Biodiversity

"Conservationists touted a major victory Tuesday in their battle to protect Yellowstone grizzly bears when a federal appeals court ruled that wildlife managers erred when they removed Endangered Species Act protection from 'one of the American West's most iconic wild animals.'"

"The acidification of the world’s oceans from an excess of CO2 emissions has already begun, as evidenced recently by the widespread mortality of oyster larvae in the Pacific Northwest. Scientists say this is just a harbinger of things to come if greenhouse gas emissions continue to soar."

"ANCHORAGE, Alaska  — Alaska's Cook Inlet beluga whales were correctly listed as endangered, a federal judge ruled Monday, rejecting a state lawsuit that claimed the listing will hurt economic development."

"The nonnative amphibians pose a threat, but efforts to ban them pit environmentalists against Asian Americans, who relish them."

"A species of Himalayan yew tree that is used to produce Taxol, a chemotherapy drug to treat cancer, is being pushed to the brink of extinction by over-harvesting for medicinal use and collection for fuel, scientists warned on Thursday."

"WEST LAFAYETTE, Indiana -- An ant species common to the mainland United States that is known for its tropical smell has invaded Hawaii for the first time. A population of odorous house ants, Tapinoma sessile, has been found at an upland site on the island of Maui. Also called stink ant, and coconut ant, these ants got their names because they invade houses and smell like coconut when smashed."

"The Supreme Court [Monday] decided -- for now -- not to get involved in ongoing litigation over California's endangered delta smelt."

"These mosquitoes are genetically engineered to kill — their own children."

"Genetic engineering has failed to increase the yield of any food crop but has vastly increased the use of chemicals and the growth of "superweeds", according to a report by 20 Indian, south-east Asian, African and Latin American food and conservation groups representing millions of people.

"BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has designated the Ozark hellbender as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act. Hellbenders are among the world's largest salamanders. The Ozark hellbender inhabits the White River system in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas."