Discovered in the ultramafic mountains in central Sabah, the species was named for the orangutan, due to its hairs’ striking resemblance to the great ape’s long, dark, rusty-red hair. Orangutan pitcher plant (Nepenthes pongoides) just discovered in Sabah, on the tropical island of ... [+] Borneo. (Credit: Alastair Robinson.) An international team of botanists report they have just described a new species of giant pitcher plant that lives in a tiny area in the mountains on Borneo. The botanists, who are from Malaysia and Australia, discovered this rare tropical plant in May 2023, after it had originally been photographed in the wild in 2004. Additional photographs were captured in 2018, clearly revealing that this plant was probably a new species to science. The researchers planned an expedition in 2019 to locate the plant again but were delayed by the pandemic, but they eventually were able to search for it last year. The goal of the expedition was to make detailed field observations of the plant, to record its habitat, population size and ecological data and to collect representative samples whilst minimising harm by only taking terminal cuttings so the sampled individuals would survive and could regenerate. Oilpalm plantation of local smallholders along the Buis-Kiabau-Road. In the background is the Meliau ... [+] Range. The Meliau Range is a poorly-explored mountainous area in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, known for its rare and unique plant and animal species. (Credit: Uwe Aranas / CC BY-SA 3.0) According to the formal description, the plant is one of the largest Nepenthes species yet discovered. The plant’s pitchers are enormous with distinctive bell-shaped upper and lower pitchers and narrow, upright lids. These pitchers capture rainfall and a variety of prey animals, both of which sustain and nourish the plant in a rocky environment where there is no running water. The researchers discovered a diversity of animal prey, from beetles and centipedes to giant millipedes and even freshwater crabs, inside the plant’s pitchers — creatures that most other pitcher plants are too small to trap. Samsung’s Android 15 Leak—Bad News For Nearly All Galaxy Owners Dark Web Facial ID Farm Warning—Hackers Build Identity Fraud Database Tesla CEO Elon Musk Issues U.S. Bankruptcy Warning Amid Calls For A Bitcoin-Inspired ‘Fix’ Most unusually, the leaves of this pitcher plant are covered in thick, rust colored fur (Figure 3) — a distinctive and unique characteristic found in no other Bornean Nepenthes species known so far. For this reason, the plant was given the scientific name, Nepenthes pongoides, in honor of the Critically Endangered orangutan, Pongo pygmaeus , which lives in the area. Figure 3. Indumentum of Nepenthes pongoides. (a) Emerging foliage and phyllode bases densely covered ... [+] with long, rufous to reddish-gold hairs. (b) Tendril bearing long, pilose to hirsute and uniformly retrorse hairs. (c) Adaxial surface of phyllode with reddish indumentum of pilose hairs, particularly apparent along midrib. (d) Pubescent hairs of phyllode abaxial surface. (e) Scanning electron micrograph of phyllode abaxial surface hairs with bristle-like processes indicated (red arrows). Note scattered sessile glands between hairs. (f ) Simple and variably dendritic (red arrows) hairs on lower surface of lid. Scales: (d) = 1 cm; (e), (f) = 1 mm. Photographs (a) by A. Damit; (b)–(f) by A.S. Robinson. (doi:10.1071/BT24050) “We decided to name this plant after the orangutan primarily because of the long red hair that covers most parts of the plant,” said field botanist and plant taxonomist Alastair Robinson, the managing botanist at the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria . When he’s not searching for rare botanical treasures, Dr Robinson oversees plant identifications services, the identification web portals ( VicFlora & HortFlora ), the Library and Artwork components of the State Botanical Collection, the Conservation Seedbank, and the botanical journal Muelleria . Amongst his many activities, specialities and accolades, Dr Robinson is recognized as the world’s authority on plant carnivory in a range of genera, particularly Drosera (sundews) and Nepenthes . “It just so happened that the night before we reached the plants, we had a fleeting glimpse of an orangutan, putting that comparison front of mind,” Dr Robinson mentioned. Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus), Tanjung Putting National Park in Indonesia. The park is famous ... [+] for its orangutan conservation. (Credit: Thomas Fuhrmann / CC BY-SA 4.0) “Admittedly it’s not quite as hairy as an orangutan, it’s more like a really hairy-chested man.” “But the colour is almost the same as orangutan fur,” Dr Robinson added, before pointing out that the team agreed to christen these plants as the orangutan pitcher plant whilst still on the mountain . “It is also a positive conservation link since the orangutan is also a critically endangered species; in the age of plant blindness, it seemed like an appropriate link to make since the charismatic orangutan is well-loved around the world, while this hitherto unknown plant might benefit from that association, possibly even influencing the protections it