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China is Once Again Sending Pandas to the US—Delighting the San Diego and DC Zoos

By
Andy Corbley
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Pandas Bai Yun and Zhen Zhen, former residents of the San Diego Zoo – Credit: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
Pandas Bai Yun and Zhen Zhen, former residents of the San Diego Zoo – Credit: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance

‘Panda Diplomacy’ is back in action in San Diego as Chinese conservationists and the California zoo signed an agreement that could see giant pandas return for the viewing public as soon as the end of summer.

When China began sending giant pandas alongside diplomatic liaisons, it didn’t just help stabilize relations with contentious neighbors and competitor nations, it contributed immensely to the understanding of these beautiful creatures.

With zookeepers all over the world studying different aspects of panda biology and ethnology, the last 40 years have seen the ability to captively breed and raise pandas improve exponentially.

At the moment, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA) has already signed an agreement with the China Wildlife Conservation Association, and is filing permits with the US Fish and Wildlife Service to welcome two new giant pandas to their zoo.

The partnership this time around will include research on disease prevention and habitat protection, with a fee paid by SDZWA for the opportunity to host the pandas going directly to giant panda conservation in China.

“We are humbled by the potential opportunity of continuing our collaborative conservation efforts to secure the future for giant pandas,” said Dr. Megan Owen, Vice President of Conservation Science at SDZWA.

Panda lovers rejoiced when, at the first face-to-face meeting between presidents Biden and Xi Jinping in over a year, promises to reduce tensions arrived alongside hints that pandas may return to zoos in San Diego and Washington D.C.

In recent years, China has declined to renew loan agreements with zoos in D.C., Tennessee, and San Diego as a result of perceived antagonism by Washington, and the only place in the US where giant pandas could be seen was Atlanta.

MORE GOOD DIPLOMACY: China Sends Expert Team to Taiwan to Help Care for Sick Panda (Video)

But seeing as giant pandas swear allegiance to no nation, history has shown that collaboration between SDZWA and Chinese research partners has contributed to critically important and far-reaching discoveries as well as scientific contributions that have played a meaningful role in China’s efforts to bring the iconic and beloved giant panda back from the brink of extinction.

These have included critical findings on giant panda reproductive behavior and physiology. Female pandas are receptive to mating just 48-72 hours every year, and it was the San Diego Zoo that conducted the first successful artificial insemination of a giant panda outside China—with longtime San Diego Zoo resident Bai Yun. The cub that was born this way—Hua Mei, survived to adulthood and reproduced 12 times before being sent back to China.

Advances have also included data on nutritional requirements, habitat needs, and genetic research. The efforts include developing a giant panda milk formula and other neonatal conservation techniques that dramatically increased survival rates for nursery-reared cubs from 5% to 95%.

NEWS FROM ZOOS: Doctors Called in for Rare Emergency C-Section on Gorilla in the Zoo–and the Baby Pics Are Incredible

“Pandas in our care and in the care of Chinese colleagues at conservation facilities play an important role as assurance against extinction and loss of genetic diversity in their native habitats, as well as a source population for reintroductions,” said Dr. Owen. “Our partnership over the decades has served as a powerful example of how—when we work together—we can achieve what was once thought to be impossible.”

The IUCN Red List updated the giant panda to “Vulnerable” down from “Endangered” after such conservation efforts increased their populations from 1,000 to 1,800.

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“Happiness depends more upon the internal frame of a persons own mind—than on the externals in the world.” – George Washington

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By Irudayam, CC license

Quote of the Day: “Happiness depends more upon the internal frame of a persons own mind—than on the externals in the world.” – George Washington (1787) Source: MountVernon.org

Photo by: Irudayam (CC license)

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By Irudayam, CC license

Overlooked Drug Proven to Be Superior Treatment for Crohn’s Disease–Helping Patients Avoid Surgery

By
Andy Corbley
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Toby Moore, 28, who was one of the patients treated with Infliximab - SWNS
Toby Moore, 28, who was one of the patients treated with Infliximab – SWNS

A large-scale clinical trial of treatment strategies for Crohn’s disease has shown that offering early advanced therapy to all patients straight after diagnosis can drastically improve outcomes, including by reducing the number of people requiring urgent abdominal surgery for treatment of their disease tenfold.

Crohn’s disease is a life-long condition characterized by inflammation of the digestive tract. Even at its mildest, it can cause symptoms that have a major impact on quality of life including stomach pain, diarrhea, weight loss, and fatigue. It often comes stepwise with conditions like inflammatory bowel disease or ulcerative colitis.

The Cambridge-led research involved 386 patients with newly diagnosed active Crohn’s disease and found that use of the drug infliximab straight after diagnosis showed dramatic results.

Infliximab works by blocking an inflammatory cytokine, the proteins that cause acute inflammatory reactions like swelling, called TNF-alpha, which is found in nearly every disease known to man.

Historical concerns about the cost and side effects of infliximab mean it’s currently only offered when patients experience regular flare-ups that don’t respond to less potent treatments.

To see if this drug was rightly overlooked the researchers conducted a trial in which two groups were assigned either the current UK treatment plan or immediate use of infliximab as soon as possible after diagnosis.

The results, published in The Lancet Gastroenterology and Hepatology, were dramatic with 80% of people receiving the immediate infliximab therapy having both symptoms and inflammatory markers controlled throughout the course of the entire year compared to only 15% of people receiving the usual UK treatment plan.

Two-thirds of patients in the infliximab group had no ulcers seen on their endoscopy camera test at the end of the trial, something known as endoscopic remission and associated with decreased risk of later complications in Crohn’s disease.

Most previous clinical trials of therapies are considered successful if one-third or even less of patients achieve endoscopic remission.

“As soon as a patient is diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, the clock is ticking—and has likely been ticking for some time—in terms of damage happening to the bowel, so there’s a need to start on an advanced therapy such as infliximab as soon as possible,” said Dr. Nuru Noor, of Cambridge’s Department of Medicine.

“We’ve shown that by treating earlier, we can achieve better outcomes for patients than have previously been reported.”

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As well as these findings, patients in this group also had higher quality of life scores, less use of steroid medication, and lower number of hospitalizations.

Strikingly, while around one in 20 patients in the conventional treatment arm of the trial required urgent abdominal surgery for their Crohn’s disease, only one in 193 receiving the new approach required the same.

