Environment
UK government proposes ban on bottom trawling in Marine Protected Areas
Government proposals to ban bottom trawling in more vulnerable marine habitats aim to protect important and rare underwater life.
Lost-long ‘singing’ insect returns to Britain after vanishing three decades ago
Once extinct in Britain, the New Forest cicada has been reintroduced to Hampshire thanks to a groundbreaking conservation project.
Community-led conservation offers new hope for the world's most trafficked mammal
A new action plan unites experts and communities to protect pangolins in southern Africa.
Dark taxa: why scientists are desperate to know more about this secret network of underground life
Huge numbers of subterranean fungi remain unknown to science, posing problems for conservation around the world, say researchers in a new study.
Researchers catch more than 100 swamp alligators in Georgia – and find something worrying in their blood
The discovery raises concerns for US wildlife, waterways and human health, according to a new study.
"They were going nuts in the wake of the storm”: hurricane causes epic explosion of life off Mexican coast
There was so much life in the ocean that the water turned green, say scientists who witnessed the rare event. Here's what happened...
Sixth extinction could be far more catastrophic than first thought
For millions of years, large herbivores like mastodons and giant deer shaped the Earth's ecosystems, which astonishingly stayed stable despite extinctions and upheavals. But this will not be the case this time says Helen Pilcher
Coastal wolf found dead in lair on Alaskan island – dissection reveals curious thing that caused it
Scientists investigating the coastal wolf's death tested tissue samples for viruses, disease, algal toxins and contaminants. Here's what they found...
Scientists have filmed anchor damage in the Antarctic for the first time. Here’s what they saw
Researchers filmed the damage caused by ships’ anchors in Antarctica, in a scientific first
There's a mysterious spinning island in Argentina that's a perfect circle – and scientists know why
Approximately 120 metres wide, the floating island of El Ojo sits in Paraná Delta in the Province of Buenos Aires.
This country is the most biodiverse on Earth – although scientists don't know exactly why
Ever wondered which country has the most species? Stuart Blackman takes a look
Smallest otter in the world rediscovered in Nepal after 185-year absence
The rediscovery of the Asian short-clawed otter in Nepal comes at the halfway point of a three-year otter conservation project on the Lower Karnali River.
"Staggering" butterfly boom in Scotland a sign of hope, say conservationists
Conservation efforts and a warm spring have sparked a population "explosion" for the small blue butterfly across the Scottish Highlands.
The ocean is getting darker. Here's what that means for life on Earth
One-fifth of the global ocean has become darker in the past 20 years, impacting marine ecosystems that depend on sunlight, scientists reveal in a new study
What a mysterious new cave creature means for Bermuda’s underworld
The newly described animal reveals just how much of our planet’s subterranean life is still waiting to be discovered.
Raccoons among invasive species that could threaten British wildlife in next 10 years – new report
Pink salmon, pine wood nematodes and purple Asian clams also pose a potential threat, according to a recent report by the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.
Nemo is shrinking: climate change is causing Disney's favourite fish to get skinnier and shorter
Clownfish, made famous by the movie Finding Nemo, shrink to survive heat stress and avoid social conflict during marine heatwaves, a new study finds.
Scuba divers went into a tidal cave in Bermuda and found a segmented creature lurking in the darkness
The cave-dwelling animal, which is new to science, highlights the fragility of the island's subterranean habitats, say scientists.
“They eat everything – anything that fits into their mouth”: how scientists solved a deadly issue in the deep valleys of Yosemite
Northwestern pond turtles are one of several native species making a comeback in the US national park thanks to the removal of invasive American bullfrogs, a new study has found.
This immense, 2-metre high, 700kg animal with huge antlers could soon return to the UK – here's how
It has been 3,000 years since the world’s largest deer species went extinct in the UK – now there are plans to bring the elk back.
13 amazing images from this year's Environmental Photography Award
Worms violently flushing sand out of their burrows wins top environmental photography prize.
It’s snowing underwater? How in the great depths of the ocean there's a constant blizzard of snow
Did you know it never stops 'snowing' in the ocean?
Massive marine sanctuary the size of Yosemite created in the South Atlantic Ocean
Patagonia Azul Provincial Park aims to protect one of the most biodiverse areas of the South Atlantic, home to whales, sea lions and over 50 species of seabirds.
“A new layer of complexity”: scientists record bioelectrical tree communication during solar eclipse
A new study carried out in Italy's Dolomite Mountains provides further evidence that trees are capable of complex communication, say researchers.