Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
Other important habitats of open-billed storks includes Danapur Military Cantonment in Bihar,
Nelapattu Bird Sanctuary in Andhra Pradesh and
Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary in Karnataka
found in southern Myanmar and peninsular Thailand southeastward into Borneo and the Philippines.
It was spotted in Chintamani Kar Bird Sanctuary in West
Bengals South 24 Parganas on a few occasions but it was
unable to confirm because it could not be photographed.
Referred to as the flagship species, butterflies are not
only pollinators of flowering plants, but also useful in
monitoring environmental changes.
While there are about 600 known species of butterflies in
West Bengal, India is home to about
1,500 species of butterflies.
With this new find, there has been an addition to different
peacock butterflies which are characterised by their powdery
green pigments.
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
be
published by
Bombay
Natural History
A slender, long tailed bird the size of Bulbul (about 1921 cms), Grey Hypocolius is a migratory bird found in
northern Africa, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and western India
(central Asian countries).
Aspire IAS
The
spiders
of
the
Thomisidae
family
structurally resemble crabs and are hence called crab
spiders.
www.aspireias.com
15. Lion-tailed
macaque
sighted
near
Kottiyam - Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary
Mystery shrouds the sighting of an adult lion tailed macaque
on the Thazhuthala Maha Ganapathy Temple premises,
near Kottiyam, on the outskirts of Kollam city.
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
Native to Indonesia
Orangutans, native to Indonesia, have not been bred
in India. We do not have orangutan breeding centres in
India. The species do not have a record of breeding in Indian
conditions, G. Ramalingam, curator of the Visakhapatnam
zoo, said.
Recent incidents indicate that an international wildlife
smuggling gang is based in Kolkata. Last year, Customs
personnel in that city arrested a gang of 55 smugglers with
several chimpanzees, marmosets, capuchin monkeys and
many exotic birds.
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
17. Migratory
birds
visiting
decling - Lesser Flamingos
Rajasthan
Aspire IAS
Survey carried out in winter may have been the reason for the
successful sighting.
While it has been seen mainly at the Melghat Tiger
Reserve in Amravati district, the bird was also previously
spotted in 2004 in Toranmal in Maharashtras Nandurbar
district.
www.aspireias.com
10
Survey carried out in winter may have been the reason for the
successful sighting.
While it has been seen mainly at the Melghat Tiger
Reserve in Amravati district, the bird was also previously
spotted in 2004 in Toranmal in Maharashtras Nandurbar
district.
Great Indian
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
11
23. DHANAURI,
PARASAUL
DECLARED WETLANDS
MAY
BE
22. In news:
Sultanpur National Park, Gurgaon
Probably
seeds
Aspire IAS
sprayed
with
pesticides
(bio-
www.aspireias.com
12
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
13
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
14
The red-chested avian, the bird whom Man loves best, was
initially part of a group of 10 common British birds selected
from a list of 60 in a preliminary vote.
The robin soared above other contenders taking 34 per
cent of the vote, followed by the barn owl and blackbird at 12
and 11 per cent. Robins sing at all times of the day and nearly
all year round, and despite their cute appearance ... are
aggressively territorial and are quick to drive away
intruders, says the entry in the Royal Society for the
Protection of Birds.
In the social media wave created by this birds election
however can be heard the grumbles of those who think the
choice of an aggressive bully who looks good and speaks well
sends the wrong message about Britain.
Mr Lindos next task is to get the government to formally
recognise the little winner as the national bird.
Aspire IAS
Pandas,
whose
natural
habitat
lies
in
mountainous southwestern China, have a notoriously low
reproductive rate and are under pressure from factors
such as habitat loss
www.aspireias.com
15
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
16
district headquarter.
