مقالات البيئة

Any member of the five species of the Prasinohaema (Greek: “green blood”) skinks that that live on the island of New Guinea in the South West Pacific, would have been a shoo-in for J.K. Rowling’s wildly imaginative Harry Potter book series. That’s because besides being the only known land vertebrates to have “vivid lime green” blood, the reptiles also sport green bones, green muscles, and even a green tongue!...

While your pet fish may appear to be oblivious of your presence, chances are it knows you extremely well and can probably even identify you from a crowd of humans! At least, that is the conclusion reached by scientists the University of Oxford in the U.K. and the University of Queensland in Australia, following an extensive study of the archerfish, a species of tropical fish that can be found all the way from India, to Indonesia, the Philippines, and Australia....

There are few celestial events as reliable or as anticipated as the annual Perseid meteor showers. The shooting star show typically begins in mid-July and continues until the end of August. However, it is most visible around mid-August. According to astronomers, this year the best time to watch nature’s fireworks will be the evening of Thursday, Aug 11 and the early hours of Friday, Aug 12....

In 2014, marine biologist and National Geographic Emerging Explorer David Gruber was on a nighttime dive to observe biofluorescent corals when he noticed a bright green eel darting across. This was the first time biofluorescence had been witnessed in a vertebrate. Curious to see if there were more such creatures just waiting to be discovered, Gruber and his team began combing through coral reefs around the world. Sure enough, they found that 180 species of animals, including bony fishes, reptiles, and even the hawksbill sea turtle, have the capability to “glow”, in the deep dark ocean waters....

When a 91,000-acre piece of vacant land came up for sale in Southwest Florida about ten years ago, it attracted builders from across the country. After all, the chance to develop an area almost five times the size of Manhattan does not come frequently. But to everyone’s surprise, the owners did not auction the property that lies just 20 minutes from Fort Myers to the highest bidder. Instead, they sold it to Palm Beach-based Kitson & Partners who not only promised to preserve a bulk of the land, but also use the remaining acreage to build an environmentally friendly town....

On Sunday, May 1 shortly after 4 pm, a crew from the Alberta Agriculture and Forestry Department reported a wildfire in the vicinity of Fort McMurray in Alberta, Canada. Though the fire, which was labeled MWF-009 because it was the ninth such blaze encountered this season was similar to the previous ones, it concerned firefighters more for two reasons....

In January and February of 2016, a total of 13 young sperm whales washed up on the beach near the town of Tönning in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. An autopsy revealed that the whales had all died of heart failure. The researchers believe that the young bulls, all between 10-15 years old, may have entered the North Sea by mistake. Since the sea floor here is too shallow for these deep sea dwellers, it caused the whales to become disoriented and perish....

On Friday, April 22, billions of people across the globe will celebrate Earth Day. They will commemorate the event by staging rallies, participating in environmental clean-up activities, and pledging to undertake "green" initiatives to protect this precious planet. While that is certainly helpful, it would be even better if we could incorporate "greener" habits into our daily lives. These stunning images taken from space by NASA will serve as a reminder of why making every day "Earth Day" is so important....

In May 2011, Joao Pereira de Souza stumbled upon a stranded Magellanic penguin outside his shack on Proveta Beach in Ilha Grande, Rio de Janeiro. The bird was soaked in oil and unable to move. The 71-year-old retired bricklayer scooped up the starving penguin, nursed it back to health and put it out to sea....

Tossing a plastic spoon or fork into the trash after using it once is not just acceptable; it is fashionable. Experts estimate that over 40 billion pieces of plastic cutlery end up in the garbage each year - And that's just in the US. The numbers are even worse in India where an astounding 120 billion pieces clog the landfills annually. But that may change soon thanks to Indian entrepreneur Narayana Peesapaty, whose start-up Bakey's transforms mundane cutlery into delicious treats!...

A recent study conducted by a team of researchers from Canada's McGill University has uncovered that birds who live in urban environments are not just better at problem-solving and more skilled in tasks that require innovation than their rural counterparts: they also have stronger immune systems!...

When one thinks of a spider, the image that comes to mind is the crafty arthropod feasting on an innocent insect it has lured into its web. It turns out that the arachnids have a much more sophisticated palate. In addition to relishing the occasional fish and frog, they also have a strong penchant for vegetables. At least, that's the conclusion reached by a team of zoologists from the USA, United Kingdom and Switzerland, after an extensive worldwide study of the eight-legged arthropods....