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The researchers also note that there was no difference in risk of serious infection between treatment strategies, suggesting that infliximab straight after diagnosis was well tolerated, contrary to previous concerns about its safety.

These concerns, says 28-year-old Toby Moore, a paitent in the study who was diagnosed with Crohn’s at age 10, were what prevented him from being given infliximab at any time other than during bad and sudden flare-ups, a decision which he says caused him years of additional suffering and complication.

In terms of financial concerns, the drug has fallen considerably from around £15,000 to around £3,000 per patient per year.

“Up until now, the view has been ‘why would you use a more expensive treatment strategy and potentially over-treat people if there’s a chance they might do fine anyway?’” said Professor Miles Parkes, Director of the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Center.

MORE AUTO-IMMUNE DISCOVERIES: Marathoner Runner Stopped By Lupus is Racing Again Thanks to Amazing Treatment for Autoimmune Disorder

“We now know we can prevent the majority of adverse outcomes, including the need for urgent surgery, by providing a treatment strategy that is safe and becoming increasingly affordable.”

The Cambridge scientists add that while there are other anti-TNF drugs, such as adalimumab, that work in a similar manner to infliximab and are significantly cheaper, more research is required to understand if it would be as clinically effective.

The team believes that their findings are the start of a new treatment path for people suffering with Crohn’s, which may help them spend less time in hospital and more time living life.

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A Portland County Transcends its Rehousing Goals With 65% Drop in Homelessness

By
Andy Corbley
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Levi Meir Clancy - Unsplash
Levi Meir Clancy – Unsplash

Clackamas County in Oregon, one of two counties into which Portland extends, has reduced the rate of homelessness by 65% from 2019 to 2023, a number that officials say reflects a more comprehensive strategy.

According to Clackamas County’s quarterly report on the Supportive Housing Services (SHS) outcomes, the county has rehoused 314 people in six months.

429 people and 223 homeless households were placed in permanent supportive housing, exceeding the stated goal for the period by 20.

“[J]ust over the last couple of months, we’ve placed 30 households in the Rapid Rehousing program through the support of housing services,” said Melissa Erlbaum, executive director of Clackamas Women’s Services. “We’re doing amazing work and partnership with the county.”

According to KATU News, officials also said in the report that SHS prevented 1,369 people, and 591 households from being evicted, which they added is one of the chief strategies for reducing the number of homeless on the street; provide assistance to people on the precipice of homelessness.

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“We work hard to reduce and prevent homelessness early on before it even happens, with rental assistance, and we make sure that we have the resources and the assets up and running to give people housing when they need it,” Ben West, Clackamas County commissioner, told KATU News.

The permanent supportive housing is another component of the approach detailed in the report, and offers the combination of a permanent personal space with the social services necessary to help those who have experienced homelessness to stabilize things.

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Intuitive Spacecraft Lands on Moon in Nail-Biting Descent of Odysseus–A First for US Company, 50 Years After Apollo

By
Andy Corbley
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Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lunar lander captures a wide field of view image of Schomberger crater on the Moon approximately 125 miles (200 km) uprange from the intended landing site, at approximately 6 miles (10 km) altitude - credit Intuitive Machines, released via NASA
Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lunar lander captures a wide field of view image of Schomberger crater on the Moon at approximately 6 miles (10 km) altitude – credit Intuitive Machines, released via NASA

After a nail-biting descent, a commercial space company became the first in history to conduct the soft landing of a spacecraft on the Moon after their Odysseus lander touched down at 5:24 p.m. CST on February 22nd.

Landing in the area called Malapert A in the South Pole region of the Moon, the Houston-based Intuitive Machines carried a payload for NASA as part of their CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative, marking the first time NASA has returned to the Moon since the Apollo missions over 50 years ago.

Carrying six NASA science research and technology demonstrations, among other customer payloads, all NASA science instruments completed transit checkouts en route to the Moon.

“For the first time in more than half a century, America returned to the Moon. Congratulations to Intuitive Machines for placing the lunar lander Odysseus carrying NASA scientific instruments to a place no person or machine has gone before, the lunar South Pole,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.

“This feat from Intuitive Machines, SpaceX, and NASA demonstrates the promise of American leadership in space and the power of commercial partnerships under NASA’s CLPS initiative.”

A NASA precision landing technology demonstration also provided critical last-minute assistance to ensure a soft landing. As part of NASA’s Artemis campaign, the lunar delivery is in the region where NASA will send astronauts to search for water and other lunar resources later this decade.

The payload is all about future use and occupation of the Moon, and consists of some pretty important pieces of technology.

The Lunar Node 1 Navigation Demonstrator is NASA’s attempt to pioneer a Global Positioning System (GPS) for the Moon, and uses positional data from spacecraft, ground stations, or rovers to provide navigation data for landers and astronauts. Similarly, a collection of eight retroreflectors left near the landing site will also provide precision laser guidance and ranging to incoming landers for decades to come.

INDIA’S SOFT MOOND LANDING: India Becomes Fourth Nation to Touch Down on the Moon In Mission to Study its South Pole

“In daring to confront one of humanity’s greatest challenges, Intuitive Machines created an entire lunar program that has ventured farther than any American mission to land on the Moon in over 50 years,” said Steve Altemus, CEO of Intuitive Machines. “This humbling moment reminds us that pursuing the extraordinary requires both boldness and resilience.”

It wasn’t all science and government that touched down on the Moon on Friday; this was a commercial payload after all. Among other things were included some sculptures by artist Jeff Koons, and a sample of Colombia Sportswear’s “Omni-Heat” insulative fabric as part of a test to see how well it can contain heat.

MORE SPACE ACHIEVEMENTS: NASA Celebrates World First: Smashing a Spacecraft into an Asteroid to Practice Saving Humanity

A private-private-public partnership seemed poised to make it to the Moon first when the Pittsburgh-based space company Astrobotic launched its Peregrine lunar lander on the inaugural flight of United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Centaur rocket.

Unfortunately, a crippling fuel leak saw the upper-stage rocket and the capsule steered into a controlled destruction in the atmosphere.

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Hug Therapy Helps Premature Babies Develop as Volunteers Sit in for Moms Who Can’t Be There

By
Andy Corbley
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Hawaii Pacific Health
Hawaii Pacific Health

In a hospital in the Argentine city of Cordoba, a wonderful and obvious initiative is giving babies a more natural environment when they are born into circumstances that are anything but.

