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"Unidentified life form" found off New Zealand coast

Ah, the deep sea, where the mysteries of the ocean lurk in the shadows, waiting to be discovered by intrepid marine scientists armed with nets, trawls and a healthy dose of confusion... Recently, a team of brave souls embarked on a journey off the coast of New Zealand, armed with curiosity and a fervent desire to find Nemo's distant relatives. What they found, however, was not just Nemo's cousins – but a veritable treasure trove of potential new species. Or at least, they think so. In a saga that could rival any aquatic adventure film, the scientists stumbled upon approximately 100 potential new species, including one particularly enigmatic life form that has left them scratching their heads in bewilderment. Initially mistaking it for a sea star – or perhaps a particularly flamboyant sea cucumber – they now suspect it might be a deep-sea coral. Or a cosmic jellyfish. Or a lost prop from a sci-fi movie. The possibilities are as endless as the ocean itself. Dr Michela Mitchell, a taxonomist with a penchant for the dramatic, declared it could be "a whole new group outside of the octocoral." Because why settle for identifying just one species when you can potentially create an entire taxonomic order? Dr Daniel Moore, another member of the expedition and self-proclaimed captain of the confusion ship, confessed, "We can't even describe it to family." One can only imagine the perplexed expressions at family gatherings as they attempt to explain their latest discovery: "Well, it's sort of like a sponge, but not really. And it might have tentacles. Or wings. We're not entirely sure." Their research vessel, the Tangaroa, became a floating laboratory of befuddlement as they collected nearly 1,800 samples from the abyssal depths. Armed with modified sleds and a healthy dose of optimism, they trawled the ocean floor, hoping to snag the elusive creatures that lurked below. "It was true exploration, very exciting," Dr Moore boasted, his enthusiasm undiminished by the fact that they still couldn't definitively identify half of what they'd found. Among their discoveries was a new species of fish, dubbed the "eelpout", which was "instantly recognised as being different to the others." Because, apparently, it had a flair for the dramatic and refused to conform to traditional fish norms. In a surprising revelation, Dr Moore admitted, "Finding new vertebrates is rare." One can only assume that the eelpout, upon hearing this declaration, puffed out its chest (or whatever passes for a chest in fish anatomy) and proclaimed itself the king of the ocean. As the expedition came to a close, the scientists reflected on the vastness of the ocean and the infinitesimal fraction of its inhabitants they had encountered. With only 240,000 species identified out of an estimated 2.2 million, they realised they had barely scratched the surface. Or, in this case, the sea floor. And so, armed with their nets, their sleds, and their unshakeable sense of optimism, the intrepid scientists set sail once more, ready to delve deeper into the mysteries of the ocean and perhaps stumble upon another baffling creature that defies explanation. After all, what's science without a little bit of confusion? Image: Ocean-Census | NIWA

Domestic Travel

Marine species are being pushed towards the poles. From dugong to octopuses, here are 8 marine species you might spot in new places

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gretta-pecl-128477">Gretta Pecl</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-tasmania-888">University of Tasmania</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/curtis-champion-1373045">Curtis Champion</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/southern-cross-university-1160">Southern Cross University</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/zoe-doubleday-393169">Zoe Doubleday</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-australia-1180">University of South Australia</a> If you take a plunge in the sea this winter, you might notice it’s warmer than you expect. And if you’re fishing off Sydney and catch a tropical coral trout, you might wonder what’s going on. The reason is simple: hotter water. The ocean has absorbed the vast majority of the extra heat trapped by carbon dioxide and other greenhouses gases. It’s no wonder heat in the oceans is building up rapidly – and this year is <a href="https://theconversation.com/ocean-heat-is-off-the-charts-heres-what-that-means-for-humans-and-ecosystems-around-the-world-207902">off the charts</a>. That’s even without the likely arrival of El Niño, where the Pacific Ocean gets warmer than usual and affects weather all over the world. Our coastal waters <a href="http://www.bom.gov.au/oceanography/oceantemp/sst-outlook-map.shtml">are forecast</a> to be especially warm over the coming months, up to 2.5℃ warmer than usual in many places. <figure class="align-center "><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533327/original/file-20230622-27-cqb9j1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533327/original/file-20230622-27-cqb9j1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533327/original/file-20230622-27-cqb9j1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533327/original/file-20230622-27-cqb9j1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533327/original/file-20230622-27-cqb9j1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=605&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533327/original/file-20230622-27-cqb9j1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=605&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533327/original/file-20230622-27-cqb9j1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=605&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="" /><figcaption>Oceans around Australia are forecast to be much warmer than usual. SSTA stands for projected Sea Surface Temperature Anomaly, the difference between forecast ocean temperatures and a historical baseline period encompassing 1990–2012. Bureau of Meteorology</figcaption></figure> Many marine species live within a narrow temperature range. If the water heats up, they have to move, and if they don’t, they might die. So those that can move, are moving. In Australia, at least 200 marine species have <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/gcb.15634">shifted distributions</a> since 2003, with 87% heading south. This pattern is happening all around the world, both on land and <a href="https://theconversation.com/thousands-of-photos-captured-by-everyday-australians-reveal-the-secrets-of-our-marine-life-as-oceans-warm-189231">in the ocean</a>. This year, the warmer ocean temperatures during winter mean Australia’s seascapes are likely to be more like summer. So, the next time you go fishing or diving or beachcombing, keep your eyes peeled and your camera ready. You may glimpse the enormous disruption happening underwater for yourself. <h2>Here are eight species on the move</h2> 1. Moorish idol (Zanclus cornutus) Historic range: northern Australia Now: This <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/species/1/204/">striking fish</a> can now be seen south of Geraldton in Western Australia and Eden in New South Wales. This is a great fish for divers to spot on hard-bottomed habitats. <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533373/original/file-20230622-21-6g6xk8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533373/original/file-20230622-21-6g6xk8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533373/original/file-20230622-21-6g6xk8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533373/original/file-20230622-21-6g6xk8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533373/original/file-20230622-21-6g6xk8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533373/original/file-20230622-21-6g6xk8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533373/original/file-20230622-21-6g6xk8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533373/original/file-20230622-21-6g6xk8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="moorish idol" /></a><figcaption>Moorish Idols are heading south to escape the heat. Shutterstock</figcaption></figure> 2. Branching coral (Pocillopora aliciae) Historic range: northern NSW Now: Look out for this <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/species/2/255">pale pink beauty</a> south of Port Stephens, not far from Sydney. Seemingly immovable species like coral are fleeing the heat too. They’re already providing habitat for a range of other shifting species like tropical fish and crab species. 3. Eastern rock lobster (Sagmariasus verreauxi) Historic range: common in NSW Now: South, as far as <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/species/2/167">it can get.</a> It’s now found in Tasmania and even in <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-marine-biological-association-of-the-united-kingdom/article/westward-range-expansion-of-the-eastern-rock-lobster-sagmariasus-verreauxi-in-australia/8DE945E58E1DDA1A2BB7431065AAC8EC">South Australia</a>. This tasty greenish crustacean <a href="https://www.int-res.com/abstracts/meps/v624/p1-11/">doesn’t like heat</a> and has moved south into the territory of red southern rock lobsters (Jasus edwardsii). 4. Gloomy octopus (Octopus tetricus) Previous range: common in NSW Now: As far south as Tasmania. Look out for this slippery, smart invertebrate in <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/species/2/127">Tasmanian waters</a> this winter. You might even spot the octopus nestled down with some eggs, as this looks to be a <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/mf/mf14126">permanent sea change</a>. <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533376/original/file-20230622-17-lf2y8r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533376/original/file-20230622-17-lf2y8r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533376/original/file-20230622-17-lf2y8r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533376/original/file-20230622-17-lf2y8r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533376/original/file-20230622-17-lf2y8r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533376/original/file-20230622-17-lf2y8r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533376/original/file-20230622-17-lf2y8r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533376/original/file-20230622-17-lf2y8r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=581&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="gloomy octopus" /></a><figcaption>The gloomy octopus is also known as the common Sydney octopus. Niki Hubbard, Wikimedia, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></figcaption></figure> 5. Whitetip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus) Previous range: northern Australia Now: <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/species/3/185">South of K'gari</a> (formerly known as Fraser Island). Classed as vulnerable in parts of the world, this tropical shark is a slow swimmer and never sleeps. It poses very little danger to humans. 6. Dugongs (Dugong dugon) Previous range: northern Australia Now: As far south as Shark Bay in WA and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-17/tweed-river-dugong-sighting-boaties-warned/102355438">Tweed River</a> in New South Wales. Our waters are home to the largest number of dugong in the world. But as waters warm, they’re heading south. That means more of us may see these elusive sea-cows as they graze on seagrass meadows. Some of the most adventurous have gone way out of their normal range – in 2014, a kitesurfer <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/articles/2021/07/26/are-dugongs-hitching-a-ride-south/">reported</a> passing a dugong at City Beach, Perth. As a WA wildlife expert says, dugongs may occasionally stray further south of Shark Bay but “given the recent warming trend […] more dugong sightings might be expected in the future” 7. Red emperor (Lutjanus sebae) and other warm water game fish Previous range: northern Australia Now: Appearing much further south – especially in WA. Look for <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/species/1/108/">red</a>, threadfin, and redthroat emperors in southwest WA as the Leeuwin current carries these <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/articles/2021/07/26/game-fish-follow-warm-route-south/">warm water species</a> south. As WA fisheries expert Gary Jackson has said, this current is a warming hotspot, acting like a warm water highway for certain marine species. These fish are highly <a href="https://goodfish.org.au/species/red-emperor/">sought after</a> by fishers. 8. Long-spined sea urchin (Centrostephanus rodgersii) Historic range: NSW and Victoria Now: Tasmania Look out for these <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/species/2/34/">spiky critters</a> in southern and western Tasmania. The larvae of these urchins have crossed the Bass Strait and found a new home, due to warming waters. Urchins are grazers and can scrape rocks clean, creating urchin barrens where nothing grows. That’s bad news for kelp forests and the species which depend on them. In response, Tasmanian authorities are working to create a <a href="https://fishing.tas.gov.au/community/long-spined-sea-urchin-management/long-spined-sea-urchin-strategy#:%7E:text=%E2%80%8B%E2%80%8B%E2%80%8BTackling%20the%20longspined%20sea%20urchin&text=Unchecked%2C%20the%20urchin's%20presence%20is,at%20around%2020%20million%20individuals.">viable urchin fishery</a> to keep numbers down. <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533379/original/file-20230622-33216-7lslyr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533379/original/file-20230622-33216-7lslyr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533379/original/file-20230622-33216-7lslyr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533379/original/file-20230622-33216-7lslyr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533379/original/file-20230622-33216-7lslyr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533379/original/file-20230622-33216-7lslyr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533379/original/file-20230622-33216-7lslyr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533379/original/file-20230622-33216-7lslyr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="long spined sea urchins" /></a><figcaption>Long-spiked sea urchins are voracious eaters of seaweed. <a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/johnwturnbull/32131133496/in/photostream/">John Turnbull/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></figcaption></figure> <h2>You can help keep watch</h2> For years, fishers, snorkellers, spearfishers and the general public have contributed their unusual marine sightings to <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/">Redmap</a>, the Australian citizen science project aimed at mapping range extensions of species. If you spot a creature that wouldn’t normally live in the waters near you, you can upload a photo to log your sighting. For example, avid spearfisher Derrick Cruz logged a <a href="https://www.redmap.org.au/sightings/1624/">startling discovery</a> with Redmap in 2015: A coral trout in Sydney’s waters. As he told us: “I’ve seen plenty of coral trout in tropical waters, where they’re at home within the coral. But it was surreal to see one swimming through a kelp forest in the local waters off Sydney, much further south than I’ve ever seen that species before!” How does tracking these movements help scientists? Many hands make light work. These vital observations from citizen scientists <a href="https://data-blog.gbif.org/post/gbif-citizen-science-data">have helped</a> researchers gain deeper understanding of what climate change is doing to the natural world in many places, from bird migrations to flowering plants to marine creatures. So, please keep an eye out this year. The heat is on in our oceans, and that can mean sudden change. <img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207115/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gretta-pecl-128477">Gretta Pecl</a>, Professor, ARC Future Fellow & Director of the Centre for Marine Socioecology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-tasmania-888">University of Tasmania</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/curtis-champion-1373045">Curtis Champion</a>, Research Scientist, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/southern-cross-university-1160">Southern Cross University</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/zoe-doubleday-393169">Zoe Doubleday</a>, Marine Ecologist and ARC Future Fellow, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-australia-1180">University of South Australia</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/marine-species-are-being-pushed-towards-the-poles-from-dugong-to-octopuses-here-are-8-marine-species-you-might-spot-in-new-places-207115">original article</a>. Images: Getty

