Shrinking fish drive decline in size of animal and plant species, says study
Analysis of thousands of species finds some invertebrates and plants also getting smaller, while others are increasing in body sizeA global analysis of thousands of animal and plant sizes has found that species are shrinking, an effect most clearly found by researchers in changes to the body size of fish, which are getting smaller.Species such as the thorny skate, a north Atlantic fish that can grow up to a metre in length, have become smaller, while smaller-bodied species such as mackerel are growing in abundance, according to the researchers, changing the composition and functioning of ecosystems.Continue reading... (Sou...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - September 7, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Patrick Greenfield Tags: Fish Marine life Climate crisis Greenhouse gas emissions Environment Science Zoology Oceans Source Type: news
Discovered in the deep: an octopus ’s garden in the shade
Two miles under the dark ocean off California, 20,000 pearl octopuses use the gentle heat of nearby volcanic springs to help their babies hatch fasterScientists have solved the mystery of why tens of thousands of octopuses cluster on the foothills of a giant underwater mountain, two miles down off the coast of California. The pearl octopuses, so named because from a distance they look like scattered gems, seek out warm water seeping through the seabed and use it to speed up the hatching of their eggs.This was the initial hunch scientists had when they discovered the“octopus garden” near Davidson Seamount in 2018, the s...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - August 23, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Helen Scales Tags: Marine life Environment California US news Zoology Wildlife Biology Science World news Animals Deep-sea mining Source Type: news
Birds ’ fancy footwork may be explained by move into trees, say scientists
Study of skills suggests practicalities of living among branches was precursor to advanced abilitiesWhether it ’s drumming a steady beat against a tree to attract a mate, weaving an intricate nest or just lifting food to their beaks, some birds engage in some truly fancy footwork.Now researchers say the evolution of such dexterity may have been driven by the creatures taking up residence in trees.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - August 15, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Gabriella Sotelo Tags: Evolution Zoology Birds Science Source Type: news
Crocodiles are alarmingly attuned to the cries of human infants
Whether they're in mortal peril or just suffering from indigestion, infants across the animal kingdom cry out to tell their parents they need help. Unfortunately for them, the parents aren't the only ones attuned to the cries of their vulnerable young. Nile crocodiles are uniquely sensitive to the wails of distressed primate babies, according to a new study—and the more anxious the cry, the more interested the crocs become.
Indeed, according to the research, published today in
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences,
the reptiles are even better at identifying the emotional cues hid...
Source: ScienceNOW - August 8, 2023 Category: Science Source Type: news
Kordofan giraffes face local extinction if poaching continues
Poaching of two Critically Endangered Kordofan giraffes per year could result in extinction in just 15 years within Cameroon ’ s B é nou é National Park without intervention. These are the alarming new findings of a University of Bristol and Bristol Zoological Society-led study published in the African Journal of Ecology. (Source: University of Bristol news)
Source: University of Bristol news - August 4, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Tags: Research, International, Postgraduate; Faculty of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Bristol Veterinary School; Press Release Source Type: news
Why We Must Save Ugly Bugs
If you think of insects at all, you probably see them as something to be scared of, as pests to be stomped on, or as persistent nuisances ruining a lovely afternoon picnic. For example, no-one has a good word to say about the cockroaches, flies, mosquitoes, or termites that share our homes. In several surveys, including a 2021 report commissioned by insect repellent brand Zevo and conducted by OnePoll, these creatures have been voted some of the most hated insects in America. Yet each of these bugs has a lot to teach us if we look closely enough.
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Take the hated cockroach. Su...
