Category: Environment

GUWAHATI A team of researchers from multiple institutions has described a new species of burrowing reed snake from Meghalaya’s West Garo Hills district. The description of the species, named Calamaria garoensis (Garo Hills reed snake), has been published in Taprobanica, an international peer-reviewed journal.

GUWAHATI A report on bats in India has recommended a systematic quantification of guano, or accumulated bat poop, and its nutritional value compared to existing bio-fertilisers. Farmers in India do not fancy guano as an alternative to chemical fertilisers as much as their counterparts in Cuba, Indonesia, Jamaica, Mexico, and Thailand. Bat guano is sold...

The Border Security Force (BSF) has come up with a curious idea to prevent infiltration from Bangladesh: releasing reptiles into the rivers that run along the border, The Hindu reported on April 6. “Snakes or crocodiles” introduced in vulnerable riverine gaps should be explored for feasibility, per a directive to the BSF on March 26. The...

The Border Security Force (BSF) has come up with a curious idea to prevent infiltration from Bangladesh: releasing reptiles into the rivers that run along the border, The Hindu reported on April 6. “Snakes or crocodiles” introduced in vulnerable riverine gaps should be explored for feasibility, per a directive to the BSF on March 26. The...

“A tagged shorebird that flew more than 7,400 km from South Australia has been spotted on the remote Narcondam Island in the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago,” an expert said on Tuesday (April 7, 2026). “The bird, a Sanderling, was photographed by G. Thikanna, an assistant sub-inspector with the Andaman Police, during a posting on the...

One of the world’s rarest whales lives in the Gulf of Mexico, where the Trump administration wants to expand oil and gas drilling that scientists fear could push the giant mammal to extinction. Endangered Rice’s whales live their entire lives in the gulf, where they’re vulnerable to vessel strikes, noise pollution, oil spills, and climate...

Jungle cats (Felis chaus) are found across diverse habitats, from grasslands and wetlands to deserts. They’re present across Asia, with large populations in India and Nepal, among others. The IUCN Red List lists the species as being of ‘least concern’. This has led to a “misconception that they are doing fine”, Kathan Bandyopadhyay, a postdoctoral...

The story so far: Microplastics, especially nylon fibres, seem to be present rather sparsely in Chennai’s beach sediments but could still wreak long-term ecological damage, new research has cautioned. A study by researchers at V.O. Chidambaram College in Thoothukudi examined the abundance, sources, and ecological risks of microplastics from beach sediment samples from 15 sites...

Updating its climate goals, India has pledged that by 2035, 60% of its installed electric capacity will comprise of non-fossil sources. It also aims to reduce by 47% the intensity of emissions per unit of GDP from 2005 level and to increase its carbon sink to 3.5 billion tonnes – 4 billion tonnes. These targets...

Chasing an endless summer, one shorebird species undertakes a gruelling annual journey from the Arctic to the tip of South America and back — a feat increasingly fraught with peril. The Hudsonian godwit (Limosa haemastica) is one of the world’s most remarkable travellers, but its population has plunged 95% in four decades due to a...