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EVOLUTION GAP: The fossils of a newly discovered, smaller ancestor of the Tyrannosaurus rex may hold clues as to why the iconic dinosaur rose to the top of the food chain, scientists say.

ENIGMATIC PATTERNS: The chance discovery of 'fairy circles' in Western Australia's Pilbara region is providing new insight into one of nature's enduring puzzles.

VIVID MIND: You don't have to have schizophrenia or take LSD to have a hallucination, and they don't always have to be scary either.

Environment Agency says eight pumps capable of handling 30% more water to be installed along river as part of £13m project

The Environment Agency has said it intends to replace all water pumps around York months after the failure of one led to flooding in large swaths of the city.

Eight pumps capable of dealing with 30% more water are to be installed over the next 20 months, the agency said.

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An £800 tax would fund old diesel scrappage, encourage move to low-emission vehicles and reduce air pollution, according to Policy Exchange thinktank

An £800 pollution tax should be put on sales of new diesel cars, with the proceeds used for a scrappage scheme for older diesels, according to the thinktank Policy Exchange.

The move, proposed ahead of George Osborne’s budget on 16 March, would encourage motorists to move towards lower emission vehicles and significantly reduce air pollution, according to the thinktank, which is close to Osborne. The idea is also backed by the mayor of London, Boris Johnson, and an influential committee of MPs.

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Wildlife ‘firsts’ include Norfolk’s only sighting of a Balearic shearwater and a beetle not seen in Northern Ireland for more than 100 years

The biggest survey to date of nature along Britain’s coastline has uncovered a host of “wildlife firsts”.

More than 3,400 species were recorded at 25 National Trust locations along the coastline of England, Wales and Northern Ireland in the charity’s largest ever wildlife survey. A handful have either been seen in a new habitat for the first time or “rediscovered” after going unseen for many years.

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Removal of nuclear fuel from power plant that suffered triple meltdown following 2011 tsunami could take 40 years or more

In the chaotic two years after its name became forever associated with nuclear disaster, the Fukushima Daiichi power plant “resembled a field hospital”, according to the man who is now in charge of the most daunting task the nuclear industry has ever faced: removing hundreds of tons of melted fuel from the plant’s stricken reactors.

“Now it really does feel like the situation is settling down and we can look ahead,” said Naohiro Masuda, head of decommissioning at the plant’s operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco).

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Draft Emissions Reduction Fund methods on Community Buildings released for public consultation. Consultation period closes 5 April 2016

Draft Emissions Reduction Fund methods on Community Buildings released for public consultation. Consultation period closes 5 April 2016

POLLUTION SOLUTION?: A newly discovered plastic-eating bacterium may hold the key to safely degrading millions of tonnes of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics dumped each year.

BROWN FAT: A special type of fat that probably evolved to help keep our ancestors warm on cold hunting mornings may also be important in protecting against diabetes, say researchers.

Scientists have discovered a species of bacteria capable of breaking down commonly used PET plastic but remain unsure of its potential applications

Nature has begun to fight back against the vast piles of filth dumped into its soils, rivers and oceans by evolving a plastic-eating bacteria – the first known to science.

In a report published in the journal Science, a team of Japanese researchers described a species of bacteria that can break the molecular bonds of one of the world’s most-used plastics - polyethylene terephthalate, also known as PET or polyester.

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On the anniversary of the 2011 disaster that killed 19,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands more, life and hope continue a steady resurgence, writes Justin McCurry

On 11 March 2011 a powerful earthquake and tsunami struck the north-east coast of Japan and triggered a triple meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

Related: Five years after Japan's tsunami, orphan victims lament their lost parents

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SENG Vic - Environmental Risk Assessment

SENG Vic - Environmental Risk Assessment

DINGOES RULE: Hybridising with dogs is unlikely to lead to dingoes changing their skull shape or losing their status as the top predator in the Australian ecology, researchers say.

The government claims the seal-fur industry is lucrative, but protesters argue it costs more to monitor the practice than the hunts generate in revenue

Justin Trudeau’s government has come under renewed pressure to ban seal hunting after it emerged that Canada is spending far more on monitoring seal hunts than it receives in the export value of seal products.

Documents obtained under freedom of access laws show that Canada spends around $2.5m a year to monitor seal hunts that occur in the remote north-east. By comparison, the 2014 export figure for seal products was just $500,000.

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INSECT VISION: An Australasian species of swallowtail butterfly holds the record for having the largest number of different vision cells in its eyes for any insect, scientists say.

Application on ecological sustainability - call for public comments open from 10 March 2016 until 12 April 2016.

Application on ecological sustainability - call for public comments open from 10 March 2016 until 12 April 2016.