ZSI to record climate change impact on animals in Himalayas

Kolkata: Zoological Survey of India has started five long-term monitoring plots in the Himalayas to document the impact of climate change on animal world.

The project, funded by the Ministry for environment, forest and climate change, will monitor indicators in species like fish, butterflies, bees and other insects to find how their distribution has been affected by climate change, officials said.

ZSI director Kailash Chandra said it has very old records and will compare the distribution of species in the past and present to come out with a study report on the impact of climate change on their survival.

The project will run for three years in West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh and more than Rs 2 crore has been earmarked for the exercise.

Last year, 262 new animal species were discovered from India out of which 70 have been credited to ZSI scientists.

Chandra said the number of scientists working in ZSI has decreased over the years. He said only 80 scientists were working with the organisation now as compared to 120-130 in the past.

This has also resulted in the decline of reporting of new species. An average of over 100 new species was recorded by ZSI scientists in the past which has now come down, he said.

India is home to 94,515 species from the animal kingdom as on 31 December 2015.

 

Taken from TOI

Monsoon may hit Delhi by July 2, light rain likely till June 30

Monsoon may hit Delhi either on July 1 or July 2 — a couple of days after the scheduled date.

“Monsoon winds usually reach Delhi on June 29. This year, it is expected to reach by the end of this week,” said BP Yadav, director, India Meteorological Department.

The wind system, which brings rain to the Indian subcontinent, reached India a week late earlier this month.

The monsoon, unlike the previous two years, is expected to be above normal, especially in the north-western region.

A strong El Nino — an ocean current which is blamed by many for India’s poor monsoon — had pushed India into drought in 2014 and 2015. The phenomenon has grown weaker this year.

Delhi has been witnessing warm and muggy days for the past week, with barely any rain thrown in. According to the Met department, pre-monsoon showers are expected by Wednesday and Thursday.

According to the seven-day forecast, there is a possibility of scattered light rain in the city till June 30. Starting July, widespread rain is expected.

On Monday, the maximum temperature was recorded as 39.6 degrees Celsius, two degrees above normal. The minimum was recorded as 30 degrees Celsius, also two degrees above normal.

The humidity oscillated between 79% and 49%, making the day uncomfortable and muggy.

According to Met officials, the city is expected to see a clear day on Tuesday. Light rains could be seen in the evening.

The maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to be between 39 and 30 degrees Celsius.

On Sunday, the maximum temperature was recorded as 39.4 degrees Celsius.

Taken from HT

Gotthard Tunnel : Worlds Longest and Deepest Rail Tunnel opens in Switzerland

The worlds longest and deepest tunnel has finally opened in Switzerland after over two decades of Construction work.
The 57 Km ( 35 Miles ) twin bore Gotthard based Tunnel will provide a high speed rail link under the Swiss Alps between Northern and Southern Europe. The government has said that it will revolutionise transport in Europe . Goods will now be carried by this train instead of Lorries.

                                                  The Gotthard Tunnel

Meet Our newest Ancestors Homo Naledi

                                                    Homo Naledi
Domain : Eukarya
Kingdom : Animalia
Phylum : Chordata
Subphylum : Vertebrata
Class : Mammalia
Order : Primates
Family : Hominidae
Sub Family : Homininae
Tribe : Hominini
Subtribe : Hominina
Genus : Homo
Species : Homo Naledi

A team of Paleoanthropologists under Lee Berger went into the Rising Star Cave in Gauteng Province in South Africa in 2013 and till 2016 fossils were found there and these fossils have been proposed to represent he extinct species of the hominin Homo Naledi.

 The Rising Star Cave











The excavation team consisted six paleoanthropologists who were all female and could pass through an openeing only seven inches ( 18 cm ) wide to acess the Dinaledi chamber. Those chosen were Hannah Morris , Marina Elliot , Becca Peixotto , Alia Gurtov , Lindsay Eaves and Ellen Feuerriegel.
They have since been named the Underground Astronauts .
More than 1200 fossils were found in the Dinaledi Chamber and catalouged in November 2013 representing atleast a dozen individuals . Only 20 out of 206 bones of the human body were not found in the chamber.

As of September 2015 fossils of atleast 15 individuals , amounting to 1550 specimens , had been excavated from the cave. About 300 bone fragments were found from the surface of the Dinaledi  Chamber  and about 1250 fossil specimens  were recovered from the chamber's excavation pit . The fossils include skull ,jaws , ribs , teeth , bones of an almost complete foot , of a hand and of an inner ear. The bones of old , young and infant individuals were found .

ARTISTS IMPRESSION OF THE HOMO NALEDI

Anthropologist John D Hawkes from the University of Wisconsin Madinson who was a member of the team stated that the scientific facts are that all bones recovered are hominid except for those of an owl. There is no sign of predation and and there is no predator that  accumulates  only hominids this way and the bones were not accumulated here all at once . There is no evidence of rocks falling into the cave along with the  bones or the bones having been flown here along with water . Lee Berger and his team have suggested that the best hypothesis that these individuals were capable of ritualistic behaviour . They speculate that the placing of dead bodies in the cave was a ritualistic behaviour , a sign of symbolic thought which implies that they had intelligence and were similar to human species

The homo naledi fossils are the largest collection of fossils found of a single species of hominin in Africa and provides information about the early evolution of humans.



Picture Right - Skeletons Discovered