A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment:
This is the well-named Three-wattled Bellbird, a bird of the middle and upper canopies of humid forests in Central America. Their numbers are decreasing and their conservation status is considered vulnerable. It is the American Bird Conservancy's featured Bird of the Week.
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The mystery of the "Golden Blob" that was retrieved from the ocean near Alaska in 2023 has at last been solved. It seems it was part of an anemone.
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The air strikes against Iran have created oil spills that can be seen from space.
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Speaker Mike Johnson was all set to call for a vote on legislation to gut the Endangered Species Act but bipartisan opposition forced him stop. At least for now.
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Butterflies are in decline all across the continent. A study of the Western Monarch shows why.
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In the past, wildfires tended to die down at night, but no more. Climate change has apparently been the cause of their continuing to burn through the night.
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Scientists found that cocaine pollution seemed to cause salmon to swim farther.
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Research indicates that Neanderthal kids grew faster than their human peers. But scientists now believe that a lack of genetic diversity may have contributed to the species' ultimate demise.
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Environmental groups are suing to block British oil giant BP from drilling in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
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We lost a giant this week. Desmond Morris, the zoologist who wrote "The Naked Ape" which outlined our genetic connection with apes, has died. He was 98 years old.
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Here are some of the major discoveries found in North America's legendary boneyard, the Hell Creek Formation.
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A vast number of ground-nesting bees were found in a cemetery in Ithaca, New York, in 2023.
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Evidence suggests that our species is still evolving.
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Monarch butterflies have reached as far north as Iowa, New Jersey, and Indiana in their spring migration from Mexico and Central America.
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New discoveries in Guatemala offer evidence that the Maya rejected divine kingship in their time of trouble and transition.
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A papyrus excerpt from "The Iliad" has been found inside the wrappings of a 1,600-year-old Egyptian mummy.
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Bruce, a Kea parrot without a beak, has still managed to stay atop the pecking order in his group.
Good morning, Dorothy. Thank you for the roundup. I had not heard that Desmond Morris had died. He was indeed a giant and “The Naked Ape” was a landmark publication. Bi-partisan opposition to a bill designed to gut the Endangered Species Act? Is there hope yet or does it represent only a delaying tactic. Trump and his sycophants get crazier by the day. Have a great weekend. Very best wishes - David
ReplyDeleteI'm crossing my fingers that the refusal to gut the ESA does represent hope.
DeleteExtraordinary research continues across the world, even as wildfires and oil spills point to man's insatiable urge apparently to destroy civilisation, and fish fall foul of drug consumption.
ReplyDeleteThere are many people working to make the world a better and safer place while, on the other hand, many are choosing to harm the planet. Two, opposite, sides of the same (human) coin, I guess.
DeleteI liked the anemone story and the article about how we are evolving and which traits are being kept & emphasized - fascinating. With all these, I might have to get a Smithsonian subscription sometime.
ReplyDeleteThe Smithsonian always has fascinating and well-written articles.
DeleteThanks for sharing the fact that the gutting of the Environmental Protection Act was stopped by popular support for that bill. It's good to know that someone is listening when I call or email!
ReplyDeleteThose calls and emails definitely turned the tide. We need to ensure that they keep on coming.
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