Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Levitating penguins and predatory ants: Australian Geographic nature photographer of the year 2026 shortlist – in pictures

admin — Tue, 23 Jun 2026 05:43:27 +0000

A hundred incredible images have been shortlisted by the South Australian Museum as part of this year’s Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition. In its 23rd year, the competition attracted 2,129 entries from 501 photographers in 17 countries. Entries were accepted covering content from across the ANZANG bioregion – Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and New Guinea

Europe heatwave live: UK issues rare red temperature warnings; French PM to hold crisis meeting after heat deaths

admin — Tue, 23 Jun 2026 05:28:48 +0000

Temperatures could hit 38-40C in parts of England and Wales, smashing June record set in 1976; red alerts in France after 19 heat deaths

Two children found dead in car in France as heatwave hits Europe

Birds such as swifts, swallows, sparrows and starlings – which make their nests in the eaves of roofs – have been particularly affected by abnormally high ‌temperatures, a specialist says.

A thousand years old and 20 storeys high: tracking down Taiwan’s tallest trees

admin — Tue, 23 Jun 2026 04:00:30 +0000

The country’s biggest tree – named Heaven Sword of the Da’an River – is a carbon-storing behemoth hosting whole neighbourhoods of wildlife. But this and other giant trees are under threat

More trees can mean fewer birds, new study reveals

admin — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 13:14:03 +0000

Trees planted to protect farmland from wind may not be the biodiversity boost many assume. In Japan’s wetland farming landscapes, shelterbelts benefited some birds but sharply reduced grassland and wetland species that need open space. Researchers found grassland bird abundance dropped by more than 70% near shelterbelts.

UK Met Office issues rare red weather warning for Wednesday and Thursday

admin — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 11:22:17 +0000

People in southern Wales and area of England from Kent and Sussex to Somerset and Birmingham urged to protect themselves from extreme heat

The UK’s Met Office forecasters have issued a rare red weather warning for Wednesday and Thursday in the face of extreme heat and humidity.

It covers southern Wales as far west as Swansea, and an area of England that includes London and runs from the inland areas of Kent and Sussex, all the way across to Somerset, as far north-west as Birmingham, and as far north-east as southern Cambridgeshire.

Two children found dead in car in France as heatwave hits Europe

admin — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 10:14:40 +0000

Number of countries issue alerts with sustained and rising temperatures expected to present danger to health

Two children aged four and two have been found dead in their family’s car in south-eastern France, the local prosecutor said, as a large swathe of western Europe suffers a ferocious heatwave forecast to shatter absolute temperature records.

From mobile jungles to shadow art: how Dutch people try to beat the heat

admin — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 04:00:50 +0000

A national heatwave plan has been activated to help people stay cool during the Netherlands’ increasingly hot summers

Households in Amsterdam are being urged to hang their curtains outside their windows as health experts recommend simple hacks to moderate the heatwave rolling across the Netherlands, where homes were built for old-fashioned damp and coldish northern European weather.

The regenerative wealth of Blue Gold: lessons from Oman for sustainable ocean economies

admin — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 04:00:00 +0000

npj Ocean Sustainability, Published online: 22 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s44183-026-00220-2

Western Australian poultry farms locked down as second wild bird dies from H5N1 bird flu

admin — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 02:45:18 +0000

Poultry producer Ingham’s announces move, as a brown skua and a giant petrel the first confirmed H5 cases on Australia’s mainland

Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates

France cancels events and restricts alcohol consumption amid brutal heatwave

admin — Sun, 21 Jun 2026 13:01:47 +0000

Sports and nationwide music festival affected, with temperatures for some expected to reach 42C from Monday

Authorities in France have placed more than a third of the country under a red heat alert, cancelled some outdoor sports events and restricted alcohol consumption at the nationwide Fête de la Musique event amid a brutal heatwave forecast to push temperatures above 40C.