1 . Ten years ago, environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb was on a reporting trip about wildlife conservation. When he was shown around some new animal crossing structures near, Missoula, these new bridges and tunnels intrigued him. He was attracted by these beautiful human-built structures and inspired to write a book. Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet has now been published.

Through expert interviews, in-depth research and convincing analysis, Goldfarh brings to life the deadly consequences our 40 million miles of roadways have had and are having on the natural world and the creatures that inhabit it. A million animals are killed by cars each day in the US alone. Road salt pollutes lakes and rivers. And there's the barrier effect-the steady stream of traffic that prevents animals from migrating (迁徙) all together and finding habitats. Goldfarb writes that noise pollution is the most worrisome among all the road's ecological disasters. Both the engine noise and the tire noise greatly impact ecological environment.

Figures on deaths and disruptions (扰乱) are disheartening, but Goldfarb vividly describes how scientists are actively working on meaningful improvements to help animals and roads better coexist, such as wildlife crossings, from passages in Canada's Banff National Park to the famous Liberty Canyon Overpass in Los, Angeles. Another example is that in India, they built a new highway through a tiger reserve so that animals can come and go underneath the lifted freeway. Of course, that made the project more expensive, but it's ecologically the right thing to do.

Crossings is a truly important and landmark book on a subject whose full impacts continue to be disregarded or underestimated in considering conservation efforts. The book is a sympathetic, heart-warming guide to exploring the issues of wildlife survival and our own.

2 . We’re often told to follow our dreams, and one person in Canada has done just that after building a wonderland for animals. In his own backyard, the eight water features which Robert Perkins dug into the ground are now a shelter for birds, frogs, beavers (河狸) and other animals in the middle of suburban development. But for Perkins, creating habitat for wildlife is not only about doing his part to help the environment. It’s a labor of love for a woman he met when he was 16 years old.

Perkins met Rhonda in 1974 and the two of them hit it off. They both loved animals, and she always wished to have a place where they could live in harmony with the land. Rhonda, whom Perkins stayed with all his life, passed away in 2006. Perkins resolved to build a wonderland where her spirit could stay in peace.

Ignoring planning departments and neighbors alike, Perkins began digging large holes for water to flow. Over the course of nine years his property went from being a neighborly headache to a perfect home for wildlife.

Perkins says he won’t take all the credit for the wetland he built. When Perkins started creating the wildlife habitat in the early 2000s, a family of beavers got wind of it soon and claimed the land. “When we built our subdivisions, we cleared all the trees, dried the hills, drove all the water down to the lakes... In turn, the beavers helped dam (筑坝) and purify the water.”

Wetland habitats not only attract wildlife, but probably offer the most complete package of ecosystem services, including preventing pollution, enriching the soil, and promoting the well-being of wildlife species.

Perkins says he doesn’t need to wonder what Rhonda might think of the place; he feels her presence whenever he walks alone among the trees, the grass, and the ponds, looking at birds or beavers, and listening to the songbirds and frogs. Perkins hopes his project will one day become an educational place that local people can visit to learn about the importance of wetlands.

5 . In 2014, a sophomore student at the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts went with friends for a birthday celebration to Beijing Zoo. Little did he know that a chance _________ at the aquarium (水族馆) there would light a lifelong passion.

Fast-forward to today, Xu, a Beijing native, has _________ to the tropical island of South China’s Hainan province, where he serves as a coral _________ for a Sanya-based tropical biological laboratory attached to the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Each day, he spends several hours diving deep under the waves to observe and _________ the growth and development of the creatures that _________ him all those years ago. Xu, who is nicknamed “coral man”, is _________ engaged on such social media platforms as Sina Weibo, where he regularly shares visually amazing photos and entertaining videos of corals. He aims to _________ individuals to take action in protecting coral reefs(珊瑚礁) and the oceans as a whole.

For Xu, who had been studying Peking Opera since childhood, becoming a coral conservationist was an _________ turn of events. After he first saw corals at the aquarium, he began to _________ the local market to learn about coral __________ from merchants who sell decorative plants, fish and corals. He also __________information online. Before long, he had set up a small fish tank at home and started cultivating a coral.

“The coral organism is quite sensitive to its environment and has extremely high __________ for water quality,” recalls Xu. “When I started growing coral, its state was not __________.” But as Xu gained more __________ about coral, including how to control factors like water temperature and pH levels, his coral gradually started to flourish. He also learned that coral reefs are known as “tropical rainforests” and “underwater gardens” of the ocean, providing a __________ for a quarter of all sea creatures.

6 . For the history of life on Earth, organisms have relied on the light of the sun, moon, and stars to find their way and schedule their lives. While the beginning of electric lighting in the late 19th century may have benefited humans, it has caused problems in the natural world. Among the impacts of artificial light at night(ALAN), light pollution lures migrating birds to cities with shocking consequences, contributes to the alarming decline in insect populations, and convinces sea turtle babies to amble(缓行)away from the water instead of towards it.

Now, a new study from the University of Plymouth adds another disappointing finding about how ALAN is affecting the creatures with whom we share the planet: Light pollution from coastal cities can trick corals(珊瑚)into reproducing outside of the optimum times when they would normally reproduce.

Using a combination of light pollution data and spawning(产卵)observations, researchers were able to show for the first time that corals exposed to ALAN are spawning one to three days earlier and closer to the full moon compared to those on unlit corals. “That shift may reduce the survival and fertilization success of gametes(配子)and genetic connectivity between nearby lit and unlit coral systems,” they explain.

