Scientists have named a small maroon and gold fish species, which was discovered 300 feet deep in the waters off Kure Atoll in the Pacific Ocean, after U.S. President Barack Obama.
•    The fish, of the genus Tosanoides, was named in honour of Mr. Obama for his commitment to protecting nature through the expansion of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, researchers said.
•    It was discovered in June this year during a research trip to Kure, the world’s northernmost atoll. 
•    The fish is found only within the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument.
•    Researchers confirmed that the fish represented a new species, the first member of the genus Tosanoides found outside of the waters off Japan.
•    This is not the first fish to be named after Mr. Obama. A species of darters found only in the Duck River and the Buffalo River in U.S. was named Etheostoma obama in 2012.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on 4 September 2016 listed the eastern gorilla, the largest living primate, as critically endangered in its latest red list of threatened species.
The largest living primate’s population is now estimated to be fewer than 5000. Grauer’s Gorilla, one subspecies of Eastern Gorilla, has lost 77% of its population since 1994, declining from 16900 individuals to just 3800 in 2015. 
•    The eastern gorilla is a large hominid with a large head, broad chest and long arms.
•    It has a flat nose with large nostrils.
•    The face, hands, feet and breast are bald.
•    The fur is mainly black, but adult males have a silvery saddle on their back.
•    Grauer's gorilla has a shorter, thicker, deep black fur, while the mountain gorilla has a more bluish color.
•    Eastern gorillas are herbivorous, with a heavily foliage based diet, due lack of available fruit in their habitats.

President Barack Obama has announced to create the largest protected area anywhere on Earth—a half-million-square-mile arc of remote Pacific waters known for both exceptional marine life and importance to native Hawaiian culture.
•    The Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, established in 2006 by President George W. Bush, already covered 140,000 square miles. 
•    Obama more than quadrupled Papahānaumokuākea’s size, to 582,578 square miles. 
•    Using his executive authority under the U.S. Antiquities Act, he extended most of the monument’s boundary—and its prohibition of commercial fishing—out to the 200-mile limit of the exclusive economic zone.
•    Papahānaumokuākea is a sanctuary for endangered species, including blue whales, short-tailed albatrosses, sea turtles, and the last Hawaiian monk seals. 
•    The seamounts and sunken islands of its deeper waters are inhabited by more than 7,000 species, including the oldest animals on Earth—black corals that have lived for more than 4,000 years.
 

In an effort to clean up Ganga, Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat has sanctioned a 500-acre land in Rishikesh for a turtle breeding centre.
•    National Mission for Clean Ganga has reportedly been in talks with state governments for such sanctuaries in the Ganga for aquatic animals. 
•    Meanwhile, 400 crematoriums would also be constructed to prevent waste disposal from 'kaccha cremation grounds'.
•    The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has been holding talks with the state governments for setting up of such sanctuaries in the Ganga for aquatic animals, who will be used to clean up the river.
•    400 crematoriums would also be constructed so that the 'kuccha cremation grounds' are done away with.
•    An action plan of 100-days was ready and the results will show up within a year.
 

India’s first ever BIO-CNG plant producing CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) from agricultural residue was inaugurated in Pune, Maharashtra. 
•    It was jointly inaugurated by Union Minister of surface Transport Nitin Gadkari and Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. 
•    The plant was commissioned by Pune-based Primove Engineering Private Limited. It has been set up as a Proof of Concept (PoC) which can be replicated elsewhere. 
•    It uses special bacterial solution for treating agricultural waste in the process of generation of CNG. The gas generated is cleaned and compressed for use in vehicles. 
•    The bio-fuel will help in reducing the import of diesel up to 50% and therefore the huge amount of foreign exchange can be saved. 
•    This energy source is also cost effective and pollution free. 
•    This project is remarkable step in Make In India and also will help reduce problem of disposal of agricultural waste was a major concern in the country.

