Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Fiona Pardington’s portraits of the lost birds of Aotearoa New Zealand – in pictures

admin — Sun, 03 May 2026 15:00:06 +0000

For more than two decades, Pardington has been photographing taonga (Māori cultural treasures) and natural history specimens in museums around the world. In the South Canterbury museum, she was struck by a collection of stuffed native birds which had been subject to taxidermy – many of them now extinct or endangered. They inspired a new human-scale portrait series of these manu (birds), revered within Māori culture as intermediaries between human and divine worlds. The resulting works will be exhibited at the 2026 Venice Biennale.

Reform UK council backs release of beavers amid party row over rewilding

admin — Sun, 03 May 2026 10:50:35 +0000

Councillors in Leicestershire support move in efforts to reduce flooding as Reform faces divisions on nature policy

A Reform UK council has backed the release of wild beavers into the countryside, despite the party’s opposition to rewilding.

The Reform-led Leicestershire county council has backed the release of the rodents as part of efforts to reduce flooding.

Stopping to admire wisteria and taking pride in your laundry? Join me in the land of grownups | Polly Hudson

admin — Sun, 03 May 2026 06:48:50 +0000

I’ve recently noticed several signs of adulthood in my behaviour. At first I was horrified, but I have come to accept, even enjoy, the natural ageing process

I nearly drove into a wall the other day, because I couldn’t take my eyes off some spectacular wisteria. Ten years ago I doubt I would have even noticed it, or known what it was, never mind been so transfixed that I unwittingly endangered my life. It’s pretty much invisible in your youth, and then suddenly, at a certain age, or stage, you see it, appreciate it and become mesmerised by its impressive display.

Solar booms in industrial US midwest as energy crisis persists

admin — Sat, 02 May 2026 16:00:29 +0000

Electricity has become one of the most important commodities in the region thanks to demand from datacenters, Iran war and rising utility charges

For decades, the only regular visitors to the Twin Lake Reservoir in Lima, Ohio, were fishers passing hot summer evenings trying to snag a largemouth bass.

But today, it’s a hive of activity.

Two buses, three hours and 13 miles: how Americans in ‘transit deserts’ get groceries without cars

admin — Sat, 02 May 2026 15:00:28 +0000

As Covid-era funding dries up and bus services are cut, a food insecurity crisis is brewing from Tennessee to Rhode Island

Zen’Yari Winters’ job, at a pet shop in East Memphis, Tennessee, should be a 20-minute trip from her house. She leaves herself three hours to get there. “The bus is always, always late,” she said – if it shows up at all.

‘They don’t belong in our environment’: US vineyards battle spotted lanternflies as invasive insects spread

admin — Sat, 02 May 2026 13:00:26 +0000

From Virginia to New York, the bugs drain vines, cut yields and leave growers resorting to one simple fix: squash them

Around grape harvest time about three years ago, an employee at Zephaniah Farm Vineyard in Leesburg, Virginia, noticed bugs, about 1in long with gray and black wings and a bright red underwing, atop some trees.

While the insects were pretty, they were there for the grapevines and not welcome guests at the vineyard, which sits atop a farm that the Zephaniah family has run since 1949.

‘Living in survival mode’: Houston’s embattled immigrant community faces health, climate and petrochemical crises

admin — Sat, 02 May 2026 12:00:25 +0000

Amid immigration raids, chemical spills, massive floods and costly healthcare, less-affluent residents of one of the most diverse US cities struggle to pull through

Cándido Álvarez has made it his policy never to go to the doctor.

“Not when I’m sick, not even when it’s serious,” he said. “I prefer not to go.”

Rescuers release humpback whale that was stranded off German coast

admin — Sat, 02 May 2026 11:38:52 +0000

Calf was transported by water-filled barge in operation deemed ‘inadvisable’ because of low chance of survival

Rescuers have released a young humpback whale that became a national sensation after it was beached in shallow waters off the coast in Germany, although marine experts have said its chances of survival are low.

The whale, variously nicknamed Timmy or Hope, was released into the North Sea off Denmark after being transported there in a water-filled barge by rescuers.

To give young people wings: The Lost Words duo reunite for book of birds

admin — Sat, 02 May 2026 11:00:23 +0000

Jackie Morris and Robert Macfarlane give the Guardian exclusive extracts as they aim to open eyes to the wonder of Britain’s declining and endangered species

When the artist Jackie Morris collaborated with the writer Robert Macfarlane to celebrate the names of plants and animals controversially removed from the Oxford Junior Dictionary, they never imagined their book, The Lost Words, would become a cultural phenomenon.

Momentum building for Scottish-style land access rights in England, says film

admin — Sat, 02 May 2026 06:00:18 +0000

Documentary makers seek to start ‘informed conversation’ in country where public is allowed on just 8% of land

Anger and momentum are building for Scottish style rights of access to mountains, meadows, rivers and woodlands in England where the public is allowed on just 8% of land, a new documentary suggests.

Our Land, a film whose title is a nod to the protest song by Woody Guthrie, explores the rise of the right to roam movement in England.