Environment
“An understanding of the natural world and what’s in it is a source of not only a great curiosity but great fulfillment.”
Plantwatch: the Natal crocus co-opts fire, bees and ants to reproduce
Perhaps the biggest surprise is that it tricks ants into moving its seeds with a scent that mimics their larvae. Plants are superb at enticing animals to pollinate their flowers or carry off their seeds. But one plant co-opts an astonishing combination of fire, bees and ants to mastermind its reproduction.
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Source. theguardian.com, 18.03.2026
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Ultrasound repellers could keep hedgehogs off roads, scientists hope
Study shows animals hear very high frequencies, making it possible to design a deterrent to cut deaths. Hedgehogs have been discovered to hear high-frequency ultrasound, raising hopes that they could be deterred from dangerous roads with ultrasound repellers. Vehicles are estimated to kill up to one in three hedgehogs, a big factor in the much-loved mammal’s drastic decline across Europe over recent decades.
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Source. theguardian.com, 11.03.2026
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‘I love midges because I know what their hearts look like’: is the passion for taxonomy in danger of dying out?
Insect taxonomist Art Borkent has described and named more than 300 species of midges but fears his field of science is dying out, despite millions of insects, fungi and other organisms waiting to be discovered. Once Art Borkent starts speaking about biting midges, he rarely pauses for breath. Holding up a picture of a gnat trapped in amber from the time of the dinosaurs, the 72-year-old taxonomist explains that there are more than 6,000.
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Source. theguardian.com, 02.03.2026
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Fifty years after New Zealand stopped whaling, humpback population showing signs of recovery
More than half a century after the last whale was caught and killed in New Zealand, humpbacks are showing promising signs of recovery. An international study involving researchers from the University of Auckland shows humpback breeding is getting more competitive, which suggests the population is growing. University of Auckland marine biologist Dr Emma Carroll had been working with researchers in New Caledonia.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 05.03.2026
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Sea level rise 'a very complicated area of science', renowned climate scientist says
It's not something many of us are born with, being okay with uncertainty. Climate scientist Dr Tamsin Edwards has made it her day job. She's listed among hundreds of authors from all over the world on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report, is about to begin work on the seventh. She's given climate change talks at Glastonbury, and appears on the BBC Radio 4 podcast "39 Ways to Save the Planet".
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 11.11.2025
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Seascape: the state of our oceans. How do you move a village? Residents of France’s last outpost in North America try to outrun the sea
As rising tides eat away at the Saint-Pierre and Miquelon archipelago off Canada, plans to move the historic village to higher ground have divided residents. ranck Detcheverry, Miquelon’s trudges up a grassy hill. The ocean sparkles 40 metres below the empty mound. The sound of a man playing the bagpipes, as if serenading the sea, floats up from the shoreline. This hill will be the location of his new home and those of all his fellow villagers.
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Source. theguardian.com, 28.10.2025
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False katipō spider invades, thrives against native species
A group of Kiwi researchers have held a spider Olympics to get to the bottom of exactly how much of a competitive advantage introduced false katipō have over New Zealand's native katipō. The false katipō are actually black cobweb spiders, originally from South Africa. James Roberts - who is pursuing his conservation biology PhD from Sydney - told Saturday Morning the false katipō appeared to be more adventurous than its Kiwi counterpart.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 18.10.2025
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Indonesia's Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki erupts, spewing ash 10km into the sky
Indonesia's Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki erupted on Wednesday, shooting volcanic ash 10km into the sky, the country's volcanology agency said, forcing authorities to raise the alert system to its highest level. Located in East Nusa Tenggara province, the volcano erupted on Wednesday at 1.35am (local time) for around nine minutes, the country's Geological Agency said in a statement. It erupted again on Wednesday morning at 9.21am (local time).
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 16.10.2025
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A new island erupted from the sea – can it show us how nature works without human interference?
The volcanic island of Surtsey emerged in the 1960s, and scientists say studying its development offers hope for damaged ecosystems worldwide. The crew of the Ísleifur II had just finished casting their nets off the coast of southern Iceland when they realised something was wrong. In the early morning gloom in November 1963, a dark mass filled the sky over the Atlantic Ocean.
