Nature

The time has come for us to stop “recycling” plastic. Plastic as a material is not recyclable, and the very best thing we can do to celebrate Earth Day this year is to acknowledge that fact.

Oregon’s gray wolf population did not increase last year due in part to a large number of wolves killed by people, causing concern among conservationists and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife officials.

Oregon is now the new home of the world’s 19th dark sky sanctuary, offering pristine views of the night sky across over 3,800 square miles, making it the largest of its kind.

The certification, issued by DarkSky International, involved a years-long effort by federal, state, and local officials, community members, and several legal jurisdictions.

More than 400,000 songbirds were trapped and killed in Cyprus last autumn as part of a recent increase in wildlife crime, according to a new report.

Organised crime networks use decoys and speakers playing birdsong to lure these small birds – including garden favourites such as robins and sparrows – to land in bushes or orchards, where they catch them with “mist” nets or branches covered in glue. They are then sold via the hidden market to restaurants to be eaten as a local dish called “ambelopoulia”, which consists of pickled or boiled songbirds.

A group of left-wing extremists has claimed responsibility for the suspected arson attack that shut down the Tesla Gigafactory outside of Berlin on Tuesday.

Tesla Founder Elon Musk directed criticism at a group who appeared to claim responsibility for a suspected arson attack Tuesday on Europe’s only Tesla factory in northeastern Germany.

“[U]nknown perpetrators deliberately set fire to a high-voltage pylon between Steinfurt and Hartmannsdorf in the early morning of March 5th,” the State of Brandenburg’s Interior Ministry said in a statement. “The fire damaged the high-voltage power line so much that the power supply to the surrounding towns and the nearby TESLA factory failed.”

A new study finds that human-caused carbon dioxide emissions are driving increased plant growth that’s greening the Earth, even in areas experiencing drought.

The peer-reviewed study, which was published in the scientific journal Global Ecology and Conservation, finds that the phenomenon known as “global greening” is an indisputable fact. The rate of global greening has increased slightly, and drought has only slowed, but not stopped, the process.

Wildlife officials plan to release gray wolves in Colorado in coming weeks, at the behest of urban voters and to the dismay of rural residents who don’t want the predators but have waning influence in the Democratic-led state.

Call it potentially "unbearable" -- at least for wildlife fans.

The looming government shutdown would affect Fat Bear Week, the annual celebration of wild bears who put on weight to prepare for hibernation.

From Oct. 4 through Oct. 10, the bears of Alaska's Katmai National Park face off March Madness-style on the Fat Bear Week website, where people can vote to crown the best and chunkiest bear.

But timing-wise, there could be some complications.