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Categories: Biology: Marine, Environmental: Biodiversity
Published Fungus breaks down ocean plastic
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A fungus living in the sea can break down the plastic polyethylene, provided it has first been exposed to UV radiation from sunlight. Researchers expect that many more plastic degrading fungi are living in deeper parts of the ocean.
Published How sharks survived a major spike in Earth's temperature
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The sharks we know today as the open ocean's top predators evolved from stubby bottom dwellers during a dramatic episode of global warming millions of years ago.
Published An unlikely hero in evolution: Worms
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source One of Earth's most consequential bursts of biodiversity -- a 30-million-year period of explosive evolutionary changes spawning innumerable new species -- may have the most modest of creatures to thank for the vital stage in life's history: worms.
Published New coral disease forecasting system
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Research has led to a new tool for forecasting coral disease that could help conservationists step in at the right times with key interventions. Ecological forecasts are critical tools for conserving and managing marine ecosystems, but few forecasting systems can account for the wide range of ecological complexities in near-real-time.
Published People are altering decomposition rates in waterways
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Humans may be accelerating the rate at which organic matter decomposes in rivers and streams on a global scale, according to a new study. That could pose a threat to biodiversity in waterways around the world and increase the amount of carbon in Earth's atmosphere, potentially exacerbating climate change. The study is the first to combine a global experiment and predictive modeling to illustrate how human impacts to waterways may contribute to the global climate crisis.
Published Novel virus identified in zebrafish from the pet trade causes disease in laboratory fish
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Zebrafish in the pet trade are asymptomatic carriers of previously undescribed microbes, including a novel virus that causes hemorrhaging in infected laboratory fish, researchers report.
Published Rapid urbanization in Africa transforms local food systems and threatens biodiversity
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Urbanization in Africa is accelerating quickly, showing no signs of slowing down. An international team of researchers addresses critical gaps in our understanding of how this urbanization affects local food and ecological systems, emphasizing the importance of recognizing shifts in dietary patterns.
Published Antibiotic pollution disrupts the gut microbiome and blocks memory in aquatic snails
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Antibiotics prevent snails from forming new memories by disrupting their gut microbiome -- the community of beneficial bacteria found in their guts.
Published Researchers improve satellite surveillance of emperor penguins
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New phenological and behavioral models will help scientists collect more accurate counts of emperor penguins. Emperor penguins are at the top of the food web. They are a reflection of how lower levels of the marine food web are being impacted by climate change. Systematic data collection on the biological component of ecosystems is still in its infancy, especially in harsh environments, in which consistent and repeatable research is particularly hard to achieve.
Published What makes some plant groups so successful?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers involved in cataloguing the world's plant species are hunting for answers as to what makes some groups of plants so successful. One of their major goals is to predict more accurately which lineages of flowering plants -- some of which are of huge importance to people and to ecosystems -- are at a greater risk from global climate change.
Published Fatal attraction: When endangered species try to mate with domestic relatives, both wildlife and people lose
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Sticks and stones aren't enough to thwart biological attraction, but sometimes those are the only tools available to pastoralists trying to prevent wildlife from eloping with their livestock. A new study brings awareness to both the human impacts of these encounters -- ranging from economic loss to death -- and conservation concerns for the wild animals that are often endangered.
Published Some species may tolerate climate change better than expected
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new model reassesses the proportion of terrestrial and marine species threatened with extinction by climate change. While the forecasts of traditional models estimate that the diversity of terrestrial species in tropical areas could decrease by 54% between now and 2041-2060, this model is more moderate, predicting a decrease of 39%. Nevertheless, this proportion remains alarming and confirms the importance of taking urgent measures to mitigate climate change and its impact on biodiversity.
Published Slugs and snails love the city, unlike other animals
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Most native species avoid more urbanized areas of Los Angeles, but slugs and snails may actually prefer these environments, according to a new study.
Published Wild megalopolis: Study shows unexpected pockets of biodiversity pepper Los Angeles
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers, in partnership with the city of Los Angeles, have developed the urban association index to help identify how well or poorly individual wildlife species are doing in the city. The researchers found unexpected pockets of biodiversity deep in the city, but they say it will still be a challenge to elevate Los Angeles' overall level of biodiversity.
Published Marine Protected Areas don't line up with core habitats of rare migratory fish, finds new research
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source 62% of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) designated to protect rare migratory fish species are outside of their core habitats, according to a new modeling study.
Published The secret sex life of coral revealed
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Corals play an essential role in ocean ecosystems, and like many organisms, they are under threat from climate change and other human activities. To better protect coral, it's first necessary to understand them, in particular their reproductive life cycle, which only happens once a year. For the first time, researchers have produced a model for coral spawning, based on various environmental factors. They achieved this by tapping an often overlooked source of aquatic knowledge, an aquarium.
Published Smarter foragers do not forage smarter
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Why do primates have big brains? In the Panamanian rainforest, scientists pitted large-brained primates against smaller-brained mammals to find out who was the smartest forager.
Published Global activity of seafloor biodiversity mapped
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A team of scientists has used artificial intelligence (AI) to map the activities of seafloor invertebrate animals, such as worms, clams and shrimps, across all the oceans of the world.
Published Investigating the origin of circatidal rhythms in freshwater snails
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source While most organisms have biological clocks synchronized with the day-night cycle (circadian rhythms), marine animals in tidal areas have also developed circatidal rhythms to align with the tidal cycle. Comparing the activity and genetic expression of snails from tidal and non-tidal areas, researchers demonstrate that circatidal rhythms develop as snails adapt to tidal environments. These findings highlight the flexibility of biological clocks, enabling organisms to adjust their rhythms according to the environment.
Published Biodiversity in crabs: More than counting species
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers compare the shield shapes of crabs and find unexpected differentiation.