Rhino Horn - is poison the answer?

The population of rhino is in peril. 
The last one-horned Javan rhino in Vietnam was killed by poachers in 2010, effectively marking the end of a unique subspecies of Javan rhino. 

That leaves us with the last subspecies of Javan rhino Rhinoceros sondaicus sondaicus in Indonesia. But the last census (2008) noted that fewer than 50 of the Indonesian subspecies exist in the wild.

Image: phys.org

Elsewhere, rhinos don't fare so well neither. There are less than 250 adult Sumatran rhinos left in the world. In 2012, over 455 African rhinos were killed by poachers.

Image: treesouls.com

The primary cause that compels the continual poaching of rhinos is the demand for rhino horns in the black market. Rhino horns, despite its similarity to human nails, are still highly valued in traditional Chinese medicine. According to the National Geographic Magazine, an eight-pound rhino horn can reap up to $360,000 in the black market, a price deemed irresistible to many poor African poachers.

Image: buffalo-surf.com

So something must be done before poachers wipe out the 45 million-year-old species entirely. But how? The rise of China now brings more wealthy Chinese who see rhino horns as a symbol of status. When you have 1.3-billion rhino horn fanatics with ever increasing purchasing power, the rhinos don't stand a chance.

Image: ngm.nationalgeographic.com

Fortunately, conservationists in South Africa have come up with a new way to save rhinos: poison the horns.

Conservationists working for the Rescue Rhino Project plans to inject rhino horns with

"a dye which turns the horn brightly and irrevocably pink, kind of like the dye used in ink packs to secure money at a bank. That makes it useless as a prize or ornament, and even if the horn is ground to a fine powder, it'll still show up in an airport security scanner. Three separate GPS chips are implanted into the horn, kind of like this older project--it's worth mentioning here that a rhino's horn is made of keratin, just like your fingernails, and the animal feels no pain during any of this. And the dye has no adverse health effects on the rhino." 

Image: bagheera.com

The conservationists will seek to improve their implementation by adding in poison in the future. The best thing is that the poison is safe for the rhino as well as any animals in the rhino's ecosystem, but very toxic for humans, effectively making it unusable as both medicine (toxic) and as decorative element (pink).

Klout - ~ 3 months later

I joined Klout back in October 2012 as an experiment to see what social influence was all about.

When I joined my score was a lowly 10.  It quickly soared to the 20's then the 30's.  That was about my natural balance of things and my presence and influence.  At that point, I started a blog- also a social experiment and joined Twitter.  Both of these made an appreciable jump in Klout score.  I made it into the 40's and 50's.  It was a bumpy ride as I would surge up 5, down 2 up 1 every few days.

So what is Klout?  Let us rehash this both grammatically and in terms of the technology.

Klout.

An imaginary word.  It is intended to evoke the feeling and meaning of the word clout. The definition of which is:
Informal . pull; strong influence; muscle, especially politicalpower: a wealthy campaign contributor with clout at city hall.

Klout is an interesting web presence that measures your social influence.  Using a complex array of algorithms and computational models (my words) it simplifies your online life into a numerical score between 1 and 100.  Higher is better.

As I said in my original Klout post, maintaining your Klout score, especially one over 60 is hard work. You cannot take a day off.  You must post, and in addition you must post relevant material that others interact with. That can be hard.

For example this blog is hit or miss.  The aquarium topics are informative and appreciated by many.  Some of the nature posts have had high hits.  Some of my musings have fallen flat.

So, how does this make a difference? Like a game I have become protective of my score- now in the low 60's.  I want it to go up.  That means I have to write and pot witty and informative material.  I try to do that anyway.  I have to beg, hope, plead with others to GIVE ME +K on Klout.  I give some, so hopefully I will get some good karma back.

If you are vaguely interested in Klout, then check them out.  Perhaps you can even call me an influencer.  I promise I get no kickbaks or payment from them.  I get to live in my delusional bubble I actually have some internet influence, and after-all - that is what we all want.


