http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/plants_animals/extinction/ Extinction of animals and plants. Read scientific research on the dinosaur extinction, future mass extinctions, and endangered species. What can be done? en-us Thu, 16 Feb 2012 03:05:02 EST Thu, 16 Feb 2012 03:05:02 EST 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/plants_animals/extinction/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120214121854.htm Bumblebees can use cues from their rivals the honeybees to learn where the best food resources are, according to new research. In a new study, researchers trained a colony of bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) to use cues provided by a different species, the honeybee (Apis mellifera), as well as cues provided by fellow bumblebees to locate food resources on artificial flowers. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 12:18:18 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120214121854.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120213154055.htm Fossil record of graptoloids challenges the theory that immediately after a mass extinction, species develop new physical traits at a rapid pace. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:40:40 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120213154055.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120213154053.htm A study of the evolutionary history of Antarctic fish and their "anti-freeze" proteins illustrates how tens of millions of years ago a lineage of fish adapted to newly formed polar conditions -- and how today they are endangered by a rapid rise in ocean temperatures. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:40:40 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120213154053.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120213134144.htm The choices big fish make on where to shelter could have a major influence on their ability to cope with climate change, say scientists. In research aimed at understanding the process of fish population decline when coral reefs sustain major damage, scientists have found that big fish show a marked preference for sheltering under large, flat table corals. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:41:41 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120213134144.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120210111256.htm Invasive species which have the potential to destroy biodiversity and influence global change could be tracked and controlled in the same way as wanted criminals, according to new research. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:12:12 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120210111256.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120207100143.htm Although many anthropologists believe that modern humans ancestors "wiped out" Neanderthals, it's more likely that Neanderthals were integrated into the human gene pool thousands of years ago during the Upper Pleistocene era as cultural and climatic forces brought the two groups together. New research suggests that the Neanderthals demise was due to a combination of influences, including cultural changes. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:01:01 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120207100143.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120206214226.htm A new study provides compelling evidence that the arrival of the invasive non-native harlequin ladybird (ladybug) to mainland Europe and subsequent spread has led to a rapid decline in historically-widespread species of ladybird in Britain, Belgium and Switzerland. The analysis is further evidence that harlequin ladybirds are displacing some native ladybirds, most probably through predation and competition. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:42:42 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120206214226.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120206143952.htm Satellite tracking of threatened loggerhead sea turtles has revealed two previously unknown feeding "hotspots" in the Gulf of Mexico that are providing important habitat for at least three separate populations of the turtles. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:39:39 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120206143952.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120206143946.htm Infectious disease has joined poaching and habitat loss as a major threat to the survival of African great apes as they have become restricted to ever-smaller populations. Despite the work of dedicated conservationists, efforts to save our closest living relatives from ecological extinction are largely failing, and new scientific approaches are necessary to analyze major threats and find innovative solutions. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:39:39 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120206143946.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120203113308.htm Around 250 million years ago, most life on Earth was wiped out in an extinction known as the "Great Dying." Geologists have learned that the end came slowly from thousands of centuries of volcanic activity. Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:33:33 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120203113308.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120202094608.htm Around the world coral reefs are facing threats brought by climate change and dramatic shifts in sea temperatures. While warming has been the primary focus for scientists and ocean policy managers, cold can also cause significant damage. Scientists have shown that cool temperatures can inflict more damage in the short term, but heat is more destructive in the long run. Thu, 02 Feb 2012 09:46:46 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120202094608.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120201181445.htm Today's alarmingly high rate of plant extinction necessitates an increased understanding of the world's biodiversity. An estimated 15 to 30 percent of the world's flowering plants have yet to be discovered, making efficiency an integral function of future botanical research. Wed, 01 Feb 2012 18:14:14 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120201181445.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120201120732.htm Spotted salamanders exposed to contaminated roadside ponds are adapting to their toxic environments, according to new research. The study provides the first documented evidence that a vertebrate has adapted to the negative effects of roads apparently by evolving rapidly. Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:07:07 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120201120732.