Yesterday, a diamond was lost. Steve Irwin, undebatably the the most famous and beloved conservationist in the world, has died. In his short lifetime, he surprised, amused, and changed us all. He inspired the world to care about animals, no matter the species. He was known far and wide for his love of dangerous animals. But, this time, he went too far. He died filming a documentary, the "Oceans Most Deadly". The renouned croc crusader did not die from a sharkbite. He was killed by a stingray. While filming , he swam to close, and the sting hit the only place it could truly hurt him. His heart. I said the world has lost a diamond, but I was wrong. He is not lost, but lives on in all of us . His memory will shape the world for generations. Good by Steve, and sleep well.

The Yangtze River Dolphin is one of the least known, and most endangered, species of dolphin in the world. At maturity its size ranges from 7&1/4 to 8&1/4 feet. It has a blue-gray back and a pale underside. This dolphin's eyes are small and underdeveloped, and so it is probable that it navigates using echolocation. Found in waters associated with the Yangtze River, it lives in groups of 3 to 6 individuals. The dolphin is currently listed by the IUCN as critically endangered. The Yangtze River Dolphin is currently threatened by depletion of prey from overfishing, blockage of migratory travel routes by dams, pollution and chemicals and waste, collision with boats, and noise pollution that disrupts its echolocation. With only 17 individuals, Yangtze River Dolphin will go extinct in the immediate future if drastic measures are not taken.

Information from:
Smithsonian Institute, as of 2005 and www.blogger.com

Borneo, the island in the clouds, is an extremely interesting place. It is the 2^nd largest island in Southwest Asia and has amazing biodiversity. Asian Elephants, Rhinos, and Orangutans live in Borneo’s lowland rainforests, along with many other species.

However, this amazing paradise is caught in the middle of a huge struggle for power. One group of wealthy developers sees the island as a potential fortune, while the lower class natives see the island as home. Environmentalists are seeking to keep the rainforests while loggers and poachers are just trying to survive.

<> Unless something is done Borneo will lose much of its biodiversity, and the world will lose many species that inhabit the island. The difficulty of this situation is that no matter who wins, someone loses.

The Devil's Hole Pupfish is a small, blue cavedweller. It is found around a 113 ft rock shelf in a
desert spring known as the Devil's Hole. Over all, the Devil's Hole Pupfish populations seldom exeed 500, and on average fall to around 150-300 during the and winter. It was once threatened by water level changes as farms and developments began moving in to the area.The fish was saved from extinction and became one of the first animals to be saved by the the Endangered Species Act. The Devil's Hole area has become a detatched addition to Death Valley National Park. Some of the fish have been moved to seperate tanks that are regulated in case something should happen to the wild population. Unfortunatly, the wild population continues to fall. Much research is going into into the reason for it's decline but the cause is still unknown.
For more information, go to www.pupfish.net/habitats/devilshole.htm