Placed in an incubator, with mother and father absent due to work, substance abuse, incarceration, injury, or death, a team of volunteer “huggers” take 2-hour shifts holding babies in their arms to benefit their growth so they aren’t left too long in the machine.

Neither a mother nor a father needs to read the established scientific literature that holding babies speeds their neurological development, helps them gain weight, acclimatize to the world, and sleep more soundly: they would know it instinctively upon holding their newborn.

Hearing them sigh, seeing their hands unclench, and seeing their skin turn from beet-red to a more natural color, is sign enough for most humans to understand the baby is benefiting from the human contact.

For this reason, the Provincial Maternity Hospital of Córdoba welcomes 50 volunteer huggers to spend time hugging prematurely born babies or those whose mothers are absent. The team consists of 49 women and 1 man (go on son!), but 200 applicants are on the waiting list.

“I want [the babies] to be certain that, since they were born, they’ve been loved and accepted. It’s amazing how [valiant] they are, they have such a desire to live,” said Irma Castro, a retired public teacher and volunteer hugger.

Nancy Sánchez Zanón, head of the Maternity Neonatology Department, told El Pais that 1,500 of the 5,200 babies born in their hospital every year require a stay period in the NICU, and about 15% of these need to be hugged for one reason or another.

Zanón’s colleague Ana María Rognone adds that they replicated a similar program at a hospital in Buenos Aires that partnered with UNICEF, but the whole concept came from an infant cuddling program originating in Canada among babies whose mothers were addicted to heroin.

SUPPORTING THE CHILDREN: New ‘Wall of Hope’ in Children’s Hospital Neonatal Ward Helps Families Stay Strong

When babies are hugged, they stop consuming their own energy—the women explain—a survival mechanism for situations when they have to be put down for one reason or another. If this state is left to continue for too long, the infant begins to diminish, but when held in the arms of another, able to feel the warmth of human skin and the beating of a human heart, this survival mechanism is turned off. They typically sigh, relax, and their bodies can start growing again.

“[This contact] promotes neurodevelopment, protection, care, and growth,” explains Zanón. “[A child] is less stressed, because they’re in someone’s arms… they can regulate their temperature more easily… are less prone to sleep apnea, and gain weight faster compared to if they weren’t linked to anyone.”

MORE NEWS LIKE THIS: Lullabies Can Actually Improve the Health of Premature Babies in Hospital –And Their Family’s Health Too

Many of the volunteers, El Pais writes, are mothers themselves, and they admit that the love they give the hospital infants through their hugging is of a different sort. It’s deeply fulfilling and rewarding, but in a different way than what they experienced with their own babies.

It’s part of the hospital’s overall focus on human-centered neonatal care, and a beautiful reminder of the power of love and humanity in a situation when the baby is surrounded by technology and strangers.

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“Little minds are tamed and subdued by misfortune; but great minds rise above them.” – Washington Irving

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Quote of the Day: “Little minds are tamed and subdued by misfortune; but great minds rise above them.” – Washington Irving

Photo by: Paul Longhurst

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Rare Proof Copy of Harry Potter Book Bought for 15 Cents Could Fetch $15,000 at Auction

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Jim Spencer, head of books at Hansons Auctioneers, with the Harry Potter proof copy – SWNS
Jim Spencer, head of books at Hansons Auctioneers, with the Harry Potter proof copy – SWNS

He found it in a dusty bin on the floor of a used bookstore, where he grabbed three books for 45 cents.

One was an ultra-rare proof copy of the first ever Harry Potter story which he kept on his bookshelf for 30 years, without looking at it—and now it’s set to fetch $20,000 at auction.

He scooped up the copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone—which had a plain white and yellow cover—back in 1997.

The edition is such an early version, it even gets the author’s name wrong, attributing it to J A Rowling and Joanne Rowling—instead of J K Rowling.

The ‘Uncorrected Proof Copy’ was one of only 200 printed by Bloomsbury, and marked the start of the Harry Potter phenomenon.

“In 1997, when I was 26, I lived in Crystal Palace in London,” said the 52-year-old seller. “I didn’t have much money but I always liked to treat myself to a browse in second-hand bookshops on Saturday mornings.

“I dropped into one of my usual haunts looking for some Agatha Christies. Piles of books were all jumbled up in baskets on the floor. The Harry Potter book was among the piles of Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, etc.

“I bought it as a throw-in with a couple of other titles. I don’t think I even looked at it properly to tell the truth. Since then, it’s followed me round to China, Taiwan, the UK, and now Italy being packed and unpacked—without being read.”

When his kids were turning into Harry Potter movie fans, he went looking for it.

Uncorrected Proof Copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone – Hansons Auctioneers /SWNS

The book will now go under the hammer tomorrow (Feb 26) in Staffordshire, England, at Hansons Auctioneers, with a guide price of between $15,000-$20,000 (£12k-£16k).

The father is now happy that nobody in his household ever read the book, because it preserved the copy in its present condition.

“There are four kids (from 12 to 25) who always, unfortunately—or fortunately in this case—preferred the films.”

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“I was scrolling on the internet one night when a story popped up about the incredible prices achieved for Potter books, so I decided to contact someone to see whether my book might be valuable.”

The 1997 Harry Potter proof copy names the author as Joanne Rowling – Hansons Auctioneers / SWNS

Hansons book expert Jim Spencer has only ever come across one other book like it, which sold at auction last year for almost $24,000 (£18,750).

Jim said, “This book has a story all its own. It’s lived all over the world and cost pennies.

“I am not sure how this one ended up in a London second-hand book shop but you have to remember this was before the first Potter book had even been printed.

“This is the very first appearance in print of the first Potter novel. The title page mistakenly states the author’s name as as ‘J A Rowling’ instead of J K Rowling and, on the other side, ‘Joanne Rowling’.

The fortunate owner is now more than happy to pass it along to another book patron.

“Finding it when I did was just a massive piece of well-timed luck for which I will always be grateful—and more than a tad surprised.”

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Your Medicare Costs May Go Down Dramatically in 2024, Thanks to U.S. Law Kicking in

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Photo by Mike Mozart (CC license)
Photo by Mike Mozart (CC license)

A big cost and concern for many seniors in the U.S. is the price of prescription drugs and other healthcare expenses—and this year, thanks to The Inflation Reduction Act, their costs may go down dramatically, especially for patients fighting cancer or heart disease.

I learned about the new benefits because my ‘Medicare birthday’ is coming up in a couple months when I turn 65. I was shocked that there were so many positive changes being made, which I never heard about on the news.

