Dragonflies and damselflies are ancient insects that have been around since the age of the dinosaurs. But now the aerial predators may be in trouble as climate change and human development are drying up the freshwater habitat they need to survive.

One in five Mediterranean dragonflies and damselflies is threatened with extinction because of Increasing scarcity of freshwater in the region, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said today.

Climate change and habitat degradation, due to the way land is managed, are also affecting the insects, says a report by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Photo of Large White-faced Darter (Leucorrhinia pectoralis) by Fabio Pupin/IUCN

Dragonflies and damselflies belong to the order of insects called Odonata. They have been around in one form or another since the Jurassic era, well more than a hundred million years ago. Giant specimens with wingspans of more than two feet have been found in the fossil record. About 6,500 species survive today.

Aerial predators that hunt by sight, dragonflies and damselflies generally are found at or near fresh water. The larvae are predatory, aquatic and occur in all manner of inland waters, according to the Web of Life.

Common Pond Damsel  (Ceriagrion glabrum) photo by Elisa Riservato/IUCN

The Red List assessment of 163 Mediterranean dragonflies and damselflies shows five are Critically Endangered, 13 are Endangered, another 13 are Vulnerable, 27 are Near Threatened, 96 are Least Concern and six are Data Deficient, meaning there is not enough information to classify them, but they might also be threatened.

"It is likely things will only get worse for these unique species as climate change and increased water demand take their toll," says Jean Pierre Boudot, member of the IUCN Dragonfly Specialist Group and co-author of the report. "Lower levels of precipitation and drought will lead to degradation of the habitats where the majority of dragonflies and damselflies live."

Photo of Glittering Demoiselle (Calopteryx exul) by Jean-Pierre Boudot/IUCN

Four species are already listed as Extinct in the Mediterranean, including the Little Whisp (Agriocnemis exilis), the Common Pond Damsel (Ceriagrion glabrum), the Phantom Flutterer (Rhyothemis semihyalina) and the Darting Cruiser (Phyllomacromia africana).

"Dragonflies are generally known for being good indicators of water quality," IUCN says in a statement about the report. "Major threats for 67 percent of these Mediterranean species are habitat degradation and pollution. The Spotted Darter (Sympetrum depressiusculum), which used to be common in the Mediterranean, is now listed as Vulnerable and is declining due to the intensification of agricultural practices in rice fields."

Banded Darter (Sympetrum pedemontanum) photo by Fabio Pupin/IUCN

Fourteen percent of these insect species can be found only in Mediterranean freshwater ecosystems, some of the richest and most threatened habitats, among which nine have been assessed as Endangered or Vulnerable. According to the report, the highest numbers of endemic dragonflies are present in the South and West of the Mediterranean, with the Maghreb and the Levant areas being regional hotspots of endemism.

"The Glittering Demoiselle (Calopteryx exul), for example, is listed as Endangered and is in decline. It inhabits the aquatic habitats of the Maghreb, whose ecosystems are under pressure due to water-harnessing for human use, water pollution, irrigation and drought," IUCN says.

"Long-term coordinated actions are needed at regional, national and international level, and the results of this report highlight the responsibility that Mediterranean countries have to protect the global populations.

"Though some species are already receiving some conservation attention thanks to international laws, such as the Ornate Bluet (Coenagrion ornatum) which is included in the European Habitat Directive, others are not protected at all, despite their high risk of extinction."

Banded Demoiselle (Calopteryx splendens) photo by Jean-Pierre Boudot/IUCN

"The selection and protection of key sites are essential to ensure the survival of these species," says IUCN's Annabelle Cuttelod, co-author of the report. "Their ecological requirements need to be taken into account in the planning and management of water use, especially for agriculture purposes or infrastructure development. IUCN Red List data can inform both processes."

In addition to the Mediterranean odonata assessment, 1,912 species of amphibians, birds, cartilaginous fishes, endemic freshwater fishes, crabs and crayfish, mammals, and reptiles have been assessed to date in the Mediterranean region. About 19 percent of these species are threatened with extinction: 5 percent Critically Endangered, 7 percent Endangered and 7 percent Vulnerable, IUCN says.

Spotted Darter (Sympetrum depressiusculum) photo by Jean-Pierre Boudot/IUCN.

The assessment was carried out with the support of relevant scientists from the countries bordering the Mediterranean Basin in collaboration with the IUCN Dragonfly Specialist Group, to which they contributed with their expertise to gather the data, and to assess the conservation status that would be the basis for future conservation action.

Beautiful Demoiselle (Calopteryx virgo meridionalis) photo by Jean Pierre Boudot/IUCN

This project was funded by the European Commission, the Mava Foundation and the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and Development (AECID).

Ornate Bluet (Coenagrion ornatum) photo by Jean-Pierre Boudot/IUCN

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Intersex in smallmouth and largemouth bass is widespread in numerous river basins throughout the United States, according to U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) research published online in Aquatic Toxicology.

Fish with the characteristics of both male and female fish are called intersex fish. It is suspected that fish are changing sex because of rising levels of pollution in rivers, including pharmaceuticals, detergents, and farm chemicals.

No one knows if the disruption of hormones in fish is an indication of harm to humans who drink the same water the fish live in.

