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☆ A 75-hour luxury train ride through the heart of Australia’s outback
▼ + stars: | 2024-12-12 | by ( Jon Jensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

I took the easy path across the outback: from the comfort of an air-conditioned luxury sleeper train. How to ride the GhanInto the outback: The Ghan is one of the longest train journeys in the world, spanning 1,851 miles (2,979 kilometers) through Australia’s vast and forbidding outback. “It’s absolutely great.”The views of Australia's outback while riding the Ghan Jon Jensen / CNNThat nothingness is undeniably relaxing. Ship of the desertThe Ghan train makes a stop at the Alice Springs Railway Station in Australia's Northern Territory. Traveling through the wilds of Australia’s outback, most passengers agree, makes for the trip of a lifetime.

Persons: Alice, Alice Springs, Coober, Mark Kolbe, Marc Dozier, Katherine, Katherine River, Andrew Gregory, Jon Jensen, David Gray, Graham Dadleh, cameleers, Elizabeth River, Rhyll Woodall, ”, Woodall, “, It’s, Maggie Buldo, “ It’s, Thomas Borthwick, —, cameleer Graham Dadleh, Dadleh, he’d, he’s, ” Dadleh, Balooch Dadleh, Philip Jones, Anna Kenny, Balooch’s, — Dadleh’s, it’s Organizations: CNN, Australia CNN, Ghan, Getty, Queen, Nitmiluk, Bloomberg, Litchfield National Park, Queen Adelaide Restaurant, Alice Locations: Alice Springs, Australia, Texas, Darwin, Australia’s, Adelaide, Katherine, Uluru, MacDonnell, Queen Adelaide, Northern Territory, Afghanistan, South Asia, Elizabeth, Litchfield, Melbourne, ”, Brisbane, Australia's Northern Territory, Afghan, South Australia, Marree, Queensland

☆ COP16: Overlooked grasslands are key to the Earth’s future, says WWF expert
▼ + stars: | 2024-12-06 | by ( Jacopo Prisco | Yara Enany | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

They also combat climate change by absorbing carbon from the air and storing it underground. Yet, even though they cover more than 50% of the Earth’s surface, just 12% of grasslands are protected, with conservation efforts often overlooking them. “We are advocating for the protection, sustainable management and restoration of grasslands and savannas globally,” Leonie Meier, WWF Global Grasslands and Savannahs Initiative Lead, told CNN’s Yara Enany at COP16, a conference of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, ongoing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, until December 13. “Our hope for COP16 is really that food system transformation is included as a key driver for sustainable development,” she said. Nature-positive food productionThe path to these goals, according to Meier, is through not just restoration, but the protection and management of what is already there.

Persons: ” Leonie Meier, CNN’s Yara, ” Meier, ”, Meier Organizations: Saudi Arabia CNN, Grasslands, Wildlife Fund, WWF Global Grasslands, United Nations Convention, WWF, ” Locations: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, COP16, Brazil

☆ Almaty, Kazakhstan: How a drab Soviet metropolis became Central Asia’s capital of cool
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-08 | by ( Joe Yogerst | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Almaty, Kazakhstan CNN —Several cities around the globe have reinvented themselves in recent years, but none more successfully than Almaty. Since the collapse of the USSR, Kazakhstan’s largest city (population 2.2 million and growing) has evolved from a drab, run-of-the-mill Soviet metropolis into the urban star of Central Asia. “It’s an incredibly livable city,” says long-time American resident Dennis Keen, a historic preservation advocate and founder of Walking Almaty. Over and underground artThe Abilkhan Kasteev State Art Museum is filled with more than 20,000 works of art. Other good collections include the Ihlas Museum of Folk Musical Instruments (in a Russian-style wooden mansion built in 1908) and the ethnographic artifacts of the Almaty Museum.