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Source. theguardian.com, 13.10.2025
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Stormwater solutions could be lying in our soil
Lost in Auckland's push for development has been the need to preserve the sort of sub-soil that absorbs water and encourages trees to grow. Sue Ira has brought her spade along to an appointment with The Detail. But she didn't have to do much digging to provide a stark demonstration of the problem she's researching - the effect tightly-compacted ground has on soaking up water and encouraging trees to grow tall.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 11.10.2025
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Conservation pioneer Dame Jane Goodall remembered as 'incredible human'
New Zealanders have remembered scientist and global activist Dame Jane Goodall as a hero, a pioneer and an incredible human being. Goodall was a world-renowned conservationist, primatologist and ethnologist, but also a UN Messenger of Peace. She was perhaps best known for her ground breaking study in the 1960s on the chimpanzees of the Gombe, in Tanzania, which altered forever the accepted definition of humanity.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 02.10.2025
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Our Changing World: The Lough Hyne sponge mystery
Lying prone over the edge of the jetty Gabi Wood lifts a small grey tile from a metal cage into a bucket of water. Tied to the tile is a small piece of bright yellow marine sponge - Cliona celata. After a few weeks of healing after being snipped from a 'donor sponge', it's ready to go to its new home. It's not going far, but this could be an important step in helping sponge communities to recover in Ireland's oldest and most renowned marine reserve.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 30.09.2025
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Our Changing World: Detecting cow burps from space
Somewhere in Earth's orbit, a mini-fridge-sized satellite weighing 350 kg is lost, unable to be contacted. Named MethaneSAT, the satellite was built to precisely detect emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas that is around 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period. Despite being in space for only one year of its planned three-to-five-year lifespan, MethaneSAT did yield useful data, according to Dr Sara Mikaloff-Fletcher.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 24.09.2025
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World’s biggest iceberg, A23A, has broken up
The world's largest iceberg is "rapidly breaking up" into several large "very large chunks," scientists from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) have said. Previously weighing nearly a trillion metric tonnes (1.1 trillion tons) and spanning an area of 3672 square kilometres - slightly bigger than Rhode Island - the A23a iceberg has been closely tracked by scientists ever since it calved from the Filchner-Ronne ice shelf in Antarctica in 1986.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 04.09.2025
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Watch: Controlled Milford Sound avalanche set off by explosives to reduce risks
Specialist teams are using explosives to trigger avalanches to try to reduce the risk for people driving to Milford Sound. The alpine highway from Te Anau to Milford Sound had been closed at times over the last few days because of snow and the avalanche risk. The Transport Agency said a specialist team had been using controlled explosives to release avalanches before they happened naturally.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 09.09.2025
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Fire in the hole: the Indigenous crews blasting the Alaskan rainforest to save it
After a historic land buyback by the US Forest Service, Tlingit crew members are demolishing culverts to restore streams, salmon runs and cultural history deep in the Tongass national forest. The morning begins with a sense of anticipation – the calm before 1,200lbs of explosives detonate a stream culvert buried 10ft in Alaska’s Tongass national forest. Jamie Daniels, 53, and his crew of Tlingit forestry workers take cover in a glade of alders.
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Source. theguardian.com, 17.08.2025
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Magic mushrooms: how scientists discovered fungi are the secret ingredient for restoring the world’s forests
Healthy fungal networks help trees and plants grow, making them key to successful reforestation. The only problem? Almost nothing is known about this subterranean ecology. ven in midsummer, the ancient hazelwoods on the Hebridean island of Seil are cool and quiet. Countless slanted stems of hazel support a thick canopy, which blots out the sun and blankets everything below in a sort of “fairytale darkness”, says Bethan Manley, a biologist.
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Source. theguardian.com, 15.08.2025
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Asian hornet’s unique buzz may hold secret to containing invasive species
Researchers say distinct frequency is ‘great news’ as it will allow their nests to be located with greater ease. Asian hornets buzz at a unique frequency that could be the key to controlling their spread, scientists have found, as the invasive species experiences a record year in the UK. Researchers have said this is “great news”, as the hornet nests can now be more quickly found and distinguished from those of other species.
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Source. theguardian.com, 08.08.2025
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Sleepy birds, quiet dawns: how noisy, bright city nights disrupt and change birdsong
We've all had a bad night's sleep, with a snoring partner, a crying baby or neighbours having too much fun. Sleep disturbances are common and have unpleasant consequences the day after, including feeling unmotivated and struggling to communicate. But it turns out we are not alone in this. Our new study reveals birds also suffer when their sleep is disrupted, and it shows in their singing.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 06.08.2025
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About 700m years ago, the Earth froze over entirely – now we may know why
Researchers believe huge volcanic eruptions, and the absence of plants, turned our planet into one giant snowball. It’s hard to believe, but about 700m years ago it’s thought that our planet completely froze over with little to no liquid ocean or lakes exposed to the atmosphere, even in the tropics. But what tipped Earth’s climate into “Snowball Earth” state? A new study suggests a cold climate and massive volcanic eruptions set the scene.
