Wildlife

Rescuers are struggling to save manatees in Florida, there a Red Tide algal bloom has killed 181 of the mammals so far this year.

"PARIS -- Will Brussels try to give bees a break? In a case closely watched on both sides of the Atlantic, European officials plan to vote Friday on a proposal to sharply restrict the use of pesticides that had been implicated in the decline of global bee populations."

"MEXICO CITY -- The number of Monarch butterflies making it to their winter refuge in Mexico dropped 59 percent this year, falling to the lowest level since comparable record-keeping began 20 years ago, scientists reported Wednesday."

The white-nose syndrome fungus that is killing bats in their caves has now spread to 22 U.S. states and 5 Canadian provinces.

"SAN DIEGO — The California Coastal Commission on Friday rejected a Navy explosives and sonar training program off the Southern California coast that critics said could harm endangered blue whales and other sea life."

"Texas was ordered to temporarily stop issuing new water permits for a river system that supplies dozens of Central Texas cities, power generators and petrochemical plants to ensure enough water reaches the last migratory flock of endangered whooping cranes."

"Environmental groups and wildlife lovers near Joshua Tree National Park on Monday applauded a proposed state law that would ban trapping of bobcats for commercial purposes."

"California wildlife officials have adopted new rules aimed at protecting the public from mountain lions without resorting to killing so many of the big cats so often when they roam near humans, pets or livestock."

"A federal appeals court on Friday upheld Endangered Species Act protections for the polar bear."

"The decline of wild bees and other pollinators may be an even more alarming threat to crop yields than the loss of honeybees, a worldwide study suggests, revealing the irreplaceable contribution of wild insects to global food production."