The USGS examined 6 fish species researchers from 1995 to 2004, and found that intersex was most common by far in smallmouth and largemouth bass.

Largemouth bass, left, and smallmouth, right and jumping.

NGS illustration by Hashime Murayama

"A third of all male smallmouth bass and a fifth of all male largemouth bass were intersex," USGS said in a news statement about the study. "This condition is primarily revealed in male fish that have immature female egg cells in their testes, but occasionally female fish will have male characteristics as well."

Scientists found intersex fish in about a third of all sites examined from the Apalachicola, Colorado, Columbia, Mobile, Mississippi, Pee Dee, Rio Grande, Savannah, and Yukon River basins. The Yukon River basin was the only one where researchers did not find at least one intersex fish, USGS said.

"Although intersex occurrence differed among species and basin, it was more prevalent in largemouth bass in southeastern U.S., where it occurred at all sites in the Apalachicola, Savannah, and Pee Dee river basins," said Jo Ellen Hinck, the lead author of the paper and a biologist at the USGS Columbia Environmental Research Center.

Intersex found in catfish for first time

The researchers also documented intersex in channel catfish for the first time.

"Although the USGS has already documented the severity of intersex in individual basins such as the Potomac, this study reveals the prevalence of intersex is more widespread than anyone anticipated", said Sue Haseltine, associate director for biology at the U.S. Geological Survey.

"This research sends the clear message that we need to learn more about the hormonal and environmental factors that cause this condition in fish, as well as the number of fish afflicted with this condition."

USGS researcher examining bass for abnormalities in the field in Alabama.

Photo by Jo Ellen Hinck, U.S. Geological Survey

The study, said Hinck, presents the observed occurrence of intersex in a variety of freshwater fish species, but not potential causes.

"This study adds a lot to our knowledge of this phenomena, but we still don't know why certain species seem more prone to this condition or exactly what is causing it.

"In fact, the causes for intersex may vary by location, and we suspect it will be unlikely that a single human activity or kind of contaminant will explain intersex in all species or regions," she said.

Smallmouth bass illustration courtesy U.S. Department of the Interior

 Such compounds are chemical stressors that have the ability to affect the endocrine system and include pesticides, PCBs, heavy metals, household compounds such as laundry detergent and shampoo, and many pharmaceuticals.

Yet other study sites with high occurrence of intersex were on rivers with dense human populations or industrial and agricultural activities, which are more generally associated with endocrine-active compounds, USGS said.

Largemouth bass illustration courtesy U.S. Department of the Interior

"Proper diagnosis of this condition in wild fish is essential because if the primary causes are compounds that disrupt the endocrine system, then the widespread occurrence of intersex in fish would be a critical environmental concern."

Specific river basin results include:

•Intersex smallmouth bass were found in a third of male bass at almost half of the sites examined in the Columbia, Colorado, and Mississippi River basins. The percentage of intersex smallmouth bass ranged from 14 to 73 percent at different sites. It was highest (73 percent) in the Mississippi River at Lake City, Minnesota, Yampa River at Lay, Colorado, (70 percent), Salmon River at Riggins, Idaho (43 percent), and the Columbia River at Warrendale, Oregon, (67 percent).

•Intersex largemouth bass were found in nearly a fifth of the fish examined from the Colorado, Rio Grande, Mississippi, Mobile, Apalachicola, Savannah, and Pee Dee River basins; intersex was not observed in male largemouth bass from the Columbia River Basin.

The percentage of intersex largemouth bass per site ranged from 8 to 91 percent and was most prevalent in the southeastern United States.
The Pee Dee River at Bucksport, South Carolina, contained the highest percentage of intersex fish (91 percent), with high percentages occurring elsewhere on the Pee Dee too. Sixty percent of male bass examined at the Apalachicola River at Blountstown, Florida, were intersex, 50 percent in the Savannah River at Port Wentworth and Sylvania, Georgia, 43 percent in the Savannah River at Augusta, Georgia, and 30 percent in the Chattahoochee River at Omaha, Georgia, and the Flint River at Albany, Georgia, Lower percent intersex (10-25 percent) were found in bass from sites in the Mobile River in Alabama.

•In addition, relatively high proportions of intersex largemouth bass were observed at three sites in the lower Rio Grande Basin including Rio Grande at Brownsville, Texas (50 percent), Rio Grande at Falcon Dam, Texas (44 percent), and Rio Grande at Mission, Texas (20 percent). In addition, 40 percent of male largemouth bass from the Colorado River at Imperial Dam, Arizona, and at the Gila River at Hayden, Arizona, in the Colorado River Basin were intersex.

Air pollution in eastern China has reduced the amount of light rainfall over the past 50 years and decreased by 23 percent the number of days of light rain in the eastern half of the country, according to research published in the Journal of Geophysical Research-Atmospheres.

The results suggest that bad air quality might be affecting the country's ability to raise crops as well as contributing to health and environmental problems, according to researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL).

"The study links for the first time high levels of pollutants in the air with conditions that prevent the light kind of rainfall critical for agriculture," says a news statement about the research released by PNNL.

This space image of eastern China shows the widespread nature of the pollution problem.

