Tag: nature

In photos: Nature’s beauty unfolds in Petrusburg, South Africa

  The beauty of nature as each day unfolds can be seen in these photos in Petrusburg, South Africa, the site of the eco-farming community of the Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church Of Christ). These photos taken by Cara Luzeleine Sanico at the site captures these various scenes of nature. “Farm life might sound dull to some as it is away from the bustling and busy streets of a town or a city. But everyday life […]

Bird watching for peace in Colombia

by Hervé BAR Agence France-Presse PLANADAS, Colombia (AFP) – As a bird perches on a telegraph pole, two young girls are deep in consultation — is it “Tiranus melancholicus,” or perhaps “Pyrocephalus rubinus?” The answer is “rubinus,” a sparrow with a bright red breast. In the center of Colombia, among the leafy mountains of Planadas, this ornithological debate by indigenous children might seem surprising. With their eyes scanning the mountain, around 30 people, adults and […]

Serbian cave hermit gets Covid-19 jab, urges others to follow

by Miodrag SOVILJ PIROT, Serbia (AFP) — Almost twenty years ago, Panta Petrovic made social distancing a lifestyle choice when he moved into a tiny Serbian mountain cave to avoid society. Last year, on one of his visits to town, the dreadlocked man with a long beard found out there was a pandemic raging. After vaccines against Covid-19 became available, he got jabbed and urges everyone to do the same. “It (the virus) does not […]

AI program DeepMind, untangles one of biology’s great challenges

by Kelly MACNAMARA Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — For decades scientists have been trying to figure out how to swiftly predict the twisting, tangled shape of proteins — and from there unravel a greater understanding of the machinery of life itself. This week an Artificial Intelligence program created by Google sister firm DeepMind was shown to have virtually cracked the challenge, forecasting the way in which proteins contort into three dimensional structures in the […]

Unique vine ‘greenhouses’ found by 91-year-old nature volunteer

by Kelly MACNAMARA Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — An unusual vine discovered by a 91-year-old volunteer nature guide in Japan has a “unique” way of using its leaves to curl around its fruits to envelop them in a protective microclimate, scientists said on Wednesday. The cucurbitaceous vine, a type found in East Asia, is an oddity because while leaves come in all shapes and sizes and perform a crucial role in photosynthesis, they are […]

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. […]

Venice nurtures its lagoon back to health

by Céline CORNU Agence France-Presse VENICE, Italy (AFP) — Venice may be famed for Saint Mark’s Square or the Bridge of Sighs, but the Italian city has another jewel that is often overlooked: its lagoon. Once home to a rich variety of fish and birds, mankind’s meddling has raised the water’s salt content dramatically. However, an environmental project aims to restore it to its former glory, by introducing more fresh water. “The idea is to […]

Case cracked: mystery Antarctica fossil is massive prehistoric egg

by Sara HUSSEIN Agence France-Presse TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Scientists had nicknamed it “The Thing” — a mysterious football-sized fossil discovered in Antarctica that sat in a Chilean museum awaiting someone who could work out just what it was. Now, analysis has revealed the mystery fossil to be a soft-shelled egg, the largest ever found, laid some 68 million years ago, possibly by a type of extinct sea snake or lizard. The revelation ends nearly […]

Nature takes back world’s empty city streets

by Laure FILLON / Julie Pacorel PARIS, France (AFP) — As humans retreat into their homes as more and more countries go under coronavirus lockdown, wild animals are slipping cover to explore the empty streets of some of our biggest cities. Wild boar have descended from the hills around Barcelona while sika deer are nosing their way around the deserted metro stations of Nara, Japan. Indian social media has gone wild about footage of a […]

Nature takes back world’s empty city streets

by Laure FILLON / Julie Pacorel Agence France-Presse Paris, France (AFP) — As humans retreat into their homes as more and more countries go under coronavirus lockdown, wild animals are slipping cover to explore the empty streets of some of our biggest cities. Wild boar have descended from the hills around Barcelona while sika deer are nosing their way around the deserted metro stations of Nara, Japan. Indian social media has gone wild about footage of […]

Catapulting spider winds up web to launch at prey: study

by Issam AHMED WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Just when you thought spiders couldn’t get any more terrifying. A study published Monday has found that an arachnid species is capable of winding up its web to store up elastic energy, before releasing its grip and catapulting itself at furious speed toward its unsuspecting prey. The development places the triangle-weaver spider, or Hyptiotes cavatus, alongside humans as the other known species to amplify muscular energy with […]

Antarctic penguins suffer ‘catastrophic’ breeding failure

The second largest Emperor penguin colony on Earth has suffered a “catastrophic” breeding failure after nearly all chicks born over three years died as their icy Antarctic habitat shrinks, researchers said Thursday. The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) used satellite imagery to study the behaviour of the Halley Bay colony in the Weddell Sea due south of Cape Hope, which normally sees up to 25,000 penguin pairs mate each year. They found that in 2016, when […]