For over two decades, I have studied forests from Oregon's amazing coastal rainforests to the fire-adapted forests of the West. In dry forests, there are three issues that reoccur every fire season: (1) forests will burn regardless of what we do; (2)...
Island Press Field Notes
On Monday, June 18, 1883, “Darwin’s bulldog” made a big mistake. Famous for his pugilistic defense of Darwin’s theory of natural selection, Thomas Henry Huxley played a prominent role in English society—and on this particular day he was delivering the...
Everyone knows that sea otters are adorable, and larger numbers of people are learning that they play a key role in maintaining ecosystem diversity by preventing sea urchin populations from turning into kelp-forest mowing swarms that leave “urchin...
The US National Park Service protects National Seashores, National Battlefields, National Monuments, National Historic Sites, National Memorials, and even National Parks. In total, the agency manages 397 “units” across the country and its territories.
One of Marvel Comics' most popular characters, Wolverine, was born with the genetic mutation allowing him to recover rapidly from any injury. Combine that with the Canadian [sic] government's program to replace his skeleton with the indestructible metal...
As I gathered with other concerned Coloradans for the “Forests at Risk” symposium in Aspen, Colorado last week, the importance of climate change and forests became immediately clear with...
Variable climate patterns are predicted to be the new norm in today’s changing climate. No longer can we rely on our normal precipitation levels or temperatures. Models foretell increased storm frequencies and intensities as sea surface temperatures...
Conservation practitioners face many different hurdles on the path to a successful species’ reintroduction. One of those challenges is having enough propagules. Studies have shown that reintroductions conducted with mature plants are often more...
Some 38-45 million years ago, Australia broke off from its parent super-continent, Gondwana, and began drifting northward. In its long and arduous journey, the ark rafted ancient species forced to cope with a cooling and drying climate. Some, like...