Feature Channels: Nature

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Released: 13-Feb-2023 7:00 AM EST
The claim that forest trees “talk” through underground fungi is questionable
Newswise

The claim that adult trees preferentially send resources or “warning signals” of insect damage to young trees through common mycorrhizal networks (CMNs), is not backed up by a single peer-reviewed, published field study.

Newswise: A second chance to protect wetlands
Released: 10-Feb-2023 3:45 PM EST
A second chance to protect wetlands
McGill University

Wetlands are among the most threatened ecosystems in the world. A new study, published in Nature, has found that the loss of wetland areas around the globe since 1700 has likely been overestimated.

Newswise: EU responsible for extinction domino effect on frog populations
Released: 9-Feb-2023 5:20 PM EST
EU responsible for extinction domino effect on frog populations
Pensoft Publishers

Between 2010 and 2019, total imports of frog’s legs into the EU numbered 40.7 million kg, which equals to up to roughly 2 billion frogs.

Newswise: Seven new species of whitefish described in Central Switzerland
Released: 6-Feb-2023 5:50 PM EST
Seven new species of whitefish described in Central Switzerland
Pensoft Publishers

Biologists at Eawag have identified ten species of whitefish in the lakes of the Reuss river system.

Released: 31-Jan-2023 9:00 AM EST
Tying past mass extinctions with low atmospheric CO2 is false
Newswise

Attempts to discredit human-caused climate change by touting graphs of prehistoric atmospheric carbon dioxide and temperature changes are not something new. Peter Clack has once again tried to make a point that current atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are comparatively low compared to past eras. But just because we're in an advantageous era compared to past eras, it does not negate the cause for alarm concerning our current warming trend.

Newswise: Carnivorous plants change their diet: traps as toilet bowls
Released: 30-Jan-2023 7:35 PM EST
Carnivorous plants change their diet: traps as toilet bowls
Universität Bayreuth

In tropical mountains, the number of insects declines with increasing altitude. This intensifies in high altitudes competition between plant species that specialize in catching insects as an important source of nutrients.

Newswise: Ancestral variation guides future environmental adaptations
Released: 27-Jan-2023 6:30 PM EST
Ancestral variation guides future environmental adaptations
Bangor University

The speed of environmental change is very challenging for wild organisms. When exposed to a new environment individual plants and animals can potentially adjust their biology to better cope with new pressures they are exposed to - this is known as phenotypic plasticity.

Newswise: Human activity has degraded more than a third of the remaining Amazon rainforest, scientists find
Released: 26-Jan-2023 6:30 PM EST
Human activity has degraded more than a third of the remaining Amazon rainforest, scientists find
Future Earth

The Amazon rainforest has been degraded by a much greater extent than scientists previously believed with more than a third of remaining forest affected by humans, according to a new study published on January 27 in the journal Science.

Newswise: Rapid plant evolution may make coastal regions more susceptible to flooding and sea level rise, study shows
Released: 26-Jan-2023 3:05 PM EST
Rapid plant evolution may make coastal regions more susceptible to flooding and sea level rise, study shows
University of Notre Dame

Evolution has occurred more rapidly than previously thought in the Chesapeake Bay wetlands, which may decrease the chance that coastal marshes can withstand future sea level rise, researchers at the University of Notre Dame and collaborators demonstrated in a recent publication in Science.

Newswise: How salmon feed flowers & flourishing ecosystems
Released: 26-Jan-2023 1:30 PM EST
How salmon feed flowers & flourishing ecosystems
Simon Fraser University

Nutrients from salmon carcasses can substantively alter the growth and reproduction of plant species in the surrounding habitat, and even cause some flowers to grow bigger and more plentiful, SFU researchers have found.

Newswise: 52-million-year-old fossils show near-primates were cool with colder climate
Released: 25-Jan-2023 6:40 PM EST
52-million-year-old fossils show near-primates were cool with colder climate
University of Kansas

Two sister species of near-primate, called “primatomorphans,” dating back about 52 million years have been identified by researchers at the University of Kansas as the oldest to have dwelled north of the Arctic Circle.