Persons: It’s, “, ”, Dennis Keen, ” Keen, “ It’s, Jama Nurkalieva, Charles O, Cecil, Alamy, Auyl, James Talalay, Lukas Bischoff, Keen, Roshcha Organizations: Kazakhstan CNN, Walking, Central, Cathedral, Astana, Tselinny Center of Contemporary, Dynamo, Prix Versailles, Park, Art, Louvre, Art Museum, Ihlas Museum, Folk, Almaty Museum, Eiffel, of Contemporary, Academy of Science, Turkish Airlines, Air Astana, Ritz, Carlton Locations: Almaty, Kazakhstan, USSR, Kazakhstan’s, Central Asia, Walking Almaty, “, Central Asian, China, Europe, Russian, Soviet Union, Shan, Lower Kolsai Lake, There’s, Soviet, Zholy, Almaty Metro, Almaly, Auezov, Istanbul, Beijing, Seoul , New Delhi, Bangkok, Arasan, Otrar, Lanzhou, Novotel, Darejani, Ascension

☆ Fossil finding uncovers large ‘terror bird’ in Colombia
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-08 | by ( Mindy Weisberger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The fossil leg bone of an extinct terror bird that was found in Colombia's Tatacoa Desert is shown. While some terror bird fossils have been found in Florida and Texas, the specimen from La Venta is believed to be the northernmost terror bird from South America documented by scientists. Placing terror birds in La Venta “is one step closer to understanding how terror birds finally got to North America,” Degrange said. A map shows the countries in North America and South America (in gray) where terror bird fossils have been found. “We know that probably one of the drivers that led terror birds to get larger and larger was the competition between species of terror birds — but why that big?” he said.

Persons: ”, Federico Javier Degrange, Degrange, phorusrhacids, “, ” Degrange, Karen Moreno, Moreno, ” Moreno, —, Mindy Weisberger Organizations: CNN, National University of Córdoba, Museo, Apex, National Monuments Council, Austral University of Chile’s Institute of Earth Sciences, Scientific Locations: Colombia, La, Palaeontology, Argentina, South America, what’s, Brazil, Venta, Florida, Texas, La Venta, North America, Chile

☆ Sausage-maker thinks he’s found the answer to Germany’s raccoon problem
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-31 | by ( Jack Guy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

After receiving the green light, Reiss started making his “raccoon balls,” meatballs made from raccoon meat, which he said turned out to be a hit at the fair and with customers at his shop, which is called Wildererhütte. Annegret Hilse/ReutersSoon Reiss was selling online, and he now makes a total of seven raccoon meat products, including salami. “We’re the only place in Europe selling raccoon meat,” Reiss told CNN. But if you didn’t know, you wouldn’t realize that anything is too different.”Reiss pictured making a salami containing raccoon meat. Annegret Hilse/ReutersWhile Reiss’ raccoon products have become a novelty attraction for visitors to Kade, they are also a response to a serious problem, he says.

Persons: Michael Reiss, Reiss, meatballs, Raccoon, Annegret Hilse, ” Reiss, I’ve, ”, Hilse Organizations: CNN, Green, Reuters, “, Conservation Union, Goethe, Research Society Locations: Germany, Kade, Berlin, Europe, Frankfurt, North America

☆ Walz tries to burnish his everyman image with trip home to Minnesota
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-12 | by ( Aaron Pellish | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Mankato, Minnesota CNN —As a high school marching band played a rendition of Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline,” Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz walked down the 50-yard line at Friday’s crosstown rivalry football game between Mankato East High School and Mankato West High School. After the coin toss, Walz took a seat on the bleachers, where he took selfies and signed autographs alongside his mother, Darlene Walz. The governor cheered throughout the game as Mankato West took an early lead, and although he departed at halftime, Mankato West held on to win 28-7. Before the game, Tim Walz stopped by Mankato West to greet players as they left for the stadium and speak to old colleagues.

Persons: Neil Diamond’s “, Caroline, ”, Tim Walz, Mankato West High School . Walz, Walz, selfies, Darlene Walz, Gwen, Harris, Kamala Harris, Coach Walz, he’d, “, ” Walz, Michael Strahan, Donald Trump, Walz’s, Sarah Manes, ” Richelle Norton, Gov . Walz, Gwen Walz, I’m, ’ ” Norton, Sherri Blasing, ” Blasing Organizations: Minnesota CNN, ” Minnesota Gov, Mankato East High School, Mankato West High School, “, Minnesota State University, Mankato’s, Mankato West, Minnesota Gov, Democratic, Mankato, National Guard, Beretta, CNN, NFL, Pew Research Center, WPVI News, Gov Locations: Mankato, Minnesota, ” Minnesota, Eye , Minnesota, Philadelphia, China

BANGKOK — A well-known elephant sanctuary in Thailand appealed for help on Friday after torrential flash floods forced the evacuation of about 100 elephants. Elephants wading through floodwaters at Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The flooded Elephant Nature Park in northern Thailand. In recent weeks, northern Thailand has suffered severe flooding and landslides due to Typhoon Yagi, the most powerful storm to hit Asia this year. Elephant Nature Park was established in 2003 as a permanent sanctuary for elephants rescued from the logging and tourism industries by Saengduean.