According to a one-minute video, Bhutan is the world's first carbon negative country, meaning that the country's forests absorb more carbon dioxide each year than it produces. 
•    Around 72% of its land is under forest cover due to Bhutan's strong environment protection policies. 
•    Interestingly, Bhutan is also the world's only country to use gross national happiness to measure its growth.
•    Nearly 56.3% of all Bhutanese citizens are involved with agriculture, forestry or conservation.
•    The government aims to promote conservation as part of its plan to target Gross National Happiness.
•    It currently has net zero greenhouse gas emissions because the small amount of pollution it creates is absorbed by the forests that cover most of the country.
•    The entire country collectively produces 2.2 million tons of carbon dioxide a year.
•    Yet the immense forest covering 72% of the country acts as a carbon sink, absorbing more than four million tons of carbon dioxide every year.
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The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) in first week of August 2016 announced that it will house India’s first repository on tigers, under its new Tiger Cell.
The Dehradun-based WII has about 23000 images of tigers, which will be maintained by the Tiger Cell.
•    If a tiger skin is recovered at a place, then a properly maintained database can be used to check where the tiger might have come from.
•    Y.V. Jhala, a wildlife scientist at the WII, will head the Tiger Cell.
•    The Wildlife Institute of India is an autonomous institution under the Union Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate change.
•    The founder of WII was V. B. Saharia.
•    The first Director was Hemendra Singh Panwar who remained the director from 1985 to 1994.
•    The institute is based in Dehradun. It is located in Chandrabani.
 

A panda-themed train made its debut on Sunday in southwest China's Sichuan province, home of the beloved black and white bears.
•    The train departed this morning with its first passengers, marking the opening of the fourth subway line in the provincial capital of Chengdu.
•    The carriages have handles shaped like panda heads, while the pole grips are painted to resemble bamboo.
•    The panda train also features announcements in the voice of a child for ‘maximum cuteness’.
•    The subway line, which runs from the southwest to the northeast of the city, is about 20 kilometres long and has 17 stops, passing through major tourist destinations, including the Chengdu Giant Panda Base
•    Chengdu is accelerating its subway construction, with five new lines scheduled to begin construction this year, Rao Yong, general manager of Chengdu Subway Service Co said.

With 1,263 bird species, India is home to nearly 12% of the total number of 10,135 bird species in the world, according to a study published in the journal 'Indian BIRDS'. 

•    Among the 1,263 species, Himalayan Forest Thrush (Zoothera salimalii) is reportedly the newest species discovered, while White-browed Crake (Amaurornis cinerea) is the latest entry to the country’s bird list.
•    Raptors or birds of prey, which include vultures, eagles, and kites, are represented by 57 species and typical babblers by 53 species. 
•    Of all the birds known to occur within the geographical boundaries of India, 61 species are endemic, found only in India, and another 134 species are near-endemic, meaning these are largely restricted to India with small populations found in neighboring countries.
•    Taxonomically, the bird population in the country is divided into 23 orders, 107 families and 498 genera.
•    Among the bird families, Muscicapidae (comprising chats, robins and flycatchers) are the most diverse, having as many as 97 species.

The temperature in Mitribah, Kuwait, surged on 21st July to a blistering 129.2 degrees (54 Celsius). 
•    And on 22nd July in Basra, Iraq, the mercury soared to 129.0 degrees (53.9 Celsius). 
•    If confirmed, these incredible measurements would represent the two hottest temperatures ever recorded in the Eastern Hemisphere, according to Weather Underground meteorologist Jeff Masters and weather historian Christopher Burt, who broke the news.
•    It’s also possible that Mitribah’s 129.2-degree reading matches the hottest ever reliably measured anywhere in the world. 
•    Both Mitribah and Basra’s readings are likely the highest ever recorded outside of Death Valley, Calif.
•    Death Valley currently holds the record for the world’s hottest temperature of 134.1 degrees (56.7 Celsius), set July 10, 1913.
•    In March, the National Academy of Sciences published a report that stated worsening heat waves are among the weather events that can be most easily connected to human-caused climate change.