{"id":74,"date":"2020-04-22T15:40:18","date_gmt":"2020-04-22T22:40:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/environment.wsu.edu\/newsletter\/?page_id=74"},"modified":"2022-04-13T11:25:05","modified_gmt":"2022-04-13T18:25:05","slug":"programs-research-news","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/environment.wsu.edu\/newsletter\/programs-research-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Programs & Research Highlights"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Programs & Research Highlights<\/h1>\n

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White-lipped peccary species may be in steep decline<\/h2>\n

With forests depleted by development, the pig-like animals are disappearing rapidly, scientists have found in a new study.<\/p>\n

\"White-lipped<\/p>\n

A new study suggests that the territory roamed by white-lipped peccaries in Mexico and Central America has shrunk by as much as 87\u201390% from their traditional range, and 63% from previous estimates. Photo: Apolinar Basor<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

White-lipped peccaries travel in large packs throughout the forest. The hairy, pig-like creatures emit a distinctive musky smell that is not easy to forget, and play a crucial role in their ecosystems, dispersing seeds and creating habitats for insects and amphibians.<\/p>\n

Now, though, the species is facing a crisis. A recent\u00a0study<\/a>\u00a0published in the journal Biological Conservation finds that the territory roamed by white-lipped peccaries in Mexico and Central America has shrunk by as much as 87 to 90 percent from their traditional range, and 63 percent from previous estimates.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not clear exactly how many animals remain, because of the difficulty of counting them, said Daniel Thornton<\/strong>, SoE assistant professor, who led the research. The new study relied on camera traps and local experts to identify territory where the social creatures still roam.<\/p>\n

White-lipped peccaries are extremely vulnerable to human activity. They need a wide territorial range, they move in big groups and aggressively face threats instead of fleeing to safety, and their meat is\u00a0<\/strong>highly prized, Thornton said. \u201cThey have the trifecta of bad characteristics for a species that wants to survive in human-dominated landscapes, unfortunately for them\u201d…<\/p>\n

Read more in the New York Times<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Read the published study<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

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Interdisciplinary research to save amphibians worldwide<\/h2>\n

\"small<\/p>\n

A diverse group of WSU scientists share a common, critical goal: to prevent the occurrence of a second fungal pandemic\u2014an explosive threat looming just over the horizon.<\/p>\n

Their collective efforts have put WSU in the national spotlight as an emerging center for amphibian research.<\/p>\n

Read more at \u201cWhere have all the frogs gone?<\/a>\u201d in Washington State Magazine<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Along a muddy path around the little pond at Virgil Phillips Farm Park just outside Moscow, Idaho,\u00a0 Caren Goldberg<\/strong> assembles her eDNA collection system. Dressed in jeans and tall rubber boots, she kneels in faded grass near the edge of the water where two male Columbia spotted frogs have staked out territories.<\/p>\n

\"researcher<\/p>\n

Caren Goldberg at Virgil Phillips Farm Park<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

She quietly lowers a plastic tube into the pond and uses a hand pump to draw water up through a filter and into a flask. With tweezers, she carefully removes the wafer-like filter and stuffs it into a test tube.<\/p>\n

Goldberg, an assistant professor in the School of the Environment,<\/a> is a pioneer in the development of environmental DNA (eDNA) techniques that simplify the ability to screen for pathogens like Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis<\/em> (Bd) that can be spread through the international pet trade.<\/p>\n

Back in her laboratory, she will extract DNA from the skin cells, feces, urine, and other bits of material left behind by aquatic inhabitants. The DNA is then run through assays to identify target species of fish, amphibians, snails, turtles, and other creatures. With that one sample, Goldberg can also detect rare and invasive species as well as disease-causing organisms like Bd and ranavirus.<\/p>\n

As one of the world\u2019s leading amphibian eDNA researchers, Goldberg analyzes more than a thousand samples each year from all over the world. She and her team have developed nearly 50 assays, each uniquely designed for a particular species.<\/p>\n

Not only does eDNA improve and simplify the process of monitoring aquatic species, it\u2019s also safer, more efficient, and minimally invasive. Now, instead of tromping through fragile wetlands\u2014turning over rocks and kicking up mud, which can harm the animals living there\u2014scientists can get answers with only a few water samples…<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

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Jen McIntyre shares insights on impact of stormwater pollution with France24.com<\/a><\/h2>\n

Seattle: When it rains, it pollutes<\/h3>\n

Read more and watch the video<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n