Happy News

Grizzly Bears are Okay After the Rejection of Lifting the Laws that Protect Them 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that the Endangered Species Act protections would still apply to grizzly bears living specifically in the Greater Yellowstone and Northern Continental Divide areas. This was done to allow the species time to recover, as grizzly bears have the slowest reproduction rates among mammals and have been devastated by hunting. Wyoming and Montana attempted to petition for the management over the grizzly species to be given to the states, but this would allow public hunting, as seen in 2017. Back then, Grizzly Bear protections were removed and both Idaho and Wyoming had organized trophy hunts. This, as well as the flexibility of ranchers being permitted to kill threatening grizzly bears, are primary threats to grizzly bear conservation efforts. Fortunately, grizzly bears continue to be protected under the Endangered Species Act protections for the time being as they recover as a species.

New National Park Widens Protection of Legendary “Asian Unicorn” Mountain Home 

The Lao People's Democratic Republic, also known as the government of Laos DPR, established the Xesap National Park, which preserved a large area of hills and forests that served as the home for the Saola, the “Asian Unicorn”, as well as its potential site for species recovery. The Saola was only identified relatively recently in 1992 and classified as “Critically Endangered” on the IUCN Red List. The development of Xesap National Park allows the cultivation of its rich ecosystem that will help species, such as the Saola, thrive once more.

Scientists Discover Why Some Cats Are Orange 

Orange cats were once considered a scientific mystery. Typically male cats are uniform while females are multicolored, indicating that the gene variant for fur is on the X chromosome. This foundation helped scientists identify the development of melanocytes that made 13 times as much RNA of the Arhgap36 gene. This is surprising as the Arhgap36 gene has never been suspected of holding an aesthetic gene variant as its proteins regulate embryonic development. Quite humorous that a life-or-death regulating structure is the root cause of the ginger hair color of many felines.