China, Taiwan, Japan and the Koreas will experience more violent typhoons under climate change, said researchers Monday, presenting evidence for a recent rise in storm intensity caused by ocean warming.

The world edged closer to a 2020 goal to repair vast areas of damaged natural lands and forests, officials announced Saturday at the world's largest conservation meeting.

Malawi and Guatemala committed to restoring a total of 4.54 million hectares (11 million acres) of degraded land, officials said at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress.

Beekeeper Juanita Stanley woke up stunned Monday morning when she realized the familiar buzz at her South Carolina apiary had gone silent.

In an effort to control the spread of the mosquito-borne Zika virus, authorities over the weekend doused parts of the southeastern state with the controversial pesticide Naled -- a dose that proved fatal to millions of bees.

The United States and China on Saturday formally joined the Paris climate change agreement, with President Barack Obama hailing the accord as the "moment we finally decided to save our planet."

The move by the world's two biggest polluters is a major step forward for the 180-nation deal, which sets ambitious goals for capping global warming and funneling trillions of dollars to poor countries facing climate catastrophe.

President Barack Obama plunked down on a speck of coral reef in the middle of the Pacific Ocean on Thursday and gazed out at the turquoise waters of the marine monument he's widened to become the largest in the world.

Hundreds of albatrosses and rare birds fluttered in the skies halfway between Asia and North America as the president paid an unusual visit to Midway Atoll, one of the most remote areas of the ocean. Driving on a golf cart past dilapidated buildings left over from World War II, Obama said protecting the atoll and its surroundings was critical to ensuring delicate ecosystems survive the throes of global warming.

Tropical Storm Hermine was downgraded from hurricane status as it weakened after hitting Florida's Gulf coast early Friday, but officials still warned of "life-threatening" conditions.

The storm's center was around 50 miles (80 kilometers) northeast of Florida's capital Tallahassee at 0900 GMT, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

Increasingly polluted rivers in Africa, Asia and Latin America pose a disease risk to more than 300 million people and threaten fisheries and farming in many countries, a U.N. report warned Tuesday.

Dutch police have uncovered a record haul of skins and bones from endangered wildlife, as well as two tons of coral which may be hundreds of years old.

A strong typhoon slammed into northeastern Japan on Tuesday, dumping heavy rain and generating high waves that caused flooding along the Pacific coast.

Typhoon Lionrock made landfall near the city of Ofunato shortly before 6 pm (0900 GMT), the Japan Meteorological Agency said, after moving up Japan's Pacific Ocean coastline.

French Environment Minister Segolene Royal met with her Iranian counterpart in Tehran on Sunday to announce plans for a number of joint projects addressing energy, water shortages and pollution.