Points to remember
1. India has 70% of tiger population in the world
2. 2010-2014 = 30% increase (1706 --> 2226)
3. Largest increase = Western Ghats Landscape Complex
(Mudumalai, Bandipur, Nagarhole and Wayanad)
4. 18 states & 47 tiger reserves
5. Sunderbans = no increase; Odisha = fall in number;
Karnataka = highest population (absolute number)
6. Project Tiger, 1973
Other issues
1. National Tiger Conservation Authority
(NTCA)
2. Double sampling; use of camera traps =
to estimate the assessment & distribution of tigers
3. Demand for Indian tigers in Laos &
Cambodia
4. ANTI-POACHING
A. PERIYAR TIGER RESERVE WINS NTCA AWARD
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
17
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
18
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
19
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
20
43. Critically
endangered
Vaquita
Marina, the worlds smallest porpoise
sought
for
tranquillising
Aspire IAS
44. Back
from
the
Corroboree frogs
Australia)
brink
of
(Kosciuszko
extinction
national park,
Endangered southern
just 3.5cm in length
Corroboree
frog measures
The frogs the females are largest and pear- shaped when
carrying eggs are coloured by flashes of bright yellow as a
warning to predators of the toxins developed from the
gobbling up of ants. But the frogs arent fully visible unless you
stoop down for a close look.
Chytrid fungus has spread across six continents and has
been blamed for causing the decline or extinction of around
200 frog species since the 1970s. In Australia, six frog species
are thought to have been wiped out by the fungus, which is
carried in water and by other
The fungus causes a disease called chytridiomycosis on the
skin that fatally impairs frogs ability to maintain electrolyte,
www.aspireias.com
21
against illegal
including
pangolins,
owls
and mongooses claims to have
reached out to nearly 1.4 million people on Facebook,
Twitter and Google.
The campaign, Preserving the Future: Stop Illegal Wildlife
Trade was jointly run by TRAFFIC, WWF- India and the
Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), a nodal agency for
curbing wildlife crime in India.
The growing demand for wildlife from India that threatens
the existence of the tiger, elephant, rhino and various
other flagship species has been well publicised. However,
illegal trade in non- charismatic or lesser known species like
pangolins, monitor lizards, tokay gecko, turtles and tortoises,
lorises, birds, corals, sea cucumbers and others has
remained largely unreported, said a release issued by
TRAFFIC (India), which is a wildlife trade monitoring network.
Aspire IAS
Solution
A new technique involves injecting gas into the stratosphere,
forming microscopic particles which reflect some of the
sun's energy and so help limit rising sea surface temperatures,
www.aspireias.com
22
saving corals.
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
23
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
24
PLANTS
1. Neela Kurinji found in W.Ghats
Plant Harmones/florigens
Gibberellins
IAA
Cytokinins
Ethylene
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
25
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
26
The satellite mapping, which has not gone into the details of
the reason for loss of green cover, says the depletion may be
due to natural and anthropogenic (human intervention)
processes.
3.
Sunderbans
pressure: report
facing
population
for
sustainable
Sunderbans Concerns
1.
Encroachment
of
forestland
& unauthorised
constructions
2. Violations of the Coastal Regulation Zone
3. Conversion of mangrove forestland for fisheries & other
unauthorised structures
4. 15 depts are in charge of Sunderbans but there is no
coordination among them Solution NGT directed Govt of West
Bengal to constitute a committee to oversee the issue
5. Millions
Sundarbans
Aspire IAS
risk
from
sea
rise
in
Seas are rising more than twice as fast as the global average
in the Sundarbans, where some 13 million Indians and
Bangladeshis live. Much of the Sundarbans could be
underwater in 15-25 years.
Satellite images reveal ocean acidification
The use of satellites orbiting the Earth some 700 km above to
monitor ocean acidification is set to revolutionize the way
that marine biologists and climate scientists study the ocean.
6.
at
Impact of climate
examined in Sunderbans
change
to
be
www.aspireias.com
27
7. Phenology
or
lightening,
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
28
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
29
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
30
6. Namami Ganga
The Centre has proposed the setting up and
maintenance of Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) in all the
118 cities and towns located along the Ganga in a timebound manner to check pollution of the river. To be built and
maintained through a special purpose vehicle, these STPs
will be paid for by the Centre and help plug the gaps in the
system and prevent untreated effluents from flowing into the
Ganga.
