Angel >> Local restaurateur and landmark proprietor Yves Magnan As much of an institution in Point St. Charles as his eponymous family restaurant, Yves Magnan died last week, leaving his wife and son-in-law to run one of the city’s most famous eateries. What started out as a working-class tavern evolved into a trendy, upscale joint frequented by glad-handing politicos on the campaign trail, executive business types and many neighbourhood regulars. Magnan’s, a conservative, meat-and-beer friendly restaurant, also has the dubious distinction of being the last establishment in the city to open its doors to women in 1988.

Insect >>Skinny polar bears A report by the World Wildlife Fund released on Tuesday says that the world’s 22,000 polar bears are getting skinnier because global warming is affecting their hunting and eating patterns. Because warmer temperatures are melting the ice floes on which bears hunt, they are getting less time to build up their protective layers of fat that sustain them through the winter. The report says arctic temperatures have risen five degrees over the past 100 years, shrinking sea ice by an estimated six per cent. Environmentalists fear this could result in local extinctions if the trend is not reversed.