PLoS One | Erik Meijaard et al. | November 2011

Abstract

Human-orangutan conflict and hunting are thought to pose a serious threat to orangutan existence in Kalimantan, the Indonesian part of Borneo. No data existed prior to the present study to substantiate these threats. We investigated the rates, spatial distribution and causes of conflict and hunting through an interview-based survey in the orangutan’s range in Kalimantan, Indonesia. Between April 2008 and September 2009, we interviewed 6983 respondents in 687 villages to obtain socio-economic information, assess knowledge of local wildlife in general and orangutan encounters specifically, and to query respondents about their knowledge on orangutan conflicts and killing, and relevant laws. This survey revealed estimated killing rates of between 750 and 1800 animals killed in the last year, and between 1950 and 3100 animals killed per year on average within the lifetime of the survey respondents. These killing rates are higher than previously thought and are high enough to pose a serious threat to the continued existence of orangutans in Kalimantan. Importantly, the study contributes to our understanding of the spatial variation in threats, and the underlying causes of those threats, which can be used to facilitate the development of targeted conservation management.

22/11/2011
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The Guardian Post | November 2011

A dealer in protected wildlife species has been arrested in Lomie, in the Upper Nyong division of the East region. The man was arrested in possession of a huge stock of gorilla meat contained in a fridge in his home. Also found in the fridge were parts of De Brazza monkey and agile mangabey, a rare monkey species which belongs to class A and total­ly protected according to the 1994 wildlife law. Within 24 hours of the arrest the trafficker, three others were arrested in the same town — Lomie, with numerous parts of protected wildlife species.

22/11/2011
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Hidden hunger from wildlife loss

In areas where bushmeat is included in the diet, access to wildlife is critical to human health

http://www.eurekalert.org/ | Peter Reuell | November 2011

For the full article, click here

How do you balance the need for biodiversity conservation and human health?

For Christopher Golden, '05, a Post-Doctoral Fellow in Harvard University Center for the Environment, that question is at the core of a paper he authored which found that, in societies where people rely on "bushmeat" for important micro-nutrients, lost access to wildlife, arising either from strict conservation enforcement or unsustainable harvesting, could translate into negative impacts on the health of children.

21/11/2011
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Global Post| Laura Burke | November 2011

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast: On a humid October day in a tropical forest in the middle of Abidjan, members of Ymako Theatri theater group, dressed in black suits, jump to the beat of drums and sing: "Chimpan-zees are our cou-sins! Let’s not eat them any-more! Let’s not kill them any-more!"

The rhythm is catchy and the performers are energized, singing: "We must protect the forest for the future of our children!"

Today, like always, the audience is rapt.

12/11/2011
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Current Biology | Michael Kruetzen | November 2011

Although geographic variation in an organism's traits is often seen as a consequence of selection on locally adaptive genotypes accompanied by canalized development [1], developmental plasticity may also play a role [2, 3], especially in behavior [4]. Behavioral plasticity includes both individual learning and social learning of local innovations ("culture"). Cultural plasticity is the undisputed and dominant explanation for geographic variation in human behavior. It has recently also been suggested to hold for various primates and birds [5], but this proposition has been met with widespread skepticism [6-8]. Here, we analyze parallel long-term studies documenting extensive geographic variation in behavioral ecology, social organization, and putative culture of orangutans [9] (genus Pongo). We show that genetic differences among orangutan populations explain only very little of the geographic variation in behavior, whereas environmental differences explain much. more, highlighting the importance of developmental plasticity. Moreover, variation in putative cultural variants is explained by neither genetic nor environmental differences, corroborating the cultural interpretation. Thus, individual and cultural plasticity provide a plausible pathway toward local adaptation in long-lived organisms such as great apes and formed the evolutionary foundation upon which human culture was built.

11/11/2011
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Meijaard E. et al | POLS one | 11 November 2011

Human-orangutan conflict and hunting are thought to pose a serious threat to orangutan existence in Kalimantan, the Indonesian part of Borneo. No data existed prior to the present study to substantiate these threats.

11/11/2011
Click here to read on...