At this moment in Hawai’i, the volcano Kīlauea is erupting. Red hot lava is bubbling up into its Halemaʻumaʻu crater, one of many along its range.
But while the lava isn’t expected to flow anywhere near residents, they have been warned to look out for another hazard thrown up byvolcanoes– Pele’s hair.
No, it isn’t named afterthe footballer, but Pele the Hawai’ian goddess of volcanoes and fire. Nor is it actually hair.
The curious phenomena occurs when molten lava is spat out of a volcano at high speeds and stretches apart as it cools, forming golden, hair-like strands of volcanic glass.
When the lava is not travelling as fast it can form Pele’s tears, small droplets of the same volcanic glass.
More good news for wolverine fans. On June 3, Cascades Carnivore Project announced the discovery of three new baby wolverines (called kits or cubs) in the South Cascades in Washington.
The mother is “Joni,” a wolverine that has now given birth for the past four years.
“Heather Rolph, Cascades Carnivore Project field crew lead, made this rare discovery when checking one of our wolverine integrated monitoring stations that has been running just outside [Mount Rainier National Park] all winter long,” said Jocelyn Akins, the organization’s conservation director, in an email.
Joni was first discovered in 2019 near Paradise at the park and named after Joni Mitchell.
During spring 2020, as landslides and then the global pandemic closed access to the park, Joni—and her mate—more or less had the park to themselves. That same spring, CCC discovered Joni had a litter of kits, marking the return of a wolverine population after a century.
The father of the new triplets is likely a wolverine named “Van.”
“Joni’s territory is within (Van’s) territory and they are often photographed at our stations together,” Akins told Columbia Insight. “We first discovered him near Bumping Lake on the William O. Douglas Wilderness (in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest) in 2017. He is a big, old wolverine. His home range extends from the headwaters of the Little Naches River, almost to Snoqualmie Pass, across the Norse Peak Wilderness, across the entire Mount Rainier National Park and down toward White Pass.”
Despite the ongoing births, wolverines still have it tough. For Joni, finding find food for herself and her kits is a daily challenge, according to Akins.
“We continue to monitor the small and growing South Cascades wolverine population in the hopes of new individuals arriving, possibly from the north, as we work to understand what is needed for the wolverine to regain its foothold in Washington’s Cascades,” said Akins.
Chuck Thompson is editor of Columbia Insight.
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Columbia Insight, based in Hood River, Oregon, is nonprofit news site focused on environmental issues of the Columbia River Basin.
COURTESY HAWAII MARINE RESPONSEHawaiian monk seal pup RS48, also known as Hoʻomau Lehua, was found dead on June 12 on Oahu’s North Shore.
Another endangered Hawaiian monk seal has been found dead on Oahu, according to federal wildlife officials.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said a young, female monk seal, identified as RS48 and known to many as Ho‘omau Lehua, was found dead on Monday on Oahu’s North Shore. She was just under four months old.
NOAA said a post-mortem exam will be conducted to determine the cause of her death, which remains unknown at this time.
The discovery of Ho‘omau Lehua’s death occurred three months after another seal, Malama, was found dead at Ohikilolo on Oahu’s west side on March 12.
A post-mortem exam revealed that Malama died of blunt force trauma suspected to be an intentional killing, and NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to successful prosecution.
NOAA said Ho‘omau Lehua was born Feb. 23 to a seal known as Lei Ola, or RH48.
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With only about 1,500 left in the wild, Hawaiian monk seals are one of the most endangered seal species in the world, protected by state and federal laws.
Anyone with information should contact the NOAA Enforcement hotline at 800-853-1964.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FL – NOVEMBER 12: A racoon watches is seen on the course during the first round of the Children’s Miracle Network Classic at the Disney Palm and Magnolia courses on November 12, 2009 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
DES MOINES, Iowa —There are new rules in the way Iowans can hunt and trap raccoons as well as how farmers can deal with raccoon depredation issues.
A bill signed into law by Gov. Reynolds earlier this year says landowners may shoot or trap raccoons using cage or dog-proof traps if raccoons are causing damage to their agricultural property outside of city limits. Landowners do not need to notify the DNR before shooting or trapping raccoons, and a license is not required. The law goes into effect on July 1.
Correction: A previous version of the story incorrectly listed the number of states that participate in squirrel hunting season throughout the year. It has been updated with correct information for the spring season.