Check Klout out :  http://klout.com/#/corp/what_is_klout

Since Klout seems to accumulate data on every Twitter user regardless of sign up, I do suggest everyone take a moment to check out their score.  It is relatively easy, spam free and perhaps you will catch the bug and try to catch my score.

Wolf to Woof...

Man's best friend.

A dog can do anything; from saving lives to sniffing out drugs, helping others to hunting for food,  our canine friends are more than mere companion.

Many of us have dogs at home. Some people love their pet so much they allow the animal to venture into home and bedroom. But we all know that dogs are the direct descendants of the Gray Wolf.



Some said that early humans adopted wolf pups and that natural selection favored the less aggressive and better at begging for food animals. Others said dogs domesticated themselves by adapting to a new niche—human refuse dumps. Scavenging canids that were less likely to flee from people survived in this niche, and succeeding generations became increasingly tame.

Wolves and people have several things in common.
Firstly, we were both hunters and also hunted in packs. It was certain that during the course of our evolution our paths would have regularly crossed, we would have even hunted and eaten each other. That's the beginning of our relationship with our canine friends.

Wolves live in packs, headed by an Alpha male and Alpha female. The Alphas are the most aggressive couple in a pack, and the only pair that breeds. The resulting cubs will be taken care of by all members of the pack. Other wolves involve in hunting and the cubs' protection, but never allowed to breed. While generally accepted this particular theory has fallen out of practice.  In fact canine society is a bit more complex than merely an 'alpha' dog.  There certainly is an alpha, but along with other dynamics and behavioral complexities, a pack dynamic is formed.  With humans it takes more than being an alpha, the dog must have trust and loyalty.

Upon reaching maturity, the young wolves will be driven out from the pack to start a pack of their own. They must venture out from the packs' territory to avoid future confrontation, sometimes as far as 30-40 kilometers away.
There are, however, weaker and less aggressive members of the pack. They get the least food during hunting. However some altruistic wolves allow the smilers pack mates to eat first.  Why? It is thought to maintain the strength and integrity of the pack.  In lean times the pack is only as good as the weakest member.

Sometime around 15,000 years ago, some of these less aggressive wolves started to approach human to eat the scraps from their leftovers.

After wolves learned not to bite the hand that fed them, French poodles weren’t far behind. The wolves got food from us, and in turn they helped us in hunting, and some even ended up as food. 

People eat dogs

Though there was evidence to suggest that dogs genetically diverged from their wolf ancestors at least 15,000 years ago, some believed domestication has occurred earlier. Domesticated dogs first appeared in East Asia, probably China. They then spread across Asia and Europe, and then accompanied their two-legged companions into the Americas.



Today, some breeds are still dangerously aggressive because breeders retain their aggressive trait for our benefit; for guarding warehouses and crime fighting. Some are exceptionally gorgeous, a far cry from the shadow that once inhabited our nightmares.

Dogs are our companions, our friends and our helpers.  In most cases this partnership works out well.

info:
http://www.babble.com/CS/blogs/strollerderby/archive/2008/08/26/dog-rescues-baby.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog
http://archaeology.about.com/od/domestications/qt/dogs.htm

Do Dragons Exist?

If they don't exist, then how did they end up in different cultures all across the world? Unless everyone had observed the same thing, or else dragons would only be a minute part of a certain civilization.

Cultures and civilizations all across the globe are separated by distance and time. They are uniquely defined in terms of knowledge, philosophy and fate. Some went extinct; some invented the compass; some created paper. Yet all of them have one thing in common; the existence of a ferocious, fire-spitting, huge serpent-like creature, and with its wing(or no wing) it could soar thousands of miles, spreading fear into the communities below.

Assimilation of culture is limited to certain civilizations, perhaps connected via trade or exploration. For example the Indian and the Chinese were connected via trade, and as a result Buddhism was brought to China. But lets not forget that the Greeks and Eastern Europeans also have their own version of dragon which is almost identical to the dragons of India and China, and they had never crossed the vast Steppe and stepped into China.