“Corals are among the most biodiverse, economically important, and threatened ecosystems on the planet,” write the authors of the study.

“Climate change has led to mass bleaching(褪色)events. Habitat destruction, fisheries, and pollution have reduced corals substantially since the 1950s,” they write, adding, “The complete loss of corals is anticipated over the next 100 years.”

If we want to reduce the harm ALAN is causing, we could perhaps look to delay the switching-on of night-time lighting in coastal regions to ensure the natural dark period between sunset and moonrise when coral reproduction remains undisturbed.

7 . Bees are more than just honey-makers, They are essential pollinators (传粉者) that help maintain the balance of our ecosystems and the diversity of our crops. Bees are among the most diverse and plentiful insects on Earth, with over 20,000 species worldwide. They belong to the order Hymenoptera (膜翅目昆虫), which also includes wasps, ants, and sawflies.

Bees have evolved to feed on nectar (花蜜) and pollen from flowers, and in doing so, they transfer pollen from one flower to another, enabling fertilization (受精) and reproduction. This process, called pollination, is essential for the survival of many plants, especially those that produce fruits, nuts, seeds, and vegetables that we eat.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), bees and other pollinators affect 35% of global agricultural land, supporting the production of 87% of the leading food crops worldwide.

Pollination also enhances the quality and quantity of the crops, as well as their resistance to pests and diseases. Without bees and other pollinators, our food supply and our biodiversity would be at risk.

Unfortunately, bees are facing many threats, such as habitat loss, pesticide use, climate change, diseases, and invasive species. The FAO estimates that 16.5％ of vertebrate (脊椎动物) pollinators and 40% of invertebrate pollinators, such as bees, are facing extinction. This could have serious consequences for our food security, our livelihoods, and our environment.

Therefore, it is important to protect the bees and their habitats, and to raise awareness about their role and value.

One way to appreciate and support the bees is to learn how to identify them and observe their behavior. You might be surprised by the diversity and beauty of the bees that visit your backyard, garden, or balcony.

8 . We Need to Think about Conservation on a Different Timescale

Time, perceived by humans in days, months, and years, contrasts with nature’s grander scales of centuries and millennia, referred to as “deep time.” While paleontologists (古生物学者) are trained to think in deep time, conservationists are realizing the challenges it poses. Shortsightedness about time limits modern conservation, with efforts often overlooking past healthy conditions of ecosystems in the context of climate and biodiversity crises.

The shifting baseline syndrome (综合症), where standards in a place change gradually, makes conservation more complex. It involves evaluating ecosystems primarily on their recent past, often with negative consequences.

Recent shifts in California’s forest management practices, from stopping fires to embracing Indigenous knowledge of controlled burns, exemplify the importance of understanding historical ecosystem dynamics. To enhance conservation, adopting a deep-time approach is crucial.

Modern mathematical modeling, combined with long-term data, offers a pathway for preserving ecosystems. In California’s kelp (海带、海藻) forest, researchers identified an overlooked keystone species — the extinct Seller’s Sea Cow (大海牛). By examining past kelp forests, a deeper story impacting regeneration was revealed. The sea cow, a massive plant-cater, contributed to a diverse, vital undergrowth by trimming kelp and letting light reach the area.

The researchers put forward a novel approach to kelp forest restoration: selectively harvesting kelp, imitating the sea cow’s impact. This strategy, considering historical dynamics, challenges assumptions about recent ecosystems and offers new conservation methods.

Rather than only focusing on removing urchins (海胆) or reintroducing sea otters, the researchers suggest employing teams of humans to selectively harvest kelp, as the Steller’s sea cow once did, to encourage fresh growth. This sustainable harvest could benefit both the ecosystem and human consumption.

In short, assumptions based on the recent past may impede the understanding and protection of ecosystems. On the other hand, the application of controlled burns, similar modeling studies, and a deep-time perspective (视角) could significantly transform conservation efforts. Recognizing our role in an ongoing narrative spanning millions of years is essential, urging a comprehensive understanding of ecosystems through time. Embracing this role is crucial for shaping the future and establishing vital connections from the past to the future.

10 . Across the world, humans purchase around 1.3 billion single-use plastic water bottles a day. Because only about 9% of plastic is recycled, the vast majority of those bottles wind up in landfills, the ocean, or elsewhere in nature.

When beach-loving Madison noticed those plastic bottles during her family’s trips to California, the 12-year-old “just felt like this needed to change,” she told Smithsonian Magazine.

So as she began thinking about what to do for her school science fair back in 2021, the idea of a project centered on reducing plastic pollution quickly came to her mind: she would design an eatable water bottle called the Eco-Hero.

“One of my biggest ambitions for my project was wanting to help the world,” the confident young inventor said in a video on the website.

To bring her idea to life, Madison built upon the already established method by experimenting with common food materials. She also took inspiration from previous versions of eatable water bottles, though she focused on making hers bigger and more durable. She found that the combination of water, lemon juice, natural gum, and Alginic acid (褐藻酸) resulted in a gel pouch that wouldn’t break, could hold up to 3/4 cup of water, and would last in the fridge for three weeks.

Though she’d like to improve the Eco-Hero by making it able to hold more water, she believes her current version would work well as a replacement for the paper cups used by runners in races. All one needs to do is bite a hole in the water ball, drink the water, and then eat the pouch or throw it away to biodegrade.

Madison hopes the Eco-Hero inspires others to take better care of the planet. “It doesn’t necessarily have to be in a big way,” she told Smithsonian. “People can still make a difference in the world, even if it’s just in a small way.”