In hotter climates, North American mammals — like wolves, bears, pumas and rabbits — depend on forests to cool down while avoiding human-dominated areas like cities and farms. Preserving forest habitats is important as the climate warms for many reasons, but a new study has found that it will be essential for wildlife conservation, a […]
Caviar made from the eggs of wild sturgeon is now illegal, as the ancient fish was brought to the edge of extinction by poaching. Caviar can only be traded legally internationally if it comes from farmed sturgeon, reported Cell Press. The regulations in place to protect the endangered species are being broken, however, according to […]
Sounds affect our daily lives, from birdsong and soothing melodies to jackhammers and jet engines. People who live in urban environments are often affected by noise pollution, but, due to systemic injustice, some are impacted more than others. And it not only affects humans, but wildlife as well. A new study by acoustic ecologists from […]
A government commission in Ohio has decided to open some state parks and wildlife areas to fracking. The decision comes amid an investigation on allegations of possible fraudulent support from an industry group representing energy companies, The Associated Press reported. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources Oil and Gas Land Management Commission (OGLMC) greenlit multiple […]
Microplastics — tiny fragments of plastic products and industrial waste — are now so pervasive in Earth’s environment that they are found everywhere from the highest mountain peaks to the deepest parts of the ocean. According to a new report, all aquatic species in the mouths of rivers that flow into the Atlantic Ocean and […]
A new study led by researchers from Griffith University in Australia contributes to the growing research on how global warming and pollution are impacting reproduction for endangered sea turtles. The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science, found that pollution exposure to heavy metals, like cadmium and antimony, as well as organic contaminants […]
Among autumn’s falling leaves, you might see a familiar flash of black and orange against the blue sky. Once again, migratory monarch butterflies are on the move from their summer breeding grounds to their overwintering habitats. These spectacular insects travel up to 2,500 miles across the Americas, sometimes covering 50-100 miles a day. Like migrating […]
Biologist Sir David Attenborough, who is 97, has been documenting the natural world and, more recently, the effects of climate change on ecosystems and biodiversity, for most of his life. More than 50 animal taxa have been named after the English natural historian, and one of them, the egg-laying mammal Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna, was recently […]
The European Union (EU) has agreed on a provisional agreement for a Nature Restoration Law — first proposed by the European Commission in June of last year — that would require member states to introduce measures for the restoration of 20 percent of the bloc’s land and sea ecosystems by 2030. More than 80 percent […]