May ‘17
11
PENGUIN Facts
Resident writer Veena Sreevalsan reveals why the next thing to usher you through the hardships of life should be a
CUTE PUPPY
Vedant Matkar from Last Month Now writes a feature on the demise of the
ONE-HORNED RHINO
The Team veena sreevalsan
shreya kamath
Project Head & Feature Writer
Editor-in-Chief
jeremy d’souza
Production Editor
naureen salim Researcher and Fact Checker
ayman faisal
Contributing Writer
Contents Everyone should rescue: Adopt from Shelters not Stores; Veena Sreevalsan Page 1 Dung It; Vedant Matkar Page 5 11 Penguin Facts; Shreya Kamath Page 12
Save The Tiger; Ayman Faisal Page 8 Letter to the editor; Page 3
Everyone should rescue: Adopt from shelters not stores -Veena Sreevalsan
W
hy should a cute puppy be the next thing to usher you through the hardships of life? Facts can guarantee that dogs are the best companions you could ever ask for plus so much more. A dog isn’t simply an object or a toy or even an acquaintance, a dog becomes your best friend and eventually family. The form a bond which eventually trumps the ones you have with your closest relatives, this is because your common golden retriever is extremely affectionate and what some would call “stroke-able”. Sadly, every year there aren’t enough homes for these dogs and dog shelters end up over crowded. But fear not, we can help; by adopting SHELTER dogsnot ones from puppy mills. Sure they’re cute but when you buy a dog from a pet store, you’re supporting cruel puppy mills. These puppy mills treat dogs like products, not living, breathing beingsno love and unsanitary conditions to live in. The female dogs are bred at every opportunity the ruthless mills de-
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cide to and have no time to recover between each litter of puppies, and eventually they end up dying because of their drained and damaged health. Adopting a loving dog from your nearest shelter is not only going to give you a life long companion but you’d also be saving an innocent soul’s life from getting euthanized because of the overcrowded shelters. Let’s bust one of the big myths about shelter pets; the one that says all of them have behavioral issues or have been rescued from abuse. The truth however, is that many of them end up there because the owners no longer care for them or were abandoned. A shelter dog can love you just as much and most are already house trained! The best partmost shelter homes and rescue groups often include vaccinations, microchipping, and neutering when you adopt them. Adopt a dog, and trust us, it feel great to know you would’ve saved a life.
EACH YEAR, approximately 2.7 million dogs and cats are killed because shelters are too full and there aren’t enough adoptive homes.
Dung it T
he 8-inch keratin horn that stuck out of its head, considered as an antique. It’s thick grayish brown armor crafted into ‘luxury handbags’ and its head; stuffed, preserved, adorned as a trophy hanging on a wall. Is this what the one-horned rhino deserved? One of the largest rhino species, the one-horned rhinos population has been drastically depleting as they are being killed for sport and because they are a ‘nuisance for farmers’. Originally inhabiting the northern Indian subcontinent, these rhinos were nearly classified extinct in the early 20th century and by 1975 only 600 were left in the wild. Rhinos being an umbrella species, other animals in an ecosystem depend on them, eradication of the one-horned can cause a serious domino effect which has con-
sequences on many other animals. These grazing animals browse on the tips of shrubs and Page 5
browse on the tips of shrubs and low trees, pruning these plants and keeping their growth in check. This benefits species that depend on small trees and low shrubs for shelter and food. Removing rhinos results in these plants becoming overgrown, changing the landscape and making it unsuitable for species such as antelopes, which in turn leave the area. In this way, the entire ecosystem is altered leading to desertification, and even the death of other species. Secondly, the existence of the rhino species are pivotal in the role of seed dispersal, These large herbivores digest huge volumes of plant material dispersing the seeds in their dung and thus playing an important role in the health and maintenance of vegetation in their habitats. The exponential decline of the population of the rhinos can be blamed on two factors. Hunting was an important factor in the historical decline of the greater one-horned rhino. During the last century, rhi-
Guest Writer Vedant Matkar
inos were hunted for sport by both Europeans and Asians. Rhinos were also killed as agricultural pests in tea plantations. By the early 1900s, rhino hunting was prohibited in parts of India and Myanmar. Poaching remains the biggest threat to rhinos and is driven by the increase in demand for rhino horn, particularly among Asia’s growing middle class. And secondly, The enormous reduction in the range of rhinos was mainly caused by the disappearance of alluvial plain grasslands. Today, the need for land by the growing human population is a threat to the species. Many of the protected areas with rhinos have now reached the limit of the number of individuals they can support. This leads to human-rhino conflict as rhinos leave th e boundaries of the protected areas to forage in the surrounding villages. Rhinos, mainly females, reportedly kill several people each year in India and Nepal. Wildlife conservation organizations such as WWF strive to keep
these rhinos from extinction. Monitoring and protecting the remaining population has been one of the most effective methods of the conservations of rhinos. Guards and rangers patrol national parks frequently ensuring the population of these animals is stable and environmental groups take up responsibilities to restore their landscape and habitats by planting more plants and bushes. Moreover, working with the local communities help spread awareness and educate the underprivileged on this crucial topic in today’s world but there’s only so much these organizations can do, that’s why we require your help. You can adopt a rhino at WWF gift center here and you can also spread the word on social media as well as volunteer at rhino conservation organizations.
