Kiwis Breed More Kiwis

credit: Mike Heydon/Jet Productions

New Zealanders were called "Kiwis" in the WWII after their national bird. Such a strange little bird too: flightless, nocturnal, and a recluse living in dense rainforest. But New Zealanders have put a mighty effort into breeding the bird to replace declining numbers in the wild due to habitat loss and introduced predators. This year has produced a bumper crop of kiwis, 14, at the Pukaha-Mount Bruce wildlife refuge. This breeding season was the most successful since 2003. Caretakers were rewarded with an extra surprise, a rare all white kiwi chick, thought to be the first raised in captivity [photo]. Maori tribal elders see the chick as a 'tohu' or sign of new beginnings. Named "Manakura" it will be released to the 940 hectare native forest refuge when it reaches suitable weight. The chick is not albino, but the progeny of a race of kiwis from Little Barrier Island that have white markings. The chick's all white feathers may be an evolutionary disadvantage since it will standout midst the dark of the forest floor.

Not Welcomed in Oregon

ODFW: Imnaha pups

The few grey wolves inhabiting the remote northeastern part of the state are getting the same cold shoulder from Oregon immigrating Californians got late in the last century. The Imnaha pack, thought to have escaped from their own private Idaho in 1999, is composed of 10-14 adults, sub-adults and numerous pups.  Four are radio collared and all of them are closely monitored by state wildlife officials who apparently are extremely nervous about human-wolf conflict close to home. A dead calf was found over the weekend near Joseph, Oregon.  Wildlife officials determined the death to be caused by a wolf not wearing a collar since radio telemetry indicates the pack is moving south away from Joseph and area ranches full of young calves. So a hunt will be organized to kill another wolf. Two other wolves have already been killed this year making it difficult for conservationists to understand how Oregon is supposed to be following a wolf conservation plan when there are so few wolves (about 25) and so many ranchers with itchy trigger fingers.

anti-wolf propaganda in Wallowa 

The Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife has a goal of delisting the species from the state's Endangered Species Act. Its wolf management plan permits lethal removal when there is a chronic predation problem and non-lethal measures have failed. Grey wolves were removed from federal protection by an act of Congress in April making the wolf the first species to be removed by an act of Congress. State wildlife officials attribute four livestock losses to wolves this year, but hunting permits have been issued to twenty-four ranchers claiming losses. These permits allow ranchers to shoot wolves caught in the act of predation on livestock, but none have actually witnessed an attack. Conservation groups defending the wolf are not convinced that all non-lethal measures are being exhausted. Thousands of wolves have been shot in the Northern Rockies by ranchers or government wildlife agents since federal reintroduction began*. In the southwest where wolves were reintroduced from a captive breeding program in 1998, scofflaws have killed 35 wolves including two alpha males, yet only two poachers have been caught and prosecuted for their crimes. Last year, a US Forest Service visitor center near Joseph in Wallowa County burned to the ground. Domestic dogs kill more livestock than wolves in Oregon, but nobody is hunting them to extinction.

*Some states like Montana claim to be adopting a biological approach that includes culling to "wolf management", but others like Idaho have declared an open season on the wolf that has nothing to do with preserving the species.  The wolf has a well defined biological function in healthy ecosystems.  When wolves are persecuted by man the balance of nature is upset causing further problems such as overpopulation of herbivores.  It is not just 'touchy feely' sentimentalism that causes conservationists to defend wolf populations, nor should it be "little red riding hood syndrome" that causes their unjustified destruction.

Brazil Backslides

MODIS image of Matto Grosso

Brazil has had a forest code since 1934 that determines how much rain forest a farmer or rancher can clear for agricultural purposes. The code was amended in 1965 to require 80% of Amazon rain forest land remain forested. Such a law is uniquely progressive for a developing nation, but the lower house of the legislature has passed amendments allowing small farmers to clear more land from hilltops and riverbanks. The legislation is sponsored by the head of the Brazilian Communist Party. Despite the economic equity motivating the proposals, Brazilian environmentalists have labeled the amendments "retrograde". Brazilian president, Dilma Rousseff, the first female president of Brazil, has promised to veto the legislation if it passes the Senate and still contains an amnesty provision for illegal land clearing prior 2008. Land clearances have reached alarming new highs with five times the amount of deforestation taking place during March and April of this year compared to the same time period last year. The biggest rise was in the Mato Grosso region [satellite image: NASA] where forest is being replaced with soya plantations, a transformation driven by spiraling commodity prices. At the moment a hectare of soya can yield $630 in profit. A staggering 405.6 sq. km of forest was destroyed in April alone.  Less than a year ago Brazil was proudly announcing the lowest rate of deforestation on record. Agriculturalists appear to be rushing to cut down forest, expecting the changes in the law to protect them for their environmental crimes. Recently two prominent rain forest defenders Ribeiro da Silva and Maria do Espirito Santo were killed in an ambush near their home.  Da Silva had predicted his demise at the hands of loggers six months before his murder.

