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A praying mantis: she bites into her mate’s head like an apple and cleans her face ‘like a cat’ | Helen Sullivan
The mate is not discouraged. Instead, a ‘separate mini-brain in his tail kicks in and actually speeds up his performance’
When the female praying mantis is mating, she does not bite the head off the male with one swift snip: she chomps into it, like an apple. It appears to have the texture of a honeydew melon.
Her mate has tried to avoid this destiny. The male European mantis “uses his feelers to calm her down”, the BBC narrates. But it is already too late. Although chemicals in his brain have told him to stay away from her, the chemicals in his abdomen were more potent. Once he is decapitated, a “separate mini-brain in his tail kicks in and actually speeds up his performance,” says the BBC. The female, meanwhile, cleans her face “like a cat”, writes Annie Dillard in Pilgrim and Tinker Creek. After watching the video I wished I had been decapitated.
Continue reading...New dark matter map reveals cosmic mystery
LCFS Market: California prices bubble up to two-month high
Investing 0.1% of global GDP could avoid breakdown of ecosystems, says UN report
Nature’s financial value must be considered to avoid ‘irreversible’ degradation to biodiversity and land
The world needs to quadruple its annual investment in nature if the climate, biodiversity and land degradation crises are to be tackled by the middle of the century, according to a new UN report.
Investing just 0.1% of global GDP every year in restorative agriculture, forests, pollution management and protected areas to close a $4.1tn (£2.9tn) financial gap by 2050 could avoid the breakdown of natural ecosystem “services” such as clean water, food and flood protection, the report said.
Continue reading...Stripe to pay up to $2,050/t in second round of CO2 removal purchases
‘Cataclysmic day’ for oil companies sparks climate hope
Court and investor defeats over carbon emissions a historic turning point, say campaigners and lawyers
A “cataclysmic day” for three major oil companies in which investors rebelled over climate fears and a court ordered fossil fuel emissions to be slashed has sparked hope among campaigners, investors, lawyers and academics who said the historic decisions marked a turning point in efforts to tackle the climate crisis.
A Dutch court on Wednesday ordered Shell to cut carbon emissions from its oil and gas by 45% by 2030. A tiny activist investor group simultaneously won two places on ExxonMobil’s board and Chevron’s management was defeated when investors voted in favour of forcing the group to cut its carbon emissions.
Continue reading...Four-day working week would slash UK carbon footprint, report says
Study finds change would shrink emissions by 127m tonnes, helping country meet climate targets
The introduction of a four-day working week with no loss of pay would dramatically reduce the UK’s carbon footprint and help the country meet its binding climate targets, according to a report.
The study found that moving to a four-day week by 2025 would shrink the UK’s emissions by 127m tonnes, a reduction of more than 20% and equivalent to taking the country’s entire private car fleet off the road.
Continue reading...China’s Fujian province hands out 1.7 mln forest carbon credits
Rapid heating of Indian Ocean worsening cyclones, say scientists
Rising ocean temperatures caused by climate crisis are increasing number of cyclones and intensity of storms, say experts
India’s cyclone season is being made more intense by the rapidly heating Indian Ocean, scientists have warned.
Last week, India was battered by Cyclone Tauktae, an unusually strong cyclone in the Arabian Sea, resulting in widespread disruption. This week, another severe storm, Cyclone Yaas, formed in the Bay of Bengal, leading to more than a million people being evacuated into safe shelters.
Continue reading...Banned pesticide blamed for killing bees may be approved for fish farms
Government agency appears to support introduction of system which uses insecticide US termed an ‘environmental hazard’
The Scottish government appears ready to approve a banned insecticide blamed for destroying bee populations for use in Scottish salmon farms, according to internal documents seen by the Guardian, as MEPs warn of its potentially “devastating” impact on aquatic life.
The insecticide is one of three nicotine-based, or neonicotinoid, chemicals banned by the European Union in 2018 for agricultural use on crops, a decision upheld this month by the EU’s top court, the European court of justice, which rejected an appeal by the Bayer chemical multinational. The ban does not apply to rivers or the sea.
Continue reading...In a landmark judgment, the Federal Court found the environment minister has a duty of care to young people
Call for G7 Cornwall summit to forge global plastic pollution treaty
Nestlé and UK supermarkets sign open letter calling for G7 nations to show leadership this June
Major packaging producers and environmental charities have called for the G7 summit to agree to a global treaty on plastic to tackle the waste crisis.
Nestlé, one of the largest creators of plastic waste, has joined the supermarkets Aldi, Iceland and the Co-op as signatories in an open letter that supports a binding worldwide treaty to tackle plastic pollution.
Continue reading...Tarong coal generator to add 150MW big battery in Queensland “battery blitz”
Queensland government reveals the Tarong coal plant would become host of new big battery, as it deals with the fallout of recent coal plant failures.
The post Tarong coal generator to add 150MW big battery in Queensland “battery blitz” appeared first on RenewEconomy.
BBC Springwatch at Wild Ken Hill: Behind the scenes
First woman appointed Scotland's Astronomer Royal
“Virtual machine”: Hornsdale battery steps in to protect grid after Callide explosion
Expanded Tesla big battery at Hornsdale stepped into market after Callide coal explosion with successful real-world test of its "virtual machine mode."
The post “Virtual machine”: Hornsdale battery steps in to protect grid after Callide explosion appeared first on RenewEconomy.
UK’s fledgling edible insect sector in jeopardy after Brexit
Industry laments a missed opportunity to put Britain at the forefront of a growing movement towards alternative protein
Legal changes triggered by Brexit are putting the UK’s fledgling edible insect sector in jeopardy.
Before Brexit, all edible insect companies operated under transitional measures set out in the EU’s “novel food” regulation. This allowed insects to be legally farmed and processed for human consumption.
Continue reading...Output restricted at 11 Queensland solar farms after Callide coal explosion
Some 11 solar farms and one wind farm in north Queensland have output limited in safety first response to Callide coal explosion.
The post Output restricted at 11 Queensland solar farms after Callide coal explosion appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Climate change will cost a young Australian up to $245,000 over their lifetime, court case reveals
Explainer: When can I charge my house from my EV?
The ability to use your car as a mobile energy storage and supply device is on our doorstep – or should we say, in our driveway.
The post Explainer: When can I charge my house from my EV? appeared first on RenewEconomy.
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