Wildlife

"Florida wildlife officials say their annual manatee survey counted 6,620 of the sea cows — the most since the state began the census in 1991."

"On the day before President Trump's inauguration, the outgoing Obama administration passed a last-minute directive, banning the use of lead ammunition and fishing sinkers on federal land."

"The U.S. House of Representatives voted Thursday to legalize the killing of black bear cubs and their mothers at their dens in Alaska’s national wildlife refuges."

"A Senate hearing to 'modernize the Endangered Species Act' unfolded Wednesday just as supporters of the law had feared, with round after round of criticism from Republican lawmakers who said the federal effort to keep species from going extinct encroaches on states’ rights, is unfair to landowners and stymies efforts by mining companies to extract resources and create jobs."

"An environmental group sued U.S. President Donald Trump's administration on Tuesday for delaying a rule that would designate the rusty patched bumble bee as an endangered species."

"A year after tens of thousands of common murres, an abundant North Pacific seabird, starved and washed ashore on beaches from California to Alaska, researchers have pinned the cause to unusually warm ocean temperatures that affected the tiny fish they eat."

"All those strange sea monster sightings in days of yore? This may be the best explanation yet."

"More than 27 percent fewer monarch butterflies migrated to Mexican forests during the 2016/2017 season, a study showed on Thursday, fueling concerns the orange-and-black insect could face growing threats from weather and deforestation."