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Released: 31-Jul-2007 4:15 PM EDT
'The Man Who Saved The Sea Turtles'
Florida State University

To those in the conservation movement, Archie Carr was one of the great heroes of the 20th century. A pioneering biologist, ecologist and nature writer, he launched an international campaign to protect various species of migratory sea turtles all over the world. In so doing, Carr, who died in 1987, created the template for many successful environmental campaigns that followed.

Released: 24-Jul-2007 12:00 PM EDT
Camera-Shy Deer Caught for First Time
Wildlife Conservation Society

A little-known species of deer called a large-antlered muntjac has been photographed for the first time in the wild, according to a survey team from the Nam Theun 2 Watershed Management and Protection Authority (WMPA) and the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Released: 20-Jul-2007 2:00 PM EDT
Fossil Fuels May be Affecting Salmon Populations
Allen Press Publishing

Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) derived from fossil fuels are found throughout the world's waters. In particular, estuaries, the primary natal habitat for many marine species, are sinks for these compounds.

Released: 20-Jul-2007 8:55 AM EDT
Genetic Diversity in Honeybee Colonies Boosts Productivity
Cornell University

Honeybee queens tend to be promiscuous to produce genetically diverse colonies, report two Cornell researchers in the July 20 issue of Science. Such colonies are far more productive and hardy than genetically uniform colonies produced by monogamous queens, they report.

Released: 20-Jul-2007 8:35 AM EDT
Butterfly Back from the Brink of Extinction
University of Southern California (USC)

The rare El Segundo blue butterfly is back. Once relegated to a few small and fragile reserves, the nearly extinct butterfly with electric blue wings has expanded its territory to take up residence along the bluffs of a popular beach south of the Los Angeles International Airport, says University of Southern California research assistant professor Travis Longcore.

16-Jul-2007 11:50 AM EDT
Assessing Levies for By-catch Could Fund Conservation Measures
Cornell University

Fishing industry lines accidentally catch so many seabirds and turtles that their populations are being threatened. One solution offered by a Cornell researcher and an Australian government scientist is to assess fines when threatened species are caught and killed.

Released: 17-Jul-2007 3:55 PM EDT
Foxes Get Frisky in the Far North
University of Alberta

A team of researchers from the University of Alberta in Edmonton and the University of Quebec at Rimouski have gathered DNA evidence from adult foxes and their offspring that proves that some arctic foxes are mixing it up when it comes to mating.

Released: 17-Jul-2007 8:00 AM EDT
Killer Whales Metabolize Contaminants, Yet Still Show Record-High Contamination Levels
Allen Press Publishing

Killer whales hold the gloomy record of being the most-polluted European arctic mammal, says a new study published in the latest issue of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Levels of contaminants measured in whales near Norway were among the highest ever measured in marine mammals, exceeding levels found in harbor seals, polar bears, and white whales.

Released: 11-Jul-2007 11:35 AM EDT
Rules to Protect Great Lakes from Ship-borne Organisms Are Inadequate; Stronger Measures Advocated
University of Michigan

Current rules aimed at minimizing the number of nonnative species that hitchhike into the Great Lakes on oceangoing ships are inadequate and often impractical, a University of Michigan researcher and colleagues from five other U.S. and Canadian institutions have concluded.

Released: 9-Jul-2007 1:00 AM EDT
Sonar Study Shows No Harm to Trout
University of Maryland, College Park

A new University of Maryland study reports that high powered sonar, like that used by U.S. Navy ships, did not harm test fish, including their hearing, in a controlled setting.

3-Jul-2007 3:00 PM EDT
Rabies Considerations for Travelers
Allen Press Publishing

With the surge of global tourism comes the possibility of exposure to rabies. A new review of the current rabies considerations for travelers is published in the latest issue of Wilderness Medicine.

Released: 3-Jul-2007 2:00 PM EDT
Most Boaters Speed Through Manatee Conservation Zones
University of Florida

Caring but careless boaters are the greatest threat to Florida's manatees, according to a new University of Florida study that caught more than half of boat drivers speeding through conservation zones despite their professed support for the endangered animals.

Released: 3-Jul-2007 12:00 AM EDT
Electric Fish Conduct Electric Duets in Aquatic Courtship
Cornell University

Cornell's Carl D. Hopkins and a former undergraduate student have discovered that African electric fish couples not only use specific electrical signals to court but also engage in a sort of dueling 'electric duet.'

