Loggers 'burned Amazon tribe girl alive'

Loggers in Brazil captured an eight-year-old girl from one of the Amazon's last uncontacted tribes and burned her alive as part of a campaign to force the indigenous population from its land, reports claimed on Tuesday night.

The child was said to have wandered away from her village, where around 60 members of the Awá tribe, who live in complete isolation from the modern world, and fallen into the hands of the loggers.

Luis Carlos Guajajaras, a local leader from a separate tribe, told a Brazilian news website that they tied to her a tree and set her alight as a warning to other natives, who live in a protected reserve in the north-eastern state of Maranhão .

"She was from another tribe, they live deep in the jungle, and have no contact with the outside world. It would have been the first time she had ever seen white men. We heard that they laughed as they burned her to death," he said.

Reports of the killing, which was said to have happened in October or November last year, were seconded by the Indigenous Missionary Council (CIMI), a Catholic group which said it had seen footage of her charred remains.

A spokesman for the Brazil's Indian Affairs Department said the government was urgently investigating the claims.

Huge iron ore deposits and valuable timber have encouraged mining and logging companies to enter the forests of Maranhão despite laws designed to protect the few remaining uncontacted tribes, often leading to violent clashes.

Around 450 tribes people have were murdered in Brazil between 2003 and 2010, according to figures from CIMI.

Survival International, a charity for tribal groups, warned that a third of the Awá's land had already been destroyed and that their nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle was being threatened as animals fled in the face of the approaching logging companies.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/brazil/9005835/Loggers-burned-Amazon-tribe-girl-alive.html

Turtles conviscated from poachers (Via Herp Digest)

327 Turtles, Podocnemis expanas adult females destined for Christmas Eve Dinner were confiscated from poachers and released in the Rio Branco near Caracaraí by , ICMBio authorities.
Glauco Araújo Do G1, em São Paulo , 12/22/11----

Game wardens recuperated 327 tartarugas and captured 6 trafficers the wild animlas during na operation that began on December 15 and terminated on the 21st in the lower Rio Branco, near Caracaraí (RORAIMA). Supposedly the turtles were destined for Christmas Eve Dinner and were commissioned for the hunters to catch these turtles by people with a lot of political power.

The turtles according to the technician from Instituto Chico Mendes (ICMBio), were found tied up and in sacks, ready to take to Boa Vista, where they were to be delivered to the buyers for R$300 ($225US) for the larger ones and R$100 for the smaller ones

In addition to the turtles 311 eggs were confiscated., disse Antonio Lisboa, chefe do Parque Nacional do Viruá e analista ambiental do ICMBio.

The prisoners Said that the turtles were to be delivered to a particular address to people of high Power in Boa Vista..

The operation was to be extended until December 30 with the help of IBAMA and Military Police of the Environment in the Stat of Roraima. "The registered 23 auto fines. Among the crimes commited by these trafficantes of wildlife, were bad treatment of the animals and formation of na organized trafficking unit "quadrilha". All of the prisoners were taken to the state Penetencery Agrícola Monte Cristo.

New 'uncontacted' group found in the Amazon

Largest forested indigenous territory in the world
November 2011: Survival International has released new pictures of an uncontacted Yanomami village in Brazil, 20 years after one of its crucial campaigns created the biggest forested indigenous territory in the world.

Survival International, Yanomami leader Davi Kopenawa and Brazil's Pro Yanomami Commission were instrumental in securing the victory.

These new pictures emphasize how important the territory is in protecting the Yanomami from goldminers who devastated the tribe in the 1980s. The ‘Yanomami Park ' is one of many initiatives spearheaded by Survival International.

This sighting represents a huge success – but the fight isn't overSurvival's director Stephen Corry said: ‘Survival's supporters can be immensely proud of the success that this sighting represents. Of course many tribal peoples, including the uncontacted Yanomami, are still threatened by the illegal occupation of their land, so we can't afford to give up the fight.

‘The very existence of uncontacted Yanomami, however, proves that persistent campaigning pays off. Here's to many more such victories.'

The Yanomami suffered years of oppression at the hands of gold-miners. Violence and disease saw their population fall by 20 per cent in just seven years. Brazil announced its decision to outline the borders of a Yanomami territory in November 1991. It was signed into law the following year.

To find out more about the Yanomami people by visiting Survival International's website.
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/yanomami-brazil.html

Piranhas Attack Swimmers Off Brazil Beach

Thousands of flesh-eating piranhas have been attacking swimmers off a river beach in western Brazil - with at least 15 people suffering injuries.

