Stories by Patty Wetli

A year after being taken to task by the city’s Office of Inspector General for inefficient weed-clearing practices, the Department of Streets and Sanitation has made some improvements but still has work to do, according to a follow-up report released last week.

Reports of sick and dying birds have tapered off since first coming to light in late spring. Illinois was not affected and wildlife officials reiterated that it's OK to have bird feeders and baths in outdoor spaces — just be sure to keep them clean. 

Opponents of the Obama Presidential Center’s construction in Jackson Park suffered another legal setback Thursday in federal court.

A proposed two-story triangular DraftKings Sportsbook addition to Wrigley Field still requires a heavy lift from City Council, but the Commission on Chicago Landmarks won’t stand in the way of Cubs ownership.

Three years in the making, the Douglass 18, a bird-themed mini-golf course, opens Saturday in Douglass Park. Neighborhood teens researched and designed the holes, drawing inspiration from Chicago’s bird population.

If you thought your last move was a hassle, CTA has got you beat: The agency just relocated an entire building.

Nearly 600 million birds are killed annually in North America due to collisions with buildings. A new Illinois law mandates bird-friendly design for state buildings.

The newest members of Chicago’s growing piping plover family have names. Meet Siewka (pronounced Shivka), which is the Polish word for “plover,” and Imani, the word for “faith” in Swahili. 

Monitoring stations have been set up at various parks and preserves in the Chicago region for visitors to snap photos, which are then stitched together in a time-lapse series to document environmental changes. 

High temperatures and oppressive humidity levels could combine for a triple-digit heat index Saturday. Air quality continues to be affected by smoke in the atmosphere from wildfires in the western U.S. and Canada.

Some of the Games’ most high-profile moments will incorporate clever examples of “reduce, reuse, recycle,” like medalists standing on 3-D printed podiums made from recycled plastic collected by the Japanese people. 

Moths have been nabbing international headlines of late, thanks to a declaration by the Entomological Society of America that the gypsy moth is no more. The destructive insect hasn’t gone extinct, but it’s common name has been mothballed.

They are often thought of as a nondescript bugs — or even pests — and are misunderstood in large part because of their nocturnal behavior. But moths are excellent pollinators and play a key role in the food web. Here’s what else you should know about moths’ incredible diversity.

Despite its diminutive size, the butterfly famed for its iridescent wings is a giant within the conservation movement, cited as the first case of an insect extinction that can be attributed to urban development.

Hazy skies and unusually colorful sunsets in the area are due to smoke in the atmosphere that is spreading over the Midwest, according to the National Weather Service.

A coalition of 16 Chicago museums and cultural institutions has weighed in on the ongoing battle over the Obama Presidential Center, coming down firmly on the side of the center versus those who would block its construction in historic Jackson Park.

The full-length documentary captures the story of Monty and Rose from their hatching in 2017 to their status as standard bearers for piping plover conservation efforts. 

Chicago generates more than 4 million tons of material waste annually. A new, highly anticipated report recommends a number of strategies aimed at keeping more of that trash out of landfills.

The Chicago region is warming faster than the globe, says the newly sworn-in administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. How a new plan aims to take on the root cause of climate change: greenhouse gas emissions.

The Chicago Park District officially broke ground Thursday on the agency’s new $65 million, 58,000-square-foot headquarters in the Brighton Park neighborhood. “This is the wealth-building we talk about,” community leaders said.

The infected mosquitoes were found in the O’Hare and Beverly community areas, according to the Chicago Department of Public Health.

Two days after welcoming three healthy chicks, Chicago’s beloved piping plovers added a fourth hatchling to their growing family, thanks to a little help from wildlife officials.

A photo snapped by a Field Museum anthropologist in 1947 was labeled “schoolgirl” for 72 years. That student now has a name, and her story is part of a new exhibit about the Marshall Islands. 

Bird monitors said the gull colony is probably stressed in some way, either from lack of food, not enough room on the roof or extreme heat.

Chicago’s indomitable piping plovers have welcomed three chicks, with a fourth still possibly on the way, plover monitors have reported.

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of its natural areas, the Chicago Park District, in partnership with The Nature Conservancy of Illinois, has installed 20 fairy houses in parks across the city. Here’s where to find them.