The short-tailed roundleaf bat was feared extinct until scientist Iroro Tanshi found one in Afi sanctuary in Nigeria, and set out to protect the only confirmed roosting colony
Just after sunrise, a cacophony of whoops and chatter can be heard over the verdant forests of the Afi mountain wildlife sanctuary. Nestled within the Cross River rainforest in south-east Nigeria, and spanning an area about the size of central Paris, the steep sanctuary is a haven for endangered gorillas, drill monkeys, the grey-necked rockfowl – and the short-tailed roundleaf bat.
The Nigerian biologist Iroro Tanshi remembers the moment she first spotted the endangered bat in 2016, during a field expedition for her PhD research. “We were trapping near a roost that night, so we caught a lot of bats,” says Tanshi. But, she adds: “This looked very, very different. Big-eared.” She promptly turned to her identification guide, which revealed that the tiny furry creature she was holding between her fingers was Hipposideros curtus, better known as the short-tailed roundleaf bat, last recorded in the wild in the 1970s.
Continue reading...
Breaking Waves: Ocean News
06/16/2026 - 01:00
06/16/2026 - 01:00
Tech is helping to identify and save new specimens and could open ‘genomic goldmine’ of fungi data
The rise of AI and digitisation could be a turning point in the “race against extinction” faced by botanists trying to identify and save vital plants before they vanish, according to a major report from Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
New technology is enabling scientists to track how flowering times have shifted by weeks around the world, rapidly identify new specimens and even get crucial genetic data from 180-year-old fungus specimens, potentially opening a “genomic goldmine”. Digitisation and online access to millions of specimens that were until now only accessible in archives is also producing new insights, especially in the global south.
Continue reading...
06/16/2026 - 00:00
Almost every child, including those from high-income countries, is now exposed to at least one hazard
Half of the world’s children are exposed to at least three overlapping climate hazards threatening their health, education and survival, according to a Unicef report.
Globally, children face increasing threats from heatwaves, storms, floods and droughts as the climate crisis worsens, with more than one billion facing at least three of these at once.
Continue reading...
06/15/2026 - 10:01
Residents of West Oakland, which suffers from toxic waste and high pollution rates, rally against a coal export facility
West Oakland, a California neighborhood known for its rich history of Black activism from the Pullman Porters’ union to the Black Panthers, might not seem like the site of the country’s next great coal project.
But that’s exactly what the Trump administration is pushing for – with the injection of $75m to build a sprawling coal export terminal in the nearby port of Oakland.
Continue reading...
06/15/2026 - 08:00
Move is part of broad effort to open public lands to industry and other uses, threatening wildlife and ecosystems
The Trump administration is executing a controversial plan to allow dirt bikes, ATVs, trucks, snowmobiles and other off-road vehicles to drive through tens of millions of acres of public lands and national parks, which environmental groups warn threatens endangered species and the environment.
The plan’s opponents say the impacts will be wide-ranging and that the vehicles will likely destroy sensitive habitats, harm waterways, drive large predators like grizzly bears into contact with humans, and otherwise damage pristine public lands and parks.
Continue reading...
06/15/2026 - 07:00
About 80% of 115 products tested show levels of Pfas that comply with rules – but some firms still exceeding limits
State laws banning Pfas in clothing and textiles have significantly reduced the amount of toxic “forever chemicals” used in the products, which public health advocates say marks a major public health win and underscores the value in protective policy.
However, some companies appear to have ignored the laws as their products still contain high levels of Pfas.
Continue reading...
06/15/2026 - 05:31
The family of Leah Stewart is braced for more bad news and the impact on her 18-month-old daughter
Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates
Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast
The family of the woman critically injured in Saturday’s horrific shark attack at Coogee beach is still coming to terms with the catastrophic scope of her injuries and the heartbreaking impact on her toddler.
Leah Stewart, a 35-year-old primary school teacher, mother and dedicated ocean swimmer, remained on life support in the intensive care unit at St Vincent’s hospital after being mauled by a suspected 3.5-metre great white shark.
Continue reading...
06/15/2026 - 01:00
Amid fears the wreck will be more accessible to explorers – and new species – as the climate warms, conservationists want to create the region’s first underwater protected area
The harsh temperatures, treacherous currents and shifting pack ice of the Antarctic’s Weddell Sea, which crushed and sank his ship, Endurance, in 1915, led Ernest Shackleton to describe it as the “worst portion of the worst sea in the world”.
For more than a century, the inhospitable conditions, which present a challenge even for modern icebreaker ships, helped to protect the lost wreck, which was discovered in 2022, its structure still largely intact.
Continue reading...
06/15/2026 - 00:49
Another expert says drone technology may have prevented shark attack at Coogee beach on Saturday
Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates
Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast
A shark behaviour expert says Tony Abbott “doesn’t understand the science” after the former prime minister called for sharks to be culled in the wake of an attack at a Sydney beach.
Leah Stewart, a 35-year-old woman, was bitten on the leg and arm by what was thought to be a great white shark on Saturday morning.
Continue reading...
06/15/2026 - 00:00
Beneath our feet lies a vast hidden fungal superhighway that helps sustain much of life on Earth—and scientists have now mapped it for the first time. Researchers estimate that these underground networks stretch an astonishing 110 quadrillion kilometers, move about 4 billion tons of carbon dioxide into soils each year, and play a major role in supporting plants and regulating the climate.