Image courtesy SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE

"People have long wondered if there was a connection, but this is the first time we've observed it from long-term data," said PNNL atmospheric scientist Yun Qian, who led the study. "Besides the health effects, acid rain and other problems that pollution creates, this work suggests that reducing air pollution might help ease the drought in north China."

"Rain in eastern China--where most of the country's people and pollution exist--is not like it used to be."

Rain in eastern China--where most of the country's people and pollution exist--is not like it used to be, PNNL noted."China's dramatic economic growth and pollution problems provide researchers an opportunity to study the connection between air quality and climate."

Over the last 50 years, the southern part of eastern China has seen increased amounts of total rainfall per year. The northern half has seen less rain and more droughts. But light rainfall that sustains crops has decreased everywhere, PNNL said.

"Previous work has shown that pollution can interfere with light rain above oceans, so the [research] team suspected pollution might have something to do with the changes over land. Light rain ranges from drizzles to 10 millimeters [four tenths of an inch] of accumulation per day and sustains agriculture. (Compared to heavy rain that causes floods, loss of light rain has serious consequences for crops.)

"While the light rains have diminished, pollution has increased dramatically in China in the last half of the 20th century. For example, while China's population rose two and a half times in size, the emissions of sulfur from fossil fuel burning outpaced that considerably--rising nine times."

Air pollution contains tiny, unseen particles of gas, water and bits of matter called aerosols, the researchers explained. "Aerosols--both natural and human-caused (anthropogenic)--do contribute to rainfall patterns, but the researchers needed to determine if pollution was to blame for China's loss of rain and how.

Data Collected from 162 Weather Stations

"To find out, the team charted trends in rainfall from 1956 to 2005 in eastern China, which has 162 weather stations with complete data collected over the entire 50 years.

"From this data, the team determined that both the north and south regions of eastern China had fewer days of light rain--those getting 10 millimeters per day or less--at the end of the 50-year timespan.

"The south lost more days--8.1 days per decade--than the north did, at 6.9 days per decade. However, the drought-rattled north lost a greater percentage of its rainy days, about 25 percent compared to the south's 21 percent."

Said Qian, "No matter how we define light rain, we can see a very significant decrease of light rain over almost every station."

Pollution over Eastern China in 2002

Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC

To probe what caused the loss of rainfall, the researchers looked at how much water the atmosphere contained and where the water vapor traveled. Most parts of eastern China saw no significant change in the amount of water held by the atmosphere, even though light rains decreased. In addition, where the atmosphere transported water vapor didn't coincide with light rain frequency, PNNL said.

"These results suggested that changes in large-scale movement of water could not account for the loss of the precipitation. Some of pollution's aerosols can seed clouds or form raindrops, depending on their size, composition and the conditions in which they find themselves. Because these skills likely contribute to rainfall patterns, the researchers explored the aerosols in more depth.

"Cloud droplets form around aerosols, so the team determined the concentration of cloud droplets over China. They found higher concentrations of droplets when more aerosols were present. But more droplets mean that each cloud droplet is smaller, in the same way that filling 10 ice cream cones from a quart of ice cream results in smaller scoops than if the same amount were put in only five cones.

"This result suggested that aerosols create smaller water droplets, which in turn have a harder time forming rainclouds. The team verified this with computer models of pristine, moderately polluted or heavily polluted skies. In the most heavily polluted simulation, rain fell at significantly lower frequencies than in the pristine conditions.

"An examination of the cloud and rain drops showed that these water drops in polluted cases are up to 50 percent smaller than in clean skies. The smaller size impedes the formation of rain clouds and the falling of rain."

Qian said the next step in their research is to examine new data from the DOE's Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Climate Research Facility in the central eastern Chinese city of Shouxian. The data was collected from April to December of 2008.

"This work is important because modeling studies of individual cases of pollution's effect on convective clouds have shown varying results, depending on the environmental conditions," said coauthor Ruby Leung. "The ARM data collected at Shouxian should provide more detailed measurements of both aerosols and clouds to enable us to quantify the impacts of aerosols on precipitation under different atmospheric and pollution conditions."

The work was supported by the Office of Biological and Environmental Research within the DOE Office of Science under a bilateral agreement on regional climate research with the China Ministry of Science and Technology.

The first integrated analysis for all coastal areas of the world has ranked hotspots of human impact.

The hottest hotspot is at the mouth of the Mississippi River, says Benjamin S. Halpern, lead author of the study, with the other top 10 in Asia and the Mediterranean.

Nutrient runoff from farms draining into the Mississippi has caused a persistent "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico, where the river runs into the ocean. The dead zone is caused by an overgrowth of algae that feeds on the nutrients and takes up most of the oxygen in the water.

Image by NASA

The Mississippi mouth and the other hotspots are areas where conservation efforts will almost certainly fail if they don't directly address what people are doing on land upstream from these locations, said Halpern, who is based at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS) at the University of California in Santa Barbara (UCSB).

The study was published in the Journal of Conservation Letters.

Global hotspots where human activities on land are impacting coastal marine ecosystems. The numbers show the rank order of the hottest hotspots (red dots). The blue and green dots are land-based activities that are having an important effect on marine systems but not as much as those areas marked by the red dots.

