Biodiversity

"America’s birds are in trouble. Since 1970, nearly 3 billion birds have vanished from the skies over North America. Most of those losses have been in migratory species, which may breed in the United States or Canada in the summer before heading elsewhere for the winter."

"The boy came home from school weakened by fever, his ears burning-hot. ... Then, the telltale red spots appeared on his hands. But none of the doctors in this rural community along Mexico’s Pacific coast recognized the warning sign for one of the most lethal infectious diseases in the Americas — Rocky Mountain spotted fever. A week later, the boy was dead."

"A new rule governing federally protected waters and wetlands was issued Tuesday by the EPA to align agency regulations with a US Supreme Court ruling that will allow unpermitted development in wetlands across the country."

"In 2021, the South African government committed to shutting down the country’s captive-lion breeding industry, which provided animals for canned hunts. Among the sticking points slowing progress is what should happen to the thousands of lions that remain on private ranches."

"They are some of the most exclusive clubs in town. Some people wait up to two years to become dues-paying members. And no, it’s not the swanky Jonathan Club or hip SoHo House — it’s your local community garden."

"When Reed Cammack hears the first meadowlark of spring, he knows his family has made it through another cold, snowy winter on the western South Dakota prairie. Nothing’s better, he says, than getting up at sunrise as the birds light up the area with song."

"It’s a seemingly harmless act: smooching a tiny turtle as it sits in the palm of your hand. But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning animal lovers not to do it."

"The loss of ice in one region of Antarctica last year likely resulted in none of the emperor penguin chicks surviving in four colonies, researchers reported Thursday."

"The heat, a new study suggests, makes for an ideal breeding ground for these eight-legged animals."

"Even bird enthusiasts will admit the southwestern willow flycatcher isn’t very flashy. But in studying the DNA of this brownish-olive songbird, scientists say they have found something remarkable: evidence that the endangered bird is adapting at the genetic level to climate change."