MANILA: A Philippines island has the world’s largest collection of unique mammal species, scientists have discovered, as the area’s habitats face danger from hunting and logging.
Twenty-eight new species of cloud rats and earthworm-eating mice have been discovered by US and Filipino scientists in a 15-year study, boosting the number of non-flying mammal species on Luzon to 56, the Chicago Field Museum said in a statement released Friday.
The team, which published the results of its study in the scientific Journal Frontiers of Biogeography last month, said that most of the rare species were found in rain-soaked tropical cloud forests on the island’s highland interior.
“The concentration of unique biodiversity in the Philippines is really staggering,” said team member Eric Rickart, describing how some individual Luzon mountains hosted up to five species of unique mammals.
The newly documented mammals include four species of tiny tree-mice with long whiskers that nearly touch their ankles, and five mice species that look like shrews and feed mainly on earthworms.
Luzon, about the size of Iceland and the Philippines most populous island, was never connected to a continent, said the Chicago Field Museum mammals curator Lawrence Heaney.
“These animals are isolated high on the scattered mountains, so they inevitably diverge,” Heaney added.
But Luzon’s 50 million people pose a threat to the species, with over-hunting and habitat destruction.
Ninety-three percent of the country’s old-growth tropical forests have already been lost, said Philippines-based team member Danny Balete.
“Protecting all of these species from extinction is going to be a big challenge,” he said.
Long-whiskered tree mice lead Philippines biodiversity claim
Long-whiskered tree mice lead Philippines biodiversity claim
Apple to update EU browser options, make more apps deletable
- iPhone maker came under pressure from regulators to make changes after the EU’s sweeping Digital Markets Act took effect on March 7
- Apple users will be able to select a default browser directly from the choice screen after going through a mandatory list of options
STOCKHOLM: Apple will change how users choose browser options in the European Union, add a dedicated section for changing default apps, and make more apps deletable, the company said on Thursday.
The iPhone maker came under pressure from regulators to make changes after the EU’s sweeping Digital Markets Act took effect on March 7, forcing big tech companies to offer mobile users the ability to select from a list of available web browsers on a “choice screen.”
The new rules require mobile software makers to show the choice screen where users can select a browser, search engine and virtual assistant as they set up their phones, which earlier came with preferred options from Apple and Google.
In an update later this year, Apple users will be able to select a default browser directly from the choice screen after going through a mandatory list of options.
A randomly ordered list of 12 browsers per EU country will be shown to the user with short descriptions, and the chosen one will be automatically downloaded, Apple said. The choice screen will also be available on iPads through an update later this year.
Apple released a previous update in response to the new rules in March, but browser companies criticized the design of its choice screen, and the Commission opened an investigation on March 25 saying it suspected that the measures fell short of effective compliance.
The company said it has been in dialogue with the European Commission and believes the new changes will address regulators’ concerns.
It also plans to introduce a dedicated area for default apps where a user will be able to set defaults for messaging, phone calls, spam filters, password managers and keyboards.
Users will also be able to delete certain Apple-made apps such as App Store, Messages, Camera, Photos and Safari. Only Settings and Phone apps would not be deletable.
