Nature & Wildlife
More-than-human animals predate humans on Earth by approximately 500 million to more than 800 million years. While modern humans (Homo sapiens) have existed for only about 300,000 years, the first animal life (likely sponges) appeared in the ocean hundreds of millions of years prior to the human lineage.
News & More
The year 2025 finished as the third hottest globally (behind 2024 and 2023), according to reports from NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and WMO (World Meteorological Organization).
Nature & Wildlife
It’s typically said that animal behavior is the result of biology and environment. The responses of wildlife are driven by the primal urges to survive and reproduce; or are triggered by internal or external cues, such as the appearance of a nearby threat.
Nature & Wildlife
The decline of charismatic and large animals like lions and pandas often captures global attention, but a quieter and perhaps more damaging crisis is unfolding among those that are smaller. These bitty beings are disappearing at alarming rates, and their loss can have outsize consequences for biodiversity. But don’t count these small bodies out yet.
Conservation
On National Arbor Day—which this year is on April 24—we typically recognize forests and trees for their essential roles in conserving soils, providing oxygen, reducing energy consumption through shade and serving as wildlife habitats.
Conservation
The theme for the 56th annual Earth Day, April 22, 2026, is “Our Power, Our Planet.” According to the official Earth Day website, “it emphasizes collective action, community mobilization and the role of individuals in defending environmental protections, accelerating the transition to clean energy and ensuring a sustainable future.”
Nature & Wildlife
This year, International Haiku Poetry Day is on April 17. Traditionally, haiku is a Japanese poetic form that takes the natural world and the seasons as its primary subject matter. It acts as a concise form of environmental literature, emphasizing direct observation, sensory details and an appreciation for the transient beauty of the natural world.
Nature & Wildlife
Rain can be thought of as a common weather phenomenon, but it plays a vital role in keeping the Earth’s ecosystems running and our lives healthy. Whether it’s a mild drizzle or a heavy downpour, rain affects the environment, shapes landscapes and even influences our emotions. Rain, though, has some lesser-known and surprising facets.
Nature & Wildlife
“Life finds a way.” That’s a now-famous statement from Dr. Ian Malcolm, a fictional character played by actor Jeff Goldblum in the 1993 movie Jurassic Park.
Nature & Wildlife
Natural lights in nature come in two familiar forms: bioluminescence and fluorescence. They differ primarily by their light source: bioluminescence is a chemical reaction within an organism that creates its own light, while fluorescence is a physical process where an organism or object absorbs external light and reemits it.
Conservation
Do you crave a cup of coffee in the morning like I do? We’re not alone. Globally, people drink more than 2.2 billion cups daily. And someone has to grow all that joe: more than 100 million farmers worldwide produce coffee.
Nature & Wildlife
When the island of Surtsey erupted from the sea near Iceland in 1963, it became a living experiment in how life begins anew. Decades later, scientists discovered that the plants colonizing this young island weren’t carried there by ocean currents or by the wind, but by birds, who served as winged gardeners.
