http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/earth_climate/ecosystems/ Ecology news. Learn about ecosystems at risk. Read current events articles on fragile ecosystems and what can be done to protect them. en-us Sat, 17 May 2008 05:05:01 EDT Sat, 17 May 2008 05:05:01 EDT 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/earth_climate/ecosystems/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080516125934.htm Using empirical tests, a pioneering study shows how plant species, such as the prickly pear, invade Mediterranean ecosystems, and can either rob the native plants of pollinating insects, or, surprisingly, can attract them, thus benefiting the whole plant community, such as in the case of balsam. The research contradicts the hypothesis of the "floral market" whereby only the invasive flowers are seen to benefit and the native flowers are no longer visited by pollinating insects. Fri, 16 May 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080516125934.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080516112715.htm Future generations face hunger, thirst, disease and disaster if we carry on losing biodiversity. And as biodiversity plummets our use of resources soars - WWF now estimates that biodiversity has declined by more than a quarter in the last 35 years. Fri, 16 May 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080516112715.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080516094431.htm Preliminary findings in one of the first landscape-scale experiments on how forest management affects western Ponderosa pine ecosystems have been completed. The results suggests that in the absence of treatments like thinning and controlled burns, old-growth characteristics will be lost as a result of lower growth rates and higher tree mortality. The scientists reached this conclusion by evaluating decades of growth data obtained on the experimental forest. Fri, 16 May 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080516094431.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080515145419.htm The problem of excessive reactive nitrogen in the environment is little-known beyond a growing circle of environmental scientists who study how the element cycles through the environment and negatively alters local and global ecosystems and potentially harms human health. Two new papers by leading environmental scientists bring the problem to the forefront in the journal Science. Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080515145419.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080512153631.htm Over a decade of work and contributions by more than 200 leading conservation scientists have produced a first-ever comprehensive map and database of the diversity of life in the world's freshwater ecosystems. Freshwater Ecoregions of the World divides the world's freshwater systems into 426 distinct conservation units, many of which are rich in species but under increasing pressure from human population growth, rising water use, and habitat alteration. Wed, 14 May 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080512153631.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080512094438.htm It's a tough job, but somebody, or at least some dogs, have to do it. In the Cerrado region of Brazil, four dogs trained to detect animal feces by scent are helping researchers monitor rare and threatened wildlife such as jaguar, tapir, giant anteater and maned wolf in and around Emas National Park, a protected area with the largest concentration of threatened species in Brazil. Tue, 13 May 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080512094438.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080509171616.htm Reducing the spread of some invasive species into our lakes could be as simple as asking boaters and fishers to dry out their equipment, says one biology professor studying invasive species in Lake Ontario. When anchor rope, fishing line and the boats themselves are thoroughly dried, the invasive species and their eggs will die, rather than spreading to another location, she explains. "It's such a simple thing for the general public to do, and yet it could make a big difference in the way that our lake ecosystems function." Tue, 13 May 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080509171616.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508142820.htm An endangered species of flora or fauna ups the risk of the extinction of the other species in its ecological community. Trophically unique species are more vulnerable for cascading extinction, according to studies of a team of theoretical biologists. Sun, 11 May 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508142820.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507083958.htm Walking through the last rainforests on the volcanic island of Mauritius, located some 800 km east of Madagascar, one is surrounded by ghosts. Since human colonisation in the 17th century, the island has lost most of its unique animals. The litany includes the famous flightless dodo, giant tortoises, parrots, pigeons, fruitbats, and giant lizards. It is comparatively easy to notice the los­­s of a species, but much more difficult to realise how many interactions have been lost as a result. Fri, 09 May 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507083958.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507133259.htm The Amazon rainforest, so crucial to the Earth's climate system, is coming under threat from cleaner air say prominent climate scientists. The new study identifies a link between reducing sulphur dioxide emissions from burning coal and increasing sea surface temperatures in the tropical north Atlantic, resulting in a heightened risk of drought in the Amazon rainforest. Thu, 08 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507133259.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507105549.htm Research led by Iowa State University limnologist John Downing finds that ponds around the globe could absorb as much carbon as the world's oceans. Thu, 08 May 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507105549.