‘Coastal elites’ feel the pinch of fast-food price hikes too. Plus: Liz Truss bars Guardian journalists from book launch. Lol Donald Trump’s appearance in criminal court on Monday has raised many questions, constitutional and otherwise, but on the evidence of the first day I find myself most curious about the former president’s McDonald’s order. During jury selection last week, the Daily Mail reported on a $700 (£560) McDonald’s order put in by Trump staffers that included 27 orders of fries, 27 quarter pounders, a bunch of nuggets and no drinks. A McDonald’s employee complained anonymously th ..read more

Global warming and international trade offering increasingly hospitable environment Some are small and jumpy; others are large and intimidating – if you’re a humble housefly. Exotic spiders are flourishing in Britain as international trade offers ample opportunities for spider travel and global heating provides an increasingly hospitable climate. A jumping spider new to science has been identified living on the Penryn campus in Cornwall, home to the University of Exeter and Falmouth University. The nearest known relative of the 3-4mm-long Anasaitis milesae is found in the Caribbean, making it ..read more

South Dakota governor includes bloody tale in campaign volume – and admits ‘a better politician … wouldn’t tell the story here’ Who will be Trump’s VP? A shortlist In 1952, as a Republican candidate for vice-president, Richard Nixon famously stirred criticism by admitting receiving a dog, Checkers, as a political gift. In 2012, as the Republican presidential nominee, Mitt Romney was pilloried for tying a dog, Seamus, to the roof of the family car for a cross-country trip ..read more

Network will pay Oscar’s owner, barrister Gina Edwards, $150,000 after federal court defamation proceedings Broadcaster Channel Nine has been sent to the doghouse for its “sensationalist” reporting of a custody dispute over an Insta-famous cavoodle from Sydney’s ritzy lower north shore. The network will have to pay Oscar’s owner, barrister Gina Edwards, $150,000 including in aggravated damages after a hotly defended defamation proceedings in the federal court ..read more

The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world ..read more

Researchers also find zebra finches 20% less likely to hatch from eggs if exposed to noise pollution Noise pollution from traffic stunts growth in baby birds, even while inside the egg, research has found. Unhatched birds and hatchlings that are exposed to noise from city traffic experience long-term negative effects on their health, growth and reproduction, the study found ..read more

Animals ran through rush-hour streets, colliding with vehicles and leaving four people in hospital Two of the military horses that broke loose during a morning exercise and bolted through central London on Wednesday are in “serious condition” and have been operated on, according to officials. The runaway horses, including one white horse drenched in blood, ran through the rush-hour streets of the capital, colliding with vehicles and resulting in four people being taken to hospital ..read more

The 54-year-old had heart and kidney failure and didn’t qualify for a traditional transplant, so an alternative procedure was devised Doctors have transplanted a pig kidney into a New Jersey woman who was near death, part of a dramatic pair of surgeries that also stabilized her failing heart. Lisa Pisano’s combination of heart and kidney failure left her too sick to qualify for a traditional transplant, and out of options. Then doctors at NYU Langone Health devised a novel one-two punch: implant a mechanical pump to keep her heart beating and days later transplant a kidney from a genetically m ..read more

Staff at Topeka zoo are ‘devastated’ by death of Karen, who was known as the ‘dancing queen’ A popular ostrich at a zoo in Kansas known as the “dancing queen” has died after swallowing an employee’s keys. The Topeka zoo and conservation center announced the death of Karen on Friday after she “reached beyond her exhibit fence to grab the keys of a staff member” and then swallowed them ..read more

Newberry county sheriff’s office reassures people siren-like roar is male cicadas singing to attract mates after a decade dormant Emerging cicadas are so loud in one South Carolina county that residents are calling the sheriff’s office asking why they can hear sirens or a loud roar. The Newberry county sheriff’s office sent out a message on Facebook on Tuesday letting people know that the whining sound is just the male cicadas singing to attract mates after more than a decade dormant ..read more