Have you ever wondered what a shark sees as it swims through the ocean? What a manatee does in its free time? What penguins do when no one is looking? National Geographic scientists and engineers have come up with a creative way to answer these questions. Crittercam is a camera designed to be worn on the back of a wild animal. These innovative cameras do … Continue reading Creature Feature: Crittercam
ENVIRONMENT The bad news: Exotic acacia trees pose a pesky problem for native coastal dunes at Los Angeles International Airport. The good news: Giraffes like them—a lot. (Los Angeles Times) Use our resources to better understand invasive species and how to control them. Discussion Ideas The LA Times article says acacia trees pose a “pesky problem” for coastal dunes near Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). … Continue reading Making Invasive Species Useful at the Zoo
Every year at BioBlitz, National Geographic and the U.S. National Park Service rally to get people young and old to explore the wild spaces around them during a whirlwind 24-hour search to identify every species they can find. In advance of our next event in Golden Gate National Recreation Area, March 28-29, 2014, we’re already exploring stories of the life and lands of northern California. Learn … Continue reading Sluggish Verse
ENVIRONMENT Migrating monarch butterflies are in “grave danger,” according to a report that shows their colonies in Mexico now occupy the smallest area since records began in 1993. (National Geographic News) Learn more about monarchs, migration, milkweed, and metamorphosis. Discussion Ideas Read the short section “Migration Mystery” in our article “Monarch Migration Mystery.” According to experts, more than half a billion monarchs spend their winter … Continue reading Monarch Migration in ‘Grave Danger’
ENVIRONMENT Recently, a 12-year-old boy was snatched and his friend mauled by a saltwater crocodile in northern Australia. Thirteen people, six of them children, have reportedly been killed by saltwater crocodiles—salties, as they’re locally known—in the area over the past dozen years. (National Geographic News) Use our resources to better understand saltwater crocodiles, funnel-web spiders, great white sharks, and the rest of Australia’s dangerous fauna. … Continue reading Killer Crocs in Australia
