♲ @democracynow@newsbots.eu: **Headlines for April 21, 2020**
"Trump Says He Will Shut Down All Immigration to the U.S. Amid Coronavirus Pandemic, Southern States to Reopen Businesses Despite Mounting COVID-19 Cases , Coronavirus Cases Surging in Massachusetts , NY Nurses Sue over Lack of Protection Against Coronavirus, MTA Moves Ahead with Increase in Police Force Despite Financial Hardship and Drop in Riders , Federal Judge Orders IC…"
it's #arachnews time! in my weekly roundup of arachnid photos, art, news, and science:
- sweet and/or gruesome Valentines content - Lucas the Spider makes the jump to Cartoon Network - cool discoveries about spider & mite microbiomes - Asian net-casting spiders get reclassified …and more!
In Vaughan, just north of Toronto, protesters blockaded the Macmillan rail yard in solidarity with Wet'suwet'en land defenders, who are opposing a gas pipeline being built across their land. It's just the latest in a series of (very effective) nationwide blockades and protests.
(As the article notes, Unifor itself has a bit of a turbulent relationship with the wider Canadian labour movement and left-of-centre politics…they've affiliated themselves with the Liberal Party)
♲ @scmpNews@mstdn.foxfam.club: The Philippines on Sunday reported the first coronavirus death outside China, hours after issuing a sweeping travel ban sc.mp/cheur
- spider/human jam sessions - European Spider of the Year - Arthropocalypse & Australian wildfires - tracking ticks (you'll never guess where they've gotten established now!) - name changes & newly described species - and more!
The new 🕷️ #Arachnews 🦂 is out! In this week's edition:
- funny & educational Twitter threads - tattoos! - social spider evolution - how mites and spiders cope with heat - new recluse spider in Mexico 🇲🇽 - new South African 🇿🇦 widow spider (with purple silk)! - a glossary of the jargon I used in the article and more!
**Catalonia separatists set to end Spain's political deadlock**
"A Catalan separatist party will abstain from an upcoming vote to confirm Socialist Pedro Sanchez as prime minister. The ERC announced the move after agreeing to talks over "the future of Catalonia" with the Socialists."
"Bolivia says top Mexican and Spanish were declared persona non grata amid an escalating spat over fugitive former government officials. In response, Spain told three Bolivian officials to leave."
The latest #arachnews is out! In this roundup of all things spider, scorpion, mite, tick-related:
- some truly once-in-a-lifetime nature photos - lots of research on ecology, tick-borne disease, agricultural pests, venom, and genetics - popular tarantulas get a new name - a bunch of new "living fossil" species described - and a lot more!