In 2017, marine biologist Erasmo Macaya was shocked to discover bits of kelp on the remote Antarctic island of King George, hundreds of miles from its natural habitat. He knew he’d found something strange, but he wasn’t aware he’d just uncovered evidence of a journey spanning over 10,000 miles—one that could portend a…
Bird turds can tell you a lot about an island. For instance, is it smelly or not? But also, how are the coral reefs doing?
Feral cats are an ecological scourge, wreaking havoc on wild mammal, bird, and reptile populations. That doesn’t make the impact of these rogue floof monsters on Australia’s reptile population any less astonishing, though.
Madagascar has an invasive toad problem, and new research suggests that fears about its ecological consequences are well-deserved. Almost every predator native to the island is likely sensitive to the toads’ dangerous toxins.
France is known for many of its cultural items, including exceptional cuisine, wine, and the Louvre. Soon, it may also be known for its arm-length, shovel-headed, carnivorous worms.
It is a cannibalistic, fist-sized frog covered in a noxious mucous secretion that burns your eyes. Its affinity for human structures leads it to clog drains and short-out the utility switches in which they lurk. They are spreading through the U.S. and we can’t stop them. Several message board commenters report that…
Don’t underestimate the humble caterpillar. While it might not look all that dangerous compared to humans mainly worried about stings and bites, many varieties are covered in toxic spines, as residents of London are being warned this weekend.
Pollution isn’t the only thing the 2017 hurricane season spread far and wide. Plants and animals were sloshed around by the storms too, and some wound up far from home, setting the stage for new ecological invasions.
The Western Governors’ Association published its first-ever list of the 50 worst invasive species inhabiting that region of the country on Thursday, and some of the culprits may surprise you.
As part of a $63,000 research project to devise new and effective ways of pruning back the skyrocketing iguana population in south Florida, wildlife officials in the state have started to smash in the heads of iguanas, saying it’s a quick and “humane” form of euthanasia. Sounds dreadful—and it is—but the situation in…
A new insect invader is spreading in eastern North America’s pine forests, and it’s causing trouble wherever its wings can carry it.
Invasive Burmese pythons have become the ravenous, ever-multiplying scourge of South Florida. But new research suggests that the snakes have brought more than just their teeth and appetites to the Sunshine State. They’ve also brought along their own parasites, which are now infecting native snakes.
America’s Ash trees are facing extinction. And the impact of their loss in our forests, cities, and backyards will not be small.
Lionfish have very low standards and will eat anything in sight. Although they’re originally from the Indian and Western Pacific Oceans, these vacuum cleaners have been flopping around the Atlantic for the last 25 years, probably because people dumped them from their home aquariums. They’re so stupidly hungry and…
After performing an autopsy on a bloated Burmese python, scientists in Florida were shocked to discover the remains of three white-tailed deer.
Hordes of lionfish have been roaming the Atlantic for several decades now, and their voracious appetite—and lack of natural predators—has seriously upset the ecological balance of those waters. Now there’s a new foundation devoted to building robots to hunt them down—a Terminator for lionfish.
Seeking to safeguard the future of its kiwis, parrots, and hobbits, New Zealand has just made the “world first” decision to eradicate all wild predators by 2050.
You need bacteria to help you digest your food and go about your day. It turns out that plants have their own version of this. And one weed is driving out the competition by attacking the gut bacteria of other species.
Puerto Rico is overrun with green iguanas, and they’re wreaking havoc on the island’s ecosystem and its economy.
Cane toads were first released in Australia in 1935 as part of a government program to control the insects attacking the Queensland cane crop. It didn’t work. Ever since, the toads have been spreading across the country, as fast as they can breed. Which would be even faster, if it weren’t for an odd quirk in their…
