We’ve climbed Everest, mapped the oceans, and trekked to the poles. Yet 90% of Earth’s species remain unknown. The golden age of discovery is happening now — as scientists race to catalogue our planet's "dark taxa" @benjij.bsky.social w/ this fascinating story @vox.com: www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

I wrote about the search for "dark taxa" — groups of animals, like certain flies and wasps, in which the bulk of species remains unknown to science. Among the facts that blew my mind while reporting this: Around 90 percent of all life is still undescribed. Like, what!? www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

This is not the year of positive wildlife stories, but I've got one. And it's about jaguars. I spent a week in Sonora, Mexico last month looking for cats and learning about a creative project to save them — involving the very people that once hunted these animals down. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

We kick off with @benjij.bsky.social who joins us to talk about the Department of the Interior's move to strip endangered species status from the lesser prairie chicken, and other science news of the week. www.sciencefriday.com/segments/les...

The Trump administration is trying to remove protections for a very odd bird on a technicality and maybe that doesn't sound like a big deal but it's actually a very big deal and signals something scary for all other species near the brink www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

having my annual “oh yeah i guess i like new york” moment cherishing it before it vanishes in 30

Hi. I wrote about America’s most beloved insect: the monarch butterfly. They’re not doing well. USFWS finally proposed federal protections for them late last year. Trump is already moving to dismantle regs to protect wildlife. What will happen to monarchs? www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

just a normal reader email

In research published yesterday, scientists monitored what anti-anxiety drugs did to salmon as they migrated from a river out to the Baltic Sea. The results are fascinating. @benjij.bsky.social for @vox.com: www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

Talked to a scientist who collects SEA TURTLE TEARS for her research. If that's not strange enough: She's looking for signs that those tears contain a kind of *magnetic* bacteria because that might help turtles navigate??? Science is cooooool. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

Need a palette cleanser from all of the news this week? @benjij.bsky.social has this adorable and fun story about one marine scientist's unexpected discovery: www.vox.com/down-to-eart... @vox.com

Can anyone point me to an octopus expert in the Caribbean/Florida region? I need help with an ID!

well i’m officially that person who takes their dog to water aerobics

The US and Europe largely solved the acid rain problem. Hooray! But now our rain is full of something a lot scarier — microplastics, PFAS, and other modern chemicals. And these pollutants are much harder to clean up. www.vox.com/climate/4016...

soy milk rules unsurprisingly love this @mbolotnikova.bsky.social piece www.vox.com/future-perfe...

One thing bringing me joy right now: my plants are THRIVING!! in an nyc apt. this orchid is blooming for like the sixth time. i’ve had it for years!! even my succulent is blooming!!! i didn’t think this was possible the secret? i think neglect and sunlight

This is a big deal — corals in Florida and throughout much of the Caribbean are not producing babies anymore. Sexual reproduction is failing. That means coral reefs will start failing too. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

The black-footed ferret has been coming back from the brink of extinction thanks to the work of US government scientists. They just got fired. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

Staff cuts and funding freezes have upended one of the country’s highest profile conservation projects — a nationwide effort to breed, clone, and release endangered black-footed ferrets, among the rarest animals in the world. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

Florida’s iconic corals aren’t having babies anymore. Scientists are alarmed. @benjij.bsky.social explains how a baby bust threatens the future of an already struggling reef: www.vox.com/down-to-eart... @vox.com

Are you an employee with the USFWS or another environmental agency that's been impact by recent government action? We'd love to hear from you. Reach out to @benjij.bsky.social and help inform more @vox.com reporting on this developing story.