The creatures have infested the waters of the Paraguay river off the city of Caceres' Daveron beach, in Mato Grosso state.

Officials say it is the first time they have had a problem with piranhas in the area, where the aggressive fish began schooling about two weeks ago.

Elson de Campos Pinto, 22, was among those attacked.

"I took a dip in the river and when I stood up, I felt pain in my foot," he told Globo TV's G1 website.
"I saw that I had lost the tip of my toe. I took off running out of the river, afraid that I would be further attacked because of the blood. I'm not going back in for a long time."

Firefighter Raul Castro de Oliveira told G1: "People have got to be very careful. If they're bitten, they've got to get out of the water rapidly and not allow the blood to spread."

Read more here ...

The Olmec Dragon

Icon. Drawing Olmec: dragon carved in stone found
in Chalcatzingo (Photo: INAH)

Sunday, March 27, 2011

MEXICO – In Vera Cruz, Guerrero and Morelos (states of Mexico), archaeologists of the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) found representations of mythical beings who were believed, until then, were ignored by the ancient dwellers of the region: dragons.

Images carved in stone, clay sculptures and paintings dating between the years 1200 and 400 BC indicate the practice of a cult of worship to this fantastic animal: the dragon Olmec. There is no mistake. This is not the plumed serpent known and called Quetzalcoatl or Kukulkan. It is another more ancient creature.

The olmec dragon is depicted as a chimera, mixing physical features of snake, bird and jaguar. It also appears like an anthropomorphic being, a dragon-man.

The images have peculiar traits of the Olmec culture: the flame-shaped eyebrows and a cross, of the type called cross of St. Andrew, located between the eyes or on the back. The chief of excavations at Chalcatzingo, in Morelos, Carolina Meza Rodriguez adds: Another interesting aspect of Olmec dragon is that his mouth emits signs that seem like combinations of commas. It is not known whether the signals represent mere fumes or they are words, names, belonging to an unknown language or writing.

The olmec dragons are always related to the cave entrances. It is speculated that they are the symbol of power of an ancient lineage of leaders who ruled the Olmec people between the years 800 and 500 BC. In some cases, the iconographic elements associated with the dragon are found in different parts of a cave. Thereby, the entire chamber becomes a dragon. The Olmec people is the oldest sedentary culture today known at Mesoamerica

SOURCE: CRUZ, Antimio. Los Olmecas también imaginaron dragones.
IN El Universal/Mexico, published in 03/27/2011
[http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/cultura/65110.html]

http://brazilweirdnews.blogspot.com/2011/03/olmec-dragon.html

The monster of Billings Dam

The plate warns: Warning. Anaconda. Traffic Interrupted.
Photo: Ernesto Rodrigues/AE

Sunday, May 1, 2011

São Paulo state – In the metropolitan area of Grajau, Parque Residencial Lagos (Residential Park Lakes), on the banks of the Billings reservoir a snake more than 5 meters in length is scaring the 1,2 thousands of families living on site. The monster, an "Anaconda", better known in English as "Anaconda"(probably a Eunectes murinus) is considered one of the largest and most robust amid all snakes in the world.

For now, she only managed to attack animals from small to medium size, such as capybaras, chickens and ducks, but nothing prevents that she can to capture a human being, especially the smaller, such as children and adolescents.

President of the Association of Friends of the Park, Mrs. Vera Lucia baseline, 61 years (in 2011) account: This is a monster. It sticks his head out of the water and then, dives, lifting gigantic tail. Even a dog, she eaten. In the main pier of the park, a plate that was placed warns – Danger: Anaconda. Herself Basali identified the animal: I was born in Mato Grosso. This snake appears there only in the Amazon ... (but this is the anaconda pilgrim of Grajaú ...).

For unknown reasons, far from its original environment, the Anaconda found a home in Billings Dam and nobody knows how the animal got there. Amid the mystery surrounding the origin of the creature, have appeared different versions of its presence in the area.

The tongue of the people puts the blame on an unidentified Japanese. He would have taken the snake to Grajaú and began to create it. Finally, he decided to put it in the pond. The time of appearance of the snake in the water is also controversial: the majority says that it appeared about 20 days but Mrs. Janet Marques da Silva, 53, says: There is talk on this snake since 2003. Mrs. Silva believes that the snake has even some offspring: Ten, at least, the oldest to have about ten years now.

