BLUEFIN BLUES: World leaders are convening in Doha, Qatar, this weekend to decide what to do about some of the planet's most endangered plants and animals — but a certain tuna is already stealing the show. Beginning Saturday, diplomats from 175 countries will spend 12 days mulling over about 40 proposals for species ranging from rhinoceroses to red coral, but the one getting the most attention so far is Atlantic bluefin tuna, a warm-blooded ocean fish that's popular in Japan for its rich, buttery taste. Overfishing has decimated bluefin populations by more than 80 percent since 1970, and the United States and the European Union both support banning trade of the fish to let its stocks recover. But Japan, which accounts for half the global bluefin market, says it will ignore the ban if passed, and Australia also recently refused to support it. Meanwhile, Tanzania and Zambia are pushing a controversial plan to allow trading of elephant ivory — despite outcries from other African nations — and say they'll back the bluefin ban if other countries vote for its ivory proposal. The United States is pushing its own proposal to ban all trade in polar bear products worldwide, a suggestion that puts the country at odds with neighboring Canada. (Sources: New York Times, Sydney Morning Herald, Guardian) 

 

A LITTLE BIRD TOLD ME: Songbirds in the United States are shrinking, according to a team of U.S. and European researchers, and climate change is the leading suspect. More than 70 percent of birds caught during spring migration have become smaller and developed shorter wings in the past 46 years, and 88 percent of species that migrate in the fall have shrunk, the researchers report, although the changes only range from about 1 to 4 percent of the birds' overall mass. A concept in biology known as Bergmann's Rule says that species living in warm climates are generally smaller than their relatives in cooler locales, and many recent studies have shown this is now happening in fish, sheep and other animals as climate change warms up their habitats. But as the researchers of this new bird study point out, there's no sign that their smaller statures are hurting U.S. songbirds, and their has been no associated shrinking of their population sizes. "Evidence from other studies is that some species will benefit and others will be harmed," says one of the study's authors, "and it's not always the species we like that will be harmed." (Source: BBC News)

 

WATER HAZARD: The Maldives, a low-lying island nation in the Indian Ocean, is planning to build a floating golf course and convention center as it prepares to be flooded by rising sea levels, a symptom of rising global temperatures. A Dutch company that has already built floating islands in Dubai is now studying the feasibility of the Maldives' project, and may also build floating homes there among the island chain's 26 main atolls. About 80 percent of the Maldives is no more than 3 feet above sea level, and President Mohamed Nasheed has recently become an outspoken advocate for reining in the global greenhouse gas emissions that fuel climate change. He led an underwater cabinet meeting in scuba gear ahead of last year's Copenhagen climate summit to draw attention to his country's plight, and has already begun talks with nearby countries about a potential evacuation of the Maldives once sea levels rise too high. In a statement, he says the proposed floating golf course would be sensitive to the local ecosystem's fragility: "The methods and procedures developed by the company for floating developments reduce the impact on underwater life, and minimize the changes to coastal morphology." (Source: Independent)

 

LIMA THE ZEBRA: A 12-year-old circus zebra that ran amok in downtown Atlanta last month has been euthanized, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus announced Thursday. The zebra, named Lima, injured his hooves during the frantic romp through city streets and a traffic-clogged interstate, and the circus says veterinarians were unable to repair them. "It was very much a quality-of-life issue," circus spokeswoman Crystal Drake tells the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "They could measure the quality of life ... and it wouldn't have been humane to keep it alive." Many animal-rights activists question whether the circus was keeping Lima humanely in the first place, and PETA asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to investigate the animal's handling immediately after the escape. Drake tells the AJC that the circus is "in full compliance" and would welcome any upcoming USDA investigation. Lima's escape was due to faulty fencing, she says, adding that there have been no further problems as the circus has traveled to North Carolina and Ohio after Lima's Feb. 18 escape. (Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

 

TIPPING THE SCALES: A scientist at the University of Rhode Island has genetically engineered trout to develop "six-pack abs" and "muscular shoulders," mutations that could offer a boost to the commercial fish-farming industry. Trout don't have standard abdominal muscles or shoulders, but they have nonetheless been bulking up into strangely rippled superfish in URI labs, thanks to professor Terry Bradley's new technique for blocking a protein that slows muscle growth. "Our findings are quite stunning," Bradley says. "The results have significant implications for commercial aquaculture and provide completely novel information on the mechanisms of fish growth." The URI trout have 15 to 20 percent more muscle mass than typical fish, and while Bradley says they exhibit normal behaviors, U.S. fish farms don't have a great history with preventing escapes. That's how invasive Asian carp took over the Mississippi River Basin in recent decades, and Bradley's superfish are likely to face regulatory scrutiny over what effects they might have if they also escaped into the wild. (Source: ScienceDaily)

 

— Russell McLendon