He's bushwhacked 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers) through the some of the last untouched forests of Africa and inspired the creation of at least 13 national parks. Now biologist and explorer Michael Fay has embarked on another ambitious expedition: a yearlong aerial survey of Africa's wildest places. Here he explains how he'll do it—and why it matters.
One-celled ocean plants known as phytoplankton produce half the world's oxygen. They also trap large amounts of carbon dioxide. Some scientists believe that enriching the world's oceans with iron would encourage phytoplankton blooms and help regulate global warming.
National Geographic Traveler and Conservation International announced the winners of the 2004 World Legacy Awards in sustainable tourism. Winners include a Dubai desert resort that has restored local native plant and animal species, including endangered oryx, and an Aboriginal operated tour company in the Australian outback.
For millennia, it seems, almost nothing has been safe from these summer tempests—not World War II warships, not treasure-filled galleons, perhaps not even dinosaurs.
Since the beginnings of exploration in Madagascar Ibity Massif has been a botanist's paradise because of its many unique species. When fire engulfed the mountain last October National Geographic funded a study of the inferno's impact—and how widespread burning has contributed to the destruction of the African island's vegetation.
In the past five years, the United States has imported more than 144,000 Burmese pythons. Some of those snakes are now wrestling alligators in the Florida Everglades—and breeding. The case spotlights the problem that thousands of invasive species—from African clawed frogs to Asian beetles—now pose as they wreak environmental havoc in the U.S.
With as many as four big cat sightings reported each day in the U.K., debate is growing over whether leopards, pumas, and other exotic felines are now living wild in the British countryside.
It may just be a high-octane summer blockbuster, but environmentalists hope The Day After Tomorrow will serve as a wake-up call about global climate change. National Geographic News recently spoke with Worldwatch Institute senior editor Tom Prugh to hear what he thought of the movie.
National Geographic Traveler and Conservation International this week named 12 outstanding tourism finalists in the 2004 World Legacy Awards, which recognize excellence in environmental, social, and cultural travel. Finalists include travel enterprises in natural travel, heritage tourism, hotels and resorts, and destination stewardship.
Along the shores of Lake Victoria in Uganda, killer crocs prey on villagers who venture along the water's edge. In an interview with National Geographic News, crocodile expert Brady Barr describes his battle to relocate these man-eaters and his hope that humans and crocs can coexist.
Over the past 20 years scientists have warmed up to the idea that the majority of life on our planet lives not on Earth's surface but beneath its crust. The theory has spurred new ideas about life's origins on Earth and where to search for life on other planets.
Dung beetles, as their name suggests, make a living off other animals' waste. But in gathering excrement they help disperse seeds that have endured the journey through others' digestive tracts—playing an essential role in ensuring biodiversity in the tropics.
In parts of Europe, legend holds that white storks deliver babies and protect houses from fire. The birds are beloved by many Europeans who welcome the sight of the storks' massive nests—some of which are ten feet (three meters) deep and centuries old—on their rooftops, church spires, and neighborhood telephone poles.
Photo sensors dim lamps when sunlight is bright enough to read by. Conference-room chairs are made from recycled seatbelts. Water collected from the roof is used to flush toilets. Welcome to the Natural Resources Defense Council office in Santa Monica, California—named the greenest office building in the United States.
As trillions of cicadas infest large parts of the northeastern United States this summer, predators, from birds and snakes to moles and a specialized fungus, are poised to gorge on the insects. Researchers are studying how the cicada emergence impacts the life cycles of other species.
