"President Biden’s choice for interior secretary faces her confirmation hearing on Tuesday. Democrats see her as embodying the hopes of the new administration; Republicans object to her activism."

"Scientists have cloned the first U.S. endangered species, a black-footed ferret duplicated from the genes of an animal that died over 30 years ago."

"Turtles get cold-stunned when water temperatures fall. One group said it was taking care of more than 2,500 after the ice storm in Texas."

"On Alaska’s North Slope, treeless and snow-shrouded for much of the year, it isn’t easy being a wolverine. The sinewy, solitary animals survive through a constant search for food, burrowing into snowdrifts to rest."

"Some whale songs can give scientists valuable information about the ocean’s geography, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Science. What’s more, their songs can be used as a form of seismic testing, which uses blasts of sound to map out the ocean floor. Forms of this technology can be harmful to whales and other marine life."

"A Wisconsin judge ordered the state Department of Natural Resources on Thursday to start a gray wolf hunt this month rather than waiting until November."

"A federal judge on Thursday overturned a Trump administration action that allowed mining and other development on 10 million acres (4 million hectares) in parts of six western states that are considered important for the survival of a struggling bird species."

"The Interior Department on Thursday reversed actions taken by former Interior Secretary David Bernhardt governing spending of Land and Water Conservation Fund revenues."

"The Mexican wolf was hunted to the brink of extinction. But as it is reintroduced, conservationists hope to quell the old enmity between 'el lobo' and the farmer. "