Extraordinary Animals and the People Who Love Them OpinionReview 03.29.2021 The new book Beloved Beasts hacks through the undergrowth of the conservation movement in search of a clear path forward.
Are You My Mother? Spotlight 03.29.2021 Before a timber rattlesnake mom leaves her babies to fend for themselves, she passes on an important piece of information: her scent.
Home on the Range Article 03.23.2021 Once thought to be extinct, tule elk have returned to roam across California’s Point Reyes National Seashore, but the park—which also supports beef and dairy cattle—is getting crowded.
How to Count a Wolf Video 02.25.2021 The first step in managing a rare and controversial predator—particularly in a state where it’s been absent for decades—is knowing how many you have. That’s easier said than done with a species as elusive as this one.
From Reviled to Adored Photo Essay 02.23.2021 How one community—and one woman in particular—have found a way to protect the rarest stork in the world simply by learning to appreciate the species and embracing it as one of their own.
A New Hope Photo Essay 01.27.2021 Discovered a mere four years ago, the Skywalker gibbon quickly landed on the list of the world’s 25 most endangered primates. While its status remains precarious, the species is inspiring a newfound effort to protect and restore the forests of China’s Gaoligong Mountains.
The Other COVID Nurses Photo Essay 01.01.2021 Caring for sick and injured wildlife has always been challenging, but during the pandemic, for many rehabilitators, it has become a grueling, 24/7 labor of love.
Convenient Conveyance Spotlight 12.24.2020 For a jellyfish, there are few hitchhikers more harmful than this juvenile brown paper nautilus, and for the nautilus, few rides could be more handy.
Saving Slovenia’s “Human Fish” Article 12.15.2020 Scientists in this Central European country are leading the charge to understand and protect a charismatic, cave-dwelling salamander—and the subterranean habitats that supply much of the region’s drinking water.
Mother Load Spotlight 12.11.2020 Multitasking bat moms carry their nursing pups underwing all while navigating a growing array of threats in the Australian forests they call home.
Lens on Life Photo Gallery 12.04.2020 While 2020 has thrown an endless string of challenges at many of us, nature hasn’t gone anywhere. It’s just as impressive and inspiring—and in many cases, just as imperiled as ever.
Billfish Bounty Spotlight 11.25.2020 A striped marlin slices through a shoal of baitfish, a beautiful reminder of the struggle between predator and prey—as well as the fragility and importance of healthy ecosystems.
Africa’s Pandemic-fueled Conservation Crisis Article 11.17.2020 The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has exposed long-standing weaknesses in how we protect African wilderness and species. But it has also given us an opportunity to vastly improve our approach to these urgent challenges.
Northern Lights from the Deep Spotlight 10.28.2020 What could easily be an atmospheric apparition is in fact a formidable predator, and a critical member of its strange, open-ocean ecosystem
A Novel Demise Spotlight 09.22.2020 Although we’ve marveled over carnivorous plants for centuries, the plants’ penchant for vertebrate flesh has been largely overlooked.
Raising Nature on Florida Ranchlands Article 08.11.2020 “Rancher vs Environmentalist” has been a longstanding trope. But in the Sunshine State, ranching just may be the last, best hope for ecological salvation.
Wanted Alive Spotlight 07.14.2020 For the first time in decades, Icelandic whalers have stopped hunting fin whales, thanks in part to a growing appreciation for the value these mammals bring to both marine and human communities.
The Big Picture 2020 Photo Gallery 05.05.2020 From the beautiful to the bizarre, this photographic showcase of life on Earth shines a light on some of our planet’s most amazing species and places.
Records of Change Video 01.17.2020 Thanks to foresight and meticulous records collected nearly a century ago, scientists are reconstructing a picture of some of Mexico’s most important ecosystems before they were transformed.
Race Against the Biological Clock Spotlight 12.24.2019 It turns out some contests between predators and their prey are more genetically determined than others.