By Jason Bittel What thrives in urban areas, sports an armored shell, and can cut through tree bark like a samurai’s sword? Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles? No way, dude. Allow me to introduce to you the gloomy scale insect. This mutant-like sap sipper is native to the American southeast, but it could become more common...

By Susan Cosier Mom is pissed. Mother Nature—who sounds strangely similar to Julia Roberts—is taking humans down a notch (or seven) in a video released this week at SXSW Eco. Through pollution, mining, drilling, deforestation, poaching, and overfishing, we’ve been biting the hand that feeds us. And she … is … fed...

By Elizabeth Royte This story is a part of OnEarth's Invasive Species Week.In the chill of a New England April, Chad Coffin, a 12th-generation Mainer, raced against the dying of the light, the rising of the tide, and the prospect of his livelihood falling to pieces. Wearing chest waders, earmuffs, and multiple layers...

By The Editors This is the final installment of Today OnEarth, but don’t panic! Today OnEarth—which started as our publication’s daily news digest and has evolved in recent months to feature the most eye-opening story of the day—is giving way to something even better. In a matter of hours, we’ll be launching our...

By Susan Cosier We all know biologist Jane Goodall spent years of her youth living with chimpanzees in the forests of Tanzania. But did she ever try to put a monocle and top hat on one of them? Comedian John Oliver—never one to shy away from the tough questions—got to the bottom of wild primate behavior in his interview...

By Susan Cosier Art has its place, but it’s not in our country’s national parks—unless, of course, we’re talking ancient glyphs, Bob-Ross-style landscapes, photography (whether by Ansel Adams or dear old dad), and other mediums of the “leave only footprints” variety. But that’s not the kind of artistic expression...