Ecology News

December 8, 2024

Top Headlines

After Decades of Plantation Agriculture, Coconut Palms Dominate Over Half of Pacific Atoll Forests

Dec. 4, 2024 — Coconut palms are king throughout the tropics, serving as the foundation for human lives and cultures across the Pacific Ocean for centuries. However, 200 years of planting by colonial interests ...

Lifesaver for Wild Bees: The Importance of Quarries

Dec. 4, 2024 — A research team has investigated the importance of limestone quarries for wild bee conservation. Diverse landscapes with good connectivity between quarries and calcareous grasslands proved to be particularly valuable. Calcareous grasslands -- ...

Insects Wearing Two Hats Solve Botanical Mystery

Dec. 4, 2024 — The discovery of a unique case where the same insect species both pollinate a plant and distribute its seeds not only solves a long-standing botanical mystery. The find also stresses the diverse roles insects play in our ...

Ecosystems: New Study Questions Common Assumption About Biodiversity

Dec. 3, 2024 — Plant species can fulfill different functions within an ecosystem, even if they are closely related to each other. This surprising conclusion was reached by a global analysis of around 1.7 million datasets on plant communities. The findings overturn ...

Latest Headlines

updated 11:23pm EST

Island Biodiversity Rides on the Wings of Birds

Dec. 3, 2024 — Bird wing shape -- a proxy for long-distance flying ability, or dispersal -- is a trait that influences biodiversity patterns on islands around the world, according to ...

Climate Change Could Bring More Severe Bacterial Infections, Including in Corals

Dec. 2, 2024 — Could the fungal apocalypse of The Last of Us have roots in reality? A new study shows that climate warming can potentially make bacterial and fungal ...

Coral Adaptation Unlikely to Keep Pace With Global Warming

Nov. 28, 2024 — Coral adaptation to ocean warming and marine heatwaves will likely be overwhelmed without rapid reductions of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to an international team of ...

Shells, Teeth and Bones of 'Weird and Wonderful Organisms' Provide Historical Environmental Clues

Nov. 27, 2024 — A groundbreaking international study shows how chemical fingerprints left by 'underappreciated' aquatic organisms could help scientists monitor ...

Crayfish Map Gives Conservation a Helping Claw

Nov. 25, 2024 — A new mapping project puts 427 crayfish taxa and over 100,000 observation records on the first searchable global atlas: World of Crayfish. The resource will help protect vulnerable crayfish species ...

Managing Forests With Smart Technologies

Nov. 25, 2024 — Deforestation has remained a significant issue globally, with primary forests contributing to 16 per cent of the total tree cover loss in the last two decades, driven by climate change and intensive ...

Research Highlights the Pressures Human Activities Place on Tropical Marine Ecosystems

Nov. 20, 2024 — The tropical coastlines of Southeast Asia are home to some of the most important and biodiverse marine ecosystems on the planet. But as well as being ...

New Model Can Help Understand Coexistence in Nature

Nov. 18, 2024 — Different species of seabirds can coexist on small, isolated islands despite eating the same kind of fish. A researcher has been involved in developing a mathematical model that can be used to better ...

Tree Islands Restore Nature in Oil Palm Plantations

Nov. 18, 2024 — Southeast Asia's tropical forests are renowned for their biodiversity, but at the same time face significant threats from the expansion of oil palm plantations. With global demand for palm oil ...

Biodiversity in the City: Designing Urban Spaces for Humans and Animals

Nov. 15, 2024 — Animals and plants also live and thrive on public squares. This creates opportunities for greater biodiversity and well-being for the human population. Researchers have studied at 103 locations in ...

Oil Spill Still Contaminating Sensitive Mauritius Mangroves Three Years On, Study Finds

Nov. 26, 2024 — Three years after bulk carrier MV Wakashio ran aground on a coral reef off Mauritius, spilling 1000 tonnes of a new type of marine fuel oil, research has confirmed the oil is still present in an ...

Diverse and Diverging Demands on Forests in Germany

Nov. 14, 2024 — Forests provide biodiversity, ecosystem functions, income and much more. How can these diverse and seemingly diverging demands be met? An international research team addressed this question by ...

New Study Reveals Half a Century of Change on Britain's Iconic Limestone Pavements

Nov. 14, 2024 — Fifty years of change on iconic limestone pavements has revealed mixed fortunes for one of the most distinctive landscapes in the UK. The findings, which reveal large changes since the 1970s, are ...

