Chitchat in the news: China getting strong fast, USA defy against being booted out. :

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An honorable member of the Coffee Shop Has Just Posted the Following:

http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/eas...ngered-species

Giant panda no longer an endangered species
Through its "rent-a-panda" captive breeding scheme, China has loaned some bears to zoos abroad in exchange for cash, and reinvested that money in conservation efforts.
Through its "rent-a-panda" captive breeding scheme, China has loaned some bears to zoos abroad in exchange for cash, and reinvested that money in conservation efforts.ST PHOTO: ONG WEE JIN
Published
Sep 6, 2016, 5:00 am SGT
China praised for conservation efforts that led to animal's population rebound

HONOLULU • Decades of conservation work in China have paid off for the giant panda, with its status upgraded from "endangered" to "vulnerable" due to a population rebound.

The improvement for the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) was announced on Sunday as part of an update to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, the world's most comprehensive inventory of plants and animals.

The latest estimates show a population of 1,864 adult giant pandas. Although exact numbers are not available, adding cubs to the projection would mean about 2,060 pandas exist today, said the IUCN.

"Evidence from a series of range-wide national surveys indicates that the previous population decline has been arrested, and the population has started to increase," said the IUCN's updated report.

The cornerstones of the Chinese government's effort to bring back its fuzzy, black-and-white national icon have included an intense effort to replant bamboo forests, which provide food and shelter for the bears.

Through its "rent-a-panda" captive breeding programme, China has also loaned some bears to zoos abroad in exchange for cash, and reinvested that money in conservation efforts.

"When push comes to shove, the Chinese have done a really good job with pandas," Dr John Robinson, a primatologist and chief conservation officer of the Wildlife Conservation Society, said.

"So few species are actually downlisted; it really is a reflection of the success of conservation," he said at the IUCN World Conservation Congress, the largest meeting of its kind, which drew more than 9,000 heads of state, policymakers and environmentalists to Honolulu.

According to Dr Simon Stuart, chair of the IUCN Species Survival Commission, the improvement was "not rocket science" but came from the hard work of controlling poaching and replanting bamboo forests.

"This is something to celebrate because it is not a part of the world where we expect this to happen," Dr Stuart said at the announcement of the updated Red List.

Experts warned, however, that the good news for pandas could be short-lived.

A warming planet, driven by fossil fuel burning, is predicted to wipe out more than one-third of the panda's bamboo habitat in the next 80 years.

That means the panda population is projected to decline, and any gains realised to date could be reversed, said Dr Carlo Rondinini, mammal assessment coordinator of the Sapienza University of Rome.

"The concern now is that although the population has slowly increased - and it is still very small - several models predict a reduction of the extent of bamboo forests in China in the coming decades due to climate change," he said.

The IUCN report said that China's plan to expand its conservation effort for pandas "is a positive step and must be strongly supported to ensure its effective implementation".

The IUCN Red List includes 82,954 plant and animal species.

Almost one-third - 23,928 - are threatened with extinction, it said.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE



http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/...a/3104612.html

US is 'here to stay' in Asia: President Obama

Posted 06 Sep 2016 16:35 Updated 06 Sep 2016 16:40

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VIENTIANE: Barack Obama, on his final visit to Asia as US president, insisted Tuesday (Sep 6) renewed American engagement with the region would endure after he left the White House.

"America's interest in the Asia-Pacific is not new. It's not a passing fad. It reflects fundamental national interests," he said in a speech in the Lao capital of Vientiane.

The US president is making his 11th and last trip to the Asia-Pacific, seeking to cement a "pivot" to the region that has been a hallmark of his eight-year administration.

During his speech in Laos, Obama took time to summarise that policy, which has often been distracted by protracted violence and instability in the Middle East.

"As president, a key priority of my foreign policy has been to deepen our engagement with the nations and peoples of the Asia-Pacific," he told delgates, adding that he remained "confident" the new engagement would last.

