Ajith Kumar (biologist)
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Ajith Kumar (biologist)
Ajith Kumar (1952–March 1, 2025) was an Indian wildlife biologist and conservationist well known for his contributions to the ecology and conservation of primates such as the endangered lion-tailed macaque, and small mammals, with a career spanning over four decades of research, teaching and conservation. His work contributed significantly to the understanding of rainforest ecology, habitat fragmentation, and species conservation. Along with Ullas Karanth and other collaborators, he was instrumental in establishing a Masters course in wildlife biology and conservation at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, serving as the founding course director from its inception in 2004 till 2020. His early field notes and works have been archived in the NCBS Archives initiative, a public collecting centre for the history of science in contemporary India. He served as a member of the IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organiz ...
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Pachmarhi
Pachmarhi is a hill station in the Hoshangabad district of Madhya Pradesh state of central India. It has been the location of a cantonment (Pachmarhi Cantonment) since the British Raj. The municipality is located in a valley of the Satpura Range and is widely known as ''Satpura ki Rani.'' ("Queen of Satpura") Pachmarhi has an altitude of 1067. Dhupgarh, the highest point (1,352 meters) in Madhya Pradesh and the Satpura range, is located nearby. The town is wholly located within the Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve and the Satpura Tiger Reserve. History Pachmarhi contains several caves including hilltop caves. The community's name is believed to be derived from the Hindi words ''Panch'' ("five") and ''Marhi'' ("caves"). According to a legend, these caves were built by five Pandava brothers of Mahabharatha era during their thirteen years of exile The region was part of the Bhonsle Kingdom and was later ruled by the Marathas in the 18th century. It was later part of the Gondi ...
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Wildlife Biologist
A wildlife biologist studies animals and their behavior along with the role each animal plays in its natural habitat. The duties of a wildlife biologist can include: developing and conducting experiments/studies on animals in their natural habitats, studying the characteristics of animals such as their interaction with different species, their reproductive and movement patterns, the dynamic within a population, and the transmission of diseases. Wildlife biologists can also play important roles in managing and monitoring population dynamics to preserve certain species and/or environments. They observe how animals interact with one another as well as how they interact with humans. Some wildlife biologists study the impacts of human interference on an ecosystem. Wildlife biologists can work with endangered species, advocate for preservation of wildlife, resolve issues pertaining to wildlife, and manage animal populations. Many Wildlife Biologists will eventually specialize into a parti ...
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1952 Births
Events January–February * January 26 – Cairo Fire, Black Saturday in Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, becomes monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the British Dominions: Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Union of South Africa, South Africa, Dominion of Pakistan, Pakistan and Dominion of Ceylon, Ceylon. The princess, who is on a visit to Kenya when she hears of the death of her father, King George VI, aged 56, takes the regnal name Elizabeth II. ** In the United States, a Artificial heart, mechanical heart is used for the first time in a human patient. *February 7 – New York City announces its first crosswalk devices to be installed. * February 14–February 25, 25 – The 1952 Winter Olympics, Winter Olympics are held in Oslo, Norway. * February 15 – The State Funeral of King Ge ...
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International Union For Conservation Of Nature
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it. It is involved in data gathering and analysis, research, field projects, advocacy, and education. IUCN's mission is to "influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable". Over the past decades, IUCN has widened its focus beyond conservation ecology and now incorporates issues related to sustainable development in its projects. IUCN does not itself aim to mobilize the public in support of nature conservation. It tries to influence the actions of governments, business and other stakeholders by providing information and advice and through building partners ...
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Small Mammal
Small mammals or micromammals are a subdivision of mammals based on their body mass and size. Different values have been used as the upper limit. The International Biological Programme has defined small mammals as species weighing up to 5 kg. Alternatively, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) groups the orders of rodents, tree shrews and eulipotyphlans (insectivores) together under the term small mammals. A significant majority of mammal species falls into the category of small mammals. They are found in a great range of habitats and climate zones. Characteristics Many small mammals have a short livespan and high fertility rate, resulting in a comparatively high variability in genetic composition. Their size leads to a reduced energy need for movement, but a high energy requirement for maintaining body temperature. This results in a high rate of food intake, using a wide range food sources. Their small size, together with frequently nocturnal or crepuscu ...
