Category Archives: Animals

Uranium miner coaxed government to water down extinction safeguards

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Cameco did not have to show if WA mine would lead to extinction of tiny fauna before its approval on 10 April

A multinational uranium miner persuaded the federal government to drop a requirement forcing it to show that a mine in outback Western Australia would not make any species extinct before it could go ahead.

Canadian-based Cameco argued in November 2017 the condition proposed by the government for the Yeelirrie uranium mine, in goldfields north of Kalgoorlie, would be too difficult to meet.

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Anti-bullfighting party set for Spanish election breakthrough

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As the right enlists bullfighters as candidates, animal welfare champions are polling well

If the polls and pundits are correct, Spain’s Vox party will achieve its much-prophesied breakthrough in Sunday’s general election, becoming the first far-right grouping to win more than a single seat in parliament since the country embarked on its post-Franco return to democracy.

Although Vox’s chances of attracting about 11% of the vote have hogged the headlines, another small party – and one with a markedly different worldview – is also gearing up for a historic day at the ballot box.

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Battle to save frogs from global killer disease

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Amphibians are under attack from multiple pathogens, say experts

Frogs, salamanders, and toads across the world are now under attack from a widening range of interacting pathogens that threaten to devastate global amphibian populations.

That is the stark warning of leading zoological experts who will gather this week in London in a bid to establish an emergency plan to save these endangered creatures. “The world’s amphibians are facing a new crisis, one that is caused by attacks by multiple pathogens,” said Professor Trent Garner of the Zoological Society of London, which is hosting the conference. “We desperately need to devise strategies that can protect them.”

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Greta Thunberg hopes to join climate protests during London visit

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Swedish 16-year-old, who is taking campaign to parliament, keen to be part of Extinction Rebellion action

Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old founder of the school strikes for action against climate change, has said she hopes to join the Extinction Rebellion protests when she visits London next week.

The Swedish activist will also take the campaign to the UK parliament, where she will speak to dozens of MPs including the Green party MP Caroline Lucas, the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, and the environment secretary, Michael Gove.

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Toddler rescued after dingo drags him from Fraser Island campsite

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Father pulls son from dingo’s jaws in the middle of the night after hearing boy’s cries getting further away from campervan

A toddler has escaped with cuts to his neck and head after his father snatched him from a dingo’s jaws on Queensland’s Fraser Island.

Paramedic Ben Du Toit said the family was camping in a remote area of the island in the state’s south-east on Thursday night when a dingo entered their campervan and bit the toddler’s neck.

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Polar bear found 700km from home in Russian village – video

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Residents of a village in Russia have been stunned by the sight of a polar bear 700km from its usual habitat. The people of the far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula looked on as the bear searched for food. Russian media reported on Wednesday that the exhausted-looking animal apparently travelled from Chukotka to the village of Tilichiki, about 700km (434 miles) south. Environmentalists say the bear may have lost its sense of direction while drifting on an ice floe

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‘Exhausted’ polar bear found 700km from home in Russian village

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Environmental activists have blamed climate change for appearance of polar bear in the Kamchatka Peninsula

Residents of a village in Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula have been stunned by the sight of a polar bear prowling for food hundreds of miles from its usual habitat.

Russian media reported on Wednesday that the exhausted-looking animal apparently traveled from Chukotka to the village of Tilichiki on Kamchatka, some 700km (434 miles) south.

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One of last four giant softshell turtles dies in Chinese zoo

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Death of Yangtze giant softshell turtle came a day after artificial insemination attempt

The world’s rarest turtle has moved closer to extinction after a female died in a Chinese zoo, leaving just three known members of the species.

The Yangtze giant softshell turtle, believed to be more than 90 years old, died in Suzhou zoo on Saturday, according to the Suzhou Daily.

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South African police seize 167 rhino horns after tipoff

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Two suspects arrested in sting operation in North West province

South African police have seized 167 rhino horns believed to have been destined for Asia.

Two suspects were arrested in the sting operation in the North West province on Saturday, which followed a tipoff. Police said it was one of the biggest hauls of rhino horns in the country.

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Cassowary attack: giant bird kills owner in Florida after he fell

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Bird native to Australia and Papua New Guinea likely killed breeder with its long claws

A cassowary – a large, flightless bird native to Australia and Papua New Guinea – has killed its Florida owner when it attacked him after he fell.

