Ensuring the weekend gets off to an upbeat start with a collection of good news nuggets.
Conservation Success
Confirmation has come from India of a conservation success story for the greater one-horned rhino. The International Rhino Foundation announced that the population now numbers 4,014 individuals - up from just 100 individuals 50 years ago. The government of Assam, the province in India that is home to 70 percent of the population, just completed its biannual rhino census, saying the greater one-horned rhino total has increased by 274 rhinos since the last count.
Greener Gigs
To help make their tour “as sustainable and low-carbon as possible,” Coldplay is using kinetic dance floors and energy-storing stationary bikes so fans can help power the show. It’s part of a larger effort by the band to lead the way in creating a more sustainable tour. Overall, the band is cutting their own emissions by 50 percent from their previous tour in 2017. They are also helping support new technologies and develop new sustainable touring methods, as well as offsetting the emissions they do produce with “nature- and technology-based solutions.”
Wonder Weevil
A “wonder weevil” has been introduced to fight the invasive floating pennywort weed that grows 20cm (8 inches) a day in rivers. The non-native South American weevil has been released into waterways in a world-first effort to tackle the highly invasive plant, which is making Britain’s waterways inaccessible to canoes and anglers. It marks the first time floating pennywort has been tackled through a “biocontrol” measure, where an animal rather than pesticide or mechanical method is used to reduce the spread of the plant.
Today's obscure word: Groak - To look on silently, like a dog, at people while they are eating, hoping to be given something to eat.
BowelBabe
BBC podcaster Dame Deborah Jones raised an incredible £6 million for Cancer Research UK in less than a week - and the number is still climbing. At the start of her fundraising journey, the 40-year-old mother-of-two revealed that she would be 'stopping active care to treat her bowel cancer' and moving to a hospice. Since then, not only has she smashed her £250,000 target, but she was visited by Prince William, who commended her for her efforts and awarded her Damehood on behalf of the Queen. Jones admitted to being 'completely lost for words' at the amount of support she has received. Click here if you would like to donate to her BowelBabe Fund.
Bee Nice
Leave out a drinking station for bumble bees: Wildlife experts suggest filling a plant pot tray or shallow dish with pebbles to give bees something to land on. Fill it slightly with water so it covers the bottom of the saucer but doesn’t submerge the pebbles. Then they can quench their thirst and move along after a little rest.
Quote of the Day
"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened." Dr. Seuss
(More Dr Seuss quotes in tomorrow's OGN Sunday Magazine)
On this Day
21 May 1927: American aviator Charles Lindbergh completed the first non-stop solo flight across the Atlantic, travelling from New York to Paris in the Spirit of Saint Louis in about 33.5 hours.
Dive in Deeper
New weather satellite delivers stunning views of Earth and will help us to better forecast and understand weather and climate issues. Read on...
Lord Howe Island in Australia has eradicated its rodent population, and the recovery of the endemic ecosystem has been almost immediate. Read on...
Laughter Mood Booster
Some clips of funny talking animals from the BBC's Walk on the Wildside series.
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