Around the world the debate rages about climate control and curbing carbon emissions. In Anchorage there is more than heated discussion about whaling and the Japanese being seemingly hell-bent on even extending their whaling activities to include the humpback.
On the ground, as it were, one of the most endearing primates, the ape, is under severe threat of extinction, as The Guardian reports:
"One of the world's most prominent conservation experts yesterday issued a rallying cry to save the great apes, man's closest biological cousins, which are under serious threat of extinction.
Richard Leakey, former head of the Kenya wildlife service and now chair of Wildlife Direct, said apes across the world faced unprecedented threats from the combined effects of hunting, disease and logging. And he said efforts to tackle global warming through the use of biofuels could cause more damage to ape populations because of pressure to chop down their tropical forest homes.
About 80% of orang-utan habitat in south-east Asia has been destroyed in the past 20 years because of soaring demand for land to produce palm oil for western markets. Experts warn that increased uptake of alternative fuels could mean the disappearance of the remaining 50,000 animals there within a generation."
What an indictment of Man. Are we going to reach the position that to see what gorillas looked like that generations to come will need to see the movie "Gorillas in the Mist"?
On the ground, as it were, one of the most endearing primates, the ape, is under severe threat of extinction, as The Guardian reports:
"One of the world's most prominent conservation experts yesterday issued a rallying cry to save the great apes, man's closest biological cousins, which are under serious threat of extinction.
Richard Leakey, former head of the Kenya wildlife service and now chair of Wildlife Direct, said apes across the world faced unprecedented threats from the combined effects of hunting, disease and logging. And he said efforts to tackle global warming through the use of biofuels could cause more damage to ape populations because of pressure to chop down their tropical forest homes.
About 80% of orang-utan habitat in south-east Asia has been destroyed in the past 20 years because of soaring demand for land to produce palm oil for western markets. Experts warn that increased uptake of alternative fuels could mean the disappearance of the remaining 50,000 animals there within a generation."
What an indictment of Man. Are we going to reach the position that to see what gorillas looked like that generations to come will need to see the movie "Gorillas in the Mist"?
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