Environment

A trip to the land of endangered ancient olive trees

by Michaela CANCELA-KIEFFER Agence France Presse TRAIGUERA, Spain (AFP) — The sun sets in eastern Spain and dozens of ancient olive trees cast long shadows on the ground. Once dug up and sold as luxury items for the wealthy, they are increasingly protected as farmers and authorities realise these trees, some of which were planted by the Romans, are an invaluable part of Spain’s heritage. Near the town of Traiguera, Amador Peset, 37, gets out […]

Eaglet hatches in Florida

FORT MYERS, Florida (Reuters) —  The first of two bald eagle eggs that millions of people have been watching online hatched early Saturday morning (December 31) in Fort Myers, Florida. Two bald eagles named Harriet and M15 have been patiently waiting for the first eagle to break out of its shell after pipping began Thursday with the first cracks in the shell. The pipping process can be arduous and take between 24 to 48 hours, […]

Race to save the cheetah as study reveals extinction threat

by Ben Sheppard Agence France-Presse HARTBEESPOORT, South Africa (AFP) — Lounging in the shade of a tree, Heathcliff the cheetah oozes sleek grace and power, but he is captive behind a wire fence — perhaps the only way that cheetahs will exist in a few decades’ time. A major survey released last week revealed that just 7,100 adult cheetahs remain in the wild, and that the species faces extinction without urgent new protection measures. At […]

A jaguar in Ecuador bounces back after suffering shotgun wound

QUITO, Ecuador (Reuters) — A lucky jaguar in Ecuador is getting a new lease on life after recovering in a Quito veterinary clinic where she was brought with a shotgun wound some two and a half months ago. The jaguar, which has been named D’yaira, was brought to a University San Francisco de Quito (USFQ) animal hospital with 18 shotgun pellet wounds. One of the pellets was lodged in the big cat’s spinal cord causing paralysis […]

Dogs accompany owner to emergency room

CHIMBOTE, Peru (Reuters) — They really are man’s best friend. After a resident of the central Peruvian coastal city of Chimbote got drunk and hit his head, he needed an ambulance to take him to the area hospital. But a funny thing happened on the way to the trauma room; his two dogs decided to accompany and help their owner. The man, who according to security footage, appeared to be slipping in and out of […]

Sydney zoo welcomes baby koala

SYDNEY, Australia (Reuters) –Zookeepers at Sydney’s iconic Taronga Zoo welcomed the arrival of a seven-month-old male koala joey on Friday (December 23), who emerged from his mother’s pouch two days before the holiday. The second joey to be born to mother Sydney, the yet-to-be named joey will spend another three to four month with her before going it alone, Taronga Zoo said in a statement. “It’s a bit hot inside that pouch on steamy summer […]

Cheetahs ‘sprinting’ towards extinction: wildlife study

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Cheetahs are “sprinting” to extinction due to habitat loss and other forms of human impact, according to a new study out this week which called for urgent action to save the world’s fastest land animals. Cheetah numbers in Zimbabwe have plunged by more than 85 percent in 16 years and fewer than 50 individuals survive in Iran, the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) warned. The […]

Blizzard pelts U.S. Northern Plains, closing highways

NORTH DAKOTA, United States (Reuters) — Below-freezing temperatures, snow and icy roads menaced the U.S. Northern Plains on Monday, (December 26) forcing North Dakota and South Dakota to close major highways and warn people to remain indoors due to a winter storm that also swept across much of the Midwest. Rain and freezing rain also were possible over parts of the Northern Plains and Upper Midwest, where winter weather advisories and winter storm warnings were […]

Odd facts about the giraffe

NAIROBI, Kenya (AFP) — One of the most under-studied large mammals in Africa, research has shown the giraffe has silently been going extinct, with numbers dropping 40 percent in the past three decades. Here are some unusual facts about one of the most distinctive-looking creatures on the continent. Neck The giraffe’s best-known feature can be longer than most people are tall. However, like humans it still only has seven vertebrae. Each is about 25 centimeters […]

Climate report says 2016 on pace to be hottest year yet

MIAMI, United States (AFP) — A monthly global climate report by US government scientists Monday offered more evidence that 2016 is likely to be the warmest year in modern times, as sea ice at both poles hit record lows. Climate scientists say the continued burning of fossil fuels is spewing greenhouse gasses that trap heat in the atmosphere, making the planet warm up. In addition, a strong El Nino trend in the first half of the […]

Poyang Lake sees peak arrival of migratory birds

(Reuters) — Poyang Lake located in Duchang County in east China’s Jiangxi Province, has seen its peak arrival of about 600,000 migratory birds. Poyang Lake, China’s largest freshwater lake, welcomes nearly 600,000 migratory birds every year. Li Yue, director of the Administration Department of Duchang County Migratory Birds Natural Reserve Area, said among all the birds, cygnets are the main species which contributes to 50,000 of the total number in the past five years. “Duchang […]

Rainbow snake, tiny frog among new Mekong species

BANGKOK, Thailand (AFP) — A rainbow-headed snake, a tiny frog and a lizard with dragon-like horns are among more than 150 new species confirmed by scientists last year in the ecologically diverse but threatened Mekong region, researchers said on Monday. Winding its way from the Tibetan plateau through the mountains and jungles of Southeast Asia, the Mekong river helps sustain one of the most diverse regions on the planet. Each year scientists announce new species, […]