Showing 20 articles starting at article 261

< Previous 20 articles        Next 20 articles >

Categories: Ecology: General, Environmental: Wildfires

Return to the site home page

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international team of marine scientists has identified and officially named four species of algae new to science, challenging previous taxonomical assumptions within the Porolithon genus. The discovery has far-reaching implications for our understanding of the ecological role of these algae in the coral reef ecosystem. 

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Sharks and rays from threatened species are being caught off northern Cyprus, according to a new study by scientists who are working with local authorities and fishers to protect the animals.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Over the past few decades, algae have been slowly edging corals out of their native reefs across the globe by blocking sunlight, wearing the corals down physically, and producing harmful chemicals. But in recent years, a new type of algal threat has surfaced in tropical regions like the Caribbean -- one that spreads quickly and forms a crust on top of coral and sponges, suffocating the organisms underneath and preventing them from regrowing. Marine biologists report that peyssonnelioid alga crusts, or PACs, are expanding quickly across reefs worldwide, killing off corals and transforming entire ecosystems.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using global satellite data, a research team has mapped the tree cover of the world's protected areas. The study shows that regions with abundant large herbivores in many settings have a more variable tree cover, which is expected to benefit biodiversity overall.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers studied how young trees respond to a hotter, drier climate. Their findings can help shape forest management policy and our understanding of how landscapes will change.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Re-establishing plantings of trees, grasses and other vegetation is essential for restoring degraded ecosystems, but a new survey of almost 2,600 restoration projects from nearly every type of ecosystem on Earth finds that most projects fail to recognize and control one of the new plants' chief threats: hungry critters that eat plants.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study provides the first characterization of the coral microbiome under hypoxia, insufficient oxygen in the water.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Deforestation in the Amazon causes land surfaces up to 100 kilometers away to get warmer, suggests a new study.   The research suggests that tropical forests play a critical role in cooling the land surface -- and that effect can play out over considerable distances. 

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a framework that can help scientists understand trends in biodiversity by using data from well-characterized species to provide insights on data-deficient species. The framework provides a how-to guide for researchers and practitioners to implement.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Existing air pollution regulations will reduce thousands of premature adult deaths in the UK, but even the most effective technically feasible actions, which will save thousands more lives, will do little to protect the country's sensitive ecosystems, find researchers.  

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team has identified several factors to help answer a fundamental ecological question: why is there a ridiculous abundance of species some places on earth and a scarcity in others? What factors, exactly, drive animal diversity? They discovered that what an animal eats (and how that interacts with climate) shapes Earth's diversity.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using satellite images, researchers found that fires in North America's boreal forest may be changing the environment in ways that researchers didn't previously anticipate.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New research unveils the cascading effects of periodical cicada emergence events on forest ecosystems ahead of an historic convergence of broods set to emerge spring of 2024.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have discovered the deepest known evidence of coral reef bleaching, more than 90 metres below the surface of the Indian Ocean. Identified during a research cruise, the damage to the deeper reefs in the Central Indian Ocean has been attributed to significant changes in the region's ocean temperature caused by the Indian Ocean Dipole. The researchers have also warned such incidences are only likely to increase as a result of present and future climate change.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The symbiotic communities of invertebrates in dead coral gravel on the shallow, warm-temperate coast of the Kii Peninsula in western Japan. New bivalve species and sideswimmer have been found to live communally with the greenish Bonellia spoonworm. Live-in symbionts share the burrows of other organisms in sand and mud on the seabed. However, studies on burrow niches in rigid substrates, such as rocks on the seabed, have been scarce.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using lake sediment cores, scientists determined how these subalpine ecosystems recovered after 4,800 years of fire.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

One of the building blocks of ocean life can adapt to cope with the effects of climate change, according to new research. The discovery holds promises for biotechnology developments that could counter the negative effects of changing environmental conditions, such as ocean warming and even the reduction in the productivity of crops. 

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Despite steps toward decreasing deforestation, uncontrolled wildfires are threatening environmental gains in Brazilian Amazonia, one of the world's most critical carbon sinks and a region of high biological and cultural diversity.  

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Newly published research on indoor air quality shows wildfire smoke may linger in homes long after the initial blaze has been put out or winds have shifted. The findings show that wildfire smoke can attach to home surfaces like carpet, drapes or counters -- extending the exposure for those inside and potentially causing health problems even after an initial cleaning activity by air purifiers.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Epiphytes, plants such as orchids and mosses that grow in trees, draw nutrients from the air and create refuge for all sorts of other life forms. They are the foundation of forest canopy ecosystems, but they are facing threats from human and natural disturbances.