The proposal was mooted at a review meeting on Namami
Ganga. All the six States (along the Ganga) would be
consulted and taken on board before going ahead with
setting up of the STPs.
Aspire IAS
7.
www.aspireias.com
31
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
32
5. Real-time identification
reality
of algal blooms a
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
33
Efforts on
The new approach will help ocean researchers in quickly
identifying algal blooms without venturing into the water.
Efforts are on for identification and discrimination of more
algal blooms and associated diatoms, he said.
The present analysis has been carried out by utilizing speciesspecific response of phytoplankton from remote sensing
reflectance spectra obtained with a Satlantic underwater
profiling radiometer.
The reason for this shift, according to the study, is the cooling
effect of aerosols that were produced in large quantities due
to industrialisation.
Cooling of the atmosphere results in less rainfall and dry
conditions while warming leads to evaporation, convection
and rainfall. The study found that since 1900 there has
been a steady increase in rainfall in the southern tropics, in
contrast to a steady decrease in the northern tropics.
POLLUTION RELATED
1. Impact of Aerosols
High levels of fine particles in the atmosphere (known as
aerosols), which reduce the amount of sunlight reaching the
ground, may be partly responsible for a slower rate of
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
34
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
35
Aspire IAS
5. Environmentalists
warn
concretisation in cities, towns
against
www.aspireias.com
36
7. Plant Protection
Alimentarius
Code
Codex
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
37
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
38
Destination India
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
39
14. Nationwide
Survey
"Breathe Blue'15
Report
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
40
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
41
NGT rulings
1. to scrap 10yrs old diesel and 15yrs old petrol vehicles
2. capping the no. of vehicles on road
3. hike in parking charges
4. incentives for car pooling
proposed
changes
in
Aspire IAS
20. GROSS
MISMANAGEMENT of
CFL waste containing mercury
www.aspireias.com
42
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
43
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
44
Aspire IAS
of greenhouse gases
At nearly 39 million tones of carbon dioxide equivalent, Delhi
has the highest greenhouse gases footprint in the
country. Greater Mumbai and Chennai follow Delhi with 23
million tonnes and 22 million tonnes respectively. Ahmedabad
accounts for the least (9 million tonnes) GHS footprint among
the seven Indian cities studied by a team of researchers at IISc.
Despite the total GHS footprint being 17 million tones lesser
than Delhi, Chennai has the highest per capita emission of
carbon dioxide equivalent
4.79 tonnes. Kolkata follows Chennai with 3.29 tonnes of
carbon dioxide equivalent. Chennai also emits the highest
carbon dioxide equivalent per GDP 2.55 tonnes carbon
dioxide equivalent per lakh rupees.
www.aspireias.com
45
Eight missions
Innovative solutions
SRI (System of Rice Intensification) uses
less water
Climate Resilient crop varieties by ICAR Crop diversification
Tackling livestock
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
46
industry.
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
47
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
48
Aspire IAS
Concerns
1. India and China -> largest user of coalbased energy
2. India has 13/25 most polluted cities while China 1/50
Conclusion-Therefore it is imp for India to be central to this
green energy plan
www.aspireias.com
49
But the voyage found that waters around the glacier were
some 1.5degree Celsius warmer than other areas visited on
the same trip during the southern hemisphere summer.
The fact that warm water can reach this glacier is a sign that
East Antarctica is potentially more vulnerable to changes in
the ocean driven by climate change than we used to think.
CLEAN/GREEN ENERGY
1. 343 companies commit to green energy
As many as 343 companies, including
global firms, have committed to building green energy
capacity of 2.7-lakh MW in five years as India gives thrust to
renewable energy production to ensure universal energy
access for the poor.
SunEdison Energy India Pvt. Ltd. tops the list with a
commitment of 15,200 MW 10,000-MW solar and 5,200MW wind energy.
The Chennai-based company is a subsidiary of
U.S.- based SunEdison Inc.
