These ibises have a special skill called ‘remote touch’, which they use to find their worm, grub and snail prey through vibrations
Hadedas are iridescent grey-brown ibises – jack russell-sized birds with long, curved bills and very small heads – found throughout sub-Saharan Africa.
They have a special skill called “remote touch”, which they use to find their worm, grub and snail prey. At the tip of their bills is an organ that, when they stick it into the soil, can sense the vibrations of their food nearby.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
01/20/2025 - 09:00
01/20/2025 - 09:00
Australian Conservation Foundation’s analysis finds amount of habitat approved to be razed double previous year’s as it calls for stronger protections
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Almost 26,000 hectares of threatened species habitat was green-lit for destruction in 2024 – more than double the previous year – according to analysis that environmentalists are using to pressure Anthony Albanese to revive his stalled nature watchdog.
A new Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) report has revealed a huge increase in the scale of habitat approved to be cleared under federal environmental protection laws in the past 12 months.
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01/20/2025 - 08:00
Altadena’s Village Playground education center served diverse families with outdoor classrooms, small farm and animals – till it was destroyed by flames
In Altadena, it had become the hot ticket among the preschool set.
But when Geoff and Kikanza Ramsey-Ray first bought the two-acre property at the edge of town in 2008, it was a shambles. The home was a rental for over 30 years and the grounds were woefully neglected. Yet the couple saw promise. Nestled against Angeles Crest national forest, with a mountain view and on a road with few other homes, the place felt protected and perfect for their vision: an early education center called Village Playgarden.
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01/20/2025 - 06:36
Pod Point reports weak demand for new cars as government says no firms will pay fines over ZEV mandate
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A charging company has said proposed UK changes to electric car sales rules could increase uncertainty over demand, as it said that it had been caught out by lower numbers of purchases by British drivers.
Pod Point, which is majority-owned by EDF Energy, said weak demand for new cars meant it made revenues of £53m in 2024 from its sales of chargers and services, compared with a £60m target. The London-listed company’s share price slumped by more than a third on Monday morning.
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01/20/2025 - 05:00
Even average use of nitrogen fertilisers cut flower numbers fivefold and halved pollinating insects
Using high levels of common fertilisers on grassland halves pollinator numbers and drastically reduces the number of flowers, research from the world’s longest-running ecological experiment has found.
Increasing the amount of nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus doused on agricultural grassland reduced flower numbers fivefold and halved the number of pollinating insects, according to the paper by the University of Sussex and Rothamsted Research.
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01/20/2025 - 01:00
String jellyfish species that has killed millions of salmon in Norwegian sea farms reported in Scotland
A jellyfish species that has been wreaking havoc on Norway’s salmon industry has made its way to Scotland, causing significant damage and prompting calls for urgent action.
The string jellyfish has killed millions of salmon in Norwegian sea farms with officials urging an extermination of affected stocks.
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01/19/2025 - 21:42
Federal government aims to encourage power-intensive producers to switch to renewables by 2036
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Anthony Albanese says smelters will close and cost many jobs without their newly announced aluminium production incentive, which opposition leader Peter Dutton has labelled a “con job”.
The mining industry welcomed $2bn in federal funding to incentivise power-intensive aluminium producers to switch to renewables by 2036, with Rio Tinto calling it a “critical piece in helping future-proof the industry”.
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01/19/2025 - 18:32
Ecologists have identified significant ecological risks associated with the release of hybrid groupers into Hong Kong's coastal waters, a practice often linked to religious 'mercy release' rituals. Their study highlights how the Tiger Grouper-Giant Grouper hybrid (TGGG), also known as the Sabah grouper, disrupts local marine ecosystems by exploiting unique ecological niches and potentially becoming a dominant predator. This research, the first to use advanced DNA metabarcoding to analyze the diet of this hybrid species, underscores the urgent need for public education and conservation measures to mitigate unintended ecological impacts.
01/19/2025 - 15:39
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Australian billionaires Anthony Pratt and Gina Rinehart praise Trump in US newspaper ads ahead of inauguration
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Lambie says Labor doing ‘a fair bit of clean up’ from nine years of Coalition
Asked about polling showing Peter Dutton had drawn level to Anthony Albanese as preferred PM, and whether this could be attributed to Dutton’s stance on law and order, Jacqui Lambie responded:
It hasn’t got any worse or better, I can assure you. You didn’t get much out of him after nine years, but if people want to fall back into that and go, well, you know, Labor’s had three years and that’s all we’re going to give them, and you want to go back to the good old days – which I wouldn’t say were the good old days under the Liberal National party – then be my guest.
It’s not just about the last three years in government, it’s probably about the last 10. So have a look at who had control of that for nine years beforehand.
Because quite frankly, I think Labor’s doing a fair bit of clean up. Labor’s also put a lot of things in which you will not see coming to fruition until the next three years.
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01/19/2025 - 09:58
Exclusive: Restoration fund in England could be ‘siphoned off’ to be used for general government spending, not repairing rivers
Rachel Reeves’s Treasury is looking to keep millions of pounds levied on polluting water companies in fines that were meant to be earmarked for sewage cleanup, the Guardian has learned.
The £11m water restoration fund was announced before the election last year, with projects bidding for the cash to improve waterways and repair damage done by sewage pollution in areas where fines have been imposed.
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