Biodiversity News

August 11, 2016

Three Quarters of Threatened Species Imperiled

Species at Risk from SE Asia Tree Plantations

Foraging Strategies of Smallest Seals

Effects Long-Felt in Tropical Deforestation

Latest Headlines

updated 7:28pm EDT

Historically Robust Natural Ecosystems Could Collapse Due to Climate Change, Human Activity

Aug. 11, 2016 — Global change will strike the oldest and most complex ecosystems of the world hardest, regardless of their past stability, warn experts in a new ... read more

Surveys of Corn, Soybean Fields Reveal Implications for Pollinator Conservation

Aug. 11, 2016 — What kind of insect pollinators are commonly found in corn and soybean fields? The answer to that question can be found in a new article, say ... read more

Marine Animals Live Longer at High Latitudes

Aug. 11, 2016 — After months of work by researchers, two patterns have emerged. The first reveals that, as a bivalve's lifespan increases, its growth rate decreases. The second shows that ... read more

New Meta-Analysis Shows Engineered Hard Shorelines Are a Threat to Ecosystems

Aug. 10, 2016 — Artificial shoreline hardening is often used to protect human structures from coastal hazards, but the practice may negatively affect coastal ... read more

The Six Steps to Extinction

Aug. 9, 2016 — Invasive plants are a problem around the world, but are they just a nuisance or are they killers? So far there are no documented cases of native plants becoming extinct ... read more

Why Are New England's Wild Blue Mussels Disappearing?

Aug. 9, 2016 — The Gulf of Maine coastline, historically home to one of the richest shellfish populations in the US, is undergoing a dramatic change, with once-flourishing wild blue mussels ... read more

Drought Conditions Slow the Growth of Douglas Fir Trees Across the West

Aug. 8, 2016 — Douglas fir trees are consistently sensitive to drought conditions that occur throughout the species' range in the United States, according to ... read more

A Plant Present in Brazil Is Capable of Colonizing Deforested Areas

Aug. 8, 2016 — Researchers have studied the genetic diversity and differentiation patterns of the native pioneer understory tree Miconia affinis. They collected leaf tissue from approximately 30 reproductive trees ... read more

Hi-Tech Test to Find Elusive Sawfish

Aug. 9, 2016 — Scientists can now reliably predict which bodies of water contain the endangered and elusive sawfish species -- by conducting a ... read more

Lake Tanganyika Fisheries Declining from Global Warming

Aug. 8, 2016 — The decrease in fishery productivity in Lake Tanganyika since the 1950s is a consequence of global warming rather than just overfishing, according to a new report. The lake ... read more

At Least 40 Dead in Mexico After Storm Triggers Mudslides

Mexico Landslides Leave 40 Dead as New Storm Forms

Downgraded Earl Lashes Belize

A Majority Of The World's Largest Animals Could Be Extinct By 2100

Many Endangered Species Face Long Waits for Protection

Aug. 10, 2016 — The Endangered Species Act was enacted by Congress in 1973 to protect species threatened with extinction. To receive protection, a species must first be listed as endangered or threatened. A two-year ... read more

Noisy Neighbours: Measuring the Impact of Human-Generated Noise Pollution on Sea Mammals in the Mediterranean

Aug. 8, 2016 — A new study is set to to analyze the possible influence of anthropogenic or human-generated disturbances on different cetacean mammals in the Mediterranean Sea. It focuses on three areas within the ... read more

Mountain Environments More Vulnerable to Climate Change Than Previously Reported

Aug. 2, 2016 — New research by a forest landscape ecology professor shows that organisms will face more hardships as they relocate when climate change makes their current homes ... read more

Study: Bioenergy Decisions Involve Wildlife Habitat and Land Use Trade-Offs

Aug. 1, 2016 — New research finds that choosing how to meet bioenergy goals means making trade-offs about which wildlife species and ecosystems will be most impacted. The work focuses on the southeastern United ... read more

