Articles for category: Ecology

Urban Heat Islands Making Everything Worse

This Heatwave Shattered Every Arizona Record

Jan Otte

Arizona just witnessed something unprecedented. What started as an unusual March warm-up has become a year-defining weather disaster that’s literally breaking the thermometer. Phoenix hit 99°F in March and triple-digit days arrived by April – weeks earlier than usual, setting the stage for what scientists are calling an “uncharted territory” of heat. The searing conditions ...

Rana sylvatica frog on green moss in close up photography during daytime.

This Frog Freezes Solid Every Winter — and Then Comes Back to Life

Trizzy Orozco

Imagine a world where you could survive being frozen solid, heart stopped, blood turned to ice, and then—just like magic—wake up and hop away with barely a scratch. It sounds like a wild plot twist in a sci-fi movie, but for one tiny resident of North America’s forests, it’s just another winter. The wood frog ...

How Lightning Shapes the DNA of Trees in Tropical Storm Zones

How Lightning Shapes the DNA of Trees in Tropical Storm Zones

Annette Uy

Imagine standing in a dense, vibrant rainforest as a thunderstorm rolls in, the air charged with energy and anticipation. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning cracks through the sky, slamming into a towering tree. In that instant, something astonishing happens—not just a fiery scar or a splintered trunk, but a silent, invisible transformation within the tree’s ...

Bats That Still Roam Kentucky's Hidden Caves

Bats That Still Roam Kentucky’s Hidden Caves

Jan Otte

Deep beneath Kentucky’s rolling hills lies a mysterious underground world that most people will never see. Here, in the darkness of ancient limestone caves, a drama of survival plays out every single day that would shock even the most nature-loving visitors. The Commonwealth is home to some of America’s most endangered flying mammals, and their ...