Environment

Tropical songbirds stop breeding to survive drought

by Kelly MACNAMARA Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Songbirds in tropical rainforests curtail their reproduction to help them survive droughts, according to a study Monday. Species with longer lifespans were better able to cope with this environmental volatility than previously thought, researchers found. With more record hot spells gripping parts of the planet and biodiversity threatened by human encroachment on habitats, a crucial question is whether species can adapt to these ever-harsher conditions. […]

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Contaminated water sickens nearly 500 in China

BEIJING, China (AFP) — Hundreds of people in eastern China have been infected with bacteria which can cause dysentery after drinking contaminated water, state media said Monday, prompting the closure of a local water plant. Nearly 500 people in the rural town of Baoyi — about 550 kilometres (342 miles) west of Shanghai — have developed fever and diarrhoea since late last week. A report by the local government published Sunday found they have been […]

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Long ‘lost’ elephant shrew found in Horn of Africa

by Amélie BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — For half a century scientists feared that the Somali elephant shrew had vanished from the face of the Earth. No one had seen so much as a whisker. But the tiny mammal with its probing trunk-like nose was quietly thriving in the arid, rocky landscape of the Horn of Africa, researchers said Tuesday. The elusive, insect-eating creature is neither an elephant nor a shrew. It is […]

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Turkey’s bid to become maritime powerhouse unsettles Mediterranean

by Gokan Gunes with Raziye Akkoc in Ankara Agence France-Presse ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — Turkey’s big push into the Mediterranean featuring controversial gas drilling, tough rhetoric and warships is rooted in a grand vision of a “Blue Homeland” that takes over waters claimed by EU neighbours. Fearful of being denied a fair share of the region’s bountiful natural gas wealth, Turkey sent a research vessel and a small navy armada into seas Greece views as […]

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California fires cover 1 million acres amid fears of new spread

by Jocelyne ZABLIT Agence France-Presse LOS ANGELES, California (AFP) — Firefighters on Sunday battled some of California’s largest-ever fires that have forced tens of thousands from their homes and burned one million acres, with further lightning strikes and gusty winds forecast in the days ahead. Thousands of lightning strikes have hit the state in the past week, igniting fires that left smoke blanketing the region, bringing the total area burned to “close to one million […]

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DR Congo’s Virunga park condemns ‘illegal’ land sales

GOMA, DR Congo (AFP) — A world-famous gorilla reserve in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo denounced on Wednesday the “illegal sale” of land within its territory. Land in at least four areas of the Virunga National Park have been sold off, according to the reserve’s director. “The perpetrators falsely claim that the Congolese justice system has given them the land even though the current law prohibits all such practices,” said Emmanuel de Merode in a statement […]

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Salvors begin sinking ship which ran aground off Mauritius

PORT LOUIS, Mauritius (AFP) — Salvage crews on Thursday began the process of sinking the broken stem of a Japanese-owned ship which ran aground off Mauritius, leading to a major oil spill and ecological disaster for the Indian Ocean island. The MV Wakashio broke into two on Sunday, after a race against the clock to pump all the remaining oil off the bulk carrier which ran aground last month and began leaking black fuel into idyllic […]

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$600 million settlement in Flint water crisis

WASHINGTON D.C., United States (AFP) — The US state of Michigan has agreed to pay some $600 million to victims of the Flint water crisis, a health scandal that became a symbol of social injustice in America, officials said Thursday. The settlement could see payments to tens of thousands of people, children and adults alike, who may have ingested lead-tainted drinking water after the city of Flint changed the source for its water system in […]

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Amazon indigenous protesters vow indefinite roadblock

NOVO PROGRESSO, Brazil (AFP) — Armed with spears and bows, dozens of indigenous protesters in Brazil vowed Thursday to maintain a roadblock on a key highway until the authorities listen to their demands for help fighting COVID-19 and deforestation. Members of the Kayapo Mekranoti ethnic group have been blocking highway BR-163 through the Amazon since Monday outside the northern town of Novo Progresso. But they vowed that they would no longer lift their blockade periodically to […]

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Long ‘lost’ elephant shrew found in Horn of Africa

by Amélie BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS PARIS, France (AFP) — For half a century scientists feared that the Somali elephant shrew had vanished from the face of the Earth. No one had seen so much as a whisker. But the tiny mammal with its probing trunk-like nose was quietly thriving in the arid, rocky landscape of the Horn of Africa, researchers said Tuesday. The elusive, insect-eating creature is neither an elephant nor a shrew. It is a sengi […]

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Japan experts head to Mauritius for oil spill clean-up

NARITA, Japan (AFP) — A new team of experts left Japan for Mauritius on Wednesday with special oil-absorbent materials to help the clean-up of tonnes of oil that leaked from a Japanese-owned ship. “The oil leak from the stranded ship has caused severe damage to the people of Mauritius, the economy of which largely relies on tourism and the beautiful ocean,” environment ministry official Yukihiro Haisa told reporters before the departure. “I am terribly distressed.” […]

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Brazil indigenous protesters defy court, resume roadblock

NOVO PROGRESSO, Brazil (AFP) — Indigenous protesters in Brazil defied a court order Tuesday and resumed a roadblock of a key highway through the Amazon rainforest, demanding help against the new coronavirus and an end to illegal mining and deforestation. Brandishing bows and wearing traditional feather headdresses and body paint, dozens of protesters from the Kayapo Mekranoti ethnic group have been blocking highway BR-163 through the Amazon rainforest since Monday morning. They briefly lifted their […]

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