Life on the Edge: How Forest Fragmentation Is Impacting on Amphibian and Reptile Species

Aug. 1, 2016 — Experts call for new conservation guidelines after research shows 90% of tropical amphibian and reptile species are affected by the 'edge effect' and forest islands less than 500m in ... read more

Oceans Are Full of Barriers for Small Organisms

Aug. 1, 2016 — Subtle and short-lived differences in ocean salinity or temperature function as physical barriers for phytoplankton, and result in a patchy distribution of the oceans' most important food ... read more

Animal 'Roles' Could Provide Key to Accurate Forest Restoration Findings, Says New Study

July 29, 2016 — Replanting cleared forests can recover animal communities and important ecological processes relatively quickly, says a new study. But, warn the research team, the traditional way of evaluating such ... read more

Globally Protected Areas Benefit Broad Range of Species, Largest Ever Study Reveals

July 28, 2016 — The largest ever analysis of globally protected areas reveals for the first time that they do benefit a broad range of species. By analysing biodiversity samples taken from 1,939 sites inside and ... read more

Forests, Species on Four Continents Threatened by Palm Oil Expansion

July 27, 2016 — As palm oil production expands from Southeast Asia into the Americas and Africa, vulnerable tropical forests and species on four continents face increased risk of loss, a new study finds. The largest ... read more

Warnings of Imminent Extinction Crisis for Largest Wild Animal Species

July 27, 2016 — A team of conservation biologists is calling for a worldwide strategy to prevent the unthinkable: the extinction of the world's largest mammal ... read more

Two Neonicotinoid Insecticides May Have Inadvertent Contraceptive Effects on Male Honey Bees

July 27, 2016 — Male honey bees, called drones, can be affected by two neonicotinoid insecticides by reducing male honey bee lifespan and number of living sperm. Both insecticides are currently partially banned in ... read more

New Marine Invertebrate Species in Weddell Sea, Antarctica

July 26, 2016 — The cold waters in Weddell, in the Antarctic ocean, are the environment in which a new marine invertebrate species -- the nudibranchs <em>Doto carinova</em> -- has been ... read more

Can't See the Wood for the Climbers: Vines Threatening Tropical Forests

July 22, 2016 — Woody climbing vines, known as lianas, are preventing tropical forests from recovering and are hampering the ability of forests to store carbon, scientists are warning. Instead of taking decades to ... read more

New Research Gleans Climate Change Insight from Lizard Genome

July 21, 2016 — Using genomic data from three lizard species, researchers gleaned insights not available before on the impact of climate change on the distribution of animal populations in South American forests. ... read more

Can Palm Oil Be Sustainable?

July 21, 2016 — A new study shows to where and to what extent palm oil plantations could be expanded, while avoiding further deforestation in pristine and carbon-rich tropical ... read more

Are Forests of the Future at Risk?

July 20, 2016 — Human disturbance negatively affects the pollination and seed dispersal of forest trees – an effect that can be observed in both tropical and temperate forests. This is the key result of a ... read more

Paleontology: Aftermath of a Mass Extinction

July 19, 2016 — A new study of fossil fishes from Middle Triassic sediments on the shores of Lake Lugano provides new insights into the recovery of biodiversity following the great mass extinction event at the ... read more

Policy Makers and Ecologists Must Develop a More Constructive Dialogue to Save the Planet

July 19, 2016 — An international consensus demands human impacts on the environment 'sustain', 'maintain', 'conserve', 'protect', 'safeguard', and 'secure' ... read more

Biodiversity Falls Below ‘safe Levels’ Globally

July 14, 2016 — Levels of global biodiversity loss may negatively impact on ecosystem function and the sustainability of human ... read more

Vineyards Adversely Affect Soil Quality, Researchers Determine

July 14, 2016 — Biologists are digging under vineyards to see if the Okanagan's grape industry is affecting soil quality. A research team delivers its findings after spending the better part of three years ... read more

Wednesday, August 10, 2016