Science/Nature

[ad_1] Scientists think that Svalbard bears have adapted to recent ice loss by eating more land-based prey. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Matt Wilson, countryside manager for the National Trust, said: "The new island, located just off the eastern shore of Northey will provide a refuge for birds above the highest tides and away from disturbance on shore, acting as a lifeline for birds that are running out of safe spaces to nest and rest. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Andrew Aitchison/Getty ImagesThe government's Warm Homes Plan promises £15bn to help UK households pay for green technologies such as heat pumps, as part of its efforts to drive down energy bills and cut planet warming emissions.Heating homes accounts for about a fifth of the UK's planet-warming emissions, so switching from gas and oil to heat pumps is seen as a priority.What are heat pumps and how do they work?Heat

[ad_1] Justin RowlattClimate EditorAFP via Getty ImagesThe new project could link offshore wind farms in the North Sea to more than one country via 'interconnectors'The UK is set to back a vast new fleet of offshore wind projects in the North Sea alongside eight other European countries including Norway, Germany and the Netherlands.The government says the deal will strengthen energy security by offering an escape from what it calls the

[ad_1] Pallab GhoshScience CorrespondentA stencilled outline of a hand found on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi is the world's oldest known cave painting, researchers say.It shows a red outline of a hand whose fingers were reworked, researchers say, to create a claw-like motif which indicates an early leap in symbolic imagination.The painting has been dated to at least 67,800 years ago – around 1,100 years before the previous record, a

[ad_1] Watch: Veronika the cow shows off her unique skillsScientists are rethinking what cattle are capable of after an Austrian cow named Veronika was found to use tools with impressive skill. The discovery, reported by researchers in Vienna, suggests cows may have far greater cognitive abilities than previously assumed.Veronika, a cow living in a mountain village in the Austrian countryside, has spent years perfecting the art of scratching herself using

[ad_1] Helen Briggs,Environment correspondentandGwyndaf Hughes,Science videographerWatch: hedgehogs have been busy in our gardens at nightBritish gardens matter more than ever for hedgehogs, according to a study of the secret night life of the spiny mammals.Scientists gave householders wildlife cameras to spy on hedgehogs in more than 400 gardens in Chester in one of the largest studies of its kind.The animals turned up in more than half of gardens studied, with

[ad_1] Richard Daniel/BBCThe Warren, in Thorpeness, was torn down in OctoberA council has confirmed it will continue to provide funding for homeowners facing demolition costs on a crumbling Suffolk coastline.Several homes in Thorpeness have already had to be torn down this winter due to coastal erosion, while several others are at risk of being lost.East Suffolk Council, which is in charge of managing the erosion, expects the demolition costs to

[ad_1] Rebecca Morelle,Alison FrancisandKevin Church,Science teamWatch: Timelapse shows Nasa rocket's 12-hour journey to launch padNasa's mega rocket has been moved to the launch pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida, as the final preparations get underway for the first crewed mission to the Moon in more than 50 years.Over almost 12 hours, the 98m-tall Space Launch System was carried vertically from the Vehicle Assembly Building on the 4-mile (6.5km) journey to the

[ad_1] Mark Poynting,Climate researcherandErwan Rivault,Senior data designerGetty ImagesA new map has unmasked the landscape beneath Antarctica's ice in unprecedented detail, something scientists say could greatly enhance our understanding of the frozen white continent.Researchers used satellite data and the physics of how Antarctica's glaciers move to work out what the continent might look like beneath the ice.They found evidence of thousands of previously undiscovered hills and ridges, and say their maps