Nature & Wildlife
The continental United States and many global regions experienced their hottest summer on record in 2026, driven by human-caused climate change and an intensifying El Nino, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Climate Report published on September 9, 2026. Average temperatures were roughly 3 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th-century baseline.
Nature & Wildlife
An apex predator is the hardcore animal at the top of its food chain, the baddest of the bad, with few or no natural predators in its ecosystem.
Conservation
Arachnids—such as scorpions, harvestmen (daddy longlegs) and spiders—often trigger feelings of fear or disgust. Despite such reactions, these animals play an essential role in maintaining healthy ecosystems. They act as vital food sources, master pest controllers and drivers of human and soil health.
Nature & Wildlife
As soon as the month of October starts, your thoughts probably turn to spooky fun as we lead up to October 31 and Halloween.
Nature & Wildlife
I’m not a fan of escaping winter; in fact, I think it’s an endangered “species” that we need to cherish while we still have it. But millions of birds appear to disagree with me. Every year, they migrate in huge flocks to escape the season.
Nature & Wildlife
Antarctica has always been—for lack of another, less trite description—“otherworldly.” It’s clear, clean air and wild, untouched mountains hardly seem part of this planet. But that depiction of the icy continent is usually meant in a metaphorical sense. Now, however, it has taken on a more literal meaning.
African Safaris
Often referred to as the “eighth continent,” the island nation of Madagascar has developed its own distinct ecosystems and extraordinary wildlife since it split from the African continent an estimated 160 million years ago. Approximately 95% of Madagascar’s reptiles, 89% of its plant life and 92% of its mammals exist nowhere else on Earth.
Nature & Wildlife
While I have never considered insects my favorite category of fauna, I have to admit that some “fun facts” about them intrigue me. For example, ants can lift and carry more than 50 times their own weight. While gathering food, a bee may fly up to 60 miles in one day.
Nature & Wildlife
The Encyclopedia Britannica currently defines language as “a system of conventional spoken, manual (signed) or written symbols by means of which human beings, as members of a social group and participants in its culture, express themselves. The functions of language include communication, the expression of identity, play, imaginative expression and emotional release.”
Nature & Wildlife
Some tiny birds on remote Scottish islands are undergoing a dramatic evolutionary transformation. Four isolated populations of British wrens have grown astonishingly large. At the other end of the scale, however, leopards in South Africa’s Cape Floristic Region have become much smaller than most African leopards.
Nature & Wildlife
Tool use isn’t unique to humans. Various species across the animal kingdom, including birds, insects and mammals, exhibit the behavior. For example, sea otters use stones to crack open shellfish, while crows modify twigs to probe for hidden prey—and even have been observed using cars to crack open nuts.
Nature & Wildlife
July is truly the quintessential summer month. Positioned perfectly at the center of summer in the Northern Hemisphere, it features peak sunshine and warm weather, making it the prime time for carefree vacations and outdoor activities. But July is also at the height of mosquito season across most of North America.
