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 Tue, 13 May 2008 07:05:01 EDT Tue, 13 May 2008 07:05:01 EDT 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/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/2008/05/080508142820.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/2008/05/080508132549.htm Research done by the US Department of the Interior to determine if global warming threatens the polar bear population is so flawed that it cannot be used to justify listing the polar bear as an endangered species, according to a new study. The Interior Department has been ordered to make a determination by May 15. Sat, 10 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508132549.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507083955.htm Nearly 35% of all amphibians are now threatened of extinction raising them to the position of the most endangered group of animals in the world. Decline of amphibian populations and species is ongoing due to habitat loss, fungal disease, climate shift and agrochemical contaminants. These impacts are even worse to frogs that reproduce in water bodies such as streams and ponds. Scientists now propose a priority set of areas for the conservation of frogs and toads in Latin America. The study is unprecedented in terms of not only the proposition of key-conservation areas, but also because it shows that the inclusion of species biological traits, such as reproductive modes, affects the performance of area-prioritization analyses. Fri, 09 May 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507083955.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/2008/05/080507084005.htm Some Malagasy mouse lemurs are so similar that picking a mate of the right species, especially at night time in a tropical forest, might seem like a matter of pot luck. However, new research has shown that our desperately cute distant cousins use vocalizations to pick up a partner of the right species. Wed, 07 May 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507084005.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080505211822.htm Highly diverse and so far apparently untouched by emergent diseases, Malagasy frogs nevertheless are threatened by ongoing habitat destruction, making proactive conservation actions especially important for preserving this unique, pre-decline, amphibian fauna. Tue, 06 May 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080505211822.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/2008/05/080502092145.htm A new study suggests the solar system passes through the plane of the galaxy every 35 to 40 million years. The period coincides with evidence of crater impact and mass extinctions on Earth. The paper suggests gravitational forces from gas and dust clouds in the galactic plane send comets into the inner solar system and into the path of the Earth. The periods of comet bombardment also coincide with mass extinctions, such as that of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. Our present position in the galaxy suggests we are now very close to another such period. Fri, 02 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080502092145.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501154209.htm Scientists rediscovered the highly distinctive greater dwarf cloud rat, last seen in 1896. Thought to be extinct, Carpomys melanuru has never before been discovered in its natural habitat. It has dense fur, black mask around large eyes, and a broad/blunt snout. It was found in the canopy of a large tree, on a branch covered with moss, orchids, and ferns. This gives hope for the conservation of one of the world's most diverse, threatened mammal fauna. Fri, 02 May 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501154209.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429130927.htm Bison can repopulate large areas from Alaska to Mexico over the next 100 years provided a series of conservation and restoration measures are taken, according to continental assessment of this iconic species. Bison once numbered in the tens of millions but were wiped out by commercial hunting and habitat loss. By 1889 fewer than 1,100 animals survived. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429130927.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428104518.htm Endangered North Atlantic right whales are safer along Massachusetts Bay's busy shipping lanes this spring, thanks to a new system of smart buoys. The buoys recognize whales' distinctive calls and route the information to a public Web site and a marine warning system, giving ships the chance to avoid deadly collisions. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428104518.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428080356.htm A study into one of the world's rarest seabirds provides knowledge that could help avoid extinction. Molecular analysis of the Critically Endangered Magenta Petrel Pterodroma magentae (also known as the Chatham Island Taiko) discovered that 95% of non-breeding adults were male. This suggests that critically low population levels may be causing male birds difficulty in attracting a mate. Their calls are too spread out to attract the infrequent females which pass by. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428080356.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428124235.htm German scientists are engaging bats to kick-start natural reforestation in the tropics by installing artificial bat roosts in deforested areas. The researchers report that the deployment of artificial bat roosts significantly increases seed dispersal of a wide range of tropical forest plants into their surroundings, providing a simple and cheap method to speed up natural forest regeneration. Mon, 28 Apr 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428124235.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424140400.htm Thanks to a new calibration of the versatile argon-argon dating technique, geochronologists have established a more precise date for the dinosaur die-off at the end of the Cretaceous period: 65.95 million years ago, give or take 40,000 years. This improves on the previous date of 65.5 million years plus or minus 300,000 years, but more importantly, brings argon-argon dating into agreement with other dating methods. Mon, 28 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424140400.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080423171524.htm Scientists have discovered why birds, unlike mammals, lack a tissue that is specialized to generate heat. There is a surprising implication that the same lack of heat-generating tissue may have contributed to the extinction of dinosaurs. Sun, 27 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080423171524.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424140418.htm Putting more meat on the theory that dinosaurs' closest living relatives are modern-day birds, molecular analysis of a shred of 68-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex protein -- along with that of 21 modern species -- confirms that dinosaurs share common ancestry with chickens, ostriches, and to a lesser extent, alligators. