Not batty conservation
Noah had it easy. To weather the storm of impending disaster that would wipe-out life on earth, he simply protected a male and female of each species on the ark. Protecting contemporary biodiversity from the deluge of human activities that threaten life on earth is more difficult and requires a global network of reserves that includes all... view more... (2003-09-17)
Different coat color may not mean different species for lemurs
Researchers have found that lemurs suspected to belong to different species because of their strikingly different coat colors, are not only genetically alike, but belong to the same species. view more (2006-11-16)
Time series identify population responses to climate change
Biologists have for several years modeled how different species are likely to respond to climate change. Most such studies ignore differences between populations within a species and the interactions between species, in the interest of simplicity. view more (2009-06-01)
Rove beetles act as warning signs for clear-cutting consequences
New research from the University of Alberta and the Canadian Forest Service has revealed the humble rove beetle may actually have a lot to tell us about the effects of harvesting on forests species. view more (2007-06-13)
Online collaboration identifies bacteria
A new website has been launched which allows scientists everywhere to collaborate on the identification of bacterial strains. This new resource, described in the open access journal BMC Biology, provides a portal for electronic bacterial taxonomy. view more (2009-02-19)
Do you know what are you eating?
The project presented by Basque research center AZTI is about a new research line: a new method to identify the food and fish products once they are processed. Due to the big demand on that kind of researches, AZTI has been financed by the Fishing and Agricultural Department of the Basque Government to create a new laboratory of genetics. In fact,... view more... (2002-12-05)
Study: Rain forest insects eat no more tree species than temperate counterparts
A study initiated by University of Minnesota plant biologist George Weiblen has confirmed what biologists since Darwin have suspected-that the vast number of tree species in rain forests accounts for the equally vast number of plant-eating species of insects. view more (2006-08-24)
Your own private global warming
A group of researchers from the British Antarctic Survey have collected individuals from a wide range of species commonly found in Antarctic waters and subjected them to increasing levels of water temperature to learn how each species is prepared to cope with the conditions that they are likely to experience in the future. view more (2009-06-30)
Habitat loss and reserve network selection
What is the minimum combination of areas needed to protect at least one population of every species in a region? - This is a problem commonly addressed when aiming at cost-effective reserve networks. However, because the stress on reserve cost, the properties of the reserve-network for species persistence are often overlooked, typically resulting... view more... (2003-07-02)
New life found in ancient tombs
Life has been discovered in the barren depths of Rome's ancient tombs, proving catacombs are not just a resting place for the dead. The two new species of bacteria found growing on the walls of the Roman tombs may help protect our cultural heritage monuments. view more (2008-09-25)
Probability Controls The Molecule Of Life
Thanks to biophysicists, statistics has reached the most intimate aspect of life - regulation of genes' activity. Investigation on probabilistic aspects of molecular biology has been supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research and the INTAS Foundation. Regulation of genes' activity is one of the most important biological problems which... view more... (2004-05-24)
New method for measuring biodiversity
German and Sri Lankan researchers have developed a new method for measuring the impacts of species on local biodiversity. It makes it possible to determine whether a certain species promotes or suppresses species diversity. view more (2008-02-19)
New study explores patterns in species diversity and genetic diversity
As scientists, conservationists, and policy-makers wrestle with how to balance development with maintaining biodiversity, it's important to understand what controls patterns of biodiversity and how the biodiversity of a system will respond to different environmental scenarios. view more (2005-07-27)
Laos - a lost world for frogs
Frogs and lots of them are being discovered in the Southeast Asia nation of Lao PDR, according to the Bronx Zoo-based Wildlife Conservation Society, which says that six new frog species have been found by scientists over a two-year period. view more (2006-04-24)
Coexistence of identical competitors: an old doctrine challenged
An illustrious principle in ecology states that no two identical species may coexist: sooner or later all but one will drift to extinction. Researchers from the Beijing Normal University and the University of Helsinki have modeled recent data on fig-pollinating wasps that appear to contradict the old theory. The model, which is reported in a... view more... (2004-02-24)
Must ecologists account for time to understand biodiversity in space?
Ecologists typically study biodiversity in "snapshots"—single-time surveys conducted in many locations—and try to understand why some habitats have more species than others, or why larger areas contain more species than smaller ones. But what are ecologists missing if they ignore the reality that communities are not snapshots... view more... (2006-06-21)
Ice Age survivors in Iceland
Many scientists believe that the ice ages exterminated all life on land and in freshwater in large parts of the Northern Hemisphere, especially on ocean islands such as Iceland. view more (2007-07-20)
Lacewing species new to Britain unexpectedly detected in field trials of aphid sex pheromone
Scientists from IACR-Rothamsted1 and Imperial College were surprised to find large numbers of green lacewings in traps baited with a plant-derived compound aimed at improving natural biocontrol of aphid pests2. Close inspection by Stephen Brooks at the Natural History Museum identified these lacewings as Peyerimhoffina gracilis, a species new to... view more... (2001-12-17)
Improved predictions of warming-induced extinctions sought
In the March 2007 issue of BioScience, an international team of 19 researchers calls for better forecasting of the effects of global warming on extinction rates. view more (2007-03-01)
Ecological communities suffer dramatic changes when non-native species are introduced by humans!
Ecological communities suffer dramatic changes when non-native species are introduced by humans. Such introductions have been documented in hundreds of locations and appear to be common in marine and island habitats. One of the best-studied cases of a species that suddenly appeared in the New England intertidal, and subsequently spread rapidly... view more... (2002-07-11)
|
|
