Despite polls showing former President Donald Trump trouncing Biden in swing states‚ the First Lady insisted that her husband was “not losing all the battleground states.” Jill Biden dismissed a Wall Street Journal poll showing [...] The post Jill Biden Angry At Suggestion Joe Is Behind In Swing States Claims “It’s Obvious Joe Will Win” appeared first on The People's Voice.

Adrian Belew has formed Beat with Tony Levin‚ Danny Carey and Steve Vai to perform King Crimson's 80s reportoire

Nu metal’s pioneers are once again teaming with their favourite clothing brand for new shirts‚ shoes and even a sequin tracksuit

Hmm ... I smell low ratings

Over the decades‚ guitarist Steve Conte has impacted numerous acts to sublime perfection. Be it the New York Dolls‚ Michael Monroe’s solo ensemble‚ or his solo career‚ one thing is sure: Conte is a philosopher of all things guitar. In serving up buffets of musical perfection‚ Conte’s multi-layered‚ genre-defying approach to his instrument supplies listeners with fresh perspectives and‚ more importantly‚ damn good music. If you missed Conte’s former band’s Company of Wolves‚ Crown Jewels‚ or the Conte’s‚ you’ve got your marching orders for musical retrospection. But in the meantime‚ Conte’s latest record‚ The Concrete Jungle‚ is available across all streaming The post Steve Conte of The Michael Monroe Band: The ClassicRockHistory.com Interview appeared first on ClassicRockHistory.com.

Out in the islands of the Galápagos Archipelago live 1.5-meter (5-foot) long yellow lizards who have a history – and a future – linked to the islands of Baltra‚ North Seymour‚ Fernandina‚ Isabela‚ South Plaza‚ Santa Cruz‚ and Santiago. Meet the yellow iguanas.Also known as Galápagos land iguanas (Conolophus subcristatus)‚ these impressively yellow lizards are one of four iguana species found sunning themselves across seven islands of the many in the Galápagos. This large reptile‚ once noted as “numerous” on Santiago by Charles Darwin in 1835‚ went extinct in the early 20th century because of competition and predation by introduced pigs‚ cats‚ and goats. "Like their brothers the sea-kind‚ they are ugly animals‚ of a yellowish orange beneath‚ and of a brownish red color above; from their low facial angle they have a singularly stupid appearance‚" wrote Darwin‚ clearly not impressed by these large reptiles.  The iguanas also had a population on Baltra‚ but also went extinct there as well because of introduced cats. However‚ on North Seymour‚ the iguanas were introduced by military personnel from Baltra around the time of World War II and grew to a large population of around 4‚000.However‚ this population is thought to be too big for the island to sustain since they were never natively found on North Seymour.  There has also been some suggestion that this population has caused a decrease in the flora of the island – they are known to eat at least 30 different plant species. These iguanas have very little access to fresh water and receive almost all their moisture from consuming vegetation‚ in particular cacti. After the war‚ the iguanas were introduced back onto Baltra and grew to a population of around 2‚500 in the 1930s. The team at the Galápagos Conservancy surveyed Santiago to review it as a possible site for yellow iguana reintroduction. They also hoped that by reintroducing the iguanas to the island they could help restore the ecological health of Santiago. Iguanas are thought to be important seed dispersers for the native plants as well as being interlinked to the bird species that live there. “The land iguana is a herbivore that helps ecosystems by dispersing seeds and maintaining open spaces devoid of vegetation‚” said Danny Rueda‚ the park authority’s ecosystems director told the Guardian.                    In 2019 around 1‚400 iguanas were released back onto the island‚ and after some delays due to the COVID pandemic‚ researchers were eventually able to return to monitor the population. They were pleased to discover juvenile iguanas and breeding taking place 187 years after the species went extinct there. “This is a major conservation achievement‚ and strengthens our hopes of restoring islands that have been severely affected by introduced species‚” said Danny Rueda Córdova‚ of Galápagos National Park‚ on the Galápagos Conservation Trust website.

You could do worse than to end up with a wedding ring made of the zombie fungus Cordyceps sinensis‚ a parasite that’s touted to be worth more than its weight in gold to the right buyer. Coveted for medicinal use‚ it’s a crucial form of income for some people‚ but one that’s under threat due to climate change and overharvesting.Zombie fungi seize their hosts‚ manipulating their nervous system so that they behave in a way that's beneficial for spore dispersal. Cordyceps was the inspiration for The Last Of Us‚ but as of yet‚ it has – thankfully – never parasitized a human. As for caterpillars? Well‚ just ask the ghost moths‚ Hepilus fabricius.Ghost moth larvae are victimized by the highly prized caterpillar fungus that’s found at altitudes above 4‚500 meters (14‚700 feet) in Bhutan‚ China‚ India‚ and Nepal. It’s known as yartsa gunbu or DongChongXiaCao‚ and translates to winter worm – summer grass.The caterpillar never makes it to the surface‚ but its brain-exploding mushroom does.Image credit: Mr.Karan Nandee / Shutterstock.comThe haunting name about hits the nail on the head as its spores invade the bodies of caterpillars‚ directing them toward the soil’s surface where they die. Cordyceps remains dormant in the winter‚ and then bursts out of the caterpillar’s head into the sunshine come spring.Spores escaping the mushroom are free to float into the environment‚ further infecting more caterpillars. The long stick-like protrusions that burst out of their heads were once confused for worms‚ but it’s actually the fruiting body of Cordyceps sinensis.Valued at around $150‚000 per kilogram in China with a global market value of $11 billion‚ reports New Scientist‚ yartsa gunbu turns quite the profit‚ but harvesting it isn’t easy. It requires foraging at an elevation almost the same as Everest’s Base Camp‚ attracting a “wormrush” each year as people flock in search of fruiting bodies.Know your fungus.Image credit: posmguys / Shutterstock.comWith a limited harvesting window of two months‚ and many collectors reliant on Cordyceps income‚ overharvesting has met with climate change to deliver a sucker punch to their numbers. Each year it gets harder to find the parasitized caterpillars‚ feeding into a cycle that’s turning winter worm–summer grass into the world’s most expensive fungus.Companies are now exploring the possibility of cultivating Cordyceps artificially as it's been found they have similar nutritional contents to their wild and scarce counterparts. While a solution to the issue of sustainability‚ it’s not a sustainable approach for the pickers who rely on the caterpillars for income.  It's a fine line to tread between conserving this unique zombie fungus and a traditional practice that's persevered for a thousand years‚ but one that's worth our consideration. After all‚ as they say‚ even a worm will turn.