The young marketer Elanes Santos Moreira, 16, was almost a victim of the monster. Even alerted he gone to fish in the Dam. He reports: Suddenly, it appeared, put his head above water. I felt blood to fled of my face.

Mrs. Basali even tells that tried to photograph the creature but complains of fatigue, because of the vigil, day and night. Still not got the picture and describe: She's too ugly. His head has the size of a ball handball. Informed, the firemen were on standby to try to capture the animal. But the beast is unpredictable and only with a patient ambush, will can surprise the creature. Let us follow the case and await a flagrant photo of the monster of the Billings Reservoir.

SOURCE: SAMPAIO, Paulo. Grajaú tem também seu monstro do lago Ness.IN Estadão/SP, published in 05/01/2011
[http://www.estadao.com.br/estadaodehoje/20110501/not_imp713261,0.php]

 

http://brazilweirdnews.blogspot.com/2011/05/monster-of-billings-dam.html

Seven Brazilian bird species granted endangered status

The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) voted recently to designate several rare bird species as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. The designation becomes effective on January 27, 2011 and will protect against the trade of, increase conservation funding to, and promote habitat safeguards of seven of the most imperiled species in Brazil.


The selected species live in or near the Atlantic forest biome, a region of tropical and subtropical moist forest, tropical dry forest, tropical savannas, and mangroves along the Atlantic coast of Brazil. The Atlantic forest, or Mata Atlântica has been designated a World Biosphere Reserve because of its high level of biodiversity and endangered inhabitants which include marmosets, lion tamarins, and woolly spider monkeys. It's also massively threatened by the encroachment of civilization. For hundreds of years, the forest has been cleared for urban settlement and the production of sugar cane, with the result being that less than 10% of native, fractured, forest remains.

The species were chosen by the USFWS because they all inhabit the same region and share a high level of threat posed by destruction of their environment due to human activity. One of the species being listed is the black-headed antwren, a small member of the antbird family which lives in pairs or family groups and eats insects, spiders, and small frogs. Currently, the entire species consists of only one population of 1,000 - 2,500 individuals restricted to just 19 miles of coastline near Rio de Janeiro.

Another is the cherry-throated tanager. This small white, black, and red bird was presumed extinct until 1998. Estimates put its current population at just 50 - 250 individuals, probably inhabiting one small tract of protected forest.


In addition to the black-headed antwren and cherry-throated tanager, the designation includes the Brazilian merganser, the fringe-backed fire-eye, the Kaempfer’s tody-tyrant, the Margaretta’s hermit, and the southeastern rufous-vented ground cuckoo.

The USFWS decision follows decades of petitions and lawsuits by the Center for Biological Diversity, a conservation nonprofit, over the preclusion of many imperiled species from the Endangered Species Act. In total, 25 international bird species have gained Endangered status in the past three years out of the 45 that were petitioned.

“Protecting these species under the Endangered Species Act will give them a better chance of survival, and it will help attract worldwide attention to the urgent plight of these animals,” said Justin Augustine, staff attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “We hope the Obama administration continues to undo the significant backlog of foreign species that deserve protection but have yet to receive it.”

Morgan Erickson-Davis, mongabay.com

http://news.mongabay.com/2010/1229-morgan_brazil_birds.html

Seven Brazilian bird species granted endangered status

The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) voted recently to designate several rare bird species as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. The designation becomes effective on January 27, 2011 and will protect against the trade of, increase conservation funding to, and promote habitat safeguards of seven of the most imperiled species in Brazil.


The selected species live in or near the Atlantic forest biome, a region of tropical and subtropical moist forest, tropical dry forest, tropical savannas, and mangroves along the Atlantic coast of Brazil. The Atlantic forest, or Mata Atlântica has been designated a World Biosphere Reserve because of its high level of biodiversity and endangered inhabitants which include marmosets, lion tamarins, and woolly spider monkeys. It's also massively threatened by the encroachment of civilization. For hundreds of years, the forest has been cleared for urban settlement and the production of sugar cane, with the result being that less than 10% of native, fractured, forest remains.

The species were chosen by the USFWS because they all inhabit the same region and share a high level of threat posed by destruction of their environment due to human activity. One of the species being listed is the black-headed antwren, a small member of the antbird family which lives in pairs or family groups and eats insects, spiders, and small frogs. Currently, the entire species consists of only one population of 1,000 - 2,500 individuals restricted to just 19 miles of coastline near Rio de Janeiro.

