Showing 20 articles starting at article 201

< Previous 20 articles        Next 20 articles >

Categories: Biology: Botany, Ecology: Nature

Return to the site home page

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A widely found gene in plants has been newly identified as a key transporter of a hormone that influences the size of corn. The discovery offers plant breeders a new tool to develop desirable dwarf varieties that could enhance the crop's resilience and profitability.

     (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.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Plant hydraulics drive the biological process that moves fluids from roots to plant stems and leaves, creating streaming electric potential, or voltage, in the process. A study closely examined the differences in voltage caused by the concentrations of ions, types of ions, and pH of the fluid plants transport, tying the voltage changes to the plant's circadian rhythm that causes adjustments day and night. According to the authors, this consistent, cyclic voltage creation could be harnessed as an energy source.

     (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.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Maize is one of the world's most widely grown crops and is essential to global food security. But like other plants, its growth and productivity can be limited by the slow activity of Rubisco, the enzyme responsible for carbon assimilation during photosynthesis. Scientists have now demonstrated a promising approach to enhancing Rubisco production, thus improving photosynthesis and overall plant growth.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An evolutionary biologist reports evidence of repeatable evolution in populations of stick insects.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In an interdisciplinary study, researchers discovered that symbiotic bacteria communicate with legume plants through specific molecules and that this communication influences which bacteria grow near the plant roots. The findings provide insights into how plants and soil bacteria form beneficial partnerships for nutrient uptake and resilience. These results are a step towards understanding how communication between plants and soil bacteria can lead to specific beneficial associations providing plants with nutrients.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Members of the vertebrate group including anglerfishes are unique in possessing a characteristic known as sexual parasitism, in which males temporarily attach or permanently fuse with females to mate. Now, researchers show that sexual parasitism arose during a time of major global warming and rapid transition for anglerfishes from the ocean floor to the deep, open sea.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Populations of canola plants genetically engineered to be resistant to herbicides can survive outside of farms, but may be gradually losing their engineered genes, reports a new study.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Community science volunteers -- laypeople with an interest in bees and conservation -- significantly contribute to the scientific knowledge of native bumble bees across Canada and the United States. It's buzz worthy confirmation that community science programs can play an important role in monitoring the changing distributions of bumble bees and more.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Many processes in the deep sea are not yet well understood, and the role of microbial communities in particular is often a big unknown. This includes, for example, how organic material that sinks from the water surface to the ocean floor is metabolised -- an important building block for a better understanding of the global carbon cycle.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

To achieve global biodiversity targets, conservationists and governments must prioritize the establishment and effective management of large, interconnected protected areas with high ecological integrity, researchers argue in a new essay.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study found evidence that Indigenous groups in the Pacific Northwest were intentionally harvesting edible camas bulbs at optimal stages of the plant's maturation as far back as 3,500 years ago.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The diversity and ecological functionality of bird communities in tropical agroforestry systems are shaped by the surrounding landscape, in particular the extent and composition of the forest.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have used a unique microscopic technique to examine the dynamics of pollen tubes in the Arabidopsis plant. They were able to observe the mechanism of one-to-one pollen tube guidance, a process that ensures successful pollination of plants. This process is influenced by multi-step repelling and attracting signals. The results are important for the cultivation of crops, especially under unfavorable environmental conditions.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In human populations, it is relatively easy to calculate demographic trends and make projections of the future if data on basic processes such as births and immigration is known. The data, given by individuals, can be also death and emigration, which subtract. In the wild, on the other hand, understanding the processes that determine wildlife demographic patterns is a highly complex challenge for the scientific community. Although a wide range of methods are now available to estimate births and deaths in wildlife, quantifying emigration and immigration has historically been difficult or impossible in many populations of interest, particularly in the case of threatened species.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study shows that climate change has led to decreased pollen production from plants and less pollen diversity than previously thought, which could have a significant impact on food production.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Findings indicate that soil stored under refrigerated or air-dried conditions can still retain the needed information for understanding microbial community composition and structure for many years.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Variations in water quality can impact the development of the visual system of one species of African fish, suggests a new study.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

When migrating through Ukraine in 2022, Greater Spotted Eagles were exposed to multiple conflict events that altered their migratory course, according to a new study.