Woodcut of a badger, 1551

Hooray, Hooray for Badger Day!!

Striped-faced, short-legged badgers appear in folklore and tall tales around the world.
"Fresh, red cloves grow on the branch, green leaves. Zanzibar, Tanzania"

Cloves: The Spice that Enriched Empires

Behind one humble spice lies a complex history of empires and profit, commodities and globalization.
White Pines in Cathedral Woods, Intervale, White Mountains, N. H

Tree of Peace, Spark of War

The white pines of New England may have done more than any leaf of tea to kick off the American Revolution.
Nature Morte Aux Citrons, 1918 by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

When French Citrus Colonized Algeria

The citrus industry in Algeria honed French imperial apparatuses and provided a means for France to define and shape the behavior of its colonial subjects.
Carolina Parakeet, 1825

Out with a Whimper

Some species go extinct obviously and fast, but just as often, the process can be hard to detect until it’s too late.
A bag of freshly picked potatoes in the field.

Potato Power!

How the potato changed the course of world history…twice.
A trio of woolly mammoths trudges over snow covered hills. Behind them, mountains with snow covered peaks rise above dark green forests of fir trees. 3D Rendering

Did Inbreeding Cause the Woolly Mammoth’s Extinction?

Research suggests it was more sudden than that.
Eoraptor lunensis lived roughly 230 million years ago, at a time when dinosaurs were small and rare.

Growing Quickly Helped the Earliest Dinosaurs

Rapid growth also helped other ancient reptiles flourish in the aftermath of mass extinction.
Sheep are seen while being transported in Fremantle Harbour on June 16, 2020 in Fremantle, Australia.

The Long History of Live Animal Export

The practice of live animal export from Australia is controversial and complex, and it has a longer history than you might realize.
The Vivisection of Humans, 1899

The Dangers of Animal Experimentation—for Doctors

Nineteenth-century opponents of vivisection warned that the practice could make researchers and physicians callous toward all living creatures.