Biology: Marine Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Oceanography
Published

Marine heatwaves decimate sea urchins, molluscs and more at Rottnest      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers believe rising sea temperatures are to blame for the plummeting number of invertebrates such as molluscs and sea urchins at Rottnest Island off Western Australia, with some species having declined by up to 90 per cent between 2007 and 2021.

Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Invasive Species Environmental: Biodiversity
Published

Effort to help pollinators shows successes, limitations      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A three-year effort to conserve bee populations by introducing pollinator habitat in North Carolina agricultural areas showed some positive effects, as bee abundance and diversity increased in the studied areas. But results of a study examining the program's effectiveness also showed that the quality of the habitat played a key role in these positive effects, and that habitat quality could be impacted by the way the areas are maintained over time.

Biology: Evolutionary Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Biodiversity Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

A labyrinth lake provides surprising benefits for an endangered seal      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The endangered Saimaa ringed seal is an Ice Age relict living in the highly labyrinthine Lake Saimaa, Finland. The newly published work shows that although individual seals have greatly reduced genetic variation, the loss of variation has been complementary, preserving the adaptive potential of the whole population.

Biology: Botany Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Research Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Urban ponds require attention to ensure biodiversity      (via sciencedaily.com) 

New research suggests aquatic plants can be utilized as a tool to enhance the co-existence between aquatic invertebrates and their fish predators in urban ponds.

Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Offbeat: Computers and Math
Published

Wireless, soft e-skin for interactive touch communication in the virtual world      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Sensing a hug from each other via the internet may be a possibility in the near future. A research team recently developed a wireless, soft e-skin that can both detect and deliver the sense of touch, and form a touch network allowing one-to-multiuser interaction. It offers great potential for enhancing the immersion of distance touch communication.

Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Offbeat: Computers and Math
Published

Hands-free tech adds realistic sense of touch in extended reality      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have demonstrated a new hands-free approach to convey realistic haptic feedback in virtual reality (VR). Their 'multisensory pseudo-haptics' uses a combination of headset visuals and tactile feedback from a wrist bracelet to convey sensations of touch.

Biology: Botany Ecology: General Ecology: Research Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Clever orchard design for more nuts      (via sciencedaily.com) 

To reduce biodiversity loss in agricultural landscapes, more sustainable and environmentally friendly agricultural practices are needed. A research team has investigated how ecosystem services such as pollination could be improved in macadamia plantations. The scientists showed that a certain design of plantations -- for instance, how the rows of trees are arranged, the varieties, and the integration of semi-natural habitats in and around the plantations -- can increase the pollination performance of bees.

Ecology: General Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Rising river temperatures hold important clues about climate and other human impacts      (via sciencedaily.com) 

An improved global understanding of river temperature could provide an important barometer for climate change and other human activities.

Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: General Ecology: Research Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Climate 'spiral' threatens land carbon stores      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The world's forests are losing their ability to absorb carbon due to increasingly 'unstable' conditions caused by humans, a landmark study has found.

Biology: Marine Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Research Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

New research reveals 12 ways aquaculture can benefit the environment      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Aquaculture, or the farming of aquatic plants and animals, contributes to biodiversity and habitat loss in freshwater and marine ecosystems globally, but when used wisely, it can also be part of the solution, new research shows.

Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR)
Published

How can the metaverse improve public health?      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The metaverse is a technological revolution in the field of virtual reality, with potential benefits to public health research. A new article proposes several new ways in which the metaverse can help us design, test, and experience health-promoting environments to minimize the risk of non-communicable diseases.

Biology: Botany Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: General Ecology: Research Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Detecting the impact of drought on plants with user-friendly and inexpensive techniques      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Climate change is aggravating the impact of droughts -- one of the factors that only affect plant physiology -- on all plant ecosystems worldwide. Although new tools have been developed to detect and assess drought stress in plants -- transcriptomic or metabolomic technologies, etc. -- they are still difficult to apply in natural ecosystems, especially in remote areas and developing countries.

Ecology: Animals Ecology: Invasive Species Environmental: Biodiversity Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Using spiders as environmentally-friendly pest control      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Groups of spiders could be used as an environmentally-friendly way to protect crops against agricultural pests. That's according to new research which suggests that web-building groups of spiders can eat a devastating pest moth of commercially important crops like tomato and potato worldwide.

Biology: Evolutionary Biology: Marine Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Biodiversity
Published

Biodiversity engine for fishes: Shifting water depth      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Fish, the most biodiverse vertebrates in the animal kingdom, present evolutionary biologists a conundrum: The greatest species richness is found in the world's tropical waters, yet the fish groups that generate new species most rapidly inhabit colder climates at higher latitudes. A new study helps to explain this paradox. The researchers discovered that the ability of fish in temperate and polar ecosystems to transition back and forth from shallow to deep water triggers species diversification. Their findings suggest that as climate change warms the oceans at higher latitudes, it will impede the evolution of fish species.

Biology: Botany Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: General Ecology: Research Environmental: Biodiversity
Published

Urban gardens are good for ecosystems and humans      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Traditionally, it has been assumed that cultivating food leads to a loss of biodiversity and negative impacts on an ecosystem. A new study defies this assumption, showing that community gardens and urban farms positively affect biodiversity, local ecosystems and the well-being of humans that work in them.

Computer Science: General Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Engineering: Graphene
Published

Virtual and augmented reality: Researchers pioneer process to stack micro-LEDs      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers are using emerging technology to demonstrate a process that will enable more immersive and realistic virtual and augmented reality displays with the world's smallest and thinnest micro-LEDs.

Environmental: Biodiversity Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

How does biodiversity change globally? Detecting accurate trends may be currently unfeasible      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Existing data are too biased to provide a reliable picture of the global average of local species richness trends.

Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Research Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Endangered Bahamas bird may be lost from island following hurricane      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The endangered Bahama Warbler may be surviving on just one island following Hurricane Dorian's devastation in 2019, according to researchers. A new study shows the bird's distribution and ecology on Grand Bahama before the hurricane struck. But the team says that the warbler may now only survive on neighboring Abaco island, after hurricane Dorian destroyed the bird's forest habitat on Grand Bahama. The research comes from the same team that found what is thought to have been the last living Bahama Nuthatch, previously thought to have been extinct.

Biology: Marine Ecology: General Ecology: Research Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Biodiversity Geoscience: Oceanography
Published

Marine reserves unlikely to restore marine ecosystems      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Protected marine areas are one of the essential tools for the conservation of natural resources affected by human impact -- mainly fishing --, but, are they enough to recover the functioning of these systems? A study now highlights the limitations of marine reserves in restoring food webs to their pristine state prior to the impact of intensive fishing.