Thousands of Americans on Medicare have been paying more than $14,000 a year for blood cancer drugs, more than $10,000 a year for ovarian cancer drugs, and more than $9,000 a year for breast cancer drugs, for instance.

That all changed beginning in 2023, after the Biden administration capped out-of-pocket prescriptions at $3,500—no matter what drugs were needed. And this year, in 2024, the cap for all Medicare out-of-pocket prescriptions went down to a maximum of $2,000.

“The American people won, and Big Pharma lost,” said President Biden in September 2022, after the legislation passed. “It’s going to be a godsend to many families.”

Another crucial medical necessity, the shingles vaccine, which many seniors skip because of the cost, is now free. Shingles is a painful rash with blisters, that can be followed by chronic pain, and other complications, for which there is no cure

In 2022, more than 2 million seniors paid between $100 and $200 for that vaccine, but starting last year, Medicare prescription drug plans dropped the cost for shots down to zero.

Another victory for consumers over Big Pharma affects anyone of any age who struggles with diabetes. The cost of life-saving insulin was capped at $35 a month.

Medicare is also lowering the costs of the premium for Part B—which covers outpatient visits to your doctors. 15 million Americans will save an average of $800 per year on health insurance costs, according to the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Last year, for the first time in history, Medicare began using the leverage power of its large patient pool to negotiate fair prices for drugs. Medicare is no longer accepting whatever drug prices that pharmaceutical companies demand.

Negotiations began on ten of the most widely used and expensive drugs.

Among the ten drugs selected for Medicare drug price negotiation were Eliquis, used by 3.7 million Americans and Jardiance and Xarelto, each used by over a million people. The ten drugs account for the highest total spending in Medicare Part D prescription plans.

Bringing down prescription drug costs doesn’t just save seniors money. Paying lower prices for those drugs will also reduce the federal budget deficits by hundreds of billions of dollars.

MORE PRICE CUTS: U.S. Allows Hearing Aids to Be Sold Over-the-Counter, Saving Americans Thousands

How are all these cost-savings being paid for?

The government is able to pay for these benefits by making sure the biggest corporations in America are paying their fair share of federal taxes.

In 2020, for instance, dozens of American companies on the Fortune 500 list who made $40 billion in profit paid zero in federal taxes.

Starting in 2023, U.S. corporations are required to pay a minimum corporate tax of 15 percent. The Inflation Reduction Act created the CAMT, which imposed the 15% minimum tax on the adjusted financial statement income of any corporation with average income that exceeds $1 billion.

For years, Americans have decried the rising costs of health care—but in the last three years, there are plenty of positive developments.

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21 Black Rhinos Successfully Moved to New Kenya Home With Space to Breed–Hailing Return of Species After 50 yrs

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A well-trained crew had just sprung into action to revive a rhino after it stopped breathing—then quickly moved out of the way when the animal sprang back up (and no one was hurt) – Photo by Ami Vitale / Courtesy The Nature Conservancy
Rhino released in Feb 2024 – by Margaret Southern / Courtesy San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance

The Kenya Wildlife Service celebrated the successful transfer of 21 eastern black rhinos to establish a new viable breeding population for the species that was on the brink of extinction decades ago.

In an 18-day exercise executed by highly trained capture and veterinary experts, the Loisaba Conservancy received the 21 rhinos from three different locations, becoming the 17th sanctuary in Kenya where the mammoth animals can roam and intermingle.

“It’s incredibly exciting to be part of the resettlement of rhinos to a landscape where they’ve been absent for 50 years,” said Tom Silvester, CEO of Loisaba Conservancy.

Kenya had 20,000 black rhinos in the 1970s before poachers decimated them for their horns. By the time the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) was established in 1989, rhino numbers had declined to below 400.

Since then, Kenya’s eastern black rhinos have made a remarkable comeback and today there are an estimated 1,004 individuals.

Kenya is a stronghold of the eastern sub species of black rhino, hosting approximately 80 percent of the entire world’s surviving population.

“Surpassing the milestone of 1,000 rhinos within four decades is a significant accomplishment,” said Munira Bashir, Director of The Nature Conservancy in Kenya.

The reintroduction this month of these 21 animals this month is a great milestone in Kenya’s rhino recovery action plan, and was made possible by support from The Nature Conservancy, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, other partners—and the three reserves from where the 21 rhinos originated, Nairobi National Park, Ol Pejeta Conservancy and Lewa Conservancy.

A well-trained crew had just sprung into action to revive a rhino after it stopped breathing—then quickly moved out of the way when the animal sprang back up (and no one was hurt) – Photo by Ami Vitale / Courtesy The Nature Conservancy

“In the recent past, one of the main causes of mortality of rhinos has been territorial fights due to limited space in sanctuaries which has also led to suppressed growth rates due,” explained Dr. Erustus Kanga, the Director General of Kenya Wildlife Service. “I am elated to be associated with this momentous effort to secure more space for this cornerstone species.”

RHINO GOOD NEWS: Specially-Trained Dogs Have Saved 45 Rhinos From Poachers in South Africa—And Counting

Meanwhile, southern white rhinos continue to thrive in Kenya, having increased from 50 individuals that were imported from South Africa in the eighties and nineties to reach the current population of 971 individuals.

Kenya is also playing a critical role in efforts to save the northern white rhino from extinction, as it is host to the only remaining two females of the species left in the world. The international BioRescue project has developed thirty embryos awaiting implantation into surrogate females within the closely-related subspecies of southern white rhino.

“The return of black rhinos to Loisaba, 50 years after the last known individual here was killed by poachers in the 1970s, is a demonstration of how impactful partnerships between governments and conservation NGOs can be for restoring, managing, and protecting our natural world,” said Dr. Max Graham, CEO and Founder of Space for Giants, one of the project partners.

ALSO: Zero Rhinos Poached in Kenya 3 Years Ago – Better Policing is One of the Keys

“And, of course, the return of black rhinos here gives all of us one of the most precious commodities of all: hope.”

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Until Death Do Us Part: Europeans Were Buried With Their Dogs 2,200 Years Ago

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Joint interment of a dog and a human – by S.R. Thompson, courtesy of SABAP-VR Soprintendenza Archeologia - Credit Laffranchi et al., 2024 (CC license)
Joint interment of a dog and a human – by S.R. Thompson, courtesy of SABAP-VR Soprintendenza Archeologia – Credit Laffranchi et al., 2024 (CC license)

People from an ancient community in what is now northern Italy were buried with animals such as dogs and horses. The reasons remain mysterious, but might indicate an enduring companion relationship these men and women had with their animals.

