The Tower of Hercules, a sacred mountain, and royal tombs are among the sites recognized for their universal value to humanity during a 2009 World Heritage Committee session.

To help revive the Przewalski's horse, or takhi, in Mongolia, a Washington, D.C., zoo hosted the first ever reverse vasectomy on the species. Video.

Migaloo, a twentysomething rare white humpback whale was seen this week along Australia's east coast, where he's migrating northward with other humpbacks. Video.

Sky-scraping greenhouses in urban areas may be a promising way to feed Earth's growing human population in coming decades, advocates say.

Mating between a native salamander and an introduced species has created a monster—at least for animals that dwell in the ponds of California's Salinas River Valley.

A combo of dams and sea-level rise could wipe out vast acres of the U.S. river's delta plain, according to new research that predicts the surrounding coastline will be significantly reshaped.

Sinkholes around the Dead Sea pose a hazard to tourists and the environment alike. The danger may only get worse, and geologists hope to map problem areas to help protect the public. Video.

In a Florida forest, worm "grunters" use an unusual technique to catch earthworms to sell for bait.Video.

Ocean currents cause variations in Earth's magnetic field, says a controversial new study that challenges the theory of the planet's churning molten core—sparking other experts to call the work "nonsense."

Though most of their neighbors in the Patagonian Andes are shrinking, two glaciers in Chile and Argentina, respectively, are taking on ice, puzzling scientists.

The highest microbial life on Earth appears to be in South America, where diverse ecosystems thrive at almost 19,850 feet above sea level.

A U.K. team has found several species that may be new to science in a Mozambique mountain range that had no previous record of exploration. Video.

The greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) hasn't been so plentiful in our atmosphere in 2.1 million years, a new study says—making global warming forecasting tougher than ever.

In the busy waters off Massachusetts, researchers are hand-tagging humpback whales to learn how to protect the species from potentially lethal collisions with ships. Video.

After surviving an oil slick off the Namibian coast and being rehabilitated in South Africa, close to a hundred jackass penguins, or African penguins, were set free and began swimming hundreds of miles home in May. Video.