International Travel

Benedict Cumberbatch fearing for his life after terrifying home invasion

Benedict Cumberbatch and his family have reportedly been left fearing for their lives as a knife-wielding man broke into the star’s North London home and threatened him. The Daily Mail reported that 35-year-old Jack Bissell, who previously worked as a chef at the Beaumont Hotel in Mayfair, kicked his way through the front gate of the Marvel star’s multimillion-dollar property, allegedly shouting, “I know you’ve moved here. I hope it burns down.” Cumberbatch, 46, his wife, Sophia Hunter, 45, and their three children were reportedly in the home at the time of the break-in and could hear the intruder screaming outside, according to Page Six. Bissell also allegedly took one of the family’s plants and threw it at the garden wall, and ripped the intercom off the building after spitting on it. The intruder reportedly fled the scene before police arrived but, authorities were able to track him down due to DNA evidence he left on the intercom. Bissell was reportedly arrested, fined and slapped with a three-year restraining order from the Cumberbatch family. A source told the outlet, “Naturally all of the family were absolutely terrified and thought this guy was going to get in and hurt them. “Luckily it never went that far. Benedict and Sophie have had many sleepless nights since, worrying that they may be targeted again,” the insider said. “The fact that it was a targeted intrusion makes it a lot more scary.” During the trial, prosecutors said Bissell allegedly told a nearby shopkeeper that he had planned to break into the actor’s home and burn it down. Bissell pleaded guilty and was sentenced on May 10. However, details surrounding the date of the incident have not been disclosed. According to the Daily Mail, facts of the case could not be reported until they “successfully challenged blanket reporting restrictions this week”. No clear connection between Bissell and Cumberbatch has been established. Image credit: Getty / Instagram

News

“Rarest species of feline on Earth”: Unique cat mystifies the internet

A photo of the “rarest species of feline on Earth”, a cat with black and neon yellow stripes, has mystified the internet. The incredible photo of the “Amazon snake cat” is truly unbelievable. The image of the so-called “Serpens Cattus”, a feline with black and neon-yellow stripes resembling a snake, made waves online, with social media posts claiming it was the “rarest species of feline on Earth”. “Serpens Cattus is the rarest species of feline on Earth. These Animals live in hard-to-reach regions of the Amazon rainforest, and therefore they are relatively poorly studied,” a Twitter user claimed. “The first images capturing the snake cat appeared only in 2020. Weighs up to 4 stone (25kgs).” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <a href="https://t.co/rpeMQKCF4I">pic.twitter.com/rpeMQKCF4I</a> — Jeff_kamara2 (@Kamara2R) <a href="https://twitter.com/Kamara2R/status/1635669633553367040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2023</a></blockquote> A now-deleted Reddit post of the “Serpens Cattus” attracted several comments who flagged the feline as not being real. “Obvious fake. No known gene can produce natural hair or fur of those (navy and bright yellow) colours,” one commented. “Really rough attempt at a fake Latin name,” a second person chimed in. “One google about species naming would have made this a lot less obvious.” The post caught the eye of zoology experts to verify the authenticity of the photo. However, the colours and patterns on the female bare a strong resemblance to the reptilian boiga dendrophila, which is commonly referred to as the “gold-ringed cat snake”. According to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute, the snake is found in the same countries where the “Amazon snake cat” was rumoured to be found. The serpent-like feline slid over to TikTok, where one user claimed that the species lived in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Guyana, French Guiana and Suriname. “He’s in the next fantastic beasts,” laughed one user referencing the Harry Potter spin-off franchise. “Use this s**t for good not to misinform,” another user wrote. “Stop sharing bulls**t,” a third commented. It's clear to see the mysterious feline has certainly left some in hiss-belief. Image credit: Twitter

Family & Pets

Cats declared an “invasive alien species” in Poland

A scientific institute in Poland has categorised domestic cats as an “invasive alien species”, joining a menagerie of animals on their invasive species list. The Polish Academy of Sciences has deemed the house cat (Felis catus) as an “alien” species as it was domesticated in the Middle East, and “invasive” due to the “negative influence of domestic cats on native biodiversity”, according to a statement. Cats join a long list of animals and plants deemed an “invasive alien species” by the institute, including Japanese knotweed, racoons, clearwing moths and mandarin ducks. The Academy states that cats pose “an unpredictable risk to local wildlife”, citing <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2351989418303196?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a study</a> that shows cats kill 41.1 million mammals and 8.9 million birds each year, eating an additional 583.4 million mammals and 135.7 birds. Wojciech Solarz, a biologist at the state-run institute, told <a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-poland-wildlife-cats-birds-b942a55135832d085375de73c9cc2e23?user_email=d892765ed707c6b27af3429c2e8ec0607119ec5a15758542d760a9bac7b882a8&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=July27_MorningWire&utm_term=Morning%20Wire%20Subscribers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AP</a> that the criteria to be declared an alien invasive species “are 100 percent met by the cat”. However, cat owners and lovers have expressed outrage at the decision, arguing it could incite abuse or mistreatment of cats, with concerned commenters declaring it “simply stupid and harmful” on the Academy’s Facebook page. AP has also reported that some media reports have incorrectly given the impression that the Academy was calling for cats to be euthanized. Solarz told the outlet he hadn’t expected such a response, adding that no other entry on their database of invasive and alien species had resulted in such an emotional response. He suggested that the negative feedback may be due to a misunderstanding that the Academy was implying that people harm their cats. In actuality, the Academy has only recommended that cat owners limit the amount of time their pets spend outdoors during bird breeding season. Images: Getty Images

Family & Pets

Food blogger eats protected species

A Chinese food blogger has landed herself in hot water after illegally cooking and eating a protected great white shark. The foodie, known as Tizi, shared a video of herself eating the protected species which authorities believe she bought illegally from a seafood shop in the southwestern city of Nanchong in Sichuan province. She then recorded herself laying down next to the 2 metre long great white shark to show its size in comparison to her. The shark was then cut into several pieces before it was barbecued and the head boiled in a broth. “It may look vicious, but its meat is truly super tender,” Tizi says in the video. Viewers were outraged at Tizi for eating the protected species, with some challenging her to prove that the animal was “bred in captivity”. Tizi has since removed the video from her account and is being investigated by authorities for illegally cooking and eating the protected species. If found guilty, Tizi faces five years’ imprisonment or criminal detention and a fine for purchasing rare and endangered wildlife products. Images: Weibo

Travel Trouble

Energy bills are spiking after the Russian invasion. We should have doubled-down on renewables years ago

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is happening half a planet away from Australia. But the ripple effects are plain to see at every petrol station and, potentially soon, your electricity bill. As a result of the invasion and Western sanctions on Russian exports, energy prices have skyrocketed. If that makes you think nations should have taken steps to secure alternatives to fossil fuels years ago, you’re not alone. As it is, the much higher energy prices are likely to accelerate the exit of coal – and gas – from our energy grids. This should be a wake-up call. It doesn’t matter that Australia is far from the battlefield. Everyone in the world will be affected in some way. <h2>What’s the link between the invasion and Australian energy prices?</h2> You might think Australia’s domestic supply of coal and gas means we’d be immune to price rises. Not so. Due to formal sanctions and informal shunning of Russian exports, oil, coal and gas are now extremely expensive on a global scale. Thermal coal prices have increased five-fold to an unprecedented ~$A500 per tonne. Oil is ~$140 a barrel and up 60% year on year. Natural gas in Europe is around 50% higher than last October, but since the invasion, prices have spiked as high as ~200% higher than 2021 levels. Coal buyers are locking in supply, concerned that Russian sanctions will continue. Russia is the <a href="https://www.spglobal.com/commodity-insights/en/market-insights/latest-news/metals/030722-factbox-russian-metals-industrys-reliance-on-china-set-to-rise-as-sanctions-disrupt-supplies">third largest exporter of coal</a> and its existing customers are now under pressure to find alternative supplies. Russia’s aggression is not just resulting in a major humanitarian and political crisis. It is also causing pain at the bowser for Australian consumers due to the surge in oil pricing and may soon result in higher electricity bills. Australia’s east-coast electricity market is still heavily reliant upon coal. While many coal-fired power stations have existing supply contracts, the much higher global coal price may increase the cost of any extra coal purchases by existing power stations. Not only that, but our gas-fired power stations are facing potential increases in operating costs due to much higher global gas prices. Unfortunately, we may see the result in rising power bills. The price of future contracts for wholesale electricity next year in NSW are now twice what they were a year ago. Assuming this flows through to end-users, prices for residential customers could increase by as much as 10–15%. <h2>So what should Australia do?</h2> While it’s too late to dodge this bullet, we can prepare for future shocks by doubling down on firmed renewables. The faster we move, the less we’ll be hit by the price and reliability risks of coal. Already under pressure from cheaper renewable technologies, coal power station operators now find themselves potentially facing much higher costs in the short-term. There’s no relief for coal in the long term either, with the rapid rise of renewables and other zero-carbon technologies. Not only that, but most of our coal power stations are near the end of their lives, and industry doesn’t want to build new ones. That means coal will become more and more expensive, as the plants become <a href="https://www.aemo.com.au/-/media/files/electricity/nem/planning_and_forecasting/inputs-assumptions-methodologies/2020/aep-elical-assessment-of-ageing-coal-fired-generation-reliability.pdf">increasingly unreliable</a>. Wind and solar technologies are now much cheaper per unit of energy generated and can be integrated with energy storage to provide dispatchable “firmed” energy. The faster we transition to renewables firmed by storage, the better. If we do this, our new grid will also be more reliable. Continuing to rely upon coal is like relying upon a 1970s car to travel from Sydney to Melbourne on the hottest day of the year. State governments around the nation are already embracing this approach, with the New South Wales government moving ahead with plans for 12 gigawatts (GW) of new renewables and storage and the Victorian government announcing plans for 9GW of offshore windfarms. Governments must carefully design policies to avoid guaranteeing profits for private sector players while socialising any losses across taxpayers and energy consumers. In NSW, <a href="https://econpapers.repec.org/article/blaajarec/v_3a66_3ay_3a2022_3ai_3a1_3ap_3a136-163.htm">alternatives</a> are being considered. As European and many other nations scramble to reduce their dependency on Russian coal, oil and gas, Australia now has a once in a generation opportunity to become a leading exporter of new clean energy. We have truly enormous clean energy resources in the form of free sunlight and wind. To export it, we can either run underseas cables to neighbouring countries, or convert cheap renewable power into <a href="https://theconversation.com/green-hydrogen-is-coming-and-these-australian-regions-are-well-placed-to-build-our-new-export-industry-174466">green hydrogen</a> and ship this to the world just as we currently do with LNG. <h2>What else can we expect to see?</h2> Surging fossil fuel prices has supercharged the existing disruption to an already rapidly changing domestic energy industry. In the past month, Origin announced it would abandon coal more rapidly, with the closure of its NSW coal-fired power station, Eraring, in 2025. Meanwhile, AGL has been pursuing a “demerger” with a view to splitting off its coal assets and pursuing new energy technologies. This comes as Australian tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes and Canadian asset fund Brookfield <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-06/brt-agl-brookfield-bid-rejected/100887042">offered to buy AGL</a> for $8.25 a share, though they were not successful. Their plan was to accelerate the closure of AGL’s coal assets, which would move AGL from the <a href="https://www.greenpeace.org.au/news/new-government-data-reveals-agl-as-australias-biggest-climate-polluter/">highest carbon emitter in Australia</a> to a clean energy company. The age of coal power is ending, and much faster than most of us realise. This crisis should spur us to build a future-proofed fleet of “firmed” and well-distributed renewables with a known cost structure. By doing this, we will protect ourselves from the pain of geopolitically driven fossil fuel prices. And we will have a platform ready if we want to provide clean energy to the world in the form of green hydrogen. We have had decades to make full use of our wealth of renewable energy resources. We haven’t embraced this as fully as we should have. It turns out localised clean energy production is not just necessary to tackle climate change. It will prove a vital resource as we navigate the highly turbulent decade we have found ourselves in. Image credits: Getty Images This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/energy-bills-are-spiking-after-the-russian-invasion-we-should-have-doubled-down-on-renewables-years-ago-179336" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>.

Home Hints & Tips

Harry and Meghan speak out against Russian invasion

<p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Arial; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;">Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have released a statement addressing Russian President Vladimir Putin's war on Ukraine. <p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Arial; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;">The Duke and Duchess of Sussex broke their silence on the ongoing conflict in Europe with a message of support for the Ukraine on their charity website Archewell. <p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Arial; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;">"Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and all of us at Archewell stand with the people of Ukraine against this breach of international and humanitarian law and encourage the global community and its leaders to do the same," the statement read. <p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Arial; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;">Harry and Meghan's statement comes after Russia launched an invasion on Ukraine on Thursday, marking the biggest attack on a European country since World War II. <p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Arial; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;">In response, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensk declared martial law and asked citizens to volunteer to fight for their country. The political message follows Harry and Meghan's departure as senior members of the royal family. <p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Arial; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;">Other members of the royal family, including the Queen, have remained silent on the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, as it is Royal precedent is to remain neutral on political matters. <p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Arial; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;">"The Queen has to remain strictly neutral with respect to political matters," the royal family has stated in the past. <p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Arial; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;"> <p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Arial; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;">Image: Getty

News

"The invasion of Ukraine has begun": The world responds to Russia

Tensions between the West and Russia have reached a boiling point, with UK government officials <a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/tanks-roll-into-ukraine-as-europe-makes-first-big-moves/K3GVV5BWIA5WXBI5NCHUAN2Q6A/">declaring</a> that “the invasion of Ukraine has begun”. The declaration comes after Russia recognised the sovereignty of two areas of eastern Ukraine which have declared themselves as breakaway states - effectively annexing them from Ukraine. Russian president Vladimir Putin has also <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/22/is-russia-invading-ukraine-what-next" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sent troops</a> on a “peacekeeping mission” in these areas, which call themselves the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics and have been financed by Russia since 2014. Until now, Russia has recognised the two regions as part of Ukraine. On Tuesday, footage emerged of Russian military convoys entering the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, with around three-quarters of the country’s total forces reportedly deployed against Ukraine. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Columns of equipment from the Russian Federation entered the territories of the republics of Donbas. <a href="https://t.co/El7ZAYed6n">pic.twitter.com/El7ZAYed6n</a> — 301🇦🇲 (@301_AD) <a href="https://twitter.com/301_AD/status/1495876497827147787?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2022</a></blockquote> “We are waking up to a very dark day in Europe,” UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid told Sky News. “It’s clear from what we have already seen and found out today that Russia’s President Putin has decided to attack the sovereignty of Ukraine and its territorial integrity. “You can conclude that the invasion of Ukraine has begun.” Shelling has also been reported, with Ukraine’s Defence Ministry claiming its territories were shelled 80 times within 24 hours from Luhansk and Donetsk. In a statement, the ministry alleged that 58 of those incidents came from weapons which are banned under the Minsk agreements - a ceasefire pact made in 2014 - which Putin claims “no longer exists”. At least one fatality and several injuries have been recorded. The West responds Russia’s actions have sparked widespread condemnation, sanctions and the killing-off of a multi-billion-dollar energy project. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced the end of the Nod Stream 2 pipeline project which was designed to double the flow of gas from Russia to Germany and ease the pressure on European consumers, as reported by <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/germanys-scholz-halts-nord-stream-2-certification-2022-02-22/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reuters</a>. “The situation has fundamentally changed,” he said, noting that Putin’s actions were a “grave breach” of international law. Meanwhile, Britain imposed sanctions on five Russian banks and three “very high net-worth individuals”. “The UK and our allies will begin to impose the sanctions on Russia that we have already prepared using the new and unprecedented powers granted by this House to sanction Russian individuals and entities of strategic importance to the Kremlin,” Mr Johnson said overnight. The US confirmed they would join the UK in sanctioning two of Russia’s largest financial institutions, the military bank and investment company VEB, as well as Russian elites and their families. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmyto Kuleba further encouraged the use of tough sanctions against Russia, claiming that recognising the Donetsk and Luhansk regions as independent was an attack on the world order. “Ukraine strongly believes the time for sanctions is now,” Mr Kuleba said at a press conference alongside US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. “The world must respond with all its economic might to punish Russia for the crimes it has already committed and ahead of the plans it plans to commit. “Hit Russia’s economy now and hit it hard.” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Wednesday that Canada will also impose sanctions on Russia, including sanctioning members of the Russian parliament who voted to recognise the two Ukrainian regions as independent. Mr Trudeau said up to 460 additional Canadian Armed Forces members will be sent to Latvia and the surrounding regions to bolster NATO forces, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called up army reservists to bolster their military numbers. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> الجزيرة تعرض صورا حصرية لدخول قافلات عسكرية روسية إلى المناطق الانفصالية شرقي <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/%D8%A3%D9%88%D9%83%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%A7?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#أوكرانيا</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D8%AE%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#الأخبار</a> <a href="https://t.co/JcKndGDXjm">pic.twitter.com/JcKndGDXjm</a> — قناة الجزيرة (@AJArabic) <a href="https://twitter.com/AJArabic/status/1495931495634116608?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 22, 2022</a></blockquote> The United Nations has also condemned Russia’s actions and has said its troops are not peacekeepers. “When troops of one country enter the territory of another country without its consent, they are not impartial peacekeepers,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. “They are not peacekeepers at all.” Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has also slammed Russia’s claims of conducting a peacekeeping mission, and has said Australia will “be in lockstep and moving just as quickly” when other countries begin implementing sanctions. “Russia should step back. It should unconditionally withdraw. It’s unacceptable, it’s unprovoked, it’s unwarranted,” he said. Image: Getty Images

