Biodiversity

"In the Mojave Desert, rising temperatures, less rainfall, and more intense wildfires are killing off Joshua trees. California officials are working on a plan to protect the distinctive yucca tree and its desert ecosystem by establishing refuges and controlling development."

"Rebuilding degraded coral reefs started as a noble endeavor, but now some coral scientists are confronting a dark reality."

"An analysis published Thursday in the journal Science suggests farmers have increased their use of pesticides on crops in response to the population collapse of bats, potentially leading to the deaths of more than 1,000 human infants through intoxication from the chemicals."

"U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland announced Wednesday that the Apache trout — Arizona’s state fish — has been removed from the federal list of endangered and threatened wildlife following more than five decades of recovery efforts."

"No other region in the state had a comparable level of outbreaks. The Hochul administration is spending millions to help farmers limit nutrient runoff."

"The number of fires in Brazil's Amazon rainforest region for the month of August surged to the highest level since 2010, government data showed on Sunday, after a record drought that has been plaguing the biome."

"Buried in the earth, almost too small to see, seeds have long been underestimated — dismissed as mere inert specks, barely even considered alive. Yet the more closely researchers have examined these embryonic plants, the more they have learned about their dynamism and endurance."

"An environmental group is calling for a federal investigation into the former presidential candidate for an episode in which he allegedly severed the head of a washed-up whale with a chainsaw – and drove home with it strapped to his car’s roof."

"The nation’s largest dam removal project is nearly complete after a lengthy campaign by Native tribes to restore the river at the California-Oregon border."