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A downloadable US forest map assembled from space-based radar, satellite sensors, computer models, and a massive amount of ground-based data. It is possibly the highest resolution and most detailed view of forest structure and carbon storage ever assembled for any country. "Trees are one of Earth's largest banks for storing the carbon that gets emitted by natural processes and human activities. Forests cover about 30 percent of the planet's surface, and as much as 45 percent of the carbon stored on land is tied up in forests."

Tropical rain forests (areas that receive more than 100 mm of rain/month) support the richest avifaunas in the world. Why are there so many bird species in rain forests & how (& why) do the avifaunas of rain forests in different parts of the world vary? To answer these questions requires a look at the history of rain forests & their avifaunas

Political ecologist Susanna Hecht has incurred the wrath of some conservationists by arguing that the notion of the primeval forest is largely a myth and that disturbed forests play a vital ecological function. In an interview with Yale Environment 360, she makes the case for a "new rurality" that places less emphasis on protected forests and more on the areas where people live.

This interactive world map allows users to learn about tree cover loss over time, along with some success stories from around the world. This "dynamic online forest monitoring and alert system that empowers people everywhere to better manage forests." After first agreeing to terms of use, visitors to the site can navigate to the Map tab to use a sophisticated set of tools that track tree cover loss and gain from 2000 to the present. The Stories area highlights people who are working to conserve and enhance existing forested areas from Ecuador to Egypt.

Examine a tropical montane cloud forest via this immersive video experience. Click on numbered links to access video clips and facts describing each different forest environment. The site includes background information for teachers and standards-aligned lessons for students in grades 6-8 on such topics as water, weather, soils, ecology, and the science processes.

"Have you ever wondered what the tree population and density of the United States looks like? This amazing map shows just that. Created by Josef Kellndorfer and Wayne Walker of Woods Hole Research Center in conjunction with the U. S. Geological Survey Science Center's Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center and the US Forest Service, the map was generated based on a series of data sources including readings collected from space-based radars, satellite sensors, computer models, and simply counting trees the old-fashioned way. The map was created for NASA to help determine how the world's forests have the potential to store more carbon in the future."

Environmentalists to use new Google 3D Trees mapping tool to preserve forests

Kenya's high-elevation forests are the source for most of the water on which the drought-plagued nation depends. Now, after decades of government-abetted abuse of these regions, a new conservation strategy of working with local communities is showing signs of success.

Mapping climate patterns, tornadoes, hurricanes, seismic activity, ecoregions and urban forests.

"Forest canopies provide structure that affects weather patterns, contributes to nutrient cycling, and provides habitat for plants and animals, among other things. A lot remains to be discovered...there's room for new scientists to climb up and explore. "

An interactive website for learning about cloud forest ecosystems. Includes videos and lesson plans.

journalist Fred Pearce reports on how the rapid spread of community-based, digital mapping is helping indigenous groups worldwide to claim ownership of their lands and protect them from logging and other outside development. From the Congo, to Guyana, to the Australian outback, local communities are increasingly using GPS technology and Google Earth to document their traditional forests, hunting areas, burial grounds, and important cultural sites. As Pearce writes, the aim is to produce maps that governments cannot ignore and that can assist local people in saving their homelands

"From Brazil to Borneo, new roads are being built into tropical forests at a dizzying pace, putting previously intact wilderness at risk. If we hope to preserve rainforests, a leading researcher says, new strategies must be adopted to limit the number of roads and reduce their impacts. "

"The soils in tundra, grasslands, tropical forests are very different, but they have one thing in common; they all host an astounding diversity of life. Inhabiting these underground worlds are millions of species, which play vital roles in maintaining soil health and preserving the balance of their ecosystems. A new study shows that biodiversity underground is much greater than previously thought, with a direct relationship to life on the surface. "

Web-based tool that provides land owners, managers, and planners with the most current climate change science available * compiles climate change projections, literature-based impacts and management options, and Forest Service land and resource management plans in an online database; * synthesizes these inputs based on user-defined criteria; and * creates an optional customized report to aid forest planning and management. "

Plant and animal extinctions are detrimental to your health. That's the conclusion of a paper published in this week's issue of the journal Nature by scientists who studied the link between biodiversity and infectious diseases. Species loss in ecosystems such as forests and fields results in increases in pathogens, or disease-causing organisms, the researchers found.

An informative summary by the Ecological Society of America