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BABY MAMMOTH'S LIFE REVEALED This month-old mammoth, Lyuba, died 40,000 years ago. Scientists discovered her well-preserved body in the Russian Arctic two years ago. A recent CT scan showed Lyuba was healthy and well-fed unlike previously found baby mammoths; there were traces of faeces, probably of her mother, and milk in her intestine. There was also a fat hump on the back of her neck which helped infant calves to stay warm. Further analyses would reveal what caused the Ice Age mammals to die hunting or climate change.

Archaeologists found dozens of brightly-painted mummies in Fayoum, oasis town near Cairo. The mummies date back 4,000 years.

After teachers threatened to renew their strike over paltry salaries, cash-strapped Zimbabwe urged international donors to increase humanitarian aid to include salaries to teachers, health workers and civil servants.

Overfishing on Lake Victoria has depleted the stock of Nile Perch, a fierce predator fish, by 81 per cent in three years, said Uganda's fisheries minister.

Saudi Arabia banned the import of meat from Ethiopia saying the abattoirs did not meet its hygienic standards. Saudi Arabia is the biggest buyer of Ethiopian meat.

Japan's researchers found 10 raccoons with bird flu virus antibodies that develop as a result of infection. This is the first time mammals in Japan were found with H5N1 antibodies.

Scientists from the United Arab Emirates unveiled the world's first cloned camel. Born on April 8 the scientists have named her Injaz.

China's State Council issued a statement calling for all local governments to buy more energy efficient products as part of the national drive to curb pollution and combat global warming.

Germany banned the cultivation of Monsanto's GM maize Mon810--the only GM crop approved in the EU. It is the sixth country to impose the ban after France, Austria, Greece, Hungary and Luxembourg.

Iceland unilaterally set its fishing quota for mackerel at 112,000 tonnes in 2009. Its move was in retaliation to the North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission increasing the quota for the EU and Norway to 640,000 tonnes without consulting Iceland, which is a member of the commission.

Following protests by health professionals, the Argentine government acknowledged 13,000 people are sick with dengue. The government was accused of covering up the problem in run-up to the recent polls.

Chile's LAN Airlines said it would install 3.5 metre-tall winglets on the wing tips of 37 planes. This would reduce lift-induced drag, provide extra lift for a faster ascension and thereby save 63 million litres of fuel a year, said the company.

A volcanic eruption on an uninhabitated island of the Galapagos in Ecuador killed a range of wildlife including fish and sea lions. The region's unique wildlife was the basis for Darwin's evolution theory.

Brazil has declared a yellow-fever alert in the southern Rio Grande do Sul state.

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Residents of San Fernando, a poor suburb of Buenos Aires, demolished part of a controversial wall intended to separate it from the affluent San Isidro.

Costa Rica is undergoing a demographic transition. By 2009 end, 937 citizens will be over the age of 100, compared with 231 centenarians nine years ago. The population of children will, however decrease, said its demographic institution.

Twelve people were killed in a mudslide triggered by torrential rains in Retamas, a mining town in Peru. Small-scale mining operations for gold and silver have affected the stability of the area, said the national emergency management agency.

The US Environmental Protection Agency formally declared carbon dioxide and five other greenhouse gases --methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulphur hexafluoride--as pollutants that endanger public health.

Fiji has devalued its currency by 20 per cent. The Fiji Reserve Bank said the devaluation would help boost Fijian tourism and exports--both badly hit by ongoing political crisis and economic downturn.

Indigenous people in Western Australia with land rights over the petroleum-rich Kimberley region allowed Woodside Petroleum Ltd to set up its plant in return for compensation worth more than US $724 million over 30 years.

Inflows into the Murray river over the past three months were the lowest in 117 years and can meet only two-thirds of the demand, said the Murray-Darling Basin Authority. The basin is Australia's food bowl.

The price of oil fell after the International Energy Agency predicted world oil demand would fall by 2.4 million barrels a day to 83.4 million barrels.

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