Wildlife

"SAN DIEGO — Hollywood has just cast SeaWorld as a bad guy. But SeaWorld has decided to diverge from the story line."

"Reports from a landmark meeting to debate protections for Antarctic wildlife suggest that Russia has stalled U.S. and European initiatives to establish no-kill zones in the Southern Ocean."

"As its name implies, the sage grouse lives in sagebrush country, the rolling hills of knee-high scrub that's the common backdrop in movie Westerns. Pristine sagebrush is disappearing, however, and so are the birds. Biologists want to protect the sage grouse, but without starting a 21st century range war over it. So they've undertaken a grand experiment in the American West, to keep the grouse happy, as well as cattle ranchers and the energy industry."

"Ivory poachers may have finally met their match: forensic science. A study just published by PNAS describes a carbon-dating technique making it possible to determine the age of elephant tusks—and thus whether a particular piece of ivory has been acquired illegally."

"A White House plan to curb illegal trafficking in rhino horn, elephant tusks and body parts from other endangered wildlife could have the side benefit of helping to stabilize parts of Africa plagued by insurgent groups, military and political analysts say."

"President used second executive order this week to launch task force which will draft strategy to curb $10 billion illegal trade."

"Butterflies are the essence of cool in the insect world, a favorite muse for poets and songwriters, who hold them up as symbols of love, beauty, transformation and good fortune."

"A New Mexico meat plant received federal approval on Friday to slaughter horses for meat, a move that drew immediate opposition from animal rights group and will likely be opposed by the White House."

"In response to a massive bumblebee die-off blamed on pesticides, the Oregon Department of Agriculture issued a temporary restriction Thursday on 18 insecticides with the active ingredient dinotefuran."

"Following the recent federal decision to list captive chimpanzees as an endangered species, the National Institutes of Health announced Wednesday it would retire the majority of the approximately 360 government-owned chimpanzees currently held in laboratories."