News

Russian invasion of Ukraine "imminent": What you need to know

The threat of Russia invading Ukraine grows as diplomatic relations between Moscow and the US feel the pressure, with Russia expelling the US’s second most senior diplomat in what the US State Department has described as “an escalatory step”. “We can confirm that Russia expelled US Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) to Russia, Bart Gorman,” a State Department spokesperson said. President Joe Biden <a href="https://www.news.com.au/world/europe/russia-accused-of-launching-mortars-in-eastern-ukraine/news-story/80cfce6535f96fd5f1a5e45cd01565c1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> reporters the threat of Russia invading Ukraine is “very high” and that he believes it could occur in the next “several days”. Meanwhile, Western leaders have accused Russia of attempting a false-flag operation to discredit the Ukraine government, after it was reported that a kindergarten was shelled in a spate of shelling incidents in Donbas, in eastern Ukraine. The Kremlin accused Ukraine of firing first, while Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s president, described the shelling of the kindergarten as “a big provocation”. Tensions between Russia and Ukraine explained Ukraine has been in conflict with pro-Moscow rebels in the country’s east since 2014, after the then-Ukraine leader decided not to join the European Union. Russia has been accused of supplying the rebels with funds, weapons and even troops, but has denied this and said any soldiers who joined the movement did so voluntarily. The rebel movement eventually grew so much that Russia was able to annex the peninsula of Crimea from Ukraine and take control of it, prompting the US and other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) allies to send weapons to Ukraine. Relations between the two nations have worsened since. The most recent tensions <a href="https://www.pedestrian.tv/news/russia-ukraine-explained/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">have come</a> after Ukraine said it wanted to join NATO to access more protection in the form of military force. Why are the US and other Western countries involved? Russia has demanded the West refuse Ukraine’s request - and prevent other former Soviet states from joining - believing its neighbour will try to regain control of Crimea among other concerns. The US and NATO responded separately to Russia’s demands at the end of January, with <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/1/26/us-nato-deliver-responses-to-russian-demands-over-ukraine" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Al Jazeera</a> reporting that the US ruled out agreeing to exclude Ukraine and other eastern states from NATO. However, Russia has replied to the US and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2022/feb/17/russia-ukraine-news-troops-border-latest-live-putin-biden-kyiv-russian-invasion-threat?filterKeyEvents=false&page=with:block-620e55758f08fc958652839e#block-620e55758f08fc958652839e" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accused</a> the Western nation of ignoring its core demands and threatened to take “a military-technical response”. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> "The American side has not given a constructive response to the basic elements of Russia's draft agreement," the letter says. If that continues, "Russia will be forced to respond, including through measures of a military-technical nature." — max seddon (@maxseddon) <a href="https://twitter.com/maxseddon/status/1494320352394051590?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 17, 2022</a></blockquote> What’s happening now? Since January, as many as 130,000 Russian troops have been stationed along parts of the Ukrainian border, despite Russia repeatedly denying it is planning an invasion. On February 12, the US warned “we are in the window where an invasion could begin at any time”. Three days later, Russian president Vladimir Putin confirmed the troops would be pulled back from the border, despite Western intelligence reporting that its forces are continuing to build up. Meanwhile, on February 16 a German convoy reached Lithuania as part of planned reinforcements for the country’s Germany-led NATO battlegroup, which has been authorised to defend Lithuania if a threat emerges. Image: Getty Images

News

Some endangered species can no longer survive in the wild. So should we alter their genes?

Around the world, populations of many beloved species are declining at increasing rates. According to one <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/sep/30/world-plant-species-risk-extinction-fungi-earth">grim projection</a>, as many as 40% of the world’s species may be extinct by 2050. Alarmingly, many of these declines are caused by threats for which few solutions exist. Numerous species now depend on conservation breeding programs for their survival. But these programs typically do not encourage species to adapt and survive in the wild alongside intractable threats such as climate change and disease. This means some species can no longer exist in the wild, which causes major downstream effects on the ecosystem. Consider, for example, how a coral reef would struggle to function without corals. What if there was another way? My colleagues and I have developed an intervention method that aims to give endangered species the genetic features they need to survive in the wild. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/411140/original/file-20210714-13-1bf7ccv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="bleached coral with fish" /> Genetically altering coral may help them survive in a warmer world. Rick Stuart-Smith <h2>Bringing theory into practice</h2> Over generations, natural selection enables species to adapt to threats. But in many instances today, the speed at which threats are developing is outpacing species’ ability to adapt. This problem is especially apparent in wildlife threatened by newly emerging infectious diseases such as chytridiomycosis in amphibians, and in climate-affected species such as corals. The toolkit my colleagues and I developed is called “targeted genetic intervention” or TGI. It works by increasing the occurrence or frequency of genetic features that impact an organism’s fitness in the presence of the threat. We outline the method in a recent <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0169534721003384">research paper</a>. The toolkit involves <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/artificial-selection">artificial selection</a> and <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2019.00175/full">synthetic biology</a>. These tools are well established in agriculture and medicine but relatively untested as conservation tools. We explain them in more detail below. Many tools in our TGI toolkit have been discussed in theory in conservation literature in recent decades. But rapid developments in genome sequencing and synthetic biology mean some are now possible in practice. The developments have made it easier to understand the genetic basis of features which enable a species to adapt, and to manipulate them. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/442166/original/file-20220124-19-xc82dx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="frog on wet rock" /> Some animal species cannot adapt in time to survive threats such as disease. Shutterstock <h2>What is artificial selection?</h2> Humans have long used artificial (or phenotypic) selection to promote desirable characteristics in animals and plants raised for companionship or food. This genetic alteration has led to organisms, such as domestic dogs and maize, that are dramatically different from their wild progenitors. Traditional artificial selection can lead to outcomes, such as high inbreeding rates, that affect the health and resilience of the organism and are undesirable for conservation. If you’ve ever owned a purebred dog, you might be aware of some of these genetic disorders. And when it comes to conservation, determining which individuals from a species are resistant to, say, a deadly pathogen would involve exposing the animal to the threat – clearly not in the interests of species preservation. Scientists in the livestock industry have developed a new approach to circumvent these problems. Called genomic selection, it combines data from laboratory work (such as a disease trial) with the genetic information of the animals to predict which individuals bear genetic features conducive to adaptation. These individuals are then chosen for breeding. Over subsequent generations, a population’s ability to survive alongside pervasive threats increases. Genomic selection has led to disease-resistant salmon and livestock that produce more milk and better tolerate heat. But it is yet to be tested in conservation. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/442161/original/file-20220124-27-11vyq0z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="cows in green field" /> Artificial selection has been used to develop traits that humans desire in livestock. Shutterstock <h2>What is synthetic biology?</h2> <a href="https://www.genome.gov/about-genomics/policy-issues/Synthetic-Biology">Synthetic biology</a> is a toolkit for promoting change in organisms. It includes methods such as transgenesis and gene editing, which can be used to introduce lost or novel genes or tweak specific genetic features. Recent synthetic biology tools such as <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/understanding/genomicresearch/genomeediting/">CRISPR-Cas9</a> have created a buzz in the medical world, and are also starting to gain the <a href="https://portals.iucn.org/library/node/48408">attention</a> of conservation biologists. Such tools can accurately tweak targeted genetic features in an individual organism – making it more able to adapt – while leaving the rest of the genome untouched. The genetic modifications are then passed on to subsequent generations. The method reduces the likelihood of unintended genetic changes that can occur with artificial selection. Synthetic biology methods are currently being trialled for conservation in multiple species around the world. These include the <a href="https://www.esf.edu/chestnut/resistance.htm">chestnut tree</a> and black-footed <a href="https://neo.life/2021/05/cloning-wildlife-and-editing-their-genes-to-protect-them-and-us/">ferrets</a> in the United States, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/gene-editing-is-revealing-how-corals-respond-to-warming-waters-it-could-transform-how-we-manage-our-reefs-143444">corals</a> in Australia. I am working with researchers at the University of Melbourne to develop TGI approaches in Australian frogs. We are trialling these approaches in the iconic southern corroboree frog, and plan to extend them to other species if they prove effective. Worldwide, the disease chytridiomycosis is devastating frog populations. Caused by the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, it has led to the extinction of about <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/amphibian-apocalypse-frogs-salamanders-worst-chytrid-fungus">90 frog species</a> and declines in as many as 500 others. Many frog species now rely on conservation breeding for their continued survival. No effective solution for restoring chytrid-susceptible frogs to the wild exists, because the fungus cannot be eradicated. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/442155/original/file-20220124-23-cebr8a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="gloved hand removed portion of DNA strand" /> CRISPR technology could potentially be used to edit the genes of endangered species. Shutterstock <h2>Looking ahead</h2> As with many conservation approaches, targeted genetic intervention is likely to involve trade-offs. For example, genetic features that make a species resistant to one disease may make it more susceptible to another. But the rapid rate of species declines means we should trial such potential solutions before it’s too late. The longer species are absent from an ecosystem, the greater the chance of irreversible environmental changes. Any genetic intervention of this type should involve all stakeholders, including Indigenous peoples and local communities. And caution should be taken to ensure species are fit for release and pose no risk to the environment. By bringing the concept of TGI to the attention of the public, government, and other scientists, we hope we will spur discussion and encourage research on its risks and benefits.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/175226/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tiffany-kosch-1304685">Tiffany Kosch</a>, Research Fellow, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-melbourne-722">The University of Melbourne</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/some-endangered-species-can-no-longer-survive-in-the-wild-so-should-we-alter-their-genes-175226">original article</a>. Image: Melbourne Zoo

Travel Trouble

Ancient knowledge is lost when a species disappears. It’s time to let Indigenous people care for their country, their way

