Environment

  • Get to know the ratfish and the forehead teeth it uses during sex

    Scientists studied how ratfishes, also known as chimaeras or ghost sharks, ended up with one of evolutions most bizarre appendages. Research by Karly Cohen, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Washingtons Friday Harbor Labs, is mentioned.
    09/08/2025 | The New York Times
  • Little shrimp, big problem: Farming, science and politics collide on the coast

    Its been seven years since Pacific Seafood stopped trying to grow oysters on a particular mudflat on the Washington coast. Two years since the Washington Department of Natural Resources last experimented with killing the shrimp infesting it by compacting the sediment with an amphibious, tracked vehicle known as the Marshmaster. Jennifer Ruesink, professor of biology at the UW, has been monitoring the ground ever since. But the latest round of funding for the project will be drying up at the end of the month, and this trip will be her last. Haleh Mawson, research scientist in biology at the UW, is also mentioned.
    08/29/2025 | Chinook Observer
  • New salamander-like species, saber-toothed predator and others uncovered from Permian Period

    What was the Permian Period like? What creatures thrived there before the period came to an abrupt end? Thanks to efforts by an international research team, 17 years of fossils collected in Africa may help us paint a better picture of this time period before the Great Dying event altered life on our planet. Christian Sidor, curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Burke Museum and professor of biology, is quoted.
    08/13/2025 | Discover Magazine
  • Washington's newest poet laureate will prioritize mental health and the outdoors during his two-year term.

    Derek Sheffield, ’90, ’99, a poet and English teacher, was appointed Washington State’s Poet Laureate in April by Governor Bob Ferguson. A passionate naturalist known for co-editing the best-selling “Cascadia Field Guide: Art, Ecology, Poetry” with Elizabeth Bradfield, ’94, and CMarie Fuhrman, Sheffield is “always packing” binoculars and hand lens and birds by ear—often in the woods near his home in Leavenworth. He has butterflied alongside Robert Michael Pyle, ’69, ’73, the lepidopterist, and once exchanged letters with Pulitzer-winning biologist E.O. Wilson.

    08/08/2025 | University of Washington Magazine
  • Geoengineering could avoid climate tipping points, but not if we delay

    Putting aerosols in the stratosphere to reflect sunlight could prevent the shutdown of key ocean currents, but only if it is done soon, a computer model suggests. Stephen Gardiner, professor of philosophy at the UW, is quoted.
    07/15/2025 | New Scientist
  • Penguin turns up on beach in Rio de Janeiro, alone and far from home

    Video shows a wayward penguin swimming and diving among beachgoers along Brazils most iconic shoreline. It might be following fish, a penguin expert says. P. Dee Boersma, professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.
    07/03/2025 | The Washington Post
  • Mount Rainiers glaciers are melting whats at stake?

    Once an eight-mile network of caves with an entrance in the lower part of Paradise Glacier, the Paradise ice caves were the most-visited tourist spot for decades before glacial melting caused large chunks of ice to begin to fall from the ceiling, endangering visitors and pushing officials to close access. Now, the caves are gone. Janneke Hille Ris Lambers, affiliate professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.
    06/23/2025 | Tacoma News Tribune
  • ArtSci People & Research in the Media: Spring Quarter Roundup

    The College of Arts & Sciences is home to many distinguished researchers, faculty, and students. Their work and contributions have been featured in media outside of the UW and across the country. Take a look at some ArtSci features from this past Spring Quarter. From AI to nature's poets, ArtSci in the Media has something for everyone!

    06/13/2025 | College of Arts & Sciences
  • Faculty/staff honors: Innovation grant, best paper, outstanding research award

    Recent recognition of the University of Washington includes an EarthLab Innovation Grant, the Best Paper Award from American Political Science Association and honorable recognition mention from the American Society for Theatre Research. UW professor Richard Watts and team awarded EarthLab Innovation Grant Richard Watts, UW associate professor of French, is part of an interdisciplinary team...
    06/11/2025 | UW News
  • Those little red hummingbird feeders are driving the bird's evolution

    Alejandro Rico Guevara is one of the foremost researchers on hummingbird bills. He has spent years studying how hummingbirds use their beaks to feed and fight. But his latest research looked at how human actions seem to be driving a high-speed example of evolution in hummingbird bills.Rico-Guevara, assistant professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is interviewed.
    06/04/2025 | KUOW
  • California's hummingbirds have changed their beaks in response to backyard feeders, study finds

    Many bird enthusiasts like to hang bright red feeders filled with homemade sugar water to attract hummingbirds to their gardens. Now, new research suggests this common practice may be driving rapid evolutionary change in one species in California. Alejandro Rico-Guevara, assistant professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is quoted.
    05/28/2025 | Smithsonian Magazine
  • Backyard feeders changed the shape of hummingbird beaks, scientists say

    A new study suggests that Anna's Hummingbirds in the western United States are not only keeping up with human influence on their habitat, they're thriving. Alejandro Rico-Guevara, assistant professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is quoted.
    05/26/2025 | NPR
  • Poet of the natural world

    Poet and teacher Martha Silano, ’93, died May 5, 2025, at the age of 63. A nationally renowned poet and beloved teacher, she captured the impacts of the climate crisis in her poetry. Martha received a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from the UW.

    05/14/2025 | UW Magazine
  • The worlds rarest penguins dont avoid heat they embrace it

    These birds have evolved to withstand the equatorial sun and shelter in volcanic rocks along a subtropical coastline. After 50 years, biologist Dee Boersma, professor of biology at the UW, continues to learn new things about the species.
    04/21/2025 | National Geographic
  • WA prepares to defend climate policies against Trumps latest order

    President Donald Trump ordered Attorney General Pam Bondi on Tuesday to find ways to block climate laws across the country, putting Washington in his crosshairs once more. Aseem Prakash, professor of political science at the UW, is quoted.
    04/14/2025 | The Seattle Times