2-Jul-2007 9:00 AM EDT
Texas Tech Curator Discovers Secret of Flight for World’s Largest Bird
Texas Tech University

Argentavis maginicens glided over Andes Mountains more than 6 million years ago.

Released: 2-Jul-2007 2:00 PM EDT
Mother-of-Pearl: Classic Beauty and Remarkable Strength
University of Wisconsin–Madison

While the shiny material of pearls and abalone shells has long been prized for its iridescence and aesthetic value in jewelry and decorations, scientists admire mother-of-pearl for other physical properties as well.

Released: 27-Jun-2007 12:00 AM EDT
Tasmanian Tiger Extinction Mystery
University of Adelaide

A University of Adelaide project led by zoologist Dr Jeremy Austin is investigating whether the world-fabled Tasmanian Tiger may have survived beyond its reported extinction in the late 1930s.

20-Jun-2007 5:40 PM EDT
March of the Giant Penguins
North Carolina State University

Two heretofore undiscovered penguin species - one of which was over 5 feet tall -reached equatorial regions tens of millions of years earlier than expected and during a period when the earth was much warmer than it is now.

Released: 20-Jun-2007 3:35 PM EDT
Prey Not Hard-wired to Fear Predators
Wildlife Conservation Society

Are Asian elk hard-wired to fear the Siberian tigers who stalk them? When wolves disappear from the forest, are moose still afraid of them? No, according to a study by Wildlife Conservation Society scientist Dr. Joel Berger, who says that several large prey species, including moose, caribou and elk, only fear predators they regularly encounter.

Released: 13-Jun-2007 5:00 AM EDT
Biologist Wins Grant to Study Shell Disease in Lobsters
University of Massachusetts Amherst

Joseph Kunkel, professor of biology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, has received a two-year, $200,000 grant from the New England Lobster Research Initiative to study shell disease in lobsters.

Released: 12-Jun-2007 3:30 PM EDT
Rove Beetles Act as Warning Signs for Clear-cutting Consequences
University of Alberta

New research from the University of Alberta and the Canadian Forest Service has revealed the humble rove beetle may actually have a lot to tell us about the effects of harvesting on forests species. Rove beetles can be used as indicators of clear-cut harvesting and regeneration practices and can be used as an example as to how species react to harvesting.

Released: 12-Jun-2007 3:15 PM EDT
Massive Herds of Animals Discovered in Southern Sudan
Wildlife Conservation Society

Aerial surveys by the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society confirm the existence of more than 1.2 million white-eared kob, tiang antelope and Mongalla gazelle in Southern Sudan, where wildlife was thought to have vanished as a result of decades-long conflict.

Released: 11-Jun-2007 4:00 PM EDT
Leaderless Honeybee Organizing
University of North Carolina at Charlotte

A new finding by an undergraduate scientist and a senior bee researcher gives new insight on the weird, leaderless organization of honeybee colonies, which exhibit behavior rivaling human cultures in social complexity. The finding may help researchers understand similar complex phenomena, including brain function and terrorist networks.

Released: 11-Jun-2007 12:35 PM EDT
Conservation of Leatherback Sea Turtles the Focus of Special Issue
Allen Press Publishing

Eleven years ago, a special issue from Chelonian Conservation and Biology focused on leatherback turtles changed the tide in a positive direction for species recovery. This year's special focus issue details the latest in research and efforts to restore the leatherback population across the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

Released: 7-Jun-2007 12:05 AM EDT
Attack on Whale Protection Fails Again
Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (North America)

Japan and Iceland have once again failed in their attempts to lift regulations protecting whales, as their proposals to the regulatory body responsible for international trade in endangered species were today resoundingly defeated

2-Jun-2007 1:30 PM EDT
The Bee That Would be Queen
Arizona State University College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

A team of researchers from Arizona State University, Purdue University and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences has discovered evidence that honeybees have adopted a phylogenetically old molecular cascade "“ TOR (target of rapamycin), linked to nutrient and energy sensing "“ and put it to use in caste development.

Released: 5-Jun-2007 4:20 PM EDT
Stray Penguins Probably Reached Northern Waters by Fishing Boat
University of Washington

Penguins have been spotted periodically in the wild in the Northern Hemisphere during the last 50 years. Two biologists now conclude they probably got so far from home aboard fishing boats, not by swimming.