Source: TIME: Science - August 2, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Steve Nicholls Tags: Uncategorized freelance Source Type: news
‘Not always king’: fossil shows mammal sinking teeth into dinosaur
Discovery in China challenges view of early mammals as ‘fodder’ for dinosaurs, say researchersWhether they had sharp teeth, vicious claws or were simply enormous, dinosaurs were creatures to be feared. But a newly identified fossil shows that, at least sometimes, the underdog bit back.Experts revealed the 125m-year-old fossil that froze in time after being taken on by a small mammal a third of its size. They are tangled together, the mammal ’s teeth sunk into the beaked dinosaur’s ribs, its left paw clasping the beast’s lower jaw.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - July 18, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Nicola Davis Science correspondent Tags: Dinosaurs Fossils Biology China Evolution Asia Pacific World news Zoology Science Source Type: news
Plastic pollution on coral reefs gets worse the deeper you go, study finds
Volume of debris in the unexplored twilight zone is an ‘emerging threat’ to reefs already stressed by climate crisis, say scientistsNo part of the planet is free of plastic waste, and coral reefs are no exception, but scientists have now made the discovery that the deeper the reef, the more plastic debris it is likely to have.A studypublished in Nature found that not only is every coral reef encumbered with plastic, but almost three-quarters of the larger items were from “ghost gear” – fishing paraphernalia such as ropes, lines and nets. Food wrappers and plastic bottles were also common. The plastic constitutes ...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - July 12, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Karen McVeigh Tags: Plastics Pollution Coral Zoology Biology Science Environment Marine life Wildlife Source Type: news
Birds may ‘divorce’ because of promiscuity or long spells apart
Monogamous birds switch partners for reasons similar to human breakups, scientists sayAffairs or lengthy spells apart commonly spell divorce for human couples – but it seems similar factors play a role in breakups among birds.It is thought more than 90% of bird species generally have a single mate over at least one breeding season, if not longer. However, some monogamous birds switch to a different partner for a subsequent breeding season despite their original mate remaining alive – a behaviour labelled “divorce”.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - July 5, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Nicola Davis Science correspondent Tags: Zoology Birds Animals Wildlife Science World news Source Type: news
Discovered in the deep: the ghost catshark found after an egg hunt
Scientists in Australia solve puzzle of sole egg left in museum and identify new deep-sea species with unique ridged egg caseOff the north-western coast of Australia, near the remote coral atolls of Rowley Shoals, ghost catsharks are slinking through the dim water and searching for bushy colonies of corals growing between 400 and 500 metres (1,300-1,600ft) down.This is where the elusive sharks lay their egg cases and leave them hanging like Christmas tree ornaments.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - July 4, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Helen Scales Tags: Sharks Environment Australia news World news Fish Marine life Wildlife Animals Zoology Biology Science Source Type: news
Fossils show long necks of prehistoric reptiles were targeted by predators
Evidence suggests slender necks of some ancient marine creatures were a deadly weaknessFor nearly two centuries, fossil hunters have mused that the improbably long necks of some ancient marine reptiles made them tempting targets for hungry predators.Now, researchers have uncovered grisly evidence that sticking one ’s neck out really was a deadly weakness: the remains of two creatures whose heads were snapped off in acts of Triassic violence.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - June 19, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Ian Sample Science editor Tags: Science Dinosaurs Palaeontology Fossils Biology Evolution Zoology Germany Europe World news Source Type: news
Roger Payne obituary
Biologist and environmentalist whose research into whale song brought about a new awareness of the animals ’ plightRoger Payne, who has died of cancer aged 88, was a vital force in the struggle to “save the whale”. During the 20th century, anestimated 3 million great whales were hunted to furnish humans with oil, meat and rose fertiliser. Payne gave a voice to an animal that had hitherto been regarded as dumb – one with a deep register that was, as he described it, a sound as big as the ocean itself.When Payne released whale sounds in 1970 as a vinyl LP,Songs of the Humpback Whale, the album sold 125,000 copies and...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - June 16, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Philip Hoare Tags: Whales Marine life Cetaceans Environment Whaling Conservation Biology Science Zoology US news Source Type: news
Isle of Wight fossilised remains identified as new dinosaur species
Creature has been named Vectipelta barretti after Prof Paul Barrett of London ’s Natural History MuseumFossilised remains from the Isle of Wight have been identified as a new dinosaur species that has been named after a palaeontologist at the London ’s Natural History Museum.It belongs to a group of plant-eating dinosaurs known as ankylosaurs that was found in the 1980s on the island ’s Wessex formation – a geological feature dating to between 145m and 66m years ago.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - June 16, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Matthew Weaver Tags: Dinosaurs Zoology Science Fossils Biology UK news Natural History Museum Museums Source Type: news
How disinfecting an old mineshaft saved a colony of little brown bats
Using chemicals in the environment can save wildlife from deadly pathogens, but process is not without risks, say expertsJoseph Hoyt and his team first showed up to the abandoned mineshaft in Wisconsin during the late summer of 2017, personal protective equipment in hand. Long before Covid-19, the supplies were to protect them from the chlorine dioxide gas they had brought along. Their aim was to use the disinfectant gas to kill thePseudogymnoascus destructans fungus lining the walls of the mineshaft, which hadalready killed millions of bats across North America.“You’re talking about essentially an entire taxonomic gro...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - June 1, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Jack McGovan Tags: Endangered species Animals Fungi Environment Conservation Wildlife Biology Science Zoology World news Mammals Amphibians Spain US news Globalisation Wisconsin Source Type: news
David Attenborough's new series at last shows dinosaurs in all their feathered glory | David Hone
The prehistoric age has been stuck in a cultural rut since Jurassic Park. As a palaeontologist, I ’m glad to see this era is overThe utterly extraordinaryPrehistoric Planet has returned this week for a second season and, as a palaeontologist, I remain utterly enthralled by the whole thing. You might think I ’d be spoiled for choice with the apparently unending parade of movies, video games and documentaries featuring animated dinosaurs, but this programme stands head and shoulders above anything else in terms of the accuracy of its animals and the naturalism they evoke.The jump from Ray Harryhausen classics such asOne ...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - May 26, 2023 Category: Science Authors: David Hone Tags: Dinosaurs Science Culture Television David Attenborough & radio Animals Zoology UK news Source Type: news
