Environment

To counter a lack of biodiversity in corpse flowers, horticulturalists took inspiration from “studbooks,” a method used by breeders and zoos to prevent inbreeding

To Save the Corpse Flower, Horticulturalists Are Playing the Role of Matchmakers

Genetic diversity is needed to produce viable plants. Scientists are using animal breeding methods to conserve the titan arum

Vampire finches will resort to drinking blood for survival when they can't find other food sources like seeds and insects.

Why Some of Darwin's Finches Evolved to Drink Blood

Scientists suggest the vampire finch evolved to drink blood to survive the volcanic archipelago's harsh environment and scarce resources

Grōv Technologies’ vertical farm is designed to minimize land and water use of conventional feed production.

Could Indoor Vertical Farms Feed Livestock?

The people at Grōv Technologies think farmers can produce wheatgrass for their herds with less land and water using the method

In another executive order, President Biden canceled permits for construction on the Keystone XL pipeline. Alberta construction of the pipeline is pictured here, taken in October 2020.

The United States Will Rejoin Paris Climate Accord

The move is one of several climate-related actions taken by President Joe Biden on his first day in office

Researchers estimate this seagrass found in the Mediterranean could trap about 867 million plastic pieces per year in coastal areas.

This Seagrass Traps Marine Plastic

Researchers find the Mediterranean species of seagrass collects plastics in fibrous balls that form from its fallen leaves

Seen here, conservation canine Betty White sniffs the ground while she trains to search for bumble bee nests.

Meet Ernie and Betty White: Two Conservation Dogs Sniffing Out Invasive Species in Wisconsin

These aren’t the only Labradors using their powerful sense of smell to aid in wildlife preservation efforts

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is home to an abundance of wildlife such as polar bears and caribou, which the region's Indigenous communities rely on and hold sacred.

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Will Not Face Mass Oil Drilling—for Now

Large oil companies skipped out on the auction, but environmentalists say a worrisome precedent has been set

Swinhoe’s softshell turtles were pushed to the brink of extinction by habitat destruction and by hunters who sought the turtles' meat and eggs.

The 'Last' Female Swinhoe's Softshell Turtle Died in 2019. Now, Researchers Found Another, Renewing Hope for the Species

Conservationists have been scrambling to save the most endangered turtles in the world from extinction

The study found that the more dramatic changes in color were clustered around dams, agriculture and urban areas.

A Third of the United States' Rivers Have Changed Color Since 1984, Satellite Images Reveal

The transformation from blue to shades of yellow and green raises concerns that waterways have been increasingly imperiled since 1984

Dead bird specimens seen in the collection of the Museum of Southwestern Biology in New Mexico on September 14, 2020.

Southwest Bird Die-Off Caused by Long-Term Starvation

New report finds majority of the birds found dead in early fall were emaciated

Some 1,280 of these species will lose a quarter or more of their remaining habitat and 350 are projected to lose more than half of the areas they currently call home.

Agriculture's Growing Footprint Could Threaten 17,000 Species With Habitat Loss

New research projects 1.3 million square miles of habitat will be converted to croplands by 2050

Projects that harness the public to make observations and report data about the health of our environment are growing. Anyone can join—no PhDs needed.

Twenty-Four Ways to Turn Outdoor Passions Into Citizen Science

Heading into the new year, consider collecting scientific data while skiing, hiking, surfing, biking and partaking in other adventures

Concrete, a building block of our cities and towns, accounted for the most mass, followed by steel, gravel, brick and asphalt.

Human-Made Materials Now Weigh More Than All Life on Earth Combined

People produce 30 billion tons of material annually, making our built environment heavier than the planet's biomass

Coho salmon returning from its years at sea to spawn, seen near the Suquamish Tribe's Grovers Creek Hatchery.

Researchers Reveal Why Seattle Salmon Bite the Dust After Rainstorms

A chemical found in car tire debris washes off roads into waterways, killing coho salmon returning to spawn

A great blue heron seen wading in front of an oil refinery. Burning and producing fossil fuels are major sources of air pollution. A new study estimates that over the last four decades environmental regulations aimed at improving air quality have saved the lives of some 1.5 billion birds across the United States.

Study Estimates Clean Air Act Has Saved 1.5 Billion Birds

Over the last 40 years, bird populations across the U.S. did the best in places with the most stringent air pollution regulations

This year's top ten titles explore the cosmos, fear and cleanliness alongside narratives about owls, fish and eels.

The Ten Best Science Books of 2020

New titles explore the mysterious lives of eels, the science of fear and our connections to the stars

A new report finds platypus numbers are declining in Australia, prompting the authors of the report to call for the species to be listed as endangered.

Platypuses Lost 22% of Their Habitat Over Last 30 Years

The startling finding comes in a report that documents the iconic Australian animal’s decline and recommends increased legal protections

Can you see the plant in this picture? This small brown Fritillaria delavayi has evolved camouflage in response to heavy harvesting by humans. The more closely the plant mimics its environment, the harder it is for humans to find and harvest the plant.

Medicinal Plant May Have Evolved Camouflage to Evade Humans

In places where people harvest the plant most aggressively, its color has changed to blend in with the rocky environment

A new study finds beaver-eating wolves alter the landscape in Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota by changing the number and distribution of beaver ponds.

Minnesota Wolves Are Eating Beavers and Reshaping Wetlands

A new study finds that when a wolf kills a beaver its abandoned dam falls apart and goes unoccupied for more than a year

Daphne, an autonomous solar-powered vessel developed by British Columbia–based Open Ocean Robotics, is part of a wave of new ocean robots designed to police illegal fishing.

A New Generation of Autonomous Vessels Is Looking to Catch Illegal Fishers

A design challenge has tech companies racing to build a robot that can police illegal fishing in marine protected areas

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