Released: 30-May-2007 6:25 PM EDT
Want to Save Polar Bears? Follow the Ice
Wildlife Conservation Society

In the wake of the U.S. government's watershed decision to propose listing the polar bear as "Threatened" under the Endangered Species Act, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is launching a bold initiative to save the Earth's largest terrestrial predator, not by following the bears themselves, but the receding sea ice habitat that may drastically shrink as a result of global warming.

Released: 30-May-2007 12:55 PM EDT
Mule Deer Moms to the Rescue
University of Alberta

Mule deer are giving new meaning to watching out for other mothers' kids. An intriguing study of mule deer and whitetail deer conducted by the University of Alberta and the University of Lethbridge showed that both species responded to the recorded distress calls of fawns, but unlike whitetail deer, the mule deer mothers responded to both whitetail and mule deer calls, even when their own fawn stood next to them.

Released: 29-May-2007 3:40 PM EDT
Commercial Whaling Must Not Resume!
Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (North America)

More than 70 countries are gathered to decide the fate of the world's great whales when the International Whaling Commission (IWC) meets between 28th and 31st of May in Anchorage, Alaska.

Released: 29-May-2007 3:40 PM EDT
Greenland Seeks Higher Whale Hunt Quota from the IWC
Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (North America)

On behalf of its territory Greenland, the Danish government has submitted a proposal to the 59th International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting for a renewal of Greenland's Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling (ASW) quota.

Released: 18-May-2007 4:35 PM EDT
Lab Confirms Deadly Fish Virus Spreading to New Species
Cornell University

A lethal fish virus in the Great Lakes and neighboring waterways is approaching epidemic proportions, according to Paul Bowser, Cornell professor of aquatic animal medicine in the College of Veterinary Medicine. The viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV), which causes anemia and hemorrhaging in fish, has now been identified in 19 species and poses a potential threat to New York's $1.2 billion sport-fishing industry.

Released: 12-May-2007 2:00 PM EDT
Decimation of Bee Colonies Has Various Possible Causes
Cornell University

Parasites, pathogens and pesticides are all possible suspects in the staggering decline of honeybees, said Cornell associate professor of entomology Nicholas Calderone, during a media teleconference May 10.

Released: 3-May-2007 3:55 PM EDT
Coral Reef Fish Make Their Way Home
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Coral reef fish hatchlings dispersed by ocean currents are able to make their way back to their home reefs again to spawn, says a groundbreaking study published today in the journal Science. The study, whose findings are considered a major advance for fish conservation biology, was conducted by an international team of scientists from Australia, France, and the U.S.

30-Apr-2007 4:25 PM EDT
Can Nemo Find His Way Home?
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

The fate of ocean fish larvae has remained a mystery to science until now, but a University of Arkansas researcher and his colleagues have used a novel technique to directly explore their journey from egg to adult for the first time. Their findings, which also may help governments and marine organizations better manage marine protected areas, appear in the May 4 issue of the journal Science.

25-Apr-2007 11:00 AM EDT
Hearts of Male and Female Rainbow Trout Are Different
American Physiological Society (APS)

A new study expands upon previous findings that sex differences in cardiac performance and metabolism exist in fish in general, and have now been found to occur in rainbow trout in particular. The differences are only realized during working conditions.

25-Apr-2007 11:00 AM EDT
Breathing Easy: When It Comes to Oxygen, a Bug’s Life Is Full of It
American Physiological Society (APS)

Because of new imaging technology, researchers are getting a better understanding of a physiological paradox: how insects, which have a respiratory system built to provide quick access to a lot of oxygen, can survive for days without it. Four top researchers weigh in at the 120th Annual Meeting of the American Physiological Society (APS).

Released: 26-Apr-2007 7:55 PM EDT
Female Ticks Have Market on Gluttony
University of Alberta

Sex makes you fat. If you're a female tick, that is. The "truly gluttonous" female ixodid tick increases her weight an astounding 100 times her original size after she mates, so a University of Alberta researcher investigated what it is about copulation that triggers such a massive weight gain.

Released: 24-Apr-2007 12:00 AM EDT
Does Lobster Fished in Massachusetts Waters Taste Sweeter?
Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (North America)

The American Lobster, Americanus homarus, can be found from Cape Hatteras, NC to Newfoundland but is most abundant in the Gulf of Maine, from Cape Cod to Nova Scotia. As a result there is a near total overlap with the habitat of the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale.

