"Southeast Asia is being pummeled by unusually severe floods this year, as late-arriving storms and relentless rains wreak havoc that has caught many places off guard."

"How far back in evolutionary history does kissing go? Through phylogenetic analysis, an international team of scientists found that kissing was likely present in the ancestor of all apes – which lived 21 million years ago."

"Whether people realize it or not, traces of the global wildlife trade are ubiquitous, from expensive reptile-skin boots in department stores to the colorful fish swimming around a tank in your dentist’s office."

"Advocates are working to ensure that world leaders don’t ignore people displaced by climate change."

"NASA has sent two new satellites into space over the past six months to monitor many of the ways global warming is affecting the planet. Just don’t call them climate satellites."

"Governments at a wildlife trade conference have adopted greater protections for over 70 species of sharks and rays amid concerns that overfishing is driving some to the brink of extinction."

"Eels are the stuff of nightmares — slimy, snakelike creatures that lay millions of eggs before dying so their offspring can return home to rivers and streams. ... Yet they’re also valuable seafood fish that are declining all over the world, leading to a new push for restrictions on trade to help stave off extinction."

"The death toll from cyclone-induced floods and landslides in Indonesia passed 600 on Monday as rescuers battled to clear roads and improved weather conditions revealed the scale of a disaster that has killed nearly 800 people in Southeast Asia."

"Environmentalists and former agency employees warn of increased workloads for park employees at a time when park staffing is already low." "U.S. citizenship will determine how expensive it is to access America’s national parks beginning next year, the Interior Department announced yesterday."