Dawn was breaking over the lagoon when I looked down and saw one of the oldest life forms on earth. It wasn't much to look at. Lumpy, white, and sitting just below the surface of the water, it resembled an overgrown cauliflower. But its appearance notwithstanding, this was one of the most remarkable objects I had ever encountered. "It's called a stromatolite," my burly and ebullient guide, Edwin Ruiz, explained as he nursed his flask of morning coffee.
The 2025 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition celebrated its 22nd edition by showcasing the breathtaking beauty and delicate state of the natural world.
Firing off rapid keck-keck-keck cries that rang out through a park in central Berlin, the goshawks soared high above the trees and circled before swooping down to chase off a ragtag bunch of crows that had begun to mob them from below. It's basically a flying Batman bringing law and order to the city, said the conservationist Dr Paul O'Donoghue, peering through binoculars at two breeding pairs of the large pale-bellied birds as they dipped and dived through the sky. They're like stealth bombers.
Then the Goethe Lakes, Goethe Peak and what's left of the Goethe Glacier. This is the Glacial Divide, beyond which lies Evolution Valley, where I hiked as a 20-something on the John Muir Trail - a blissful 26 days beyond the range of communication, during which we carried everything we needed on our backs, along with a few things we didn't really need but wanted anyway. No one had cellphones back then.
I write about birds because I love them, others love them, and they inspire hope for conservation of the natural world. Habitat saved for birds also benefits insects, snakes, spiders, and plants. For me, slowing down and watching what birds do is wonderful, so I first wrote Slow Birding. That book espoused the joy of birding close to home. This book, The Social Lives of Birds, shares some of the most interesting things a slow birder might look for anywhere in the world.
In a classroom in the Sherman Fairchild Laboratory Building, 6-year-old Marianne Cullen was starting to get the jitters. She was about to meet her favorite scientist, regenerative biologist and axolotl researcher Jessica Whited. "You might have to hold me up, in case I faint," the Springfield first-grader told her parents, Kat Demetrion and Robert Cullen, as she clutched her pink axolotl stuffie tightly in her lap.
Everyone wants to save the bees. Angelina Jolie put on a beekeeping suit for Guerlain and David Beckham proudly presented the King with a pot of honey from his bees in Oxfordshire. So many people wanting to do good have set up hives in their gardens or on roofs that they have become a symbol of sustainability. Of course, farming honeybees is a great way to make delicious honey, but there is a sting in the tail keeping hives doesn't help wild pollinators.
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
Colossal Biosciences said on Wednesday it has succeeded in growing pigeon primordial germ cells, precursor cells to sperm and eggs, for the first time. This is a pivotal step in bringing back the dodo, which was a type of pigeon, for the first time in more than 300 years, according to Colossal. The Texas-based company, which has made splashy headlines for its plans to reestablish wooly mammoths and dire wolves, said it has also developed gene-edited chickens that will act as surrogates for the dodos.
Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District is has $300,000 in funding available through its 2025 Grantmaking Program. Public agencies, nonprofits and educational institutions are invited to submit pre-proposals for projects that further scientific understanding of the natural world, build capacity in the conservation field or support nature-focused access, interpretation and/or education for the public. There are two award tiers: Tier 1 is for projects up to $30,000 and Tier 2 will fund projects between $30,001 and $60,000.
Nearly half the country is covered by forest, most of it publicly owned and lots available for exploring. Folks who want to experience Canada's wild should beeline to one of its famed preserves. And this month, National Geographic released a handy list of 10 national parks in Canada you need to visit, with details on each place's attractions and best seasons.
The kiwi is New Zealand's most iconic bird. Round and fuzzy, the bird is flightless and has a long beak that makes it adorable or awkward, depending on who you ask. New Zealanders are even known as "kiwis." Still, despite the kiwi's fame, many people in New Zealand have never seen one. Kiwi have become increasingly rare. Over the last century, New Zealand's unique birds have disappeared at a rapid pace.
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
"Conservation is a team sport," says DeJong, "We need more players and now are hoping that naming these two animals after our beloved Blue Jays provides us with another way to get the community excited about two of our city's great passions - baseball and conservation."
I was immediately seduced by the silence and the immense landscape. There's something beautiful about it: You feel like a very small person, you're made vulnerable, and you realize you don't mean that much in the world. It was the start of winter and the temperature was 20 degrees below zero, but I couldn't really feel the cold because I was so excited to be part of this journey that I forgot about everything else.
