Tortoise triumph
They鈥檙e big, and they鈥檙e back. Down to just 15 animals in the 1960s, giant Galapagos tortoises have made a comeback on the island of Espa帽ola thanks to the reintroduction of captive-bred animals 40 years ago. There are now more than 1000 (PLoS One, ).
Dead heart walking
In a world first, two Australians have been given heart transplants using organs that had stopped beating for about 20 minutes. Hearts are normally transplanted from brain-dead patients whose hearts are still beating but Michelle Gribilas and Jan Damen鈥檚 new organs were re-booted using a technique that kick-started the cardiac contractions.
Stooping virus spreads
It comes from the Swahili for stooped walk. Four cases of chikungunya, a mosquito-borne virus that causes fever and intense joint pain, . It is only the second time the virus has been picked up locally in France.
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Space jump beaten
Pity Felix Baumgartner. His record-breaking space jump has been topped. Last week, Google executive Alan Eustace donned a spacesuit with a helium balloon fixed to its backpack and rose to 41,425 metres, where he cut the balloon鈥檚 tethers. He broke the sound barrier as he fell and survived to beat Baumgartner鈥檚 2012 record by 2450 metres.
A frog for freedom
Rediscovered six years ago in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty, the Atlantic Coast leopard frog is now officially a new species. The analysis 鈥� which involved examining its genetics and its croak 鈥� vindicates rejected claims made 80 years ago by biologist Carl Kauffeld that he had discovered a new leopard frog species in New York (PLoS One, ).
