Human-wildlife conflict threatens protected reserves in East Africa

The migration routes of wildebeest are being squeezed by human activity. Image credit - Jorge Tung/Unsplash

by Sarah Wild Each year, more than a million wildebeest migrate across the grassy plains of the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania into Kenya’s Masai Mara National Reserve. But on the borders of these protected areas, human populations are increasing and wild ecosystems are struggling to survive in the face of development. Understanding these pressures is … Read more

Solving an ancient dairy mystery could help cure modern food ills

Studying the culture of Mongolian herders may help crack the mystery of why humans started consuming animal milk before populations evolved to be able to digest it. Image credit - Matthäus Rest

by Alex Whiting Genghis Khan’s conquering armies fed on dried curd as they crossed the vast steppes of Eurasia, ancient Romans imported pungent cheeses from France, and Bedouin tribes crossing the Arabian Desert have for centuries survived on camel’s milk. Dairy has been central to people’s existence since at least 6,500 years BC. But a mystery … Read more

Deep Antarctic drilling will reveal climate secrets trapped in 1.5 million-year-old ice

Scientists will have to drill at a depth of nearly 3km to retrieve some of the oldest ice that can tell us about the past and future of climate. Image credit - NASA/Michael Studinger

by Richard Gray  An ambitious mission to drill into the Antarctic ice sheet to extract some of the oldest ice on the planet will provide vital clues about a mysterious shift in the behaviour of our planet’s climate. Drilling into the ice of Antarctica is like going back in time. Frozen within it are relics … Read more