National Geographic February 2006

Kamchatka’s Bears { Russia’s Giant Bears; Giants Under Siege: Kamchatka’s Bears}
Russia’s Giant Bears After the Soviet Union collapsed, so did the brown bear population of the Kamchatka Peninsula. In this untamed frontier, poaching keeps the bears at risk. BY GLEB RAYGORODETSKY PHOTOGRAPHS BY STEVE WINTER
Meltdown in the Alps { Meltdown: The Alps Under Pressure}
Meltdown in the Alps Long a social hot spot, Europe’s winter playground is now warming up for real. BY ERLA ZWINGLE PHOTOGRAPHS BY MELISSA FARLOW AND RANDY OLSON
California Wild { California’s Wild Crusade}
California’s Wild Crusade Can America’s most populous state save room for the endemic plants and animals that put it on the world map of ecological treasures? BY VIRGINIA MORELL PHOTOGRAPHS BY TIM LAMAN
A Faith Grows in Brooklyn
A Faith Grows in Brooklyn A movement embracing old- world Orthodox Judaism is alive and thriving in New York City. TEXT AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY CAROLYN DRAKE
True Love { Love: The Chemical Reaction; This Thing Called Love}
True Love Scientists say that the brain chemistry of infatuation is akin to mental illness- which gives new meaning to madly in love. BY LAUREN SLATER PHOTOGRAPHS BY JODI COBB
Heartbreak on the Serengeti
Heartbreak on the Serengeti To the Maasai it’s the place where the land runs on forever, but beyond the protected core of this iconic wildscape, the land is running out. BY ROBERT M. POOLE PHOTOGRAPHS BY RANDY OLSON
33127: Visions Of Little Haiti { ZipUSA: 33127; ZipUSA: Little Haiti, Florida}
ZipUSA: 33127 A group of Miami high school students looked at their Little Haiti neighborhood through the lens of a camera- and saw it for the first time. BY NEIL SHEA PHOTOGRAPHS BY NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC PHOTO CAMP