Persons: Chiang Mai, Saengduean, Pitsuda Masith, Masith, Yagi, Nat Sumon, Peter Guo Organizations: Staff, NBC, Saengduean Locations: BANGKOK, Thailand, Chiang Mai, Asia, Southeast Asia, Bangkok, Hong Kong

☆ Scientists discover hidden ancient forest on treeless island
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-27 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —No trees have grown on the windswept Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean for tens of thousands of years — just shrubs and other low-lying vegetation. “It’s very sort of windswept and barren.”The Falkland Islands are a British-ruled overseas territory over which Great Britain and Argentina fought a brief war in 1982. But the story of this hidden forest goes back even further in time than the researchers initially thought. “The Falkland Islands are currently covered by grasslands and lack native trees,” Donovan added. However, the islands are unlikely to see a return to a forest landscape anytime soon, Thomas said.

Persons: Zoë Thomas, “, ”, Thomas, Michael Donovan, wasn’t, ” Donovan, Haidee, Chris Turney, what’s, Donovan Organizations: CNN, UK’s University of Southampton, Britain, Falklands, Antarctic, University of Southampton, Chicago’s, Australia’s University of New, Southern Locations: Falkland Islands, Stanley, Falkland, British, Great Britain, Argentina, Australia’s University of New South Wales, Patagonia, Antarctica, Westerly, Islas, South America

☆ Woolly rhino mummy found preserved in Russian permafrost after 32,000 years
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-25 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Scientists have uncovered a woolly rhino so well preserved in the Russian permafrost for more than 32,000 years that its skin and fur are still intact. This woolly rhino died when it was about four years old and that age, combined with its good state of preservation, has allowed scientists to learn more about the now-extinct species. This woolly rhino mummy has been well-preserved by the permafrost. Once this woolly rhino died, it lay frozen in permafrost until a team of Russian scientists from research institutions in Yakutsk and Moscow discovered it in August 2020 on the banks of the Tirekhtyakh River. As part of an agreement with local authorities in the region where the woolly rhino was found, tusk hunters have to contact paleontologists whenever they discover something of interest like this mummified woolly rhino, meaning that there is a steady stream of well-preserved specimens specifically from this area.

Persons: wasn’t, “ There’s, Dalén Organizations: CNN —, Stockholm University, CNN, Sciences, Russian Academy of Sciences Locations: Siberia, Yakutsk, Moscow

$ 5.34 $ 5.34 Estimated Environmental cost + $ 22.02 Say a pound of beef costs $5.34 at your local supermarket. The Hidden Environmental Costs of Food Damage to the natural world isn’t factored into the price of food. The proponents of true cost accounting don’t propose raising food prices across the board, but they say that increased awareness of the hidden environmental cost of food could change behavior. (True cost accounting also typically includes things like labor rights and dietary health, but here we’re focusing on environmental costs.) Large disparities between the retail price of food and its environmental costs are found in the proteins many of us eat every day.

Persons: True Price, ”, Claire van den Broek, “ They’re, Alexander Müller, True, “, Scott Swinton, Roger Cryan, Mario Herrero, chickpeas Organizations: United Nations, Rockefeller Foundation, True, Sustainability, Michigan State University, American Farm Bureau Federation, New, Cornell University, Price, Beef, Oxford University, “, U.S . Department of Agriculture, Mountain, United Nations Food, Agriculture Organization Locations: Dutch, United States, Berlin, New York State, Denmark, Walmart.com, U.S, North America, Europe, Brazil, India, Netherlands, Germany

☆ China’s Great Wall of Villages
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-10 | by ( Muyi Xiao | Agnes Chang | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +14 min

China’s Great Wall of Villages China has moved thousands of people to new settlements on its frontiers. Mr. Akester and Mr. Barnett, who have studied Tibet’s border villages for years, reviewed The Times’s findings. In neighboring Xinjiang and Yunnan, The Times identified six new and 59 expanded border villages. (China says there are hundreds of villages like them, but few details are available and many appear to be mere upgrades of existing villages.) A Times investigation found 12 villages in disputed areas Disputed areas Villages in disputed areas Other villages CHINA CHINA TIBET Arunachal Pradesh Controlled by India Claimed by China BHUTAN INDIA MYANMAR 50 miles CHINA CHINA TIBET Arunachal Pradesh Controlled by India Claimed by China BHUTAN MYANMAR INDIA 75 miles Source: RAIC Labs and The Times analysis of Planet Labs satellite imageryChina makes clear that the villages are there for security.

