The summits of the neotropical Guayana Highlands in Venezuela have a unique biodiversity that is under serious threat because of habitat loss resulting from climate warming. Although conservation studies are urgently needed, these are blocked by official bodies that will not grant permits for fieldwork in the region. (Correspondence)

A total of 560 species of animals and plants in the country have been declared critically endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday. "The IUCN has reported in its red data list that 560 species stand threatened in India. Of these, a total of 313 species, including vultures, are animals while 247 are plant species," Mr S. Reghupathy, minister of state for environment and forests, said in a written reply.

Environment crisis is deepening day by day and we must protect our environment. The same spirit of conservation of environment was displayed by the girl students of local Nutan College where a programme was organised on the occasion of Science Day. The main speciality of the programme was its uniqueness regarding celebrations. There was no noise, loud music but calmness in the atmosphere. This did not disturb anybody's studies too. The students propagated the message of protection of environment and also emphasized on saving the planet Earth from destruction. What do students say Bhanupriya says 'Our very existence depends on our planet Earth. It becomes our responsibility to save environment'. Pushpalata says 'The thing, which is required most is the awareness about how to save environment. With the ongoing pace of exploiting natural resources, that day is not far when we would reach the stage of exhaustion and severe crises.

Putting an end to repeated efforts to compile a list of every life form on Earth, scientists will unveil an Encyclopaedia, cataloguing all 1.8 million plants and animals on the Planet. The project's first 30,000-page draft - covering large numbers of fish, amphibia, mammals and birds - will be released on Wednesday, the Daily Telegraph reported. With the help of a software pioneered by internet sites such as Wikipedia, the 300-year-old problem of how to document such a vast array of the planet's natural diversity has been resolved. The team of international researchers has found the solution with a, so-called, mash-up software, which gathers huge amounts of information from diverse sources. According to its designers, it is intended partly as a resource for those with an interest in the natural world but also as a tool for scientists and policymakers. By comparing information about different species, scientists hope they will be able to find new methods to slow the spread of unwelcome species and explain why some creatures live longer than others. In 1735, Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus published his masterwork Systema Naturae which was the first attempt at recording the systems in nature. He promised a classification of every known living thing but by the time he reached his 13th and final edition in 1770 his efforts had swelled from 11 pages to 3,000 and the work was still incomplete.

The king penguin, a species that rebounded from near extinction over the past century, could be wiped out in coming decades because of global warming. The king penguin, a species that rebounded from near extinction over the past century, could be wiped out in coming decades because of global warming. If the surface temperature of the Southern Ocean rises 0.26 degrees Celsius

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