All over the world, plants are dependent on secret partners—bacteria and fungi—for their survival. But what happens to these relationships if new, exotic plants move into the area?
Tardigrades are some of the toughest animals on earth. They can survive freezing, drying up, radiation, and space, all while being smaller than the tip of a pencil.
Nicholas Stephanopoulos works with tiny structures so small you can only see them by using powerful microscopes. Some might say he's a builder, but he actually gets the molecules to do the building themselves.
Ants can move nutrients from one area to another in the forest. When ants build their homes inside a plant, does the food they carry and store also help the plant?
Whether in the sands of the desert or the ice of Antarctica, viruses play a larger role in our ecosystems than you might realize. Arvind Varsani searches for these viruses, studying them in all kinds of habitats across the globe.