~ecology-news-biolog | Bookmarks (454)

A new study shows distinct effects of neonicotinoid pesticide exposure in different bumble bee body parts, explaining why pesticides have diverse harmful effects and highlighting the need for more sensitive safety testing. The study is published in the journal Science of The Total Environment.

When a bird drapes its nest with snake skin, it isn't just making an interesting home décor choice. For some birds, it keeps predators at bay.

On the east coast of Australia, in tropical North Queensland, lies the Daintree rainforest—a place where the density of trees forms an almost impenetrable mass of green.

Mosquitoes are able to survive prolonged droughts by drinking blood, which helps to explain how their populations quickly rebound when it finally rains, biologists at the University of Cincinnati said.

The night sky teems with migrating songbirds, aloft in their millions following routes etched in evolutionary time. But those flight paths may not be entirely innate, according to research led by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Evidence from over 18,300 hours of recorded flight calls suggests songbirds may "talk" to other species as they migrate, forming social connections and—just maybe—exchanging information about the journey.

Small-scale fisheries play a significant but overlooked role in global fisheries production and are key to addressing hunger and malnutrition while supporting livelihoods around the world, according to research featured in the journal Nature.

A team of environmental scientists at Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research, in New Zealand, the University of Adelaide and the University of Auckland has found that the now-extinct flightless bird moa once consumed the colorful, truffle-like fungi that still grows in New Zealand. In their study published in the journal Biology Letters, the group conducted a DNA analysis of fossilized moa dung.

Researchers at Nagoya University in Japan have discovered sophisticated behavioral strategies that enable parasitic crickets to survive within ant colonies. Led by Ryoya Tanaka, the team documented how these insects successfully navigate life among potentially lethal hosts through precise evasion tactics. Their findings, published in Communications Biology, reveal remarkable adaptations that allow these cricket species to thrive in a hostile environment.

Tree crops—for example, apple, cherry, olives, nuts, coffee, and cacao—cover more than 183 million hectares worldwide, yet remain largely overlooked in agricultural policies, despite their critical role in achieving the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Seabirds are the most threatened group of birds in the world. A new study led by researchers at Bangor University reveals the sophisticated decision-making seabirds known as Manx shearwaters must make to find fish at sea.

Longer, more diverse rotations of crops fertilized with livestock manure have many environmental benefits, but carbon sequestration isn't one of them, according to a new study led by Iowa State University researchers.

Giant isopods of the genus Bathynomus, which can reach more than 30 cm in length, are known as bọ biển or "sea bugs" in Vietnam. For the first time, one such species was described from Vietnamese waters and named Bathynomus vaderi. The name "vaderi" is inspired by the appearance of its head, which closely resembles the distinctive and iconic helmet of Darth Vader, the...

Researchers at Rice University have uncovered new insights into the evolution of bird behavior, revealing why certain mating systems persist while others disappear over time.

Predators at the top of a marine food chain 130 million years ago ruled with more power than any modern species, McGill research into a marine ecosystem from the Cretaceous period revealed.

Life on the Great Barrier Reef is undergoing big changes in the face of climate change and other human-caused pressures, a new study reveals.

An international team of scientists has revised the classification of Australia's most famous spider. With a bite more deadly to humans than that of any other spider, the iconic Sydney funnel-web has long been considered a single species, but the new analysis suggests that funnel-web spiders in the Sydney region actually represent three distinct species.

New genetic research on the Alaska red king crab reveals previously undiscovered diversity among different regions, suggesting the species is more resilient to climate change and changing ocean conditions.

Ecologists at the School of Biological Sciences of The University of Hong Kong (HKU) have made valuable discoveries that could transform the conservation of two iconic cockatoo species: the Sulfur-crested cockatoos and the critically endangered Yellow-crested cockatoos—with only 2,000 individuals remaining in the wild for the latter.

To help rare elkhorn corals survive in Florida waters, coral researchers should place them in shallow ocean locations with fast currents, scientists at the University of Miami NOAA Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies and the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science explained in a paper, "Reef site and habitat influence effectiveness of Acropora palmata restoration and its...

Far from its home in Indonesia, a brightly colored creature moved around in an aquarium. Scientists peered into the tank, studying their pet-turned-specimen—and discovered it was a new species.

Prehistoric kangaroos in southern Australia had a more general diet than previously assumed, giving rise to new ideas about their survival and resilience to climate change, and the final extinction of the megafauna, a new study has found.

A research team led by the University of Oxford has carried out the most comprehensive assessment to date of how logging and conversion to oil palm plantations affect tropical forest ecosystems. The results demonstrate that logging and conversion have significantly different and cumulative environmental impacts. The results were published 10 January in Science.

The extensive northern forests of Canada, Alaska and Siberia are about to fundamentally change their tree density because of climate change. According to a new study led by researchers from Wageningen University & Research and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, this change will increase the risk of forest fires. The research team explored 20 years of tree cover data...

Advances in data availability and accessibility have resulted in a new study on wild animal hunting in African tropical forests. It suggests that the commercial trade in wild-sourced meat is increasing, and highlights the urgent need for countries to develop robust frameworks to ensure hunting and trade is sustainable in a growing commercialized sector.