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080505211835.htm The Arctic has become a poster child for the negative effects of climate change, but new research that species living in the tropics likely face the greatest peril in a warmer world. Tue, 06 May 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080505211835.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501125429.htm Researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego have identified a potential "red tide killer." Red tides and related phenomena in which microscopic algae accumulate rapidly in dense concentrations have been on the rise in recent years, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in worldwide losses to fisheries and beach tourism activities. Despite their wide-ranging impacts, such phenomena, more broadly referred to as "harmful algal blooms," remain unpredictable in not only where they appear, but how long they persist. Tue, 06 May 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501125429.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501180247.htm Fire-derived charcoal is thought to be an important carbon sink. However, a new article in Science shows that charcoal promotes soil microbes and causes a large loss of soil carbon. There has been greatly increasing attention given to the potential of ‘biochar’, or charcoal made from biological tissues (e.g., wood) to serve as a long term sink of carbon in the soil. Sun, 04 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501180247.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080430141200.htm Scientists have discovered a new climate pattern, the North Pacific Gyre Oscillation. This pattern explains, for the first time, changes in the water important in helping commercial fishermen understand fluctuations in the fish stock. They're also finding that as the Earth is warming, large fluctuations in these factors could help climatologists predict how oceans will respond in a warmer world. Fri, 02 May 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080430141200.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501143406.htm Scientists confirm computer model predictions that oxygen-depleted zones in tropical oceans are expanding, possibly because of climate change. Oceanographers have discovered that oxygen-poor regions of tropical oceans are expanding as the oceans warm, limiting the areas in which predatory fishes and other marine organisms can live or enter in search of food. Fri, 02 May 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501143406.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428200309.htm Similarities between half-billion-year-old and recent food webs point to deep principles underpinning the structure of ecological relationships, as shown by researchers from the Santa Fe Institute, Microsoft Research Cambridge and elsewhere. Analyses of food-web data suggest that most, but not all, aspects of the trophic structure of modern ecosystems were in place over a half-billion years ago. Thu, 01 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428200309.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428133928.htm Half a century after most of Costa Rica's rain forests were cut down, researchers are attempting what many thought was impossible -- restoring a tropical rain forest ecosystem. When the researchers planted worn-out cattle pastures in Costa Rica with a sampling of local trees in the early 1990s, native species of plants began to move in and flourish, raising the hope that destroyed rain forests could one day be replaced. Ten years after the tree plantings, researchers counted the species of plants that took up residence in the shade of the new planted areas. They found remarkably high numbers of species -- more than 100 in each plot. And many of the new arrivals were also to be found in nearby remnants of the original forests. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428133928.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429095049.htm Researchers discovered a legless lizard and a tiny woodpecker along with 12 other suspected new species in Brazil's Cerrado, one of the world's 34 biodiversity conservation hotspots. The Cerrado's wooded grassland once covered an area half the size of Europe, but is now being converted to cropland and ranchland at twice the rate of the neighboring Amazon rainforest, resulting in the loss of native vegetation and unique species. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429095049.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424113456.htm Recent advances in technology have made removing salt from seawater and groundwater a realistic option for increasing water supplies in some parts of the US, and desalination will likely have a niche in meeting the nation's future water needs, says a new report. Mon, 28 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424113456.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424112451.htm In the first experiment in a natural environment, scientists have shown that greater plant diversity significantly enhances an ecosystem's productivity. The finding underscores the importance of biodiversity to an ecosystem's value, such as capturing the global warming gas carbon dioxide. Sun, 27 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424112451.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080425095207.htm More than 20 years of continuous measurements and a dose of "belief" yield discovery of subtle ocean currents that could dramatically improve forecasts of climate, ecosystem changes. A scientific team detected the presence of crisscrossing patterns of currents running throughout the world's oceans. The new data could help scientists significantly improve high-resolution models that help them understand trends in climate and marine ecosystems. Sat, 26 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080425095207.