Chart of the Week: Where the Oil Is

More:  The US House of Representatives under the speakership of John Boehner (R) passed a resolution with votes from both parties rebuking the Obamatron for not seeking an authorization from Congress to participate in the Libyan intervention.  Obamatron & Folks, Inc. called the resolution unhelpful and unnecessary since their position is the War Powers Act does not apply to the war in Libya.

Now that Washington had the Memorial Day recess to estimate the size of Congressman's Wiener's 'package'[1], perhaps Congress can turn its short attention span to passing a resolution authorizing the United States to legally wage war against Libya[2]. The War Powers Act still has not been complied with, and the maximum ninety day period for the use of US troops without a congressional authorization has expired. NATO has already voted to extend operations for another 90 days, but that is a case of the tail wagging the dog. Support for the NATO air offensive against Qaddafi is not uniform within the alliance. Our closest allies are the most willing to use force to remove Qaddafi. France, which is Libya's largest oil customer, led the diplomatic effort for UN Security Council action, but the Tory government in the UK was also vociferous in demanding a "no-fly" resolution on ostensibly humanitarian grounds. Talking tough and acting tough are always two different propositions. Only 15 member states out of 28 are contributing in some way to the military operation in Libya. Only seven are conducting air strikes[3]. Eastern Europe, with Germany prominently in their company, is absent from the BBC's list of belligerents. Germany also abstained from the Security Council vote to authorize intervention, but reportedly supports aerial interdiction.

As the chart suggests this conflict is about Libya's oil production.  Since the civil war began in the north, oil production has slowed to a trickle as fighting occurs around key oil installations, notably the terminal of Raz Lanuf [map].  Both the rebels and Qaddafi are counting on oil money to fund their operations since Libya has Africa's largest oil reserves. Qaddafi has threatened to sue any company buying oil from the rebels. The rebels hope to use the Arabian Gulf Oil Company as an outlet and Qatar has offered to assist the rebel council with oil sales of doubtful title. Rebels are also negotiating with the British government to take possession of hundreds of millions of dinars printed in the UK. The nation's dictator definitely has the advantage in ready money; early in the rebellion his government gave away $400 to every family, while loyalists in Tripoli go as much as $13,500, a car, and a gun.  Qaddafi's foreign mercenaries are paid $10,000 to sign on and a daily wage of up to $1000. The country's cash reserves are believed to be in the "tens of billions" according to Ibrahim Dabbashi, a deputy UN representative who defected. Gold reserves are also huge, but less liquid. Dabbashi says Qaddafi is believed to have stashed gold and money in shipping containers and sent it south to the desert in the 1990s.

As the song rightly says, "send money, guns and lawyers". For its part the UN, which authorized western intervention in the civil war, sent in UN investigators to assess the allegations of war crimes. Perhaps predictably the subsequent report says both sides have committed abuses that would constitute war crimes, but the rebels' crimes are not as numerous as those of the government's. Neither side is prepared to give in at this point. South African President Jacob Zuma talked to Col. Qaddafi last week, but Qaddafi told him emphatically he would not leave Libya, believing the war to be a neocolonial resource grab while his departure from power is the main condition set by NATO and the rebels for any ceasefire. How long can Qaddafi continue to resist is now the question. Food and water supplies will become critical the longer the four month old conflict continues. Qaddafi appears firmly in control of the capital, Tripoli, and his government despite the defection of his oil minister. According to the Libyan government NATO has killed 718 civilians and wounded 4,067, 433 seriously in its "humanitarian" efforts.

[1]the Congressman neither confirms or denies the estimates. US Person points to the Congressman's other prominent appendage as an indication of the size of his endowment.
[2] Narrow statutory interpretation arguments that the War Powers Act excepts the Libya intervention from its terms because the intervention is being pursued under the authority of NATO or the UN are inapposite. The UN charter is not self enforcing and there is no pre-existing statutory authority authorizing the use of the US Armed Forces to enforce its provisions. Likewise, the exception in the Act's Section 8 for participation in military headquarter operations is prima facianot meant to include actual combat operations. If Congress wants to issue standing authorization for the President to use US Armed Forces to enforce UN Security Council resolutions, it may do so, but it has not done so to date. The Founding Fathers, in our federal papers, envisaged the executive war power to be executed according to statutory authority given by Congress, thus the limitations imposed on unauthorized war in the War Powers Act.
[3] US, Canada, Belgium, Norway, Denmark, UK, France. UK, France and Italy have also sent military advisers to aid the rebel cause.  Al Jazerra has posted a video in which non-Arabs are seen in the company of rebel forces.  Presumably these are western advisers or forward air controllers.

