Conservation (Page 3)

Protecting natural resources—from sea to sky—is about much more than planting a few trees.

Latest in Conservation

African penguin chick close-up

Aquarium welcomes third endangered penguin chick in less than a month

a cave painting of two warty pigs

Pigs have been island hopping for 50,000 years

By Laura Baisas

a yellow flag with a coiled rattle snake and the words "dont tread on me"Gadsden Flag, Vikkram, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0.

How the timber rattlesnake became a symbol of American independence

By Laura Baisas

two smuggled spider monkeys hugging

Baby spider monkeys rescued in Texas

By Laura Baisas

Anti-icing chemicals in winter season. Street treated with technical salt or de-icing chemicals, closeup view. Effective tool to fight ice on surfaces. Rock salt on road.

Stop using so much sidewalk salt

By Alisha McDarris

Pair of African penguin chicks

Newborn African penguin named after a hot dog

A pink octopus squid floating upside down spotted by MBARI researchers

Dive into 2025’s most stunning deep-sea wildlife encounters

Water flowing through the Hamlin Lake Dam in Ludington Michigan.

2,500 ‘high-risk’ U.S. dams are sinking into the ground

a mother polar bear walking on ice with two cubs behind her

Rare polar bear adoption could save cub’s life

By Laura Baisas

‘Mr. Fezziwig's Ball,’ an 1843 illustration by John Leech for ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens. This novella was the earliest and most popular of Dickens' Christmas stories. The kissing under mistletoe (left) and evergreen decoration hanging from the ceiling are vestiges of pre-Christian winter rites.

A history of mistletoe: The parasitic ‘dung on a twig’

A cross sectional image of an actively growing microbialite from South Africa.

‘Living rocks’ suck up a lot of carbon

By Laura Baisas

a small orange frog sits on a pencil tip for scale

Teeny tiny orange toadlet found in Brazil

By Laura Baisas

a big group of oysters still in the shell

Pills, powders, and opioids stress out oyster babies

By Laura Baisas

several red and beige mushroom-like plants growing at the base of a tree

Asexual parasitic plants break biology’s rules

By Laura Baisas

Denman Glacier in Antarctica

Underwater robot survives voyage to ‘never-accessed region of the planet’

a dead sperm whale floats among ice while a polar bear floats on the whale

5 captivating images from National Geographic’s Pictures of the Year

By Popular Science Team

German hairy snails are disappearing from London’s River Thames

By Margherita Bassi

A close-up, colorized photograph of a middle-aged man with a stern expression and a thick, reddish-brown beard. He is superimposed over a faded, beige background of densely printed, historical text, suggesting he is a figure related to the document's content, which appears to discuss Cattalo or Beefalo (a cow and buffalo hybrid), based on the filename.

The strange Wild West tale of the first cow-buffalo hybrid

By Bill Gourgey

This is a type of animal that is related to land spiders but does not belong to that group. They can grow to the size of a palm in the deep sea around Antarctica, but this particular species is only a few millimeters in size Photo: Natural History Museum, London & Göteborgs universitet

Deep sea mining test uncovered multiple new species

Ruby the turtle needs a new greenhouse. Dance companies are stepping up.

By Laura Baisas

Close up of young rhesus macaque monkey eating peanut

Escaped lab monkey finds new home at New Jersey animal sanctuary

an bird with white and black feathers called an albatross

Record-breaking 75-year-old mother bird prepares to nest

By Laura Baisas

a close up of evergreen branches

How the evergreen shaped America

By Trent Preszler

a monkey with its hand over its mouth

10 captivating images from National Geographic’s Photo Ark

By Popular Science Team

Close up of glossy black wolf snake

New wolf snake honors the late Steve Irwin

Close up of Calumma gallus chameleon. Males of Calumma gallus have a nasal appendage with distinct spines.

No lie. The long-nosed Pinocchio chameleon is multiple species.

a small brown and white owl on a brown towel

Alaska’s smallest owl gets the royal treatment after life-threatening injury

By Margherita Bassi

two black whales under water. one is diving down the other is looking at a camera head on

Hawaii’s short-finned pilot whales eat over 77,000 squid a year

By Laura Baisas

person petting a turtle

Trafficked turtles get a second chance at life in New Jersey sanctuary

By Laura Baisas

a sunrise over a desert landscape

13 perfect panoramic images from the 2025 Epson International Pano awards

By Popular Science Team

AI created video of bunnies on a trampoline

AI videos of animals could be dangerous. Here’s how to spot them.

