University of Newcastle scientists suggest frozen sperm could be used to impregnate females in breed-for-release programs
Freezing koala sperm could become a key part of a strategy to save koalas from extinction by 2050.
University of Newcastle scientists Lachlan Howell and Ryan Witt say koala “biobanking”, could be harnessed with IVF technology to help the endangered species reproduce.
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Continue reading...Dangerous pests forming floating rafts with their bodies to survive in Queensland after floods
Invasive fire ants have used recent flooding in Queensland to expand their Australian invasion, teaming up and forming floating rafts with their bodies to allow them to survive for weeks at a time.
Eradication officers in Queensland have captured photos of the dangerous ants forming the rafts in flood waters.
Continue reading...Global heating speeding up their decline as terrain of newly discovered alpine species disappears
Six new alpine species of New Zealand’s most unusual and beloved insect – the wētā – have been discovered, but it is a bittersweet victory, with another piece of research describing the threat global heating poses for their snowy mountain habitat.
Wētā belong to the same group of insects as crickets and grasshoppers, and there are between 70 and 100 species of wētā endemic to New Zealand. They are wingless and nocturnal, and some, including the wētāpunga, are among the heaviest insects in the world – comparable to the weight of a sparrow.
Continue reading...Visitors to the Chicago zoo showing the 415lb Amare pictures and videos through the glass wall has made him dismissive to other male gorillas
A teenage gorilla in a Chicago zoo has been getting too much screen time, according to zoo officials.
Amare, a 415-pound gorilla at Chicago’s Lincoln Park zoo, has been staring a little too frequently at the screens of cellphones from visitors who show him pictures and videos through the glass wall – including selfies, family photos, pet videos and even footage of Amare himself.
Continue reading...William Renny, Callum Lewis and Evan Lorne pleaded guilty to public order offences at December hunt in Lacock
Three hunt supporters have been fined for public order offences after admitting clashing with saboteurs at a post-Christmas meet in Wiltshire.
William Renny, 30, Callum Lewis, 26, and Evan Lorne, 18, pleaded guilty to using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour with intent to cause unlawful violence.
Continue reading...Of 57 species sampled, 35 decreased in number by 50% over four decades, with climate crisis likely factor
Bird populations in a Central American tropical rainforest are suffering severe declines, with likely factors including climate breakdown and habitat loss.
Scientists from the University of Illinois tracked species of birds in a protected forest reserve in central Panama to determine if and how populations had changed from 1977 to 2020.
Continue reading...Colonies mix annually at Winspit caves near Swanage, a hibernation site for rare greater horseshoe bats
Three sea caves hewn into the rocky coastline of Dorset that are the bat equivalent of a speed-dating site, attracting crowds of the flying mammals from as far as 40 miles away, have been acquired by the National Trust.
The bats gather at Winspit caves near Swanage in the late summer and early autumn, dart around the cliffs and, if all goes well, find a mate from a different colony.
Continue reading...Fossil analysis is shedding new light on the origins of egg-laying mammals and their arrival on the continent
Researchers have pinpointed exactly how and when echidnas likely arrived in Australia as part of a fossil analysis shedding new light on the origins of egg-laying mammals.
The platypus and four species of echidna are the only remaining living monotremes – mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young. New analysis of every monotreme fossil discovered to date has recast the earliest history of the animals.
Continue reading...Race marshal says trio’s decision to bring dogs inside ‘affected the competition for racers’ as Peta condemns Alaska race
A fierce winter storm in the last stretch of this year’s Iditarod Trail Sled Dog, which ultimately forced six mushers to quit the same day, now has seen three mushers punished for sheltering their dogs instead of leaving them outside in the harsh conditions.
Mille Porsild of Denmark, Michelle Phillips of Canada and Riley Dyche of Fairbanks were penalized for taking dogs inside shelter cabins to ride out the storm with winds so strong, they whipped up white-out conditions, the Anchorage Daily News reported Friday.
Continue reading...Huge search and resue mission discovered body of Craig Clouatre, who went missing north of Yellowstone this week
A Montana sheriff has thanked a huge search and rescue mission, involving people on the ground as well as helicopters, that discovered a missing hiker who appears to have been killed by a grizzly bear north of Yellowstone national park.
“We’re fortunate to have a group of experienced volunteers on our [search and rescue] team and we’re thankful for the folks who have come to help,” the Park county sheriff, Brad Bichler, said in a statement.