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120201094923.htm New research reveals how the arrival of the first plants 470 million years ago triggered a series of ice ages. The research reveals the effects that the first land plants had on the climate during the Ordovician Period, which ended 444 million years ago. During this period the climate gradually cooled, leading to a series of 'ice ages.' This global cooling was caused by a dramatic reduction in atmospheric carbon, which this research now suggests was triggered by the arrival of plants. Wed, 01 Feb 2012 09:49:49 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120201094923.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120131175625.htm A new species of prehistoric crocodile has been discovered. The extinct creature, nicknamed "Shieldcroc" due to a thick-skinned shield on its head, is an ancestor of today's crocodiles. Tue, 31 Jan 2012 17:56:56 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120131175625.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120130171911.htm It took about 10 million generations for terrestrial mammals to hit their maximum mass: that's about the size of a cat evolving into the size of an elephant. Sea mammals, such as whales took about half the number of generations to hit their maximum. Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:19:19 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120130171911.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120130171909.htm Scientists have for the first time measured how fast large-scale evolution can occur in mammals, showing it takes 24 million generations for a mouse-sized animal to evolve to the size of an elephant. Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:19:19 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120130171909.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120126224515.htm Over dinner on R.V. Calypso while anchored on the lee side of Glover's Reef in Belize, Jacques Cousteau told Phil Dustan that he suspected humans were having a negative impact on coral reefs. Dustan -- a young ocean ecologist who had worked in the lush coral reefs of the Caribbean and Sinai Peninsula -- found this difficult to believe. It was December 1974. But Cousteau was right. During the following three-plus decades, Dustan, an ocean ecologist and biology professor at the University of Charleston in South Carolina, has witnessed widespread coral reef degradation and bleaching from up close. Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:45:45 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120126224515.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120126142939.htm Another attractive theory falls foul of the facts. A census of trees in rainforests on three continents has confirmed that competition plays a central role in structuring communities. This contradicts the so-called neutral theory in ecology, which views random fluctuations as the decisive factor. Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:29:29 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120126142939.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120124162353.htm When it comes to conserving the world's orchids, not all forests are equal. Ecologists revealed that an orchid's fate hinges on two factors: A forest's age and its fungi. Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:23:23 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120124162353.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123094801.htm Lessons from tens of millions of years ago are pointing to new ways to save and protect today's coral reefs and their myriad of beautiful and many-hued fishes at a time of huge change in the Earth's systems. Today's complex relationship between fishes and corals developed relatively recently in geological terms -- and is a major factor in shielding reef species from extinction, say experts. Mon, 23 Jan 2012 09:48:48 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123094801.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123094758.htm The survival of the endangered snow leopard is looking promising thanks to scientists who have, for the first time, produced embryonic stem-like cells from the tissue of an adult leopard. Mon, 23 Jan 2012 09:47:47 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123094758.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120184235.htm Researchers were stunned to rediscover one of the rarest primates in Borneo, the grizzled langur, thought by many to be extinct. Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:42:42 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120184235.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120184231.htm For the first time scientists have shown that corals hosting a single type of zooxanthellae can have different levels of thermal tolerance -– a feature that was only known previously for corals with a mix of zooxanthellae. This finding is important because many species of coral are dominated by a single type of zooxanthellae. Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:42:42 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120184231.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120183044.htm Scientists have found one of the rarest and least known primates in Borneo, Miller’s Grizzled Langur, a species which was believed to be extinct or on the verge of extinction. The findings confirms the continued existence of this endangered monkey and reveals that it lives in an area where it was previously not known to exist. Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:30:30 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120183044.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120010357.htm Biodiversity is declining rapidly throughout the world. The challenges of conserving the world's species are perhaps even larger than mitigating the negative effects of global climate change, experts say. Fri, 20 Jan 2012 01:03:03 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120010357.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120118111704.htm Biologists have successfully released a Southern River terrapin (Batagur affinis) – one of the most endangered turtles on Earth – into the Sre Ambel River in Cambodia. Wed, 18 Jan 2012 11:17:17 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120118111704.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120109145903.htm Biologists have announced the discovery of a spectacularly colored snake from a remote area of Tanzania in East Africa. Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:59:59 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120109145903.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120109145727.htm Representatives of a giant tortoise species that had apparently been driven to extinction by humans more than 150 years ago must be alive today, if in very small numbers. Researchers have come to this conclusion based on the "genetic footprints" of the long-lost species Chelonoidis elephantopus in the DNA of their hybrid sons and daughters. Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:57:57 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120109145727.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120109145723.htm Dozens of giant tortoises of a species believed extinct for 150 years may still be living at a remote location in the Galápagos Islands, a genetic analysis reveals. Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:57:57 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120109145723.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120109132746.htm Around 250 million years ago there was a mass extinction so severe that it remains the most traumatic known species die-off in Earth's history. Although the cause of this event is a mystery, it has been speculated that the eruption of a large swath of volcanic rock in Russia was a trigger for the extinction. New research offers insight into how this volcanism could have contributed to drastic deterioration in the global environment of the period. Mon, 09 Jan 2012 13:27:27 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120109132746.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120107151247.htm Biologists have discovered a new primate species in the Sahafina Forest in eastern Madagascar, a forest that has not been studied before. The name of the new species is Gerp’s mouse lemur (Microcebus gerpi). Sat, 07 Jan 2012 15:12:12 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120107151247.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120106110537.htm Recent explorations in the evergreen forest of western Ghats resulted in the discovery of a new wild relative of the large cardamom from South India. Fri, 06 Jan 2012 11:05:05 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120106110537.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120106110209.htm Identifying species, separating out closely related species and managing each type on its own, is an important part of any animal management system. Some species, like the two types of two-toed sloth, are so close in appearance and behavior that differentiation can be challenging. Conservation researchers have developed a mechanism for identifying these reclusive species from each other. Fri, 06 Jan 2012 11:02:02 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120106110209.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120105143305.htm A smuggler using a public bus to transport a veritable aviary of rare birds for the illegal pet trade was recently arrested by Indonesian authorities. Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:33:33 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120105143305.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120104153747.htm Nature's game of intimidation and imitation comes full circle in the waters of Indonesia, where scientists have recorded for the first time an association between the black-marble jawfish and the mimic octopus. Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:37:37 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120104153747.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120104111902.htm A newly described species of a liverwort (very simple, small plants, and probably common ancestors of all land plants) from New Zealand marks a pioneering effort by international plant scientists to enter a "brave new world" in the realm of the electronic age. Wed, 04 Jan 2012 11:19:19 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120104111902.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120103211054.htm Predictions of the loss of animal and plant diversity around the world are common under models of future climate change. But a new study shows that because these climate models don't account for species competition and movement, they could grossly underestimate future extinctions. Tue, 03 Jan 2012 21:10:10 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120103211054.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120103185246.htm Communities of species previously unknown to science have been discovered on the seafloor near Antarctica, clustered in the hot, dark environment surrounding hydrothermal vents. The discoveries include new species of yeti crab, starfish, barnacles, sea anemones, and potentially an octopus. Tue, 03 Jan 2012 18:52:52 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120103185246.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111229091634.htm Winters in the Gobi desert are usually long and very cold but the winter of 2009/2010 was particularly severe, a condition Mongolians refer to as "dzud". Millions of livestock died in Mongolia and the re-introduced wild Przewalski's horse population crashed dramatically. Researchers have used spatially explicit loss statistics, ranger survey data and GPS telemetry to provide insights into the effect of a catastrophic climate event on wild horses, wild asses and livestock that share the same habitat but show different patterns of spatial use. Thu, 29 Dec 2011 09:16:16 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111229091634.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111227093055.htm Climate changes profoundly influenced the rise and fall of six distinct, successive waves of mammal species diversity in North America over the last 65 million years, shows a novel statistical analysis by evolutionary biologists. Warming and cooling periods, in two cases confounded by species migrations, marked the transition from one dominant grouping to the next. Tue, 27 Dec 2011 09:30:30 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111227093055.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111223091453.htm An Australian zoologist has documented a remarkably sharp boundary between two species of millipede in northwest Tasmania. The boundary is more than 200 km long and apparently less than 100 m wide. Fri, 23 Dec 2011 09:14:14 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111223091453.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111221211332.htm Big changes to the code for botanical nomenclature will go into effect on Jan. 1, scientists say. Latin will no longer be the exclusive language for descriptions of new species, and publication in online journals and books will be as valid as print publication. Wed, 21 Dec 2011 21:13:13 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111221211332.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111221211229.htm A 14-year study in an atoll reef lagoon in Glover's Reef, Belize has found that fishing closures there produce encouraging increases in populations of predatory fish species. However, such closures have resulted in only minimal increases in herbivorous fish, which feed on the algae that smother corals and inhibit reef recovery. Wed, 21 Dec 2011 21:12:12 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111221211229.