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Dried specimens of nearly 800 flowering plants were acquired by the Botany Department of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History from the National Botanical Research Institute in Windhoek, Namibia, Africa. The collection includes nearly 160 specimens from the Compositae, or sunflower family.

The post Namibian specimens come to the herbarium of the National Museum of Natural History appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Follow botanist Candy Feller of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center as she conducts field work on mangrove ecosystems at Carrie Bow Cay, a Smithsonian field research station in the Caribbean.

The post Mangroves research by Candy Feller, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center botanist appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Latinus 9333 is the Latin translation of the so-called Tacuinum sanitatis, a medieval handbook on wellness written in Arabic by the 11th-century physician ibn Butlan. It deals with factors influencing human health: from the air, the environment and food, to physical exercise and sexual activity.

The post Medieval book is important resource for how plants were once collected, treated and used appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

What they observed was unique among all bird species: successful male caribs maintained and defended territories with nectar supplies that were two to five times greater than their daily needs and also isolated part of their crop for the exclusive feeding rights of visiting females.

The post A well-defended territory is what some female hummingbirds find most attractive in a mate appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

This new research has revealed that in areas considered unsuitable for farming today, "pre-Columbian farmers constructed thousands of raised fields in the seasonally flooded coastal savannas of the Guianas.

The post Amazon farmers who vanished centuries ago were remarkably innovative appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Now, for the first time ever, researchers at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute are able to track the routes of these creatures by gluing tiny transmitters to the backs of individual bees.

The post Transmitters unveil long-distance movements of orchid bees appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Botanists Gerhard Zotz of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and Stefan Wester of the University of Oldenburg in Germany decided to take a closer look at these high-wire bromeliads. They were interested to find out how the growth and survival rates of these plants on electrical cables compared to the growth and survival of plants of the same species growing in trees--their natural environment.

The post Study reveals hazards of the high-wire life for bromeliads appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The Encyclopedia of Life is an unprecedented global effort to document all 1.8 million named species of animals, plants and other forms of life on Earth. For the first time in the history of the planet, scientists, students, and citizens will have multi-media access to all known living species, even those that have just been discovered. The Field Museum of Natural History, Harvard University, Marine Biological Laboratory, Smithsonian Institution, and Biodiversity Heritage Library joined together to initiate the project, bringing together species and software experts from across the world. Lean more at www.eol.org

The post The Encyclopedia of Life is a global effort to document all 1.8 million named species of animals, plants and other life forms on Earth appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Recent analysis using DNA sequencing of ancient Roman pills found aboard a ship that sank in Italy’s Gulf of Baratti between 140 -120 B.C, has revealed that the medicines consist of material from simple garden plants, namely carrot, radish, parsley, celery, wild onion and cabbage.

The post DNA sequencing reveals simple vegetables in ancient Roman medicines appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Obsessive in his collecting and emotionally invested in contributing to science and perpetuating knowledge, Palmer lived the adventurous yet nomadic life of a collector.

The post Remarkable ethnobotany collections of Edward Palmer highlighted in new Smithsonian Website appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Now the Global Plants Initiativeis catapulting biodiversity research to a new level by sharing these historic plant collections in a massive online database of high-resolution scans.

The post Online initiative makes massive database of herbarium specimens accessible worldwide appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

By pulling together data from eight different studies, we now have irrefutable evidence that vines are on the rise not only in the Amazon, but throughout the American tropics.

The post Scientists race to determine why vines are taking over forests in the American tropics appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Can a tendency to get distracted lead to a career in science? It did for paleoecologist Conrad Labandeira. Working on his family's farm, he would find himself falling into a study of insect life in the fields. "If you go after what interests you," he says, "the rest will always fall into place."

The post Smithsonian paleoecologist Conrad Labandeira talks about how he became a scientist and why he loves his work appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

These opportunistic plants quickly fill-in the gap taking advantage of the increased light coming through the tree canopy and the fresh soil at the fallen tree’s turned-up roots.

The post Falling trees help invasive wineberry move into deciduous forests in North America appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The post Introducing Leafsnap, an electronic field guide to North America trees run on a mobile phone app appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Bird species in rainforest fragments in Brazil that were isolated by deforestation first disappeared and then reappeared during the next quarter-century.

The post “Extinct” birds reappear in rainforest fragments in Brazil appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Fulcaldea stuessyi is a newly discovered member of the Barnadesioideae, a subfamily of the Compositae, or sunflower family of flowering plants. It was found in northeastern […]

The post Fulcaldea stuessyi is newly discovered member of the Barnadesioideae, a subfamily of the Compositae, or sunflower family of flowering plants, appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The Smithsonian Environmental Research Center has created NEMESIS--National Estuarine and Marine Exotic Species Information System--an online public database that provides key information about the non-native marine species throughout the United States.

The post New invasive species database allows public to ID marine invaders with a home computer appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Ancient pollen and charcoal preserved in deeply buried sediments in Egypt’s Nile Delta document the region’s ancient droughts and fires, including a huge drought 4,200 years ago associated with the demise of Egypt’s Old Kingdom.

