My Science School

Prairies are basically grasslands found in temperate regions. The Canadian prairies span the southern part of the three provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba in the country's western area and cover a vast area running to a few thousand sq.km. Essentially, this region begins where the Rocky Mountains end, giving way to grass fields, plains, forests, and lowlands. A part of the prairies is treeless but some underpopulated areas within the region are more forested and hilly. The area is considered the breadbasket of Canada, thanks to the domination of arable land within its limits. However, it also supports a large number of fauna, especially birds, since the grasslands and croplands are dotted with several wetlands. This area is not without its concerns, though. The population of grassland birds has been declining due to land degradation and infrastucture development, among other reasons.

Wildlife

Among the animals that can be spotted in the region are rabbits, prairie dogs, coyotes, beavers, bears, caribou, wolves, and buffalo. In fact, the American buffalo is seen as being synonymous with the prairies. Though this mammal's population declined drastically a few decades ago, conscious conservation efforts have helped improve the numbers. The birds that can be sighted here include ducks, geese, shovelers, teals, quails, sage grouses, grebes, doves, egrets, herons, cormorants, avocets, plovers, sandpipers, hawks, owls, woodpeckers, flycatchers, longspurs, sparrows, warblers, swallows, and wrens.

Threats

One of the major concerns about Canadian prairies has been the loss of grasslands, and the rate at which this loss has been occurring. It is said that the loss is so high and fast that it is comparable to what is happening to the Amazon rainforests in South America. Apparently, more than 70 % of the original prairie grasslands have been converted to other uses such as agriculture and industry, according to Nature Convervancy Canada, a land conservation organisation. And this shrinking of grasslands has been affecting wildlife in the region, particularly the migratory birds. Over 60 rare species have called the region their home. In addition, annually, millions of migratory birds visit these prairies. But that's changing. Over the last four decades, some bird species have lost 70 per cent of their population" and "unless something is done the decline will continue". And, it's not just the bird species, this puts at risk even animals such as plains bison and swift fox. These grasslands also comprise wetlands, lakes, rivers, and valleys which mean that apart from the resident and migrating birds the region also supports a large variety of fishes, and these species could be affected too.

Like a lot of other grasslands in the world, the Canadian prairies are intensely grazed by cattle, goats, and sheep, thereby replacing wild animals. This is unfortunate considering Canada has a long history of sustainable grazing. However, in the past, Canada has shown remarkable vision, and worked on conservation and also succeeded. And that's what it must do again if the grasslands have to be saved before it is too late.

Picture Credit : Google

Covering an area of more than 560 sq.km., the Monarch Buttery Biosphere Reserve is located nearly 160 km from Mexico's capital Mexico City. As the name implies, the Reserve is renowned for the North American monarch butterflies that fill the area during their annual migration. Every year, up to a billion of these butterflies spend the winter at the oyamel fir (a native tree) forests of central Mexico. It is said that the butterflies arrive as dosed packs and land in more than 10 colonies in these forests. The Reserve spans eight of these colonies. In 2008, the Reserve was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site of "Outstanding Universal Value". The dramatic decline in the number of migrating monarch butterflies, one of the endangered species of Mexico, over the last few decades has been of grave concern in fact, it is said to have reached a 20-year low during the 2013-2014 season.

An incredible journey

Considered one of the most amazing natural events to happen on our planet, the annual migration of the North American monarch butterflies occurs between their home range in Canada and the U.S. and their winter stop-over in southern California and central Mexico more than 3,000 km away! The epic journey begins around November before cold weather sets in their home range, and when it ends in Mexico, there are about a billion of those butterflies painting the trees a lovely orange and bending their branches under their collective weight. It is said that each complete journey holds within it the cycle of birth and death, meaning that the butterfly that begins the journey need not be the one that returns home. Many males may die before the females lay their eggs and die themselves and the journey is continued by the new generation that bursts forth into the scene. Though there are many theories and ongoing studies on the subject, it has remained a mystery as to how newer generations continue to follow the same route their ancestors did.

Threats

According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) latest assessment cycle, the conservation outlook for the region is that of "significant concern". It lists three major threats for the butterflies in their range. Among the most critical is the deforestation and degradation of forest by illegal logging of overwintering sites in México. The next is the widespread reduction of breeding habitat in the US due to land-use changes and the decrease of this butterfly's main larval food plant - the common milkweed. The reduction is deeply connected with the use of a certain herbicide that kills these weeds. The other reason is the extreme weather conditions experienced throughout the butterfly's range during the year.

Picture Credit : Google

Covering almost the whole of the Arabian Peninsula, the Arabian Desert is the largest desert of Asia and among the world's largest. Located on the southwestern part of the continent, the desert spans about 23,00,000 sq.km. Though the largest part of the desert lies in Saudi Arabia, it also spills over to other countries such as Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, Israel, Egypt, and Jordan. Rub al-Khali, which makes up the most part of this desert, is the largest continuous area of sand in the world. Though the Arabian Desert gives the impression of simply being a sand-covered expanse, it is not really so. It supports a great variety of trees and plants such as succulents and palms adapted well to salt water or to limited availability of water. The central portion of the desert supports a number of herbs and flowering plants. All these, in turn, nurture several types of animals, birds, reptiles, and insects found in the region. Among the threats facing the desert are grazing, development projects, and oil surveys.

Wildlife

Dominating the landscape are numerous desert insects, including mosquitoes, fleas, ants, termites, beetles, locusts, spiders, butterflies, and caterpillars. Scorpions, salamanders, frogs, toads, lizards, geckos, and vipers too are found in the region. Among the birds seen here are both resident and migrant species such as larks, sandgrouses, coursers, bustards, falcons, kestrels, ravens, eagles, vultures, kites, warblers, babblers, bee eaters, swallows, martins, swifts, wheatears, flycatchers, starlings, and hoopoes. The mammals that can be spotted in the area include gazelles, oryx ibex foxes, civets, hyenas, jackals, jerboas, hares, porcupines, mice, hedgehogs, and baboons.

