Wildlife

"In its 52 years, the Endangered Species Act has been a muscular protector of vulnerable plants and animals, invoked to stymie roads, development, and logging or shipping patterns, and shielding entire areas from activity that could edge those species toward extinction. Shifting the political winds to target the landmark law’s clout, the Trump administration has sought more leeway for energy, mining, and other industries that the ESA has interfered with in the name of protecting vulnerable species."

"The Trump administration and a company that is promising to bring long-gone animals back from extinction announced a partnership on Thursday to preserve cells, tissue and DNA from threatened and endangered species."

"A cacophony of honks and quacks greet Jim Faulstich on a spring afternoon visit to a shallow lake on his ranch on the South Dakota prairie. Hundreds of birds have landed in the wetlands for a drink, to feed, or to rest on their journey north. There are lots of ducks and gulls, but no whooping crane — which would be difficult to miss standing five-feet tall in the shallows foraging for food."

"Since April, an outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo has ballooned to 1,114 confirmed cases and 279 deaths, already the third-largest such epidemic since the disease was identified 50 years ago. Despite its worrying size, this outbreak is threaded with mystery — particularly regarding its origins."

"The administration of United States President Donald Trump has announced that all immigrant detainees have been transferred out of a Florida detention facility known as Alligator Alcatraz, effectively shuttering the controversial facility." "The facility, located near the Everglade wetlands, has drawn human rights concerns and lawsuits over its conditions."

"In late April, heavy machinery began moving into the Pishë Poro-Narta protected landscape on Albania’s Adriatic coast without permits or public notice. Bulldozers and excavators felled coastal pine trees, flattened sand dunes, and cut new roads through previously untouched habitat." "The incursion was the realization of a luxury resort development backed by Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law."

“You can hear and smell Meg Webster’s latest exhibition before you see it. Walking up the stairs of Paula Cooper Gallery in Chelsea, there’s a chorus of birds chirps. Then comes the smell: a dusky, dense scent reminiscent of wet earth. Finally, you walk into the main space and encounter “Thicket,” the show’s titular artwork, a beckoning spiral made of local branches, leaves and flowers."

“Some remains found in Diamantina fracture zone date back more than 5m years and reveal species and ecosystems unknown to science.”

"Environmental groups on Wednesday sued attempting to stop the Trump administration from giving SpaceX more than 700 acres (280 hectares) of wildlife refuge in Texas, claiming it would worsen ecological risks to a Gulf Coast region already transformed by billionaire Elon Musk’s rocket operations."

“A new case of New World Screwworm was confirmed on Tuesday in a calf in La Salle County, Texas, bringing the total cases of NWS in the United States to six."