Released: 23-Apr-2007 3:35 PM EDT
Buried, Residual Oil is Still Affecting Wildlife Decades After a Spill
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Nearly four decades after a fuel oil spill polluted the beaches of Cape Cod, researchers have found the first compelling evidence for lingering, chronic biological effects on a marsh that otherwise appears to have recovered.

Released: 23-Apr-2007 9:00 AM EDT
Shipping Lanes Make Way for Dolphins
Earthwatch Institute

Bottlenose dolphins off the southern coast of Spain will now benefit from shipping lane shift recommended by Earthwatch scientists Ana Canadas and Ricardo Sagarminaga van Buiten. When passing through the Alboran Sea, merchant ships and fisherman will now be required to travel 20 miles further south, reducing acoustic and water pollution.

Released: 20-Apr-2007 8:40 PM EDT
Will Lemmings Fall Off Climate Change Cliff?
Wildlife Conservation Society

Contrary to popular belief, lemmings do not commit mass suicide by leaping off cliffs into the sea. A bigger threat to the rodents is climate change, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society, which is launching a study to examine how these tiny but important players in the ecological health of the far North will fare in the age of global warming.

Released: 20-Apr-2007 9:05 AM EDT
Uganda's Mountain Gorillas Increase in Number
Wildlife Conservation Society

The most recent census of mountain gorillas in Uganda's Bwindi Impenetrable National Park"”one of only two places in the world where the rare gorillas exist"”has found that the population has increased by 6 percent since the last census in 2002, according to the Uganda Wildlife Authority, the Wildlife Conservation Society, the Max Planck Institute of Anthropology and other groups that participated in the effort.

Released: 19-Apr-2007 5:45 PM EDT
Scientists Discover New Genus of Frogmouth Bird in Solomon Islands
University of Florida

Your bird field guide may be out of date now that University of Florida scientists discovered a new genus of frogmouth bird on a South Pacific island.

Released: 17-Apr-2007 2:40 PM EDT
Researchers Unravel Intricate Animal Patterns
University of Alberta

There is a scene in the animated blockbuster "Finding Nemo" when a school of fish makes a rapid string of complicated patterns"”an arrow, a portrait of young Nemo and other intricate designs. While the detailed shapes might be a bit outlandish for fish to form, the premise isn't far off.

2-Apr-2007 12:15 AM EDT
Why Small Dogs Are Small: Ancient Genetic Material
University of Utah

Soon after humans began domesticating dogs 12,000 to 15,000 years ago, they started breeding small canines. Now, scientists from the University of Utah and seven other institutions have identified a piece of doggy DNA that reduces the activity of a growth gene, ensuring that small breeds stay small.

Released: 5-Apr-2007 9:05 AM EDT
Peter Cottontail sports stripes in Sumatra
Wildlife Conservation Society

Hippity, hoppity"¦click! So went the latest appearance of one of the world's rarest rabbits, captured on film by a camera trap in the rain forests of Indonesia, according to researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society.

2-Apr-2007 11:40 AM EDT
Elephant Highways of Death
Wildlife Conservation Society

A new study coordinated by the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society and other groups found that Central Africa's increasing network of roads "“ which are penetrating deeper and deeper into the wildest areas of the Congo Basin "“ are becoming highways of death for the little known forest elephant.

Released: 2-Apr-2007 8:25 AM EDT
Norway's Whaling Season Begins
Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (North America)

The world's largest commercial whale hunt is due to commence in Norway this weekend with the highest coastal catch allowance since Norway's return to commercial whaling 14 years ago.

Released: 29-Mar-2007 4:00 PM EDT
Overfishing Large Sharks Impacts Entire Marine Ecosystem, Shrinks Shellfish Supply
Dalhousie University

Fewer big sharks in the oceans mean that bay scallops and other shellfish may be harder to find at the market, according to an article in Science, tying two unlikely links in the food web to the same fate. A team ecologists has found that overfishing the largest predatory sharks, such as the bull, great white, dusky, and hammerhead sharks, along the Atlantic Coast of the U.S. has led to an explosion of their ray, skate, and small shark prey species.

28-Mar-2007 1:00 PM EDT
Overfishing Great Sharks Wiped Out North Carolina Bay Scallop Fishery
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Fewer big sharks in the oceans led to the destruction of North Carolina's bay scallop fishery and inhibits the recovery of depressed scallop, oyster and clam populations along the U.S. Atlantic Coast, according to an article in the March 30 issue of the journal Science.



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