Released: 25-Jan-2023 10:05 AM EST
Driving inclusive and green urban transitions
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)

A new Horizon Europe project led by IIASA, called Urban ReLeaf, leverages citizen science for public sector innovation.

Released: 24-Jan-2023 1:30 PM EST
Environment law fails to protect threatened species
University of Queensland

Federal environmental laws are failing to mitigate against Australia’s extinction crisis, according to University of Queensland research.

Newswise: Grassland ecosystems become more resilient with age
Released: 23-Jan-2023 1:25 PM EST
Grassland ecosystems become more resilient with age
University of Zurich

Recent experiments have shown that the loss of species from a plant community can reduce ecosystem functions and services such as productivity, carbon storage and soil health.

Newswise: Family tree secrets: Island tree populations older, more diverse than expected
Released: 20-Jan-2023 7:30 PM EST
Family tree secrets: Island tree populations older, more diverse than expected
University of Tsukuba

It's often assumed that island plant and animal populations are just the simple, fragile cousins of those on the mainland.

Newswise: Just one degree can change a species
Released: 20-Jan-2023 7:05 PM EST
Just one degree can change a species
Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)

It is not exactly a surprise that climate affects life on earth. At least major changes in climate make a difference.

Newswise: Forests face fierce threats from multiple industries, not just agricultural expansion
Released: 20-Jan-2023 6:40 PM EST
Forests face fierce threats from multiple industries, not just agricultural expansion
Cell Press

Intact forests are important climate regulators and harbors of biodiversity, but they are rapidly disappearing.

Released: 20-Jan-2023 4:50 PM EST
Science is the best (local, regional, national, global) policy
Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI)

Careful siting of renewable energy development seems to play a key role in minimizing impacts to wildlife, but this requires detailed knowledge of where animals breed, winter, and migrate. To address this need, BRI established a wildlife and renewable energy program in 2009, which has evolved over the past 12 years into BRI’s Center for Research on Offshore Wind and the Environment (CROWE).

Released: 20-Jan-2023 4:50 PM EST
Something to (re)think about
Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI)

BRI’s field biologists seek out opportunities that put them into close contact with the natural world. In fact, those encounters captivate, awaken, and spark their motivation and passion.

Released: 20-Jan-2023 4:45 PM EST
Heroes in the wild
Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI)

Julia Gulka tackles emerging environmental issues in an office surrounded by photographs, illustrations, and personal watercolor paintings of the birds she studies and the places she has traveled.

Released: 20-Jan-2023 4:45 PM EST
Science outside the box
Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI)

On the remote island of Rota, a tiny dot in the vastness of Oceania, a group of field biologists from distant places join forces each year to study threatened and endangered species of bats, indigenous crows, and other wildlife. In 2017, New Zealand native and bat specialist Josh Guilbert started full-time research on the “Friendly Island.” That first year, he met two seasonal volunteers who had previously worked at a wildlife research group in Maine—Biodiversity Research Institute.

Newswise: Collision risk and habitat loss: Wind turbines in forests impair threatened bat species
Released: 20-Jan-2023 4:05 PM EST
Collision risk and habitat loss: Wind turbines in forests impair threatened bat species
Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW)

In order to meet climate protection goals, renewable energies are booming – often wind power.

Released: 19-Jan-2023 3:30 PM EST
Study sheds light on how human activities shape global forest structure
Chinese Academy of Sciences

Climate change and human activities strongly influence forests, but researchers have not fully understood the pervasiveness of these stressors and how they will shape future forest structure.

Newswise: Tracing the flow of water with DNA
Released: 19-Jan-2023 3:20 PM EST
Tracing the flow of water with DNA
University of Basel

Environmental DNA analysis of microbial communities can help us understand how a particular region’s water cycle works. Basel hydrogeologist Oliver Schilling recently used this method to examine the water cycle on Mount Fuji.

