Trivia question for Feb-15-2011

Posted on Feb 15, 2011 in Trivia

Sorry our trivia for today is so late.  We had a very full and eventful day.  Earlier we attended the first and only national public meeting of the EPA on the environmental and environmental justice implications of global warming emissions which was held in Atlanta.  Considering the effects of Carbon on our oceans, we figured it would be best if we attend.  We were fortunate enough to have one of our board members attend with us (Dr. Michael Black from Georgia State University).  The meeting was very informative and we made lots of key contacts which will help us in the future.  Anyway, here is tonight’s trivia, complements of Carter:

Next time you think you are having a bad day, consider what life for these guys looks like.  Ravens, gila monsters, kit foxes, badgers, roadrunners, coyotes, and fire ants are all natural predators of these guys.  To add to their daily troubles, like many reptiles these guys are known to become infected by a wide range of pathogens, which includes viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites.  More specifically, the population of this species has been negatively impacted by upper respiratory tract disease, herpes virus, shell necrosis, bladder stones and parasites.

Additionally, the most significant threats to these guys include urbanization, habitat destruction and fragmentation, illegal collection and vandalism by humans.  Populations in some areas have declined by as much as 90% since the 1980s and they are listed as severely threatened.  Another potential threat to their habitat is a series of proposed wind and solar farms covering several states.

So here are our questions:  Tell us what this species is and also tell us how large the proposed wind and solar farms are.

Good Luck 😉

Answer:

Congratulations to Nonie for hitting the nail on the head.   The tortoise we featured is in-fact the Desert Tortoise and the total land mass of the proposed energy site is 1,800,000 acres.   To put the scope of these projects into perspective, that is enough to cover the state of Rhode Island with solar power plants nearly three times.

Here is more on these tough guys: Desert Tortoise

Thanks to everybody for playing along 😉