After nearly 40 years on the brink of extinction, the brown pelican is coming off the endangered species list. The bird, now prevalent across Florida and the Gulf and Pacific coasts, was declared an endangered species in 1970, after its population was devastated by the use of the pesticide DDT. The pelican's recovery is largely due to a 1972 ban on the chemical. ...more

November 11, 2009

There's not much goin' on in the White House, where the travlin' Prez is seldom at work these days; nor is anything necessary nor constructive bein' worked on under the dense dome of our national Capitol. ...more

November 3, 2009

Bundaleer, a 10-year-old Queensland koala, took the grand opening of his exhibit in stride. ...more

June 30, 2009

Don't let the far right continue to use fear tactics to take yet more from you and give more to the fat cats! ...more

January 16, 2009

John Coffin, chief commander of the Second City of London's Police, is horrified when a package of bones with his initials on it is found outside his former home. "Coffin's Ghost" by Gwendolyn Butler is a reminder that events in our lives which we may have tried to forget or hide, often come back to haunt us in unexpected ways. Coffin's old home is now a shelter for battered women and a certain amount of suspicion about his past centers on him. Coffin must explain part of this past to his actress wife Stella Pinero, and hope she will be understanding. He hopes the information will not jeopardize their happiness. Then he must work to solve the mystery of whose bones the package contains and who hates him so much they would like to see his reputation permanently tarnished. The hunt means Coffin must try to resurrect the past without causing more harm to anyone else, a seemingly impossible task as he tries to find out the name of his "ghost." ...more

December 31, 2008

A quarter of the world's wild mammal species are at risk of extinction, according to a comprehensive global survey released here Monday. ...more

October 7, 2008

The majestic grizzly bear, once king of the Western wilderness but threatened with extinction for a third of a century, has roared back in Montana. ...more

September 17, 2008

The outside walls of Miami Jai-Alai are cracked. The paint is chipped and faded. The entrance to the world's largest fronton, once a grand spectrum filled with fans, is empty. A single teller guards the door, charging a $1 fee. ...more

September 8, 2008

Tempest Storm is fuming. Her fingers tremble with frustration. They are aged, knotted by arthritis and speckled with purple spots under paper skin. ...more

July 13, 2008

Robert Butler has made a life doing what he loves. ...more

June 13, 2008