Wildlife

Winds complicate wildfire battles in Spain; Portugal suffers third death

Firefighters are battling 21 blazes in western Spain, while a man in Portugal was killed while fighting wildfires.

Spain battles 20 big wildfires, deploys 500 more soldiers in searing heat

Authorities are awaiting the arrival of two Dutch water-dumping planes, expected to join other EU aircraft.

EXPLAINER

Why have blue whales stopped singing? The mystery worrying scientists

The powerful sounds made by blue whales help them communicate with partners or signal the discovery of abundant food.

A lion cub at an animal cafe in Bangkok [Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP]

'Absolute madness': Thailand's pet lion problem

A male lion at a breeding facility in Chachoengsao province. [Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP]

Mechanic shop and owner, and avid TikToker Tharnuwarht Plengkemratch playing with his pet lion-tiger hybrid, "Big George". [Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP]

Lion breeder Patamawadee Chanpitak holding a lion cub at a breeding facility in Chachoengsao province. [Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP]

Pathamawadee sells about half of the 90 cubs she breeds each year, often to other breeders, who are increasingly opening "lion cafes" where customers pose with and pet young lions. [Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP]

Pathamawadee's three facilities house about 80 lions. [Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP]

A lion handler playing with a lion cub at a cafe in Chiang Mai. [Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP]

A handler from Thailand's Department of National Parks playing with two female lions who were confiscated from private owners for having incorrect paperwork, inside an enclosure at the Bueng Chawak Wildlife Sanctuary in Suphan Buri province. [Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP]