Planet Earth II: why most animals can't hack city living

Dec 10, 2016 02:48 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

The grand finale of the BBCs Planet Earth II showcased the ingenious strategies that some animals use to thrive in urban environments. Though impressive, these species are in the minority. As the number of people living in...

Pavlov's plants: new study shows plants can learn from experience

Dec 08, 2016 10:30 am UTC| Nature

The first time I met the Australian evolutionary ecologist Monica Gagliano, she was wearing colourful paisley trousers and was giving an animated talk at a 2014 environmental humanities conference in Canberra. Despite...

New Study Could Lead To Drought-Resistant Crops, Christmas Trees Die Due To Dry Spell

Dec 06, 2016 07:58 am UTC| Nature

Scientists managed to find genetic properties of plants that can allow them to resist extreme drought and provide food even with limited water. This is an extremely important development amid increasingly devastating...

Climate Change Series

Nitrogen pollution: the forgotten element of climate change

Dec 04, 2016 19:21 pm UTC| Nature

While carbon pollution gets all the headlines for its role in climate change, nitrogen pollution is arguably a more challenging problem. Somehow we need to grow more food to feed an expanding population while minimising...

How the pursuit of carbon and fossil fuels harms vulnerable communities

Dec 04, 2016 19:19 pm UTC| Nature

2016 is set to be the hottest year on record. Global temperatures are already 1,2C above pre-industrial levels, and total reductions in emissions, committed by individual countries, far exceed globally agreed targets. This...

Planet Earth II: why more than 200,000 saiga antelopes died in just days

Dec 04, 2016 19:17 pm UTC| Nature

On the remote steppes of central Kazakhstan, a truly extraordinary and tragic event unfolded in May 2015. Female saigas gathered in huge numbers to give birth on the open plain over a period of just 10 days and a BBC...

Climate Change Series

How can the UK government meet its legal air pollution targets?

Dec 04, 2016 02:17 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Each year, air pollution contributes to around 25,000 deaths in the UK. Its a shocking statistic. By law, the government is obliged to cut high levels of harmful gases in the shortest possible time, yet in November the...