Poplar Hawkmoth

I was fortunate to have a Poplar Hawkmoth Laothoe populi in my garden a few days ago which was a first for me as I had never seen one before.

Red squirrels adopting unrelated red squirrels

The University of Alberta’s Jamieson Gorrell have been observing red squirrels Sciurus vulgaris in Yukon (western most point in Canada) and he noticed an adult red squirrel had adopted a newborn red squirrel which had been abandoned by its mother. The red squirrel took the baby to a near by tree where she proceeded to care for it.

Gorrell found that the young squirrel was related to its adoptive mother. Researchers think the biological mother disappeared and the adoptive mother to be recognised a genetic link so adopted it.

This research proves a ‘long-accepted theory of evolutionary biology is correct for a solitary, non social animal.’

Palm Oil

I recently came across a website on the internet (greenpalm.org) that gave an overview on palm oil, stating key facts about its production and the devastating effects it is having on the environment. I though it key to mention this on here in the hope of spreading the word about what palm is and what it does.

I have taken the liberty to compact all the information on this website into a smaller format which still puts the point across.

So, what is palm oil, well palm oil is obtained from the fruit of the oil palm tree, which contributes to the economic development of most countries around the world.

You will be aware of the uses of palm oil from my previous article on my blog but I came across further products which contain palm oil and these are: margarine, cereals, crisps, sweets and baking goods but it is not just food it is everyday household items for example soaps, washing powder and cosmetics.

The problem begins with the manufacturers who use palm oil and they list it as ‘vegetable oil’ under the list of ingredients so it is therefore disguised. I recently visited an oriental supermarket with a friend near where I live and all of the products which contained palm oil actually said it in the ingredients, which was a big surprise.

On a positive note a recent article produced in The Independent states that Nestle, the worlds biggest food manufacturer is going to make palm oil in its chocolate bars more eco-friendly.

There are 17 countries in the world that produce palm oil, the top 5 nations are Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Nigeria and Colombia. Malaysia and Indonesia account for 85% of the palm oil production. One quarter of the palm oil produced worldwide is used domestically while the other three quarters are exported to Asia, the EU and Africa, who are the main importers of palm oil.

Not all palm oil is sustainable, leading to issues with the local biodiversity, soil degradation, local people, land rights and many, many more. New plantations have resulted in large areas of forest being destroyed, which is therefore having significant impacts on the biodiversity.

Orangutan habitats have been threatened by palm oil. In 1900 there were 315,000 individuals in the wild and today there are fewer than 50,000. Unless the devastation of their habitat decreases the orangutans could be driven to extinction within 12 years.

Environmental campaigners are claiming that within 15 years 98% of the Indonesian and Malaysian rainforests will be gone unless drastic action is taken.

Like myself you will probably be asking what the alternatives are, and that is a hard question to answer because it is hard to find any alternatives, soya oil presents similar problems, and there would be a difficulty in producing significant quantities of other oils such as rapeseed or sunflower oil, and animal fats present cholesterol problems. 20% of smallholders rely on growing palm oil as their source of income. The issue here is this: with a growing population there are more mouths to feed and the palm oil tree can be grown in bulk quantities therefore has an important role in feeding the growing planet.

There are many social and environmental activists supporting the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), which includes organisations such as Oxfam and the Rainforest Allowance.

The Certified Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO) and the Palm Kernel Oil (CSPKO) are produced by palm oil plantations, which comply with the environmental standards, which have been devised by the RSPO. The RSPO was founded in 2003 and aims to spread the environmentally-friendly production on the palm oil.

I strongly think that palm oil is an appalling fix which is destroying the rainforests at an astonishing rate, does any one care? It makes me sick, half the people in the UK couldn't give a damn, giving the lame excuse of "why should we care?" and "who cares if the orang-utans go extinct?" is this really the attitude that we should be having? NO! That is why action needs to be taken to stop this horrible 'craze' so that both people and the environment can live in peace and harmony rather than this constant battle.

People are far too greedy, they couldn't give a damn if the rainforest was destroyed because all they can care about is going to the supermarket and not bothering to check the products they buy. The issue here though is this: most products these days contain palm oil, and it's getting ridiculous, it’s not the people who buy these products who are to blame though it is the companies that are producing and selling these products.

I just wish more people could care about the environment rather than demolishing it at every available opportunity that they have.

Palm Oil in Nestlé chocolate

I'm sure many of you will be aware by now that most british chocolate uses Palm Oil. I came across an article on my local Greenpeace website this morning on Palm Oil in Nestlé chocolate. Recent evidence has been found to show that Nestlé who are the makers of Kit Kats are using palm oil. Palm oil exists in areas of the rainforest where the orang-utans’ rainforests once grew. The Indonesian forests are being torn down to grow palm oil which is the vegetable fat of choice for companies worldwide’. Unilever and Kraft are making efforts to disassociate themselves from the palm oil industry, Nestlé has not done this. Nestlé’s supplier: Sinar Mar, is responsible for a big part of this carnage, they’re known to have a bad reputation for environmental and social practices.

This is what the Sinar Mar companies are up to http://eyesontheforest.or.id/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=285&Itemid=1

Recent evidence that has been collected http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/files/pdfs/forests/red-handed.pdf shows how Sinar Mar is destroying carbon-rich peatlands as well as clearing forests.

I came across this video this morning and it's horrific:

http://vimeo.com/10236827

I feel very strongely about palm oil in British chocolate, I have begun taking action, I am no longer buying Cadburys, Nestle or Galaxy chocolate because I strongely believe what these people are doing is very wrong. If you feel the same please spread the word of what these organisations are doing. Please feel free to copy the links onto your blogs.

Birdlife Malta

After receiving my monthly subscription of Bird Watching through the post this morning, I came across an article from Chris Packham entitled "The Bloody Isle", in which the article talks about the hunting in Malta. Chris's anger on the matter is perfectly understandable, there's a key fact that sticks out to me when reading his article: Mizieb, in the Maltese Islands is a strong hold for migrants, the Birdlife Malta Raptor Camp members along with the Committee Against Bird Slaughter went and investigated the site after gun shots were heard, and the remains of 200 protected species were found along the site.

There's only a limited amout that can be done without getting out there. It's incredibly distressing and very annoying to hear of such dispicable behaviour of some people. Volunteers for Birdlife Malta aim to conserve the habitats and the birds within Malta. The Maltese Islands lie on one of main flyways for bird migration. Unfortunately most hunters and trappers get away with this unjustly behaviour, but the locals are forced to live with the restrictions imposed on land.

Recent events of volunteers recording bird migration and illegal hunting has resulted in these volunteers suffering several violent attacks sometimes on a daily basis. http://birdlifemalta.org/view.aspx?id=244

These volunteers are trying to help stop these horrific attacks on the wild birds, and in doing so they're getting verbally and physically assulted, how is this right? I would be very interested to know your views on the matter.

Here is a link to the website: http://birdlifemalta.org/index.aspx

One final thing for you to look at: http://birdlifemalta.org/photogallery/videos/?sectionid=10. This could be a little distressing for some viewers.