October 5, 2024 – आवारा मुसाफिर

‘Magical’ flotilla of hot air balloons take flight at international fiesta

October 5, 2024148 Views

A flotilla of hot air balloons ascended into a clear desert sky on Saturday to kick off a colorful mass ascension at the 52nd annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. The nine-day gathering draws hundreds of thousands of spectators and pilots to New Mexico each fall for the rare opportunity to be within arm’s reach as the giant balloons are unpacked and inflated. Balloons took flight to screams of delight after a brief weather delay and were spirited away by a gentle breeze. Propane burners roared and hundreds of balloons — from traditional globes to cartoonish figures — rose to speckle the sky with color. “The mass ascension is just magical, unlike anything in the world really that I’ve seen,” said Paul Kluzak, of Phoenix. He’s come twice before and arrived this year...

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Study documents extinction of 610 bird species and ecological impacts

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

October 5, 2024172 Views

The Dodo, the famous flightless bird that inhabited the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius, is a case study in extinction caused by humans. The Dodo, finely adapted to its isolated ecosystem but unprepared for the arrival of people, was first encountered by Dutch sailors in 1598. Hunting, habitat destruction and the introduction of non-native species doomed it in under 80 years. It is hardly alone. New research has documented the extinction of 610 bird species over the past 130,000 years, coinciding with the global spread of our species Homo sapiens, an avian crisis that has only accelerated in recent years and decades. For instance, the Kauaʻi ʻōʻō, a Hawaiian songbird, was declared extinct just last year. The researchers also revealed the ecological consequences, as the disappea...