The data showed the levees protecting the subdivision would provide protection only against a 20-year flood, not a 200-year flood, if sea levels rose by one foot. Sometimes one has to feel a little bit of pity for our elected officials when they have to straddle that thin line between the people they really serve (corporate sponsors and special interest lobbyists) and those they claim they serve (the rest of us) Some islands sit 25 feet below sea level, kept dry only by an aging network of...

The tourists pet the burros, have their pictures taken with them, chat with them, and feed them carrots, available for $1 a bag from the Oatman General Store or any of a dozen other stores. But, ranchers, who had already seized land from the Indians and were deep into a land war with farmers, saw horses as competition for unfenced grazing land. No one remembers when the burros first came into the mountain town that is bisected by the hairpin curves and switchbacks of Old Route 66, but they...

Through November, the MU researcher will monitor the growth habits of 60 calves from various breeds to determine if bio-leftovers provide a healthy main course to cattle. The study has two main priorities: first, to determine if glycerin has a positive or negative effect on calves' growth performance, and second, to assess its impact, if any, on meat quality. After three to five years, you'll see industrial applications utilizing this glycerin, and that may price it out of the animal feed...

The largemouth and smallmouth bass bite is slowing down, but quality fish can still be caught in the river drop-shotting small crawdad artificial baits off the rocky points. The midge hatches are getting heavier each day and the fish are starting to move into the riffles and shallow water to feed on the subsurface emergers. Other fish species have made the switch to the 25-foot bottom contour on outside primary points leading into deep water. To effectively fish reefs, employ a combination...

Allen, an expert on elephant seals, put a pink tag on the bull's hind flippers when he first showed up at the river estuary as an adolescent five years ago. Meanwhile, as a backdrop, the seagulls on the sandbar flutter and land, again and again, agitated by the event but unsure of the danger to themselves. One witness said the 2,500-pound male, who often lunges at his victims, is the most aggressive elephant seal he's ever seen. A rogue elephant seal nicknamed Nibbles has run rampant near...