receives.” What surprised you most about this plant? “The most surprising thing about this plant was the long red hair covering its foliage and pitchers, but also its very large size; the largest pitcher documented so far was 45 cm tall and capable of holding at least 2 L of water,” Dr Robinson replied in email. “It’s just surprising that such a striking and large plant should go relatively unnoticed up until the present day.” This may be because these plants are hidden in rock piles in a relatively inaccessible and poorly known mountainous area. An orangutan pitcher plant (Nepenthes pongoides) in the wild, with a grown man's boot (lower right) ... [+] for a size comparison. (Credit: Alastair S. Robinson.) “[W]e found 39 individuals across two sub populations following a fairly exhaustive search. A proportion of these were juvenile and thus don’t count yet as breeding plants, so the actual mature population is even lower,” Dr Robinson told me in email on Christmas Day. Is it possible that there is another sub population or two of these plants that remain undiscovered? How big is the range occupied by these plants? “The range that these plants grow in is not very large and so it is improbable that there are additional sub populations, though we certainly hope to be proven wrong when further exploration of this range occurs,” Dr Robinson replied in email. Because they have such a small range, and there are so few plants known so far, how do they protect themselves from inbreeding? “As far as genetics go, Nepenthes are dioecious, with separate male and female plants, which prevents self-pollination and presumably inbreeding, though this hypothesis is not well tested,” Dr Robinson explained. “However, it has been found to increase genetic diversity and to protect against deleterious mutations, and may partly account for why inbreeding does not appear to be a problem in the many microendemic Nepenthes known.” It appears these range-limited rare plants may have other strategies to bolster their genetic resilience as well. “Most of these microendemic species also occur in close proximity to other more widespread Nepenthes , and genetic transfer may play a factor in shoring up genetic resilience in naturally small populations,” Dr Robinson added. Orangutan pitcher plant (Nepenthes pongoides) basking in the sun. (Credit: Alastair S. Robinson.) Nonetheless, such a tiny range predisposes this species to extinction. Dr Robinson and co-authors pointed out in their study ( ref ) that a wildfire or illegal collecting for the horticultural trade could easily wipe out the entire species. Indeed, Dr Robinson noted that even before they reached the site, there was evidence that poachers had already been in the area and had stolen some specimens because these plants had been posted online for sale. So are steps being taken to protect these plants? “Since the plant has just been described, it is only afforded general protections under Malaysian law, however, we are hopeful that the species can be given a more protected status and ideally receive some attention from government to try to save this population from an unfortunate fate,” Dr Robinson replied in email. “How that is done is ultimately up to the Malaysian government, and there are various ways of achieving this.” What is the best way to protect these plants? Would captive propagation help protect them from illegal collecting for the botanical trade? “ In situ conservation is always the ideal outcome, protecting the plants and their habitat from damage, however, if it were possible to locate seed and grow the plants up in laboratory conditions, they could be multiplied and distributed easily to botanic gardens and even nurseries worldwide, thereby reducing the collecting pressure on the wild populations.” Due to its small population size and extreme vulnerability to illegal collection by plant collectors, the orangutan pitcher plant is listed as Critically Endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Indeed, poaching to meet the high market value of these ornamental plants is the most significant threat to most wild Nepenthes populations. There are more than 160 species of Nepenthes known so far but already, two species are extinct in the wild due to poaching. To finally discover and sample these rare plants in the wild, Dr Robinson and collaborators launched two expeditions to two separate locations in 2023, but still were only able to discover 39 of the plants in total. This discovery highlights the extreme vulnerability of these plants to extinction if quick and decisive action is not taken to protect them from poaching, and naming this critically endangered plant after a critically endangered animal certainly draws a strong conservation parallel for them both. Source: Alviana Damit, Nur Adillah Mohd Yusof, Jemson Jumian, Charles Clarke and Alastair S. Robinson (2024). Sabah’s hidden giant: Nepenthes pongoides (Nepenthaceae), a micro-endemic tropical pitcher plant from northern Borneo , Australian Journal of Botany 72 (8):BT24050 | doi: 10.1071/BT24050 © Copyright by GrrlScientist | hosted by Forbes | LinkTr.ee Socials: Bluesky | CounterSocial | Gab | LinkedIn | Mastodon Science | Spoutible | SubStack | Threads | Tribel | Tumblr | TwitterGreif Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2024 ResultsDow Jones futures will open Sunday evening, along with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures, with the stock market set to wrap up 2024 and ring in the new year. The stock market rally saw sharp Friday losses to slash what had been strong weekly gains. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 aren't that far from record highs. But the Dow Jones, Russell 2000 and other key measures are below key levels. ( ) fell back from an early entry and key levels, though it eked out a gain. Tesla stock tumbled Friday but still rose for the week. ( ) will report fourth-quarter and full-year deliveries and production figures, likely before early Jan. 2. China EV makers ( ), ( ), ( ), ( ) and ( ) will release sales as well this coming week. Nvidia stock is a hedged position on , with Tesla on the Leaderboard watchlist. Nvidia and Zeekr stock are on the . Dow Jones Futures Today Dow Jones futures open at 6 p.m. ET on Sunday, along with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures. Remember that overnight action in and elsewhere doesn't necessarily translate into actual trading in the next regular session. Stock Market Rally The stock market rally continued a rebound for much of Christmas week, until Friday, although those the indexes came off their worst levels. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.35% in last week's still below the 50-day line. The S&P 500 index climbed 0.7%, but fell back below the 21-day line on Friday and briefly undercut the 50-day line. The Nasdaq composite rose 0.8% after skidding 1.5% Friday to undercut the 21-day intraday. The small-cap Russell 2000 eked out a 0.2% gain. The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF ( ) was just above break-even for the week. The First Trust Nasdaq 100 Equal Weighted Index ETF ( ) climbed 0.5%. Leading stocks are still doing well. Speculative plays such as nuclear and quantum computing were big winners for the week, even with some falling Friday. The 10-year Treasury yield jumped 10 basis points to 4.62%, at the highest level since early May. U.S. crude oil futures rose 1.6% to $70.60 a barrel last week. ETFs Among growth ETFs, the Innovator IBD 50 ETF ( ) edged up 0.2% last week after Friday's 2.9% loss. The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF ( ) fell 1.3%. The VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF ( ) gained 2.3%. Nvidia stock is the No. 1 holding in SMH. ARK Innovation ETF ( ) dipped 0.2% last week and ARK Genomics ETF ( ) bounced 3.2%. Tesla stock is a major holding across Ark Invest's ETFs. Cathie Wood's Ark also has a big Nvidia stake. SPDR S&P Metals & Mining ETF ( ) edged down 0.2% last week. The Energy Select SPDR ETF ( ) gained 0.5% and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund ( ) advanced 0.7%. The Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( ) fell 0.4%. The Financial Select SPDR ETF ( ) climbed 0.5%. Tesla Stock Tesla stock rose 2.5% to 431.66 for the week. Shares jumped initially, hitting 465.33 intraday Thursday, before slashing gains. TSLA stock has been consolidating since peaking at 488.54, but doesn't show a buying opportunity right now. Tesla will report fourth-quarter and full-year deliveries and production figures in early January, likely before the open on Thursday, Jan. 2. Analysts expect Tesla to report record Q4 deliveries slightly above 500,000. Elon Musk, on the Q3 earnings call, predicted full-year deliveries would slightly top 2024's 1,808,591. To do that, the EV giant must reach 514,925 in Q4. Tesla has offered various discounts and incentives to boost demand. China has been strong, while the U.S. and especially Europe have been weak. The company also will disclose battery storage deployments for Q4. While the deliveries and storage figures will be key for Q4 earnings, they may not have a huge impact on Tesla stock. TSLA stock's huge gains in recent months have come on optimism about self-driving, AI, robotics and more, with a Trump administration seen easing the regulatory path. Nvidia Stock Nvidia stock gained 1.8% to 137.09 for the week. Shares flashed an aggressive entry Tuesday as it moved above the 50-day line. But NVDA stock then retreated, falling back below the 50-day and 21-day lines Friday. Nvidia now has a shallow with a 146.54 buy point, right next to the top of a prior base. Tuesday's intraday high of 141.90 could serve as an early entry. What To Do Now The stock market rally continues to look fine, despite being somewhat divided. Leading stocks generally are acting well, despite Friday's losses, though many are extended. The end and start of the year is a strange time, with whipsaw swings fairly common. That makes new buys difficult. Holding steady with significant to heavy exposure is still a good strategy. But work on your watchlists. A number of leading stocks are setting up. You want to be ready to take advantage. Friday's losses in some high-octane leaders show why investors may want to have some steadier names, often outside of tech, to balance out your portfolio. ( ), ( ), ( ) and ( ) are names to watch. Read every day to stay in sync with the market direction and leading stocks and sectors.