Another is the cherry-throated tanager. This small white, black, and red bird was presumed extinct until 1998. Estimates put its current population at just 50 - 250 individuals, probably inhabiting one small tract of protected forest.


In addition to the black-headed antwren and cherry-throated tanager, the designation includes the Brazilian merganser, the fringe-backed fire-eye, the Kaempfer’s tody-tyrant, the Margaretta’s hermit, and the southeastern rufous-vented ground cuckoo.

The USFWS decision follows decades of petitions and lawsuits by the Center for Biological Diversity, a conservation nonprofit, over the preclusion of many imperiled species from the Endangered Species Act. In total, 25 international bird species have gained Endangered status in the past three years out of the 45 that were petitioned.

“Protecting these species under the Endangered Species Act will give them a better chance of survival, and it will help attract worldwide attention to the urgent plight of these animals,” said Justin Augustine, staff attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “We hope the Obama administration continues to undo the significant backlog of foreign species that deserve protection but have yet to receive it.”

Morgan Erickson-Davis, mongabay.com

http://news.mongabay.com/2010/1229-morgan_brazil_birds.html

Urban marmosets avoid pet threat

Black-tufted marmosets living in Brazil's city parks are going to surprising lengths to avoid unusual predators - domestic cats.


The small urban-dwelling monkeys return to favoured sleeping sites - something jungle-dwelling marmosets do not do.

Cats often make multiple attempts to catch the monkeys each day, but have difficulty accessing tall trees with smooth bark and fewer low branches.

So the monkeys habitually return to these tall trees to thwart the cats.

Details are published in the International Journal of Primatology.


Marmosets usually live in rainforest canopies but have adapted to life in Brazil's urban green spaces.

Marmoset researchers observed the behaviour whilst investigating the affect of city noise levels on urban populations in Belo Horizonte City Park in Minas Gerais, south-eastern Brazil.

In their study, Marina Duarte and Professor Robert Young revealed how the black-tufted marmosets make sleeping site choices.

The park contains more than 3,000 trees, but the nine resident marmosets only slept in 12 particularly tall trees, all of which had high first branches and smooth bark.

The monkeys also showed a preference for trees that could only be accessed by jumping from neighbouring trees.


This behaviour has not been observed in black-tufted marmosets living in more traditional rainforest habitats.

"Normally, in nature the animals prefer to sleep in several different trees so that predators do not learn to find their sleeping places," explained Ms Duarte.

Approximately 115 domestic cats live in the park and researchers recorded an average of three attempts at marmoset predation by cats per day.

However, the cats were unable to scale the tallest trees or those without suitable climbing supports like rough bark or low hanging branches.

By adapting their choice of sleeping sites, the marmosets were able to evade the exceptionally high number of predators.

Feral predators
Unwanted pets have been abandoned in the park for the last 20 years, greatly increasing the cat population.

Scientists studying how marmoset and tamarins adapt to urban environments have also recorded their communication in groups and interaction with humans.


In the past, these sap-feeding species have been identified as particularly adaptable to urban environments where they can find suitable food sources.

The small monkeys are also popular with exotic collectors and it remains unclear how many of Brazil's urban marmosets were once pets.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9271000/9271898.stm










By Ella Davies


Earth News reporter

Urban marmosets avoid pet threat

Black-tufted marmosets living in Brazil's city parks are going to surprising lengths to avoid unusual predators - domestic cats.


The small urban-dwelling monkeys return to favoured sleeping sites - something jungle-dwelling marmosets do not do.

Cats often make multiple attempts to catch the monkeys each day, but have difficulty accessing tall trees with smooth bark and fewer low branches.

So the monkeys habitually return to these tall trees to thwart the cats.

Details are published in the International Journal of Primatology.


Marmosets usually live in rainforest canopies but have adapted to life in Brazil's urban green spaces.

Marmoset researchers observed the behaviour whilst investigating the affect of city noise levels on urban populations in Belo Horizonte City Park in Minas Gerais, south-eastern Brazil.

In their study, Marina Duarte and Professor Robert Young revealed how the black-tufted marmosets make sleeping site choices.

The park contains more than 3,000 trees, but the nine resident marmosets only slept in 12 particularly tall trees, all of which had high first branches and smooth bark.