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111221092001.htm A new analysis of two adaptive radiations in the fossil record found that these diversifications proceeded "head first." Head features diversified before body shapes and types. This suggests that feeding-related evolutionary pressures are the initial drivers of diversification. Wed, 21 Dec 2011 09:20:20 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111221092001.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111219203947.htm A new study on the endangered Ozark Hellbender giant salamander is the first to detail its skin microbes, the bacteria and fungi that defend against pathogens. Mon, 19 Dec 2011 20:39:39 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111219203947.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111219102054.htm For the first time, the presence of large bodied herbivorous dinosaurs in Antarctica has been recorded. Until now, remains of sauropoda had been recovered from all continental landmasses, except Antarctica. The identification of the remains of the sauropod dinosaur suggests that advanced titanosaurs achieved a global distribution at least by the Late Cretaceous. Mon, 19 Dec 2011 10:20:20 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111219102054.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111216112802.htm The genomic sequences of two iconic falconry birds -- peregrine and saker falcons -- have been successfully decoded. Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:28:28 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111216112802.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111214171538.htm Many developing countries rely on traditional medicine as an accessible and affordable treatment option for human maladies. However, until now, scientific data has not existed to evaluate the potential toxicity of medicinal plant species in Peru. Scientists are now using brine shrimp to determine the toxicity of 341 Northern Peruvian plant species commonly ingested in traditional medicine. Wed, 14 Dec 2011 17:15:15 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111214171538.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111212132632.htm Many of the animal species at risk of extinction in the United States have not made it onto the country's official Endangered Species Act list, according to new research. Mon, 12 Dec 2011 13:26:26 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111212132632.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111212124707.htm Researchers report that the brains of tiny spiders may fill their body cavities and overflow into their legs. As part of research to understand how miniaturization affects brain size and behavior, the scientists measured the central nervous systems of nine species of spiders, from rainforest giants to spiders smaller than the head of a pin. As the spiders get smaller, their brains get proportionally bigger, filling up more and more of their body cavities. Mon, 12 Dec 2011 12:47:47 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111212124707.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111212092647.htm Researchers have released a set of 1x1 km tree species maps showing the distribution of 20 tree species over Europe. Mon, 12 Dec 2011 09:26:26 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111212092647.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111211134006.htm Danish researchers are leading the way for future biodiversity monitoring using DNA traces in the environment to keep track of threatened wildlife: a lake water sample the size of a shot glass can contain evidence of an entire lake fauna. Sun, 11 Dec 2011 13:40:40 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111211134006.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111209150200.htm Scientists sound an alarm that expanding ocean dead zones are shrinking the habitat for high value fish such as marlins, other billfish and tunas in the tropical northeast Atlantic Ocean. Without taking this phenomena into account, scientific fish stock assessments could provide false signals that stocks are healthy, when in fact they are not, thus allowing overfishing that further depletes these fish stocks. Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:02:02 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111209150200.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111208121028.htm Tropical birds are moving to higher elevations because of climate change, but they may not be moving fast enough, according to a new study. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 12:10:10 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111208121028.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111208101251.htm A recent study shows that, over the last two decades, areas with the greatest decrease in African great ape populations are those with no active protection from poaching by forest guards. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 10:12:12 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111208101251.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111206101456.htm A species of ancient predator with saw-like teeth, sleek bodies and a voracious appetite for meat survived a major extinction at a time when the distant relatives of mammals ruled the earth. Tue, 06 Dec 2011 10:14:14 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111206101456.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111205140616.htm A team of scientists recently rediscovered the rarest species of bumblebee in the United States, last seen in 1956, living in the White Mountains of south-central New Mexico. Known as "Cockerell's Bumblebee," the bee was originally described in 1913 from six specimens collected along the Rio Ruidoso, with another 16 specimens collected near the town of Cloudcroft, and one more from Ruidoso, the most recent being in 1956. Mon, 05 Dec 2011 14:06:06 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111205140616.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111205102631.htm Australian scientists have discovered that some tropical fish have a greater capacity to cope with rising sea temperatures than previously thought – by adjusting over several generations. The discovery sheds a ray of hope amid the rising concern over the future of coral reefs and their fish under the levels of global warming expected to occur by the end of this century. Mon, 05 Dec 2011 10:26:26 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111205102631.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111205082259.htm A number of threatened species in the developing world are entirely dependent on human agriculture for their survival, according to new research. Mon, 05 Dec 2011 08:22:22 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111205082259.htm