News & Commentary

The Big Muddy River’s Long, Turbulent Relationship with Coal

August 14, 2020 DispatchIllinoisSusan Cosier

As a proposal threatens to dump mining waste into a Mississippi River tributary, an Illinois community reassesses its coal industry ties.

These Prehistoric Fish Are Making a Slow Comeback in the Midwest

January 23, 2020 DispatchWisconsin, MichiganSusan Cosier

Conservationists, fishers, and fans of the iconic lake sturgeon have seen some success in their efforts to revive the population, including through hand-rearing and releasing the babies—and yes, spearing the big ones.

After a Century of Being Dammed Up, Illinois Rivers Get to Go With the Flow

July 24, 2019 DispatchIllinoisSusan Cosier

Dam removals are setting rapids and fish populations free and keeping swimmers and boaters safer.

From Moose to Monarchs, Wildlife in the Heartland Needs the Endangered Species Act

September 11, 2018 DispatchMidwestSusan Cosier

This conservation law has been saving our flora and fauna since the 1970s. The Trump administration should stop fiddling with it.

Can We Save the Midwest’s Only Rattlesnake?

July 16, 2018 DispatchMidwest, Michigan, IllinoisSusan Cosier

As the region’s wetlands disappear, so may the swamp rattler.

Wolves Get a Second Chance on a Great Lakes Island

June 27, 2018 DispatchMichiganSusan Cosier

In Isle Royale National Park, the Park Service makes a rare move to reverse a consequence of climate change.

Nestlé’s Ice Mountain Bottled Water Leaves Nothing for Michigan’s Trout

June 1, 2018 DispatchMichiganSusan Cosier

The company wants to increase its groundwater withdrawals to 400 gallons a minute—but the community’s citizen scientists say enough is enough.

How Fish Autopsies Help in the Fight Against the Invasive Asian Carp

October 11, 2017 DispatchIllinois, MidwestSusan Cosier

Dead fish tell many tales—but can they persuade authorities to strengthen Lake Michigan’s defenses against these ecological saboteurs?

After a Century, Chicago-Area Otters Are Back—but They Aren’t the Same

August 7, 2017 DispatchChicago, IllinoisSusan Cosier

These wetland predators are showing scientists a whole new side to otter behavior.

Illinois Holds Its First Bobcat Hunt in 40 Years—and Biologists Are Paying Close Attention

December 29, 2016 DispatchIllinoisSusan Cosier

Scientists may soon have a better grasp of how many of these elusive wild cats are out there.

This Origami Elephant Is as Fragile as the Real Ones

September 14, 2016 PerspectivesChicagoSusan Cosier

At this month’s Expo Chicago, one artist uses paper to convey how the African elephant’s future is unfolding.

Monarchs Need Better Pit Stops on Their Epic Journeys

April 27, 2016 DispatchMidwestSusan Cosier

Projects across the Midwest are trying to bring milkweed and nectar-filled flowers back to the landscape.

Taste the Rainbow . . . Trout?

March 1, 2016 DispatchMidwestSusan Cosier

Farming non-native fish in the Great Lakes? It might not be such a bad idea.

Bird Men

October 6, 2015 DispatchMidwestSusan Cosier

Thanks to falconers, endangered peregrines are flourishing in Midwestern cities.

Spreading Their Wings

June 24, 2015 DispatchChicagoSusan Cosier

Butterflies bred in a Chicago lab are fluttering their way back to Illinois swamps.

Flexing Their Mussel

June 3, 2015 DispatchOhio, MidwestSusan Cosier

The bivalves that ate the Great Lakes are fueling toxic algal blooms, too. Can’t we get rid of them already?

The Call of the Bugle

March 12, 2015 DispatchKentucky, WisconsinSusan Cosier

This spring elk from Kentucky will be migrating (by truck) to Wisconsin.

Bison Back East

December 29, 2014 DispatchIllinois, MississippiSusan Cosier

Wild buffalo now roam east of the Mississippi for the first time since the 1830s, playing a crucial role in restoring Illinois grasslands.