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NoneSIR Keir Starmer has ditched his pledge that Britain will become the fastest growing economy in the G7. Amid soaring US and Canadian growth, the Prime Minister declined to repeat his pre-election vow as he prepared to unveil his milestone targets. As polls show more than half of voters think he is doing a bad job, Sir Keir will today try to pitch himself on the side of the grafters who are getting short shrift from politicians by setting targets to judge performance. He is eager to insist his new milestones will “galvanise the government machine”. But while setting out goals on crime and the NHS , the PM will duck any meaningful reductions to migration or the ballooning benefits bill. And his economic target will not have a number on it. His reset comes as more than half of voters say they have been let down by the PM’s performance so far. A poll by Ipsos shows just a quarter think he is doing a good job. READ MORE ON SIR KEIR STARMER He will use a major speech today to tell voters to mark his leadership against results including recruiting 13,000 extra bobbies on the beat. And there will be targets on green energy and education standards, which No10 said “will allow the public to hold the government to account on delivering on their priorities”. But the PM has not set targets in getting people off sickness benefits and back to work or on net migration. At PMQs yesterday, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch urged him to repeat his pre-election promise to beat the G7 but the PM ducked the question. Most read in The Sun Instead he said: “We are on target to be the fastest- growing major economy in Europe in the next two years.” Sir Keir will say today: “Hard working Brits are going out grafting every day but are getting short shrift from a politics that should serve them.”
Janet Yellen tells Congress US could hit debt limit in mid-January
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, a longtime Democrat, announced Wednesday that he is launching an independent bid for the governor’s mansion in Michigan. Duggan announced his gubernatorial bid on Wednesday in a video statement . The Detroit mayor is the first candidate to officially announce their bid to replace Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who is term-limited and ineligible to seek a third term, according to Politico. “I’m not running to be the Democrats’ governor or the Republicans’ governor,” Duggan said in the video. “I’m running to be your governor.” (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) “What would happen if we upended the system and gave Michigan voters a new choice,” Duggan asked in the video. “A governor who didn’t run as a candidate of either party, who went to work every day with no goal, except to get people to work together for all of Michigan.” Duggan first ran for office in 2013, and is the second-longest serving mayor in Detroit’s history, according to his office’s website. Duggan won re-election in November 2017, defeating Coleman A. Young II, according to the Detroit Free Press. Duggan won his third mayoral term in November 2021, winning against Anthony Adams, the Detroit Free Press reported . (RELATED: Embattled Oakland Dem Mayor Sheng Thao Recalled In Landslide) “The current system forces people to choose sides, not find solutions, I want to see if I can change that,” Duggan added in the video. The Mayor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation. All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org .China's AIMA brand electric motorbike is now in Bangladesh
Clubs from across the football pyramid are “alarmed” by the lack of consultation on legislation which could “fundamentally affect the future of English football”, West Ham vice-chairwoman Karren Brady has said. The Apprentice star also argued that a lack of clarity from the Government on the ownership test is causing “significant uncertainty” for potential investors. This came as the House of Lords continued its scrutiny of the Football Governance Bill, which seeks to establish an independent regulator for the top five tiers of the men’s game. In the upper chamber, Baroness Brady said: “We are creating legislation which will profoundly affect 160 quite unique institutions, from Premier League clubs through to the National League community clubs, but it is important for everyone to understand that the consultation with these affected businesses by the current Government has been remarkably limited, almost unbelievably so. “Just seven Premier League clubs, I was one of them, was granted a brief half-hour meeting with the Secretary of State over the summer. “And following this cursory engagement, significant decisions were made that could fundamentally affect the