People are slaughtering orangutans and wiping them out
The population of Bornean orangutans fell by almost half in just 16 years, and it was not a sad by-product of deforestation: many apes were killed deliberately
Expedition to uncover hidden life in mystery Antarctic realm
In July 2017 a huge iceberg broke away from Antarctica’s Larsen C ice shelf, revealing a marine world that was concealed for thousands of years
Deep-sea fish lay eggs near hydrothermal vents to keep them warm
Pacific white skate lay their eggs onto the sizzling hot rocks of hydrothermal vents in the depths of the sea, possibly because the heat speeds up their development
The worst mass extinction may have begun with mass sterilisation
There seems to have been a surge in ultraviolet radiation during the Permian extinction 252 million years ago, and it might have left plants infertile rather than kill them
Ancient rock art rewrites the natural history of Arabia
The archaeological record suggests few large animals lived in Arabia in the last few thousand years, but prehistoric rock art from the area depicts a host of big beasts
Rare wooden tools show that Neanderthals got creative with fire
Wooden tools are hardly ever preserved, but a cache found in Italy suggests Neanderthals made them with fire and used them to dig up foods like tubers
Tropical plants are blooming as they gorge on our pollution
We are pouring carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, heating the planet, but some plants are using the excess carbon dioxide to make more flowers
Polar bears waste lots of their energy and it could be a problem
We thought polar bears had neat tricks for conserving energy in lean periods, but it turns out they are not that thrifty, which could cause them trouble in the future
These are the worst ready-made sandwiches for the climate
Producing ready-made sandwiches can generate twice as much carbon dioxide as simply making them at home, and one particular filling is egregiously bad
Australia’s A$60 million plan for Great Barrier Reef won’t work
The Australian government has pledged millions of dollars in extra funding to protect the Great Barrier Reef, but none of it will go to tackling the biggest threat