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Thursday, February 07, 2013

Science

Fresh Clues In Dinosaur Whodunit Point To Asteroid

Scientists have confirmed that the impact of a giant asteroid and the mass extinction of the dinosaurs happened at the same time.

February 7, 2013 What killed the dinosaurs? It's history's ultimate murder mystery, and for decades the prime suspect has been a giant asteroid. New data suggest that it struck right before the extinction. But scientists say it still may not tell the full story of what happened to the dinosaurs.

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Oh, Poop! Animal Shelter May Still Need More Newspapers

A dog eagerly awaits adoption in an animal shelter.

February 7, 2013 San Francisco's library system responded to the city shelter's need for newspapers with donations of its used copies. But dogs are "poop machines," as a shelter spokesman says. So the problem may not be quite solved.

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Penguin Poop Leads Ice Researchers To Unknown Colony

A few members of the newly discovered 9,000-strong emperor penguin colony on Antarctica's Princess Ragnhild Coast.

February 7, 2013 A team of researchers from the British Antarctic Survey stumbled upon some interesting satellite images in 2009: a trail of penguin poop that showed signs of a huge colony of emperor penguins. A team of researchers finally made it out to visit the 9,000-strong colony last December, marking the first human contact the animals had experienced.

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Wednesday, February 06, 2013

Around the Nation

Wildlife Advocates Fume Over Army Corps' Razing Of Reserve

The Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Reserve after the land was stripped by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Several advocates, including elected leaders, are protesting the move.

February 6, 2013 A 48-acre area in California that housed more than 200 species of birds was stripped bare by the Army Corps of Engineers, which manages the land. The Corps says the clearing was necessary to improve flood control and discourage homeless camps and drug dealing, but some are questioning whether the agency violated rules that protect wetlands and waterfowl.

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Oh, Mama! World's 'Oldest' Bird Has Another Chick

Wisdom (left) and her mate on their nest last November at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge.

February 6, 2013 Wisdom, a Laysan albatross who nests at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge in the North Pacific Ocean, is thought to be at least 62 years old. She's raised an estimated 30 to 35 chicks over the years and flown at least 2 million miles, scientists say.

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Tuesday, February 05, 2013

Krulwich Wonders...

Dinosaurs With Attitude

Tianyulong

February 5, 2013 Spielberg's were big, green and scaly. The real ones? They were often rosy, yellow, orange, iridescent, covered with fuzz, plumes, or feathers. Take a look at this latest take on the Jurassic, when reptiles, we think, looked more like rainbows.

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Sunday, February 03, 2013

Wood Stork's Endangered Status Is Up In The Air

A wood stork soars over its nest in Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary near Fort Myers, Fla., in 2008, as baby wood storks wait in their nest for an adult to bring food.

February 3, 2013 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife may upgrade the wood stork's status from "endangered" to "threatened." But some environmentalists and the Audubon Society says that in south Florida, the bird's population is still a long way from reaching a full recovery.

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Saturday, February 02, 2013

Author Interviews

The Inconvenient Truth About Polar Bears

A polar bear looks up as the sound of the camera catches his ear on the edge of the Hudson Bay, outside Churchill, Manitoba, Canada.

February 2, 2013 Zac Unger moved to Churchill, Manitoba, to cover the decline of the polar bear. It was 2008, and the adorable predators had become symbols in the battle over climate change. But the story he ended up writing in his new book was more complicated than he expected.

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Spring Is Nigh! Punxsutawney Phil Predicts An Early End To Winter

Punxsutawney Phil climbs on the shoulder of handler John Griffiths. The groundhog did not see his shadow during the 127th Groundhog Day Celebration in Punxsutawney, Pa., on Saturday.

February 2, 2013 It's a tradition that goes back to 1887, and while he's not always correct, the Punxsutawney, Pa., groundhog has a massive following who watch his every move on Groundhog Day.

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Did You Hear That? I Think It Was A Walrus

The sound of a male walrus is just one of the more than 9,000 recordings in the Macaulay Library's new digital archive.

February 2, 2013 The Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology has just finished digitizing its huge archive of wildlife sounds — more than 9,000 of them — and made it available online.

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On Weekend Edition SaturdayPlaylist

Friday, February 01, 2013
Thursday, January 31, 2013

Shots - Health News

Salmonella Undermines Hedgehogs' Cuteness Overload

We have no reason to think this little guy isn't clean as a whistle, but some hedgehogs carry salmonella.

January 31, 2013 There have been 20 reports of human salmonella infections linked to pet hedgehogs recently. Public health officials say people should keep the animals away from areas where food is prepared and served.

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