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Save The Tiger
-ayman faisal
Save the stripes extinction. The loss or mostly erased generation of an animal or insect species. As of 2017, there are more than a hand full of animals around the world that are suffering from extinction, a lot of commonly known animals such as the panda, lion, cheetah, polar bear, etc, but one animal that that has recently started decreasing in its population has been the tiger species. The tiger species only has nine sub species (nine different breeds of tigers) around the world and three of which are completely extinct. The nine breeds are; the sumatran tiger, the Siberian tiger, the Bengal tiger, the south china tiger, the Malaysian tiger, the indochinese tiger, the Bali tiger (EXTINCT), the Javan tiger (EXTINCT), the Caspian tiger (EXTINCT). Only as few as 3,500 tigers are left all around the world and they could all be complete-
ly extinct in less than 20 years. It’s is only because of tigers that overgrazing has been prevented by herbivores and because of tigers the ecological integrity was maintained. in India, 350 rivers originate from tiger reserves. these reserves can provide carbon dioxide and oxygen which both are vital for survival for both humans and animals. Today, China has only 20 or 30 tigers left in the wild. Yet the demand for tiger parts, particularly the bones, is greatest in China. Tiger bones are used to treat severe arthritis in traditional Chinese medicine, a practice that can be compared to the use of animal-based insulin in the West in the recent past. the tiger provides the poorest of communities in asia against the impacts of river siltation and flooding, while providing global benefits. it is a fact that mankind themselves are one of
the main reasons why tigers are going extinct and also the mankind wants to increase their population at the same time, tigers have much other to benefit from other than using them as medicine for treating arthritis or for using their fur for your fancy yevis saint laurent handbag. these benefits can range from a social perspective to even increasing the level in tourism in a country. but why do you want to kill them? china has reportedly been trying to regain the population of the tiger an at the same time they are willing to kill the species for medicine. The tiger is such an important animal for the worlds ecosystem and we need to save their species by ending the mass murder that has currently been going on for tigers and start appreciating their wellbeing Page 8
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Emperor Penguins are the tallest species, standing nearly 4 feet tall. The smallest is the Little Blue Penguin, which is only about 16 inches. If a female Emper-
All 17 species of penguins are found exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere.
or Penguin’s baby dies, she will often “kidnap” an unrelated chick.
Because they aren’t used to danger from animals on solid ground, wild penguins exhibit no particular fear of human tourists.
A penguin’s striking coloring is a matter of camouflage; from above, its black back blends into the murky depths of the ocean. From below, its white belly is hidden against the bright surface.
Fossils place the earliest penThe fastest species is the guin relative at some 60 milGentoo Penguin, which lion years ago, meaning an can reach swimming ancestor of the birds we see speeds up to 22 mph. today survived the mass extinction of the dinosaurs. In some species, it is the male penguin which incubates the eggs while females leave to hunt for weeks at a time. Because of this, pudgy males—with enough fat storage to survive weeks without eating—are most desirable.
Penguins ingest a lot of seawater while hunting for fish, but a special gland behind their eyes—the supraorbital gland—filters out the saltwater from their blood stream. Penguins All but two excrete it through their species of penbeaks, or by sneezing.
guins breed in large colonies of up to a thousand birds.
It varies by species, but many penguins will mate with the same member of the opposite sex season after season.
by Shreya Kamath
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
D
ear editor,
I am writing to you regarding the polar bear article in last weeks issue of PAW. I am so enlightened by how you’re trying to spread global awareness as this is very important for us and the environment. It is so important to know what’s going around in the world and no one puts an effort to even research about such a diverse topic that will indeed benefit us and our society, Instead everyone’s just excited to get the their Friday magazine or tabloids. Referring back to the article, I am very pleased with your endeavour into teaching young children to defend themselves against polar bears. This will definitely help them to understand the real dangers they might come across, and how to prevent severe injuries. I usually read all articles on PAW and it’s all so informative and factual. Especially the polar bear article. I knew global warming is increasing in the world, but I didn’t know it was so intense. Temperatures have constantly been rising and have reached about 20 degrees above average, this may affect the environment in numerous ways as well as cause loss of marine life. I really think you should increase the number of pages in your magazine, adding more articles, more activities and more wildlife stories. I hope you keep doing your splendid work. Thank you
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