Europe

In Europe, dragon is the symbol of fear and evil. No one wishes to see a dragon, lest get devoured alive. Kings and the nobles favored the slaying of dragon, even when the dragon is not destroying villages and towns. Stories of dragon slayers were popularized and heroes were hailed as saviors. In the bible, the dragon is the symbol of the Devil himself. This concept was made eminent by the Catholic Church during the Dark Ages, in their endeavors to manipulate the people around them to be dependent on God.

India

In India, however, the dragon, called Naga is regarded as god. This is the same word incorporated into the Malay Language. The Indian merchants brought their culture with them when they came trading at the Malayan Archipelago centuries ago, leaving an everlasting impact within the communities of this region. The ancient kingdom of Lembah Bujang, Srivijaya, and Majapahit were all under their influence, worshipping Hindu deities and incorporated the term "Raja" which means "King".

Naga and Garuda engaging in a war

Ancient Indian myth tells of stories about how Naga came about. From the Indian epic Mahabharata, it is said that Naga was born the cousin of Garuda the giant eagle.

Eventually they became enemy due to certain dispute and Garuda vowed to treat Naga as food. That explains why eagles eat snakes. And that also shows that Naga is in fact the King Cobra.

Vishnu, one of the gods of the Hindu Trinity, finds shelter under the hood of a King Cobra. That elevates the status of Naga to that of a god.

China

In China, the dragon is also regarded as a symbol of power, wealth and prosperity. The king of the sea, "Hai Long Wang" is a man with the face of a dragon. His army is made up of creatures of the sea, and he lives thousands of feet under the sea within the serenity of his palace. He dictates the changing of weather and water, and being a god he is often portrayed as selfish and inconsistent(from what I've seen on TV, might not be true).

Another version of the Chinese dragon is the Chinese Fireball Dragon. According to some sources the female fireball dragon is larger in size than the male. It lays eggs that are crimson in color and have specks of gold scattered all over their surface. The legend that surrounds the story of the Chinese fireball dragon tells us that the shells of the eggs of the dragon are desperately sought after by wizards. The fireball dragon feeds on mammals and its favorite items on the menu are big and juicy pigs and human beings.

Greece

Even the learned Greeks admit the existence of dragon.

Ladon was the serpent-like dragon that twined round the tree in the Garden of the Hesperides and guarded the golden apples. Ladon was also said to have as many as one hundred heads. He was 

overcome and slain by Heracles.

The Lernaean Hydra

The Lernaean Hydra was a dragon-like water serpent with fatally venomous breath, blood and fangs, a daughter of Typhon and Echidna. The creature was said to have anywhere between five and 100 heads, although most sources put the number somewhere between seven and nine. For each head cut off, one or two more grew back in its place.

Egypt

The dragon of Egypt is called Apep, the dragon of chaos. Apep was also known as Apophis, Aaapef and Rerek. Some people, however, preferred this serpent-like dragon to remain Nameless.

Dragon of Darkness and Chaos, Apep. Picture:susanneiles.com

Mesoamerican Civilization

More amazing facts await you across the Atlantic Ocean. The Mesoamerican civilization, separated from the rest of the world, also have their version of dragon.

"Also known as the Earth Monster, the Olmec Dragon has flame eyebrows, a bulbous nose, and bifurcated tongue. When viewed from the front, the Olmec Dragon has trough-shaped eyes; when viewed in profile, the eyes are L-shaped. Fangs are prominent, often rendered as an upside-down U-shaped bracket."

Again we could a common trend within all these cultures; they claim the existence of a giant serpent-like creature, ferocious and brutal.

If a dragon does not exist, what makes these people believe that it does?

REFERENCES:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_dragon

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nāga

www.squidoo.com/apep

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_dragon

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragons_in_Greek_mythology

Which direction is Exchange-Rate Flexibility Headed?

Which direction is Exchange-Rate Flexibility Headed?


Since the IMF started allowing floating currency exchange rates, more and more nations have adopted this style of currency management (Daniels, et al, 2009). This has allowed for greater freedoms when new nations; like those born after the fall of the Soviet Union, can transition to a market economy. In a situation where the currency is based upon supply and demand for the nation’s output having a flexible currency makes sense (Daniels, et al, 2009).