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424140418.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422171449.htm While waiting for colleagues at a small natural history museum in the state of Chiapas, Mexico last year, Cornell paleontologist Greg Dietl chanced upon a discovery that has helped rewrite the evolutionary history of crabs and the shelled mollusks upon which they preyed. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422171449.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416165732.htm Scientists have developed a new model that accurately maps where coral reefs are in the most trouble, and identifies regions where reefs can be protected best. The model is being applied in areas throughout the Indian Ocean. Mon, 21 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416165732.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/2008/04/080416213653.htm A critically endangered turtle that previously was thought to be extinct in the wild has been discovered in northern Vietnam. Experts confirmed that they have identified the only known living specimen of a Swinhoe's soft-shell turtle (Rafetus swinhoei) in nature. Sat, 19 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416213653.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416223340.htm The Borneo pygmy elephant may not be native to Borneo after all. Instead, the population could be the last survivors of the Javan elephant race -- accidentally saved from extinction by the Sultan of Sulu centuries ago, a new publication suggests. The origins of the pygmy elephants, found in a range extending from the north-east of the island into the Heart of Borneo, have long been shrouded in mystery. Their looks and behavior differ from other Asian elephants and scientists have questioned why they never dispersed to other parts of the island. Fri, 18 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416223340.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415101021.htm Half a century after the last earth-shattering atomic blast shook the Pacific atoll of Bikini, the corals are flourishing again. Some coral species, however, appear to be locally extinct. One of the most interesting aspects is that the team dived into the vast Bravo Crater left in 1954 by the most powerful American atom bomb ever exploded (15 megatons - a thousand times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb). The Bravo bomb vaporised three islands, raised water temperatures to 55,000 degrees, shook islands 200 kilometers away and left a crater 2km wide and 73m deep. Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415101021.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080410140535.htm Biologists have developed a remarkable new roadmap for finding and protecting the best remaining holdouts for thousands of rare species that live only in Madagascar, an island nation considered one of the world's jewels of biodiversity. Fri, 11 Apr 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080410140535.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080403125426.htm According to a new report by the Wildlife Conservation Society, several species of rare waterbirds from Cambodia's famed Tonle Sap region have staged remarkable comebacks, thanks to a project involving a single team of park rangers to provide 24-hour protection to breeding colonies. Tue, 08 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080403125426.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080402164135.htm A new computer model has been developed that provides land managers with a more efficient and cost-effective approach for controlling gypsy moths and other invasive pests. The model, which recommends different management strategies for individual situations, indicates the best strategies for managing the destructive pests. Mon, 07 Apr 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080402164135.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/2008/04/080402210456.htm At a hearing on Capitol Hill April 2, the National Wildlife Federation urged immediate action to protect America's polar bears from the impacts of climate change by listing polar bears under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Facing a court-imposed deadline, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last year proposed to list the polar bear as a threatened species under the ESA. FWS was required by the ESA to issue a final listing decision twelve months thereafter. FWS missed this deadline nearly three months ago despite the imminent dangers to polar bears, as demonstrated by unprecedented melting of Arctic ice in 2007. Thu, 03 Apr 2008 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080402210456.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401081908.htm The gathering of data for research involving an animal usually involves invasive procedures or death for the experimental animals. But critical data may now be collected through a nonlethal procedure. The new animal research method not only allows for nonlethal and noninvasive study, but it also opens new lines of inquiry. Thu, 03 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401081908.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080331223843.htm Climate models together with population models provide quantitative evidence that the combined effects of climate change and anthropogenic pressures can explain the extinction of the woolly mammoths. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080331223843.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327093626.htm US Forest Service scientists with the Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry have completed a study on ways to make high-value koa trees grow faster, while increasing biodiversity, carbon sequestration, scenic beauty and recreation opportunities in native Hawaiían forests. Mon, 31 Mar 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327093626.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080326195628.htm New research opens a bigger window to understanding a deadly fungus that is killing off frogs throughout Central and South America, and that could threaten amphibian populations in North America as well. The research underscores the dire circumstances facing up to 43 percent of known amphibian species in the world and points up the need for more regulations, conservation efforts and quarantines to prevent the fungus' spread. Fri, 28 Mar 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080326195628.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080324203807.htm A decline by more than 70 percent of several North American shorebird species since the early 1970s has brought state, federal and international concern about conservation efforts for these birds and their wetland habitat. Wildlife ecologists are particularly interested in conservation measures aimed at slowing the decline. Wed, 26 Mar 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080324203807.