A recent study revealed that archaeologists uncovered 161 burials from the Late Iron Age, around 2,200 years ago, and found 10 percent of the people were buried with animals at the site in Seminario Vescovile, near Verona.

The research team looked for patterns that might explain the animal burials, analyzing the demographics, diets, genetics and burial conditions of the interred humans and animals—but the analysis did not lead to any notable correlations.

“The people interred with animals do not seem to be closely related to each other, which would have suggested that this was a practice of a certain family,” said study co-author Dr Zita Laffranchi of the University of Bern in Switzerland.

She said the lack of patterns among the graves mean that “multiple interpretations” of the human-animal co-burials remain possible.

Four of the people were buried with dogs or horses, including a baby next to a dog, a middle-aged man buried with a small dog, and a middle-aged woman buried with an entire horse and a dog skull.

Some of the graves contained the remains of animals used as food, including pigs, a chicken, and part of a cow, which may have represented “offerings to the dead”.

AMAZING: Thousands of Years Ago, a Woman Underwent Two Surgeries to Her Head – and Survived Both Procedures

“Animals like dogs and horses often had religious symbolism in ancient cultures, but at the same time, specific individuals may also have been buried with their animal companions,” explained Dr. Laffranchi.

The Swiss and Italian research team, whose findings were published in the journal PLOS One, also noted that the human-animal burial practices might have been determined by the interplay between different individual traits and societal customs.

This study, entitled ‘Until death do us part,’ is part of the CELTUDALPS research project, exploring burials of horses and dogs with humans, and may hint at unknown rituals and beliefs during the late centuries BCE in Italy.

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“Do exactly what you would do if you felt most secure.” – Meister Eckhart

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Quote of the Day: “Do exactly what you would do if you felt most secure.” – Meister Eckhart

Photo by: Paul Matheson

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This New Mud Home Built of Hemp and Earth Demonstrates Super Energy Efficiency in the UK

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CobBauge house in Fakenham, Norfolk – Hudson Architects / SWNS
CobBauge house in Fakenham, Norfolk – Hudson Architects / SWNS

This modern British home with its thick mud walls was built as part of an EU project to pioneer the construction of more energy efficient homes.

Architect Anthony Hudson used a centuries-old construction method to build the bungalow, yet it still complies with modern building regulations.

Its walls, erected in Fakenham, Norfolk, are constructed from three simple ingredients: hemp straw, earth, and water. When mixed together, it is known as ‘cob’, so the project was named the CobBauge.

Walls built with cob is thermally insulated to modern standards.

The 3-bedroom project by Hudson Architects was built by local builders Grocott and Murfit in January, and the team has characterized it as being quite inexpensive (although the total cost was not revealed).

Mud is one of the most sustainable construction materials with some old cob buildings in Britain lasting more than 500 years.

The new house features large, south-facing triple-glazed windows for solar warmth in the winter and an air source heat pump to provide additional heating.

It’s part of an EU-funded project to bring mud construction into the 21st century with a focus on net-zero carbon construction—and this is their first regulations-complaint cob building.

CobBauge test wall section at the University of Plymouth, showing the interlocking materials –Hudson Architects / SWNS

After the EU announced it was looking for architects to come up with new ways of using earth in houses, Mr. Hudson leapt at the opportunity.

“The challenge was to create a home using earth as the primary building material, but which could also be thermally insulated,” said the 68-year-old.

“Earth is a very sustainable way to build, especially because it’s so widely available here in the UK.

Although there is still a way to go before mud houses can be put on the mainstream market, Hudson believes that the homes will become the new normal.

“Although the materials are cheap and easy to source, the building method is very time-consuming. At the moment it all has to be done by hand, so labor costs run high.”

CHECK OUT: These Ancient Chinese ‘Skywells’ Are Keeping Homes Cool as Green Architects Learn from the Past

Laying and compacting the first CobBauge lift within the shuttering formwork system – Hudson Architects / SWNS

Their next step is to figure out how to fabricate building techniques to cut that labor intensity down.

“Once we’ve worked that out, my guess is this will be a very attractive method.”

In March, the mud house will be open to the public for viewing, with its “green roof” to support biodiversity and replace the loss of green space on the site.

LOOK: Skyscraper Bursting with 80,000 Plants Opens to the Public in Singapore–LOOK

DOES YOUR FRIEND Need a Housing Option? Share The Hemp Home on Social Media… 

3-Legged Dog Cured of Cancer by Breakthrough FDA-Approved Treatment With 87% Success Rate

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American Pit Bull Annabel Lee in recovery – Courtesy of Alicia Alderson

A 3-legged American pit bull with a heart of gold and sweet disposition captured the hearts of Alicia and Andrew Alderson when they adopted her in 2017.

“It was absolutely love at first sight—she ran into our arms.”

But their journey took an unexpected turn when last year they discovered a 3-centimeter growth on Annabel Lee’s rear left leg—a mast cell tumor.

Traditional surgical options were ruled out due to the eight-year-old’s unique circumstance of already having only three legs. Luckily, a drug approved by the FDA three years ago has been transforming mast cell tumor treatment, and was a perfect fit for the Florida family.

Dr. Emily Moser, at Town and Country Veterinarians and Pet Resort in Gainesville, said Annabel Lee was an ideal candidate for Stelfonta.

“It’s really cool for cases like hers when surgery is not an option,” Moser explains.

Stelfonta was specifically designed to target mast cell tumors in dogs. It induces necrosis within the tumor while promoting rapid healing of the affected site—all with minimal scarring and a response from 87 percent of pups having complete tumor resolution.

CHECK OUT: Bulldog Spontaneously Regrows Part of its Jaw After Removal From Cancer Surgery

In general, the cost of such an injection is likely similar to the cost of surgery to cut out a tumor, but it’s less invasive—and anesthesia, which is risky for some older dogs, is not required.

The Aldersons expressed deep gratitude for the cancer treatment that saved their ‘little cuddle bug’.

Because the couple cannot have children, their pets are beloved family members, and this option ‘gave their little girl back’.

HERO: Dog That Won’t Stop Digging Saves Entire Neighborhood After They Find Dangerous Gas Leak Underground

Today, Annabel Lee is cancer-free and back to her normal, playful self, with likely years of life in her future.

