Discovery of ‘echidnapus’ and two more species show the furry egg-layers predated marsupials
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Some time about 100m years ago in what is now an Australian opal field, a weird, furry, egg-laying, rabbit-sized mammal was gliding through a waterhole across a massive polar floodplain.
This mammal – Opalius splendens but which scientists have thankfully blessed with the nickname “echidnapus” – was among the ancient descendants of one of the planet’s most unique orders of animals, the monotremes.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
05/26/2024 - 10:00
05/26/2024 - 10:00
Exclusive: Independent testing of recycled soil fill for sale finds two of four samples would not meet legislated thresholds, and one contained asbestos
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Asbestos has been found in recycled soil fill for sale in New South Wales landscape and garden stores, more than a decade after investigators first raised concerns about contamination.
Guardian Australia bought four products at Sydney landscape supply shops and had samples analysed by accredited private laboratories.
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05/26/2024 - 04:25
Warnings of possible flooding, travel delays and power cuts as Met Office issues yellow warning
More than an inch of rain could fall in one hour as thunderstorms lash parts of England and Wales, forecasters have warned.
Slow-moving showers and thunderstorms are expected to develop on Sunday afternoon, with 20-30mm of rain predicted. There may also be hail and lightning strikes, with people warned to expect possible flooding, travel delays and power cuts.
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05/25/2024 - 23:39
Sydney Water says data shows men aged between 18 and 29 are biggest culprits when it comes to flushing rubbish down the toilet
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Teeth, vapes and car keys. These are just some of the unexpected items choking Sydney’s sewers over the past year, prompting a move to flush out toilet-blockers.
Sydney Water’s Toilet Blockers Anonymous campaign is reminding people to only flush the “3 Ps” – pee, poo and (toilet) paper – to prevent chokes and blockages, also known as “fatbergs”.
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05/25/2024 - 08:00
A three-year study found that the spiny lobsters’ urine scared off predatory worms and snails who snack on the delicate organisms
An unexpected champion has emerged in the increasingly grave battle to save Florida’s imperiled coral reefs: spiny lobsters that urinate in the water and scare off predatory worms and snails seeking to feast on the delicate organisms.
The finding is one of the more bizarre conclusions of a three-year study by scientists from the Florida fish and wildlife conservation commission (FWC), who are also warning it may already be too late for some species of coral to survive without significant human assistance.
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05/25/2024 - 00:41
Conservationist says for first time number of animals removed exceeds annual population growth
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More than 5,000 feral horses have been culled since the recommencement of aerial shooting in the Kosciuszko national park, with the NSW environment minister, Penny Sharpe, describing the number as proof of the need to control the threat the animals pose to the alpine wilderness.
Conservationists said for the first time the number of horses removed from the park would exceed the annual growth in horse populations, giving hope that a major threat for under-pressure ecosystems was starting to be addressed.
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05/25/2024 - 00:00
A football academy will be built on the site and campaigners say high court decision threatens other public parks
Public parks across London and beyond are being put at risk by a high court judgment in favour of Enfield council leasing a rewilded golf course to Tottenham Hotspur for a football academy, campaigners say.
The court has ruled that Enfield council is allowed to hand over more than half of the 97-hectare (240-acre) Whitewebbs Park to Spurs, which has submitted plans to the council to build a new women’s and girls’ academy on the green belt site.
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05/24/2024 - 22:02
Demonstrators gathered outside Paris meetings of energy giant and Amundi, with some forcing their way into fund manager’s tower block
The head of TotalEnergies has told shareholders that new oilfields have to be developed to meet global demand, as the annual meetings of the French energy giant and one of its biggest shareholders were picketed by climate activists.
Police said they detained 173 people among hundreds who gathered outside the Paris headquarters of Amundi, one of the world’s biggest investment managers and a major TotalEnergies shareholder.
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05/24/2024 - 11:07
Literary event ‘suspends’ arrangement with Baillie Gifford after Charlotte Church and Nish Kumar joined performers pulling out
Middle East crisis – live updates
The Hay literary festival has dropped its principal sponsor after boycotts from speakers and performers over the firm’s links to Israel and fossil fuel companies.
The singer Charlotte Church and the comedian Nish Kumar were among the latest to pull out over the investment management firm Baillie Gifford’s sponsorship of the festival. On Friday afternoon, the festival said it was ending its sponsorship deal with the company.
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05/24/2024 - 09:00
Smaller secondary systems that create hailstorms and tornadoes pack a punch that is causing billions of dollars in damages
This story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration
The rising cost of homeowner’s insurance is now one of the most prominent symptoms of the climate crisis in the US. Major carriers such as State Farm and Allstate have pulled back from offering fire insurance in California, dropping thousands of homeowners from their books, and dozens of small insurance companies have collapsed or fled from Florida and Louisiana following recent large hurricanes.
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