Hunters in the Ozarks often share tales of their bountiful harvests and the exhaustion of their deer, turkey and bear tags. Taxidermists have long banked on those successes.
But one of Missouri’s longest outdoorsman traditions — a sanctioned hunt that predates the inception of the Missouri Department of Conservation — doesn’t generate nearly as much boasting: squirrel hunting season.
The rodents don’t provide as much sustenance as most game animals and are rarely presented in prize fashion, but they still require the purchase of a small game permit in the state of Missouri.
Geneticists discovered a past whole genome duplication (WGD) event in the common ancestor of sturgeons and paddlefish that occurred just before a significant mass extinction, potentially providing these species with advantageous genetic variations. This discovery also raises the possibility of similar overlooked WGDs in other species’ lineages, which might have contributed to survival during periods of extreme environmental changes.
Geneticists have made a significant discovery about the ancient history of sturgeons and paddlefish, which carries profound implications for our understanding of evolution. They identified a previously hidden instance of “whole genome duplication” (WGD) in the shared ancestor of thesespecies, an event that appears to have facilitated genetic variations that may have provided an edge during a severe mass extinction event around…
For too many years, horse racing has treated horses as mere commodities, routinely seeing its athletes die on the field and discounting such deaths as the cost of doing business. iStock.com
On June 2, Churchill Downs, the home of the Kentucky Derby, suspended horse racing upon the recommendation of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority after 12 horses died in a span of a few weeks at the track.
Just 10 days prior the Authority finally gained the power to fully enforce the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, landmark legislation that passed in 2020. After the recent spate of horse deaths, the Authority recommended that Churchill Downs suspend racing and conduct an extensive safety review. Remarkably, the track heeded this call.
We are determined that this be just the first of many such racing industry moves that prioritize horse safety and welfare. This moment is the culmination of years of advocacy and collaboration with forward-thinking industry leaders. Despite repeated attempts by some industry outliers to block these reforms, the Authority can finally fully enforce the HISA’s racetrack safety and anti-doping measures. Trainers with records of horse fatalities and drug violations who have remained seemingly untouched by the scandals that surround them may finally come to reckon with the penalties they deserve.
But the Authority still faces obstruction within the industry, most notably from the National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, which has filed lawsuit after lawsuit to block the changes the HISA seeks to make.
In listening to the Authority and stepping up to halt operations and prioritize horse safety, Churchill Downs has done the right thing. This act of responsibility and transparency is a step toward reforming horse racing, but more needs to be done.
No more lives can be lost. Nothing can bring back those 12 horses who perished at Churchill Downs, nor the hundreds who have died over the years in accidents at tracks across the country that may have been prevented. Anyone obstructing reforms that put animal welfare first in horse racing cares not at all for the equines that make the sport possible. To laud these horses and yet see their injuries and deaths as a mere cost of doing business is a truly brutal way to treat these animals.
As the final race of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes, approaches this weekend, we are insisting that horse racing should not be a matter of life or death.
Sara Amundson is president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund.
Penn State researchers discovered Masai giraffe populations divided by East Africa’s Great Rift Valley haven’t interbred for centuries. This, along with significant inbreeding and a 50% decline over 30 years, suggests they are more endangered than previously thought. Distinct but coordinated conservation efforts for each population are recommended.
Giraffe populations separated by Great Rift Valley in eastern Africa are genetically distinct, suggesting that conservation efforts should be considered separately for each population.
Giraffes in eastern Africa may be even more endangered than previously thought. A new study led by researchers at Penn State reveals that populations of Masai giraffes separated geographically by the Great Rift Valley have not interbred — or exchanged genetic material — in more than a thousand years, and in some cases hundreds…
A call of “shot fired” that led to the deployment of a tactical police team turned out to be a simple accident involving a trio of gopher hunters in Weyburn on Monday, police say.
According to the Weyburn Police Service (WPS), the call was received from a local hotel on June 12.
A guest in the hotel was nearly hit by a bullet that was fired through the wall from the room next door, police say.
WPS had the hotel evacuated and the Joint Tactical Police Team (JTST) made up of Weyburn and Estevan police were brought in.
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COURTESY HAWAII MARINE RESPONSEHawaiian monk seal pup RS48, also known as Hoʻomau Lehua, was found dead on June 12 on Oahu’s North Shore.
The City of Weyburn sign can be seen in this file photo. (David Prisciak/CTV News)
