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Conservation

Does she look like she would enjoy being jabbed with a needle? Conservationists have used assassin bugs to test the blood female Iberian lynx, like the mother picture above with her cubs, for pregnancy.

Cool Finds

How Do You Give an Iberian Lynx a Pregnancy Test? Use an Assassin Bug

Researchers used the insects to keep tabs on population growth in the threatened species

Tissue samples in test tubes, like the one D.C. high school student Asia Hill is holding above, are wrapped tin foil and dropped into the team's portable liquid nitrogen tank.

These Scientists Hope to Have Half the World’s Plant Families on Ice By the End of Summer

Teaming up with botanical gardens, researchers at the Natural History Museum are digging deep into garden plant genomics

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New Research

Bumblebees Are Getting Squeezed by Climate Change

Across North America and Europe, the insects are just not keeping up with shifting temperatures

Cool Finds

Researchers Are Using Facial Recognition Software To Save Lions

Software algorithms offer a non-invasive way to track the big cats

The Yampa River in Dinosaur National Monument

Twenty of the West’s Leading Water Managers Raft Colorado’s Yampa River

In a historic drought, a group of decision makers take to the water to discuss the future of rivers

The Thomas Jefferson original granite base and obelisk is now complete with a Smithsonian-made reproduction of the marble plaque and on view at the University of Missouri.

Urban Explorations

Bringing Thomas Jefferson’s Battered Tombstone Back to Life

The founding father’s fragile grave marker has survived for centuries, enduring souveniring, a fire and errant repairs

Water, water, everywhere …

Anthropocene

Here’s How U.S. Groundwater Travels the Globe Via Food

Major aquifers are being drained for agricultural use, which means the water moves around in some surprising ways

As the price of their wool rises, vicuñas, like the one picture here near the ALMA telescope in Chile, faces threats from poaching gangs.

Poachers Are Killing Andean Camels for Their Wool

To meet a growing demand for vicuña wool in Europe and Asia, gangs are massacring herds of the animals in South America

To discourage the harmful trade that is having a catastrophic effect on elephant populations, nearly one ton of illegal ivory was crushed Friday, June 19, 2015, in Times Square.

Where Do Important Ivory Artifacts Fit in the Race to Save Elephants from Poaching?

The fight against poaching and trafficking came to a head in Times Square last week with the destruction of a one-ton cache of illegal ivory

A customs officer in Thailand examines specimens from a three ton ivory seizure, estimated to be worth $6 million.

Anthropocene

DNA and Databases Help Untangle the Web of the Illegal Wildlife Trade

Two new data-driven approaches help identify key hotspots for poaching and trafficking

A village nestled inside the Brazilian Amazon.

Anthropocene

Protecting Land in Brazil Reduces Malaria and Other Diseases

Areas under strict protection see the most benefit in shielding people from illness and infection

The Grevy's zebra (left) and the plains zebra may be tough to tell apart—until you examine their dietary preferences via their poop.

New Research

Big African Animals Are Pickier Eaters Than We Imagined

To the surprise of ecologists, plant-eaters manage to coexist on the savanna by each choosing different favorite foods

Texas longhorn cattle.

How “Meat Banks” Are Helping Farmers Preserve Precious Livestock

Frozen sperm and tissue are being stored to protect commercial animals and help save rare heritage breeds

What Makes the “Lion Whisperer” Roar?

He’s famous for getting dangerously close to his fearsome charges, but what can Kevin Richardson teach us about ethical conservation—and ourselves?

The marbled salamander is increasing its distribution and range in response to warming winter temperatures.

Anthropocene

Climate Change Will Accelerate Earth’s Sixth Mass Extinction

The pace at which species disappear is picking up as temperatures rise, and things are looking especially troubling in the tropics

A walrus rests on an iceberg in Canada's Hudson Bay.

Inuit Wisdom and Polar Science Are Teaming Up to Save the Walrus

Traditional knowledge and scientific study are helping us begin to understand what a changing Arctic means for the marine mammal

White rhinos are considered a conservation sucess after near extinction in the 19th century, their numbers now classify them as Near Threatened

Trending Today

Here’s How to Avoid Losing Half of Earth’s Species

Basically, don’t stop trying to halt extinction

Rehabilitated sea lion pups head back to the ocean after being released from The Marine Mammal Center in March.

California Sea Lions Are Starving, But Do They Need Our Help?

Instead of just rehabilitating the fuzzy pups, some ecologists say we should be focusing on the underlying troubles of climate change and fish declines

While Abe drinks, Willie approaches to place his trunk in Abe's mouth—a respectful ritual akin to kissing the ring of a Mafioso don.

Elephants Have Male Bonding Rituals, Too

In her new book, Caitlin O’Connell shows how the interactions of tight-knit bulls can be surprisingly similar to human relationships

A type of coral trout called the leopard trout (Plectropomus leopardus) swims on the Great Barrier Reef.

Anthropocene

Fishing Bans Create a Glimmer of Hope on the Great Barrier Reef

No-take reserves have helped commercially important species bounce back, but the reef still faces some serious threats

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