The post Fossil pollen used to augment climate record of Egypt’s Nile Delta appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Invasive European earthworms could prevent roughly half a North American forest’s orchid seeds from even germinating, ecologists from Smithsonian Environmental Research Center and Johns Hopkins […]

The post Invasive earthworms threaten wild American orchids appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The post Smithsonian scientists work to ensure survival of North America’s wild orchids appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Phragmites australis, the common reed, has been a component of North American marshes for thousands of years. However, a novel genetic lineage, Phragmites australis australis, […]

The post Climate change conundrum: Invasive reed makes much more methane appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The North Pole isn’t the only place on Earth affected by slight increases in temperature. Until recently, scientific thinking used to posit that tropical forests, […]

The post Rising temperatures mean more blooms for tropical rainforests appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Smooth and shiny, the tough body of the South African beetle Pedinorrhina trivittata, a flower eater, appears to be a non-inviting surface for pollen grains […]

The post Caught on camera: Despite hard shells pollen sticks to South African beetles appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Katie Cramer is a MarineGEO Post-Doctoral Fellow and travels to Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama throughout the year to conduct research. Her recent paper […]

The post Q&A: Katie Cramer on the long term human impact on coral reefs in Caribbean Panama appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Smithsonian biologist Cindy Gilmour describes where mercury pollution comes from, how it morphs into the neurotoxin methylmercury, and if we’re finally starting to solve the […]

The post Ecosystems on the Edge: Tracking Mercury appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Tucked into the wooded landscape and rolling hills of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Edgewater, Md., is a new forest. Six months ago, a […]

The post Century-long Smithsonian experiment tests forest diversity appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

As mangrove trees lose ground to deforestation and urban sprawl, one development seems to be giving them a boost: climate change. Fewer winter cold snaps […]

The post Mangroves creep north in response to warmer temperatures appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

By simulating the environment when corn was first exploited by people and then domesticated, Smithsonian scientists discovered that corn’s ancestor; a wild grass called teosinte, […]

The post Greenhouse “time machine” sheds light on corn domestication appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Mexico is the fourth largest honey producer and fifth largest honey exporter in the world. A Smithsonian researcher and colleagues helped rural farmers in Mexico […]

The post Genetically modified soybean pollen threatens Mexican honey sales appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Ahhh, the sensations of summer…ocean sand between your toes, a cool drink in the shade, and red itchy welts courtesy of that three-leaved miscreant: poison […]

The post A poison ivy primer appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

When Gary Graves cranks up his boom box and drives remote back roads through pine plantations in Texas, Louisiana and other southern states, a few […]

The post Rare American warbler surprises scientists by adapting, thriving in a new ecosystem appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

For Smithsonian ornithologist Gary Graves it was a captivating spectacle. At an outdoor café in Kingston, Jamaica, Graves watched three mornings in a row as […]

The post Sweet survival: Some birds have a sugar edge appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

On crime scene investigation shows, forensic scientists use remnants of genetic material to solve mysteries in a matter of hours. Researchers at the Smithsonian Environmental […]

The post Environmental “Forensics” Pieces Together Mysterious Plant Invasion appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Nausea, vomiting and weakness are but a few of the symptoms one might anticipate after eating leaves from the Taiwanese shrub Erycibe henryi. This wild […]

The post Meet the (flea) beetles! New species appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Long ago, one great ocean flowed between North and South America. When the narrow Isthmus of Panama joined the continents about 3 million years ago, […]

The post Recent Connection Between North and South America Reaffirmed appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Skinny lines of ants snake through the rainforest carrying leaves and flowers above their heads—fertilizer for industrial-scale, underground fungus farms. Soon after the dinosaur extinctions […]

The post Some ants still trying to get crop domestication right appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

At the approach of a hungry parrot snake, a tree frog egg transforms from a haven to a prison. With no parent to offer protection, […]

The post Mystery solved: frogs use snout glands in emergency jail break appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

By now, most of the United States has started to feel the first cool caresses of winter. Everything is pumpkin spiced, and the last crickets […]

The post Feathered diplomats unite pupils in North and Central America appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A newly discovered Hawaiian tree recently had the distinction of being added to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Critically […]

The post Newly named, Hawaiian tree species already critically endangered appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Living trees can rot from the inside out, leaving only a hollowed trunk. Wood rot in living trees can cause overestimates of global carbon pools, […]

The post Measuring trees with the speed of sound appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Named for Charles Darwin, the only known specimen of a newly discovered beetle, Darwinylus marcosi, died in a sticky battle in a gob of tree […]

The post Beetle and pollen trapped in 105 million-year-old amber reveal fourth major pollination mode in mid-Mesozoic appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Is it foolish to be optimistic about our environment and its future prospects? Every day, we hear dire warnings about the health of the planet […]

The post The Argument for Environmental Optimism: Opinion by Smithsonian Secretary David J. Skorton appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Zebra mussels in the Great Lakes, lionfish in the Atlantic and pythons in the Everglades: Large creatures like these generally draw the spotlight when talking […]

The post DNA is trusty new weapon for detecting slime nets and other invasive marine parasites appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A tiny invasive insect from Asia might have an effect on Chesapeake Bay waters. The emerald ash borer is killing millions of ash trees in […]

The post Invasive ash borer found in Smithsonian Environmental Research Center forest; ash deaths may impact Chesapeake waters appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Corn, known also as maize, is a vital crop in the U.S. and throughout the Americas. First domesticated in Mexico some 9,000 years ago, scientists […]

The post Study dates corn as staple crop in Central America beginning 4,300 years ago appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

To catch lizards on the offshore islands close to St. Croix in the Caribbean, Smithsonian herpetologist Nicole Angeli uses a lasso of thread looped at […]

The post Mongooses wiped them out. Now Nicole Angeli wants the St. Croix ground lizard home again appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Long before colonists landed on the shores of New England, Native Americans harvested cranberries from peaty bogs and marshes. Following the Pilgrims reliance on the […]

The post The cranberry: America’s founding fruit appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.