Earth Optimism

Some dolphins are shy, too.

Wild Dolphins Seem to Have a Range of Personalities

From shy to bold with shades in between, dolphin personalities are surprisingly similar to ours

Researchers recently scanned some of the oldest dinosaur embryos in the world

Digital Reconstructions Reveal 200-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Embryo’s Unusual Teeth

New scans suggest unhatched dinosaurs reabsorbed a set of teeth during development

Researcher Mark Meekan swims with a whale shark, which can grow up to 60 feet long, making them the world's largest fish.

Researchers Calculated a Whale Shark’s Age Based on Cold War-Era Bomb Tests

Nuclear bomb tests caused a spike in a radioactive form of carbon that accumulated in living things

Red siskins, (above: a trapped female rescued at a local market by wildlife authorities) listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, face threats from habitat loss, and poaching for the pet trade.

Heavily Trafficked Songbirds Have a Path Back to Resiliency

Researchers see promise in recruiting red siskin pet traders as conservation partners

The face of a sweat bee (Megalopta amoena) that is half female (viewer's left, bee's right) and half male (viewer's right, bee's left)

Meet the Bee With a Body That’s Half Male, Half Female

So-called gynandromorphs are rare, but they can teach us a lot about development and evolution

Dolphin Boy Bands Sing 'Pop' Songs in Sync—and the Ladies Want It That Way

Female dolphins, it seems, aren’t immune to the allure of a harmonizing boy band

According to NASA: "The latest false-color view of total ozone over the Arctic pole. The purple and blue colors are where there is the least ozone, and the yellows and reds are where there is more ozone."

Why This Rare, Huge Ozone Hole Over the Arctic Is Puzzling Scientists

The new wound further diminishes Earth’s protective shield against damaging solar radiation

Maratus azureus, a newly discovered species of peacock spider from Western Australia

See Seven New Dazzling, Dancing Peacock Spiders

Hailing from all over Australia, the spiders were identified by a scientist who used to fear them

Durable, flexible polyurethane is commonly found in sports shoes and other products, and is tough to get rid of.

Scientists Discover Plastic-Munching Microbe in Waste Site

The bacterial strain can break down some of the toxic components of polyurethane plastic

The supermoon in March, called a Worm Moon, was the first of three supermoons in a row.

April’s Super 'Pink' Moon Will Be the Brightest Full Moon of 2020

Despite the name, moon won’t have a rosy hue. The name alludes to flowers that bloom in April

Stuck at Home? Take Yale’s Most Popular Course Ever: The Science of Happiness

In its first year, the class attracted more than 1,200 students. The online version is abbreviated, but free

Western monarch butterflies spend winter gathered in California's coastal groves.

Your Butterfly Photos Could Help Monarch Conservation

As monarchs leave their winter hideaways, conservationists are seeking assistance in studying their migration routes

Vergenoegd Löw Wine Estate's Indian runner ducks, which patrol the vineyard for pests

An Army of Hungry Ducks Keeps This Historic South African Vineyard Pest-Free

The vineyard deploys a daily bird-based battalion to pluck snails and insects off their plants

Eucalyptus trees sprout "emergency foliage" after a wildfire while their leaves regrow.

How Australia’s Wilderness Is Recovering From Wildfires

Greenery is sprouting from scorched tree trunks as the forests regrow their canopies

The homemade flag carried by Lanphier High School students during their march to the Illinois State Capitol on the first Earth Day.

This Homemade Flag From the '70s Signals the Beginning of the Environmental Movement

The green-and-white banner from an Illinois high school recalls the first Earth Day 50 years ago

Ecologist and Smithsonian associate Aung Myo Chit soothes an elephant in Myanmar after it was fitted with a collar.

Researchers Are Learning How Asian Elephants Think—in Order to Save Them

As the pachyderms increasingly clash with farmers and villagers over disappearing land, scientists study the way the animals' minds work

Six Crazy Attempts to Geoengineer the Weather

These scientists and inventors set out to change the planet with these out-of-the-box ideas

When Michigan Students Put the Car on Trial

In a famous 1970 teach-in demonstration, prosecutors hammered away at the nation’s most powerful defendant

In Uganda’s Mgahinga National Park, a 14-month-old male named Imbanzabigwi is poised to transition from mother’s milk to foraging.

How Africa's Mountain Gorillas Staged a Comeback

Long victimized by poaching and deforestation, the primate species is in the midst of a surprising rebound that is sparking new hopes of recovery

Frea is a year-old, zero-waste vegan restaurant in Berlin.

The Rise of 'Zero-Waste' Restaurants

A new breed of food establishment is attempting to do away with food waste entirely

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