The fire rescue department in Alachua county told the Gainesville Sun newspaper the cassowary killed the man on Friday on his property near Gainesville, in the north of the state, likely using its long claws. The victim, whose name was not released, was apparently breeding the birds, state wildlife officials said.

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Rhino poacher killed by an elephant and then ‘devoured’ by lions

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Police say the man entered the park with a group intending to shoot and kill rhinos

A rhino poacher is believed to have been attacked by an elephant and then eaten by a pride of lions during an incident in South Africa’s Kruger national park.

Police brigadier Leonard Hlathi said police received information that a group of men had gone into the park on 1 April in order to hunt rhino, “when suddenly an elephant attacked and killed one of them”.

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Founder of zoo where 500 animals died drops horse ranch plans

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David Gill abandons Lake District retreat application after flood of complaints

The founder of a zoo where nearly 500 animals died in less than three years, many in cruel conditions, has abandoned plans to open a horse-riding ranch, following a flood of complaints.

David Gill, the former owner of South Lakes Safari zoo in Cumbria, angered animal welfare groups when he applied to open an American-style ranch in the hills of the Lake District.

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Tourists banned from home of Komodo dragon as smugglers eye dwindling numbers

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Indonesian authorities take action to protect endangered species after reports dozens had been sold on Facebook

Tourists will be banned from Komodo Island, the home of the ancient Komodo dragon, from January 2020 to allow for conservation efforts, after a smuggling case involving the endangered animal.

The island, in Maggarai Barat Indonesia, has been a major tourist destination, with many making the trip to see the lizard, which has a poisonous bite, can grow up to three metres long and weigh 50kg.

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‘Lemoga’: Lake District hotel offers yoga with lemurs as partners

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Ring-tailed lemurs from neighbouring wildlife park will ‘help’ yogis to practise

We’ve had doga, goat yoga and anti-gravity yoga. Now lemurs have joined in the fun.

A luxury hotel in the Lake District has added “lemoga” to its wellness programme, for yogis keen to do the downward dog with a Madagascan primate.

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French campaigners go to EU over hunting and trapping of birds

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Official complaint lodged with EU says rules breached on hunting and trapping

Bird protection campaigners are to lodge an official complaint with the European Union accusing France of breaking rules on hunting and trapping and failing to protect endangered species.

The Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux (LPO) is using the 40th anniversairy of the EU’s “bird directive”, which outlaws the “massive or non-selective” killing of birds to highlight what it deems cruel and illegal methods.

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Deadly skin-eating fungal disease wipes out 90 amphibian species in 50 years

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Study reveals extent of chytrid fungus and how devastating it has been for frog, toad and salamander species worldwide

A deadly disease that wiped out global populations of amphibians led to the decline of 500 species in the past 50 years, including 90 extinctions, scientists say.

A global research effort, led by the Australian National University, has for the first time quantified the worldwide impact of chytridiomycosis, or chytrid fungus, a fungal disease that eats away at the skin of amphibians.

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Mosquito-spread diseases may endanger millions in new places due to climate change

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Study finds that places where people have never had the diseases could see bad outbreaks if they aren’t prepared

Half a billion more people could be at risk from mosquito-transmitted diseases within 30 years as a result of the warming climate, according to a new study.

Canada and parts of northern Europe could be newly exposed to the threat. People there could come into contact with yellow fever, Zika, dengue and chikungunya, as well as other emerging diseases.

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Dogs can smell when seizures are about to begin, scientists find

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Scent linked to epileptic seizures could mean dogs can be trained to warn owners

Dogs can detect a telltale scent linked to epileptic seizures, scientists have discovered, raising the possibility that they could be trained to reliably warn owners when a seizure is imminent.

The findings may also help explain anecdotal reports that dogs are able to sense when their owner is about to have a seizure. Knowing when a seizure is going to occur could allow people with epilepsy to have greater control and independence, meaning they could take measures to avoid injury, seek help or take medication.

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Grizzly bear that killed Canadian mother and baby was desperate for food

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Government investigation concludes the attack on Valérie Théorêt, 37 and Adèle, 10 months, was unpreventable

The grizzly bear that killed a Canadian schoolteacher and her infant daughter was injured and desperate for food, according to a government investigation which concluded the tragic attack could not have been prevented.

Valérie Théorêt, 37 and Adèle, 10 months, were killed in November by a male grizzly bear in an unprovoked attack as they walked close to the family’s remote cabin in the Yukon.

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