Animals shed bits of DNA as they go about their lives. A new study of the Hudson River estuary tracked spring migration of ocean fish by collecting water samples and seeing whose DNA was present when.
In north-east India, children of the Khasi Hills (Meghalaya) learn slash and burn cultivation, an intergenerational yet controversial indigenous practice.
March Mammal Madness, a tournament of imaginary contests between pairs of mammals, makes science irreverent and fun. The event has thousands of fans and is used in hundreds of classrooms.
Archer Larned, University of Maryland, Baltimore County and Sarah Luttrell, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
During bird irruptions, hundreds or thousands of a single species show up outside their normal territory. Most of what we know about irruptions comes from data collected by citizen scientists.
Buildings, thinkers, books, films and works of art can ask central questions about how to live on this planet and its consequences.
Detail from Shenae & Jade, 2005, Petrina Hicks.
Courtesy of the artist and THIS IS NO FANTASY + dianne tanzer gallery, Melbourne and Michael Reid, Sydney
A new exhibition exploring the relationship between birds and humans is variously gaudy, delightful and disturbing. We sent two ecologists along to review the show.
In peril: a male saiga antelope.
BBC NHU/Chadden Hunter
How science is solving one of the natural world’s greatest and most tragic puzzles.
Researchers have found that dragonflies have become on average lighter-colored over the past half-century in response to higher temperatures.
norio-nakayama/flickr
Fire has been viewed as the main protagonist in creating Africa’s iconic savannas. However, new research shows that browsing animals created savannas millions of years before fire became important.
A yellow-shouldered grosbeak tucks into a katydid (bush cricket) lunch high in the rainforest canopy.
Alexander C. Lees
Rats foul our food, spread disease and damage property, but we know very little about them. A biologist explains how he tracks wild rats in New York City, and what he’s learned about them so far.
Unnatural world? We need to look beneath the surface.
Shutterstock
Matthew Flinders Professor of Global Ecology and Models Theme Leader for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, Flinders University