South China Morning Post published this video item, entitled “In Japan, a real-life phoenix rises from the ashes of extinction” – below is their description.
The toki, a Japanese crested ibis, used to soar above the rice paddies of Japan’s Sado Island, feasting on small frogs and insects. But by 1981, the bird was nearly extinct after being decimated by overhunting and the use of pesticides. In 2003, the last wild-born toki in Japan died of old age. Now, nearly 20 years later, an estimated 480 toki have returned to Sado, saved by a rare success story in a world where one in eight birds globally are facing extinction.
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About This Source - South China Morning Post
The South China Morning Post (SCMP), with its Sunday edition, the Sunday Morning Post, is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper founded in 1903. It is Hong Kong’s newspaper of record, owned by Alibaba Group.
China is the third largest country in the world by area and the largest country in the world by population. Properly known as the People’s Republic of China, the political territory of the country includes Tibet and Hong Kong. The capital is Beijing.
Japan is an island country in East Asia located in the northwest Pacific Ocean. Part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, Japan comprises an archipelago of 6,852 islands covering 377,975 square kilometers (145,937 sq mi); the country’s five main islands, from north to south, are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, and Okinawa. Tokyo is Japan’s capital and largest city.
Japan is divided into 47 administrative prefectures and eight traditional regions. The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, with more than 37.4 million residents.
Japan is a great power and a member of numerous international organizations, including the United Nations (since 1956), the OECD, and the G7. Japan is a leader in the automotive and electronics industries.
Phoenix is the capital of the southwestern U.S. state of Arizona. Known for its year-round sun and warm temperatures, it anchors a sprawling, multicity metropolitan area known as the Valley of the Sun. It’s known for high-end spa resorts, Jack Nicklaus–designed golf courses and vibrant nightclubs. Other highlights include the Desert Botanical Garden, displaying cacti and numerous native plants.
The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. The term originated in a satirical obituary published in a British newspaper, The Sporting Times, immediately after Australia’s 1882 victory at The Oval, its first Test win on English soil.
The competition alternates between England and Australia, who host every two years (this varies a little based on the Southern Hemisphere having summer during Northern Hemisphere’s winter), the Ashes is a series of five Test matches, which are each played over five days.