Illustration courtesy B. Halpern and colleagues, NCEAS

"Resource management and conservation in coastal waters must address a litany of impacts from human activities, from the land, such as urban runoff and other types of pollution, and from the sea," Halpern said.

"One of the great challenges is to decide where and how much to allocate limited resources to tackling these problems."

"One of the great challenges is to decide where and how much to allocate limited resources to tackling these problems," he said. "Our results identify where it is absolutely imperative that land-based threats are addressed--so-called hotspots of land-based impact--and where these land-based sources of impact are minimal or can be ignored."

The study surveyed four key land-based drivers of ecological change:

• nutrient input from agriculture in urban settings
• organic pollutants derived from pesticides
• inorganic pollutants from urban runoff
• direct impact of human populations on coastal marine habitats.

Not All Coastal Waters Fully Impacted

A large portion of the world's coastlines experience very little effect of what happens on land, nearly half of the coastline and more than 90 percent of all coastal waters, Halpern said.

"This is because a vast majority of the planet's landscape drains into relatively few very large rivers, that in turn affect a small amount of coastal area.

"In these places with little impact from human activities on land, marine conservation can and needs to focus primarily on what is happening in the ocean. For example: fishing, climate change, invasive species, and commercial shipping."

Coauthors from NCEAS are Colin M. Ebert, Carrie V. Kappel, Matthew Perry, Kimberly A. Selkoe, and Shaun Walbridge. Fiorenza Micheli of Stanford University's Hopkins Marine Station and Elizabeth M. P. Madin of UCSB's Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology are also co-authors. Selkoe is also affiliated with the University of Hawaii's Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology.

NCEAS is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the National Marine Sanctuaries, and an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship provided additional support for this research.

Parks, forests, and historic places require a significant increase in annual funding if they are to be preserved for future generations, a major assessment of U.S. outdoor resources has found.

A report by the private, bipartisan Outdoor Resources Review Group (ORRG) was presented today at a Capitol Hill briefing to Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-New Mexico) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tennessee), who served as honorary co-chairs of the project.

In its report, the task force analyzed efforts to conserve and protect the U.S. outdoor heritage--including parks, wildlife refuges, and open space.

"The report draws a strong link between the availability and quality of these resources and the health of Americans, the economy, and communities nationwide," says a statement by ORRG. "It also points to the tremendous hurdle in securing adequate funding for parks, recreation, and related purposes at the state and local levels, which are on the front line in providing these services."

In the foreword to the report, Senators Bingaman and Alexander said, "Americans all across the country, of all backgrounds and of all political views, care deeply about the health of our land and water resources--the wildlife, parks, forests, farms and ranchlands, and historic places that have sustained and enriched us as a people over generations...We are past due for a serious look at where we stand as a country in achieving our goal of safeguarding these resources...Today, with a new President and a new Administration, we have the opportunity to put our conservation efforts on solid footing for generations to follow."

National Geographic Chairman Gil Grosvenor delivers "Great Outdoors America," a report on the recreational use of the nation's resources, to Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn. (center), Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M. (second from right) and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar (right).

NGS photo by Megan Seldon

"Healthy, productive land and water resources, wildlife habitat, parks and open space, culturally and historically significant landscapes, and available and accessible recreation lands are fundamental to the American way of life and our future prosperity," the report notes.

"At stake now and for future generations is the health of our people, our economy, our communities, and the lands and waters on which we depend, in short, the quality of life we enjoy in our cities and towns and rural places."

Independent Conservation Trust Proposed

A key proposal in the report, which is flagged for further study, is the development of an independent conservation trust within the federal establishment, with dedicated and sustained funding reaching U.S. $5 billion annually, the ORRG statement said.

"One potential funding source, the report suggests, could be a percentage of royalties and revenues collected from development of new renewable and conventional energy resources and transmission capacity on public lands and on the outer continental shelf."

NGS photo of Yellowstone National Park by J. Baylor Roberts

The report anticipates conflicts over specific projects if a substantial push is made to develop energy resources on public lands that are valued as wildlife habitat or for recreation. It also calls for a national climate program to help fund the adaptation of land and water resources in a warming world.

The ORRG report is the first major assessment of outdoor resources since the President's Commission on Americans Outdoors in 1987.

Outdoor Pursuits Have Grown in Popularity

"In the more than 20 years since that study, a wide range of outdoor pursuits--including such activities as bird watching, water-related sports, rock climbing, mountain biking, and off-road vehicles--have grown in popularity, even as more traditional activities such as hiking, camping, hunting, and fishing retain strong core followings," ORRG says.

The report recommends creating a new nationwide system of "Blueways" and water trails to energize grassroots activity to improve water quality and water-related recreation opportunities.

NGS photo of Everglades National Park by Robert Sisson

The 17-member ORRG task force was organized by Henry Diamond, partner at Beveridge & Diamond, P.C., an environmental law firm headquartered in Washington, and former commissioner of the New York Department of Environmental Conservation; Patrick Noonan, chairman emeritus of The Conservation Fund; and Gilbert Grosvenor, chairman of the board of the National Geographic Society.