Persons: ”, Xi Jinping, Bhutan Gyalaphug, Tian Shan Wang, Matthew Akester, Robert Barnett, Akester, Barnett, India Demchok, ” Mr, Xi’s, Brahma Chellaney, Mr, Chellaney, Liu Pengyu, Brian Hart, India Migyitun, Jing Qian, Tenzin, “ Organizations: Daily, New York Times, RAIC Labs, Planet Labs, The Times, SOAS University of London, India, China United Front News Network, Times, ”, Embassy, Local, Planet Labs India, China Power, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Maxar, Center for, Asia Society, Communist Party, Human Rights Watch Locations: China, India, Beijing, Arunachal Pradesh, Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, Tajikistan Fumin, Aimin, Vietnam, Luozha county, Shannan, Tibet Autonomous, Fumin, Xinjiang, Yunnan, China’s, CHINA CHINA TIBET Arunachal Pradesh, China BHUTAN INDIA MYANMAR, China BHUTAN MYANMAR INDIA, New Delhi, South China, Washington, ” India, Ladakh, Times, ”, Center for China, Central Asians, Dokha

☆ This remote, mystical forest has been protected for centuries. Now it’s under threat
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-09 | by ( Nell Lewis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

He and most of the community believe it is their duty to protect it – and in turn, they believe the forest will protect them. In photos: The plants and animals of Naimina Enkiyio Prev NextShared landIn a shady clearing, a group of Maasai elders sit in a circle on the grass. Peter Achammer/Helicopter Charter EA Ltd.For centuries, local communities have protected the forest, but today they are facing new threats. As the culture modernizes, Maasai elders fear this will be forgotten. “We shall protect the forest so that we retain this fresh air for our communities and also everyone in the world,” he says.

Persons: CNN — Naimina, Ntirua, Obibi, ”, Nell Lewis, CNN Ntirua Koikai, Enkiyio, Mara, Rob O’Meara, Sarah, Kirk's dik, dik, Peter Achammer, Ole Koikai, Ntirua Koikai, Mbuvi Musingo, “, O’Meara, “ We’re, Josephat Olokula, sparky, you’re, “ I’m, Ntasikoi Oloimoeja, Oloimoeja Organizations: CNN, Initiative, Hansen Global, Forest Guardians, Guardians, Government, Helicopter Charter EA, Kenya Forestry Research Institute, ” Locations: “, Kenya, Nairobi, Mara, Narok

☆ I've visited 60 countries. Skip the crowds in Bali — visit this lesser-known gem in South Asia instead.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-29 | by ( Kate Mcmahon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

But although Sri Lanka is called India's teardrop, I think it's really its gem. AdvertisementIn my seven years of traveling to 60 countries — including most countries in Southeast Asia — I have rarely been anywhere as wild and diverse as Sri Lanka. There's a lot to do in Sri LankaElephants can be spotted in Sri Lanka. For history and culture buffs, Sri Lanka is also a must-visit countryGet to know the people of Sri Lanka — and their history. AdvertisementDuring my travels, I've also met some of the kindest, most hospitable people in Sri Lanka.

Persons: —, hasn't, Kate McMahon, Jack Lawes, chiles, I've Organizations: Service, Business, Sri Lanka —, . Locations: Sri Lanka, India, Southeast Asia, Bali, New York, Africa, Trincomalee, there's, Jack Lawes Sri Lanka, Ceylon, Kingdom of Kandy, British, . Historic

☆ Opinion | Is It Too Late to Save the Southern Grasslands?
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-15 | by ( Margaret Renkl | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

I just assumed that Nashville was part of the great temperate deciduous forests that once covered much of the eastern half of the United States. When I went looking for the once-endangered Tennessee coneflower in 2019, I found them in a rocky glade surrounded by grasslands blooming with wildflowers. And if there are grasslands here now, surely there must have been grasslands here in the past. Today nearly all those Southern prairies — along with nearly all the other types of Southern grassland ecosystems, and nearly all the plants and animals they supported — are gone. In a study published in 2021, a team of scientists including Dr. Estes identified 118 major types of grassland ecosystems in the South.