SHARE the Good News With Dog Parents on Social Media…

More Than 100 New Species of Stunning Marine Life Found Near Underwater Mountains (LOOK)

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Fish in the sea toad family discovered in Nazca-Desventuradas Marine Park – Credit: Schmidt Ocean Institute CC license-cropped
Fish in the sea toad family discovered in Nazca-Desventuradas Marine Park – Credit: Schmidt Ocean Institute CC license-cropped

More than 100 new species of alien-looking marine life have been discovered living near huge underwater mountains off the coast of Chile.

An international team of scientists visited previously unexplored sea mountains—towering at up to 3,530 meters—and found dozens of never-before-seen species, including deep-sea corals, sponges, sea urchins, amphipods, and squat lobsters.

Led by the Schmidt Ocean Institute, the team used a remote-controlled underwater robot to explore the marine life at seafloor depths of up to 4,500 meters deep.

The international research team found that each seamount played host to a vast array of distinct ecosystems, many of which were identified as vulnerable.

These included thriving, deep-sea coral reefs and sponge gardens as well as brightly-colored and mysterious species of fish, lobster and amphipods likely never before seen by human eyes.

“You always expect to find new species in these remote and poorly explored areas, but the amount we found, especially for some groups like sponges, is mind-blowing,” said Dr. Javier Sellanes, of northern Chile’s Universidad Católica del Norte. “We far exceeded our hopes.”

A spiraling coral in a Chile Marine Protected Area – Credit: Schmidt Ocean Institute, CC license

Experts are now analyzing the physiology and genetics of the specimens to confirm whether they are new species to science. (See them in the video below…)

During their expedition, which also included two of Chile’s protected marine areas—the Juan Fernandez and Nazca-Desventuradas parks—the scientists used the underwater robot SuBastian, which is capable of descending to depths of 2.8 miles (4.5 kilometers).

UNDERWATER MYSTERY: Charlotte the Stingray, Single for 8 Years, Celebrated V-day with ‘Impossible’ Litter of Non-Fertilized Eggs

The Salas y Gómez Ridge is 1800-miles-long (2900km) comprised of more than 200 seamounts that stretch from off the coastline of Chile to Easter Island in the southeastern Pacific Ocean.

On their ambitious expedition mapping over 20,000 square miles (52,777 sq km), the team explored the Nazca and Salas y Gómez Ridge, located both inside and outside of Chile’s jurisdiction, to collect data that could be used to support the designation of an international high-seas marine protected area—to save it from mining companies looking for natural minerals, like cobalt, in underwater mountains.

Oblong Dermechinus urchins – Credit: ROV SuBastian / Schmidt Ocean Institute, CC license

A second expedition on the Research Vessel Falkor (too) is set to sail in the coming days to further explore the Salas y Gomez Ridge, with the expedition being live-streamed on the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s YouTube channel. (See some of their astounding video below…)

The California-based nonprofit will also be operating in the Southeast Pacific in the coming year, exploring the waters off Peru.

LOOK: Pristine Coral Reefs Discovered Are Thousands of Years Old And Teeming With Life

“Full species identification can take many years, and Dr. Sellanas and his team have an incredible number of samples from this amazingly beautiful and little-known biodiversity hotspot,” said the Institute’s Executive Director Dr. Jyotika Virmani.

Their partner, the Nippon Foundation, has set a target of finding 100,000 new marine species in the next 10 years for its Nekton Ocean Census Program—and, once identified, these new species will be counted as part of that.

Watch the amazing video from Schmidt Ocean Institute below…

SEND THE MAGICAL Sights to Friends By Sharing on Social Media…

Your Horoscope for the Week – ‘Free Will Astrology’ From Rob Brezsny

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Our partner Rob Brezsny, who has a new book out, Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicated weekly column appearing in over a hundred publications. He is also the author of Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How All of Creation Is Conspiring To Shower You with Blessings. (A free preview of the book is available here.)

Here is your weekly horoscope…

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY – Week of February 24, 2024
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
Unlike the Pope’s decrees, my proclamations are not infallible. As opposed to Nostradamus and many modern soothsayers, I never imagine I have the power to definitely decipher what’s ahead. One of my main mottoes is “The future is undecided. Our destinies are always mutable.” Please keep these caveats in mind whenever you commune with my horoscopes. Furthermore, consider adopting my approach as you navigate through the world—especially in the coming weeks, when your course will be extra responsive to your creative acts of willpower. Decide right now what you want the next chapter of your life story to be about. You can make it what you want.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Aries filmmaker Akira Kurosawa was one of the greats. In his 30 films, he crafted a reputation as a masterful storyteller. A key moment in his development as an emotionally intelligent artist came when he was 13 years old. His older brother Heigo took him to view the aftermath of the Great Kantō earthquake. Akira wanted to avert his gaze from the devastation, but Heigo compelled him to look. Why? He wished for Akira to learn to deal with fear by facing it directly. I think you Aries people are more skilled at this challenging exercise than all the other signs. I hope you will call on it with aplomb in the coming weeks. You may be amazed at the courage it arouses in you.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
“When a mountain doesn’t listen, say a prayer to the sea,” said Taurus painter Cy Twombly. My Taurus mentor Audrey advises, “If your mind doesn’t provide you with useful solutions, make an appeal to your heart instead.” This counsel should be useful for you in the coming weeks, Taurus. It’s time to be diligent, relentless, ingenious, and indefatigable in going after what you want. Keep asking until you find a source that will provide it.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
Gemini philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson offered advice that’s perfect for you right now. He said, “Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us, or we find it not.” Here’s what I will add. First, you very much need to commune with extra doses of beauty in the coming weeks. Doing so will expedite your healing and further your education—two activities that are especially important. Second, one way to accomplish your assignment is to put yourself in the presence of all the beautiful people, places, and things you can find. Third, be imaginative as you cultivate beauty within yourself. How? That’s your homework.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):
I bet that sometime soon, you will dream of flying through the sky on a magic carpet. In fact, this may be a recurring dream for you in the coming months. By June, you may have soared along on a floating rug over 10 times. Why? What’s this all about? I suspect it’s one aspect of a project that life is encouraging you to undertake. It’s an invitation to indulge in more flights of the imagination; to open your soul to mysterious potencies; to give your fantasy life permission to be wilder and freer. You know that old platitude “shit happens”? You’re ready to experiment with a variation on that: “Magic happens.”

