Farms of the Sea

Hope Renewed for the Lake Sammammish Kokanee Salmon

admin — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 05:30:57 +0000

As with many endangered marine animals, the Lake Sammamish Kokanee salmon has long been in applied for inclusion into the endangered species list. Finally, last July 12, 2011, the US Fish and Wildlife Service made a firm promise to decide its fate. It still isn’t approved for federal protection under the endangered species list but at least something is happening. Hopefully, it won’t take several months before a decision is made. The agency is required under law to come up with their decision before the end of the year, 2011. This means a definitive end to a long wait for environmentalists.

The Lake Sammamish Kokanee salmon is a rare variety of fish found only at Lake Sammamish. They usually come to the lake in August through creeks and streams to spawn. With the dam infrastructure and development that have been gone unabated over the years, these streams have all but dried up. This 2011, there have been no sighting of the salmon and many environmentalists fear its extinction will happen sooner than expected.

Again, it boils down to a legal and angry debate between the power suppliers and nature. The dams are good because they help produce power for the surrounding areas. However, it has caused side effects such as what we are seeing with the salmon. Wind power has been proposed to alleviate further aggravation of the endangered species.

One example of the legal battles environmentalists are facing is between Portland’s Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and salmon advocates. The people who want salmons to be protected are teaming up with wind energy companies to force BPA to restore operations with the wind energy companies and release water from the dams which are experiencing high levels anyway. The safe spill from the dams would allow the salmon enough water to safely swim to the lake while the wind energy companies can resume their business contracts with BPA.

This August, Bob Pfeifer who is a biologist with the Department of Wildlife plans to start walking along the different streams leading to Lake Sammamish to look for signs of the salmon. He says, “It’s probably going to be shocking – I’m not looking forward to it.”

Hawaiian Monk Seal

admin — Mon, 23 May 2011 20:17:38 +0000

If you walk the beaches of Hawaii, up and down its sandy, beautiful shores, you may run across an earless seal called the Hawaiian Monk Seal. You wouldn’t be able to miss its massive body; the male of the species weighing close to four hundred pounds, while the female, being the bigger of the two, weighing closer to six hundred pounds. If you see one on the beach, you are lucky because this beautiful mammal only spends one third of its time on the shore, while the rest of its time is spent in the water.

While roaming in their habitats, they face an array of dangers. With only around one thousand Hawaiian Monk Seals left on the planet, they encounter dangers like being entangled in fishing nets, being exposed to marine diseases and human poaching. One of their biggest dangers besides human poaching is being eaten by sharks. Sharks are a vicious species that threaten a lot of our marine animals today, like the Hawaiian Monk Seal.

Keeping this species safe and helping them reproduce in captivity is a huge feat, but there is an organization dedicated to this effort. With only being a little over one thousand Hawaiian Monk Seals left in the world, trying to keep them from going extinct is a task set for an organization like the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge, or the HINWR. At this Refuge they are able to care for, mate and study these beautiful creatures. After they have successfully mated and birthed a pup, they are then cared for and tagged until they are ready to be put in more challenging conditions. They are hoping to reintegrate more Hawaiian Monk Seals into the oceans of Hawaii and help this species thrive and get away from the Critically Endangered status its currently in.

What Causes Animals To Be In Danger?

admin — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 04:05:06 +0000

Endangered animals is a heart-wrenching plight of animals facing extinction, not primarily because of natural events, but man-made mistakes. The rate of animals being placed under protective watch is growing at a pace unprecedented in world history. The normal course over the years is for some animals being replaced by another species, albeit at a very slow rate. Certainly, what has been happening in the past decade is not only unusual, it’s downright scary.

Under the guise of progress and development, we are causing changes to happen, and endangered animals is one of the casualties. How did this happen? Why are animals in danger?

Instead of pointing fingers, we should each take a step back and acknowledge out participation in the events unfolding before our eyes. Animals like Giant Pandas, gorillas, tigers, and a hundred more will soon be but a memory in photos unless we do something today.

One of the reasons for the problem many animals face now is that they are losing their homes. Not many of them can adapt to new surroundings, or even find a new place to migrate to.

Pollution is another major contributor to why animals are dying unnecessarily. Just look at the latest figures released by the Red List: one in every 4 mammals are dying; one in every 3 amphibians are threatened; and one in every 8 birds will soon be extinct. In fact a whopping 40% of our species, plants and animals are at risk. That is, unless drastic action is taken to stem the tide.

Under the problem of polluted air, water, and land is the bigger issue of global warming. Animals are forced to flee their natural habitat because of extreme heat or drastic drop in temperature. The weather is shifting and we now see rain when it is suppose to be sunny; snow when it is suppose to be spring, and extreme heat when it is suppose to be just mildly warm.

The sport of hunting, whether it be for business or pleasure has gone from being conservative and controlled to unabated and irrational. Animals are not like plants which you can regenerate easily by planting a seed. In some cases, females are outnumbered by males, and so slaughtering or hunting down female animals could deplete the species and kill any chances of increasing, or even maintaining, its population. Each one of us have a responsibility to help and protect these animals. Your voice counts.

Are Penguins In Danger?

admin — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 19:00:46 +0000

Penguins are considered to be a bird with wings, but cannot fly. The wings act like fins and help them swim. There are currently 17 known species of penguins. Of these 17 species, 11 are listed as endangered species of animals. From different parts of the world like Australia, Galapagos Islands, Antarctica, South Africa, New Zealand, and South America, you will find the same problem of penguins potentially becoming extinct.

Definitely, with so many different issues like global warming and human disturbances, penguins are in grave danger. Not only are they vulnerable to the usual predators like sharks, seals, and killer whales from the water, they have to fight off the skua, pampas cats and foxes while on land. To survive, they have to select land where there are minimal risks.

Unfortunately, they are helpless when it comes to oil spills, and it has a devastating effect on them. The oil will coat their outer protection and prevent them from being mobile and able to hunt for their food. The food sources, presumably will also be tainted with oil, and this will result in starvation for the penguins.

Furthermore, they are quickly losing their food source even without the deadly oil spills, because large fishing vessels over-fish. There have even been cases of penguins being getting snagged by the fishing nets and equipment and dying. There are still unscrupulous fishermen who intentionally kill penguins to get their blubber in order to make oil. Although this is illegal, sadly it is still happening because people will find a way, and it isn’t easy to monitor all fishing activities.

One of the most endangered species of animals, the Emperor Penguins, who live in Antarctica, will be extinct by the end of the century because of the shift in climate temperatures. Ice melting and the high heat in the area will make it impossible for these penguins to continue living.

To stop these endangered species of animals from being completely eradicated from the planet, a 6-pronged approach must be taken. These would highlight the potential risks penguins face. They are climate change, oil spills, threat to natural habitat, human disturbances, and natural predators. If these factors are taken very seriously into consideration, penguins can expect to live out their natural life expectancy of 10 to 25 years, and a 60% survival rate for baby penguins.

Reference: Illustrated Encyclopedia of endangered animals.