The strange tale of the American woodpecker that came back to life, at least for a little while
As North America’s mighty Mississippi River meanders southward to its terminus in the Gulf of Mexico, it creates a range of spectacular wetland habitats unlike anywhere else on Earth. Bayous, swamps, and bottomland hardwood forests thrive on the fertile alluvial soils of the Mississippi floodplains, which are saturated by regular to near-permanent flooding. These primeval … Continued
Obamacare Mk.II: US President sanctions world's largest ever ecologically protected zone
President Obama has just celebrated the centenary of the US National Park Service (NPS) by massively expanding a national marine monument in Hawaii, where he was born. The newly super-sized Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument now sprawls across 582,578 square miles of blue ocean around the uninhabited northwestern islands of Hawaii, making it officially the planet’s … Continued
Have you ever seen a blue-green farm? They're not quite what you'd expect
The farms of the future can’t feasibly resemble those of yesteryear in size, shape, or form. In fact, they may not even be on land. It only takes a few minutes chatting with Bren Smith, Executive Director and founder of GreenWave—the 501c3 non-profit organisation behind a revolutionary new 3D ocean farming technique—to realise this man’s … Continued
Wilderness loving adventurer surfs around erupting volcano
Adventurer, environmentalist and wildlife advocate Alison Teal has just become the first person to surf and swim around the base of an erupting volcano. In extraordinary scenes captured by underwater photographer Perrin James, Teal rode her pink surfboard up to Hawaii’s Kīlauea Volcano as it spewed glowing red molten rock into the ocean, and then … Continued
What would YOU do if the government seized your land?
What would you do if a giant energy corporation decided to build a controversial oil pipeline right across your land? For David Daniel, a Texas landowner and environmentalist whose property was chosen as a construction site for TransCanada’s country-spanning Keystone XL pipeline, there was no question about the right course of action. He had to … Continued
Drones to open fire on ferrets…with peanut butter-smeared sweets
The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has come up with a unique plan to try and save a community of highly endangered of black-footed ferrets in Montana: they’re going to use a drone to shoot M&Ms at them. The sweet treats will be coated in a mixture of peanut butter and a vaccine that … Continued
Close encounters of the grizzly kind (or, how to survive a bear attack)
As bear populations make a comeback, many of the same issues that initially helped cement their decline are rearing their ugly head once more. Namely unfortunate human-bear encounters. Yet despite the gnarly attack stories making headlines, including some stories we’ve covered here at Love Nature, most bears want nothing to do with people. In fact, … Continued
10 of America’s weirdest animals
Thanks to the work of Louis Theroux and other fearless documentarians, we know that America is home to the occasional eccentric human. But what about the world of animals? Surely there are some stateside critters with equally unusual ways of life? You bet. There are all kinds of bizarre animals living in the deserts, rivers and prairies … Continued
Shark researchers race to name new species before they are lost to science
A team of researchers from the Pacific Shark Research Center in California is racing to name newly-discovered species before they are wiped out by overfishing. The Center’s director Dr. David Ebert and graduate students Jessica Jang, Kristin Walovich and Victoria Elena Vásquez have turned to the crowdfunding site experiment.com in search of backing for their … Continued
Common markets. Exploring the ethics and idiosyncrasies of live animal markets, near and far, old and new
A friend of mine recently came across a live owl for sale in a market in Bali, South East Asia. The nocturnal bird was scrunched up in tiny cage, left out in the brutal heat and unforgiving sunlight of the day. Incensed at seeing such a magnificent creature being kept in the most miserable circumstances, … Continued
Exploring the haunt of the ghost bear
Starting in the vast, roadless, volcano-pockmarked Katmai National Park and Preserve in southwest Alaska, where earthquakes happen on a daily basis and gigantic grizzlies roam around at the very apex of the food chain, the stunning new film The Search for Ghost Bears takes viewers on a jaw-dropping journey to the cloud forests of British … Continued
Great horned owl hugs her rescuer and won't let go
Vancleave, Mississippi—Approximately one month ago, GiGi was on death’s door. The great horned owl was suffering from massive head trauma due to a collision with a motor vehicle. She was brought in to the Wild at Heart Rescue, a group that specialises in helping Mississippi’s sick, injured and orphaned wildlife, but staff did not think … Continued
Child's apology note helps spread message of nature preservation
Kids say the darnedest things, and we often overlook the importance of their words. However, the staff at the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks were so touched by the note they received from a young visitor, they just had to share the child’s message. In the note, which has gained traction on the park’s … Continued