Persons: Ken Burns, Dwayne Estes, Dr, Estes Organizations: PBS, Tennessee coneflower, Austin Peay State University, Southeastern Grasslands Institute Locations: American Buffalo, ”, Middle Tennessee, Nashville, United States, Tennessee, North America, American, Clarksville, Tenn, glades

☆ In Brazil, Early Wildfires Break Records — and Raise Alarm
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-12 | by ( Ana Ionova | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Brazil is still weeks away from its traditional fire season, but hundreds of blazes, fanned by searing temperatures, are already laying waste to the Pantanal, the world’s largest tropical wetlands, and to parts of the Amazon rainforest. Scientists say the burning of such vast swaths of land may represent a new normal under rising global temperatures and uneven rain, making efforts to save some of the world’s most important ecosystems much harder. There were more wildfires in Brazil’s share of the Pantanal, an enormous trove of biodiversity stretching across three countries, between January and June of this year than during the same period in any other year, according to the National Institute for Space Research, which has been tracking fires in Brazil since 1998. The highest number of fires in at least two decades was also recorded in the Amazon and in the Cerrado savanna, a patchwork of shrubs, grasslands and gnarled trees encompassing 1.2 million square miles in Brazil’s central and northeastern regions.

Organizations: National Institute for Space Research Locations: Brazil, Brazil’s

☆ Wildlife Protections Take a Back Seat to SpaceX’s Ambitions
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-07 | by ( Eric Lipton | Meridith Kohut | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Two hours later, once conditions were deemed safe, a team from SpaceX, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and a conservation group began canvassing the fragile migratory bird habitat surrounding the launch site. The launch had unleashed an enormous burst of mud, stones and fiery debris across the public lands encircling Mr. Musk’s $3 billion space compound. Chunks of sheet metal and insulation were strewn across the sand flats on one side of a state park. None of the nine nests recorded by the nonprofit Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program before the launch had survived intact.

Persons: Elon Musk’s, —, Musk’s Organizations: SpaceX, United, U.S . Fish, Wildlife Service Locations: United States, U.S

☆ Fossil analysis reveals how Denisovans thrived on the ‘roof of the world’
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-06 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The grasslands, glaciers and snow-tipped peaks of the Tibetan Plateau are breathtaking, but the vast expanse in Central Asia is also one of Earth’s harshest environments. Archaeologists long believed the Tibetan Plateau — more than 13,000 feet (about 4,000 meters) above sea level — was one of the last places on the planet to be settled. We are familyBaishiya Karst Cave is seen at the edge of Ganjia Basin on the Tibetan Plateau. Now, Baishiya Karst Cave, on the northeastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau, is helping answer many questions about who the Denisovans were. The analysis is shedding light on how the extinct humans thrived in the ice age environment for more than 100,000 years.

Persons: Bill Nelson, BRIN, Gerard Talavera, nestmates, Ashley Strickland, Katie Hunt Organizations: CNN, Lanzhou University Researchers, China National Space Administration, NASA, Apollo, FBI, BRIN Google, Scientists, Botanical Institute of Barcelona, CNN Space, Science Locations: Central Asia, Ganjia, Siberia, Tibetan, China, what’s, Indonesia, India, Bangladesh, Delta, Guiana, Talavera, Spain, —, Massachusetts

☆ Boeing Starliner, SpaceX Starship missions hit key spaceflight goals
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-08 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Chris O'Meara/APAfter lifting off Wednesday, Starliner and its first human crew set a course for the International Space Station. “We’re just happy as can be to be up in space,” Williams said. “One could be a warning sign — you’re in our backyard, you better behave yourself. The dinosaur-discovering family returns to the site in July 2023 for the excavation, including (clockwise from upper left) Sam Fisher, Emalynn Fisher, Danielle Fisher, Liam Fisher, Kaiden Madsen and Jessin Fisher. They find wonder in planets beyond our solar system and discoveries from the ancient world.

