DOUBS, France (AFP ) — Two one-year-old lynxes who had been rescued after the disappearance of their mother in 2015, were released back into the wild in the Jura region of France. https://youtu.be/YVT0OrmQTeU
Environment
‘Smart’ tropical fish can recognise human faces
by Mariëtte Le Roux PARIS, France (AFP) — A tropical fish can tell one human face from another despite lacking a brain section that homo sapiens and other “smart” animals use for this task, scientists said Tuesday. The astonishing ability was demonstrated in experiments with eight archerfish, a tropical species best known for spitting pressurised water jets to shoot prey out of the air. Instead of aiming at bugs, the sharpshooting fish were taught to […]
Thai man narrowly escapes toilet bowl snake attack
PATHUM THANI, Thailand (Reuters) — A Thai man narrowly escaped a snake attack on Sunday (June 5) as a cobra emerged from his toilet bowl in the second such incident reported in Thailand in about two weeks. Twenty-seven year old Pollapat Laokamnerdpetch told local media he spotted the cobra, popping its head out from the toilet bowl. After rescue officials were called in, the cobra managed to disappear in the toilet pipes. It took 30 […]
DENR exhorts Pinoys to help save endangered Philippine eagle
QUEZON CITY, Philippines – Environment Secretary Ramon J.P. Paje renewed his call for Filipinos to help in the fight to save and protect the majestic Philippine eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi), as the nation celebrates the Philippine Eagle Week (PEW) from June 4-10. This developed as the juvenile Philippine eagle earlier rescued after being accidentally caught in a trap in Aurora province was formally turned over to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Thursday, […]
Chinese giant panda gives birth in Belgium
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — A giant panda on loan to Belgium from China has given birth to a cub, a rare event for the endangered species, the Pairi Daiza zoo said Thursday. The zoo and the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda “have the great pleasures to announce the birth of a panda cub”, Pairi Daiza said in a statement. “Less than 2,000 pandas can be found in the wild, making every […]
Many corals dead or dying on Barrier Reef: scientists
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — At least 35 percent of corals in the northern and central regions of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef are dead or dying from a mass bleaching event, scientists said Monday. The assessment was made following months of aerial and underwater surveys after the worst bleaching in recorded history first became evident in March as sea temperatures warm. Terry Hughes, director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at the […]
Rare ‘werewolf cat’ found in Cape Town
(AFP) One of the world’s rarest cats — a Lykoi or ‘werewolf cat’ — has been found in public gardens in the centre of Cape Town. The partially hairless animal, name Eyona, is one of only 35 such animals recorded with the natural mutation around the world since 2011, according to animal rescue group Tears. Jenny Goldhawk-Smith / AFPTV / AFP
Climate change still a ‘race against the clock’: UN climate chief
by Marlowe HOOD BONN, Germany (AFP) — Even after the world sealed a historic climate deal in Paris, the UN’s climate chief is worried humanity won’t be able break its fossil fuel habit in time to avert catastrophe, she told AFP Thursday. “My concern is whether the transformation is going to happen fast enough to avert the worst impacts,” Christiana Figueres said, referring to the global shift from carbon-polluting fossil fuels to green energy. “Greenhouse […]
Severe sandstorm hits China’s inner Mongolia
Credit: Reuters/CCTV
James Bond star Daniel Craig speaks out against landmines
James Bond star Daniel Craig appeared at the World Humanitarian Summit in Turkey on Monday, May 23 to speak out against landmines. Craig spoke before business leaders, aid groups and donors in Istanbul for the world’s first Humanitarian Summit and called on government to do more to clear landmines. The summit is an attempt to develop a more coherent response to what the U.N. Chief Ban Ki-Moon has called the worst global humanitarian situation since […]
Virtual Reality Project offers 360° views of Mount Everest
Mammut Sports group says it has achieved a milestone in digital cartography. For the first time, Mount Everest’s southern climbing route, beginning at the Nepalese base camp up to the “roof of the world”, has been documented by 360° videography and photography. (Eagle News)
Indonesian birds face extinction due to pet trade: study
JAKARTA, Indonesia(AFP) — Thirteen species of Indonesian birds, including the country’s symbolic Javan Hawk-eagle, are at serious risk of extinction mainly due to the pet trade, a wildlife watchdog warned Wednesday. The vast Indonesian archipelago is home to a dizzying array of birds and keeping them as pets has long been part of the national culture, with birdcages a common sight outside homes and shops across the country. However increasing demand for some species as […]
