Doctoral Researcher, Jennifer McCarthy Photographs Rare Sumatran Striped Rabbit

Courtesy: In the Loop Using camera traps, wildlife researchers including doctoral candidate Jennifer McCarthy and Environmental Conservation professor Todd Fuller, recently captured photographs of one of the rarest animals on earth, the Sumatran striped rabbit. They say it may now be found only in two remote national parks on the Indonesian island. Their pictures and other observations are reported in the current issue of Oryx, The International Journal of Conservation. The rare rabbit was first photographed in Kerinci Seblat National Park in 1998 and has rarely been seen since. "Whether the rabbit does occur undetected in other parks is not certain, but the importance of protecting these two known strongholds of the species is critical," say McCarthy and colleagues. "As the human population of Sumatra rises, both parks are increasingly threatened by encroachment of villages and development of roads and infrastructure. It is important to focus conservation efforts in these areas to prevent a loss of what could be the final two populations...
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Susannah Lerman Leads UMass Amherst Neighborhood Nestwatch

Courtesy: In the Loop May 23, 2012 Contact: Janet Lathrop 413/545-0444 AMHERST, Mass. - A citizen science project to study nesting populations of common backyard songbirds started recently as researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst began visiting the yards of 60 volunteer families across western Massachusetts for the "Neighborhood Nestwatch" project. It is a collaboration among the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, the U.S. Forest Service’s Northern Research Station and UMass Amherst, led by Susannah Lerman, a postdoctoral research associate. She and colleagues count and band adult birds and teach families how to locate nests and count the number of young robins, catbirds, chickadees and five other species. It is modeled after a songbird nesting project that has run successfully in the Washington, D.C. area for 13 years. Lerman and two field technicians will spend the next three months visiting participating families for about four hours per site to look for song sparrows, Carolina wrens, northern cardinals, house wrens, gray catbirds, American robins, northern mockingbirds and black-capped...
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Tracking Study Reveals Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Migration, Habitat Details

Courtesy In the Loop  New fish-tagging studies of young bluefin tuna in Atlantic waters off New England by campus researchers are offering the first fishery-independent, year-round data on dispersal patterns and habitat use for the popular game fish. The availability of miniaturized pop-up satellite tags suitable for smaller (two- to five-year-old) fish helped make the research possible. Fisheries oceanographer Molly Lutcavage and lead author Benjamin Galuardi say the work shows that scientists now have tools to directly observe bluefin tuna annual migration patterns and vertical habitat use (depth) in the Atlantic and Mediterranean oceans in detail not possible in earlier studies. This new information should lead to better understanding of bluefin tuna ecology, catch patterns and management of wild stocks that provide a multi-million dollar sport fishery from Maine to North Carolina. Lutcavage, director of the Marine Research Station and the Large Pelagics Research Center (LPRC) in Gloucester, says, "Our tagging data are important because for the first time we've got direct measurements...
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UMASS Environmental Conservation Team delivers Recirculating Aquaculture Workshop in Uganda

May 23, 2012 – Kampala, Uganda – UMASS Environmental Conservation Team delivers Recirculating Aquaculture Workshop in Uganda – Dr. James Webb, a Post-Doc in the Department of Environmental Conservation has developed, and is leading a workshop for stakeholders interested in Recirculating Aquaculture Systems in Uganda. Fish make up an important component of food consumption in Uganda. The workshop is a week-long event covering water movement, fish requirements, oxygen, waste, managing fish growth and the economics of these systems.  Attendees span aquaculture practitioners, consultants, and NGOs interested in the development of the aquaculture industry in Uganda.   Dr. Webb is assisted by Dr. Andy Danylchuk, Dr. Craig Hollingsworth, Dr. David Damery and graduate students in Environmental Conservation Emily Hart and Zac Bloom.  After completing the workshop, the project team will travel to Soroti, in the Teso region of Northeast Uganda where they are contributing to the development of a new school, Teso University, that will feature a curriculum including sustainable technologies. The proposed, innovative...
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