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THE RICHES THEY PLUNDERED ARE LEGENDARY

Wednesday, August 30, 2023

In today’s newsletter, we learn how high tides could magnify Idalia’s danger, discover the biggest booty ever looted, question if this Hawaiian bird can be saved, visit the ‘greatest museum of prehistoric art’ ... and consider eating more planet-saving foods.

an illustration of Captain Kidd and Blackbeard

PAINTING BY JEAN LEON GEROME FERRIS, PRIVATE COLLECTION, BRIDGEMAN IMAGES

While Captain Kidd and Blackbeard (pictured above) yo-ho-ho’d in the Caribbean, savvy pirates skedaddled for the biggest prize ever.

Why waste your time looting and pillaging timber, rum, and cloth when you can swashbuckle your way to loot enormous amounts of gold, silver, and gems?

That’s just what these pirates did, helped by a New York merchant who laundered the riches. What about the plank? A few of these pirates walked... to the bank.

THE HEIST OF HEISTS

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gold bar and coins recovered from the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas

PHOTOGRAPH BY JEFF ROTMAN, NATURE PICTURE LIBRARY VIA ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

Ahoy, mateys! A gold bar and coins recovered from the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas that wrecked in 1656 off the Bahamas in 1658. Read more on the biggest heist ever.

Related: Where did pirates spend their booty?

STORIES WE’RE FOLLOWING

Storm clouds loom over Steinhatchee, Florida, ahead of the expected arrival of Hurricane Idalia.

PHOTOGRAPH BY REBECCA BLACKWELL, ASSOCIATED PRESS

Have tides from the supermoon magnified Hurricane Idalia’s impact? (Above, storm clouds loom over Steinhatchee, Florida)

Florida upgrades simulations to study stronger, longer, wetter hurricanes in quest to make storm-resistant homes

Why we resist planet-saving vegan foods

DNA from this 3,000-year-old brick tells the story of a king—and cabbages

Switzerland’s yodeling tradition is changing. Here’s how to experience it.

What gives the Mediterranean diet such life-extending power?

How the 'wickedest city on Earth' was sunk by an earthquake

Your daily life is probably shaped by these 12 people—do you even know who they are?

How Mary became the most powerful woman in the world

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

the 'akikiki

PHOTOGRAPH BY ERIC J. FRANKE, THE WASHINGTON POST/GETTY IMAGES

Can we save this bird? Hawaii’s most endangered bird, the ’akikiki (pictured above), survived Maui’s recent wildfires—but faces a perilous future in the wild. While many are kept in captivity, only five remain in nature. What will become of them?

SAVING THE ’AKIKIKI

WHAT IN THE WORLD?

a whale shark

PHOTOGRAPH BY TOM CANNON

Biggest fish: That would be the animal in this photo, emerging from a ball of fish as birds dive into the water around it. This giant fish, which can live up to a century, has its own “day” today. What is it?

A. Tiger shark
B. Whale shark
C. Sharptail mola
D. Hoodwinker sunfish

Related: Scared of sharks? This photographer aims to turn shark fear into fascination.

CLICK FOR THE ANSWER

LAST GLIMPSE

Tuarag guide Abdellah Elies explains the legend behind the “Crying Cows,” a celebrated ancient engraving on rock face located between Djanet and Tadrart Rouge.

PHOTOGRAPH BY MATJAZ KRIVIC

A look back in time: The remote Tassili N’Ajjer National Park is the largest national park in Africa, yet few have heard of it. It’s also been deemed ‘the greatest museum of prehistoric art,’ where ancient engravings provide a record of past civilizations. (Above, a Tuarag guide explains the legend behind the “Crying Cows” markings.) Here’s how to see it for yourself.

A BREATHTAKING LOOK

Today’s soundtrack: Tumbling Dice, Little Dragon

This newsletter has been curated and edited by Jen Tse, Hannah Farrow, Nancy San Martín, and David Beard. Want to say hello? We'd love to hear from you: [email protected].

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