The History and Challenge of Grassy Biomes

Grass - Essential and Overlooked Biomes - Science Magazine
October 12, 2022

Grasses tend to be undervalued but have influenced the trajectory of human history through their domestication as food staples, as well as natural ecosystems worldwide. YIBS Associate Director, Carla Staver (Associate Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Yale University) & former YIBS Edward P. Bass Distinguished Visiting Environmental Scholar, Caroline Strömberg (Estella B. Leopold Professor in Biology and Curator of Paleobotany, University of Washington) share their perspectives regarding the history and difficulties of managing grasslands and savannas in a recent Science publication. Click here to read the article. 

News & Updates

Close-up of a male greater sage-grouse ‘strut’ display

Study led by YIBS Faculty Affiliate Richard Prum's lab reveals mating tip for bird species: You should be dancing

May 30, 2025
When it comes to impressing the ladies, greater sage-grouse males know that smooth dance moves trump combative posturing. Indeed, new Yale research into these prairie-...
A cactus wren

Even birds can’t outfly climate change

May 28, 2025
As rising global temperatures alter ecosystems worldwide, animal species usually have two choices: adapt to changing local conditions or flee to a cooler clime. Ecologists...
Thomas Near and others have discovered two darter species — the Gurley Darter and the Birmingham Darter — in the Mobile River system in central Alabama.

YIBS Faculty Affiliate Thomas Near and others find two new fish species in Alabama streams — and they’re already imperiled

April 29, 2025
Yale researchers have discovered two new species of darter — small, colorful freshwater fishes — inhabiting short stretches of creeks and streams in central Alabama.  And...