Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Animals Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

Scientists assemble a richer picture of the plight and resilience of the foothill yellow-legged frog      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Up to only a few inches in length, with a lemon-hued belly, the foothill yellow-legged frog may seem unassuming. But its range once stretched from central Oregon to Baja California. In 2023, it was listed under the federal Endangered Species Act. Its rapidly decreasing range is due in part to a fungal pathogen called Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, or Bd, that has devastated amphibians around the world.

Ecology: Nature Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Reforestation schemes are not enough to recover the carbon created by harvesting wood      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Forests have a critical role to play in capturing and storing carbon from the Earth's atmosphere -- but some models exaggerate their carbon removal potential by almost three-fold, according to a leading professor of forest economics.

Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Geography
Published

Birds and bee lessons as Pacific field trips also solve 'Michener's mystery'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Eight new Pacific bee species and new insights into Fijian bird behaviour on Viti Levu Island have been described in new scientific studies. The research highlights the potential for species discovery, ecological and conservation knowledge and cultural engagement from Asia-Pacific research collaborations.

Biology: Microbiology Computer Science: General Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Robots, monitoring and healthy ecosystems could halve pesticide use without hurting productivity      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Smarter crop farming that combats weeds, insect pests and plant diseases by integrating modern technologies like AI-based monitoring, robotics, and next-generation biotechnology with healthy and resilient agricultural ecosystems.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Common plant could help reduce food insecurity      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An often-overlooked water plant that can double its biomass in two days, capture nitrogen from the air -- making it a valuable green fertilizer -- and be fed to poultry and livestock could serve as life-saving food for humans in the event of a catastrophe or disaster, a new study suggests.

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Genetics Biology: Molecular Ecology: Endangered Species
Published

Biomolecular condensates -- regulatory hubs for plant iron supply      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Iron is a micronutrient for plants. Biologists now show that regulatory proteins for iron uptake behave particularly dynamically in the cell nucleus when the cells are exposed to blue light -- an important signal for plant growth. They found that the initially homogeneously distributed proteins relocated together into 'biomolecular condensates' in the cell nucleus shortly after this exposure.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Nature
Published

Altering the circadian clock adapts barley to short growing seasons      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

To ensure that plants flower at the right time of year, they possess an internal clock, which enables them to measure the amount of daylight during a day. Biologists now describe that the mutation of a specific gene makes the flowering time of barley almost entirely independent of day length. This mutation can be useful for breeding varieties adapted to altered climatic conditions with relatively mild winters and hot, dry summers.

Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Streams connected to groundwater show improved detoxification and microbial diversity      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Streams with ample connections to shallow groundwater flow-paths have greater microbial diversity and are more effective at preventing toxic forms of metals -- often products of upstream mining -- from entering and being transported downstream.

Ecology: Nature Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Environmental: Wildfires
Published

Cooler, wetter parts of Pacific Northwest likely to see more fires, new simulations predict      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Forests in the coolest, wettest parts of the western Pacific Northwest are likely to see the biggest increases in burn probability, fire size and number of blazes as the climate continues to get warmer and drier.

Biology: Biochemistry Ecology: Nature Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Carbon emissions from the destruction of mangrove forests predicted to increase by 50,000% by the end of the century      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The annual rate of carbon emissions due to the degradation of carbon stocks in mangrove forests is predicted to rise by nearly 50,000% by the end of the century, according to a new study. Mangroves in regions such as southern India, southeastern China, Singapore and eastern Australia are particularly affected.

Ecology: General Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Landslides Geoscience: Oceanography Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Stronger storms free more nutrients from mud flats      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

If storms become stronger in the future due to climate change, more nitrogen may be released from the bottom of coastal seas.

Biology: Botany Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Modeling tree masting      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The effects of a phenomenon called tree masting on ecosystems and food webs can be better understood thanks to new theoretical models validated by real world observations.

Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

Does Russia stand to benefit from climate change?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

There exists a narrative about climate change that says there are winners and losers -- with Russia being one of the countries that stand to benefit from its effects. In a new study, researchers found that Russia is suffering from a variety of climate change impacts and is ill-prepared to mitigate or adapt to those climate impacts. And, as the rest of the world transitions to renewable energy sources, Russia's fossil-fuel-dependent government is not willing or ready to make alternative plans for the country, changes that could potentially benefit the whole of their society.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity
Published

Increasingly similar or different? Centuries-long analysis suggests biodiversity is differentiating and homogenizing to a comparable extent      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The tendency of communities and the species within them to become more similar or more distinct across landscapes -- biotic homogenization and differentiation -- are approximately balanced, according to a new study. This analysis is the first of its kind to provide a comprehensive assessment of how local and regional biodiversity changes combine across landscapes over centuries.

Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Nature Energy: Alternative Fuels Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: General
Published

New evidence shows UK solar parks can provide for bees and butterflies      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study shows that UK solar parks, if managed correctly, can provide vital resources to help stem the decline in the nation's bees and butterflies. The new research provides peer-reviewed field data of insect pollinators at solar parks in the UK, covering 15 sites.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Marine Ecology: Nature Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Citizen science to mitigate the environmental crisis in the marine environment      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Citizen science can help to improve conservation and management strategies for Mediterranean marine ecosystems, and to mitigate the impact of the environmental crisis.

Ecology: General Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Converting rainforest to plantation impacts food webs and biodiversity      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Every day, new areas of rainforests are converted into plantations, drastically changing tropical biodiversity and the way the ecosystem functions. Yet, the current understanding of the consequences is fragmentary: previous studies tended to examine either biodiversity or the ecosystem. An international research team brings these threads together in this study. They analyzed organisms ranging from microscopic mites and earthworms in the soil, to beetles and birds in tree canopies, comparing tropical rainforest with rubber and oil palm plantations in Sumatra, Indonesia.

Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography
Published

Low oxygen in lakes may breathe new life into conservation efforts for water quality      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international team analyzed 656 lakes across five continents to provide empirical evidence supporting a long-held theory regarding low deep-water oxygen concentrations, or anoxia.