Migrating Monarchs

Every year monarch butterflies begin a journey north from their overwintering grounds in Mexican forests. The epic migration spans generations and the better part of a continent. And it touches the lives of countless scientists and citizens. Check out our new Google Earth tour, produced by Atlantic Public Media, in partnership with the Encyclopedia of Life and a Google Outreach Developer Grant.

Watch the tour with Google Earth by downloading the KMZ file, or on YouTube:

Deadly Neighbors: Australia’s Saltwater Crocodiles

The residents of Australia’s Northern Territory share their land with one of the deadliest predators on the planet — the saltwater crocodile. Getting humans and these fearsome reptiles to coexist isn’t easy. But a government program called “Be Crocwise” is doing its best to keep the peace.

My story, in partnership with NOVA, airs today on PRI’s The World, 20 minutes past the hour.

Dual epidemics threaten Australia’s koalas

Australia’s koala population has been hit hard by two rapidly spreading diseases: chlamydia and a retrovirus similar to HIV. Scientists are working to develop vaccines, while lay citizens help care for sick koalas. Biologists say the epidemics, combined with other threats like habitat loss, pose a serious threat to the species.

My story, in partnership with NOVA, airs today on PRI’s The World, 20 mins past the hour.

Scientists Feud over Stampeding Dinosaurs

Footprints in the Australian outback tell a 95 million-year-old story about a herd of little dinosaurs drinking from a watering hole…and a giant tyrannosaur that suddenly attacked them. It’s a fossil record that shows a dinosaur stampede. Or does it?

My story, in partnership with NOVA, airs today on PRI’s The World.

A global traveler — with an exoskeleton

Not every species can claim the title of circumnavigator. In this segment for the audio series One Species at a Time, we journey to Louisiana to meet a tiny Magellan, the star of an unlikely business story that has come full circle.

New Species in the Old World

The last place you’d expect to find a new treasure is where everyone has been looking for centuries. Yet in Europe, home to history’s greatest taxonomists, professional scientists and amateurs are scouring the countryside for new species – and finding them at an astonishing rate.

My story, in partnership with NOVA, aired last week on PRI’s (click The World. It was also featured on the BBC.

Mexico’s Bat Man

Bats often get a bad rap, but they are important to natural ecosystems and to humans. A biologist in Mexico — Rodrigo Medellin — is trying to convince his countrymen to protect bats, and he is training a new generation of researchers to look after the animals.

My story, in partnership with NOVA, airs today on PRI’s The World (click here to find out how to listen) about 20 minutes past the hour.