Fungi of Antarctica

Come along on an informative, whirlwind tour of urban species—from intelligent crows to backyard lichens—and discover that you are surrounded by wild nature, even in your own backyard.

Life in Ancient Ice presents an unparalleled overview of current research into microbial life in ancient glacial ice and permafrost. Particulates of fungi, bacteria, pollen grains, protists, and viruses are carried by wind around the globe. When they fall to Earth in polar regions they may be trapped in ice for hundreds of millennia. Some of the many implications sound like science fiction–for example, might melting glaciers release ancient pathogens that yield modern-day pandemics? But rigorous, coordinated research is nascent.