The monkeys also showed a preference for trees that could only be accessed by jumping from neighbouring trees.


This behaviour has not been observed in black-tufted marmosets living in more traditional rainforest habitats.

"Normally, in nature the animals prefer to sleep in several different trees so that predators do not learn to find their sleeping places," explained Ms Duarte.

Approximately 115 domestic cats live in the park and researchers recorded an average of three attempts at marmoset predation by cats per day.

However, the cats were unable to scale the tallest trees or those without suitable climbing supports like rough bark or low hanging branches.

By adapting their choice of sleeping sites, the marmosets were able to evade the exceptionally high number of predators.

Feral predators
Unwanted pets have been abandoned in the park for the last 20 years, greatly increasing the cat population.

Scientists studying how marmoset and tamarins adapt to urban environments have also recorded their communication in groups and interaction with humans.


In the past, these sap-feeding species have been identified as particularly adaptable to urban environments where they can find suitable food sources.

The small monkeys are also popular with exotic collectors and it remains unclear how many of Brazil's urban marmosets were once pets.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9271000/9271898.stm










By Ella Davies


Earth News reporter

'The Cezanne of the simians'

Roched Seba and Jimmy /PA

21 September 2010, 8:30

A retired circus chimpanzee has become known as the "Cezanne of simians" after drawing crowds to watch him paint.

Jimmy, 26, has been producing paintings each day for three weeks at the Niteroi Zoo in Brazil.

And plans are now afoot for an exhibition of his works, reports the Daily Telegraph.

Roched Seba, the animal's trainer, said Jimmy had shown no interest in the toys and other diversions that chimpanzees typically enjoy.

In an effort to entertain the chimp, Mr Seba brought some paints to the enclosure three weeks ago - and Jimmy took to them straight away.

For at least 30 minutes a day, so long as he is not distracted by too many onlookers, Jimmy dips his brush into plastic paint containers and uses broad, bold strokes to create his art.

The chimp is not the first animal to wield a paintbrush. An African elephant called Brittany decorates canvases sold at the Milwaukee County Zoo's gift shop to raise revenue.

And three abstract paintings by a chimp named Congo in the 1950s sold for about £17,000 at a 2005 auction in London where works by Renoir and Warhol were unsold.

http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/The_Cezanne_of_the_simians
(Submitted by Rachel Carthy)

'The Cezanne of the simians'

Roched Seba and Jimmy /PA

21 September 2010, 8:30

A retired circus chimpanzee has become known as the "Cezanne of simians" after drawing crowds to watch him paint.

Jimmy, 26, has been producing paintings each day for three weeks at the Niteroi Zoo in Brazil.

And plans are now afoot for an exhibition of his works, reports the Daily Telegraph.

Roched Seba, the animal's trainer, said Jimmy had shown no interest in the toys and other diversions that chimpanzees typically enjoy.

In an effort to entertain the chimp, Mr Seba brought some paints to the enclosure three weeks ago - and Jimmy took to them straight away.

For at least 30 minutes a day, so long as he is not distracted by too many onlookers, Jimmy dips his brush into plastic paint containers and uses broad, bold strokes to create his art.

The chimp is not the first animal to wield a paintbrush. An African elephant called Brittany decorates canvases sold at the Milwaukee County Zoo's gift shop to raise revenue.

And three abstract paintings by a chimp named Congo in the 1950s sold for about £17,000 at a 2005 auction in London where works by Renoir and Warhol were unsold.

http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/The_Cezanne_of_the_simians
(Submitted by Rachel Carthy)

Hundreds of dead penguins washed up in Brazil

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-10707906
21 July 2010
Last updated at 01:41

Hundreds of penguins have been washed up dead on the beaches of Brazil.Scientists are still investigating what could have caused the death of around 500 animals found on the shores of Sao Paulo state.They say autopsies carried out on some of the carcasses suggest they could have starved to death, as their stomachs were completely empty.They are now trying to establish if strong currents and colder temperatures may be to blame.Thiago do Nascimento of the Peruibe Aquarium says the cooler than usual temperatures off the coast could have driven away the fish and squid the penguins feed on.But he did not rule out that overfishing could have decimated the penguins' food sources.Mr Nascimento said between 100 and 150 penguins showed up on the beaches every year, but that they were normally alive, with only around 10 washed up dead in an average year."What worries us this year, is the absurdly high number of penguins that have appeared dead in a short period of time," he told the Associated Press news agency.
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