biodiversity

Considering the lines stretching around the block ten years ago to witness one of nature’s masterpieces, you might want to arrive early when the National Botanic Garden opens its doors. Trained botanists, tropical ecologists, and naturalists must queue patiently alongside curious visitors from Toledo. All eagerly await a chance to pay homage to the world’s largest flowering plant, the titan arum, now opening (literally) at the Garden. This floral extravaganza will likely run a few more days before Amorphophallus titanum returns to normal life and goes out of bloom.

Did you know that pandas used to roam parts of Tennessee and feed on the bamboo  that grew there? Cool, right? Check out this week's #ForewordFriday selection from "distinguished elder of conservation biology" and "marvelous guide," Reed Noss. His new book, Forgotten Grasslands of the South, is an unforgettable journey through the history and natural history of the once biologically rich and abundant grasslands of the southern US.

The 33rd annual meeting of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry just wrapped up in Long Beach, California. In celebration of the latest meeting, this Friday's #ForewordFriday selection comes from Emily Monosson's Evolution in a Toxic World.

In Trapper's Point, Wyoming, a special team has come together to  protect an endangered species of antelope. Overpasses have been built along Highway 191 to direct pronghorns' migration across the busy road. Jon Beckmann, an editor of Safe Passages: Highways, Wildlife, and Habitat Connectivity, is "ecstatic" about the project's success: