Gulf Sturgeon, last seen in Florida waters south of the Suwannee River in the 1880s, are back. For how long no one knows. Florida State Fish and Game Conservation Commission officials released 48, hatchery-raised, two-year-old, two-foot-long Gulf Sturgeons into the Hillsborough river in November. The boneless, cartilage-covered fish can grow to six-feet long and 150 pounds. They become sexually mature at seven to eight years of age. Each fish was equipped with two identification devices, a microchip and an acoustic signal transmitter. Volunteers will track the fish to determine their whereabouts and whether they can survive the various threats, including alligators, in Southern Florida waters.� 

  Air France remains determined, defiant, and courageous in its effort to help biomedical researchers improve the health and welfare of humans and animals alike, despite a vigorous campaign by Animal Rights groups to have the airline halt transporting animals needed by researchers. In September, China Airlines bowed to pressure from the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection and the U.S.-based Animal Protection Institute and halted shipments of monkeys slated for laboratories in the United States. Air France’ North American Vice President Bernard Fratinni said his company had no intention of halting its mercy flights intended to aid humans and animals alike.