Threats

As mentioned earlier, development is a huge problem in the Arabain Desert. But there's an equally, or perhaps, even a greater threat to the region-desertification. Arable land is land that can be put to good agricultural use. Desertification is the process in which productive drylands lose their ability to do so, due to climate change and/ or human activity. And that's what's happening in the Arabian Desert-arable land is turning into desert at an alarming rate. According to reports from just a couple of years ago, "70-90% of the Arabian Peninsula under threat of desertification". Among the reasons attributed to this is the use of chemicals and pesticides in agriculture. As it is the environment has been harsh due to very high temperatures, low rainfall, and high humidity. But this is now aggravated due to climate change. Desertification also leads to extreme drought, floods, and even food shortage. Ever since oil was discovered in the region, settlements increased, adding stress to lands. Subsequent increase in livestock numbers and overgrazing led to further land degradation, and even loss of biodiversity. If this continues without any long-term solution or immediate intervention and remedial action, it would lead not just to continued loss of biodiversity but will impact even the people in the region negatively.

Picture Credit : Google

Science has made progress in leaps and bounds over the years. Something such as the revival of an extinct species might have seemed possible only in our dreams. But today, thanks to science, several extinct species can be brought back to life. This process called de extinction and is mostly done through gene editing.

Gene editing or genome editing is a group of technologies that give scientists the chance to change an organism's DNA by adding, removing or altering gene material at particular locations in the genome

One of the more recent gene editing technologies is called CRISPR-Cas9, short for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats. The system is believed to be more secure, faster, cheaper, more accurate and more efficient than any other gene editing methods. Currently, most of the research is on understanding diseases using cells and animal models, Scientists are still trying to find out if it is safe and effective to use gene editing in people. While genome editing is of great interest in the treatment and prevention of human diseases such as sickle cell disease and hemophilia, there are ethical concerns about its use.

If fallen into the wrong hands, it can alter a person's characteristics and mess with the way the person was born. It can suddenly make someone taller or leaner and can become more for cosmetic than for health reasons. Gene editing can also impact the future generations of the person who undergoes it if the editing is done to genes in the germline cells (egg and sperm cells)

Genome editing is also currently used for genetically modified (GM) food-food that grows from an organism whose genes have been altered. While scientists argue that GM foods are as safe for humans as conventional foods, people have been careful Questions have been raised about the safety and regulation of such foods and many countries have either banned their use or are making such foods go through strict regulation.

While the idea of gene editing is to tackle diseases, make food and crops cheaper, and bring back extinct species and their roles, it is a way of messing with what is naturally found on Earth using science. So, is it really necessary? May be or may be not.

Picture Credit : Google

Located in the African country of Ethiopia, the Simien Mountains National Park covers an area of more than 135 sq.km. The region is a stunning landscape, a mosaic marked by undulating plateaus, sharp cliffs, and deep valleys. Part of a biodiversity hotspot that's home to several globally threatened species, the Park was set up in 1969, especially to conserve these species. The region is also an Important Bird Area. The Park became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978. However, the site was added to the List of World Heritage in Danger in 1996 due to the impact of a new road across it, excessive cattle grazing, agricultural encroachment and a drop in the Walia ibex Simien fox and other large mammal populations". Inadequate infrastructure, encroachment, and destruction of habitat were concerns too. After this, slowly, things began to change. Finally, appreciative of Ethopia's commitment to building another road and to the overall conservation of the region, UNESCO removed the Park from the Danger list in 2017.

Wildlife

As an Important Bird Area, the Park is said to nurture over 130 species of birds. Among these are ravens, eagles, buzzards, kites, falcons, hawks, kestrels, pigeons, doves, larks, starlings, wheatears, vultures, ibises, thrushes, kingfishers, francolins, pipits, parrots, ducks, geese, crakes, quails, herons, egrets, storks, bustards, thickknees, plovers. lapwings, gulls, terns, sandgrouses, cuckoos, coucals, owls, nightjars, swifts, beeeaters, barbets, woodpeckers, swallows, warblers, flycatchers, babblers, sunbirds, weavers, buntings, seedeaters, and sparrows. Among the most prominent endemic species in the region are the Walya ibex, Simien fox or Ethiopian wolf and gelada baboon, in addition to six species of birds. It is home to several other mammal species too. They include Anubis baboon, Hamadryas baboon, klipspringer, and golden jackal.

Threats

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the conservation outlook for this site has been assessed as "significant concern in the latest assessment cycle (2020). The first natural site in Africa to be inscribed on the World Heritage list Simien National Park is located in the thickly populated Ethiopian highlands. And, that is the site's greatest threat because these inhabitants are extensively dependent on the region's natural resources for their existence. It is said that the number of people living around the Park has increased four times in just the last four decades. And this clearly impacts the wildlife in numerous ways. For one, some areas have come under cultivation, resulting in the loss of wildlife habitat. Further, a large portion has been used for intensive grazing by domestic livestock. Reports suggest that there are proposals to construct lodges inside the Park. This is contrary to the recommendations of UNESCO after it removed the Park from its Danger List. If these lodges are constructed, the presence of tourists would further affect the biodiversity of the region.

Some good news!

Despite all these, the population of many animals, including the highly endangered Walia ibex and Ethiopian wolf "as well as the endemic gelada, are reported to be stable thanks to the efforts of the park's management and its partners. However, unless urgent and concrete steps are taken to preserve the wildlife, those populations may not continue to remain so.

Picture Credit : Google