COVID-19 is expected to cause global energy emissions to fall a record eight percent this year due to an unprecedented drop in demand for coal, oil and gas, the International Energy Agency said Thursday.

Poaching of endangered species could rebound as authorities divert their attention to enforcing coronavirus lockdown measures, an international wildlife watchdog said Wednesday, reporting stockpiling of ivory and other animal products as borders remain shut.

Said Al-Ajani looks proudly over his lush date plantation, which recently survived a plague of red weevils -- a destructive insect wreaking havoc across the Middle East and North Africa.

"The flora and fauna of the lagoon have not changed during lockdown. What has changed is our chance to see them," says zoologist Andrea Mangoni, plunging his camera into Venice's normally murky waters to observe life. 

Massive wildfires have ravaged Poland's largest nature reserve, the Biebrza National Park, as the country faces its worst drought in years. 

Last year was the hottest in history across Europe as temperature records were shattered by a series of extreme heatwaves across the continent, the European Union's satellite monitoring surface said Wednesday. 

It's a scene that seems almost surreal today -- adventure filmmaker Alison Teal paddle surfing along the River Thames in bubblegum-pink swimwear, fishing out plastic rubbish from the murky waters.

"Minuscule traces" of the new coronavirus have been found in Paris's non-potable water -- such as the supply used for cleaning streets -- but drinking water is at no risk of contamination, a city official said.

Gone are the softball games, horse-drawn carriages and hordes of tourists. In their place are pronounced birdsong, solitary walks and renewed appreciation for Central Park's beauty during New York's coronavirus lockdown.

Nepal's government on Friday rejected calls to use the pandemic lockdown of Mount Everest to stage a cleanup of the world's highest mountain.