Fixing a currency to the yen, euro or dollar has benefits and drawbacks. Some of the benefits are for smaller nations, which lack the demand for their products, and this helps stabilize their economies. Some of the drawbacks are the increased substitution of the pegged currency for the national one as well as a black market trade in currency (Adom & Sharma & Morshed, 2008). Currency substitution can also undermine a fixed exchange rate. Businesses and citizens will begin to substitute dollars or Euros or yen in place of the national currency making management of the fixed exchange rate harder to control (Odedokun, 1996).



In Asia the yen is an often traded and used currency, yet it is so linked to Japanese culture and business it is a poor substitute for a regional currency and as such is not often used to base on a floating rate (Daniels, et al, 2009). The Chinese Yuan is a potential rising power to rival the dollar and the euro. The Yuan is probably undervalued and if the world saw more actions engendering trust from the Chinese government about their manipulation of the currency the Yuan may ne an effective currency to float against (Obstfeld & Rogoff, 1995).


There is much speculation in Latin America. This has led to concerns with the currencies of many nations like Argentina (Daniels, et al, 2009). Flexibility in this region would have some positive benefits. The research results suggest that foreign companies exposed to exchange risks in emerging markets gain resilience when they take a cross-functional approach for the assessment and implementation of hedging strategies along with the decentralization to subsidiaries of the decisions and implementation of hedging initiatives. This helps companies in: elaborating scenarios, assessing the possible impact of exchange rate variations, designing pre-emptive measures and setting alternative strategies to mitigate potential impacts (Fornes & Cardoza, 2009).



Mitigating the wild fluctuations of a fixed currency that results are massive inflation would go a long way to benefiting Latin America. Horne makes a compelling argument for flexible rates by discussion eight conjectures about exchange rates. Some of these conjectures show that as economies grow from a fixed to floating rate, they gain the flexibility to react to the market forces of supply and demand faster and more efficiently allowing a better competitive edge (Horne, 2004).



Greater exchange rate flexibility aims to reduce global imbalances of wealth and increases demand from emerging economies such as Asia and Latin America. More flexible exchange rates in Latin America and Asia will provide a cushion if the US dollar were suddenly to devalue (Daniels, et al, 2009). While a growing possibility the Chinese Yuan has a way to go before it has the same status as the dollar or Euro in the world markets (Obstfeld & Rogoff, 1995). As the currency market uncertainty in Southeast Asia has shown, globalization can amplify the costs of inappropriate economic policies and responses (Caramazza & Aziz, 1998).



The ongoing trend towards more flexibility as either managed floats or freely floating will continue. Even nations pegged to the euro, or dollar will float as these currencies float (Daniels, et al, 2009).


References


Adom, A. , Sharma, S. , & Morshed, A. (2008). Currency substitution in selected african countries. Journal of Economic Studies, 36(6), 616-640.


Caramazza, F. & Aziz, J. (April, 1998), “Fixed or Flexible? Getting the Exchange Rate Right in the 1990” International Monetary Fund http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/issues13/index.htm



Daniels, J. Radebaugh, L. & Sullivan, D. (2009). International Business: Environments and Operations. Twelfth Edition.


Fornes, G. , & Cardoza, G. (2009). Foreign exchange exposure in emerging markets. International Journal of Emerging Markets, 4(1), 6-25.


Horne, J. . (2004). Eight conjectures about exchange rates. Journal of Economic Studies, 31(6), 524-548.


Obstfeld, M.,and Rogoff, K. (1995)"The Mirage of fixed Exchange Rates." Journal if Economics Perspectives 9 (Fall): 73-96.

Odedokun, M.O. (1996). Monetary model of black market exchange rate determination. Journal of Economic Studies, 23(4), 31-49.

The Platypus

Platypus

"We would like to mention the Platypus, estranged relative of the mammal, which has a duck-bill, beaver's tail, webbed feet, lays eggs, detects its aquatic prey in the same way as the electric eel, and has venomous barbs attached to its hind legs, thus combining all 'typical' Australian attributes into a single improbable creature." Douglas Adams

The platypus is an evolutionary puzzle. When a Platypus specimen was first sent to England, the local scientists concluded that some smart-arsed Australian had tried to play a joke on them by sewing the feet and bill of a duck onto the body of a rat. The peculiar animal in front of them just looked too bizarre to be taken seriously.

Image: science.kukuchew.com

But even more unacceptable facts awaits them-- the animal lays eggs. A mammal that is! Together with the four species of echidna, it is one of the five extant species of monotremes, the only mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young. The eggs are leathery and small, similar to that of reptiles.

Platypus eggs. Image: animalpicturesarchive.com

A female platypus suckles its young via two round patches of skin midway along her belly.

Image: myninjaplease.com

While both male and female Platypuses are born with ankle spurs, only the male has spurs which produce a cocktail of venom, three of which are unique to the Platypus. The venom is not lethal enough to kill a human, however, but is extremely excruciating that it could incapacitate one.

The venom is released from spurs located on the platypus’ hind legs. Image: stanfordneuro.wordpress.com

We human have five senses. The platypus has an additional one--electroreception. They locate their prey in part by detecting electric fields generated by muscular contractions. The Platypus closes its eyes, ears, and nose each time it dives, thus it doesn't feed by sight nor by smell.

Image: travelwritersnews.com

Rather, when it digs in the bottom of streams with its bill, its electroreceptors detect tiny electrical currents generated by muscular contractions of its prey, so enabling it to distinguish between animate and inanimate objects, which continuously stimulate its mechanoreceptors.

This animal is not in immediate threat of extinction. But human activities such as irrigation and pollution could still affect its population.

Image: dsc.discovery.com

Even more amazing is the entirely peculiar Pink Fairy Armadillo.

Tridacna Clams

Tridacna Clams

Clams of the family Tridacnidae are some of the most amazing and beautiful animals available in the aquarium trade. Of the nine known species of tridacnids, only six are available to hobbyists. These magnificent creatures are native only to Pacific waters.

The presence of endosymbionts in the mantle of these clams has made them relatively easy to keep and to feed due to their ability to photosynthesize. Unlike corals however, the clam does not have these symbionts in the planktonic stage and must capture free-floating symbionts released by an adult clam.  

These clams are regarded as a delicacy in Chinese cuisine, many considering them to be an aphrodisiac.  This, along with their popularity in the aquarium hobby, has caused some species to become extinct in certain Pacific Islands.

The idea of propagating these clams was started by the Micronesian Mariculture Center (MMDC) in Palau.  Soon, organizations such as The International Center for Living Aquatic Resource Management (ICLARM) jumped in the game.  They founded the Coastal Aquaculture Center in the Solomon Islands and began producing clams and other marine organisms as well. Now, several species of clams are bred in captivity and available to hobbyists.

 Phylum:      Mollusca

 Class:         Bivalvia

 Order:         Veneroidea

 Family:       Cardiacea

 Subfamily:  Tridacnidae

 Genus:        Tridacna & Hippopus

 Species:

                    1. Tridacna crocea

                    2. Tridacna derasa

                    3. Tridacna gigas

                    4. Tridacna maxima

                   5. Tridacna squamosa

                   6. Tridacna rosewateri

                   7. Tridacna tevoroa

                   8. Hippopus hippopus

                   9. Hippopus porcellanus

Of the nine species known, only the following six are commonly found in the hobby:

Tridacna crocea

Tridacna Crocea, which grows only to about 6”, is the smallest of the Tridacna species. These clams are found in colonies and live in shallower waters where more light is present. T. crocea is also noted as the "boring clam" because it can be found burrowed into rocks and coral heads.  The shell is relatively smooth with small furrows. This particular species has a relatively large byssus opening. This larger opening makes this species of Tridacna a little harder to keep due to the susceptibility of predation. It is also more light demanding than other species. The distribution of these clams ranges from Thailand to New Caledonia.

Tridacna maxima

T. Maxima can reach about the same size as T. squamosa, but is typically smaller. T. maxima is fairly easy to keep. In comparison to T. squamosa, the shell of T. maxima is asymmetrical with closer rows of scales and has a smaller hinge. T. maxima can be found from East Africa to Polynesia.

