Despite being home to about 16,000 tree species, just 227 "hyperdominant" species account for half of Amazonia's total trees, a study suggests.

A shot is fired, petrol bombs are tossed and police cars torched as at least 40 people are arrested at a shale gas protest in New Brunswick province.

San Francisco's commuter rail could face a second strike in a year as negotiations between labour unions and the transit agency reach an impasse.

Toyota is recalling 885,000 vehicles, mainly in North America, to fix a problem that could lead to airbags being disabled or inadvertently deploying.

A series of major wildfires are burning in the Australian state of New South Wales, with fears that hundreds of homes have been destroyed.

Human Rights Watch accuses the Ethiopian authorities of torturing political detainees but the government denies mistreatment.

A senior Military Intelligence officer, who activists said was close to President Bashar al-Assad, has been killed in eastern Syria.

Secondary schools in Paris and other French cities are again disrupted by pupils protesting at the removal of two foreign students from France.