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
In February, ancient Romans celebrated the holiday of Caristia. It was a time for reconciliation. People strove to heal estrangements and settle longstanding disagreements. Apologies were offered, and truces were negotiated. In alignment with current astrological omens, Leo, I recommend you revive this tradition. Now is an excellent time to embark on a crusade to unify, harmonize, restore, mend, and assuage. I dare you to put a higher priority on love than on ego!

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
My poet friend Jafna likes to say that only two types of love are available to us: too little and too much. We are either deprived of the precise amount and quality of the love we want, or else we have to deal with an excess of love that doesn’t match the kind we want. But I predict that this will at most be a mild problem for you in the coming weeks—and perhaps not a problem at all. You will have a knack for giving and receiving just the right amount of love, neither too little nor too much. And the love flowing toward you and from you will be gracefully appropriate.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
If the devil card comes up for me in a Tarot reading, I don’t get worried or scared that something bad might happen. On the contrary, I interpret it favorably. It means that an interesting problem or riddle has arrived or will soon arrive in my life—and that this twist can potentially make me wiser, kinder, and wilder. The appearance of the devil card suggests that I need to be challenged so as to grow a new capacity or understanding. It’s a good omen, telling me that life is conspiring to give me what I need to outgrow my limitations and ignorance. Now apply these principles, Libra, as you respond to the devil card I just drew for you.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
A taproot is a thick, central, and primary root from which a plant’s many roots branch out laterally. Typically, a taproot grows downward and is pretty straight. It may extend to a depth greater than the height of the plant sprouting above ground. Now let’s imagine that we humans have metaphorical taproots. They connect us with our sources of inner nourishment. They are lifelines to secret or hidden treasures we may be only partly conscious of. Let’s further imagine that in the coming months, Scorpio, your taproot will flourish, burgeon, and spread deeper to draw in new nutrients. Got all that? Now I invite you to infuse this beautiful vision with an outpouring of love for yourself and for the wondrous vitality you will be absorbing.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
Behavioral ecologist Professor Dan Charbonneau has observed the habits of ants, bees, and other social insects. He says that a lot of the time, many of them just lounge around doing nothing. In fact, most animals do the same. The creatures of the natural world are just not very busy. Psychologist Dr. Sandi Mann urges us to learn from their lassitude. “We’ve created a society where we fear boredom, and we’re afraid of doing nothing,” she says. But that addiction to frenzy may limit our inclination to daydream, which in turn inhibits our creativity. I bring these facts to your attention, Sagittarius, because I suspect you’re in a phase when lolling around doing nothing much will be extra healthy for you. Liberate and nurture your daydreams, please!

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
“Education is an admirable thing,” wrote Oscar Wilde, “but it is well to remember that nothing worth knowing can be taught.” I vociferously disagree with him, as I ponder your future in the coming weeks. I am sure you can learn many things worth knowing from teachers of all kinds. It’s true that some of the lessons may be accidental or unofficial—and not delivered by traditional teachers. But that won’t diminish their value. I invite you to act as if you will in effect be enrolled in school 24/7 until the equinox.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
The planets Mars and Venus are both cruising through Aquarius. Do they signify that synchronicities will weave magic into your destiny? Yes! Here are a few possibilities I foresee: 1. smoldering flirtations that finally ignite; 2. arguments assuaged by love-making; 3. mix-ups about the interplay between love and lust or else wonderful synergies between love and lust; 4. lots of labyrinthine love talk, romantic sparring, and intricate exchange about the nature of desire; 5. adventures in the sexual frontiers; 6. opportunities to cultivate interesting new varieties of intimacy.

WANT MORE? Listen to Rob’s EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES, 4-5 minute meditations on the current state of your destiny — or subscribe to his unique daily text message service at: RealAstrology.com

(Zodiac images by Numerologysign.com, CC license)

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“Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.” – John F. Kennedy

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Quote of the Day: “Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.” – John F. Kennedy

Photo by: Miguel Henriques

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Indian IT Worker Designs New Eco-Friendly Sewage Treatment Method with the Sacred Cow as His Inspiration

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Andy Corbley
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Martijn Vonk - Unsplash
Martijn Vonk – Unsplash

An Indian entrepreneur has developed a zero-energy, zero-chemical system of wastewater treatment, and true to the traditions of the sub-continent, he used nature as an inspiration—specifically Hinduism’s most sacred animal.

In Bengaluru, a 54-year-old IT security specialist was living pretty in a luxury gated community earned after a long successful career, but he decided to put all he had achieved on the line over a simple clogged drain.

Tharun Kumar began to imagine ways to build a better sewage treatment method that could produce good quality water without chemicals. The nearby Varthur Lake was the perfect example of the need for innovation in this area, as the lake has for years been famous for pollution.

In 2017, Kumar started ECOSTP with the chambered stomach of the cow as his “bovine inspiration.”

Like all ruminants, cows have a 4-chamber stomach, in which the plants they eat are broken down by anaerobic bacteria. If we remember high school biology or PA classes, anaerobic means metabolism without oxygen.

Typical wastewater plants use aerobic bacteria, or metabolism with oxygen, to break down sewage, but this requires the ventilation system that continually runs on energy. Regular sewage treatment also tends to use chemicals, and has the presence of a full-time employee. Kumar has eliminated almost all of these drawbacks.

At the base of the ECOSTP septic tank is a layer of cow dung that provides the bacterial workers. With the water moving via gravity, it enters the second bacterial chamber before passing into the third space which is a filter of sand and gravel. The fourth chamber lies under a garden of select vascular plants which removes suspended solids, pathogens, nitrogen, and phosphorus, the latter two going to feed the plants.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Washington, DC Sewage Plant Spins Human Sewage into Fertilizer Gold

The resulting water is graded by health inspectors as good quality for toilet water and gardening applications. With the aid of a grant from the US-based Biomimicry Solutions, ECOSTP now has 325 clients across 22 states in India, and their septic tanks are unmanned and unpowered, saving thousands in running costs.

“My team and I measure ourselves by three metrics,” Kumar told India Today’s Ajay Sukumaran. “How much bad water did we convert to good water? How much power did we save compared to a normal STP? And how much coal we saved, because 70 percent of India’s electricity comes from coal.”

GREEN INDIA NEWS: Indian Man Quits Tech Job and Becomes Environmentalist–And Turns Infamous Dump into Green Oasis

“We are proud to have reclaimed 2 billion liters of sewage so far without power or chemicals.”

