National Geographic Archives

Archaeologists Uncover “Lost City” from Honduran Rainforest

March 4, 2015 By Denise Ehrlich

An international team of archaeologists have discovered untouched ruins of a lost city. The city is located at the center of a Honduras rainforest.

As per the report of National Geographic, the group visited the area after rumors surfaced regarding an ancient city. Surprisingly, researchers stumbled on an incredibly old city instead of that one.

The closely surveyed the entire location and informed that it was nearly 1,000 years old civilization.

Thus far, researchers have discovered a collection of nearly 52 articrafts such as mounds, earthworks and earthen pyramid from the lost city site. All of them belong to 1000 to 1400 A.D. However, archeologists believe that there are numerous other things buried in the ground of the lost city

Additionally, archaeologists’ uncovered stone sculpture that was untouched since the city was destroyed.

The newly discovered city is much different from the previous ones. Currently, researchers and archeologists are trying hard to find out the name of the city. They want to protect the city from all sorts of robbers and looters. Hence, they have not yet disclosed its exact location to general public.

Christopher Fisher, a Mesoamerican researcher of Colorado State University, remarked that it is extremely rare to find such kind of untouched site.

Newly Discovered Fossils Offer Significant Information About Utahraptor Dinosaurs

January 8, 2015 By Marlene R. Litten

Last year, a nine ton heavy block of sandstone was taken from a mountain of Utah. Surprisingly, the block holds the largest fossil of a predatory dinosaur known as Utahraptor.

The fossil which is nearly three feet thick contains remains of six Utahraptor dinosaurs. One of them is 16-foot long adult, whereas other four are young and one is baby dinosaur.

James Kirkland, a Utah State Paleontologist says that the newly found fossils confirm that Young Utahraptors were similar to turkey in terms of size. However, the adult Utahraptors were relatively heavier than the young ones.

When the scientists discovered the fossils, it was fully covered with feathers. It contains a huge sickle claw on every second toe.

Earlier, scientists used to argue about the hunting method of this group of dinosaur. It seems like the recently discovered fossil is the answer of these questions.

The researchers of National Geographic states that the group death of these dinosaurs indicates that they used to hunt in groups. Currently, the researchers are carefully analyzing two possibilities. First, they might have died together during group hunting. Secondly, they died at different occasions and dumped at same place.

It was not an easy task for Utah’s paleontologists to dig the fossils which were nearly a decade old.

African Lions Under the Endangered Species Act

October 28, 2014 By Cliff Jenkins Scott

The African Lion is a royal animal and also much loved by the Americans. Recently, the wildlife experts revealed that the African Lion has been reckoned threatened under the Endangered Species Act. If the law passes, it will make it illegal to kill or hunt the lions in the United States without a permit. Moreover, the law will not apply to the Zoos, but forbade U.S. citizens to sell lions or lion parts across state or national borders. On the other hand, within the U.S. the selling of lions or lion parts will remain under state jurisdiction.

Although, there is no restriction on the US hunters to import lions which they have killed in Africa. But they have to get the permit from those countries, coupled with a “scientifically sound” approach to managing lions, as per information given by Fish and Wildlife Service.

Certainly, U.S. sportsmen and women kill most of the lions, elephants and rhinoceroses in Africa. Though, regulated sport hunting is not reckoned as a major threat to the species. There are many causes of falling the number of lions in Africa, including loss of habitat, paucity of prey, increased conflicts with humans, etc. Since 1980s, the population of the African lions has fallen by two-thirds. Out of 76,000 lions which roamed the African continent in 1980 the figures has declined to 30,000 today.

The rising intrusion of human development and agriculture activities into the lion habitat, more livestock in the path of the lion, leads to increased attacks by the lions. Retaliatory killings of lion chases. Humans have also become lion’s prey at “unsustainable levels” in order to meet a growing demand for food. The Sub Saharan African population is expected to double by 2050 and this will bring even more pressure.

“Lions are declining, and unless we do something to arbitrate, it’s likely they will become endangered in the likely future. Lions tell us a story. This is one of the world’s most iconic, majestic creatures, so this tells us something about what’s happening on [our] planet,” Dan Ashe, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, told National Geographic.

Experts have welcomed the new law, but had reservations regarding the listing and how it will be implemented.

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