Science & Society
The U.S. empire was built on bird dung
A mid-1850s act let the United States seize islands rich in bird guano. Those strategic outposts fueled the U.S. rise to power, a researcher says.
Ecosystems
More Stories in Ecosystems
- Environment
A biogeochemist is tracking the movements of toxic mercury pollution
Exposing the hidden movements of mercury through the environment can help reduce human exposure.
- Life
Mega El Niños kicked off the world’s worst mass extinction
Long-lasting, widespread heat and weather extremes may have caused the Great Dying extinction event 252 million years ago.
- Agriculture
Can scientists make fruits and veggies resilient to climate change?
Combining traditional plant breeding with new genomics tools is allowing scientists to grow plants that are better adapted to a warming climate.
- Oceans
In a seafloor surprise, metal-rich chunks may generate deep-sea oxygen
Instead of sinking from the surface, some deep-sea oxygen may be created by battery-like nodules that split water into hydrogen and oxygen.
- Animals
Tiny saunas help frogs fight off chytrid fungus
Balmy shelters could bolster resistance to the deadly fungus in amphibian populations, but experts caution they won’t work for all susceptible species.
- Animals
‘Cull of the Wild’ questions sacrificing wildlife in the name of conservation
In his new book, ecologist Hugh Warwick seeks middle ground in the waging battle that is wildlife management.
- Environment
‘The High Seas’ tells of the many ways humans are laying claim to the ocean
The book explains how the race for ocean resources from fish to ores to new medicines — the Blue Acceleration — is playing out.
- Animals
Want to see butterflies in your backyard? Try doing less yardwork
Growing out patches of grass can lure adult butterflies and moths with nectar and offer lawn mower–free havens for toddler caterpillars.
- Environment
A new approach to fighting wildfires combines local knowledge and AI
Land managers in the western United States are using potential operational delineations, or PODS, to prepare for — and take advantage of — wildfires.
