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☆ Bird Photographer of the Year 2024: Surfing penguins and hunting falcons among winning images
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-24 | by ( Nell Lewis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —An image of a peregrine falcon chasing a butterfly, a vulture feasting on a black bear and a surfing penguin are among the winning images of Bird Photographer of the Year 2024. “We create this impactful display to honor the lives lost and increase public awareness,” Homonylo said in a statement. Will Nicholls, director of Bird Photographer of the Year, told CNN that the competition allows people to view things they may not be able to see for themselves. The title of Young Bird Photographer of the Year was awarded to 14-year-old Spanish photographer Andrés Luis Domínguez Blanco for a vivid image of a nuthatch — a small bird similar to a woodpecker — scrambling down an oak tree in Grazalema in southern Spain. The images cover a huge range of species, environments and behaviors – some are comedic while others carry a serious message.

Persons: Patricia Homonylo, Homonylo, ” Homonylo, Will Nicholls, ”, Young, Andrés Luis Domínguez Blanco, Paul Sterry Organizations: CNN, Initiative, Awareness, Birds, BirdLife International, Bird Locations: Canadian, Toronto, Grazalema, Spain

☆ Scientists Made a List of Lost Birds and Now They Want Us to Find Them
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-23 | by ( Jim Robbins | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A major goal of the list is to persuade bird watchers and others to look for these birds as they go out into the field, and to bring back evidence the birds have not gone extinct. People have searched for lost birds for decades. But the process was formalized in 2020 by the conservancy, in partnership with two other groups, Re:wild and BirdLife International, as the Search for Lost Birds project. Researchers from the groups published a paper in June with a definitive list of birds that need finding. The study concluded that there are 144 species of bird lost to the scientific world but that may still exist.

Organizations: conservancy, BirdLife International

☆ Remote Island near Antarctica overrun with a million mice that eat rare seabirds
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Mouse-Free Marion project plans to eradicate the rodents with rodenticide. They've got to all sorts of places," Anton Wolfaardt, the Mouse-Free Marion project manager, told The AP. Conservationists on Marion Island photographed a mouse sitting on the bloodied head of a wandering albatross chick feeding. "Marion Island's seabirds are members of a regional seabird community innately connected to the functioning and health of the sub-Antarctic region," he said. There are estimated to be over a million mice on Marion Island, The AP report said.

Persons: —, Prince Edward Islands, They've, Anton Wolfaardt, Marion, Wolfaardt, Keith Springer Organizations: Marion, Service, Associated Press, AP, BirdLife International, Guardian Locations: Marion Island, Antarctica, Cape Town , South Africa, Marion, South Africa

☆ In Shopify's app store, 'people are fighting it out on the margins' as the market becomes oversaturated and merchants cut costs
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Its S-1 filing mentions the word "Shopify" 198 times, and it said that about 77.6% of its annual recurring revenue came from Shopify merchants. About a third of the deals FE International facilitates are for businesses within the Shopify ecosystem, Smale said. Smale said that lately, he has worked with a "wider variety of acquirers" quietly looking to scoop up Shopify apps. He said that Shopify apps make good acquisition targets because they tend to be profitable and not venture-backed. "I always say Shopify SaaS applications are so great to build because they're kind of like building a SaaS on training wheels," Gazdecki said.

Persons: Shopify, Rachael Jones, Brent Murri, They've, Murri, Andrew Bialecki, Klaviyo, Dennis Hegstad, there's, Hegstad, Andy Cloyd, it's, We're, Thomas Smale, Smale, Andrew Gazdecki, Acquire.com, Gazdecki, Tobi Lütke, Lucas Jackson, wouldn't Organizations: Shopify's, Business, Boston Globe, FE International, Reuters Locations: Shopify, Klaviyo

☆ Vultures, on the verge of extinction, receive a lifeline in South Africa
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Gertrude Kitongo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Sub-Saharan Africa is home to four critically endangered species of vulture, and in South Africa, a non-profit conservation and rehabilitation group called VulPro is working to protect these fascinating birds. The operation involved over 50 people, logistics company DHL and WeWild Africa, an NGO specializing in animal rewilding and translocation. It was at that very moment that I actually understood how fragile and misunderstood the species were.”An African White-backed vulture (closest to camera) at the VulPro rehabilitation center near Pretoria, South Africa. Recent efforts have concentrated on the white-headed vulture, with a population of only 3,685 adults continent-wide, according to BirdLife International, and only a small percentage of that figure in South Africa. Poisoning is the most common reason for vultures to require treatment in South Africa, often from ingesting lead in discarded batteries, or bullets in animal carcasses, says Joubert.