Persons: Chris O'Meara, Butch Wilmore, Suni Williams, We’re, ” Williams, —, ”, Philip Riris, ” Dino, Sam Fisher, Emalynn Fisher, Danielle Fisher, Liam Fisher, Kaiden Madsen, Jessin Fisher, Jessin, Liam, Genyornis newtoni, Jacob C, newtoni, George Frandsen, Ashley Strickland, Katie Hunt Organizations: CNN, SpaceX, eventual, Boeing, Atlas, Cape Canaveral Space Force, International Space, NASA, Bournemouth University, Denver Museum of Nature, Denver Museum of Nature & Science, — Engineers, NASA’s Hubble, CNN Space, Science Locations: Florida, Starliner, Venezuela, Colombia, England, Australia, Williams , Arizona

☆ Extinct ‘thunder bird’ from Australia was a giant goose, skull reveals
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( Mindy Weisberger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —For more than a century, scientists have been unsuccessfully hunting for skull fossils for the thunder bird species Genyornis newtoni. Now, the discovery of a complete G. newtoni skull has resolved this longstanding mystery, giving scientists their first face-to-face encounter with the massive mihirung. Pictured here is the skull of G. newtoni, which is helping resolve a long-standing mystery about the giant bird's face. The illustration also highlights how G. newtoni stacks up sizewise to its closest relative, Anhima cornuta (nearest to G. newtoni) and the cassowary (not related). From there, he constructed a scaffold that was consistent across multiple skull fossils.

Persons: newtoni, Larry Witmer, ” Witmer, “ It’s, ”, Witmer, Phoebe McInerney, ” McInerney, “ Genyornis, Genyornis, dromornithids, Anhima, Jacob Blokland, ” Blokland, Blokland, McInerney, Blockland, ” Mindy Weisberger Organizations: CNN, Flinders University G, Ohio University, “, Flinders University, Flinders Palaeontology, Flinders University Big, Scientific Locations: Australia, Australia’s, it’s, South Australia, South America, “

☆ The beautiful African paradise islands that most tourists don’t know about
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Joe Yogerst | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —A couple of African paradise islands have been on the radar of avid world travelers for some time. Shellfish Bay on the island’s windward side shelters one of East Africa’s most spectacular beaches, a crescent of white sand framed by 100-meter dunes. Bazaruto Island Resort, the island’s top digs, can arrange scuba diving and snorkeling, sailing on traditional dhow boats, guided 4x4 wildlife safaris, sandboarding on the dunes and other outdoor activities. Lamu’s best beaches are on the island’s windward side, around a 30–40-minute walk via Shela village. — and an ancient stone nilometer for measuring the river’s water level — reflect the island’s importance during pharaonic times.

Persons: São Filipe, Denis, Ponta, Ariadne Van Zandbergen, Dar es Organizations: CNN, Ethiopian Airways, oneworld, Getty, UNESCO, Heritage, Cabo Verde Airlines, Overseas, Paris Orly, Animalia Museum, Egypt, Vogue, Reserve, Dar es Salam Locations: Mauritius, Seychelles, Canary, Africa, Madagascar, Addis Ababa, Bazaruto, Mozambique, East, sandboarding, Johannesburg, Vilanculos, Lamu, Kenya, Manda, Malindi, Nairobi, JamboJet, Fogo, Cape Verde, Cabo Verde, West Africa, Pico, Verde’s, Praia, Overseas Territory, Réunion, French Caribbean, L’Hermitage, Saint, Paris, Antananarivo, Elephantine, Egypt, Aswan, Bissagos, Guinea, Bissau, Bubaque, Pemba, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Tanga, Dar, FlightLink

☆ Venezuela battles record wildfires worsened by Amazon drought
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Billy Stockwell | Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Reuters —Venezuela is battling a record number of wildfires, according to data released on Monday, as a climate change-driven drought plagues the Amazon rainforest region. An aerial view shows a burned forest after a forest fire in Henri Pittier National Park on March 30. Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/ReutersA Bolivarian National Police helicopter flies over during a wildfire in the Henri Pittier National Park on March 29. The fires are blanketing with smoke Guayana City, Venezuela’s largest urban center in the Amazon, according to a Reuters witness. In Venezuela, Lozada, firefighters and other experts said the government response was lacking.