ECOSTP is now seeing if it’s possible to identify anaerobic bacteria that can remove the harmful compounds of industrial effluent.

WATCH a five-minute mini-doc about Kumar and ECOSTP below… 

SHARE This Spark Of Bovine Inspiration With Your Friends… 

LA Firefighters Rescue 1200-Pound Horse Named ‘Lucky’ from Backyard Sinkhole (WATCH)

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Andy Corbley
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Fire Captain Erik Scott LAFD (Twitter)
Fire Captain Erik Scott LAFD (Twitter)

In LA County, fire and rescue had a ton of work to do to lift out a 1,200-pound horse that fell into a sinkhole near Lake View Terrace.

Lucky by name, lucky by nature, this 20-year-old mare managed to avoid any serious injuries to her legs from the fall when the muddy ground of her pasture parted beneath her hooves.

Heavy equipment was called for by the Los Angeles Fire Department, who enlisted 50 staff members to assist in the rescue operation.

“The name of the game is to not hurt the horse, to keep her calm,” LAFD Capt. Erik Scott told ABC 7 Eyewitness News, while the rescue was still underway. “She’s been in mild to moderate distress at this time and we want to get her freed and get more definitive care.”

At first the team thought a helicopter would be the best method of extraction, but eventually changed course to use the boom of an excavator to attach the heavy strapping which formed a makeshift harness around Lucky’s midriff.

MORE ANIMAL RESCUES: Good Samaritan Saves Farmer’s Pig, Calls 911 After Joining Livestream and Seeing Barn On Fire

A large vacuum was used to clear away the sand from the hole before the excavator lifted her partially out and brought her back legs over the solid ground she needed to gain purchase with her hooves and heave herself out.

20 years is old for a horse, and it’s a miracle she wasn’t mortally wounded by the fall. It seems whoever named the mare had good reason for picking ‘Lucky.’

WATCH the rescue below from ABC 7… 

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Pony-Sized Dinosaurs Swam or Floated Across Hundreds of Miles of Ocean from America to Colonize Africa

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Andy Corbley
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An artist impression of the duckbills arriving on the shores of Africa - credit Raul Martin, via SWNS
An artist’s impression of the duckbills arriving on the shores of Africa – Dr. Longrich et al, via SWNS

Describing a “once-in-a-million year event,” an international team of paleontologists has suggested that, though nearly impossible, a herd of pony-sized duck-billed dinosaurs must have either floated or swam across to Africa up to 66 million years ago.

Fossils belonging to three species of duck-billed dinosaurs were found in Morocco, on a proto-Africa that would have been isolated by several hundred miles of ocean from where they evolved in North America.

The researchers also discovered that, once in Africa, the duck-billed dinosaurs not only survived but thrived and became diverse throughout their new continent.

At the end of the Cretaceous period, some 66 million years ago, high sea levels and the breakup of the supercontinent Pangaea isolated Africa as a lone island continent, surrounded by water on all sides.

However, the remains of a member of the duck-billed dinosaur family that evolved in North America were recently found in northern Africa—prompting questions as to how they got there.

The fossils, found in modern-day Morocco, revealed a new species of pony-sized, duck-billed dinosaur called Minqaria bata, which measured between 9 and 12 feet long and weighed around 500 pounds.

The anatomy of the new species closely resembles that of the European species, prompting researchers to reluctantly suggest the dinosaurs swam or floated across several hundred miles of open ocean to colonize North Africa.

Dr. Nicholas Longrich, from the University of Bath’s Department of Life Sciences, and his team, made up of international scientists from universities in the UK, Morocco, and Spain, said that though the dinosaurs traversing the oceans to get to Africa was unlikely, it appears to be exactly what happened.

“It’s extremely improbable that dinosaurs could cross water to get to Africa,” he said. “But improbable isn’t the same as impossible. And given enough time, improbable things become probable.”

“Buy a lottery ticket every day, and if you wait long enough, you’ll win. These ocean crossings might be once-in-a-million-year events but the Cretaceous lasted nearly 100 million years.”

“A lot of strange things will happen in that time,” he suggested, “including dinosaurs crossing seas.”

The researchers compared the anomaly of the crossing to the unusual journeys of some modern-day animals, such as a group of at least 15 iguanas swept off the shores of Guadeloupe in the Caribbean by a hurricane and washed up around 200 miles away on the island of Anguilla a month later in 2015, or a tortoise from the island of Aldabra that once drifted ashore in Tanzania, 700 kilometers away.

OTHER NATURAL WONDERS: Dinosaur Evergreens Thought Extinct for 2Mil Years Discovered by Park Ranger–the Grove is the ‘Find of the Century’

Deer, elephants, and hippos are also all known to have swam out to the Greek island of Crete during the ice age.

“These duckbills are maybe the most surprising find of my career,” Dr. Longrich admitted. “If you asked me what kind of dinosaurs we’d find in Africa, then a duckbill is the last thing I would have imagined, let alone three species.”

Dr. Longrich holding one of the duckbill fossils – SWNS

“There’s still so much unknown in the fossil record, but if there wasn’t, we wouldn’t need to keep collecting fossils.”

ALSO CHECK OUT: Scientists Discover Butterflies Originated in America 100 Million Years Ago When Upstart Moths Wanted to Bask in the Sun

The first of the three species in question was named Minqaria bata—Arabic for ‘beak’ and ‘duck’, respectively, and it closely resembles the only previously known African species, Ajnabia odysseus, though the shape of its jaws and teeth are distinct, proving it was a different species.

The other Moroccan species, Ajnabia, was about the same size, and larger bones studied by the team, including an arm and a thigh bone, suggest a third species grew much bigger, to around 15 to 18 feet long.

“Not only did duckbills manage to reach Africa at the end of the Cretaceous,” Dr. Longrich continued, “But once they did, they quickly evolved to take advantage of open niches and became diverse.”

MORE DINOSAUR STORIES: ‘Impossible Fossil’ Preserves the Exact Moment the Dinosaurs Died: ‘It’s Absolutely Bonkers’

Sea levels were high at the end of the Cretaceous period, flooding much of the continents, and the Earth’s land was fragmented by the breakup of Pangaea and continental drift.

This left Africa floating alone in the ocean; an island continent much like modern-day Australia.

SHARE This Paleontological Puzzle With Your Friends Who Love The Dinos… 

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