ecology

This federal program helps track America's ecosystems. Trump's budget would gut it

4:06pm June 19, 2025

by Ari Daniel

The Ecosystems Mission Area helps researchers track everything from birds and bees to floods and fires. Trump wants to cut it by about 90%, gutting a key federal ecological program.

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Scientists want to track the world's biodiversity using DNA in the air

6:00am May 22, 2025

Scientists have found a way to sample DNA out of the air on a large scale — making it possible to one day track the health and well being of all kinds of species around the world.

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Meet the ManhattAnt, the ant that's taken New York's streets by storm

5:00am August 14, 2024

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

The ManhattAnt has become the dominant ant species in the Big Apple, and scientists aren't sure why.

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This scientist has a bat tat and earrings. She says there's a lot to learn from bats

5:00am August 12, 2024

by Ari Daniel

Gliselle Marin joins the “Bat-a-thon,” a group of 80-some bat researchers who converge on Belize each year to study these winged mammals.

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Some plant names can be racist. Scientists are looking to rename them

5:00am July 31, 2024

by Ari Daniel

An international group of researchers has voted to modify the scientific names of more than 200 plant species whose names carry a derogatory word.

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When Australia's black flying foxes are well-fed, they tend to be healthy. A lack of food stresses the bats — and stress causes them to shed, or release, viruses into the environment.

Health & Safety

How do we halt the next pandemic? Be kind to critters like bats, says a new paper

3:36pm March 26, 2024

by Ari Daniel

A team of scientists argue that new vaccines and treatments wouldn't be critical if humans could figure out how to stop viruses from spilling over from animals in the first place.

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A sea otter in the estuarine water of Elkhorn Slough, Monterey Bay, Calif.

California sea otters nearly went extinct. Now they're rescuing their coastal habitat

10:49am February 08, 2024

by Ari Daniel

California sea otter populations have rebounded in recent decades. New research finds that by feasting on shore crabs, these otters are helping to protect their coastal marsh habitat against erosion.

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Spiderwebs can act as air filters that catch environmental DNA from terrestrial vertebrates, scientists say.

Need to track animals around the world? Tap into the 'spider-verse,' scientists say

9:28am February 01, 2024

by Ari Daniel

Spiderwebs can capture environmental DNA, or eDNA, from vertebrate animals in their area, potentially making them a useful tool in animal monitoring, tracking and conservation.

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Do you know this goose? Researchers have developed a new facial recognition tool for geese that can ID them based on their beaks.

Enhance! HORNK! Artificial intelligence can now ID individual geese

10:28am November 02, 2023

by Geoff Brumfiel

Yes, that's right, somebody has developed AI for goose faces.

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These American birds and dozens more will be renamed, to remove human monikers

10:33am November 01, 2023

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

The official naming organization for birds in the U. S. is making a bold move, after concerns were raised about birds being named after people with questionable histories.