Persons: Manoela Machado, ” Machado, “, ”, Carlos Carruido Perez, Henri Pittier, Leonardo Fernandez Viloria, Henri, Jose Rafael Lozada, Michael Coe, Lozada, Juan Carlos Hernandez, ” Lozada, Oxford’s Machado, William Lopez Organizations: Reuters —, Satellites, University of Oxford, Henri, Reuters, Bolivarian National Police, NASA, Universidad de Los, Research, AFP, Getty, “ Firefighters Locations: Reuters — Venezuela, Venezuela, South America, Pacific, Brazil’s, Brazil, Henri, Uverito, Manhattan, Universidad de Los Andes, Merida, Brazil’s Roraima, Roraima, Naguanagua, Carabobo State

☆ A California superbloom is springing to life and the best is yet to come
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Mary Gilbert | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —California will soon be decorated with a rainbow of wildflowers after drenching winter rain set the stage for a spectacular spring superbloom. The phenomenon isn’t unique to California; wildflowers can paint parched desert landscapes, mountains and grasslands in Arizona and Nevada, too, but some of the most dense and therefore spectacular displays are found in Southern California. David McNew/Getty Images/FileBut there’s hope for another brilliant superbloom following the wet winter, Meyer said. Desert sand verbena and dune evening primrose wildflowers bloom in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park's Coyote Canyon on Thursday, March 14. “We don’t know as of yet if it’s going to be a good year for the poppies, given the rain,” Turner cautioned.

Persons: ”, Evan Meyer, Theodore Payne, Meyer, “, ” Meyer, David McNew, Callista Turner, Danny L, ” Turner, Turner, – Organizations: CNN, Theodore Payne Foundation, Natural Reserve, Poppy, California State Parks Locations: California, Southern California, Southern, Meyer, Arizona, Nevada, Carrizo, McKittrick , California, Anza, Desert, Palm Springs, Chino Hills, Anaheim, Elk, Santa Barbara, Antelope, Death, Los Angeles

☆ Can the woolly mammoth really be resurrected? Scientists take a small step closer
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-09 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The stem cells will also make it easier for conservation scientists to study the Asian elephant’s unique biology. An Asian elephant stem cell line stained in different colors to highlight different elements. Courtesy ColossalEngineering a woolly mammoth hybridThe elephant stem cells also hold the key to the mammoth’s rebirth. The research team at Colossal has already analyzed the genomes of 53 woolly mammoths from ancient DNA recovered from fossils. The number of modifications needed to make an Asian elephant resistant to the cold would be broadly similar, he said.

Persons: George Church, Ben Lamm, Eriona, Eriona Hysolli, John Davidson “, ”, Hysolli, Oliver Ryder, Ryder, ” Ryder, Christopher P, Michel “, Ben’s, Lamm, “, That’s, We’ve, tramping, Colossal Organizations: CNN, Harvard University, Church, Dallas, Biosciences, Colossal, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, Colossal Biosciences, Christopher Locations: Dallas, ”, Siberia

☆ Firefighters Rush to Contain Texas Wildfire, Now the State’s Largest on Record
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( J. David Goodman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A vast and growing wildfire, one of several burning in the Texas Panhandle, has now become the largest on record in the state’s history, according to state figures on Thursday. The fire has scorched more than a million acres of land, devastating cattle ranches, consuming homes and continuing to rage out of control. One rancher, Jeff Chisum, described walking with surviving calves past the charred remains of adult cows scattered along a road. “It’s hard to watch,” said Mr. Chisum, whose ranch north of the town of Pampa and directly in the path of the fire ignited on Monday. It was only 3 percent contained on Thursday morning, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.

Persons: Jeff Chisum, ”, Chisum Organizations: Texas Panhandle, Texas, M, Service Locations: Texas, Pampa, New York City

☆ Opinion | Kicking Native People Off Their Land Is a Horrible Way to Save the Planet
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Robert Williams | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

That’s why government officials recently announced a change in the legal status of Ngorongoro that will prohibit human settlement inside and near it. The decision will force authorities to remove nearly 100,000 people — mostly Maasai pastoralists who have used Ngorongoro’s vast grasslands to sustain their seminomadic cattle-herding way of life for generations — from the protected area. According to the government, the Maasai must be removed to conserve the land and protect biodiversity. The Maasai argue that removal puts their lives and cultural survival at risk and that the government should instead expand tourism in a way that respects their rights. Yet in many cases people are already living and surviving off these lands — indeed, an estimated 476 million Indigenous peoples dwell on lands that are home to 80 percent of the world’s biodiversity.

Organizations: World Wildlife Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, University of Arizona Indigenous Peoples Law, United Nations, Indigenous Peoples Locations: Mara, Kenya, United States, France, Germany, Japan

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