 

Tridacna squamosa

T. Squamosa can grow up to 16" and are fairly easy to keep. The shells are very distinct in that the have rows of scales. The byssal opening of T. squamosa is fairly wide, but not like that of T. crocea.  These clams can live at depths of up to 18 meters and are found from East Africa through Polynesia.

Tridacna derasa

T. derasa is the second largest clam and can grow to about 24". These are one of the easiest clams to keep. They can be collected in waters as deep as 20 meters and are commonly found in Australia, Philippines, and Indonesia.

Tridacna gigas

The giant of all clams, this species can grow up to one meter. Like T. derasa, this species is easy to keep. It can also be easily misidentified as a T.derasa. However, T. derasa has six to seven vertical folds where as T. gigas usually has four to five vertical folds. T. gigas can be found at depths of up to 20 meters. T. gigas can be found in the Indo-Pacific, but due to it's overharvesting, this species is becoming endangered.

Hippopus hippopus

H. hippopus can reach 16". The one distinguishing characteristic about this clam is that the mantle does not overhang the shell. The clams are relatively easy to keep. It is found in the Indo-Pacific region.

Positioning Your Clam

• Be sure not to place your clam close to any aggressive corals.

• Place your clam in an area of good light and low current. Too much current will cause your clam not to open. Light is very important to these animals. It is best to provide them with metal halide, PC, or VHO lighting.  Juvenile clams adapt to lighting variables more readily than adult clams.

• T. crocea and T. maxima are found in rocky habitats, so it is best to place them on rocks. Be sure not to place them in an area where they cannot fully open. T. squamosa, T. derasa, and T. gigas are best placed on a sandy substrate

• It is very important to place the clam on its byssus orifice and in the upright position. Failure to do so can cause death of the clam. If a clam falls over, re-position it as soon as possible. A clam can easily suffocate itself if not in the proper position. The byssus gland is a very important part of the clam. The gland secretes threads, which help the clam to position itself and to keep it from falling off of rocks. It also allows the clam to attach itself tightly to the substrate to prevent predators from attacking the clam. T. crocea, T. maxima, and T. squamosa use bysuss threads through out most of their life, others use them as juveniles. If you remove a clam from the substrate that is attached by its bysuss thread, it is important that you cut the thread and not pull the clam. Failure to do so can cause damage of the bysuss gland and cause death to the clam.

Water Quality

Water quality is important to clams. High pH and high temperature can be problematic.  Do not let the aquarium exceed 82 degrees or a pH beyond 8.3. Maintain a calcium level of at least 400ppm and dkh of 7-9. Salinity is also important, too high or low a salinity can cause the demise of a clam. Try to keep specific gravity between 1.023 -1.025.

The number one cause of a clam’s demise is usually water quality. Signs of an unhealthy clam include gaping (inhalant siphon remains wide open), listlessness (does not respond to shadows), or if the mantle does not fully extend beyond the shell (except in H. hippoppus). If your clam exhibits any of these symptoms, be sure to check your water quality first.

Clam Diseases and Predators

Damage to the bysuss gland can be a problem. Besides mishandling of the clam, predators can also attack the gland and cause a quick demise. If this is the case, there is not much you can do to help the clam. Predators of clams include certain wrasses, pygmy angels, shrimp, crabs, caulerpa, and crabs. Check your clam for parasitic snail, so which can burrow a hole through the shell and attack the clam. Also, be sure not to place the clam too close to any aggressive corals. Some corals can sting the clam, which will keep the mantle from fully expanding.  Air bubbles can be a problem too. They can become trapped inside the clam and cause the clams demise.

Purchasing a Clam

There are several things to look for when purchasing a clam. First, be sure that the inhalant siphon is closed and that the clam is not showing any signs of "gaping." The clam should be responsive to changes in light. Clams are photosensitive and will close when shadows occur over the clam. If the clam is listless and does not respond to shadows, it is usually a sign that there is something wrong with the clam. Also be sure to check the bysuss gland for damage. There should be no fleshy tissue hanging from the opening.

If you take all these factors into consideration before purchasing a clam, you will have much success in keeping them alive.