Indigenous people across Australia place tremendous cultural and customary value on many species and ecological communities. The very presence of a plant or animal species can trigger an Indigenous person to recall and share knowledge. This is crucial to maintaining culture and managing Country. But as species disappear, ancient knowledge built up over thousands of years also fades away – and fragments of our culture are lost forever. For years, Indigenous groups have pushed for the right to partner with government authorities to “co-manage” culturally significant species and communities. Such recognition of Indigenous rights would require amendments to environment and land management laws. Unfortunately, changes to Australia’s federal environment laws currently underway fall short of what’s needed. To protect Australia’s imperilled species, the law must chart a new course that allows Indigenous groups to manage their Country, their way. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434938/original/file-20211201-25-189bdrg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434938/original/file-20211201-25-189bdrg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="A woman welcomed to Country" /></a> Ngurrara Ranger Mary is welcomed to Paruku Country in the Great Sandy Desert. A meeting between many groups discussed threatened and culturally significant species. Nicolas Rakotopare/Yanunijarra Aboriginal Corporation <h2>Managing the Indigenous estate</h2> Australia’s <a href="https://www.themandarin.com.au/68385-indigenous-estate-ilc-chairperson-eddie-fry-garma/">Indigenous estate</a> takes in about <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0173876">51% of the range</a> of the nation’s threatened vertebrate species. The Indigenous estate refers to the assets held, or reasonably likely to be held, by or for the benefit of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people. It includes land and sea held through such means as traditional ownership, native title and land rights organisations. It also includes intangible values such as cultural rights, practice and expression, as well as Indigenous knowledge and traditional management. A range of state and federal programs involve Indigenous participation in land and sea management, offering invaluable protection to the Indigenous estate. These include Indigenous Protected Areas and the successful <a href="https://www.niaa.gov.au/indigenous-affairs/environment/indigenous-ranger-programs">Indigenous Ranger program</a>. And many governments and other groups recognise that species and ecological communities can have significant cultural, spiritual and customary value to Indigenous Australians. But often, no legal mechanism exists to protect these entities. Some species and other entities of significance to Indigenous Australians are listed as threatened under Australia’s federal environment law, known as the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act. But authorities are not required to engage Indigenous Australians in the listing, management or recovery of these species. Indigenous Australians have successfully managed this continent’s landscapes and seascapes for tens of thousands of years. Their approach is holistic and integrated – considering the whole cultural landscape with a deep understanding of the interconnected relationships between species and Country. In contrast, management actions under federal environment law focus on the outcomes of the listed species instead of the overall health of Country. All this has left Indigenous groups underfunded and at the mercy of national-level management decisions, as opposed to place-based Indigenous-led action. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434940/original/file-20211201-25-b87h6o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434940/original/file-20211201-25-b87h6o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Men sitting around a map" /></a> Ngurrara Rangers map potential night parrot habitat. The meeting was hosted by Paruku Rangers and Traditional Owners in the Great Sandy Desert. Nicolas Rakotopare/Yanunijarra Aboriginal Corporation <h2>‘Surprising and disappointing’</h2> The EPBC Act was recently reviewed by Professor Graeme Samuel, who was commissioned by the federal government. His <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/resources/final-report">final report</a> in 2020 found the law was failing in many ways. Samuel recommended a suite of reforms. Among other goals, they aimed to “respect and harness the knowledge of Indigenous Australians”. One year on and <a href="https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7591429/a-year-on-from-a-landmark-report-nature-and-law-reform-is-floundering/">progress</a> on implementing the 38 recommendations is slow. Among the recommendations were that the EPBC Act adopt a set of legally enforceable “national environmental standards” – clear rules that protect the environment and enable sustainable development. The standards <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/jan/28/australia-urged-to-overhaul-environment-laws-and-reverse-decline-of-our-iconic-places">would cover</a> matters such as threatened species, compliance, environmental data and <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/resources/final-report/appendix-b2-indigenous">Indigenous engagement</a> and participation in decision-making. It was both surprising and disappointing that Indigenous knowledge was not embedded across all proposed environmental standards. The omission means Indigenous perspectives will continue to be relegated to a stand-alone standard of “participation”. In particular, the national standard pertaining to threatened species made no reference to Indigenous knowledge or the Indigenous estate. And proposed <a href="http://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/pages/44b768d8-75ad-417d-84cc-dfb0e069e97e/files/national-environmental-standard-mnes-2021-draft.pdf">interim standards</a> completely omit Indigenous engagement, participation and values. Without a mandate to include Indigenous people in threatened species planning and recovery, biodiversity will remain at risk. What’s more, significant gaps in the application of Indigenous Knowledge and protection of the Indigenous estate will continue. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434973/original/file-20211201-27-tg1guw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434973/original/file-20211201-27-tg1guw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="hands with green turtle eggs" /></a> Rangers collecting green turtle eggs on Yanyuwa Country in the Gulf of Carpentaria. Nicolas Rakotopare <h2>A new kind of recognition</h2> During the submission process of the review, <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-06/ANON-QJCP-UGT1-F%20-%20Indigenous%20Working%20Group%20-%20Threatened%20Species%20Recovery%20Hub.pdf">many</a> Indigenous and <a href="https://www.ecolsoc.org.au/news/esa-response-to-epbc-interim-report/">non-Indigenous</a> organisations <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/submissions/anon-qjcp-ugt1-f">lobbied</a> for the recognition of “culturally significant entities”. These groups include the government’s own <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/submissions/bhlf-qjcp-ug3c-z">Indigenous Advisory Committee</a> and <a href="https://epbcactreview.environment.gov.au/submissions/anon-k57v-xf2u-j">Threatened Species Scientific Committee</a>. “Culturally significant entities” are species and sites of great or exceptional cultural importance to Indigenous Australians. They might be a source of identity, a medicine, lore, an important traditional food or required for cultural practices. They usually feature prominently in Indigenous knowledge, language and ceremonies. Submissions to the review called for these entities to be formally recognised under the EPBC Act and afforded a far higher level of protection. They also called for the mandatory participation of Indigenous Australians in threatened species nominations, listings, policy and management. Many Indigenous Australians were disappointed this measure was not mentioned in Samuel’s final report. Without proper legal protection, culturally significant entities will not be assessed and can be damaged by threats such as climate change, inappropriate land management and poorly conceived development proposals. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434970/original/file-20211201-13-1b11i3o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Man holds lizard" /> A yellow-spotted monitor – a culturally significant bush tucker species – on Karajarri Country. Sarah Legge <h2>From engagement to empowerment</h2> It’s time for governments and conservation groups to recognise the enduring value of the Indigenous estate and knowledge in curbing Australia’s parlous record of biodiversity loss. While many of Samuel’s recommendations attempted to address issues raised by Indigenous Australians, they fall short of true empowerment and global best practice. As the size and scale of the Indigenous estate continues to <a href="https://minister.awe.gov.au/ley/media-releases/australia-signs-international-biodiversity-declaration">grow</a>, so to does the opportunity to arrest biodiversity decline. Rather than sitting in the back seat, Indigenous Australians must be up front in managing the recovery of Australia’s unique and precious environment. The authors acknowledge and thank the following people for their contributions to this work and article: Oliver Costello, a Bundjalung man; and Cissy Gore-Birch, a Jaru, Nyikina and Balanggarra woman, and Executive Manager Aboriginal Engagement at Bush Heritage Australia.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/172760/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/teagan-goolmeer-1288819">Teagan Goolmeer</a>, PhD Candidate, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-melbourne-722">The University of Melbourne</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/assoc-prof-bradley-j-moggridge-400729">Assoc Prof Bradley J. Moggridge</a>, Associate Professor in Indigenous Water Science, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-canberra-865">University of Canberra</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/professor-stephen-van-leeuwen-1289086">Professor Stephen van Leeuwen</a>, BHP / Curtin Indigenous Chair of Biodiversity & Environmental Science, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/curtin-university-873">Curtin University</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/ancient-knowledge-is-lost-when-a-species-disappears-its-time-to-let-indigenous-people-care-for-their-country-their-way-172760">original article</a>. Image: Nicolas Rakotopare/Karajarri Traditional Lands Association

Domestic Travel

Invasive species may travel trade routes

<div> <div class="copy"> Invasive species could increase their global presence via China’s developing trade routes, researchers warn. A new study models the distribution and likelihood of invasion of terrestrial vertebrate species along China’s Belt and Road Initiative (<a rel="noopener" href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/regional-integration/brief/belt-and-road-initiative" target="_blank">BRI</a>), a massive infrastructure development project involving six proposed economic corridors and 121 countries. The largest project of its kind ever attempted, the BRI has an estimated cost of an unprecedented US$4 trillion for road development, shipping routes and ports. A research team led by Yiming Li from the Chinese Academy of Sciences used species distribution modelling to assess the introduction risks for a suite of 816 known invasive terrestrial vertebrate species, as well as habitat suitability across the BRI regions. Habitat suitability is an indicator of the likelihood a species will become established after introduction. The findings, reported in a <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(18)31670-1" target="_blank">paper</a> published in the journal Current Biology, reveal that more than two thirds of BRI countries have a lethal combination of introduction risk and high habitat suitability. “Of particular concern, we find that the majority of both introduction hotspots and areas with high habitat suitability fall along the six proposed Economic Corridors,” says Li. The team identified 14 “invasion hotspots” where biosecurity efforts might best be directed. They are located across the BRI countries, from the Caribbean Islands, northern Africa and Eastern Europe to Southeast Asia and New Zealand. Australia is not a member country or signatory to the scheme. One of the 816 <a rel="noopener" href="http://www.iucngisd.org/gisd/100_worst.php" target="_blank">species of concern</a> is the large North American bullfrog, (Lithobates catesbeianus or Rana catesbeiana), which is originally from east of the Rocky Mountains. It is a voracious predator of local frogs and other reptiles, and a carrier of chytrid fungus, which decimates local frog populations. The bullfrog is now established in over 40 countries, and very <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2004/09/news-bullfrogs-invading-nearly-unstoppable/" target="_blank">difficult to eradicate</a> once established. The findings have prompted the researchers to urgently recommend “the initiation of a project targeting early prevention, strict surveillance, rapid response and effective control of alien species in BRI countries to ensure that this development is sustainable.” This proposed biosecurity plan and its implementation could be funded by the establishment of a dedicated fund, they suggest. In separate <a rel="noopener" href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0452-8" target="_blank">correspondence</a> to the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution, Alex Lechner from the University of Nottingham Malaysia and two colleagues suggest that as the 50-year BRI is still only five years old, there is an opportunity to incorporate biodiversity conservation as one of its core values. For example, they suggest, the Chinese government could plan and implement a network of protected areas and wildlife corridors across Eurasia, as well as preventing and/or controlling alien species invasion effectively. China has embraced renewable energy and technology enthusiastically, and could potentially be a world leader in biodiversity conservation, they write. Image credits: Getty Images </div> <div id="contributors"> This article was originally published on <a rel="noopener" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/sustainability/invasive-species-may-travel-chinas-new-trade-routes/" target="_blank">cosmosmagazine.com</a> and was written by Tanya Loos. </div> </div>