Our national parks are not OK, in two charts. And this was BEFORE last week's layoff. Cool cool cool cool cool

Scooplet: The US Fish and Wildlife Service has issued stop work orders, frozen funding, and ceased communication for all of its international grants, jeopardizing critical conservation overseas. Much of this money is appropriated for Interior, not foreign aid. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

A tiny endangered lizard is set to test the Trump administration's "drill, baby, drill" agenda — and what it means for the nation's most imperiled species. Meet the dunes sagebrush lizard of Texas. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

USAID conserves biodiversity in 60 countries. It spent ~ $375.4 million on these efforts last year. Useful list of recent projects: www.biodiversitylinks.org/connect h/t @n8swick.bsky.social

Here's a list of all the biodiversity projects that USAID was involved in, for as long as this website stays up. www.biodiversitylinks.org

Hoping to get in touch with researchers whose NIH grants for climate research are frozen. Also looking for National Science Foundation folks who want to talk. Please share! Signal username: @ zoyateirstein.58

FYI: USAID has been one of the world's largest and most important funders of global biodiversity conservation — a chronically underfunded area. It has supported efforts to protect forests, reduce illegal wildlife trafficking, and end violence towards women defending the environment.

NEW: Florida’s reef-building corals are no longer having babies, threatening the future of the largest reef in the continental US. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

We're just going to leave this here…

Meanwhile, rats are thriving? Despite massive, multi-million dollar campaigns to eradicate these rodents from cities with poison, rat sightings have *increased* in NYC, DC, Chicago, SF, Toronto and other major cities in recent years. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

i wrote about something strange happening within the environmental movement — many of its supporters have careened into the far right www.vox.com/climate/3935...

Sweetest thing I've heard in a while: A sunfish at an aquarium in Japan stopped eating and fell sick after the aquarium closed to visitors for renovations. Staff hung their uniforms and put human cutouts outside the tank — and the fish got better. 🥲 apnews.com/article/japa...

it continues

As wildfires continue to devastate LA, Trump is directing his ire towards a fish. Not severe windstorms. Not drought. Not developers who build homes in fire-prone areas. A fish. www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

In the last decade, birdwatching has exploded in Colombia. But unlike most industries, birding in the country could prove to be a force for good—for locals, for the environment and for the world's most diverse population of avian species @benjij.bsky.social for @vox.com: www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

If you want to end your week with awe and see some gorgeous photos, then read this fascinating story about a burgeoning industry in Colombia: birdwatching!!

I wrote a feature about birdwatching in Colombia, which turns out to be about much more than staring at some (very beautiful) birds. Reporting on wildlife is usually bleak but this story gave me some actual hope. Hope! I do know her! www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

so my dog apparently needs physical therapy for a leg injury and i'm dying at the photos from the local dog therapy businesses. very sweet!!

This year-end collection features conversations and stories with @jennitaur.bsky.social, Robin Wall Kimmerer, Willa Köerner, @theuniverse.bsky.social, @ferrisjabr.bsky.social, @benjij.bsky.social, and @jarodkanderson.bsky.social: longreads.com/2024/12/12/a...

I wrote about a new study that summarizes how bad climate change will be for wildlife, in terms of extinctions. Surprise! Not so great. But it's interesting to see the stats. Current warming of ~1.3 C could drive 160K species extinct (assuming there are ~10m species). www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

just a standard tuesday morning reader email

Nice piece by @benjij.bsky.social about important research in Colombia to reduce methane emissions from ruminant animals (cattle, goats, and sheep) through improved feeds. While higher-income countries work to reduce meat consumption, it's important to minimize emissions from production everywhere.

@vox.com just released its future perfect 50 list. These are the people making the world a better place for all, including animals. it looks awesome. so many great stories in here. www.vox.com/future-perfe...

NEW: Scientists just discovered a sea creature as large as two basketball courts (!!) It’s not a whale or a shark or a giant squid … … it’s arguably much cooler (then again i am very into coral) www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

i know there’s a lot going on that deserves attention but let me add one thing: next week is the world’s biggest biodiversity conference, #COP16 the agenda includes hammering out a plan to raise $700 billion/yr more to stave off ecological collapse. i explain the $$: www.vox.com/down-to-eart...

Happy birthday to my young adult son, who turns 3 today.

brb crossposting to my 17 social media accounts with a cumulative 43 followers