Wildlife

Noppadol Paothong grew up in Thailand but came to the U.S. to study graphic design and photojournalism. In 2005, he became a photographer for the Missouri Department of Conservation, bringing him in close contact with Midwestern species like raptors, eastern hellbenders and prairie chickens.

The roadrunner, long a symbol of the American Southwest, is experiencing range expansion. That's bringing the bird to places that didn't use to resemble the desert vistas beloved by its cartoon counterpart — such as Kansas and even Missouri.

The prothonotary warbler population in Kansas is growing as the birds stop to breed before heading south. Researchers are using electronic trackers to study their movements.

As part of their annual migration to South America, purple martins from across the region are putting on a nightly show just north of the Wichita airport control tower, gathering to roost in a cluster of trees. And their chatter can be heard pretty clearly, too.

An average of 3,400 animal-related vehicle crashes happen in Missouri each year, resulting in around four fatalities annually. Experts hope a first-of-its-kind study of which state roads need animal crossings will help improve safety for all involved.

The plains spotted skunk is becoming harder to find in the central U.S. states it calls home. As federal officials consider the skunk for federal protections, researchers and environmentalists are hoping to learn more about the long understudied species.

These ranchers tried to protect grassland from trees and shrubs in all the traditional ways. It didn’t work. So they brought in hungry goats that turned woody plants into a cash stream.

Photographers are swarming to the Kauffman Foundation pond for a chance to see a brown booby — a tropical seabird usually found in the Caribbean. Some Kansas City birders speculated that it followed the Curaçao team for their World Cup match this coming weekend.

Turning your grass into a garden isn't as complicated as you think, but it will take time and effort. Kansas City experts offer this step-by-step guide that breaks down the process, from killing your lawn to picking plants to grow.

Avoiding goose-human conflict and managing the birds' population in urban and suburban settings can be done in humane ways.

The federal government promised Kansas City $59 million in security funding for the World Cup, but a partial shutdown put that money in limbo — with just months before the games kicked off. Plus: Mosses are the underdogs of the plant world. Now a group of scientists is coming together to protect them.

After an Oklahoma man was killed by a tiger at his preserve last year, the incident put a spotlight on safety risks of owning big cats. Some animal welfare advocates say federal regulations don’t go far enough to protect these animals and the people interacting with them.