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080421160728.htm Increased carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere is causing microscopic ocean plants to produce greater amounts of calcium carbonate (chalk) - with potentially wide ranging implications for predicting the cycling of carbon in the oceans and climate modelling. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080421160728.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422103853.htm Researchers investigated the water quality effects of using residual versus contact herbicides on corn and herbicide-tolerant soybean. They found that losses of contact herbicides in surface runoff were usually much less than those for the residual herbicides, and never exceeded established or proposed drinking water standards. These results suggest that herbicide losses and concentrations in runoff can be reduced by planting herbicide-tolerant corn and soybean varieties and applying contact herbicides. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422103853.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080421195005.htm Boosted by the influence of a larger climate event in the Pacific, one of the strongest La Niñas in many years is slowly weakening but continues to blanket the Pacific Ocean near the equator, as shown by new sea-level height data collected by the U.S.-French Jason oceanographic satellite. Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080421195005.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416151943.htm When frogs hit the road, many croak. Researchers found more than 65 animal species killed along a short stretch of roads and nearly 95 percent of the total dead were frogs and other amphibians, suggesting that road-related death, or road-kill, possibly contributes to their worldwide decline. Mon, 21 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416151943.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417175221.htm Songbirds feeding near the contaminated South River are showing high levels of mercury, even though they aren't eating food from the river itself, according to a new article in Science. Mercury is one of the world's most troublesome pollutants, especially in water. "The birds eat a lot of spiders... The spiders have a lot of mercury in them and are delivering the mercury to these songbirds," one of the researchers said. Sun, 20 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417175221.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417095919.htm A fuzzy logic approach to analyzing water quality could help reduce the number of people in the developing world forced to drink polluted and diseased water for survival. Fri, 18 Apr 2008 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417095919.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415210623.htm One of Hawaii's most dominant plants, Metrosideros, has been a resident of the islands far longer than previously believed. Metrosideros, commonly called "ohi'a" in the Hawaiian Islands, has puzzled researchers for years. Although previously thought to be a newcomer to the islands, these plants are well integrated into the islands' ecosystems. Fri, 18 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415210623.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416214912.htm Ocean Conservancy released its annual report on trash in the ocean with new data from the 2007 International Coastal Cleanup the most comprehensive snapshot of the harmful impacts of marine debris. The mission of Ocean Conservancy's International Coastal Cleanup is to engage people to remove trash from the world's beaches and waterways, to identify the sources of debris and to change the behaviors that cause pollution. Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416214912.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080407172710.htm A limited nuclear weapons exchange between Pakistan and India using their current arsenals could create a near-global ozone hole, triggering human health problems and wreaking environmental havoc for at least a decade, according to a new study. Mid-latitude ozone decreases would approach 40 percent and last for years, impacting human health and ecosystems. Tue, 08 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080407172710.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080406175050.htm Nanotechnology is now available in a store near you. Valued for it's antibacterial and odor-fighting properties, nanoparticle silver is becoming the star attraction in a range of products from socks to bandages to washing machines. But as silver's benefits propel it to the forefront of consumer nanomaterials, scientists are recommending a closer examination of the unforeseen environmental and health consequences of nanosilver. Mon, 07 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080406175050.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401200446.htm Coral reefs could be dying out because of changes to the microbes that live in them just as much as from the direct rise in temperature caused by global warming, according to scientists. Tropical ecosystems are currently balanced on a climate change knife edge. Sat, 05 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401200446.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080402114825.htm Modern agriculture and land-use practices may lead to major disruptions of the world's water flows, with potentially sudden and dire consequences for regions least able to cope with them researchers have warned. Recent outbreaks of toxic algae blooms in Quebec lakes and off Sweden's Baltic Sea coast are prime examples of ecosystem flips, the consequence of nutrients from fertilizers permeating the soil and running off into streams, lakes and oceans. Fri, 04 Apr 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080402114825.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401200451.htm The sands of the desert are an important and forgotten storehouse of carbon dioxide taken from the world's atmosphere. Sands like those in the Kalahari Desert of Botswana are full of cyanobacteria. These drought resistant bacteria can fix atmospheric carbon dioxide, and together they add significant quantities of organic matter to the nutrient deficient sands. Fri, 04 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401200451.