Pioneering Research Shows Sea Life Will Struggle to Survive Future Global Warming

Nov. 13, 2024 — A new study highlights how some marine life could face extinction over the next century, if human-induced global warming ...

More Evidence That Europe's Ancient Landscapes Were Open Woodlands: Oak, Hazel and Yew Were Abundant

Nov. 13, 2024 — A new study finds that the disturbance-demanding plant species oak, hazel and yew were abundant in Europe's forests before modern humans arrived, strengthening the argument that ancient ...

Power of Aesthetic Species on Social Media Boosts Wildlife Conservation Efforts, Say Experts

Nov. 8, 2024 — Facebook and Instagram can boost wildlife conservation efforts through public awareness and engagement, according to a new ...

Domino Effect in the Amazon Region

Nov. 4, 2024 — The Amazon region is a global hotspot of biodiversity and plays a key role in the climate system because of its ability to store large amounts of carbon and its influence on the global water cycle. ...

Global Ocean Oscillations and Climate Change Affect Weather Patterns in the Serengeti

Oct. 31, 2024 — The interactions between global climate change and ocean oscillations -- fluctuating cycles in wind and ocean temperatures -- are impacting weather patterns in the Greater Mara-Serengeti ecosystem in ...

Alcohol Consumption Among Non-Human Animals May Not Be as Rare as Previously Thought, Say Ecologists

Oct. 30, 2024 — Anecdotes abound of wildlife behaving 'drunk' after eating fermented fruits, but despite this, nonhuman consumption of ethanol has been assumed to be rare and accidental. Ecologists now ...

New Genetic Web Tool to Help Restore Climate-Resilient Marine Ecosystems

Oct. 30, 2024 — In the face of increased human pressures and climate change, a team of scientists have launched a new online tool to assist marine managers and restoration experts to bolster the resilience of marine ...

Companies and Investors Can Now Get Smarter When It Comes to Nature

Oct. 28, 2024 — Amid growing pressure to report on nature-related risks and impacts, an open-source footprinting tool offers a scientific and transparent ...

Invasive Plants Drive Homogenization of Soil Microbial Communities Across U.S.

Oct. 28, 2024 — A new study reveals that invasive plants are reshaping soil microbial communities across the U.S., making them more uniform and altering how ecosystems ...

Climate Scientist Identifying Water Requirements for Climate Mitigation Through Ecosystem Restoration

Oct. 25, 2024 — Worldwide, deforestation and farming practices are responsible for the degradation of vital ecosystems. While there is a significant amount of interest in climate mitigation by restoring those ...

Marri Trees a Lifeline for Many Native Bee Species in Biodiversity Hotspot

Oct. 24, 2024 — New research has revealed Marri trees are critical to the survival of more than 80 species of native bee in Western Australia's South West region, which is one of the world's most ...

Invasive Flathead Catfish Impacting Susquehanna's Food Chain

Oct. 22, 2024 — Flathead catfish -- native to the Mississippi River basin -- were first detected in the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania in 2002, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. In the two decades since ...

Loss of 'Nitrogen Fixers' Threatens Biodiversity, Ecosystems

Oct. 18, 2024 — New research shows how human activities, like fertilizer use and polluting, are impacting nitrogen-fixing plants which are crucial for maintaining healthy ecosystems by adding nitrogen to the ...

Better Ocean Connectivity Boosts Reef Fish Populations

Oct. 18, 2024 — A new study has found that oceanographic connectivity (the movement and exchange of water between different parts of the ocean) is a key influence for fish abundance across the Western Indian Ocean ...

Soil's Secret Language: Researchers Decode Plant-to-Fungi Communication

Oct. 17, 2024 — Researchers have cracked the code of plant-to-fungi communication in a new study. Using baker's yeast, the researchers discovered that the plant hormone strigolactone (SL) activates fungal genes ...

Grasslands Live in the Climate Change Fast Lane

Oct. 16, 2024 — Grasslands are responding to climate change almost in real time, according to new ...

Plastic Pollution Harms Bees, Review Finds

Oct. 16, 2024 — A new review systematically shows the harmful effects of nano- and microplastics on bees and other beneficial insects. Their function as pollinators is impaired by the plastic particles. This harbors ...