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Wales Online
5 hours ago
- Health
- Wales Online
Everyone with blackbirds in their garden asked to take urgent action
Everyone with blackbirds in their garden asked to take urgent action There has been a serious decline in the population because of a virus Blackbirds are being threatened by a virus (Image: Pexels ) UK families are being urged to take urgent action in their gardens as the deadly mosquito-borne Usutu virus threatens blackbird numbers nationwide. Ecologists are calling on households to make small changes that can have a big impact on protecting one of the most recognisable and best-loved garden birds in the country. Data has revealed a 40% decline in blackbirds in Greater London since the virus was first detected in 2020 - and with climate change helping mosquitoes expand their range, experts warn the problem is only set to grow. Carried by the Culex pipiens mosquito - the common house mosquito - Usutu virus does not affect humans in the UK, but is often fatal to birds - especially blackbirds, which are particularly vulnerable to infection. With longer summers, warmer temperatures and heavier rainfall creating ideal breeding conditions for mosquitoes, ecologists are warning that climate change is helping diseases like Usutu gain a foothold in the UK for the first time. The virus is now well established in Britain's wild bird population and further declines in some species are expected unless action is taken to limit additional pressures like habitat loss and food scarcity. Now, ecological experts at Arbtech are encouraging families to support one of Britain's most common garden visitors, whose numbers are under threat. Article continues below A spokesperson for Arbtech said: 'Blackbirds are more than just a familiar visitor to our gardens - they're important seed dispersers and insect predators, helping to regulate pest populations and support healthy ecosystems. 'But they're under real pressure. Diseases like Usutu virus, which can cause tremors, disorientation and even sudden death in infected birds, are an emerging threat - and many people still don't realise the impact it's already having. 'The good news is that households with even a small garden can make a real difference. Simple actions like planting native shrubs, providing clean water and avoiding pesticides all help create safer, healthier habitats for blackbirds to feed, nest and thrive.' Seven ways to help protect blackbirds in your garden Plant for shelter and food Growing native trees and shrubs like hawthorn, dogwood or elder gives blackbirds cover and natural food sources. You can also leave some leaf litter or logs to encourage insects for blackbirds to eat. Offer fresh water daily Birds need clean water for drinking and bathing. Use shallow dishes or birdbaths and scrub them out regularly to avoid the spread of disease. Avoid pesticides and chemicals Slug pellets and weedkillers harm insect populations and can poison birds. Instead, try to choose organic or wildlife-friendly alternatives. Numbers have dropped (Image: Pexels ) Disinfect feeders and tables Clean all bird feeders and feeding stations at least once a week to reduce the risk of spreading disease between birds. Report signs of disease If you spot sick or dead birds, report it to Garden Wildlife Health or the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), as early reporting helps track outbreaks like Usutu. Symptoms of Usutu virus in blackbirds can vary, but infected birds often show signs of serious neurological and physical distress. Article continues below Common symptoms include lethargy or weakness, loss of coordination, unsteady movement, disorientation or unusual behaviour (like not fleeing from humans), tremors, seizures, and fluffed-up feathers - a common sign of illness in birds). Build wildlife corridors Leave gaps in fences or plant hedgerows to help blackbirds and other species safely move between gardens. Source garden products carefully Imported bird boxes or bee hotels may introduce pests or pathogens. Choose UK made or naturally sourced items where possible.