Travel Tips

Garden birds are struggling: four ways to help

More than a quarter of Britain’s birds are now on the RSPB’s <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/uk-conservation-status-explained/" target="_blank">red list</a>, meaning that their numbers are in severe decline. Some of the recent additions to the red list are thought of as common garden birds, such as the greenfinch. Others, such as the swift and house martin, only spend spring and summer visiting the UK before migrating to warmer climes. But the environment they encounter in the UK, as well as along their migration routes, affects their survival significantly. Many of the species that we feed in our gardens and on balconies are under threat. Here are four ways to help them. 1. Clean your bird feeders and bird baths In the wild, with a few exceptions such as starlings, birds don’t come into close contact with each other much. This lack of contact makes it harder for diseases to spread. Bird feeders change this dynamic. The presence of a bird feeder means that many individual birds from many different species feed in the same area. This leads to the <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.bto.org/community/news/201803-feed-birds-scientists-highlight-risks-disease-garden-bird-feeders" target="_blank">spread of disease</a>, because birds often poo where they eat, leaving pathogens to infect the next visitor. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438076/original/file-20211216-23-13tbwiw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Two birds on a house shaped feeder" /> Greenfinches on a bird feeder. <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/greenfinches-perching-on-bird-feeder-spring-1667803654" target="_blank" class="source">Chamois huntress/Shutterstock</a> The greenfinch, a once common garden bird now added to the red list, has suffered because of this. The disease <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.bto.org/our-science/projects/gbw/gardens-wildlife/garden-birds/disease/trichomonosis" target="_blank">trichomonosis</a>, which used to just infect pigeons and doves, has spread to greenfinches with deadly consequences. Regular cleaning of your garden bird feeders and bird baths can reduce this risk. 2. Install bird nesting boxes Many people help birds by putting up nest boxes in their gardens. But these boxes are mostly made for robins and tits who nest in open boxes, or ones with small holes. These nest boxes mimic the crevices and holes that would be available in mature trees. Swifts and house martins are new entrants to the red list, and both of these will readily use man-made nesting places if we provide them – with a few modifications for their needs. House martins will nest in a pre-made or home-made <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/advice/how-you-can-help-birds/nestboxes/how-to-attract-house-martins/" target="_blank">nest cup</a> which mimics the mud nests house martins make for themselves. Swifts will <a rel="noopener" href="http://www.saveourswifts.co.uk/attractswifts.htm" target="_blank">nest in boxes</a>, but they take a bit more work to attract. The best way to do this is to play their screeching call from a speaker placed close to the nest box, to get them to investigate and hopefully nest. You can make nest boxes attractive to these species by installing them in the eaves of your home, as they need them to be up high so they can take flight from them easily. 3. Add some insect-friendly plants Many of the species entering the red list, such as the house martin and house sparrow, feed on insects. Insects numbers have <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2019/february/the-world-s-insect-populations-are-plummeting-everywhere-we-look.html" target="_blank">declined rapidly</a>, so it is no surprise that these avian predators are finding it hard to feed themselves and their chicks. You may love a neat and tidy garden or balcony, but set aside an area to be a bit messier and weedier to attract insects. Adding <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.rhs.org.uk/science/conservation-biodiversity/wildlife/plants-for-pollinators" target="_blank">pollinator-friendly plants</a>, such as lavender, foxglove and sedum, could really boost insect numbers – natural bird food – in your garden. 4. Reduce dangers to birds <a rel="noopener" href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0049369" target="_blank">Pet cats are predators</a> and can target species like house sparrows, which remain on the red list. Even the presence of cats could be enough to <a rel="noopener" href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2664.12025" target="_blank">scare birds</a>, reducing the number of young they may be able to have. This may have a more damaging impact on bird populations than the number of birds killed by cats. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438077/original/file-20211216-17-10dzdgj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Cat stalking along fence under roses" /> Cats are predators and their presence affects bird populations. <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cat-burglar-front-roses-on-prowl-1503499694" target="_blank" class="source">Lilly P. Green/Shutterstock</a> If you own a cat, there are ways for you to reduce its effect on bird numbers. A collar with a bell is an effective way to warn birds and other animals about a cat’s presence. In addition, you could consider restricting when cats are allowed outside to just the daytime, as birds can be more vulnerable in the very early morning when they wake and start to look for food. Alternatively, you could keep cats inside entirely. It is very common in Australia and the US for cats to remain indoors. These changes may seem small and your garden or outdoor space may not be big, but gardens in the UK <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/habitats/towns-and-gardens" target="_blank">cover more area</a> that all of our nature reserves put together. Encouraging wildlife in these garden habitats can make a big difference.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/173025/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/becky-thomas-506528" target="_blank">Becky Thomas</a>, Senior Teaching Fellow in Ecology, <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/royal-holloway-university-of-london-795" target="_blank">Royal Holloway University of London</a> This article is republished from <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/garden-birds-are-struggling-four-ways-to-help-173025" target="_blank">original article</a>. Image: Getty Images

Home & Garden

Hibbert’s flowers and Hitler’s beetle – what do we do when species are named after history’s monsters?

“What’s in a name?”, <a href="https://www.bartleby.com/70/3822.html">asked Juliet of Romeo</a>. “That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” But, as with the Montagues and Capulets, names mean a lot, and can cause a great deal of heartache. My colleagues and I are <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-the-science-of-tax-and-five-other-things-you-should-know-about-taxonomy-78926">taxonomists</a>, which means we name living things. While we’ve never named a rose, we do discover and name new Australian species of plants and animals – and there are a lot of them! For each new species we discover, we create and publish a Latin scientific name, following a set of international rules and conventions. The name has two parts: the first part is the genus name (such as Eucalyptus), which describes the group of species to which the new species belongs, and the second part is a species name (such as globulus, thereby making the name Eucalyptus globulus) particular to the new species itself. New species are either added to an existing genus, or occasionally, if they’re sufficiently novel, are given their own new genus. Some scientific names are widely known – arguably none more so than our own, Homo sapiens. And gardeners or nature enthusiasts will be familiar with genus names such as Acacia, Callistemon or Banksia. This all sounds pretty uncontroversial. But as with Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers, history and tradition sometimes present problems. <h2>What’s in a name?</h2> Take the genus <a href="http://www.flora.sa.gov.au/cgi-bin/speciesfacts_display.cgi?form=speciesfacts&name=Hibbertia">Hibbertia</a>, the Australian guineaflowers. This is one of the largest genera of plants in Australia, and the one we study. There are many new and yet-unnamed species of Hibbertia, which means new species names are regularly added to this genus. Many scientific names are derived from a feature of the species or genus being named, such as Eucalyptus, from the Greek for “well-covered” (a reference to the operculum or bud-cap that covers unopened eucalypt flowers). Others <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-funny-to-name-species-after-celebrities-but-theres-a-serious-side-too-95513">honour significant people</a>, either living or dead. Hibbertia is named after a wealthy 19th-century English patron of botany, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Hibbert">George Hibbert</a>. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437440/original/file-20211214-15-1u4xyy3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" alt="George Hibbert by Thomas Lawrence" /> George Hibbert: big fan of flowers and slavery. <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:George_Hibbert_by_Thomas_Lawrence,_1811.JPG" class="source">Thomas Lawrence/Stephen C. Dickson/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/" class="license">CC BY-SA</a> And here’s where things stop being straightforward, because Hibbert’s wealth came almost entirely from the transatlantic slave trade. He profited from taking slaves from Africa to the New World, selling some and using others on his family’s extensive plantations, then transporting slave-produced sugar and cotton back to England. Hibbert was also a prominent member of the British parliament and a <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/person/view/16791">staunch opponent of abolition</a>. He and his ilk argued that slavery was economically necessary for England, and even that slaves were better off on the plantations than in their homelands. Even at the time, his views were considered abhorrent by many critics. But despite this, he was handsomely recompensed for his “losses” when Britain finally abolished slavery in 1807. So, should Hibbert be honoured with the name of a genus of plants, to which new species are still being added today – effectively meaning he is honoured afresh with each new publication? We don’t believe so. Just like statues, buildings, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/was-first-governor-james-stirling-had-links-to-slavery-as-well-as-directing-a-massacre-should-he-be-honoured-162078">street or suburb names</a>, we think a reckoning is due for scientific species names that honour people who held views or acted in ways that are deeply dishonourable, highly problematic or truly egregious by modern standards. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437442/original/file-20211214-13-1yaho8u.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" alt="Anophthalmus hitleri" /> This beetle doesn’t deserve to be named after the most reviled figure of the 20th century. <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anophthalmus_hitleri_HabitusDors.jpg" class="source">Michael Munich/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/" class="license">CC BY-SA</a> Just as Western Australia’s King Leopold Range <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-03/wa-king-leopold-ranges-renamed-wunaamin-miliwundi-ranges/12416254">was recently renamed</a> to remove the link to the atrocious <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leopold_II_of_Belgium">Leopold II of Belgium</a>, we would like Hibbertia to bear a more appropriate and less troubling name. The same goes for the Great Barrier Reef coral <a href="http://www.edgeofexistence.org/species/elegance-coral/">Catalaphyllia jardinei</a>, named after Frank Jardine, a brutal dispossessor of Aboriginal people in North Queensland. And, perhaps most astoundingly, the rare Slovenian cave beetle <a href="https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/773804">Anophthalmus hitleri</a>, which was named in 1933 in honour of Adolf Hitler. This name is unfortunate for several reasons: despite being a small, somewhat nondescript, blind beetle, in recent years it has been reportedly <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/fans-exterminate-hitler-beetle-6232054.html">pushed to the brink of extinction</a> by Nazi memorabilia enthusiasts. Specimens are even being stolen from museum collections for sale into this lucrative market. <h2>Aye, there’s the rub</h2> Unfortunately, the official rules don’t allow us to rename Hibbertia or any other species that has a troubling or inappropriate name. To solve this, we propose a change to the international rules for naming species. Our <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/tax.12620">proposal</a>, if adopted, would establish an international expert committee to decide what do about scientific names that honour inappropriate people or are based on culturally offensive words. An example of the latter is the <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/tax.12622">many names of plants</a> based on the Latin caffra, the origin of which is a word so offensive to Black Africans that its use is <a href="https://www.cfr.org/blog/k-word-south-africa-and-proposed-new-penalties-against-hate-speech">banned in South Africa</a>. Some may argue the scholarly naming of species should remain aloof from social change, and that Hibbert’s views on slavery are irrelevant to the classification of Australian flowers. We counter that, just like <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statue_of_Edward_Colston">toppling statues in Bristol Harbour</a> or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/mar/18/goodbye-cecil-rhodes-house-renamed-to-lose-link-to-british-empire-builder-in-africa">removing Cecil Rhodes’ name from public buildings</a>, renaming things is important and necessary if we are to right history’s wrongs. We believe that science, including taxonomy, must be socially responsible and responsive. Science is embedded in culture rather than housed in ivory towers, and scientists should work for the common good rather than blindly follow tradition. Deeply problematic names pervade science just as they pervade our streets, cities and landscapes. Hibbertia may be just a name, but we believe a different name for this lovely genus of Australian flowers would smell much sweeter. This article was co-authored by Tim Hammer, a postdoctoral research fellow at the State Herbarium of South Australia.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/172602/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kevin-thiele-136882">Kevin Thiele</a>, Adjunct Assoc. Professor, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-western-australia-1067">The University of Western Australia</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/hibberts-flowers-and-hitlers-beetle-what-do-we-do-when-species-are-named-after-historys-monsters-172602">original article</a>. Image: John Tann/Wikimedia Commons

Domestic Travel

Hibbert’s flowers and Hitler’s beetle – what do we do when species are named after history’s monsters?