Norway's fisheries regulators have cut the 2009 catch quota for the endangered European eel by 80 percent and banned fishing of the eel completely starting next year, WWF announced today.

Will the endangered European eel be able to slip through the net of extinction, thanks to Norway's ban on catching it?

Photo copyright WWF-Canon/Rudolf Svensen.

The Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs also announced that all recreational fishing of European eels would stop tomorrow, July 1, as stock of the eels hit historically low levels and continue to decline. "The decision represents a major conservation decision that is a model for proper fisheries management," WWF-Norway said.

"This protection should have been implemented many years ago, and we are hoping that the long-overdue protection is not too late."

"A total fishing ban is the strongest measure the fisheries management can use, and when a species is critically endangered one must use the strongest and most efficient measures. This protection should have been implemented many years ago, and we are hoping that the long-overdue protection is not too late," said Norway-WWF CEO Rasmus Hansson.

Staff from Slapton Ley Field Centre & National Nature Reserve in the UK check the elver traps to see how many 'glass' eels have survived the two-year migration across the Atlantic from the Sargasso Sea.

As early as 1999, the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) stated that the eel stock was outside safe biological limits, and that the fishery was unsustainable. Yet, fishing has been ongoing for decades, despite scientific advice, WWF said in a statement.

"A successful rebuilding strategy for the eel, both in Norway and the EU, will have a substantial impact on eel numbers in Norwegian waters.

"Consequently, Norway has a great responsibility in influencing both the management and the research that is being undertaken in Europe. In Europe, fishing for eel continues, despite the very severe and depleted state of the stock," the statement added.

"WWF urges Ms Pedersen to fight for the EU taking similar bold measures in their fisheries management, and WWF will fight to stop the eel fishery in the EU," Hansson said.

Related National Geographic News stories:

Europe's Eels Are Slipping Away, Scientists Warn

One in Three European Freshwater Fish Face Extinction

Additional information:

Eel stocks dangerously close to collapse (ICES)

European Eel (USGS)

In the world of round goby fish there are females and males ... and males.

Scientists have found the existence of two types of males of the fiercely invasive fish spreading through the Great Lakes, which may provide answers as to how they rapidly reproduce, McMaster University announced.

"Researchers ... discovered evidence that in addition to round goby males which guard the nest from predators and look after their offspring, there exists what scientists call 'sneaker' males--little males that look like females and sneak into the nests of the larger males," the Canadian university said in a statement.

The parental male is the big fish in this picture and the sneaker male is the small fish.
Photo courtesy McMaster University

The study, published in the Journal of Great Lakes Research, looks at the aggressive round goby, a bottom-dwelling fish which infested the Great Lakes watersheds around 1990."Presently, they are working their way inland through rivers and canal systems and can lead to the decline of native species through competition and predation," McMaster said.

"The existence of these two kinds of males will help scientists understand how round gobies reproduce, how quickly their populations grow, and track how these populations change over the course of invasion," said Julie Marentette, lead author and a Ph.D. student in the department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour at McMaster University. "This has the potential to have a significant impact on how researchers tackle what has become a very difficult problem in the Great Lakes."

Sneakier Way to Mate

Because males expend lots of energy or eat less while guarding their nests, and attracting females while providing care can be difficult, males in some species have found a sneakier way to mate, Marentette explained. "Instead of courting females and protecting the young, some males will parasitize the courtship--and sometimes the parenting duties--of conventional males. They do this by sneaking into the nests of big males or pretending to be females."

"Prior to our findings, only one type of male reproductive behaviour would have been incorporated into projections and modeling analyses of the population dynamics of round goby invasive capacities", said Sigal Balshine, associate professor in the department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour and academic advisor on the study. "Our results will shed light on how populations of this invasive species are likely to grow and spread through time and space."

Sneakers produced more sperm ... and had bigger testes

The McMaster scientists compared the physical, hormonal and sperm traits of hundreds of males, and found that the nest-guarding, parental males were big, black and had wide heads. The small female-like sneaker males were tiny, mottled brown and had narrow heads.

Both types of males produced sperm, but sneakers produced more sperm than the parental males, and had bigger testes.

By contrast, parental males have bigger glands used to produce pheromones that attract females.

Funding for the research was provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Canada Fund for Innovation, the Ministry of Research and Innovation and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

German scientists are looking at how fish move through water to see if technology can be adapted to make shipping more friendly to underwater habitats.

Photo courtesy TU Darmstadt

A team of researchers at Technische Universität Darmstadt analyzed videos of fish's motions and then developed a prototype fish robot that duplicated them, and are now testing it using the locomotional patterns of various species of fish in order to refine it and improve its efficiency, the university said in a statement today.

"Their fish robot, dubbed 'Smoky,' consists of a 'skeleton' composed of ten segments enshrouded in an elastic skin that are free to move relative to one another and made to undergo snaking motions similar to those of fish by waterproof actuators. Including its tail fin, the fish robot, which is a 5:1 scale model of a gilt-head sea bream, is 1.50 meters [about 5 feet] long."

The researchers hope that use of their fish robot for ship propulsion will help prevent shoreline erosion and the underminings of submarine installations caused by ships' screws, Darmstadt said. "The fish robot's 'soft' drive action should also prevent the churning up of seabeds and riverbeds and its effects on marine plants and aquatic-animal populations."

