“The best science and nature writing—which these stories represent—reminds us of the wide world and our connection to it, and the multitude of ways we make our place in it,” writes Susan Orlean in her introduction. This year’s collection masterfully guides us through exotic locations and groundbreaking research, leading us to consider complex and utterly fascinating questions about the world. How does it feel to camp in one of the hottest places on Earth? Is the ability to recognize and remember faces a sign of intelligence? What does it mean for a species to be wild or invasive—are city pigeons and rats less deserving than the coyotes that recently wandered down from Westchester? Encompassing the strangeness and, at times, severity of our world, these stories are urgent, vital, and ultimately inspiring. As Orlean eloquently observes, “Science keeps unlocking mysteries, revealing secrets, helping us heal. And as imperiled as nature seems, it remains amply, gloriously gorgeous: The world is still full of beauty.”

THE BEST AMERICAN SCIENCE AND NATURE WRITING 2025 INCLUDES: FERRIS JABR • EMILY RABOTEAU • RIVKA GALCHEN • BEN GOLDFARB • DAVID NAIMON • TOM MCALLISTER • KATIE ENGELHART • AND OTHERS

Susan Orlean has been a staff writer at The New Yorker since 1992. She is the New York Times bestselling author of seven books, including The Library Book, Rin Tin Tin, Saturday Night, and The Orchid Thief, which was made into the Academy Award–winning film Adaptation. Her memoir, Joyride, will be published in October 2025. She lives with her family and her animals in Los Angeles. Jaime Green, series editor, is a science writer and essayist. Her work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, Aeon, Slate, The Nation, The New York Times Book Review, Astrobites, and elsewhere. She is the author of The Possibility of Life: Science, Imagination, and Our Quest for Kinship in the Cosmos.