Biodiversity and Conservation Archives

Intense Lawn Mowing Lowers Biodiversity, Favors Pests

January 22, 2020April 17, 2021 Science Connectedinsects, plants

Mowing lawns less frequently and allowing grass to grow may result in greater plant and pollinator biodiversity and fewer pests. By Neha Jain Looks can be deceiving: a uniformly well-mowed lawn might look good, but ecologically, it is not desirable. According to a recent study that analyzed the results of many studies on lawn mowing, more intensely mowed lawns showed lower plant and insect diversity and a greater abundance of pests. According to the researchers, adopting low-intensity lawn management would bring about a host of environmental benefits including cutting down…

Biodiversity and Conservation Science and Art Science Videos STEM Education Zoology

Urban Animal Adaptations, the Musical

January 20, 2020May 3, 2021 Science Connectedanimals, Science with Sophie

Adaptations! How do animals adapt to live in human cities? Which animal sings the best? Watch them audition for survival and try an experiment with ping pong balls and tongs! This video is brought to you by our very good friend Sophia Shrand, creator and star of the educational science comedy series Science with Sophie. In this episode, we learn how different animal adaptations help them survive and thrive in city environments. We also learn how many different animals Sophie can portray (a lot). Finally, the experiment is fun for…

Photo 5726794, (c) Sean Blaney, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). This observation on iNaturalist is of a species tracked by the Northeast Alpine Flower Watch project.

Biodiversity and Conservation Citizen Science Ecology SciStarter Blog

Explore Biodiversity with iNaturalist

October 18, 2019October 15, 2019 Science Connectedbiodiversity, citizen science, crowd sourcing, nature

Do you want to know more about the world around you? You can get outside and explore biodiversity and the natural environment with iNaturalist! iNaturalist allows anyone, anywhere to contribute to a global record of biodiversity by uploading pictures of plants and animals with their smartphone or computer. In a new podcast episode (listen below!), co-host Justin Schell talks with Dr. Carrie Seltzer, the Stakeholder Engagement Strategist for iNaturalist, and with representatives and a volunteer from the Appalachian Mountain club. Tip: add your iNaturalist username to your SciStarter dashboard, and…