future of English football, most notably with the inclusion of parachute payments within the backstop mechanism. “This is particularly concerning given that fundamental issues still remained unresolved, we still lack any clarity on Uefa’s position on state interference, for example, this clearly creates profound uncertainty for clubs competing in or aspiring to European competition, as well as our national teams.” “We don’t know what the ownership test will look like, this causes significant uncertainty for potential investors as to whether they are able to own a club,” she added. Lady Brady continued: “I have spoken to many of my colleagues across all of the football pyramid, we are all alarmed about and puzzled by the lack of discussion on the Bill with ministers. “Would the minister agree that we all want to get the detail of this Bill right? And can she see any downsides to providing meaningful opportunities to hear from all clubs across the football pyramid affected by the legislation?” Prior to this, Tory shadow sports minister Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay had tabled an amendment which he said would allow clubs to “make their views known on this legislation” by including specific competitions on the face of the Bill. Labour frontbencher Baroness Twycross told the upper chamber: “I don’t think the leagues are confused either on which leagues this legislation will apply to.” She added: “This power is both reasonable and the result of evidence-based consultation with all key stakeholders in the industry. “This power ensures that the competitions in scope can be amended in a timely manner and ensures the scope of the regime remains relevant.” The peer later said: “Over the past three years there have been countless opportunities for all affected and interested parties to make representations.” Lady Brady also raised concerns about the financial distribution backstop, which she said is “clearly designed as a mechanism to gain direct access to, and apportionate Premier League revenue, and no-one else’s”. “I might add the backstop will allow the IFR (Independent Football Regulator) to do this even if it was against the Premier League clubs’ will, or even without the clubs’ agreement, even if it was to have a detrimental effect on the clubs and the overall competition it removes revenue from,” she added. The backstop would allow the new IFR to intervene in the distribution of Premier League broadcast revenue down the leagues as a last resort. It could be triggered by the Premier League, English Football League (EFL) or National League to mediate the fair financial distribution of this revenue if they are not able to come to an agreement. Conservative peers later raised concerns over the cost implications to clubs of establishing the regulator, although they faced claims of “filibustering” – wasting time by making overlong speeches in a bid to delay progress. Watching opposition benches blatantly filibustering to destroy the Football Governance Bill is nothing short of sporting vandalism.Football is broken. Clubs are struggling. Now those seats have been lost, do they no longer care about likes of Reading or Southend? @FairGameUK — Niall Couper (@NiallCouper) December 4, 2024 Labour peer Lord Watson of Invergowrie questioned why Lord Parkinson was showing “confected outrage” at the Bill when the former culture minister would have been defending a similar proposal had the Tories remained in power. Lord Parkinson, in his reply, said: “We want to see this regulator established, we want to see it doing its work and doing so effectively, but we also see before us a Bill that is different because of the election that was called and the result that happened, and we’re interrogating particularly closely the changes that the Government have made to the Bill – of which there are many. “And we have more concerns on these benches than we did before the election from my colleagues behind me about the way we do it.” The Tory peer pointed to Labour frontbenchers fulfilling their duties to “properly scrutinise” then-government legislation when they were on the opposition benches. Lady Twycross, in an intervention, said: “While I agree that (Lord Parkinson) is correct that I would scrutinise legislation when I was sitting on those (opposition) benches, I have never sought to filibuster a Bill to which my party had committed, which my party had laid before Parliament, and intended to filibuster it to the point of getting us stuck in treacle.” Lord Parkinson replied: “That is not what we’re doing.” Niall Couper, chief executive of the campaign group Fair Game, wrote on social media site X: “Watching opposition benches blatantly filibustering to destroy the Football Governance Bill is nothing short of sporting vandalism.”