downstream of the hydropower and irrigation projects that have hindered its flow, the Ganga is totally dry.

The Ganga at Haridwar in Uttarakhand. Downstream of this, the river flow has reduced due to increased abstraction. (Image courtesy: Manas Chakrabarty; Wikimedia Commons, CC BY SA-4.0)
The tragic tale of Erai
The polluted Erai river needs to be restored before it completely dies and leaves the people dependent on it searching for drinking water. Posted on 30 Nov, 2018 10:56 AM

The Erai river, the main tributary of the Wardha river, is the lifeline for the people of Chandrapur in Maharashtra. It primarily supplies water to the Chandrapur city and Chandrapur super thermal power station (CSTPS). Since 1984, after the initiation of operations of M/s CSTPS and Western Coalfields Limited (WCL), the river has begun to get polluted and is now gasping for breath.

The Erai river (Source: India Water Portal)
WWF study reveals grim picture of wildlife
News this week Posted on 08 Nov, 2018 03:06 PM

Global wildlife populations have fallen by 60 percent in the past four decades: WWF

Indian wild deer (Source: Tjdeena via Wikipedia Commons)
Wind turbines impact Western Ghats ecology
Wind farms reduce the number of predatory birds which in turn results in an increase in the density of vertebrates like lizards in Western Ghats. Posted on 07 Nov, 2018 07:33 PM

Wind energy, considered a clean source of energy, does have a carbon footprint and is also known to disturb bird life. Now a new study done in the Western Ghats has found that wind farms in biodiversity-rich areas can have deeper ecological consequences beyond already known impacts. 

Sarada superba lizard (Pic courtesy: Abi Vanak)
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