Other companies which made commitments in excess of
10,000 MW are: Axis Energy Group, Essel Infraprojects Ltd.,
Renew Power, Welspun Renewables Energy Pvt. Ltd., Azure
Power, Raasi Solar Energy Pvt. Ltd. And Hindustan Clean
Energy Ltd. Adani Power Ltd. and Reliance Power have
committed to creating 6,000 MW each of solar energy
generation capacity. Private sector companies pledged to
generate 2,51,511 MW
1,55,597 MW from solar energy, 47,865 MW from
wind energy and 4,185 MW from other green energy and so
on and 24 government-run firms
18,819 MW.
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
50
4. RE and issues
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
51
VULTURES
Of the 9 species found in India, 4 have been listed as
critically endangered
White-rumped
Critically endangered
Aspire IAS
Egyptian Vulture
Endangered
(Neophron
percnopterus)
www.aspireias.com
52
Bearded Vulture
concern
Aspire IAS
(Gypaetus
barbatus)
Least
www.aspireias.com
53
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
54
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
55
Ecosystem services
The principal framework for expressing the usefulness of
biodiversity is through the concept of ecosystem services. They
illustrate the link between, on the one hand, the interactions
of species with each other and with the physical environment;
and on the other, the well-being of people, whether in terms
of wealth, nutrition or security.
Fast Facts
Ecosystem services do the following:
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
56
TRAFFIC
TRAFFIC is a joint conservation programme of WWF, the global
conservation organization and IUCN, the International Union
for Conservation of Nature. It was established in 1976 by the
Species Survival Commission of IUCN, principally as a response
to the entry into force during the previous year of the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of
Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
TRAFFIC is an international network, consisting of TRAFFIC
International, based in Cambridge, UK with offices on five
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
57
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
58
REDD+
Deforestation and forest degradation, through agricultural
expansion, conversion to pastureland, infrastructure
development, destructive logging, fires etc., account for
nearly 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions, more than
the entire global transportation sector and second only to the
energy sector. It is now clear that in order to constrain the
impacts of climate change within limits that society will
reasonably be able to tolerate, the global average
temperatures must be stabilized within two degrees Celsius.
This will be practically impossible to achieve without reducing
emissions from the forest sector, in addition to other
mitigation actions.
Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest
Degradation (REDD) is an effort to create a financial value for
the carbon stored in forests, offering incentives for
developing countries to reduce emissions from forested lands
and invest in low-carbon paths to sustainable development.
"REDD+" goes beyond deforestation and forest degradation,
and includes the role of conservation, sustainable
management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon
stocks.
What is the difference between REDD+ and the UN-REDD
Programme?
REDD+ is a climate change mitigation solution that many
initiatives, including the UN-REDD Programme, are currently
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
59
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
60
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
61
Aspire IAS
ECO-SENSITIVE ZONES
The National Wild Life Action Plan (2002-2016) provided for
declaring identified areas around Protected Areas and
corridors as ecologically fragile under the Environment
(Protection) Act, 1986, wherever necessary. The Indian Board
for Wild Life on 21st January, 2002 considered Wild Life
Conservation Strategy, 2002 and recommended that lands
falling within 10 km of the boundaries of National Parks and
Sanctuaries should be notified as eco-fragile zones under
Section 3(v) of the Environment (Protection) Act and Rule 5
Sub-Rule 5(viii) & (x) of Environment (Protection) Rules.
The National Board for Wild Life reviewed the matter on
17th March, 2005 and recommended that delineation of ecosensitive zones would have to be site specific, and relate to
regulation, rather than prohibition, of specific activities. The
following criteria, as proposed by the Ministry were agreed by
the National Board for Wildlife for declaration of EcoSensitive Zones around National Parks and Sanctuaries:
i.
Complete protection to endemic species in its
entire range;
ii.
Development processes not to reduce, damage
or destroy the habitat of critically endangered or any other
threatened species;
iii.
Protection to biological corridors;
iv.
Protection to highly complex and diversified
ecosystems susceptible to irreversible damage, like coral
reefs, mangroves, etc.;
v.
Sites associated with reproductive, breeding or
nurturing behaviour of rare and threatened species;
vi.
Existence of pristine forests;
www.aspireias.com
62
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com
63
Aspire IAS
www.aspireias.com