“What’s in a name?”, <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.bartleby.com/70/3822.html" target="_blank">asked Juliet of Romeo</a>. “That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” But, as with the Montagues and Capulets, names mean a lot, and can cause a great deal of heartache. My colleagues and I are <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-the-science-of-tax-and-five-other-things-you-should-know-about-taxonomy-78926" target="_blank">taxonomists</a>, which means we name living things. While we’ve never named a rose, we do discover and name new Australian species of plants and animals – and there are a lot of them! For each new species we discover, we create and publish a Latin scientific name, following a set of international rules and conventions. The name has two parts: the first part is the genus name (such as Eucalyptus), which describes the group of species to which the new species belongs, and the second part is a species name (such as globulus, thereby making the name Eucalyptus globulus) particular to the new species itself. New species are either added to an existing genus, or occasionally, if they’re sufficiently novel, are given their own new genus. Some scientific names are widely known – arguably none more so than our own, Homo sapiens. And gardeners or nature enthusiasts will be familiar with genus names such as Acacia, Callistemon or Banksia. This all sounds pretty uncontroversial. But as with Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers, history and tradition sometimes present problems. What’s in a name? Take the genus <a rel="noopener" href="http://www.flora.sa.gov.au/cgi-bin/speciesfacts_display.cgi?form=speciesfacts&name=Hibbertia" target="_blank">Hibbertia</a>, the Australian guineaflowers. This is one of the largest genera of plants in Australia, and the one we study. There are many new and yet-unnamed species of Hibbertia, which means new species names are regularly added to this genus. Many scientific names are derived from a feature of the species or genus being named, such as Eucalyptus, from the Greek for “well-covered” (a reference to the operculum or bud-cap that covers unopened eucalypt flowers). Others <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/its-funny-to-name-species-after-celebrities-but-theres-a-serious-side-too-95513" target="_blank">honour significant people</a>, either living or dead. Hibbertia is named after a wealthy 19th-century English patron of botany, <a rel="noopener" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Hibbert" target="_blank">George Hibbert</a>. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437440/original/file-20211214-15-1u4xyy3.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" alt="George Hibbert by Thomas Lawrence" /> George Hibbert: big fan of flowers and slavery. <a rel="noopener" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:George_Hibbert_by_Thomas_Lawrence,_1811.JPG" target="_blank" class="source">Thomas Lawrence/Stephen C. Dickson/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a rel="noopener" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/" target="_blank" class="license">CC BY-SA</a> And here’s where things stop being straightforward, because Hibbert’s wealth came almost entirely from the transatlantic slave trade. He profited from taking slaves from Africa to the New World, selling some and using others on his family’s extensive plantations, then transporting slave-produced sugar and cotton back to England. Hibbert was also a prominent member of the British parliament and a <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/person/view/16791" target="_blank">staunch opponent of abolition</a>. He and his ilk argued that slavery was economically necessary for England, and even that slaves were better off on the plantations than in their homelands. Even at the time, his views were considered abhorrent by many critics. But despite this, he was handsomely recompensed for his “losses” when Britain finally abolished slavery in 1807. So, should Hibbert be honoured with the name of a genus of plants, to which new species are still being added today – effectively meaning he is honoured afresh with each new publication? We don’t believe so. Just like statues, buildings, and <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/was-first-governor-james-stirling-had-links-to-slavery-as-well-as-directing-a-massacre-should-he-be-honoured-162078" target="_blank">street or suburb names</a>, we think a reckoning is due for scientific species names that honour people who held views or acted in ways that are deeply dishonourable, highly problematic or truly egregious by modern standards. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437442/original/file-20211214-13-1yaho8u.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" alt="Anophthalmus hitleri" /> This beetle doesn’t deserve to be named after the most reviled figure of the 20th century. <a rel="noopener" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anophthalmus_hitleri_HabitusDors.jpg" target="_blank" class="source">Michael Munich/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a rel="noopener" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/" target="_blank" class="license">CC BY-SA</a> Just as Western Australia’s King Leopold Range <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-03/wa-king-leopold-ranges-renamed-wunaamin-miliwundi-ranges/12416254" target="_blank">was recently renamed</a> to remove the link to the atrocious <a rel="noopener" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leopold_II_of_Belgium" target="_blank">Leopold II of Belgium</a>, we would like Hibbertia to bear a more appropriate and less troubling name. The same goes for the Great Barrier Reef coral <a rel="noopener" href="http://www.edgeofexistence.org/species/elegance-coral/" target="_blank">Catalaphyllia jardinei</a>, named after Frank Jardine, a brutal dispossessor of Aboriginal people in North Queensland. And, perhaps most astoundingly, the rare Slovenian cave beetle <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/773804" target="_blank">Anophthalmus hitleri</a>, which was named in 1933 in honour of Adolf Hitler. This name is unfortunate for several reasons: despite being a small, somewhat nondescript, blind beetle, in recent years it has been reportedly <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/fans-exterminate-hitler-beetle-6232054.html" target="_blank">pushed to the brink of extinction</a> by Nazi memorabilia enthusiasts. Specimens are even being stolen from museum collections for sale into this lucrative market. Aye, there’s the rub Unfortunately, the official rules don’t allow us to rename Hibbertia or any other species that has a troubling or inappropriate name. To solve this, we propose a change to the international rules for naming species. Our <a rel="noopener" href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/tax.12620" target="_blank">proposal</a>, if adopted, would establish an international expert committee to decide what do about scientific names that honour inappropriate people or are based on culturally offensive words. An example of the latter is the <a rel="noopener" href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/tax.12622" target="_blank">many names of plants</a> based on the Latin caffra, the origin of which is a word so offensive to Black Africans that its use is <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.cfr.org/blog/k-word-south-africa-and-proposed-new-penalties-against-hate-speech" target="_blank">banned in South Africa</a>. Some may argue the scholarly naming of species should remain aloof from social change, and that Hibbert’s views on slavery are irrelevant to the classification of Australian flowers. We counter that, just like <a rel="noopener" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statue_of_Edward_Colston" target="_blank">toppling statues in Bristol Harbour</a> or <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/mar/18/goodbye-cecil-rhodes-house-renamed-to-lose-link-to-british-empire-builder-in-africa" target="_blank">removing Cecil Rhodes’ name from public buildings</a>, renaming things is important and necessary if we are to right history’s wrongs. We believe that science, including taxonomy, must be socially responsible and responsive. Science is embedded in culture rather than housed in ivory towers, and scientists should work for the common good rather than blindly follow tradition. Deeply problematic names pervade science just as they pervade our streets, cities and landscapes. Hibbertia may be just a name, but we believe a different name for this lovely genus of Australian flowers would smell much sweeter. This article was co-authored by Tim Hammer, a postdoctoral research fellow at the State Herbarium of South Australia.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/172602/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kevin-thiele-136882" target="_blank">Kevin Thiele</a>, Adjunct Assoc. Professor, <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-western-australia-1067" target="_blank">The University of Western Australia</a> This article is republished from <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/hibberts-flowers-and-hitlers-beetle-what-do-we-do-when-species-are-named-after-historys-monsters-172602" target="_blank">original article</a>. Image: <a rel="noopener" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hibbertia_procumbens_(6691568261).jpg" target="_blank" class="source">John Tann/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a rel="noopener" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/" target="_blank" class="license">CC BY-SA</a>

Home & Garden

Why it’s time to reconsider the ecological contribution of introduced species – even in New Zealand

The loss of biodiversity is one of the most catastrophic developments of our time. The impacts will possibly <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/461472a">outpace those of global warming</a>. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433029/original/file-20211122-15-tb7265.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" alt="A fantail" /> New Zealand’s pīwakawaka: conservation often focuses on saving native species. Shutterstock/Imogen Warren Growing evidence that humans have triggered a <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/117/24/13596">sixth global mass extinction</a> means the protection of remaining species is a <a href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals">priority beyond dispute</a> to secure ecological services such carbon cycling, clean water and air, and healthy oceans. The key drivers of species loss are climate change, habitat degradation, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature11148?report=reader">pollution</a>, and <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10531-018-1595-x">exotic species that become invasive</a>. This has led conservation ecologists to follow the simple rule of “protect natives, fight exotics”. If we had an unlimited budget, I would hardly challenge this view. But in a world where natural ecosystems face many other global changes apart from species loss, I argue we should reconsider the <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2021.758413/full">ecological role exotic species play</a>. <h2>Ecosystem function over species mix</h2> One could argue ecosystems are inherently so complex that we can never appreciate the exact contribution of an individual species, and therefore native species need to be protected at all cost. But this argument can be turned around. In many cases, exotic species are not detrimental to the resident species communities. It is not until an exotic species becomes invasive that <a href="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/IUCN-GISP.pdf">substantial harm happens</a>. The deliberate spread of species has been an integral part of human evolution for thousands of years. Many economically important plant species are exotics in most places, but they make it possible to feed our growing population. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433030/original/file-20211122-25-khff1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" alt="New world cacti and succulents in Greece." /> New worlld cacti and succulents have become part of the Mediterranean landscape. Shutterstock/Anna Holyph In a physically highly connected world, unintentional relocation of both terrestrial and marine species has now also become unavoidable. In some cases, introduced species can even complement native ecosystems. New world succulents are now very much part of the Mediterranean landscape, without <a href="https://www.presentica.com/doc/11177197/the-role-of-new-world-biodiversity-in-the-transformation-of-document">harming the local flora</a>. Sometimes, introduced species perform ecological functions similar to those that are (or were) performed by natives. For instance, European gorse stabilises coastal slopes in New Zealand, providing a <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19644109">nursery for local plants</a>. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433003/original/file-20211121-27-ccesaa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Gorse covering a hill in New Zealand." /> Gorse can act as a nursery plant for New Zealand’s native plant species. Shutterstock/Filip Fuxa In one particularly spectacular case, extinct tortoises were intentionally replaced with an exotic species through “assisted colonisation”. It seems to have <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23773124/">worked</a>. However, earlier and much less scientifically informed attempts of assisted colonisation, such as the deliberate introduction of cane toads in Australia’s tropical north-east, <a href="https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1469-1795.2009.00319.x">went terribly wrong</a>. <h2>The bias of human perception</h2> There are many ecosystem services humanity depends on: clean water, carbon cycling, removal of pollutants and excessive nutrient loads, mitigation of global warming through land-based and marine carbon sequestration, erosion prevention, just to name a few. The preservation of native species is one way of ensuring those services for future generations. An approach focused on ecological function weighs the cost of protecting natives and combating exotics against the role of new species assemblages shaped by human interference. At approximately equal cost, should the addition of a breeding pair of a rare bird be prioritised over the reforestation of several hectares of land? Such decisions are often difficult and must be based on the available science. Clearly, there may be other reasons — cultural or aesthetic values for example — to protect native species, beyond the provisioning of ecosystem services. But people seem biased by what they are used to. For example, Switzerland provides <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-42731932">generous subsidies</a> to farmers for maintaining picturesque alpine meadows, even though the native vegetation before human intervention was a much less biologically diverse alpine forest. In Central Europe, the recently introduced Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima) triggered substantial efforts to eradicate it, while the European chestnut (Castanea sativa), introduced by the Greeks and Romans some 2000 years ago, is highly valued and enjoys <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00334-004-0038-7">protection and even reforestation programmes</a>. The above examples illustrate why we may need a more sober approach centred on ecological function to effectively protect our remaining natural treasures and the ecosystem services they provide. The <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.711556/abstract">milestones in the evolution of life</a> did not depend on individual species or species assemblages, but on the emergence of new functional traits such as photosynthesis, predation or flight. Similarly, humankind ultimately relies on functioning ecosystems, regardless of which species provide them.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/171195/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/sebastian-leuzinger-797584">Sebastian Leuzinger</a>, Professor, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/auckland-university-of-technology-1137">Auckland University of Technology</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-its-time-to-reconsider-the-ecological-contribution-of-introduced-species-even-in-new-zealand-171195">original article</a>. Image: Shuttershock

Domestic Travel

With commercial galleries an endangered species, are art fairs a necessary evil?

