Grays Harbor PUD Nixes Wind Farm

The Grays Harbor Public Utility District (PUD) won’t proceed with a proposed wind farm in Pacific County, citing permitting costs and other risks. That leaves Energy Northwest and three PUDs in Clallam, Pacific and Mason counties to decide what to do with plans to build 32 wind turbines without the project’s largest investor. The wind [...]

Experts: Pet Capuchins Can Turn On Their Owners

Capuchin monkeys, with pint-sized, human-like features, appeal to people who want pets they can dress, carry around, spoon feed and nuzzle. But when the so-called organ-grinder monkeys reach sexual maturity around 5 years old, they can turn dangerous and destructive. Wildlife officials adamantly oppose capuchins as pets. Helping Hands, a Boston-based service monkey training academy, [...]

Group Of Wayward Dolphins Spotted In Icy NJ River

A group of wayward dolphins has been spotted in a northern New Jersey river. About 8 to 15 dolphins were first reported in the chilly Hackensack River on Wednesday. They’ve been swimming near the towns of Hackensack, Teaneck and Bogota (ba-GOH’-tah). Bill Sheehan of the Hackensack Riverkeeper group fears there’s not enough food in the [...]

2009 Was Good For Butterflies, But Bad For The Cuckoo

It has been disappointing for staycationers and somewhat slippery for Christmas shoppers. But while this year’s weather wasn’t great for we humans, there have been mixed blessings for the country’s wildlife. Butterflies and some other types of insect saw their numbers soar, but cuckoos, daddy longlegs, bats and beetles fared less well. Although the wet [...]

Evolving Evidence

NOVEMBER 24th will mark the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection , in which Charles Darwin spelt out the famous theory. The big discovery, made by Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace, was not evolution itself, but the mechanism through which it works – natural selection. [...]

Global Warming Cycles A Threat To Endangered Primates

Two Penn State University researchers have carried out one of the first-ever analyzes of the effects of global warming on endangered primates. This innovative work by Graduate Student Ruscena Wiederholt and Associate Professor of Biology Eric Post examined how El Niño warming affected the abundance of four New World monkeys over decades. The research will [...]

Turkey Vultures Put On Impressive Show

When it comes to fall migrations of birds of prey, or raptors, October is considered to be turkey vulture month, for these big, dark, soaring carrion-eaters typically are the dominant species in the southbound raptor movements for the period. Right on cue, major movements of vultures were recorded Saturday and Sunday by Detroit River Hawk [...]

Tuna Ban ‘Justified’ By Science

Banning trade in Atlantic bluefin tuna is justified by the extent of their decline, an analysis by scientists advising fisheries regulators suggests. The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas’ (ICCAT) advisers said stocks are probably less than 15% of their original size. The analysis has delighted conservation groups, which have warned that over-fishing [...]

Saving The Sumatran Rhino

Year Four pupils here were introduced to the endangered Sumatran Rhino at a WWF Malaysia talk recently. The children, as well as their headmaster and teachers, were all ears at the talk held at SJK (C) Chung Ching in Tanah Putih. “Honda Malaysia together with WWF Malaysia have started a project to save the Sumatran [...]

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