The authorities blame unexpected storms, tree branches falling on high-voltage power lines (as in the Italian example) and other acts of nature.

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The ground was soft and swampy, fallen tree branches lay over the paths, I heard the obsessive self-hypnotizing cicadas, the gulp of the bullfrogs, and knew with an animal sense only lately developed in me that there were some four-footed creatures about.

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To substitute for fossils, and thus reconstruct the ancient branches of the tree as well as the modern-day leaves, Dr Dunn used mathematically informed guesswork.

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As The Asahi Shimbun reports, that system isn't the best for producing deep bass (making them less than ideal for music), but it apparently fares considerably better with the medium and high-pitched sounds of birds and rustling tree branches.

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Self-publishing and traditional publishing are branches on the same tree.

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At Turner Broadcasting System Inc. in Atlanta, a strategy-development team recently drew tree branches and placed sticky notes on the branches to explore ways to extend the Turner Classic Movies brand, says Jennifer Dorian, a senior vice president.

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"The orthograde single and two-footed leaps are likely useful during feeding and crossing short distances between branches of the same tree, " explains Mr Channon.

BBC: Earth News - How gibbons leap huge distances revealed by scientists