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401095212.htm Bacteria that consume heavy metals have been found in some of the most contaminated parts of the Peak District in the Southern Pennines, UK and may be changing the pollutants into more toxic forms that could leak out into reservoirs. Fri, 04 Apr 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401095212.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401110221.htm Buoys equipped with underwater microphones and other sensors will be on duty in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of Massachusetts for the next 30 months, recording sounds from whales, fish, ships and other sources around the clock to help NOAA researchers develop a global monitoring network for ocean noise. Thu, 03 Apr 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401110221.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401081924.htm The increase in imports and visitors to China in recent years has spurred an influx of economically damaging plants and animals. Massive construction projects, as well as new highways and railways and growth in domestic air travel, are exacerbating these biological invasions. Wed, 02 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401081924.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330212514.htm Evolution can lead to greater biological diversity, and particularly to improvements in the functioning of ecosystems. New research shows evolution as a structuring force for ecosystems, and it open new paths to interpreting the relationship between the diversity of living beings and the functioning of ecosystems. Wed, 02 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330212514.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330214448.htm More than two million trees belonging to nearly 5000 species, growing in tropical forests spread over 12 sites and three continents, have been monitored since the 1980s. The aims of this major study were to analyze the carbon storage capacity of tropical forests and measure the effects of climate change on how they function. Researchers found that tropical forests did indeed act as carbon sinks, but appeared to react principally to intrinsic phenomena rather than climate change. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330214448.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327172055.htm A tiny beetle is wreaking catastrophic action on the deteriorating Chihuahuan desert. Mon, 31 Mar 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327172055.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327172031.htm Half a century after most of Costa Rica's rainforests were cut down, researchers from the Boyce Thompson Institute took on a project that many thought was impossible -- restoring a tropical rainforest ecosystem. When the researchers planted worn-out cattle fields in Costa Rica with a sampling of local trees, native species began to move in and flourish, raising the hope that destroyed rainforests can one day be replaced. Sat, 29 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327172031.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080325083359.htm Molecular evidence provides strong evidence that speciation rates slow down through time. New species seem to appear less and less as the number of species in a region approaches the maximum number that it can support. Fri, 28 Mar 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080325083359.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080326093056.htm Scientists have made the first global-scale analysis of the processes leading to freshwater fish invasion in river basins. This phenomenon affects most river ecosystems of countries of the Northern hemisphere. However, in the context of economic growth developing countries are now experiencing, their river basins, home to the greater part of freshwater fish biodiversity, are at risk of the same fate unless vigilance is applied. Thu, 27 Mar 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080326093056.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080325203442.htm Evidence shows that a new logging road in Riau Province is cutting into the heart of Sumatra's largest contiguous peatland forest, a rare hydrological ecosystem that acts as one of the planet's biggest carbon stores. Thu, 27 Mar 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080325203442.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320114333.htm To meet the needs of a growing population and to provide it with a higher quality of life, increasing pressures are being placed on the environment through the development of agriculture, industry, and infrastructures. Soil erosion, groundwater depletion, salinization, and pollution have been recognized for decades as major threats to ecosystems and human health. More recently, the progressive substitution of fossil fuels with biofuels for energy production have been recognized as potential threats to water resources and sustained agricultural productivity. Wed, 26 Mar 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320114333.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080318084337.htm Some 15 chimpanzees facing extinction in an isolated Rwandan forest have a greater chance for survival thanks to one of Africa's most ambitious forest restoration efforts ever. A 30-mile (50km) tree corridor will be planted to connect the Gishwati Forest Reserve, the chimpanzees' home range, to Nyungwe National Park. Thu, 20 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080318084337.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080317123249.htm A new global portrait taken from space details Earth's land cover with a resolution never before obtained. Earth's land cover has been charted from space before, but this map, which will be made available to the public upon its completion in July, has a resolution 10 times sharper than any of its predecessors. Wed, 19 Mar 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080317123249.htm