Discover stories in Geography
The Cactus Smuggler: Are Desert Plants Being Loved to Extinction?
Across their range, cacti are disappearing. The number one culprit? Illegal collecting. A look at the cactus smuggling trade.
10 Overlooked Wildlife Experiences in Our National Parks
Move over grizzlies and bison. We’re looking for some of the more unusual national park wildlife encounters, from pupfish to endemic chipmunks to salamanders. How many have you seen?
Hyperstability: The Achilles’ Heel of Data-Poor Fisheries
New research indicates that hyperstability — when catches remain high even as fish are rapidly depleted — could be a major challenge for assessing data-poor coral reef fisheries.
Recovery: Saving Timber Rattlesnakes, Why Wildlife Recovery Isn’t a Popularity Contest
You know you’ve arrived as a naturalist when you support saving timber rattlesnakes. Ted Williams reports.
The Four Biggest Hazards Facing Monarch Butterflies, and How You Can Help
A recent scientific paper argues that monarch butterflies are at risk of “quasi-extinction.” But what does this mean? Our blogger breaks down the issues facing butterflies.
Recovery: Mending Point Reyes, a Park Impaired by Invasive Mammals
Point Reyes National Seashore is recovering from an unusual invasive threat: non-native deer. Ted Williams reports.
The Incredible Shrinking Bison, an Unexpected Impact of Climate Change
Shrinking bison? One of the unexpected impacts of climate change is bison changing their diets. And it could in turn affect how we manage the prairie.
Unraveling the Mystery of the Western Sycamores that Weren’t
The problem? As trees in some of their restoration sites grew to maturity, they didn’t look like the native western sycamores the scientists were sure they had planted.
Follow that Grouper: What Migration Data Tell Us About Locally Managed Marine Conservation
New research shows that minimal expansions to community-based protected areas in Melanesia can greatly enhance protection of fish populations.
Can Drones Help Monitor Vultures on Mongolia’s Eastern Steppe?
Conservancy scientists are testing whether unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, are an effective tool to monitor Cinereous Vulture populations in Mongolia’s Kherlen Toono Uul Nature Reserve.
The Alligator in the Basement: Breeding Bird Colonies Benefit Alligator Health in the Florida Everglades
Scientists have discovered that alligators living near nesting bird colonies in the Florida Everglades are healthier than those without access to this food resource.
Mapping Reduced-Impact Logging with Lidar
Nature Conservancy scientists are using lidar ⎯ light pulses beamed down from airplanes ⎯ to map reduced-impact logging in Indonesia.
