State briefs for July 5

Hurricane Barbara loses strength

MEXICO CITY — Hurricane Barbara continued to lose punch as it moved through the open Pacific far from land Thursday, sapped by cooler waters and wind shear.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Barbara was downgraded from a Category 4 storm to a Category 2, with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph.

Its center was located about 1,420 mileswest-southwest of the southern tip of Baja Calif.

Barbara was forecast to weaken further, becoming a tropical storm on Friday and a post-tropical cyclone the following day.

The hurricane center said models show it dissipating east of Hawaii, though the storm’s remnants could reach the islands next week.

Honolulu Zoo announces birth of endangered ring-tailed lemur

HONOLULU — A member of an endangered lemur species was born at the Honolulu Zoo.

The ring-tailed lemur was born June 10 to 4-year-old mother Remi and 3-year-old father Finn.

“The Honolulu Zoo is very excited to have a newborn lemur as the parents are part of a captive breeding program and help further one of the zoo’s main missions: conservation,” said zoo director Linda Santos.

The adult lemurs arrived separately at the zoo in fall 2018 with hopes they would bear offspring, officials said.

The Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Ring-Tailed Lemur Species Survival Plan helped bring the breeding pair to the zoo. The lemurs are on display at the zoo’s Primate Islands attraction.

“Baby and mother are doing well and are currently separated from the father as Remi is very protective of her baby,” Santos said. “The family will be reunited when Remi is ready.”

Lemurs are recognizable by their black-and-white banded tails that are about 2 feet long.

Ring-tailed lemurs are listed as endangered and only live in the wild in Madagascar.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature says lemurs are among the world’s most endangered mammals. As of 2013, up to 90% of lemur species faced extinction within 20-25 years, the organization said.

The main threats to lemurs include hunting, trapping, logging, wood harvesting and the conversion of forests into agricultural land, the group said.
Source: Hawaii Tribune Herald