Continue reading...Second whistleblower suggests to committee that top civil servants lied to cover up episode
A second whistleblower has gone public to say it was “widespread knowledge” in government that Boris Johnson ordered the prioritisation of an animal charity based in Afghanistan for evacuation during the Taliban takeover last summer.
Josie Stewart, who worked in the Foreign Office for seven years, including a stint in the Kabul embassy, suggested senior civil servants in the department had lied to cover up the embarrassing episode.
Continue reading...Cornish pub used in Daphne du Maurier novel says there are no pluses, just minuses to hunt visits
A pub that was the setting for a novel by Daphne du Maurier has banned hunts from meeting on its land after 100 years of the practice.
The Jamaica Inn in Cornwall – immortalised in the 1936 novel of the same name about smuggling – announced the decision after the East Cornwall Hunt invited the Beaufort Hunt to meet there on Saturday, a move the pub called “extremely ill-advised”.
Continue reading...Rewilding programme marks the ‘most significant step’ in ensuring the critically endangered species’ survival
Five mountain bongos have been released into a sanctuary in Kenya, a milestone in the fight for the animals’ survival with fewer than 100 left in the wild
Considered critically endangered, the chestnut-coloured mountain bongo is one of the largest forest antelopes and native to the equatorial forests of Mount Kenya, Eburu, Mau and Aberdares. IUCN predicts their numbers will probably continue to decline without direct action. A recent wildlife census in Kenya counted just 96 mountain bongos in the wild.
Continue reading...Experts launch Australian Alliance for Animals to push for independent national animal welfare commission
Two RSPCA animal welfare experts have left the organisation to campaign for a national independent animal welfare commission, saying the current regulatory structure is “broken”.
Dr Bidda Jones stepped down as chief scientific officer at RSPCA Australia in late 2021, after 25 years. Dr Jed Goodfellow stepped down as a senior policy officer in October.
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Continue reading...Sheriff’s deputies destroyed the animal after finding ‘two unconscious victims’ and ‘a camel still on the loose
A camel killed two men after escaping a petting zoo in Tennessee, a county sheriff said.
Officials from the Obion county sheriff’s office said the fatal incident unfolded around 5.44pm on Thursday, when they “received a call of a loose camel near Shirley Farms on South Bluff Road in Obion … attacking people”.
Continue reading...Hill’s horseshoe bat, which conservationists feared was extinct, discovered clinging to life in Nyungwe rainforest
A critically endangered species of bats not sighted in 40 years has been found in Rwanda, with the “incredible” discovery delighting conservationists who had feared it was already extinct.
But the Hill’s horseshoe bat was in fact still clinging to life in Rwanda’s Nyungwe forest – a dense rainforest that is home to endangered mountain gorillas – the consortium behind the discovery said.
Continue reading...Raja, who will be stuffed for posterity, was considered so important that when he travelled he had his own security detail
Sri Lanka is in mourning after the death of the country’s most sacred elephant, who is to be given a state funeral and his remains to be preserved and stuffed “for future generations” on orders of the president.
Nadungamuwa Vijaya Raja, popularly known as Raja, was considered to be the largest tamed elephant in Asia and as a young calf he had been among those “chosen” as the elite elephants who carried sacred Buddhist relics during an annual parade in Sri Lanka.
Continue reading...Animal activists criticise removal of bear known as Juan Carrito, taken to an enclosure for ‘problem’ animals
A rare brown bear who became famous after breaking into a bakery and feasting on the biscuits has been captured in the central Italian region of Abruzzo, sparking criticism from animal activists.
The marsican bear, affectionately known as Juan Carrito by residents in the mountain town of Roccaraso, has been taken to an enclosure for “problem” animals.
Continue reading...Expert says pigs are ‘worst invasive wild mammal on the planet’, carrying diseases, destroying crops and contaminating water
The Canadian city of Edmonton may soon be hogtied with a problem that it won’t be able to barbecue its way out of.
Wild pigs have been spreading across central Alberta’s prairies and if left unchecked, could soon find themselves in the river valley of Edmonton. According to Ryan Brook, a University of Saskatchewan professor studying the pigs, the creatures are an “ecological trainwreck” and would cause “absolute destruction” if they make their way to the river valley, which is abundant in water and forest cover.
Continue reading...Description of ingredient as ‘ocean fish’ means owners are unwittingly giving their pets vulnerable species for dinner
Pet food containing endangered sharks is being fed to cats and dogs by unwitting owners, a study has revealed.
Scientists found that several brands contained endangered species but listed only vague ingredients such as “ocean fish”, meaning that consumers are often oblivious.
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