Algae

Scientists try to figure out why the water dramatically changed color over one weekend.

All you need is a jar of local water and a microscope—you may even find new species. Welcome to Algae Obscura.

At Orlando Wetlands Park, water goes for a ride—through a natural filtration process—and attracts birds, gators, and more.

As a supersized sargassum bloom heads toward Florida and the Caribbean, we take a closer look at past big blobs.

And why is it fouling the coast around Istanbul?

New research in Brazil highlights how distinctive the "living skin" of the planet can be.

Conservationists were baffled when hundreds of elephants died in the Okavango Delta this summer.

Yet vegetation persists there. And as the first large-scale algae map reveals, "green snow" acts as a carbon sink.

“One animal’s waste is another animal’s banquet.”

Sally Warring knows a lot about what we can't see.

Yuncheng Lake is one of the country's oldest salt-production sites.

Colored by algae and beloved by bathers, Lake Retba is a prime source of salt—and backbreaking labor.

Kathleen Drew-Baker’s study of British algae helped rescue Japan's nori industry.

The seasonal delicacy was discarded for decades.

Scholars, soldiers, and scientists have long puzzled over the supernatural substance.

From bioluminescent fungus to random bone houses, here's what we talk about at the office.

Sometimes marimo float, and sometimes they sink. But why?