On January 17, Brigitte Barthélémy was walking along the seashore just north of France's famous Bordeaux wine region when she stumbled upon a bottle nestled among a pile of seashells. Inside were two tightly rolled pieces of paper. One contained a beautiful hand-drawn sketch of a cormorant, while the other was a message from the New York Pelagic outlining how litter caught in the ocean currents is often fatal for the water birds that mistake the bright plastic debris for food....

On Saturday, March 19, millions of businesses and individuals worldwide will celebrate Earth Hour by turning off all lights and electronics from 8:30 - 9:30 PM local time. The voluntary rolling blackout that includes 350 of the world’s most iconic landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower, the Empire State Building, Taipei 101 and the Sydney Opera House, is more than a symbolic gesture — It is proof of what can be achieved if we all unite to reverse climate change....

On March 9, the Civil Protection and Firefighters Department in Acapulco received news of a mysterious 'sea monster' that had washed up on the resort city's beautiful Bonfil Beach. Measuring an impressive 13-feet (4 meters) in length the gray creature that resembles a giant blob with multiple layers of skin is unlike anything experts have encountered before. Hence, the massive animal has sparked the world's imagination....

On January 13, 2016, France became the first country in the world to pass a law requiring supermarkets to donate food that is approaching its expiration date instead of throwing it away. The regulation that applies to supermarkets over 4,000 square feet requires stores to sign donation contracts with local food banks....

Every February 27, the world observes International Polar Bear Day. Started ten years ago by US-based nonprofit Polar Bear International (PMI) it is observed to raise awareness of the vulnerable species whose rapidly dwindling numbers are often forgotten because they dwell in the sparsely populated circumpolar Arctic....

Snakes are amongst the most feared animals in the world. The sight of the slithering reptiles can send even the bravest human or animal scampering for safety. One clever butterfly species has figured out how to capitalize on this universal terror by transforming its pupa to resemble the world's most venomous snake!...

King Kong fans will be pleased to hear that the massive skyscraper climbing ape is not just a figment of filmmakers' imagination. There were actual giant apes or Gigantopithecus that roamed the planet not too long ago. However, since the only fossil evidence found is the lower jawbone and a handful of teeth, researchers have been unable to glean much insight into the giant ape's lifestyle or what caused it to become extinct....

On January 16, hundreds of panda lovers lined up outside the gates of the National Zoo in Washington D.C. to be the first to get a glimpse at Bei Bei. While the giant panda cub that was born on August 22, 2015 has been visible on the zoo's video camera, this was his first public appearance....

Food waste is a growing problem both in the United States and across the globe. In North America alone anywhere from 30-40% of perfectly edible food ends up in the trash each year. To put it in perspective that is almost 20 pounds of food per person, per month! While the fact that most ends up in our landfills is bad enough, what's worse is that over 48 million Americans, including 15.3 million kids, live in households that do not have sufficient food! Now, concerned citizens are trying to raise awareness of the issue with some innovative ideas....

The 2015 holiday season brought little cheer to the thousands of Southern California residents affected by a methane leak from an underground gas storage facility. Since late November, over 2,800 families from the Porter Ranch Community in Los Angeles have been forced to flee their homes to escape the adverse effects of the odorless gas. What's worse is that they have no idea when they will be able to return....

A few years ago, Douglas Long and his colleagues from the California Academy of Sciences were helping D. Ross Robertson identify some chimaeras caught off the Pacific coast of Central America in 2010. Among the images were those of a mysterious pitch black shark. Intrigued, the marine ichthyologist asked the Smithsonian Institute researcher to lend him the preserved specimens so that his team could study the fish in detail....

Manatees or sea cows as they are often called, are large, rotund marine animals that can weigh as much as 1,000 pounds. But despite their enormous size, the mostly herbivorous animals have no blubber to protect them from chilly winter waters. Hence, every winter, the gentle giants seek out warmer waters. For the approximately 6,000 Florida manatees that reside in the Gulf of Mexico it means heading to the balmy 72°F waters of the roughly one-acre Three Sisters Spring in Florida's Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge....