In this June 20, 2018 photo, a baby female bongo, born May 2, runs at the Audubon Species Survival Center in New Orleans. About a year after moving into spacious new digs in New Orleans, African animals are doing just what officials from two zoos had hoped: being fruitful and multiplying. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens has a bongo birth announcement: Two female calves of a critically endangered antelope species are ready for their close-ups. The stepsisters — one born Dec. 17 and the other Jan. 8 — are the first offspring for Sienna and Shimba, as well as the sire, Mickey, the zoo said. They’re eastern bongos — a species that’s critically endangered due to deforestation and hunting. Both mothers also were born at the zoo, in 2018. Sienna delivered first, a calf that weighed 42 pounds (19 kilograms) at a Dec. 22 exam. Shimba followed this month with a calf weighing 38 pounds (17 kilograms). “Our animal care team is very excited with how well the first-time mothers are doing. This is great news for our herd and we look forward to more offspring in the future to enhance conservation efforts for this species,” Assistant Curator of Mammals Corey Neatrour said in a statement. Mickey was transferred to Jacksonville in October 2019 from the Cape May County Zoo, based on breeding recommendations through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums Bongo Species Survival Plan, the statement said. Bongo are the largest African forest antelope and are known for their striking appearance. They are found throughout central and west Kenya, however eastern bongo, also known as mountain bongo, are only found in a small mountain region in central Kenya. Both males and females have thick, slightly-spiraled horns. They have whitish-colored stripes and a red coat, with females usually lighter in color than males. Their names will be decided through an online auction at the Zoo’s annual Toast to Conservation, which will take place virtually Friday.

9 retired nuns die of COVID

DETROIT — Nine Roman Catholic nuns in southern Michigan have died in January due to a COVID-19 outbreak at their retirement home, which had gone for months without a single case. The women lived at the campus of the Adrian Dominican Sisters in Adrian, 75 miles southwest of Detroit. They had been teachers, nurses and pastoral ministers before retiring to a life of “prayer and presence,” said Sister Patricia Siemen, leader of the religious order. “Of course, our hearts are breaking,” she said. We’re grieving, but we also know that we are not alone in this. We are not alone in the suffering of the world.”

NY deaths undercounted

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York may have undercounted COVID-19 deaths among nursing home residents by thousands, the state attorney general charged in a report Thursday that dealt a blow to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s oft-repeated claims that his state is doing better than others in protecting its most vulnerable. The 76-page report found an undercount of more than 50%, backing up the findings of an Associated Press investigation last year that focused on the fact that New York is one of the only states in the nation that count residents who died on nursing home property and not those who later died in hospitals. Such an undercount would mean the state’s current official tally of 8,711 nursing home deaths to the virus is actually more than 13,000, boosting New York from No. 6 to highest in the nation. The report from a fellow Democratic official undercut Cuomo’s frequent argument that the criticism of his handling of the virus in nursing homes was part of a political “blame game,” and it was a vindication for thousands of families who believed their loved ones were being omitted from counts to advance the governor’s image as a pandemic hero.

Liquid nitrogen leak kills 6

GAINESVILLE, Ga, — A liquid nitrogen leak at a northeast Georgia poultry plant killed six people Thursday, with multiple others taken to the hospital, officials said.

At least three of those injured at the Foundation Food Group plant in Gainesville were reported in critical condition. Poultry plants rely on refrigeration systems that can include liquid nitrogen. Firefighters, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the state fire marshal were investigating the cause of the leak. “It was a leak of unknown cause that has occurred in the system here,” Hall County Fire Department Division Chief Zach Brackett said. “We still have a lot of information we’re trying to gather from the scene.” When leaked into the air, liquid nitrogen vaporizes into an odorless gas that’s capable of displacing oxygen. That means leaks in enclosed spaces can become deadly by pushing away breathable air, according to the U.S. Chemical Safety Board.

