Biodiversity

"A forest pest that bedevils Maine residents and tourists with hairs that cause an itchy rash appears to be spreading due to warming temperatures, a group of scientists has found."

"Botanist Maria Jesus has made a career out of trying to protect wild places where rare plants are making their last stand, and field work can mean bivouacking alone in a pup tent. Take the Inyo rock daisy, which only grows in the crevices of cliff walls in two largely roadless areas of the southern Inyo Mountains near Death Valley National Park."

"International officials will soon decide the fate of Mexican totoaba fish farming—and with it, possibly the last glimmer of hope for the vaquita."

"Once nonexistent in northwest Alaska, beavers are both benefiting from and changing a warming tundra."

"A preliminary report suggests that mask wearing and social distancing may curb the spread of disease from humans to great apes."

"Lawmakers from Massachusetts and New Jersey want to set up a new grant program to help develop technology that assists in saving a rare species of whale from extinction."

"America’s national bird is more beleaguered than previously believed, with nearly half of bald eagles tested across the U.S. showing signs of chronic lead exposure, according to a study published Thursday."

"In Jordan, researchers, activists and fishers are hopeful that their coral reefs — and the life they support — can survive climate change."

"The world is spending at least $1.8tn (£1.3tn) every year on subsidies driving the annihilation of wildlife and a rise in global heating, according to a new study, prompting warnings that humanity is financing its own extinction."