Ecology

Unregulated wild animal markets increase the risk of more epidemics

Carpets of gold, burrowing toads and fairy shrimp all depend on vernal pools—habitats that, most of the time, do not exist.

Southern Ocean phytoplankton help to brighten Earth’s clouds

Vernal pools are home to spectacular residents such as fairy shrimp, but these unusual natural wonders are under threat.

A volatile compound makes nematodes food for oyster mushrooms

For leopards to survive, we must learn to live with them

Birds are heading north before their insect prey emerge. Bees are missing out on early blossoms. Ticks and other pests have more time to feast and spread disease

The grasslands of India and elsewhere do not need to have economic value to be worth studying and preserving

Researchers worry the Colombian environmental ministry will side with animal-rights activists rather than curb the spread of invasive hippos once kept by drug-cartel leader Pablo Escobar

Trees communicate and cooperate through a fungal web, according to a widespread idea. But not everyone is convinced

A de-extinction company known for its plans to resurrect the mammoth and Tasmanian tiger has announced it will also bring back the dodo

Scientists are beginning to decode endangered creatures’ microbial ecosystems