Early on the morning of Sunday, August 14, the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries euthanized Freya — the 1,300 pound walrus that became a summer superstar when she took up residence off the capital of Norway in mid-July. The directorate argued in a statement that euthanizing Freya was the only way to protect the crowds of humans […]
By Derrick Z. Jackson The title of supervisory wildlife biologist for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service does little justice to Linda Welch (pictured above). In practice, she is the housing and unusual development secretary for seabirds on Maine’s Petit Manan Island. This was clear as she led me to nesting areas there for Atlantic puffins. Over […]
By Olivia Box The Place Nestled at the very edge of the toe of mainland Italy you’ll find Aspromonte National Park, one of the wildest places in Italy. It sits at the end of the Apennines, which start just below the western Alps and run through central Italy to the toe of the country’s “boot.” […]
By Sarah Brown A bill loosening restrictions on cattle ranching in the Pantanal wetland has been approved by the Mato Grosso’s state legislature, prompting concerns it could lead to the loss of thousands of hectares of native vegetation. The Pantanal is a major transitional area between the country’s other major biomes — the Amazon Rainforest, […]
Despite the importance of pollinators to the world’s food supply and ecosystem health, surprisingly little is known about which flowers many pollinator species prefer, which flowers are pollinated by which insects and how these interactions fluctuate over time. To help address this issue, University of Sussex researchers have developed a new online database that documents […]
Experts in France are trying to find a way to quickly save a beluga whale that is starving and stuck in the Seine River. Feeding attempts have been largely unsuccessful but will continue alongside efforts to move the whale out of the river into a saltwater river basin near the sea for monitoring. Beluga whales […]
By David Drake, Bret Shaw, and Mary Magnuson Coyotes have become practically ubiquitous across the lower 48 United States, and they’re increasingly turning up in cities. The draws are abundant food and green space in urban areas. At first these appearances were novelties, like the hot summer day in 2007 when a coyote wandered into […]
What Are Wildfires? Wildfires, also commonly called forest fires or bushfires, are unplanned and uncontrolled fires burning in a vegetated landscape, such as a forest or grasslands. Many wildfires are sparked by human activity, such as campfires, or natural causes, like lightning. Dry conditions and prolonged droughts, which are becoming more frequent with climate change, […]
The National Marine Sanctuary System was established on Oct. 23, 1972 with the signing of the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act. That means the network – which includes 15 national marine sanctuaries and 2 marine national monuments – turns 50 this year. Now, they’ve got a 16-stamp set to celebrate! On Aug. 5, the […]