Mark Wexler

arising from R. C. Lanfranco et al. Nature Communications https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-52778-5 (2024) Two centuries ago, Joseph Plateau remarked that when a piece of burning coal moves quickly in the dark, we see a continuous luminous streak, thus proving that the sensations produced by light have a certain duration1. The term “visual persistence” was later coined to describe the phenomenon that the visual perception of an object lingers for some time after its physical disappearance.

New in Wildlife Science: Bird–Building Strikes & Marlin Stripes The updated numbers on bird–building collisions are worse than we thought; plus, marlins’ color changes and tall grass benefits for butterflies By Mark Wexler Wildlife Science Mar 26, 2025 Undercounting Bird–Building Strikes To estimate the toll taken by bird–building strikes, scientists have relied on counting dead birds at crash sites (above). But according to two recent studies, totals derived from such counts are too low.

New in Wildlife Science: Hungry Otters Stabilize an Ecosystem Otters in California feast on crabs that cause salt marsh erosion; indoor gardening enhances health; lungs help birds soar By Mark Wexler Wildlife Science Dec 18, 2024 Otters Eat Their Way to a Healthy Ecosystem Nearly exterminated by fur traders in the 1800s, southern sea otters that recolonized California’s Elkhorn Slough after hunting was banned are now thriving (above)—and their recovery shows how a single top predator can...