By Margherita Bassi

Close up of tree toad

These toads don’t start as tadpoles

Seized ivory and rhino tusks photographed by law enforcement

Endangered rhino horns and elephant tusks seized in California

a bird with white and gray plummage

Rare seabird saved after swallowing four large fishhooks

By Laura Baisas

P. Mikazuki Portuguese Man O'War

Portuguese Man O’War species honors ‘One-Eyed Dragon’ samurai

Eastern hellbender salamander underwater in river

Hellbender salamanders are huge—and in trouble

A dark, grainy infrared or night-vision security camera image shows a mouse or rat on a ledge or windowsill, grappling with and biting a flying bat. The bat is visible on the left, upside down in mid-air with its wings spread, as the rodent lunges at it. The entire scene is dominated by shades of white and gray against a dark background.

Caught on camera: Rats hunting bats mid-flight

a zombie worm, it is long and cylindrical with tentacles

Zombie worms have gone missing

By Laura Baisas

Screenshot of ROV video showing icefish nests on floor of Weddell Sea

The quest to find Shackleton’s ship uncovered an Antarctic mystery

Two close up shots of two tube-nosed bat species

Six new bat species discovered in the Philippines

a dolphin blowing bubbles under water

Dolphins may be getting an Alzheimer’s-like disease due to this neurotoxin

By Margherita Bassi

Awa Guajá couple, family of Takarentia, only contacted 5 days before this picture was taken, 1992.

Half of all uncontacted Indigenous tribes may disappear by 2036

A red cusk-eel burrowed in among tubeworms at a methane seep off the coast of El Quisco in central Chile. Credit: Schmidt Ocean Institute

Tiny spider crabs snack on parasites from Chile’s favorite fish

World’s only flightless parrot doing okay against ‘crusty bum’ disease

By Laura Baisas

Big bison in the National Park on the shore of a lake or river

This national park uses helicopters for bison round-up duty

a glowing green capped mushroom

13 fascinating fungi photos that’ll really grow on you

By Popular Science Team

ROV screenshot of dive to Titan submersible debris on ocean floor

OceanGate’s ‘Titan’ went on 7 dives with a damaged hull before implosion

Security camera footage of bear entering grocery store in Japan

Bears have attacked over 100 people in Japan since March

a baby sea turtle crawling on sand

Green sea turtle no longer Endangered

By Laura Baisas

Selection of overripe avocados against yellow background

AI may help you pick the perfect avocado

ASU marine biologist and conservation scientist Jesse Senko fishes a solar-powered illuminated net off the coast of Baja California Sur, Mexico.

Saving sea turtles with solar-powered fishing nets

By Laura Baisas

bat hanging upside down from tree branch at night

Why do bats spread so many diseases? They’re evolutionary marvels.

a lobster with orange and black coloring

Rare 1-in-30-million calico lobster makes her spooky debut

By Laura Baisas

two baby rabbits sit in an open box with grass

15 baby rabbits born at an NYC zoo released in New England

By Margherita Bassi

Research team lowering Redwing submersible into ocean from a boat

Self-piloting submarine set to begin historic mission to circle Earth’s oceans

two baby komodo dragons

These butter-sized hatchlings will someday be the biggest lizards on Earth

By Margherita Bassi

An overhead shot of a human composting vessel, which resembles a long, rectangular planter box with a light wooden frame. The interior contains a layer of straw, wood chips, and organic material, with colorful pink and purple flowers scattered throughout. A white cloth-wrapped form rests in the center.

How human composting turns bodies into soil

By Jennifer Byrne

a set of billiard balls on a pool table

How billiard balls led to plastic everywhere

By Avery Schluyer Nunn

Front and rear view of small porcelain crab

Newly discovered deep-sea lanternshark glows in the waters near Australia

a purple octopus on the bottom of the ocean

13 inspiring photos of thriving deep-sea animals

By Popular Science Team

Close up view of bearded vulture

Multi-generational vulture nests hold 700 years of human artifacts

a toilet in the woods, covered by wooden panels

World’s first mushroom-powered toilet could replace stinky porta-potties

By Margherita Bassi

Several starfish hang out on a cream-colored piece of discarded metal under the sea.

Sunken WWII bombs make a surprising home for sea life

a sea otter with its paw on its head

6 fun photos to celebrate Sea Otter Awareness week

By Popular Science Team