Sect’s compound in foreclosure

PRINGLE, S.D. — A compound in South Dakota’s Black Hills held by a secretive polygamous sect is for sale after the group defaulted on a $1.6 million loan, according to a local sheriff. Court documents show the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints’ property near Pringle in Custer County is in foreclosure, KELO-TV reported. The 140-acre property includes nine parcels of land. It will be sold as one during an auction Feb. 25 at the Custer County Courthouse, said Sheriff Marty Mechaley. The compound sits along a gravel road and is shielded from view by tall pine trees, a privacy fence and a guard tower. The FLDS is an offshoot of mainstream Mormonism whose members believe polygamy brings exaltation in heaven. Polygamy is a legacy of the early teachings of the mainstream Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but the faith abandoned the practice in 1890 and prohibits it today. Seth Jeffs, who authorities have said led the FLDS compound in South Dakota, is the brother of Warren Jeffs, who is considered by the group to be a prophet who speaks for God. Warren Jeffs is serving a life sentence in Texas for sexually assaulting underage girls he considered to be his brides. In recent years, the group has lost hundreds of members and control of the sister cities of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Arizona, amid a major leadership void started by Warren Jeffs’ imprisonment. Seth Jeffs took a plea deal in a multimillion-dollar food-stamp fraud case in 2016. His brother Lyle Jeffs was sentenced in 2017 to prison for his role in carrying out the scheme.

Masks are a must at Super Bowl

TAMPA, Fla. — Anyone visiting Tampa’s popular outdoor destinations for the Super Bowl will be required to wear a mask to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Tampa Mayor Jane Castor signed an executive order Wednesday saying masks must be worn outside while downtown, in neighborhoods around Raymond James Stadium — where the Super Bowl will be held — and in other tourist hotspots. The order says those who are not wearing a mask can be cited with a “nominal civil infraction” that carries a penalty up to a $500 fine. It will remain in place until Feb. 13 — nearly a week after the Super Bowl ends. There are a few exceptions, including children under 5. “We are incredibly excited to host a fun and safe Super Bowl here in Tampa — but we need everyone to do their part. We want fans to feel confident knowing that when they come out to celebrate Super Bowl LV, they can do so safely in a city that takes this pandemic seriously,” Castor said in a statement Thursday morning. The NFL is allowing 22,000 visitors to be inside Raymond James Stadium for the game and all will be required to wear masks. It normally has a capacity of 75,000 fans. There will be official game events around the city, including The Super Bowl Experience, which features live music, food, beverages and football-themed activities. That will be held at multiple parks along the 2.7-mile Tampa Riverwalk and it is one of the places where masks are required even outdoors.

Miners killed in gold mine blasts

BEIJING — Chinese rescuers have found the bodies of nine workers killed in explosions at a gold mine, raising the death toll to 10, officials said Monday. Eleven others were rescued a day earlier after being trapped underground for two weeks at the mine in Shandong province. One person was still missing. The cause of the accident at the mine, which was under construction, is under investigation. The explosions on Jan. 10 released 70 tons of debris that blocked a shaft, disabling elevators and trapping workers underground. Rescuers drilled parallel shafts to send down food and nutrients and eventually bring up the survivors on Sunday. Chen Yumin, director of the rescue group, told reporters that the nine workers recovered Monday died more than 400 meters (1,320 feet) below ground. He said there had been two explosions about an hour and a half apart, with the second explosion causing more damage. Search efforts will continue for the remaining miner until he is found, said Chen Fei, the mayor of Yantai city, where the mine is located.

GameStop trading limited

Robinhood and other retail brokerages are taking steps to tamp down the speculative frenzy surrounding companies such as GameStop, but the actions only sparked more volatility in the market and an outcry from users of the platforms and some members of Congress who say small investors are being treated unfairly. GameStop stock has rocketed from below $20 earlier this month to close around $350 Wednesday as a volunteer army of investors on social media challenged big institutions who had placed market bets that the stock would fall. The action was even wilder Thursday: The stock swung between $112 and $483 before closing down 43.2% at $197.44. Robinhood said Thursday that investors would only be able to sell their positions and not open new ones in some cases. Robinhood will also require investors to put up more of their own money for certain trades instead of using borrowed funds. Besides GameStop, Robinhood said trading in stocks such as AMC Entertainment, Bed Bath & Beyond, Blackberry, Nokia, Express Inc., Koss Corp., American Airlines, Tootsie Roll, Trivago and Naked Brand Group would be affected by the new restrictions.

