4 minute read
Rediscovery
On the Shores
For several years, a long fight has been taking place on the shores of Costa Rica. What could the people be fighting over in a country that is so well known for its environmental efforts? In a fight between activists and poachers the leatherback sea turtle has been caught in the middle.
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At $1 a piece, Leatherback Sea Turtle eggs are considered an aphrodisiac and have been linked to drug trade. A female turtle can lay 85 or more eggs in one nest and will build several nest per season. Poachers are making substantial amounts of money off of the turtle eggs. So, consequentially, efforts of the multinational Sea Shepherd Conservation Society’s Turtle Defense Team have been pushing local poachers to extreme violence. On June 4th a group of activists protecting the endangered leatherback sea turtles were attacked by extremely violent poachers. The activists experience threats often but after a fatal kidnapping of Costa Rican activist Jairo Mora Sandoval back in 2013, local police have stepped in to enforce the law and protect the volunteers. Leatherback Sea Turtle populations have plunged dramatically in recent years. They are listed as “vulnerable” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species with only an estimated 34,000 females remaining worldwide. Activists are trying to work with the government to cease the illegal activities of poachers and to protect this endangered species. Protection and government involvement is not quite where it needs to be yet. However, because of the efforts made so far the IUCN is optimisticthat Leather-back sea turtle populations will stabilize and begin increasing by 2030.
Nicole Wasson spent some time in Costa RIca in 2014. There she was taught about self sustainability and Costa Rica’s rich enviornment. She aims to create an awareness in each in the hopes of preserving the biodiversity in Costa Rica and ending the destruction.
Rediscovery
In the past 20 years, amphibian species around the world have experienced rapid decline due to climate change, disease, invasive species, habitat loss and degradation. Populations have decreased by approximately 40 percent with nearly 200 species thought to have gone extinct since 1980. However, despite these discouraging statistics, new research efforts are turning up lost populations of some vanished frogs. A new study by Tropical Conservation Science reports the rediscovery of two new populations of the South Pacific streamside frog (Craugastor Taurus) in southeastern Costa Rica. This marks the first sighting of the species since 1997. “The rediscovery of [the South Pacific streamside frogs] is one of eight recent discoveries of lost frogs in Costa Rica, which include the endemic and believed to be extinct Holdridge’s toad (Incilius holdridgei),” the researchers write in the study “The non-detection of [South Pacific streamside frogs] in historical streams is troubling, but the discovery of two populations in a new location is encouraging news.” The new study also finds that breeding populations of the South Pacific streamside frog persist with high prevalence of the fungal disease, chytridiomycosis, caused by Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). Past research indicates that this fungal disease was the main cause of the 1987 mass die-off of amphibians in Costa Rica, in which at least 17 species experienced population declines. Historically, frogs most vulnerable to fungal disease Bd lived alongstreams and at altitudes higher than 500 meters. However, some scientists consider the amphibian population decline in Costa Rica enigmatic because some declines occurred in low elevation areas where fungal disease Bd was not deemed as threatening. The study used several methods to relocate South Pacific streamside frogs, also known as the Golfito robber frog, in southeastern Costa Rica. The researchers conducted field surveys at Punta Banco in far southeastern Costa Rica taking voucher specimens from two different stream locations. In all, the scientists uncovered two new populations of South Pacific streamside frogs, occurring in areas with a drier environment than those of its historic range. The researchers also found Bd fungal disease on twelve of the fifteen frogs with varying degrees of infection. The rediscovery of the streamside frog is significant because the scientists have uncovered new habitat records that show surviving populations are able to live with a high prevalence and infection of the fungal disease Bd. But, most importantly, these are now the only known populations of the Critically Endangered species.But the researchers write that more hidden populations may survive.” If deforestation and a lack of consideration for pollution continue however, animals that thrive in different environments than their own in order to escape a disease will have no where to go and will truly be lost to us forever. Strengthening biological corridors and taking care of the land and water sheds will help to ensure the survival of endangered species.
Victor currently works as a news producer and White House correspondent at C-SPAN Television in Washington, DC focusing on public affairs, defense, environmental science and foreign affairs issues. He is very committed to environmental conservation, human rights and free speech efforts.