IOL News
7 hours ago
- Business
- IOL News
Cape Town father challenges R172,000 maintenance order, citing financial strain despite over R1 million bonus
A Cape Town father who receives over R1 million in bonuses challenged a ruling which ordered him to pay over R172,000 maintenance. Image: Pexels A Cape Town father who reportedly receives over R1 million in annual bonuses, has challenged the mother of his children and refused to produce his proof of income. The parents, who divorced in August 2010, have been at odds over financial responsibilities, as the mother continues to care for their children, aged 15 and 19. In February 2025, the maintenance court ordered the father to pay R172,188.63, which, amongst other things, will go towards the tuition cost of their older child. The money had to be paid before the end of March 2025. He was further ordered to pay over R20,000 towards the annual school fees of their second child. The total amount he had to pay was over R222,000. However, following the court's ruling, the father swiftly filed an urgent application in the Western Cape High Court to suspend the maintenance order. He argued that the amount was nearly double his net salary, asserting his financial inability to honour such payments. The high court granted a temporary suspension of the order, while simultaneously requiring the mother to demonstrate why this suspension should not become permanent pending the appeal hearing. The mother took further legal action, serving both the father and his employer with a subpoena duces tecum. A subpoena duces tecum is a court order requiring a person to appear in court and produce specific documents or other physical evidence relevant to a legal case. According to the mother, the father misled the court in his application to suspend the maintenance order. She argued that the maintenance court granted the order in line with what was provided by the father in terms of his monthly salary as well as his annual bonus which amounts to over R1 million. She further argued that the father did not provide proof to support his claim that he cannot afford to pay maintenance. He also didn't provide any evidence to support that his financial position had changed for the worse since the order was made. Furthermore, she said the father lied in his affidavit as his IRP5 showed that he had received more than R1 million in March 2025. With this information, she sought to have the interim order suspending the maintenance order to be dismissed. Furthermore, the mother highlighted discrepancies in the father's affidavit, alleging that his IRP5 tax document, which revealed earnings exceeding R1 million as of March 2025, illustrates his capacity to pay the mandated maintenance while still maintaining a comfortable lifestyle. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading In response, the father approached the high court again, seeking to have the subpoena set aside. He claimed the documents requested by the mother were irrelevant and warned that such disclosures would cause irreparable harm. Presiding over the matter, Judge James Lekhuleni said the previous maintenance court order revealed that the mother battled to coerce the father to honour his maintenance obligations. He only provided financial support to the children when it suited him. He commented on the mother's diligent efforts, recognising that she was an unrepresented litigant trying to safeguard her children's welfare. The judge made it clear that the mother's attempts to compel the father to meet his obligations should not be viewed as an abuse of the legal system. Moreover, judge Lekhuleni emphasised that denying the subpoena would unduly harm the mother and the children, while the father would not suffer significant prejudice from its continuation. "As I see it, there is no prejudice that the applicant (father) will suffer if the subpoena is not set aside. While on the other hand, setting aside the subpoena will have deleterious effects on the first respondent (mother) and the children," he said. The father's application was dismissed. IOL News Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel.
Mint
8 hours ago
- Health
- Mint
Yoga Day special: 10 powerful yoga poses and their incredible benefits for a healthier life
Yoga Day special: 10 powerful yoga poses and their incredible benefits for a healthier life 10 Photos . Updated: 20 Jun 2025, 11:06 AM IST Share Via International Yoga Day is observed worldwide every year on June 21. This year's theme is 'Yoga for One Earth, One Health.' In celebration, here are some yoga poses that promote a healthier and more balanced life. 1/10The Tree pose may appear simple, but it is not a resting posture. Proper alignment is key—your back should be elongated, hips level, and weight evenly distributed on the standing leg. This pose challenges and enhances your balance while building strength and focus. (Pixabay ) 2/10The Chair yoga pose helps tone the leg muscles and strengthen the hip flexors, ankles, calves, and back. It also stretches the chest and shoulders, alleviates symptoms of flat feet, and stimulates the heart, diaphragm, and abdominal organs for improved overall function. (Pinterest ) 3/10The Four-Limbed Staff pose helps build strength in the arms, wrists, and core. It's also an excellent foundational pose to prepare the body for more advanced arm-balancing postures. (Pexels ) 4/10The Triangle pose offers a wide range of benefits for the body. It enhances spinal flexibility, supports proper shoulder alignment, and helps relieve back pain and neck stiffness. (Pexels ) 5/10The Warrior II yoga pose strengthens the legs and arms, opens the chest and shoulders, and engages the abdominal muscles. Regulating your breath and focusing on the extension of your arms can help cultivate patience. Maintain an elevated posture—avoid collapsing into your hips and resist the pull of gravity. Stay grounded and strong. (Pexels ) 6/10Warrior I is an ideal pose for unwinding after a stressful day, helping to relax both the body and mind. Its benefits are far-reaching: it builds strength in the knees and feet, stretches the shoulders and spine, and enhances concentration and focus. (Pexels ) 7/10The Easy Pose might appear simple, but it offers numerous benefits for the body. It serves as a gentle hip opener, promotes relaxation, reduces anxiety, and can help ease menstrual discomfort in women. When practising this pose, be sure to keep your spine straight for maximum effect. (Pexels ) 8/10Child's Pose is a gentle resting posture that helps relieve tension in the neck, back, and hips. While in this pose, focus on slow, steady breathing with arms extended, hips relaxed, and forehead resting on the mat. It's one of the most calming and restorative poses, making it a safe place to return to anytime during your practice. (Pexels ) 9/10The Downward Dog yoga pose helps lengthen and decompress the spine, stretches the hamstrings, strengthens the arms, boosts oxygen flow to the brain, and promotes a sense of mental calm. (Pexels)
Borneo Post
10 hours ago
- Business
- Borneo Post
Putrajaya asked to exempt imported fruits, food from expanded SST
The expanded SST will cover imported fruits and food including fish, apples, cereals, and dairy products. — Photo by Viktoria Slowikowska/Pexels KUCHING (June 20): Putrajaya has been asked to exclude daily essential imported fruits and food from the expanded Sales and Service Tax (SST) effective next month. In making the appeal, social activist Voon Shiak Ni said the SST rate had already increased to 8 per cent, from 6 per cent, on March 1 last year. She said the people are concerned about the implementation of the expanded SST as most essential goods will see a price hike. 'The expanded SST will cover imported fruits and food including fish as well as imported fruits like apples, cereals, and dairy products. 'Most of the goods affected are essential fruits and food for children and also the elderly, as they are essential food for their health,' she said in a statement today. Voon opined apples and cereals should not be considered luxury food items because they are essential for families, young and old alike. According to her, an apple costs more than RM3 now and the expanded SST, once implemented, will further increase the price, making apples unaffordable to most families. 'This is not something positive for the people,' she said. While Malaysians understand that the government needs to generate more revenue to reduce the budget deficit through the expanded SST, she said they hoped their well-being and welfare would be considered. This is especially so when the country's economy this year is projected to be affected by the global economic slowdown, she said. Voon appealed to the federal government to be more sensitive to the people's needs and not burden them with more taxes and further increasing the cost of living. 'Despite the argument that the implementation of expanded SST will not significantly affect the low- and middle-income groups, the reality is that the levying of any form of taxes, even targeted taxes, will affect everyone due to the domino effect in pricing,' she claimed. Set to take effect on July 1, the expanded SST will impose a 5 to 10 per cent sales tax on selected non-essential goods and broaden the service tax to include services such as rental or leasing, construction, finance, private healthcare, education, and beauty. expanded SST lead Voon Shiak Ni
UPI
20 hours ago
- Health
- UPI
Coffee may help you live longer, but skip the extra sugar
Drinking at least one cup of caffeinated coffee per day was linked to a 16% lower risk of premature death from any cause, researchers found. Photo by Andrea Piacquadio/ Pexels June 18 (UPI) -- Drinking a cup or two of coffee every day may help you live longer -- but only if you skip the heavy cream and sugar, new research suggests. The research, published in The Journal of Nutrition, found that black coffee or coffee with just a little sugar and saturated fat was tied to a lower risk of premature death. But when people drank coffee with lots of sweeteners or cream, the health benefits disappeared. "Coffee is among the most-consumed beverages in the world, and with nearly half of American adults reporting drinking at least one cup per day, it's important for us to know what it might mean for health," senior author Fang Fang Zhang of Tufts University said in a news release. Researchers looked at data from more than 46,000 U.S. adults who took part in national health surveys between 1999 and 2018. They analyzed what kind of coffee people drank -- caffeinated or decaf -- and how much sugar and saturated fat they added. They compared that data to deaths from any cause, as well as heart disease and cancer. The results? Drinking at least one cup of caffeinated coffee per day was linked to a 16% lower risk of premature death from any cause. Drinking two to three cups a day was linked to a 17% lower risk. No clear association was found between coffee and cancer deaths. Researchers said people who drank black coffee or added coffee with low amounts of added sugar and saturated fat seemed to benefit the most. In the study, low sugar was defined as about one-half teaspoon per 8-ounce cup. Low fat, meanwhile, was defined as about 1 gram per cup - equal to 5 tablespoons of 2% milk or 1 tablespoon of light cream. "Few studies have examined how coffee additives could impact the link between coffee consumption and mortality risk, and our study is among the first to quantify how much sweetener and saturated fat are being added," added lead author Bingjie Zhou, a recent doctoral graduate at Tufts. The study was based on self-reported food data, which may not be fully accurate. It also found fewer people drank decaf, which may explain why no strong link was found between decaf coffee and early death. Still, the findings support the idea that coffee can be part of a healthy diet -- just be mindful of how much sugar and cream you add! More information Johns Hopkins Medicine has more on why coffee is good for you. Copyright © 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