Insurance sign-up window opens

WASHINGTON — President Biden Thursday ordered government health insurance markets to reopen for a special sign-up window, offering uninsured Americans a haven as the spread of COVID-19 remains dangerously high and vaccines aren’t yet widely available. Biden signed an executive order directing the HealthCare.gov insurance markets to take new applications for subsidized benefits, something Donald Trump’s administration had refused to do. He also instructed his administration to consider reversing other Trump health care policies, including curbs on abortion counseling and the imposition of work requirements for low-income people getting Medicaid.

Till’s home gets landmark status

CHICAGO — The Chicago home of Emmett Till, the Black teenager whose 1955 lynching galvanized the civil rights movement when his mother insisted his mutilated body be displayed in an open casket, has been granted landmark status. The City Council on Wednesday issued an ordinance that protects the South Side home from demolition. Emmett and his mother were living in that home in the summer of 1955 when the 14-year-old boy left to visit family in Mississippi. On Aug. 28 of that year, white men stormed into his uncle’s home and snatched Emmett from his bed, accusing him of whistling at a white woman at a grocery store. His body was found three days later. His body was returned to Chicago and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, insisted that it be placed in an open casket and photographed by Jet magazine to show the world what racism looked like. The photographs inspired those who took part in the civil rights movement, reportedly including a young woman named Rosa Parks who three months later was arrested for violating Alabama’s segregation laws by refusing to move to the back of a Montgomery bus. In a magazine interview years later, the Rev. Jesse Jackson said Parks considered moving to the back of the bus. “But then she thought about Emmett Till and she couldn’t do it.” Emmett’s alleged attackers were acquitted in his death, despite damning eye witness testimony. A short time later, Look magazine published a story in which the men confessed to the crime.

Teen faces 6 murder counts

INDIANAPOLIS — A 17-year-old Indianapolis boy accused of fatally shooting his father, stepmother, two teenage relatives and a heavily pregnant 19-year-old woman was charged with six counts of murder Thursday, according to a prosecutor and court documents. Raymond Ronald Lee Childs III, who was arrested Monday in the shootings a day earlier, was charged as an adult, Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears announced. One of the six murder counts was in the death of the unborn baby, Mears said. “Not only did so many people lose their lives but you think about that family and what they were anticipating — the baby was due in a week,” Mears said. Childs also faces an attempted murder charge in the wounding of another relative, a 15-year-old boy who was the sole survivor of the shooting on Indianapolis’ near northeast side, according to court records. He was also charged with carrying a handgun without a license. Childs had argued with his father about him sneaking out of the house, Mears said. Authorities were still trying to determine what happened between the late night argument and the shootings reported around 4 a.m. Sunday.

Artificial reef installed in Florida

DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — Country music superstar Kenny Chesney’s No Shoes Reefs organization is helping to install an artificial reef off of Florida’s Atlantic coast. The organization and other marine groups such as the nonprofit Coastal Conservation Association Florida, recently donated and installed 13 reef balls, large concrete domes with round holes, on the ocean floor off of Delray Beach in Palm Beach County. Each of the 7-foot-by-6-foot reef balls was dropped earlier this month in the Delray Dredge Hole, about a half-mile off the coast of Delray Beach, No Shoes Reefs said in a statement. It will make up a 32-acre underwater reef park known as No Shoes Reef 4. The reef will provide educational opportunities for students in Palm Beach County through the Sandoway Discover Center’s ongoing educational programs, the statement said. “Love the water, give back to the water,” Chesney said in the statement. “Many people don’t realize both how fragile and resilient the ocean’s ecosystems are, and I think it’s the small projects that raise awareness on local levels that help people understand the ocean is a living thing.” Once completed, the project will provide new habitats for unique seagrasses and a variety of fish species, as well as give divers an opportunity to explore. “Improving and creating sustainable fisheries and protecting Florida’s marine environment is CCA Florida’s lifeblood,” said the organization’s director of habitat and environmental restoration, Frank Gidus. “We’re honored to be part of this reef project and partner with No Shoes Reef, as it’s a symbiotic relationship sharing the same goal – to improve our coastal environments and waterways for today and for generations to come.” Delray Beach is located south of West Palm Beach.

