Thursday, August 26, 2010

Pictures: "Lost" Deer, Rare Cuckoo Caught in Camera Traps

 A camera-trap picture of a Sumatran tiger in Kerinci-Seblat National Park.

Eyes of the Tiger

Photograph courtesy Fauna & Flora International/DICE

A Sumatran tiger faces a camera trap head on in Kerinci Seblat National Park, on the Indonesian island of Sumatra (see map), in a May 2007 photo.

One of the last havens for the Sumatran tiger—listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)—the park was the site of a camera-trap survey from 2004 to 2009, one of the most extensive such projects ever conducted, conservationists say. (See more tiger pictures.)

During the project, a team from Fauna and Flora International (FFI) and the University of Kent's Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology photographed 35 separate tigers out of a likely total population of about 500. Pictures of the tigers—as well as some other forest species captured during the project—were released for the first time last week by FFI. (Related pictures: "Cameras 'Trap' Hairy-Nosed Otter, More Rarities.")

Unlike the well-known subspecies the Bengal tiger and Siberian tiger, Sumatran tigers "have not achieved international fame, and this is partly because it is so difficult to document this equatorial species hiding in lush evergreen rainforest," FFI's Matt Linkie said via email. (See a rare video of tiger cubs filmed in Sumatra earlier this year.)

Indonesia's two other tiger subspecies—the Bali tiger and Javan tiger—are both extinct, and there is "grave potential for history to repeat itself" with the Sumatran tiger, which is illegally hunted on the island, Linkie said. (Take a big cats quiz.)

But there's hope, he added—FFI has set up five anti-poaching teams across the national park.

—Christine Dell'Amore

Posted via email from Web Stream - Vishal Shah (goldenV)

Friday, August 13, 2010

Wildfire Pictures: Russia Burns, Moscow Chokes

 Picture of women in front of a house destroyed by wildfire in Russia, where a record heat wave has sparked hundreds of wildfires.

Fire's Toll

Photograph by Sergei Karpukhin, Reuters

Next to the charred remains of a home in the Russian city of Voronezh, women console each other on July 30.

Posted via email from Web Stream - Vishal Shah (goldenV)

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

sharpie liquid pencil


sharpie liquid pencil


sharpie has just unveiled their new 'liquid pencil'. the pencil uses liquid graphite 'ink' to write
like a pen, erase like a pencil, and eventually dry like a permanent marker. once written, you
have three days to think about the validity and weight of your words. during this period you can
erase it just like pencil marks. after the three days is up, the pencil lines will turn to ink and remain
inscribed forever.

Posted via email from Web Stream - Vishal Shah (goldenV)

Wednesday, August 04, 2010

Photos: Dragonfish, Fireworm, More Found by Sea Surveys

A picture of a dragonfish, a Census of Marine Life species representing the diversity of 25 ocean areas
  • Fang-Tongued Fish

    Photograph courtesy Julian Finn, Museum Victoria

    Australia's "terrifying" dragonfish (pictured) uses its many fangs—which even stud its tongue—to hook hard-to-find prey in the cold, dark depths, scientists say.

Posted via email from Web Stream - Vishal Shah (goldenV)

Clouds, Information, Cloud Types, News, Photos -- National Geographic

Photo: Thunderstorm at sunset

The beauty of a Tassajara, California, sunset is enhanced by towering cumulonimbus clouds—but they will likely spoil the serene scene. These tallest of all clouds often produce violent storms of rain, thunder, lightning, hail, and high winds.

Posted via email from Web Stream - Vishal Shah (goldenV)

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