Grizzlies and polar bears are crossbreeding because of climate change, creating a new hybrid species
Climate change is blamed for many things these days, but one of the weirder consequences of a warming Earth is an increased number of incidents when grizzlies get jiggy with polar bears. Yep. If you go down to the woods today you really won’t believe your eyes. Officially, the result of such mixed-species mating shenanigans … Continued
Exploring what happens when you make an animal 'un-endangered' again
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is recommending that Yellowstone National Park’s iconic grizzly bear population be delisted as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. And just last year another classic American bear, the Louisiana black bear— inspiration behind the world famous teddy bear— underwent the same process. There’s been public outcry over … Continued
These insects only emerge once every 17 years: Meet the man who's been watching them since 1965
For the first time in a generation, the month of May will bring the emergence of the 17-year cicada to Summit County, Ohio. Dubbed ‘Brood V’, these red, incredibly noisy but completely harmless insects only emerge from the earth in swarms once the soil reaches 64 degrees, eight inches below the surface. The two-inch-long critters—not to be mistaken … Continued
Nature’s greatest mysteries
There are natural mysteries all over the world. In the past, our ancestors attributed them to the workings of gods and goddesses. Today, science has provided an explanation for most of them, yet questions remain about many natural phenomenon that we just don’t know the answers to. Here are 10 examples of nature’s greatest mysteries that … Continued
10 awe-inspiring natural wonders to visit via Google Maps
Nothing beats experiencing nature first hand. Whether you’re standing in the shadows of a vast geological monument, witnessing wild animals up close or soaking up the ambience of some remote untouched wilderness, no one’s yet found a way to fully replicate our planet’s most amazing spectacles through technology. That said, not everyone has the budget … Continued
New Alaskan butterfly with antifreeze in its blood tells tales about climate change
A newly identified Alaskan butterfly, which is thought to be a hybrid of two ancient species that possibly mated prior to the last ice age, could be a valuable messenger for scientists studying climate change, according to a leading lepidopterist (butterfly boffin). But that’s not its only trick. Butterflies are cold-blooded creatures (although they have … Continued
Russia revives combat dolphin programme
As relations between Eastern and Western superpowers continue to cool, Russia looks poised to restart a programme mothballed after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, which once saw dolphins and other intelligent marine mammals used for military missions. Accessing the government’s procurement website, Russian reporters revealed that an … Continued
These unbelievable photos capture the staggering natural landscapes of Utah
America has more than its fair share of famous landscapes. From the sun-drenched coastlines and clifftops of California to the vibrant autumnal forests and shimmering lakes of New England, the US is a country filled with natural wonders. However, of all the amazing landscapes to explore in America, Utah’s might be the most spectacular. This … Continued
SeaWorld era of performing orcas is effectively dead and buried
American aquatic theme-park empire, SeaWorld, has just announced that it will stop breeding orcas in captivity with immediate effect, and will begin phasing out its killer whale theatrical shows. The move comes after several years of very high-profile negative coverage and controversy, including claims of mistreatment of orcas, which began in earnest following the death … Continued
Spider sex: A scary world of bondage and cannibalism
Contrary to popular belief, being a spiderman sucks. Not only is your prospective mate often many times bigger than you, but after sex there’s a fair chance she’s going to kill and eat you. Being on the wrong end of an act of post-coitus cannibalisation is a genuine concern for many male arachnids, with their … Continued
Why I like birds, by Commander Holly
This is Holly Conrad, aka Commander Holly. She makes monsters, does cosplay, games, and generally saves the galaxy. She’s a prolific YouTuber, Instagrammer and Twitterer, and also a big-time bird lover. At Love Nature we have to admit we didn’t know all that much about the hobby of bird fancying until we met Holly, so to keep our viewers in … Continued
American tigers for sale
Want to know a frightening fact? There may be more captive tigers in the United States than left in the Asian wild. And these American tigers aren’t being born and bred in accredited zoos or academic settings, they’re backyard big cats. You read the headline right—thousands of tigers and lions are being privately held on … Continued
Exploring the extreme resourcefulness of animals that live at the 'dry limit of life'
As far as we know, water is fundamental to all life on this planet. But there are places on Earth that receive as little as 0.76 mm of rainfall a year and have no open freshwater sources. To live in these extremely arid environments, evolution has favoured those able to adjust to life with little water, … Continued