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Captive Breeding
Behind bars, prisoners work to rehabilitate endangered species
A Feathered Nest
Bird diversity linked to increased home values
Backfire
Protected status makes rare species more valuable to trophy hunters
Dirty Laundry
Clothes washers are pumping plastic into the ocean
In-Shoe Technology
A quick stroll could recharge your phone
Body Count
Assessing the impact of bird collisions with television towers and skyscrapers
Net Gain
Fishing regulations vastly reduce sea turtle deaths
February 13, 2012
Corruption & Pollution
Bribes drive up greenhouse gas emissions
Bribes, kickbacks and under-the-table deals aren’t just fixtures of crime narratives. They can also be bad for the environment. A new analysis of data from more than 100 countries shows that rooting out corruption may be a powerful means to slow greenhouse gas emissions in the developing world.
It’s a story that would hardly […] Read More »
February 12, 2012
Pigeon Shoot
Conservationists eliminate pigeons from the Galápagos
Conservationists don’t often brag about driving a population to extinction. But the case of invasive pigeons in the Galapagos is an exception. A new report reveals how air-gun wielding researchers carried out their pigeon-icide, which they say is one of the most successful efforts of its kind.
Rock pigeons (Columba livia) — the same […] Read More »
February 8, 2012
Tree Fall
Urban trees are disappearing in U.S.
Urban development may have thrown a kink into novelist Betty Smith’s central metaphor for life: It might not be so easy for a tree to grow in Brooklyn today. A new analysis of aerial photographs taken from above 20 cities shows an alarming and not-green trend. Trees seem to be dwindling across urban America. […] Read More »
February 7, 2012
Solemn Salmon Report
California’s once vibrant salmon and trout populations may soon blink away
Quick on the heals of the U.S. 2010 census, scientists are also taking a tally of slippery creatures: California salmon. And the news isn’t good. Close to 77% of California’s distinct populations of salmon and trout could go extinct within the state by the end of the century, a new analysis suggests.
California, known […] Read More »
February 6, 2012
Rubber Worms
Storks have trouble telling worms and bands apart
Next time you shoot a rubber band, think about where it might end up. White Storks in France often snap up the stretchy strips, mistaking them for worms, a new study finds. Sometimes, the case of mistaken identity can be deadly.
“Contamination of the environment with nonedible items that mimic food can cause health […] Read More »
February 5, 2012
Leafy Calm
Access to greenery evens out stress hormones
Henry David Thoreau famously fled to a small cabin on Massachusetts’ Walden Pond to recoup his mental faculties. The American writer, it seems, didn’t just inspire generations of poets both good and bad. He also may have stumbled across a prescription for better health. A new study shows that even brief encounters with parks […] Read More »
