5 poachers held in Kali Tiger Reserve; huge cache of animal

Kali Tiger Reserve

• Location: Kali Tiger Reserve, earlier known as Dandeli-Anshi Tiger Reserveis located in the central portion of the Uttara Kannada (North Canara) district of Karnataka state.
• It comprises two important protected areas of the region, viz., Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary and Anshi National Park. They are contiguous to each other and form a single tract of protected area located in the biologically sensitive Western Ghats.
• River: The Kali River flows through the tiger reserve, and hence the name.
• Vegetation: Forests are primarily moist deciduous and semi-evergreen, with excellent patches of evergreen forests in the westernmost parts.
• Flora: The complex floral tapestry comprises hardwood trees like teak, silver oak, Malabar tamrind, jamba, lantana, bamboo, shrubbery.
• Fauna: Prominent species are the Asiatic elephant, tiger, leopard, gaur, chevrotain, spotted deer, barking deer, sloth bear, dhole, Malabar civet, and giant civet.

Demand, price for Jhabua''s Kadaknath chicken firm up ahead of Madhya Pradesh polls

Kadaknath Chicken

• Kadaknath, a native of Madhya Pradesh (MP), is prominently found in the Jhabua district of the state.
• It has black flesh and this chicken is also called black chicken or Kali Masi.
• It’s not just the meat, but even the organs and bones of this chicken are black. The eggs of this chicken are black as well.
• It received the Geographical Indication (GI) tagin 2018.
• It is known for its high iron content and much lower cholesterol than other breeds. It has a high protein content and is considered ideal for muscle repair and building.
• Kadaknath chicken is often claimed to be beneficial for individuals with certain health conditions, such as asthma and respiratory issues.

Geographical Indication (GI) Tag

• It is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin.
• In order to function as a GI, a sign must identify a product as originating in a given place.
• It is typically used for agricultural products, foodstuffs, wine and spirit drinks, handicrafts, and industrial products.
• GI Tag ensures that no one other than those registered as authorized users is allowed to use the popular product name.
• Geographical Indications are covered as a component of intellectual property rights (IPRs) under the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.
• At the international level, GI is governed by the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO’s) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).
• In India, Geographical Indications registration is administered by the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999.
• This GI tag is **valid for 10 years,**following which it can be renewed.
• The first product in India to be accorded the GI tag was Darjeeling tea in the year 2004-05.

In South America''s Andes, a shrinking Lake Titicaca rings climate alarm bell

Lake Titicaca

• It is the highest navigable water body in the world, located in the Andes Mountains of South America.
• It lies on the border between Peruto the west and Bolivia to the east. It is the second-largest lake in South America (after Maracaibo).
• More than 25 rivers empty their waters into Titicaca; the largest, the Ramis, drains about two-fifths of the entire Titicaca Basin.
• Forty-one islands rise from Titicaca’s waters, the largest of which, Titicaca Island.
• Lake Titicaca is a designated Ramsar Site of International Importance.

El Nino and La Nina

• El Nino and La Nina events occur every two to seven years on average (El Nino is more frequent than La Nina), but not on a regular basis, and together are referred to as the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle by scientists.
• El Nino is typically known as the warm phase(a band of warmer water spreading from west to east in the equatorial Pacific Ocean), and La Nina is identified as the cold phase (a band of cooler water spreading east to west) of ENSO.
• What happens during El Nino?
• During El Niño, trade winds weaken.
• Warm water is pushed back east, toward the west coast of the Americas.
• Rainfall increases drastically in Ecuador and northern Peru, contributing to coastal flooding and erosion.
• As El Niño brings rain to South America, it brings droughts to Indonesia and Australia.
• The eastward movement of oceanic and atmospheric heat sources causes unusually severe winter weather at the higher latitudes of North and South America.

Scientists have discovered what may be the first ''vampire'' virus

Vampire Viruses

• They are pathogens that latch onto other viruses in order to replicate themselves.
• They emerge when a bacteriophage attaches to a soil-based virus, utilising its "life" for independent survival.
• This viral relationship between two pathogens is called a satellite and a helper. The satellite is the infectious strand that relies on the helper for support through its life cycle.
• Satellites depend on both their host organism and helper virus to complete its life cycle.
• The satellite virus depends on the helper virus to build the protective shell that covers its genetic material, called a capsid or to help it replicate its DNA.
• Most satellite viruses contain a gene that allows them to integrate into the host cell’s genetic material after they enter the cell.
• This enables the satellite to reproduce whenever a helper enters the cell from then on.
• The host cell also copies the satellite’s DNA and its own when it divides.

Bacteriophage

• Bacteriophages (BPs) are viruses that can infect and kill bacteria without any negative effect on human or animal cells. They are comprised of a protein capsule around an RNA or DNA genome.
• For this reason, it is supposed that they can be used, alone or in combination with antibiotics, to treat bacterial infections.