Persons: VulPro, ”, Kerri Wolter, Gertrude Kitongo, “, Johan Joubert, Joubert, Wolter, – Organizations: CNN, Reserve, DHL, WeWild, BirdLife International, Shamari Locations: Saharan Africa, South Africa, Eastern Cape, WeWild Africa, African, Pretoria, Africa, West Africa, KwaZulu, Natal, South

White Sands officials warned online that the wait to enter the gates could be as long as two hours. Visitors also are being warned to come prepared as Trinity Site is in a remote area with limited Wi-Fi and no cell service or restrooms. Scientists and military officials established a secret city in Los Alamos during the 1940s and tested their work at the Trinity Site some 200 miles (322 kilometers) away. While the lore surrounding the atomic bomb has become pop culture fodder, it was part of a painful reality for residents who lived downwind of Trinity Site. The notoriety from “Oppenheimer” has been embraced in Los Alamos, more than 200 miles (321 kilometers) north of the Tularosa Basin.

Persons: Christopher Nolan's, “ Oppenheimer, Willy Wonka's, White, J, Robert Oppenheimer, filmgoers, Barbie, Lois Lipman, “, ”, “ Oppenheimer ” Organizations: Historic Landmark, White, White Sands, Visitors, Trinity, U.S, Union of Concerned, Santa Fe, Alamos National Laboratory, Oppenheimer Locations: New Mexico, Manhattan, Los Alamos, Trinity, Tularosa

☆ Bird Photographer of the Year 2023: Winners announced
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Nell Lewis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A breathtaking image of a peregrine falcon attacking an enormous pelican with its bright orange talons won top prize in this year’s Bird Photographer of the Year competition. The contest, in its eighth edition, celebrates the beauty of birds while also raising awareness of the mounting pressures they face. Photographers from all over the world entered more than 20,000 images into the competition, all vying for the £5,000 ($6,280) grand prize. Other photographers were recognized for artistic and atmospheric shots, such as an image of a blackbird silhouetted against the moon taken by 17-year-old Anton Trexler, which won Young Bird Photographer of the Year. A Eurasian blackbird silhouetted against a red moon, taken by German photographer Anton Trexler at sunrise.

Persons: Jack Zhi, ”, “, Anton Trexler, Antonio Aguti, Will Nicholl Organizations: CNN, Young, BirdLife International, Bird Locations: California

Beijing called on foreign governments to abide by scientific principles in setting travel protocols, after the U.S. joined a growing group of countries imposing Covid-19-screening measures on travelers from China. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin on Thursday encouraged countries to work together to ensure safe international travel and supply chain stability as they fight the pandemic.

Another was the requirement for companies to assess and disclose their impact and reliance on nature, despite the word "mandatory" being dropped from the final deal. While protecting nature comes at a cost, those companies that step up will attract more investors. "The big losers across the board will be 'business as usual'," said Eurasia Group senior analyst Franck Gbaguidi. A body representing some of the world's largest mining companies, including Glencore (GLEN.L) and Newcrest (NCM.AX), said disclosure would lead to a level playing field between sectors. The bill was ultimately calculated at $20 billion per year by 2025 and $30 billion per year by 2030.

☆ Explainer: What the world's nature-rich nations want out of a global conservation deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-17 | by ( Gloria Dickie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

REUTERS/Nacho Doce/File PhotoMONTREAL, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Tangled expanses of Amazon rainforest, high mountains of the Himalayas, and cloud-shrouded forests are just some of the unique landscapes contained within the world's most nature-rich nations. Governments are trying to work out a new global agreement to guide conservation and wildlife protection through 2030 at a U.N. summit in Montreal this week. Of the nearly 200 countries assembled, five are considered to be among the world's most biodiverse nations — measured in the number of unique species. That's more than a third of all the world’s flowering plants, and more than half of all bird and mammal species on Earth. Here's what some of the world's most nature-rich nations want to happen at the talks.

☆ US researchers jubilant after rediscovering a bird lost to science for 140 years in Papua New Guinea
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-19 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Scientists from the American Bird Conservancy have rediscovered a rare bird not documented since 1882. The bird only lives on Ferguson Island, off the coast of Papua New Guinea. Researchers installed camera traps on Fergusson Island, Papua New Guinea, with the results showing the rare black-naped pheasant-pigeon strutting in the images. Seeing the images was like "finding a unicorn," said John C. Mittermeier, Director of the Lost Birds program at the American Bird Conservancy and co-leader of the expedition. Christina Biggs, Manager for the Search for Lost Species at Re:wild, said, "This rediscovery is an incredible beacon of hope for other birds that have been lost for a half-century or more."

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