Thousands of potential new marine species found in Philippine waters

New mollusk species found in Philippines

A very rare seashell of the Slit shell family (scientific name: Bayerotrochus philpoppei) which was discovered by Belgian Guido Poppe in early 2006 off Balut Island in southern Philippines is displayed at the National Museum in Manila, Philippines Monday Feb.5, 2007 at the turn-over ceremony of newly-discovered marine species in the waters off Panglao Island in Bohol province in central Philippines. More than 1,200 species of decapod crustaceans and some 6,000 species of mollusks were discovered by the Panglao 2005-2006 Expedition team headed by Dr. Philippe Bouchet of the French National Museum of Natural History. Only 10 specimens are known around the world as claimed by Belgian Guido Poppe who discovered the rare find and has a price tag of US $10,000 dollars. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)

MANILA, Philippines - A French-led marine expedition team believes it has discovered thousands of new species of mollusks and crustaceans around a Philippine island, officials and scientists announced Monday.

Some 80 scientists, technicians, students and volunteers from 19 countries surveyed waters around Panglao island, 390 miles southeast of Manila from 2004-2005.

The Panglao Marine Biodiversity Project turned over to the Philippine National Museum on Monday more than a hundred holotypes or representative specimen of the rare finds, officials said.

"Numerous species were observed and photographed alive, many for the first time, and it is estimated that 150-250 of the crustaceans and 1,500-2,500 of the mollusks are new species," said a statement from the expedition team, which was led by Philippe Bouchet of the French National Museum of Natural History.

"However, it requires a thorough comparison with all previously named species to ascertain if a novel species is indeed new to science," it added. "This is a slow and tedious process."

The expedition team said its survey revealed over 1,200 species of decapod crustaceans — a group that includes crayfish, crabs, lobsters and shrimps — and some 6,000 species of mollusks.

The expedition received funding from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Total Foundation.

India to form aerospace defence command

India will form an "aerospace defence" command to protect against attacks from outer space, officials said Sunday.

The announcement comes three days after India called for a "weapons free outer space" in response to China's test of an anti-satellite weapon.

Indian Air Force (IAF) commander Shashi Tyagi said military was in the process of building an aerospace program but gave no timetable for its progress.

"We will take help of ISRO (Indian Space Research organisation) for the aerospace command but it will have distinct features as it is a military command," he said.


Indian airforce chief Shashi Tyagi speaks at a press conference in Gandhinagar. Tyagi said the military was in the process of establishing an aerospace defence command "to exploit outer space," the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency reported. AFP/File/Sam Panthaky photo via Yahoo News.

APU Person of the Year: Kim Jong Il

North Korean potentate Kim Jong Il becomes the first person to win AsiaPacificUniverse.com's Person of the Year award twice. In 2001, both Kim Dae-jung of South Korea and Kim Jong-il were selected as the most newsworthy persons of the year in the Asia Pacific region.

Kim Jong Il's standoff with the West and with neighboring South Korea and Japan culminating in Pyongyang's first nuclear detonation make him the hands-down winner for this year's honors. Since neither Iran or Iraq are within our purview, neither Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad or former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein were in the running.


Kim Il Jong. AFP Photo via Yahoo News.

Other candidates included former Nepali king Gyanendra Shahi who was forced to reliquish control of his government after hijacking the Nepalese democracy. Nepal now stand ready to vote on whether it should become a full republic, or hold on to a powerless constitutional monarchy.

Another monarch King Tupou IV died at 88 this year after leading his country since 1965, making him at the time of his death the fourth longest-reigning royal in the world. His son, King George Tupou V, has been forced to postpone his coronation ceremonies after deadly riots by anti-monarchy elements in Tonga.

But the North Korean leader stole the show with his bold and dangerous stand over Pyongyang's nuclear program. Few people could have predicted a year earlier that the North would be a confirmed nuclear power by now, although it has long been suspected that the country had untested nuclear weapons.

Kim Jong Il started this year's nuclear brinkmanship with repeated missile tests including tests of his feared ICBM, which according to Western sources failed in flight. Then came the usual threats to plunge the world into conflagaration if folks did not stop picking on Pyongyang.

Since he won Person of the Year in 2001, Kim Jong Il has carved an image for himself and a familiar persona that exceeds that even of his hard-handed father. He has become the quintessential Asian strong-man that exceeds even cartoon caricatures.

It's not hard to imagine this leader ruling the country from some luxurious super-fortified underground palace surrounded by the "Joy Brigade" which is said to include lovelies from Sweden. Sensitive about his diminutive stature, the Korean dictator is said to wear four inch lifts to make him appear more imposing.

News reports also claim that he is fond of Hennessey cognac and over the last 10 years has averaged around US$700,000 in purchases of this alcoholic beverage. It is said that he likes Italian food, but one Russian official claims that his favorite meal is roasted donkey.

A collector of movie videotapes, it is reported that he particularly favors James Bond flicks among Western offerings.

According to official biographies, Kim Il Jong was born on the sacred Mount Paektu, home of Korean civilization. "At the time of his birth there were flashes of lightning and thunder, the iceberg in the pond on Mount Paektu emitted a mysterious sound as it broke, and bright double rainbows rose up," so the story goes.

Although he lived a life of luxury as son of Korean leader Kim Il Sung, his mother died when he was seven and his younger brother drowned as a child.

He rose to the rank of leader of the Worker's Party of Korea before succeeding his father in 1994. News reports say he has three sons and at least one daughter who live with him in his "pleasure palace."

In his confrontation with the West, Kim Il Jong seems well fit for the role alternately showing extreme emotion or a poker face in the face of adversity. Most people who have met him don't think he's crazy despite his growing reputation as the villain of the West.

His boldness, skill in using the media, and expertise at the negotiating table make him a tough adversary. The fact that he relishes the spotlight doesn't hurt either.

Indeed by becoming a two-time APU Person of the Year, Kim Il Jong seems born to play a prominent role on the world's stage.


Korean Central News Agency photo on December 6, shows North Korean Leader Kim Jong-Il and his generals inspecting a sub-unit of the Korean People's Army Unit. AFP photo via Yahoo News.


North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, center, poses for a photograph with the soldiers of Korean People's Army 821 unit, which is situated on the undisclosed forefront, North Korea, in this early April 2006 file photo. AP Photo/Korea Central News Agency via Korea News Service/FILE via Yahoo News.