There is nothing bland about magnolias. Photograph: Dirk Wuestenhagen
By John Burnside - 26 March 15:58

In praise of the magnolia.

Amazing grace: flamingos have the poise of dancers or tightrope walkers.
By John Burnside - 14 March 9:00

Gravity is not just a limitation, but a potential partner in exploring the world.

A pug at Crufts in 2011. Photograph: Getty Images
By Mimi Bekhechi - 06 March 15:21

Competitions like Crufts encourage breeders to manipulate dogs' bodies as if they were modelling clay. Even dogs who will never set foot in a show ring suffer because of it.

Decaying fruit gives new life when composted. Photograph: Greg Friedler
By Alice Oswald - 20 February 8:52

What's the difference between rot and decay?

Photograph: Getty Images
By Alex Hern - 01 February 14:04

It's no use waiting for developing nations to make the first move. We'll fiddle while Rome drowns.

We lack the animal and spirit connections of our forebears
By John Burnside - 31 January 12:09

We are living without the sense of the shamanic and the transformational that our forebears found vital for survival.

Photograph: Getty Images
By Alex Hern - 31 January 11:59

The cost of not switching to renewables.

Tewkesbury is submerged in receding flood waters of the River Severn and Avon
By Edward Platt - 03 January 7:27

As the planet warms, extreme weather is becoming a part of our daily life, but Britain is still ill-equipped to cope with the floods.

David Attenborough shushing a llama. Photograph: Getty Images
By Philip Maughan - 19 December 10:18

For more than half a century, the magazine has followed the broadcaster's work.

David Attenborough with Brian Cox and Robin Ince. Photograph: Muir Vidler for th
By Brian Cox and Robin Ince - 18 December 16:02

For 60 years, David Attenborough has brought the wonders of the world around us to TV viewers hungry for science and natural history. In an exclusive interview with Brian Cox and Robin Ince, he talks about the BBC, Darwin and what keeps him moving.

Children play on a fence where goats are tied together for sale
By John Burnside - 29 November 9:27

As long as we remain anthropocentric, we harm other animals.

Local villagers work to scavenge coal illegally from an open-cast coal mine in t
By Guppi Bola and Chaitanya Kumar - 15 November 18:29

It's not just the west which is fighting investment in coal – grassroots campaigns in India are also calling for cleaner energy, write Guppi Bola and Chaitanya Kumar.

Ash trees in Pound Farm Woodland
By Michael Brooks - 13 November 10:00

If it hadn't been for a name-related confusion, the government might have imposed a ban on imports of ash and ash products years ago.

A traditional reedcutter at work on the Norfolk Broads
By Richard Mabey - 25 October 12:06

A reminder is that we share a habitat and a common experience with other creatures.

New Statesman
By John Burnside - 11 October 7:37

We seem resigned to losing our green world.

A spider in its web.
By Alice Oswald - 20 September 9:14

Most spiders eat and remake their webs every day.

Bridgewater Foundry
By John Burnside - 29 August 15:29

John Burnside's nature column.

A Neanderthal. Photo: Getty
By Michael Brooks - 23 August 7:45

Michael Brooks on the misinterpretation of eye-catching research.

A fallow deer buck rests in the long grass in Richmond Park
By John Burnside - 15 August 12:30

There is a long tradition of poets celebrating chance encounters with animals, but such meetings are becoming increasingly rare.

A mushroom sprouts in a Berlin garden
By John Burnside - 08 August 14:12

The city remains, for the moment, admirably wild.

Amanda Feilding
By Helen Lewis - 08 August 12:25

The campaigner on what's wrong with our drug laws - and how magic mushrooms might help treat depression.

A breeding pair of king vultures are displayed at the London Zoo
By Ruth Padel - 25 July 17:28

Ruth Padel argues that London Zoo is a place of respite and renewal.

London needs to invest in home-grown innovation to become a "smart city"
By Leo Hollis - 25 July 17:26

London is hoping to transform itself from Victorian capital to futuristic metropolis, but reality seems to be getting in the way.

The tiny visible part of a 100km-long lighting strike.
By Alex Hern - 20 July 13:50

Just like an iceberg, the visible part of a lightning strike is just a tiny fraction of the whole.

Adam and Eve. Photo: Getty Images
By Nelson Jones - 19 July 10:47

The real problem with "creationist schools" is not their attitude to science, says Nelson Jones.

A page from a 1908 biology textbook
By Alex Hern - 09 July 17:52

In a shocking twist, it's humans who are the real monsters.

Lonesome George, the final Pinta Island giant tortoise in the world, died on 24t
By Helen Lewis - 27 June 17:16

The death of Lonesome George raises questions of how many endlings we will see.

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