Watch this video of Smoky, the fish robot. Narration in German.

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A robotic fish developed by scientists from Essex University is put through its paces in a special tank at the London Aquarium. It works via sensors and has autonomous navigational control.

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Photo courtesy Save the Elephants

The future of a rare herd of desert elephants in Mali is under threat from one of the worst droughts in living memory, according to Save the Elephants, a conservation organization based in Kenya.

Water levels are extremely low in the African desert country's Gourma region due to uneven rainfall in 2008. The most important lake, Banzena, is the lowest it has been since 1983 when it dried completely.

Adult elephants go on their knees to stretch for water deep under the sand. Baby elephants who can't reach the water are dying of thirst.

"Urgent action is now needed to secure water for the elephants until the rains commence as predicted in early June," Save the Elephants said in a news statement. "Fortunately, two pumps already exist at Banzena for pumping water and can be used for helping the elephants.

"Save the Elephants, in partnership with the WILD Foundation and the Mali government, is appealing for funds for diesel necessary for their operation."

The situation is equally dire for the Touareg and Pheul herdsmen who rely on Lake Banzena for their cattle and many cows are now dying each day from lack of water and the soaring temperatures which reach 50 degrees Celsius in the shade, says Jake Wall, a Save the Elephants researcher who returned recently from a visit to the area.

"The stench of rotting corpses fills the air and what little water remains is putrid and undrinkable by all standards. The normal peaceful coexistence between the elephants and herdsmen is starting to break down and giving way to conflict over access to water."

Even if help comes, it is not certain whether the water quantity will be sufficient and close monitoring of the situation is needed, Save the Elephants said.

Photo courtesy Save the Elephants

"The 350 to 450 elephants of Gourma, the northernmost herds still alive in Africa, are being forced to trek ever-longer distances within the Sahel on the fringes of the Sahara to find scarce water.

"Juveniles are likely to be among the worst affected, as--unlike the bigger bulls--their trunks are not long enough to reach deep into remaining wells.

"Six elephants have already been found dead. Four others, including three calves, were recently extracted from a shallow well into which they had fallen when searching for water. Only the largest survived."

Elephants On Their Knees

At a dry lake bed 30 miles (50 kilometers) to the east of Banzena, six bull elephants are surviving by getting on their knees and reaching with their trunks for water that is 10 feet (3 meters) beneath ground level and through a hole dug by the Touareg.

Younger elephants who are not as big or as skilled cannot possibly reach these to hard-to-get-at water points, Save the Elephants said in its statement. "The long distances, high temperatures and weakened condition will also take a heavy toll on the younger elephants."

The desert elephants of Mali live in the Gourma district southeast of Timbuktu. They have adapted to survive in the harsh conditions of the Sahel by migrating long distances in search of water and food but live on the margin of what is ecologically viable.

 View a larger file of this interactive map.

The ancient elephant migration routes in Mali, Africa, were tracked by satellite by Iain Douglas-Hamilton. Read the story that goes with this map.

Map by NGS

Save the Elephants and the WILD Foundation have been monitoring these last rare desert elephants in Mali in collaboration with the Malian Environment Ministry directorate for conservation--Direction Nationale de la Conservation de la Nature (DNCN).

"This unique herd of elephants is now in a desperate situation due to a drastic shortage of water, and we are launching an emergency appeal to save them," Save the Elephants said.

Photo courtesy Save the Elephants

The study, led by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), suggests that in many cases the reduced flows are associated with climate change, NCAR said in a news release. "The process could potentially threaten future supplies of food and water."

NGS photo of Ganges River by George F. Mobley

"Reduced runoff is increasing the pressure on freshwater resources in much of the world, especially with more demand for water as population increases," says NCAR scientist Aiguo Dai, the lead author, in the release. "Freshwater being a vital resource, the downward trends are a great concern."

"The study raises wider ecological and climate concerns. Discharge from the world's great rivers results in deposits of dissolved nutrients and minerals into the oceans.

UCAR photo of Aiguo Dai by Carlye Calvin

"The freshwater flow also affects global ocean circulation patterns, which are driven by changes in salinity and temperature and which play a vital role in regulating the world's climate."

Each organization will provide $24 million over five years to support a competitive awards program for science research projects that address drought, pests, disease and other serious problems facing small farmers and their families who rely on their crops for their food and income, the NSF said in a news release.

The award program will be called BREAD--Basic Research to Enable Agricultural Development--and will support a competitive award program for science research projects that develop innovative approaches and technologies to boost agricultural productivity in developing countries.

NGS photo of Nigerian woman carrying cassava by Lynn Johnson

Finding water is usually the work of women and girls, according to Joke Muylwijk, executive director of the Gender Water Alliance, a network of more than a thousand people around the globe dedicated to equitable access to water resources and decision-making.

"There are some women who spend their whole lives looking for water," Muylwijk said.

Gary White is executive director of WaterPartners, a nonprofit that aims to provide safe water and sanitation in developing countries.

According to White, 200 million hours are spent every day walking to collect water. "It is a huge opportunity cost for women who could be working paying jobs, or children who could be in school," he added.

Muylwijk and White said women are generally absent in water decisions, but should play a critical role.

For example, Muylwijk said, the opening ceremony of the 5th World Water Forum was conducted by men only and out of 19 members on the forum steering committee there are no women.

At least in the developing world, women are generally more invested in water resources, and are more likely to carry an improvement project through to completion, White said.

Fadia Daibes, an independent consultant working on water resource management and policy in East Jerusalem, tells National Geographic more about the role, or lack of a role, women play in delicate Israeli-Palestinian water negotiations.

Video interview by Tasha Eichenseher

Meena Bilgi calls herself a gender advocate.

Based in Gujarat, India, Bilgi is employed by governments, nonprofits, and development agencies to advise on how and why to include women in water, agriculture, and health projects.

She said it may take years for men in rural communities, where she works, to accept women in official decision-making or managerial roles.

"Mainstreaming gender is a gradual process," she said.

But, according to Bilgi, many development projects in India fail because they don't include women, who are usually more familiar with the available natural resources because they are often the ones in the fields, grazing cattle in the forests, and fetching water.

Bilgi tells National Geographic more about her work and progress she and her colleagues have made.

Video interview by Tasha Eichenseher

Related National Geographic News story:

Water Deal Elemental to Middle East Peace

Earlier blog posts from the 5th World Water Forum:

Lack of Toilets "One of the Biggest Scandals in the Last 50 Years"

Nuggets of Hope in the Face of Bleak Outlook for Freshwater

Africa's Water News: Green Beer, At-Risk Aquatic Life, Clean Hands 

Tasha Eichenseher's attendance at the 5th World Water Forum is sponsored by Media21 -- a Switzerland-based journalism foundation that brings reporters and producers from around the globe to work together on coverage of major issues such as human rights, climate change, and health.

News from Africa for the 5th World Water Forum:

Tanzania Brewer Drafted into Water Efficiency Effort

Despite re-occurring drought in Tanzania, Safari and Kilimanjaro Premium Lagers may be sold at the local watering hole for some time to come.

Based in the capital, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Breweries Limited was worried about the region's water supply. The company brought together citizens, environmentalists, and government agencies who are now working on large-scale infrastructure and efficiency projects to secure the city's supply into the long-term future.

Tanzania Breweries, and its parent company SABMiller, were recognized in a report on corporate action the World Wildlife Fund-United Kingdom released yesterday at the 5th World Water Forum in Istanbul.

SABMiller, along with MillerCoors and dozens of other big businesses--not all breweries--helped to develop the United Nations CEO Water Mandate, a voluntary initiative to become more water efficient.

The Dar es Salaam region is subject to drought and crop failure, and is expected to become even more vulnerable as climate change intensifies.

The government isn't doing it's job to secure a water source, said report author Stuart Orr.

African Countries Come Together to Manage Groundwater

The Iullemenden Aquifer sprawls 193,000 square miles (500,000 square kilometers)--about the size of California--below Mali, Niger, and Nigeria in Northwestern Africa.

It is estimated that withdrawals have increased from 50 million cubic meters in 1970 to 180 million cubic meters in 2004, mostly due to a population increase of 9 million in the region over that same period of time.

NGS photo of Tazole Well, Niger, by James L. Stanfield

The area has been labeled one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change as drought--which has persisted since 1970---is expected to get worse.

Recognizing the situation was potentially explosive, government agencies in all three countries got together to form the Sahara and Sahel Observatory to assess the situation and work on an agreement to manage the aquifer.

The U.N. has highlighted the project as a model for other possible conflict areas.

Aquatic Species at Risk in Southern Africa

The World Conservation Union (IUCN)--one of the definitive sources on endangered and threatened species--announced today at the World Water Forum that many southern African freshwater fish, crabs, dragonflies and aquatic plants risk extinction.

The biggest threat to survival: development.

Out of 1,279 freshwater species in southern Africa, 94 are threatened--78 of these are found in South Africa.

"Here at the World Water Forum the trend is to think about water supply in terms of irrigation, hydropower and drinking water," said William Darwall, Manager of IUCN's Freshwater Biodiversity Unit, in a statement. "People tend to forget about the species that live in the water but we can no longer afford to do this."

IUCN goes on to explain that many of these species are an important source of food.

Read more about this: Action Urged to Avert Extinction of Southern Africa's Aquatic Species

Schools in Kenya Secure Clean Water, a Better Learning Environment

Much of Nyanza Province in Kenya is drought-prone. Women and children end up walking four miles (six kilometers), or three hours, a day to haul water. Nearly 90 percent of the province's schools do not have a clean source, according to the nonprofit Global Water Challenge, based in Washington, D.C.

In the last three years teachers from 285 schools in Nyanza have learned how to treat water with a chlorine solution. In addition, they have installed hand-washing stations.

The Sustaining and Scaling School Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (SWASH) program is a five-year funding effort by U.S. businesses, government agencies, and advocacy organizations and foundations to bring proper hygiene, and ideally better health and therefore better education to classrooms. (It is hard to concentrate when you're sick.)