Boy Scout chaplain sentenced

SOUTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. — A 76-year-old former volunteer Boy Scout chaplain was sentenced Thursday to serve 40 years in prison after pleading no contest to sexually assaulting six young men, including a developmentally disabled victim. “Turning to God, I pray each day for God’s help to help heal those that I hurt so badly and to give them comfort for the shame that I have caused,” James Glawson, of Exeter, said in court, The Providence Journal reported. Glawson was actually sentenced to 60 years in prison, with 40 to serve and the balance suspended with probation, according to the state attorney general’s office. “Your honor, there is no excuse for all the pain, suffering and shame that I have caused to so many,” he said in court. Glawson committed multiple acts of sexual assault against five victims beginning in the 1980s, when he served as a volunteer Catholic chaplain for the Boy Scouts, authorities said. His most recent victim in 2019 was developmentally disabled, prosecutors said.

Variant from S. Africa detected

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A new variant of the coronavirus emerged Thursday in the United States, posing yet another public health challenge in a country already losing more than 3,000 people to COVID-19 every day. The mutated version of the virus, first identified in South Africa, was found in two cases in South Carolina. Public health officials said it’s almost certain that there are more infections that have not been identified yet. The two cases were discovered in adults in different regions of the state and do not appear to be connected. Neither of the people infected has traveled recently.

Economy shrank 3.5% in 2020

WASHINGTON — Stuck in the grip of a viral pandemic, the U.S. economy grew at a 4% annual rate in the final three months of 2020 and shrank last year by the largest amount in 74 years. For 2020 as a whole, a year when the coronavirus inflicted the worst economic freeze since the end of World War II, the economy contracted 3.5% and clouded the outlook for the coming year. The economic damage followed the eruption of the pandemic 10 months ago and the deep recession it triggered, with tens of millions of Americans left jobless.

GM sets goal of going largely electric

General Motors has set a goal of making the vast majority of the vehicles it produces electric by 2035, and the entire company carbon neutral, including operations, five years after that. The Detroit automaker’s push into electric vehicles has gone into overdrive this year. GM has already announced that it will invest $27 billion in electric and autonomous vehicles in the next five years, a 35% increase over plans made before the pandemic. It will offer 30 all-electric models worldwide by the middle of the decade. By the end of 2025, 40% of its U.S. models will be battery electric vehicles. The company plans to include crossovers, SUVs, sedans and trucks in its electric vehicle lineup. GM said Thursday that it will source 100% renewable energy to power its U.S. sites by 2030 and global sites by 2035. That’s five years faster than its previously announced global goal. And it has a goal of making all new light-duty vehicles, the vast majority of its fleet, fully electric within 14 years. The company will concentrate on offering zero-emissions vehicles in different prices ranges. It’s also working with others, including the Environmental Defense Fund, to build out the necessary infrastructure to power its electric vehicles and to promote their use. To account for carbon emissions that it cannot eliminate, GM expects to invest in carbon credits or offsets

Second gentleman’s solo outing

WASHINGTON — Doug Emhoff, America’s first second gentleman, highlighted food insecurity on his first solo public outing Thursday, saying it’s “something everyone needs to be concerned about.” Emhoff said during the campaign that he would use his groundbreaking role to elevate the issue. His first solo appearance as the spouse of Kamala Harris, the first woman to be elected vice president, was to meet with representatives of a nonprofit organization with the dual mission of decreasing food insecurity and increasing economic opportunity. “We’re seeing what we’re seeing on the news with lines of cars,” Emhoff told reporters before leaving Kelly Miller Middle School in Washington. He was referring to TV news reports about how the economic hardship caused by the pandemic has forced many people to turn to food banks. “It’s got to be an issue for everybody. So, I want to do what I can to amplify it. I think it’s something everyone needs to be concerned about.”

Accused in Pearl’s death freed

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered on Thursday the release of a Pakistani-British man convicted and later acquitted in the beheading of American journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002. The court also dismissed an appeal of Ahmad Saeed Omar Sheikh’s acquittal filed by Pearl’s family and the Pakistani government. A minister in the Sindh province where Sheikh is being held said the government had exhausted all options to keep him locked up — an indication that Sheikh could be free within days. The “Supreme Court is the court of last resort,” Murtaza Wahab, Sindh’s law minister, told The Associated Press. “The Pearl family is in complete shock by the majority decision of the Supreme Court of Pakistan to acquit and release Ahmed Omer Sheikh and the other accused persons who kidnapped and killed Daniel Pearl,” the Pearl family said in a statement released by their lawyer, Faisal Siddiqi.