Biodiversity

"The H5N1 bird flu virus that devastated South American elephant seal populations has been confirmed in seals at California's Año Nuevo State Park, researchers from UC Davis and UC Santa Cruz announced Wednesday."

"Monarch butterflies that hatch in the spring and early summer live fast and die young at only two to six weeks. But those that emerge in late summer can survive six to nine months. That’s long enough to migrate thousands of miles south for the winter and start the return north the following spring to breed."

"The Center for Biological Diversity filed suit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Feb. 11 for failing to make a preliminary decision about whether to expand protection for the saltmarsh sparrow, a bird whose population is in sharp decline around the Chesapeake Bay and the marshes along the East Coast."

"The beautiful marine mollusks have international protections, but sale of their shells continues by the tens of thousands."

"A declaration recognizing whales as legal rights-holders is influencing legislation in New Zealand and sparking an international push to translate Indigenous customs into binding protections."

"House Republicans are investigating environmental groups over their efforts to stop a major oil and natural gas project in Alaska."

"Jessica Allen crunched through fallen leaves among Manzanita trees hunting for something few have spotted before: the Manzanita butter clump — a rare and little-known yellow mushroom found, so far, only along North America’s Western coastlines."

"Residents and elected officials are speaking out against a proposed border barrier through Texas’ biggest state park and one of the jewels of the national park system."

"Increased activity by the fin whale - the world's second-largest whale species - along Chile's northern coast during feeding season is highlighting a growing threat of collisions with ships and fishing net entanglements, marine experts and conservationists warned this week."

"Brought to the United States as an ornamental porch decoration, the kudzu vine has reshaped itself into ladder fuel for wildfires."