“Even something as simple as trying to have a day outdoors with family, we weren’t able to do it because the heat was too high,” she said, reporting feeling dizzy and sick last summer.
as a species aren’t on anThere are as many as 200,000 belugas worldwide and the International Union for Conservation of Nature that creates a global endangered list calls them a species of “least concern,” so Vergara said she often gets asked why not concentrate on animals in more imminent danger.
Erin Greene, center, owner of Sup North, stands on her paddleboard in the Churchill River while leading a tour, Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)Erin Greene, center, owner of Sup North, stands on her paddleboard in the Churchill River while leading a tour, Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)“I would say that the threat to animal cultures can happen much quicker than the extinction of an entire species,” Vergara said. And if subpopulations of belugas are wiped out, their cultures disappear too.
“It’s like losing a human language or a human culture,” Vergara said. “We should care.”Follow Seth Borenstein on X at
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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’sMany ride the train weekly, traveling to and from Thompson. At about 13,600 residents, it’s the biggest community the train stops at, besides Winnipeg, with amenities like big-box stores and restaurants.
Thompson — just under halfway between Churchill and Winnipeg — is where many Churchill residents train journey ends.Residents said they often keep cars in Thompson, take the train there and then drive to Winnipeg. They can shave 17 hours off the trip that way, they said.
All but two dozen passengers got off at Thompson, the closest bigger community connected to the rest of Manitoba by road.A train travels through remote wilderness Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, near Canora, Saskatchewan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)