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Source. theguardian.com, 23.06.2025
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Earth’s underground networks of fungi need urgent protection, say researchers
Study finds that only 9.5% of fungal biodiversity hotspots fell within existing protected areas. The underground networks of fungi that underpin the planet’s ecosystems needs urgent conservation action by politicians, a research organisation has said. Scientists from the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (Spun) have created the first high-resolution biodiversity maps of Earth’s underground mycorrhizal fungal ecosystems.
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Source. theguardian.com, 23.06.2025
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Killer whales seen grooming each other with kelp in first for marine tool use
Behavior in orca population off coast of US and Canada captured by scientists using drone observation. Killer whales have been observed mutually grooming each other with a type of seaweed, the first known instance of a marine animal using tools in a way that was previously thought to be the preserve of primates such as humans.
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Source. theguardian.com, 23.06.2025
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Crafty curlews: birds eavesdrop on prairie dog calls to evade predators
Vulnerable grassland birds listen in to the social rodents warning of the many threats both species face. Prairie dogs bark to alert each other to the presence of predators, with different cries depending on whether the threat is airborne or approaching by land. But their warnings also seem to help a vulnerable grassland bird.
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Source. theguardian.com, 12.06.2025
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Like a Tom Cruise stunt: hawk uses traffic patterns to target prey
Researcher records Cooper’s hawk in New Jersey making use of pedestrian crossing and line of cars while hunting. It is a tactic worthy of Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt: wait until a beeping pedestrian crossing indicates a traffic queue has formed then use the line of cars as cover to reach your target. But this isn’t a scene from Mission: Impossible – it’s the behaviour of a young hawk.
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Source. theguardian.com, 23.05.2025
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Why dandelions should be left to grow in spring
These simple flowers, which bloom earlier than many others, are a rich source of nectar and pollen for insects. Dandelions are often seen by gardeners as burly thugs, but they do have their benefits. The flowers are rich in nectar and pollen, feeding pollinating insects, which have suffered steep declines in recent years. Numbers of flying insects in the UK have fallen by 78% since 2004, from a survey based on sampling vehicle number plates.
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Source. theguardian.com, 21.05.2025
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Burrowing into the mystery of Great Barrier Island's black petrels
Tracking what one of New Zealand's most vulnerable seabird species gets up to on the other side of the Pacific may help answer the question of why so many fledglings never return, a veteran researcher says. Juvenile black petrels (tāiko/tākoketai) hatched on Great Barrier Island - one of two remaining colonies - have just fledged from their burrows to undertake their maiden migration to the Galapagos Islands and the coast of Ecuador.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 15.05.2025
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Wetapunga: Older than dinosaurs and a little weird looking
If you had to design the scariest insect you can imagine - it might come out looking something like a Wētāpunga. The creatures grow to the size of a mouse or a sparrow, have beady black eyes with long antennae and legs covered in spikes. But while dinosaurs have come and gone, the wētāpunga - or Giant Weta - has survived in Aotearoa for over 80 million years.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 29.04.2025
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Elephant seals lived 'from Cape Reinga to Bluff' before humans arrived - study
New research suggests a distinct lineage of elephant seals were well established in New Zealand at the time of human arrival. Joint senior author Associate Professor Nic Rawlence, director of the Otago Paleogenetics Laboratory, said the story of the marine mammal's history in Aotearoa offered insight into how our ecosystem may react to future climate change and human impact.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 29.03.2025
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Can't keep building stop-banks forever - scientists
Researchers say New Zealand must change the way it manages river flooding risks, saying communities cannot continue to build ever bigger stop-banks indefinitely. New research from the University of Canterbury and University of Otago published in journal Nature Water suggests giving rivers more room to grow will be better for protecting communities and improving their ecology.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 25.03.2025
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World’s biggest iceberg runs aground after long journey from Antarctica
Scientists are studying whether the grounded A23a iceberg might help stir nutrients and make food more available for penguins and seals. The world’s biggest iceberg appears to have run aground roughly 70km (43 miles) from a remote Antarctic island, potentially sparing the crucial wildlife haven from being hit, a research organisation said Tuesday.
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Source. theguardian.com, 05.03.2025
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'Filth ecological disaster' Bream Bay anti-sand mining petition accepted by Greens MP Hūhana Lyndon at Parliament
A petition of 14,000 signatures in opposition to sand mining at Te Ākau Bream Bay has been handed to Greens MP Hūhana Lyndon. Tāngaro Tuia Te Ora - Endangered Species Foundation co-chair Tāwera Nikau said he was 'very humbled' to present the petition to Lyndon on behalf of the Whangārei community, on Wednesday.
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Source. rnz.co.nz, 05.03.2025
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