Populations of bees, bats, butterflies and other pollinators have been declining for decades due to habitat loss, disease, pesticides and climate change. Now, scientists have documented yet another threat to…
A warming climate and decreased humidity is threatening yields of plantains, a food staple that rural families in Cameroon and elsewhere in Central Africa bank on to pay for their…
The popularity of grass-fed beef owes much to the claim that the meat from cattle raised on pastures is superior to corn-fed beef. Many people may feel better knowing they…
Amazonian rainforests bustle with activity: Monkeys snag fruit from branches in the canopy; peccaries root around in the topsoil for grubs, worms and plants; a jaguar feasts on the carcass…
Rivers in the Amazon are cycling between increasingly severe states of flood and drought, as predicted by climate change models, and the results are directly impacting local wildlife and the…
Think of the illegal wildlife trade, and elephant tusks and rhino horns come to mind. But another of the world’s largest land mammals is slipping under the radar: the common…
As plastic debris drifts through the ocean, it accumulates a coating of algae and bacteria. That coating smells delectable — that is, if you’re a fish. Northern anchovies (Engraulis mordax)…
The moon rides high over the Bolivian Amazon as the Tsimané people crowd around the fire to tell stories. A conservation scientist sits among them, leans in to catch every…
A plant without water will wither and, eventually, die. This is easy to observe in the browned leaves of a neglected houseplant, but what happens when an entire forest gets…
Sperm whales wander great expanses of the sea, locking their culture between their lips and carrying it with them wherever they go. Their distinctive vocal traits allowed researchers to identify…
Humans aren’t the only primates who jockey for higher social status and the rewards that go with it. Chimpanzees also compete for higher rank within their communities, and the accompanying…
Rainforest cover in the Indonesian archipelago has declined rapidly in recent years giving way to large-scale plantations of rubber and oil palm. Now a recent study published in Nature Communications…
The loyalty of humpback whales to their annual feeding grounds in Glacier Bay and Icy Strait, Alaska, is passed down from mothers to their calves, marine biologists have shown. Understanding…
At first glance, grasslands may look like monotonous stretches of green or gold. But closer inspection reveals a bounty of diverse grasses, clovers and wildflowers coexisting within small areas. These…
Many amphibians worldwide are facing extinction, but one frog in California’s Yosemite National Park is defying the trend. Researchers in the park were surprised to witness a large-scale recovery of…
Amazon forests conjure visions of lush canopies, not giant branches crashing to the ground. But according to a recent study, published in Environmental Research Letters, dead branches frequently fall from…
In the rugged mountain forests of Kaua’i, colorful birds called honeycreepers are dying out. Usually protected by the cooler temperatures found at higher altitudes, the birds are now victims of…
In the 19th century, wild African elephants roamed free of fences. The migratory mega-herbivores had vast impacts on the ecology and flora of East African habitats. But humans, in pursuit…
Native people have lived along what is now Canada’s rugged north Atlantic coastline for thousands of years, fishing and hunting marine mammals for sustenance. New research in the Proceedings of…
Compounds from our makeup and bathrooms are winding up in the bodies of dolphins, sea otters, and polar bears – sometimes thousands of miles away. For the first time, research…
