Appearances can be deceiving. At first glance, you'd never think the rolling white sand dunes of southeastern New Mexico and west Texas held the largest stand of oak in the country. The region's ...

Rats and mice have been living with humans for centuries — and humans have been working for just as long to keep them at bay. These animals sometimes contribute to public health risks and problems in ...

Synthetic phosphate fertilizer poses a serious threat to our environment. Phosphate rock mining, along with the inorganic fertilizers and animal feed supplements and pesticides for which phosphate is ...

For every county in the United States, the map below shows information on all the animals and plants protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act as threatened or endangered. To see the number of ...

“Pond turtle” is something of a misnomer, because this reptile more frequently lives in rivers and spends a lot of time in terrestrial habitats. As the West Coast ...

The tiny delta smelt is one of the best indicators of environmental conditions in the San Francisco Bay-Delta, an ecologically important estuary that is a major hub for California's water system — and ...

The resilient mountain lion goes by many names: puma, cougar, panther, catamount and even “ghost cat.” Over the past century in California, it has survived habitat loss and government-sponsored ...

The Miami tiger beetle — a diminutive, iridescent native of Florida — was first discovered and described in the 1930s. But after its discovery, it wasn't seen again for six decades, when it was found ...

Sand Mountain blue butterflies live in only one place on Earth — within and near the dunes of “Singing” Sand Mountain in Nevada. But over the past three decades, extensive off-road vehicle use on ...

DESCRIPTION: Roughly five feet in length, Mexican gray wolves generally weigh between 50 and 80 pounds. Their coats are buff, gray, and rust colored, often with distinguishing facial patterns. They ...

Like the polar bear on the opposite pole, the emperor penguin endures almost unfathomable hardships to breed and nurture each new generation — fasting for months through the planet's harshest winter ...

Cactus ferruginous pygmy owls are named for the saguaro cactuses they live in, their rusty-colored stripes, and their small size. They’re as fierce as they are small: These 2.5-ounce raptors prey on ...