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Lion-tailed Macaque
The lion-tailed macaque (''Macaca silenus''), also known as the wanderoo, is an Old World monkey endemic to the Western Ghats of South India. Characteristics Lion-tailed macaques are covered in black fur, and have a striking gray or silver mane that surrounds the face in both sexes. The face itself is hairless and black in adults, but pinkish in infants less than a year old. Infants are born with no mane, which begins to growth about two months after birth. They are named not for their mane, but for their tail, which is long, thin, and naked, with a lion-like, black tail tuft at the tip. The size of their tail is about 25 cm (9.8 in) in length. Their eyes are a shade of hazelnut with highlighting black eyelids. Lion-tailed macaques, like other macaques, have deep cheek pouches used for storing food, and are quadrupedal with opposable digits. The mane that surrounds its face gives this monkey its German name ''Bartaffe'' – "beard ape". With a head-body length ...
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Endangered Species
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, invasive species, and climate change. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List lists the global conservation status of many species, and various other agencies assess the status of species within particular areas. Many nations have laws that protect conservation-reliant species which, for example, forbid hunting, restrict land development, or create protected areas. Some endangered species are the target of extensive conservation efforts such as captive breeding and habitat restoration. Human activity is a significant cause in causing some species to become endangered. Conservation status The conservation status of a species indicates the likelihood that it will become extinct. Multiple factors are ...
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Primate
Primates is an order (biology), order of mammals, which is further divided into the Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhines, which include lemurs, galagos, and Lorisidae, lorisids; and the Haplorhini, haplorhines, which include Tarsiiformes, tarsiers and simians (monkeys and apes). Primates arose 74–63 million years ago first from small terrestrial animal, terrestrial mammals, which adapted for life in tropical forests: many primate characteristics represent adaptations to the challenging environment among Canopy (biology), tree tops, including large brain sizes, binocular vision, color vision, Animal communication, vocalizations, shoulder girdles allowing a large degree of movement in the upper limbs, and opposable thumbs (in most but not all) that enable better grasping and dexterity. Primates range in size from Madame Berthe's mouse lemur, which weighs , to the eastern gorilla, weighing over . There are 376–524 species of living primates, depending on which classification is ...
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Conservation Biology
Conservation biology is the study of the conservation of nature and of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction and the erosion of biotic interactions. It is an interdisciplinary subject drawing on natural and social sciences, and the practice of natural resource management. The nature conservation, conservation ethic is based on the findings of conservation biology. Origins The term conservation biology and its conception as a new field originated with the convening of "The First International Conference on Research in Conservation Biology" held at the University of California, San Diego in La Jolla, California, in 1978 led by American biologists Bruce A. Wilcox and Michael E. Soulé with a group of leading university and zoo researchers and conservationists including Kurt Benirschke, Sir Otto Frankel, Thomas Lovejoy, and Jared Diamond. The meeting was prompted due to concern over tropical de ...
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Wildlife Biologist
A wildlife biologist studies animals and their behavior along with the role each animal plays in its natural habitat. The duties of a wildlife biologist can include: developing and conducting experiments/studies on animals in their natural habitats, studying the characteristics of animals such as their interaction with different species, their reproductive and movement patterns, the dynamic within a population, and the transmission of diseases. Wildlife biologists can also play important roles in managing and monitoring population dynamics to preserve certain species and/or environments. They observe how animals interact with one another as well as how they interact with humans. Some wildlife biologists study the impacts of human interference on an ecosystem. Wildlife biologists can work with endangered species, advocate for preservation of wildlife, resolve issues pertaining to wildlife, and manage animal populations. Many Wildlife Biologists will eventually specialize into a parti ...
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Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union territories of India by area, second largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India by population, fifth largest state by population with over 72 million residents. It borders the states of Rajasthan to the northwest, Uttar Pradesh to the northeast, Chhattisgarh to the east, Maharashtra to the south, Gujarat to the west. The area covered by the present-day Madhya Pradesh includes the area of the ancient Avanti (India), Avanti Mahajanapada, whose capital Ujjain (also known as Avantika) arose as a major city during the second wave of Indian urbanisation in the sixth century BCE. Subsequently, the region was ruled by the major dynasties of India. The Maratha Confederacy, Maratha Empire dominated the maj ...
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Sálim Ali Centre For Ornithology And Natural History
The Sálim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History (SACON) is the centre of Wildlife Institute of India, located in Anaikatti, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (India), near the foothills of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. It is a national centre for information, education and research in ornithology and natural history in India. According to SACON, its mission is "To help conserve India’s biodiversity and its sustainable use through research, education and peoples' participation, with birds at the centre stage". Infrastructure SACON's main campus is at Anaikatty, northwest of Coimbatore, near the trijunction of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka at the foothills of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. It offers multiple opportunities for long-term studies on various aspects of Bird, avifauna and the biological principles and phenomena involved in the maintenance of fragile eco-systems. Its of land is built up with around of buildings for housing offices, laboratory, library, comm ...
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