A Closer Look at Plants & Animals

These odd little balls that we see on goldenrod reveal a complex web of relationships.

In 1603, two ships set out from England to what is now Maine on the so-called Great Sassafras Hunts.

Many millennia have passed since North America was a true wilderness.

Nothing shines so brightly in the Finger Lakes as the fireflies, beetles of the family Lampyridae.

This story began many decades ago with an acorn falling to earth on Logan Hill.

The so-called “redwood of the East” was a keystone species and its loss changed the forests irreparably.

The luna moth is a living avatar of the moon—at rest by day, on the move by night, exquisitely pale, subtle yet spectacular.

New York is home to two fox species, the red (Vulpes vulpes), and the gray (Urocyon cinereoargenteus).

The mole’s snout contains six times more sensory neurons than an entire human hand.

The botanical family to which the wild parsnip belongs, Apiaceae, contains some of the most poisonous plants in the world.

Scientists have understood for more than 125 years that Spotted Salamanders have a mutualistic relationship with algae.

Despite their bold appearance, Wood Ducks are usually much more difficult to see than other waterfowl.

Sleeping bears seem to be able to sense the presence of intruders.

There are several stories explaining how witch-hazel got its name.

For such a primitive animal, the black-legged tick has a very complex life cycle.

Native land snails serve as cleanup crews of the ecosystem.

In North America, Snowy Owl irruptions have become an almost annual event.

Ghost Pipes aren’t green because they don’t photosynthesize.

It is the floral structure that is truly rich and strange.

When it cannot avoid conflict, it will try to bluff its way out of danger.