Creature Feature: Let's Play!

What is special about Alaska is, of course, not Sarah 'It's all about ME' Palin, a woman so ambitious she could not even afford to complete her term of public office, but the immense wilderness and the creatures that live there. People living in Anchorage are lucky to have the conveniences of modern civilization and still encounter wild creatures like these twin moose calves enjoying a romp in the lawn sprinkler under the watchful eye of their mother just as human children would on a hot day. Thanks to the sensitive Alaskan who posted this wonderful video (music by Allison Krauss):

'Toontime: America, the Blind

[credit Jim Morin, Miami Herald]

The "Arab Spring" is bringing hope to millions of Arabs suffering oppression, but it is also exposing the glaring inconsistencies in United States foreign policy. America is unrelenting in its military efforts, or "diplomacy by other means" to depose Libyan dictator Muammar Qaddafi, accusing him of loosing his legitimacy because of his crimes against humanity, but Obama & Folks, Inc. is apparently looking for the oil when it comes to the gross human rights violations of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad. A journalist, Khaled Sid Mohand, reports his experiences "Dans les geoles de Bachar Al-Assad" to Le Monde:

Je découvre avec stupéfaction que mes geôliers sont intoxiqués par leur propre propagande. Ne savent-ils pas que l'Arabie saoudite s'est rapprochée de la Syrie, que Damas a soutenu l'invasion militaire saoudienne à Bahreïn? N'ont-ils pas entendu la secrétaire d'Etat américaine, Hillary Clinton, dépeindre le president Bachar Al-Assad sous les traits d'un vrai réformateur"? Ils me réinstallent sur ma chaise, me bandent les yeux et fixent des fils électriques sur plusieurs endroits de mon corps, parties génitales comprises, et j'attends, terrifié, une décharge électrique qui ne viendra pas. C'était une simulation. Ce que je prenais pour des électrodes n'étaient que les câbles de mon ordinateur...."Raconte-moi tout--Que voulez vous savoir?--Tout! Depuis le début...depuis ta naissance."

Bahrein's monarchy is no example of enlightened rule either. Backed by Saudi troops the Sunni rulers are making life very difficult for the rebellious Shia minority. By one count twenty-seven Shia mosques and meeting places have been wrecked. Is America objecting? Not so much because Bahrain is the home port of the US Fifth Fleet.

Weird Weather: Is Climate Change to Blame?

Killer tornadoes, epic floods, and now hurricanes! Is it the end times or just predicted changes in climate due to global warming? The short answer is that no one knows for sure, but computer climate models based on data of increases in global temperature show that the an increase in participation levels and storm intensity is expected. No unbiased observer may deny that the last thirty years has exhibited an increasing average global temperature pattern. The first decade of this century was the hottest decade on record since reliable record keeping began in the late 1800's. At the same time global levels of atmospheric CO₂ are steadily increasing [chart]. The latest numbers available for carbon emissions are grim. Despite the global economic crisis of 2008, carbon emissions reached a record high in 2010.  The prospects for limiting global warming to less than the 2℃ agreed to at the Cancun climate talks appear unobtainable now.

Because climate is a long term phenomenon and weather is a daily variable the link between warming and more violent and frequent storms is not readily apparent. There can be intermittent cooling cycles within the long term warming trend. But global warming increases ocean evaporation and the amount of water the atmosphere can hold; that is why global warming is often referred to as the "greenhouse effect". Increased amounts of atmospheric water vapor create conditions for heavier and more frequent precipitation over some areas of the Earth while other areas experience severe droughts. In the United States the amount of precipitation in the heaviest 1% of storms is three times what is was between 1957 and 2007. The northeastern US has experienced a 67% increase in the amount of rain or snow during the heaviest 1% of storms. Of course when the amount of precipitation increases, floods are more extensive and take more lives. The link between tornadoes and climate change is not as established since they are very intense but short lived phenomena whose formation mechanism is not completely understood. Tornadoes are associated with severe thunderstorms which form when hot, moist air near the Earth's surface rises to react with cold, dry air aloft. A rotational wind source such as a strong westerly jet stream colliding with rising warm, humid air gives rise to tornadoes such as the ones that ripped through the southeast in April and May. If greenhouse emissions continue unabated scientists think that precipitation in the heaviest storms will increase by 40%. The presence of more water vapor and associated energy is therefore available to intensify storm activity.  Clearly, more severe storms are becoming the new normal.