Saturday, July 11, 2026

Welcome to Envirobites

We want to make cutting edge research in the environmental sciences accessible to all by highlighting recent studies and explaining how these advances shape the understanding of our world.

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Animal behaviorEnvironmental Science
Brandi Pessman

Good Vibrations: Katydids communicate when the wind is calm

Bzzzt! Our phones vibrate to let us know that someone has sent us a message and would like to communicate. Hundreds of thousands of species of animals, including katydids, use vibrations to communicate too. Male katydids vibrate their abdomens against plant branches to send information to other katydids, but these communications can be interrupted when wind vibrates plant branches at the same time. To avoid this disruption, katydids wait until the wind calms down to broadcast their signals. “Can you hear me now?”

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ClimateEnvironmental Science
Jeannie Wilkening

The burning question: How do wildfires impact watersheds?

Wildfires can be devastating events, but the impacts can last long after the flames are gone. The major changes to the landscape can have serious implications for how water moves and, as a result, how much of that water we can use. In this study, scientists investigate what a fiery future under climate change could mean for watersheds.

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Animal behaviorCase StudiesEnvironmental Science
Laura Schifman

Why is it important to do research at seal rehabilitation centers?

For many animal lovers, working as a seal rehabilitator seems like a dream job. You spend all day taking care of baby seals and release them when they’re strong enough to live on their own. But have these types of rehabilitation centers done enough research on what makes a seal ready for release? Could the time spent in rehabilitation cause the seals future problems or make it harder for them to survive in the wild? If so, should we stop seal rehabilitation all together?

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Environmental Science
Riley Lovejoy

Invasive Species Eradication: Prioritizing Efforts and Understanding Costs

Invasive predators can have major impacts on native prey species. Eradication, if possible, can help native species rebound, but many invasion scenarios are complex and include multiple invasive predators. How do we decide which species to target first? While such decisions can be difficult, recent theoretical work has shed light on the most effective strategies.

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Animal behaviorCase Studies
Elisabeth Lang

Learning through Observing: Social learning occurs across vertebrate species

Social learning is widely thought to be something done only by species with social lives. However, recent research is showing that even more solitary species participate in social learning. A team of researchers from Australia tested the ability of a solitary shark species to learn through observing and mimicking members of their own species. They found that these particular sharks are capable of learning in this way, which contributes to our understanding of these animals’ lives and what we can do to conserve them.

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