Environment

An extraordinarily rare copy of the first map to name America has emerged - and it is expected to sell for almost £1 MILLION. The 1507 map, by Martin Waldseemüller, is being described as a "significant cartographic discovery". It names American for the first time and is also the first map to illustrate separate South and North American continent. The map, by the most important cartographer of the early 16th century, is one of five copies in existence and was...

As winter closes in life for people on the streets becomes even worse, with an increase chance of death due to the plummeting temperature. With this is mind new research, released today, has indicated that one in 200 people in England is homeless. The report, by Shelter, has found that homelessness has increased 13 per cent this year, with over 307,000 people either in temporary accommodation or literally living out on the streets. Even more worrying is that Shelter believe...

Bursting with colour in the night, these aren't fireworks but aurora lighting up the northern skies. These amazing pictures of the northern lights were taken by astrophotographer Juan Carlos Casado in Greenland, Iceland and Finland. He said: "Auroras are one of the most spectacular natural phenomena that can be seen. Bursting with colour in the night, these aren't fireworks but aurora lighting up the northern skies. "They are global spectacles, in the sense that they can cover the whole visible...

A third species of orangutan has been recognised - but less than a thousand are still alive, warns new research. Previously only two species of orangutans were identified – the Bornean and the Sumatran orangutan. Now, researchers have described a new great ape species, the Tapanuli orangutan. But it is the great ape species at greatest risk of extinction, with only around 800 remaining individuals in upland forest regions of North Sumatra. Two species of Indonesian orangutans had previously been...

Sea slugs are the pirates of the underwater world when it comes to feeding time - targeting prey that have just eaten to "supersize" their own meal. Scientists who identified the behaviour have named it kleptopredation. Researchers from the University of Portsmouth are the first to have observed the brutal feeding strategy in the natural world. Senior lecturer Dr Trevor Willis led the research into the behaviour of nudibranchs, a family of sea slugs, off the coast of Sicily. He...

Scientists will close an Antarctic research centre next year over fears the ice beneath it will CRACK. The British Antarctic Survey's (BAS) Halley VI Research Station is situated on a floating 150m thick ice shelf which has split twice in the last 12 months. The crack is caused by a movement of a chasm in the Brunt Ice Shelf, which had previously been dormant for around 35 years, but is now extending eastwards. The British Antarctic Survey's (BAS) Halley VI...

With its jaws open wide, this Grizzly bear is just waiting for a leaping salmon to jump right in for a fish supper. Taken by British snapper Nick Dale, the picture was highly commended in the Wonders of Wildlife photographic competition. 1st prize zebras at dawn by Malcolm Blackburn. Nick, from London, who became a professional photographer in 2013, said: "The annual salmon migration is practically an all-you-can-eat buffet for bears in Alaska. "The journey upstream sometimes covers hundreds of...

A patch of daffodil appear to be in a muddle - after blooming just as winter begins. Susanne Turner, 58, was shocked when the perennials which usually signal the start of the spring decided to come out in a flowerbed beside her house. And despite the bizarre blossoming, the amateur horticulturalist Susanne still has no idea how they flowered in October. Susanne Turner with her daffodils that have flowered in October. The former bank employee said she planted about 30...

A green campaigner is facing up to two years in jail after he was found in contempt of court for breaching an injunction to prevent direct action against tree felling. Activist Calvin Payne posted a message on Facebook this month encouraging "as many people as possible" to break the injunction. The post was part of a city-wide campaign to prevent felling which has seen more than 5,000 trees cut down as part of a 25-year highways maintenance contract between a...