- North America’s largest freshwater fish saved from extinction.
- 10 years ago, Britain’s National Trust turned “its biggest managed farm into a gigantic experiment as an antidote to intensive farming” in Snowdonia.
- The origin of the goat investigated.
- Tracking bees.
Nibbles: US, Wheat, Drylands, Cacao, Fast food, Cheese, Dogs
- USDA goes to the closets.
- Brazil to teach Tunisia how to grow wheat. Exchange of germplasm involved.
- ICRISAT DG makes a pitch for dryland farmers. And aquaculturists?
- A plan for cacao sustainability in Africa agreed. Germplasm not involved?
- Americans eat a lot of corn. A lot.
- The romance of cheese-making. Romance? These people should get out more.
- Peru offers Obamas a “cute” puppy. I still prefer the Mexican version.
Nibbles: Bees, Millennium Villages, Oaks, Wolf, CWR
- “Francis Ratnieks, the UK’s only professor of apiculture, is undertaking pioneering research based on a breed of worker bee genetically programmed to keep hives clean.”
- Scaling up the Millennium Villages. Still no news on what it all means for agrobiodiversity.
- Good news for New England acorn lovers. Including the artisanal pork industry?
- The Ethiopian wolf is in trouble.
- The Crop Wild Relatives Discussion Group reaches 250 member, 200 messages. Well done.
Nibbles: Dogs, Children, Catfish, Research
- Dalmatian dog defect discovered.
- Better nutrition sneaked into school meals.
- Nebraska plans huge fry-up.
- Private-public partnerships needed to feed Africa. Huh?
What’s a bison worth these days?
$4906.25, according to a post by David Willcove, excellent conservation biologist. He points out that a Colorado rancher was fined $157,000 for illegally killing 32 bison that had wandered onto his land last winter. Willcove discusses the conflict between wildlife and livestock in terms of the fear of disease. Bison could transmit brucellosis to cattle, but, Willcove says,
There has never been a documented case of a wild bison transmitting brucellosis to a cow, but the mere possibility that it could happen is enough to cause the State of Montana to insist on the death penalty for all bison that wander outside the park boundary (unless they can be chased back into the park…but try making a bison go where you want it to go).
You would think it might be possible for livestock and wildlife to co-exist, especially in a place where it really is not a matter of life and death, and Willcove has some suggestions to achieve that. But don’t hold your breath.