Tasha Eichenseher's attendance at the 5th World Water Forum is sponsored by Media21 -- a Switzerland-based journalism foundation that brings reporters and producers from around the globe to work together on coverage of major issues such as human rights, climate change, and health.

More than 20,000 people from at least 175 countries are buzzing around Istanbul this week talking about water.

The freshwater that forms Earth's rivers, lakes, aquifer, glaciers, and wetlands --- the same water that fills our glasses and toilet bowls -- connects every one of the planet's 6.5 billion citizens and myriad aquatic species.

Water is embedded in every unit of energy we use, meal we eat, and piece of clothing we wear.

It is essential for life, yet, according to the United Nations, there are nearly 1 billion people without access to a safe, clean source, and 2.5 billion without access to adequate sanitation. [Read the National Geographic News story: Lack of Toilets Harming Health of Billions, UN Report Says.]

Policy makers, economists, scientists, engineers, development agencies, business leaders, and environmental organizations have convened in Turkey for the 5th World Water Forum to find a way to avoid water bankruptcy and achieve global water security.

They face an enormous challenge. According to a report the U.N. released yesterday, the future looks bleak.

Population growth, the financial crisis, and poverty coupled with climate change put a wrench in plans to provide basic water service, according to the report, which looked at water management in 25 countries.

African countries are in the worst shape. In Sudan, where rainfall has decreased over the last several years, nearly 55 percent of all freshwater is used for agriculture, and water use for crops is expected to double by 2025.

Asia and island countries in the Pacific are home to almost 60 percent of the world population, but only 36 percent of the planet's freshwater.

In the decades before 2000, China had an average of about 66 billion cubic meters of renewable water resources. Today, because of pollution and other factors, the country has less than an estimated 49 billion cubic meters while demand has steadily risen.

In Europe, climate change may cause sea level rise that floods two-thirds of the Netherlands -- where 96 percent of the population lives below sea level. And Istanbul itself faces significantly diminished groundwater due to saltwater intrusion from rising seas and unsustainable extraction.

"Inaction is no longer an option, and stepping out of the single sector 'water box' is necessary to properly address mounting problems," according to the report, referring to how water decisions have traditionally not been linked to other critical issues such as finance.

But buried in the halls of the conference center -- part of which is a renovated factory that once provided fez hats and clothing for the Ottoman army -- there are success stories that can rise above the gloom and doom scenarios.

The U.N. report highlights a handful: irrigation efficiency improvements in Tunisia; decreased water use in Estonia; and legal rights to a minimum quantity of drinking water in Argentina.

Stay tuned for more.

Tasha Eichenseher's attendance at the 5th World Water Forum is sponsored by Media21 -- a Switzerland-based journalism foundation that brings reporters and producers from around the globe to work together on coverage of major issues such as human rights, climate change, and health.

NGS photo of Istanbul by David Boyer

Photo by James L. Amos/NGS

The United States is one of the great golfing nations of the world.

But the many thousands of golf courses that dot the urban landscape are not without their critics. Environmentalists have decried the amount of water sometimes required to keep fairways and greens lush, especially in places that are naturally arid.

In other instances perfectly good natural hazards such as wetlands or beach dunes are bulldozed and supplanted with an artificial landscape.

There has also been criticism of the amount of pesticides and fertilizer, required to keep golf courses verdant, that winds up in the nation's waterways and oceans.

But can golf courses offer havens for wildlife being squeezed out of urban areas?

"With more than 2.2 million acres of green space on U.S. golf courses, there is great potential for golf courses to serve as sanctuaries for many wildlife species," says Mark Mackey, a graduate student of the University of Missouri who is studying this issue. "Managing landscapes for human use and the preservation of biodiversity will create a win-win situation for stakeholders and wildlife."

Today is World Toilet Day -- and as it happens, there has been a flush of toilet news all week.

First, there was the world's most expensive toilet: the second sanitation unit for the International Space Station (ISS) that was lifted into orbit by Space Shuttle Endeavor last week.

Needed for the planned expansion of the ISS from three to six crew members in 2009, the new toilet (photo above, courtesy NASA) was reported to have cost $19,000,000, which probably makes it the world's most expensive potty.

But this is no ordinary toilet; it will be able to automatically transfer urine to a device that can generate drinking water.

Image of Three Gorges Dam, May 2006, courtesy NASA Earth Observatory

Annual flooding behind the world's largest hydro-electric dam, the Three Gorges Dam in China, will be unlike that of the Amazon River or anything else found in nature.

As the reservoir of Yangtze River water rises and falls by as much as 100 feet every six months there will be a profound impact on the landscape over time, many environmental experts worry.

Among the concerns: The reservoir will contain factory toxins and raw sewage and sediment might cause the water level to rise higher than planned, threatening to flood a large city upstream and possibly even send water spilling over the top of the dam.

But perhaps the flooding phenomenon can also be put to good use, according to a wetlands expert at Ohio State University.

The news was presented to the annual World Water Week conference in Stockholm, capital of Sweden, where 2,500 experts from 140 countries are pondering solutions to the world's water crisis.

The International Water Management Institute told the conference that more than half of farmland near three dozen cities surveyed in developing countries is watered with untreated sewage.

Photo David Alan Harvey/NGS