The federal government has just announced its most significant investment to date in nature-based projects aimed at creating "climate-ready" coastlines, and Chicago is among the communities that will benefit from this latest round of funding.

"A birth represents preservation of a species that has faced many challenges in the wild,” said Mike Murray, curator of mammals and animal behavioral husbandry.

It’s been another wild week on the nature beat. The United Nations’ biodiversity conference kicked off Tuesday in Montreal with the UN Secretary-General calling humanity a “weapon of mass extinction.” Nowhere to go but up from there.

With animal fossils hard to come by, the researchers extracted environmental DNA, also known as eDNA, from soil samples. This is the genetic material that organisms shed into their surroundings — for example, through hair, waste, spit or decomposing carcasses.

Sky watchers will have their eyes peeled Wednesday night for a rare-ish celestial event: an “eclipse” of Mars.

Researchers at the Field Museum are embarking on a project to discover what was the point — if any — of T. rex’s tiny arms.

Federal officials popped into Chicago Friday to celebrate the awarding of a $20 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to the Englewood Nature Trail.

Every Friday, we’ll be rounding up some of the articles, videos, photos and social media posts that have caught our attention on the topics of climate change, the environment, wildlife, conservation and weather. 

Starting Dec. 1, Chicago’s overnight parking ban takes effect on 107 miles of streets, snow or no snow, from 3-7 a.m. daily through April 1.

The deadly white-nose syndrome is threatening the northern long-eared bat — one of Illinois’ 13 native bats — with extinction. The race is on to find a cure and protect what’s left of the population.

Preservationists are pushing for Promontory Point to be granted Chicago landmark status. Will their case be heard?

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, known by its initials as CITES, ended Friday in Panama. Along with protections for over 500 species, delegates at the United Nations wildlife conference rejected a proposal to reopen the ivory trade. An ivory ban was enacted in 1989.

Sandhill crane migration is reaching its peak. For those who've wondered whether there are more of the birds this year than in the past, the answer appears to be yes.

It could have been worse, UN Executive Secretary for Climate Simon Stiell said in a seaside interview with The Associated Press. The talks did achieve the historic creation of a fund for poor nations that are victims of climate disasters, he said.

“Any riverfront improvement opportunity should be part of a master plan that recognizes the Chicago River system as the wondrous natural resource it is rather than the uncared for alleyway it used to be,” said Friends of the Chicago River.

Davis, founder of Blacks in Green, envisions Woodlawn teeming with biodiversity, resilient in the face of climate change and capable of supporting a local workforce employed in green business such as horticulture or composting.