Although record numbers of people are flocking to exhibitions in the major public art galleries, foot traffic into commercial art galleries is dwindling at an alarming rate. Embarrassed gallery directors of well-established and well-known commercial art galleries will quietly confess that frequently they scarcely get more than a dozen visitors a day. Outside the flurry of activity on the day of the opening, very little happens for the duration of the show. This is not a peculiarity of the Australian art scene, I have heard similar accounts in London, Manhattan and Paris. The art public has largely ceased visiting commercial art galleries as a regular social activity and art collectors are frequently buying over the internet or through art fairs. In fact, many galleries admit that most of their sales occur via their websites, through commissions or at art fairs, with a shrinking proportion from exhibitions or their stockroom by actual walk-in customers. The commercial art galleries have become an endangered species and their numbers are shrinking before our eyes. Leaving aside China and its urban arts precincts, such as <a href="http://www.798district.com/">798 Art Zone in Beijing</a>, again this is a trend that can be noted in much of Europe, America and Australasia. At the same time, the art market is relatively buoyant, albeit somewhat differently configured from the traditional one. The art auction market in many quarters is thriving and, as persistent rumours have it, not infrequently auction houses leave their role as purely a secondary market and increasingly source work directly from artists’ studios. This seeps into their lavish catalogues. The other booming part of the art trade is the art fairs. Here I will pause on a case study of the <a href="http://www.artfair.co.nz/">Auckland Art Fair 2019</a>. Started by a charitable trust about a dozen years ago and run as a biennial, in 2016 the fair, with new sponsorship and a new management team of Stephanie Post and Hayley White, was reorientated. As of 2018, it has become an annual art fair with a focus on the Pacific Rim region. It remains the only major art fair in New Zealand. Situated in The Cloud, a scenic setting on Queens Wharf in central Auckland, this location also limits its size to create an intimate, friendly, human-scale fair, unlike the vast expanses of the <a href="http://www.expochicago.com/">Chicago Art Fair</a> or even <a href="http://www.sydneycontemporary.com.au/">Sydney Contemporary</a> in the Carriageworks. The nuts and bolts of the Auckland Art Fair is that galleries from the Pacific Rim region can apply to exhibit and a curatorial committee of four curators, two from public galleries and two from commercial ones, select about 40 galleries for participation. The event, which is held over five days, attracts about 10,000 visitors and generates between $6-7 million in art sales. The fair costs about $1 million to stage with 90% of this sum raised from sponsorship, ticket sales and gallery fees and the rest a grant from Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development. The public pays an admission fee of between $25-30, depending on when they book. Art fairs are popular with local governments as they invariably attract people and businesses into the city. In Auckland Art Fair 2019, held in the first week in May, there were 41 galleries participating, almost 30 from various parts of NZ, the rest from Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart, Shanghai, Jakarta, Rarotonga (Cook Islands) and Santiago. According to Stephanie Post, a major purpose of the fair is to build a new art audience and, by extension, a new generation of art collectors. The fair is designed to fill the gap between the primary and secondary art markets. For this reason, there is a whole series of “projects” that generally promote new art, frequently by emerging artists, many currently without representation by a commercial art gallery. In 2019 there were ten of these non-commercial projects at the fair. These projects, for the past three art fairs, have been curated by Francis McWhannell, who now plans to step aside to be replaced by a new set of curatorial eyes. There are also various lectures, talks, panel discussions and related exhibitions. This year, most notably, there is “China Import Direct”, a curated cross-section of digital and video art from across China with some stunning and quite edgy material by Yuan Keru, Wang Newone and Lu Yang, amongst others. <h2>A mixed bag</h2> Predictably, art at the Auckland Art Fair 2019 is a mixed bag, but the stronger works do outnumber those that are best passed over in silence. In terms of sales, within the first couple of hours quite a number of the big-ticket items were sold, such as work by the Australians Patricia Piccinini and Dale Frank. Looking around this year’s fair, some of the highlights included Seraphine Pick at Michael Lett; Robert Ellis at Bowerbank Ninow; Max Gimblett at Gow Longsford Gallery; Anne Wallace and Juan Davila at Kalli Rolfe; Christine Webster at Trish Clark; Daniel Unverricht and Richard Lewer at Suite, Toss Woollaston at Page Blackie Gallery, Dame Robin White and Gretchen Albrecht at Two Rooms; Robyn Kahukiwa at Warwick Henderson Gallery; Geoff Thornley at Fox Jensen McCrory; Simon Kaan at Sanderson; James Ormsby at Paulnache and Kai Wasikowski at the Michael Bugelli Gallery. This selective list of names, to which many others can be added, indicates something of the spread and diversity of the artists being presented at the fair – not only in style and medium, but in the whole range of languages of visualisation and conceptualisation. Although there are a few deceased artists included, like Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori and Colin McCahon (neither represented by a particularly strong work), like most art fairs there is a predominance of well-established blue chip artists, a scattering of art market darlings plus a few unexpected newcomers. A criticism of art fairs is that they are an expensive market place with high overhead costs, which discourage too much experimentation with “untested” emerging artists. Despite the welcome initiatives of the “projects”, Auckland in this respect falls into line with the pattern of most fairs. The oft-repeated claim that they create a new art audience is also difficult to quantify. Although anecdotal evidence suggests that many who go to fairs may not have ever entered a commercial art gallery before, this does not appear to be followed up by a conversion of this audience into regular gallery goers. <h2>A spectacle</h2> Art fairs and blockbuster exhibitions in public art galleries have become popular people magnet events. They are a form of entertainment that is becoming more of a surrogate for consuming art than some sort of conduit for a return to more traditional patterns of art appreciation and acquisition. They are noisy, crowded and colourful spectacles – more like a party than a quiet arena for the contemplation of art. Is this such a bad thing? Observing the spectacle in Auckland, I was struck by the youthfulness of the thousands of visitors. For many, it seemed the idea that they could afford to purchase an original artwork came as a revelation. Perhaps this was not a $100,000 painting by a major artist, but something more modest and frequently more to their tastes. Nevertheless, new buyers are being introduced to original art and this in itself has to be a positive development. Art fairs globally are breeding a cult of dependency with some “commercial” art galleries increasingly divesting themselves of a physical existence and living from fair to fair. For a while, this was a complete no-no and fairs insisted that participant galleries had a bricks-and-mortar existence, but in many instances the borders are fudged and to be a gallery you need only be an established art trading entity. Art fairs are here to stay; the future of commercial art galleries is far more problematic. Image credit: Getty Images This article first appeared on <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/with-commercial-galleries-an-endangered-species-are-art-fairs-a-necessary-evil-116680" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>.

Art

"Outbursts of crying": Kefu speaks for the first time since brutal home invasion

Wallabies star Toutai Kefu has spoken out for the first time since a brutal home invasion that left his family in hospital. He spoke to reporters outside his Brisbane home, saying "I'm taking it day-by-day." "At times you just, you know, there's outbursts of crying." Toutai's wife Rachel will remain in the hospital for a further two weeks, and may never gain full use of her arms back. Toutai, his daughter Maddi and son Josh were also stabbed during the attack. The invasion took place on Monday morning, when Toutai's wife heard rustling noises that she mistook for a possum. When she went to investigate, she was confronted by four teenage boys, aged between 13 and 15, and the invasion quickly turned violent. The teenagers allegedly started to attack the family with a machete and an axe, waking up Josh. "He absolutely went into beast mode, you know, I had the two intruders on me and he just jumped in with no fear, and he copped a couple of hacks to his back," Toutai said. "It could have been certainly a different outcome if he didn't turn up, he had no thought for his own safety." The four teenage boys responsible for the attack have been charged with 44 offences, including grievous bodily harm and attempted murder. Toutai thanked the police, doctors, members of the public and the rugby union community for the flood of support since the attack. "I'd just like to thank everyone for keeping us in their thoughts during that time." He said, "As a family we're very, very grateful and thankful to have that kind of support, so we really appreciate it." Image credit: Getty Images

News

Schoolgirl's chilling message on Zoom call during home invasion

An 11-year-old schoolgirl has scribbled a desperate message on a bathroom wall during a terrifying home invasion. The girl was cowering in the bathroom of her family home in San Francisco as intruders ransacked the home. She was learning remotely at the time as many schools in the state remain closed due to the pandemic. She issued a silent plea for help, writing three words on the wall in pencil in hopes others on the Zoom call would see the message. "Help ... [her name]... robbers!!" she wrote. The girl's cousin, who owns the home, told ABC7 he returned home to find his belongings strewn all over the place as the thieves used pillow cases to carry stolen items from the house. Images broadcast on local TV showed the damage done to a door of the home as the intruders smashed their way in. Despite the ordeal being terrifying for the little girl, she was physically unharmed. The family, who wished to remain anonymous, are of Asian heritage. The incident comes at a time when violence against Asian-Americans has been front and centre in the United States.

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"Unidentified life form" found off New Zealand coast

Marine species are being pushed towards the poles. From dugong to octopuses, here are 8 marine species you might spot in new places

Benedict Cumberbatch fearing for his life after terrifying home invasion

“Rarest species of feline on Earth”: Unique cat mystifies the internet

Cats declared an “invasive alien species” in Poland

Food blogger eats protected species

Energy bills are spiking after the Russian invasion. We should have doubled-down on renewables years ago

Harry and Meghan speak out against Russian invasion

"The invasion of Ukraine has begun": The world responds to Russia

Russian invasion of Ukraine "imminent": What you need to know

Some endangered species can no longer survive in the wild. So should we alter their genes?

Ancient knowledge is lost when a species disappears. It’s time to let Indigenous people care for their country, their way

Invasive species may travel trade routes

Garden birds are struggling: four ways to help

Hibbert’s flowers and Hitler’s beetle – what do we do when species are named after history’s monsters?

Hibbert’s flowers and Hitler’s beetle – what do we do when species are named after history’s monsters?

Why it’s time to reconsider the ecological contribution of introduced species – even in New Zealand

With commercial galleries an endangered species, are art fairs a necessary evil?

"Outbursts of crying": Kefu speaks for the first time since brutal home invasion

Schoolgirl's chilling message on Zoom call during home invasion