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080324091101.htm Over two hundred million humans depend for their subsistence on the fact that coral has an addiction to "junk food" -- and orders its partners, the symbiotic algae, to make it. This curious arrangement is one of nature's most delicate and complex partnerships -- a collaboration now facing grave threats from climate change. Tue, 25 Mar 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080324091101.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080318203313.htm The song of passerine birds is a conspicuous and exaggerated display shaped by sexual selection in the context of male-male competition or mate attraction. At the level of the individual, song is considered an indicator of male 'quality'. Researchers found an association between individual song diversity and the viability of the population as a whole, as measured by the annual rate of population change. Mon, 24 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080318203313.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/2008/03/080318094519.htm Brown bears from the Iberian Peninsula are not as genetically different from other brown bears in Europe as was previously thought. A new study shows that, to the contrary, the Spanish bear was only recently isolated from other European strains. These findings shed new light on the discussion of how to save the population of Spanish bears. Wed, 19 Mar 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080318094519.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080317123240.htm Take a deer's body, attach a camel's head and add a Jimmy Durante nose, and you have a saiga -- the odd-ball antelope with the enormous schnoz that lives on the isolated steppes of Central Asia. Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080317123240.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080317150150.htm Clovis-age natives, often noted for overhunting during their brief dominance in a primitive North America, deserve clemency in the case of California's flightless sea duck. New evidence says it took thousands of years for the duck to die out. Tue, 18 Mar 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080317150150.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080318094616.htm Current classifications of IUCN protected areas are based on management objectives. Fully revising the category system to reflect each category's contributions to biodiversity would greatly enhance their value as effective tools for conserving biodiversity. Tue, 18 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080318094616.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080312160247.htm One of the world's most endangered species -- a North Island brown kiwi -- has just hatched at the Smithsonian's National Zoo Bird House. Keepers had been incubating the egg for five weeks, following a month long incubation by the chick's father, carefully monitoring it for signs of pipping: the process in which the chick starts to break through the shell. The chick remained in an isolet for four days and is now in a specially designed brooding box. Mon, 17 Mar 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080312160247.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311160514.htm After 14 years without having been seen, several young scientists have rediscovered the Carrikeri harlequin frog in a remote mountainous region in Colombia. Sat, 15 Mar 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311160514.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311093341.htm The number of amphibians drastically decreases in forest areas that are clearcut, according to previous studies. However, some animals may not be dying. Instead, a biologist says some animals may be moving away (possibly to return later) or retreating underground. The finding could have major implications for both the timber industry and the survival of amphibians. Fri, 14 Mar 2008 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311093341.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311163631.htm The pending federal decision about whether to protect the polar bear as a threatened species is as much about climate science as it is about climate change. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is currently considering a proposal to list the polar bear as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, a proposal largely based on anticipated habitat loss in a warming Arctic. Climate models -- mathematical representations of the natural processes affecting climate -- factored heavily in the scientific information requested by the FWS to guide its official recommendation, which was due Jan. 9. Wed, 12 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311163631.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080305194942.htm What looks at first to be a slimy mess in a Petri dish represents a highly-significant advance in conservation and restoration ecology. Ecologists are celebrating the arrival of the first Maud Island frogs (Leiopelma pakeka) to hatch on mainland New Zealand for many years. No larger than a human adult's little fingernail, the Maud Island froglets differ from most frog species in that they hatch from the egg as fully-formed froglets without going through the usual tadpole stage. Mon, 10 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080305194942.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080304101436.htm How well ocean reefs recover from the growing damage caused by warming sea temperatures depends both on how much the tiny coral polyps can eat, and how healthy they can keep the microscopic algae that live inside their bodies. New research may change the way scientists look at this symbiotic partnership, shifting it from a case where the polyps function only as landlords to one where the tiny creatures actually nurture their algae. Fri, 07 Mar 2008 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080304101436.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080304093748.htm The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species announced trade quotas governing the export of wild sturgeon and their prized caviar eggs from the Caspian Sea. The Pew Institute for Ocean Science has analyzed the quotas, which are re-set each year, and has determined that beluga caviar quotas are virtually unchanged from 2007 and do little to halt continued population declines. Thu, 06 Mar 2008 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080304093748.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080303145300.htm As western states debate removing the gray wolf from protection under the Endangered Species Act, a new study cautions that doing so may result in an unintended decline in another species: the pronghorn, a uniquely North American animal that resembles an African antelope. Tue, 04 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080303145300.htm