Obama trumpeted increased military cooperation with countries such as the Philippines, Singapore and India, as well as a push for greater trade with the region, and vowed this would continue.

"We are here to stay. In good times and bad, you can count on the United States of America," Obama said.

Obama also addressed concerns in China, which has watched the US pivot with suspicion while pursuing its own increasingly muscular foreign policy in the region.

"The United States and China are engaged across more areas than ever before," Obama told delegates.

He added that Washington "welcomes the rise of a China that is peaceful, stable and prosperous and a responsible player in global affairs because we belive that will benefit all of us".

But he also reiterated his steadfast support for access to disputed waters in the region which China claims as its own.

"Across the region, including in the East and South China Seas, the United States will continue to fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows and support the right of all countries to do the same," he said.

- AFP/hs



The Endangered one is The American Falcon!


http://raysweb.net/specialplaces/pages/falcon.html

The Peregrine Falcon [Falco peregrinus]

Unlike the other species that I researched on the WEB, the Peregrine Falcon is treated with seriousness almost everywhere I visited. Perhaps this is because Peregrines, the worlds swiftest birds, are endangered in Canada and in many places in the United States.

Like the Whooping Crane, the Peregrine Falcon connects people throughout Canada and the United States, but even moreso, in the cause of protecting and reestablishing them. And, uniquely, there are pages to visit that show live viewing of their nesting sites in several North American cities.

I also found that there are many centres in Canada and the United States devoted to the recovery of the endangered raptors [birds of prey] including the Peregrine Falcon. Many committed individuals, sometimes assisted by governments, but mostly surviving on small, inadequate budgets, are doing what they can to ensure that these marvelous, swift-winged predators remain in our world. Not surprisingly, I discovered that they can use our support!

To find more information on the Peregrine Falcon use the following search terms: peregrine, falcon, Falco peregrinus. Google.com is a useful search engine.

Ray Rasmussen

Status: Endangered throughout Canada. Populations in southern Canada were established with captive-bred young and remain small. Twenty years ago there were no breeding pairs in southern Alberta. Now there are 30 pairs across the province.

Appearance: Slim birds with a small head and long, thin, pointed wings. Similar in size to crows.

Food: Peregrines can reach speeds close to 320 km-h in a downward dive. They use their speed and agility to catch birds in mid-air. Their prey range in size from sparrows to large waterfowl such as ducks.

Breeding: In Alberta, they nest on ledges on steep cliff faces or high office towers. A male will fly complex courtship flights for his mate. In mid-May females usually lay four eggs. Both adults help incubate the eggs which hatch in mid-June. The young birds begin to fly 35-45 days later. Due to their inexperience flying and hunting, over 60 per cent will die before the next spring.

Lifespan: Up to 13 years. A falcon named Arrow nested and bred in Edmonton's AGT Tower for 11 years.

Risk factors: Agricultural and industrial use of pesticides has caused a worldwide decline of peregrine falcons. Pesticide use is closely regulated in Canada and the U.S. but not in Latin America where peregrines winter.

Pesticide residues remain in the environment for many years. They're picked up by a variety of animals, then passed on up the food chain to birds of prey. The residues collect in the birds' fat and eventually interfere with reproduction, causing thin eggshells and dead embryos.

Management and Outlook: Population recovery in Alberta is slow in spite of intensive management programs and reduced pollutant residues in falcons and their prey.

Each year since 1992, wildlife agencies in Alberta have released 45 captive-bred falcons. They use a technique called hacking, where 30-day-old birds are placed in hack boxes on cliffs or tall buildings. The box protects the young birds from the weather and predators. An attendant provides food through a tube until the birds instinctively master flying and hunting several weeks later.

The Canadian Wildlife Service also has a breeding facility near Wainwright. The eggs or young from these captive birds are fostered with wild falcons to supplement natural reproduction.

Programs like these should maintain the current breeding population and may increase it to a self-sustaining level in the future.

It is illegal to kill or disturb peregrine falcons or their nesting areas in Canada and the U.S.


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