Biology
Overlooked bushland remnants serve as 'stepping stones' for endangered Carnaby's cockatoos
New research from Murdoch University has revealed that Carnaby's cockatoos depend on small, fragmented patches of native vegetation to survive in heavily cleared landscapes—a find…
Deeper dives are linked to longer surface recovery in sea lions
Sea lions, marine mammals belonging to the eared seal family, have to dive to search for food and other resources. Between dives, however, they return to the surface to breathe an…
Deep-sea mining could destroy unique habitats hidden inside metal-rich nodules
In the extreme depths of the Pacific Ocean, there are small, metal-bearing formations that are far more than just valuable sources of raw materials. A new study published in the j…
Coyotes are likely a permanent fixture on the Outer Banks of North Carolina
A new study reveals that coyote populations on the Outer Banks persist despite ongoing removal programs, posing a continued threat to shore-nesting birds and protected sea turtles…
A new tool makes biodiversity conservation planning more efficient and reproducible
ZonationR is a new tool that simplifies the use of Zonation to identify priority areas for biodiversity conservation. It brings all stages of the conservation planning analysis to…
Genetic ancestry plays a key role in the migration of Cory's shearwaters
To what extent do genes influence the migratory routes of birds? The factors that determine the long-distance migrations of seabirds are not yet fully understood. Now, a study pub…
European eels transmit a herpesvirus through bites, revealing another route for fish infections
Contrary to what was previously believed, viruses infecting fish are not transmitted exclusively through water acting as an abiotic vector. A team of researchers from the Universi…
Repurposing the internet's backbone to advance whale monitoring
Bioacoustics researcher Léa Bouffaut, at the Cornell K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics, has spent the past several years eavesdropping on the conversations of whal…
Anemone bleaching spurs stronger home defense and more aggression among clownfish
Marine heat waves and anemone bleaching are altering clownfish behavior, making clownfish more defensive of their host and more aggressive toward one another, new research reveals.
Rerouting ships to avoid killing whale sharks has little cost, study finds
Redirecting shipping traffic to avoid collisions with whale sharks has very little impact on fuel use, according to new research led by the University of Southampton published in …
Scientists anchor first scientific animal name to a modern-day spider
Scientists led by the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History have restored the physical reference of one of the most historically significant names in biology. In a pape…
The pet and skin trades pose little threat to reptile species, analyses suggest
Reptiles are captivating creatures—so captivating that people keep them as pets, or wear clothes and carry handbags fashioned from their patterned skins.
Microscopy upgrade sharpens images fivefold without sacrificing tissue imaging depth
Researchers at Texas A&M University have cracked a problem that has limited biological imaging for years: seeing fine cellular detail while looking deep inside living tissue. The …
Swordfish may be using deep dives to navigate the open ocean
Swordfish spend much of their time hunting prey about 600 meters (1,970 feet) below the surface in the ocean twilight zone, but occasionally, they reach depths of more than 1,000 …
Detailed 3D view of babesiosis parasite's ribosome could guide development of targeted treatments
A new study has revealed a three-dimensional, near-atomic-resolution view of the ribosome from Babesia divergens, one of several Babesia species known to infect humans and cause b…
Poles of bacteria imaged in fine detail for the first time
The poles, or ends, of rod-shaped bacteria have been imaged at molecular resolution for the first time in a new study led by UCL (University College London) researchers. The study…
Protein-building RNA molecules reveal possible remnants of an ancestral genetic code
The genetic code determines the correspondence between genetic instructions and amino acids—the building blocks that form proteins. How this correspondence arose is one of the maj…
Protein tails help shape mosquito cell-to-cell channels
Cells share small molecules with their neighbors through tiny tunnels made of proteins arranged in a ring. Research at Nagoya University suggests that the tails of the proteins mu…
Two new howler monkey species discovered in the Amazon after 85 years
Genetic research has uncovered two previously unknown species of howler monkey living in the Amazon rainforest, confirming the world's largest tropical forest is more biodiverse t…
Reef biodiversity accounting to help scale up restoration
To encourage new investments in more effective reef restoration activities, Australian scientists are recommending a new way of measuring biodiversity on coral reefs. A team of Au…
Study finds links between bacteria in wastewater and chronic disease
Bacteria found in wastewater may provide clues about community health, including rates of chronic disease, health behaviors and social conditions, according to a recent study from…
Purple bacteria turn CO₂ and other industrial waste products into valuable supplement ingredients
Scientists are always on the lookout for more efficient ways to make useful products and ingredients. Now, researchers from the University of Valladolid in Spain have successfully…
A net to protect against the world's deadliest animal—the mosquito
When people talk about the world's deadliest animal, many think of sharks, alligators or lions. But in reality, it is a small, unassuming—yet all the more annoying—insect: the mos…
Local AI trained on gut microbe data could help African livestock withstand heat
In a study published in Agriculture, researchers from the University of Johannesburg (UJ) propose a policy roadmap for an AI-driven precision farming approach to further improve i…