'Fire whirls' threaten Joshua tree desert in scorching US

A huge wildfire was raging out of control through the environmentally sensitive Mojave Desert on Monday, with "fire whirls" threatening the Joshua trees that are found almost entirely in the southwestern United States.

Study highlights best practices in buffelgrass control

Buffelgrass is a highly invasive perennial found in arid regions around the globe. It is known to reduce the biodiversity of native ecosystems and to increase the frequency and intensity of wildfires.

The origins of donkey domestication

The donkey has shaped the history of humankind, both as a source of power for farm work, and of transportation in sometimes hard to reach areas.

Desert plantations found to enhance rainfall

A pair of researchers at the University of Hohenheim has found evidence that suggests planting forests in desert areas can lead to an increase in local rainfall. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy ...

A better life outback

Desert lands cover about a quarter of the Earth's land mass and are home to some half a billion people and yet they are commonly portrayed as extreme places with marginalized communities. The people who live there are perceived ...

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