While it’s a very sad tale, bees aren’t to blame for the demise of penguins in South Africa — you can blame climate change and humanity for that one. — I talk about bees a lot. I spent five years researching their behavior in different environments, and discovered a lot about how solitary bees and social bees survive in urban and rural environments in a changing climate. …

Large quantities of nano- and micro-plastics in soil impact the health of crops. What can you do to prevent it? — One of my least favorite pastimes in our household is sorting through the recycling and compost for things that can’t be recycled or composted. It happens — in a rush, we throw something into the wrong bin and don’t notice until we sort through our trash later. The sorting also…

This recent discovery yields surprising new information on fluorescence use by insects — It sounds like something you might find in a science fiction story, but fluorescent creatures are out there. Researchers investigating fluorescence in Vietnam recently discovered that Asian paper wasps emit a green glow under ultraviolet light. Their findings, recently reported in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface, show that…

A new study of Rhesus macaques tells us a lot about how smoke exposure can affect the health of other animals living in areas prone to wildfires. — The world is on fire, and it’s an ecological disaster. Thousands of acres are burning across the west coast of the United States, forcing people to evacuate their homes, land, and worldly possessions as the fires spread through areas like Lake Tahoe in Oregon. But ecologists are concerned about the…

Massive bleaching events fueled by climate change can be deadly for reefs. Bleach-resistant corals could save reefs facing complete extinction. — The massive bleaching event at Australia’s Great Barrier Reef was probably a headline you came across this past year. The reef experienced its third major bleaching event in the past five years, thought to be the largest bleaching event ever recorded. Previous to 2020, the 2016 bleaching event was the…

New research says this is the negative impact of more than six cups of black gold. — Just about everyone here in the bright, sunny city of Seattle loves a good cup of joe. And while it may not always be sunny, there will always be a different local coffee shop on every corner of the emerald city. But drinking too much of that good, good bean…

Recent video shows a tortoise stalking, killing, and eating a baby bird. Could life be more upside-down? — Turtles and tortoises have a long history in human depictions as being patient, wise, powerful, and easygoing… but maybe it’s a lie? A video taken by a conservation and sustainability manager of a local nature reserve on Frégate Island in the Seychelles, an archipelago off of east Africa, showed a…

Ancient Aztecs knew the importance of these tiny seeds centuries before they hit grocery shelves worldwide. — Chia seeds have been in the news a lot lately thanks to their numerous health benefits. They’ve being touted as a weight-loss miracle, a superfood, a heart-healthy alternative and constipation miracle. And the science backs up a number of these claims. Studies have shown they’re a great source of antioxidants…

An essay on my year of disability and coming back to running — and myself. I’ve always been an avid runner, hiker, cyclist, and overall active person. Until a debilitating back injury stopped me from moving for almost a year. In early September 2020 I woke up and couldn’t get…