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Categories: Ecology: Animals, Geoscience: Earth Science
Published It all depends on the genetic diversity
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research shows that a single mutation that has immediate effects on plant fitness is maintained over the long term in natural plant populations, despite theories predict the contrary. The researchers located and identified the gene that regulates the amount of an active defense hormone. Mutants in this gene are susceptible to herbivore attack. However, they compensate for impaired defenses through robust genetic networks. When fewer herbivores attack, they even grow faster and produce more offspring.
Published Scientists zero in on timing, causes of ice age mammal extinctions in southern California
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Radiocarbon dating on bones in the La Brea Tar Pits lead archaeologists to warn that history may be repeating itself.
Published Urban great tits have paler plumage than their forest-living relatives
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new study shows that urban great tits have paler plumage than their countryside counterparts. Since the yellow pigment of the breast feathers of great tits comes from the food they eat, the paler yellow plumage of urban birds indicates that the urban environment affects the entire food chain.
Published Pollutants are important to biodiversity's role in spread of wildlife diseases
(via sciencedaily.com) Conventional wisdom among ecologists holds that the more species there are inhabiting an ecosystem, the less vulnerable any one species will be to a threat like a parasite. A new study of tadpoles illustrates how overlapping biological and environmental factors can complicate how we value protecting diverse animal communities. The researchers found that environmental pollutants like road salt influence whether increased biodiversity helps or hinders disease outbreaks in wildlife, which can complicate how we value protecting diverse animal communities.
Published It's not just humans: City life is stressful for coyotes, too
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Though cars are the biggest threat to coyotes taking up residence in U.S. cities, a new study suggests urban living poses a different kind of hazard to coyote health -- in the form of chronic stress. Researchers examined the concentration of the stress hormone cortisol in the hair of almost 100 coyotes living in the Chicago Metropolitan Area. Results showed that coyotes that lived in the most-developed areas had higher cortisol levels -- a proxy for chronic stress -- than animals living in suburban or natural areas.
Published How urea may have been the gateway to life
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Urea reacts extremely quickly under the conditions that existed when our planet was newly formed. This new insight furthers our understanding of how life on Earth might have begun.
Published There may be good news about the oceans in a globally warmed world
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source An analysis of oxygen levels in Earth's oceans may provide some rare, good news about the health of the seas in a future, globally warmed world. A study analyzing ocean sediment shows that ocean oxygen levels in a key area were higher during the Miocene warm period, some 16 million years ago when the Earth's temperature was hotter than it is today.
Published This self-driving boat maps underwater terrain
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Engineers concoct an easier way for scientists to study underwater topography.
Published Freely available risk model for hurricanes, tropical cyclones
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source As human-driven climate change amplifies natural disasters, hurricanes and typhoons stand to increase in intensity. Until now, there existed very few freely available computer models designed to estimate the economic costs of such events, but a team of researchers has recently announced the completion of an open-source model that stands to help countries with high tropical cyclone risks better calculate just how much those storms will impact their people and their economies.
Published Orangutans can make two sounds at the same time, similar to human beatboxing, study finds
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Orangutans can make two separate sounds simultaneously, much like songbirds or human beatboxers, according to a new study.
Published Humans' ancestors survived the asteroid impact that killed the dinosaurs
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A Cretaceous origin for placental mammals, the group that includes humans, dogs and bats, has been revealed by in-depth analysis of the fossil record, showing they co-existed with dinosaurs for a short time before the dinosaurs went extinct.
Published Research in a place where geological processes happen before your eyes
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Taiwan experiences some of the world's fastest rates of mountain building -- they are growing at a faster rate than our fingernails grow in a year. The mountains also see frequent and significant earthquakes, the region experiences about four typhoons per year on average, and in some places, it receives upwards of several meters of rain annually.
Published Study of Earth's stratosphere reduces uncertainty in future climate change
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research reduces uncertainty in future climate change linked to the stratosphere, with important implications for life on Earth. A significant source of uncertainty relates to future changes to water vapor in the stratosphere, an extremely dry region of the atmosphere 15--50 km above the Earth's surface. Future increases in water vapor here risk amplifying climate change and slowing down the recovery of the ozone layer, which protects life on Earth from harmful solar ultraviolet radiation.
Published Study of deep-sea corals reveals ocean currents have not fuelled rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Pioneering analysis of deep-sea corals has overturned the idea that ocean currents contributed to increasing global levels of carbon dioxide in the air over the past 11,000 years.
Published Gray whales off Oregon Coast consume millions of microparticles per day
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers estimate that gray whales feeding off the Oregon Coast consume up to 21 million microparticles per day, a finding informed in part by feces from the whales.
Published Research questions value of sagebrush control in conserving sage grouse
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Sagebrush reduction strategies, including mowing and herbicide application, are often employed to enhance habitat for the greater sage grouse and other sagebrush-dependent species.
Published Investing in nature improves equity, boosts economy
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new study shows that current trends in environmental degradation will lead to large economic losses in the coming decades, hitting the poorest countries hardest. But there is hope: investing in nature can turn those losses into gains.
Published Megalodon was no cold-blooded killer
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source How the megalodon, a shark that went extinct 3.6 million years ago, stayed warm was a matter of speculation among scientists. Using an analysis of tooth fossils from the megalodon and other sharks of the same period, a study suggests the animal was able to maintain a body temperature well above the temperature of the water in which it lived. The finding could help explain why the megalodon went extinct during the Pliocene Epoch.
Published How coral reefs can survive climate change
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Similar to the expeditions of a hundred or two hundred years ago, the Tara Pacific expedition lasted over two years. The goal: to research the conditions for life and survival of corals. The ship crossed the entire Pacific Ocean, assembling the largest genetic inventory conducted in any marine system to date. The team's 70 scientists from eight countries took around 58,000 samples from the hundred coral reefs studied.
Published Human impact on wildlife even in protected areas
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The largest long-term standardized camera-trap survey to date finds that human activity impacts tropical mammals living in protected areas and sheds light on how different species are affected based on their habitat needs and anthropogenic stressors.