Newswise: 
DNA from domesticated chickens is tainting genomes of wild red junglefowl
12-Jan-2023 11:20 AM EST
DNA from domesticated chickens is tainting genomes of wild red junglefowl
PLOS

The red junglefowl – the wild ancestor of the chicken – is losing its genetic diversity by interbreeding with domesticated birds, according to a new study led by Frank Rheindt of the National University of Singapore published January 19 in the journal PLOS Genetics.

Newswise: Global warming reaches central Greenland
Released: 18-Jan-2023 6:05 PM EST
Global warming reaches central Greenland
Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research

A temperature reconstruction from ice cores of the past 1,000 years reveals that today’s warming in central-north Greenland is surprisingly pronounced.

Released: 17-Jan-2023 2:50 PM EST
Frequent visits to green space linked to lower use of certain prescription meds
BMJ

Frequent visits to urban green spaces, such as parks and community gardens in Finland, rather than the amount, or views of them from home, may be linked to lower use of certain prescription meds, suggests research published online in Occupational & Environmental Medicine.

Newswise: Climate Change Likely to Uproot More Amazon Trees
Released: 17-Jan-2023 11:05 AM EST
Climate Change Likely to Uproot More Amazon Trees
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Tropical forests are crucial for sucking up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. But they’re also subject to intense storms that can cause “windthrow” – the uprooting or breaking of trees. A new study finds that more extreme thunderstorms from climate change will likely cause a greater number of large windthrow events in the Amazon, which could impact the rainforest's ability to serve as a carbon sink.

Newswise: The Latest From The American Astronomical Society Meeting And Other Space News
9-Jan-2023 4:20 PM EST
The Latest From The American Astronomical Society Meeting And Other Space News
Newswise

Below are some of the latest articles that have been added to the Space and Astronomy channel on Newswise, a free source for journalists.

Newswise: Landscaping for drought: We’re doing it wrong
Released: 11-Jan-2023 11:10 AM EST
Landscaping for drought: We’re doing it wrong
University of California, Riverside

Despite recent, torrential rains, most of Southern California remains in a drought.

Released: 11-Jan-2023 8:05 AM EST
MSU researchers publish ‘wake-up call’ to help protect biodiversity in the face of climate change
Michigan State University

Michigan State University helped lead an international team of researchers that showed which undeveloped land areas of North America have the most potential to support biodiversity in a warming climate.

Newswise: Corridors between Western U.S. national parks would greatly increase the persistence time of mammals
9-Jan-2023 12:35 PM EST
Corridors between Western U.S. national parks would greatly increase the persistence time of mammals
University of Utah

A new study analyzed the value of establishing ecological corridors for large mammals between Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks and between Mount Rainier and North Cascades National Parks. These corridors would enlarge populations and species to shift their geographic ranges more readily in response to climate change.

   
Newswise: It would take 23 million years for evolution to replace Madagascar’s endangered mammals
Released: 10-Jan-2023 2:45 PM EST
It would take 23 million years for evolution to replace Madagascar’s endangered mammals
Field Museum

In many ways, Madagascar is a biologist’s dream, a real-life experiment in how isolation on an island can spark evolution.

Newswise: New Study Warns 20 Million Years of Mammalian Evolution in Madagascar Under Threat
Released: 10-Jan-2023 12:15 PM EST
New Study Warns 20 Million Years of Mammalian Evolution in Madagascar Under Threat
Stony Brook University

A new study by a team of international scientists including Liliana M. Dávalos, PhD, from Stony Brook University, reveals that it would take three million years to recover the number of species that went extinct from human activity on Madagascar. Their findings are published in Nature Communications.

Released: 9-Jan-2023 5:55 PM EST
Ecosystems in Victoria and Tasmania may be most at risk from climate change
Australian National University

A new study led by researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) has shown that ecosystems in western parts of southeastern Australia – including western Victoria and western Tasmania – may be most at risk of feeling the impacts of climate change in the coming decades.

Newswise: Loss of glaciers faster than expected
Released: 6-Jan-2023 6:05 PM EST
Loss of glaciers faster than expected
CNRS (Centre National de Recherche Scientifique / National Center of Scientific Research)

How will our glaciers change during the 21st century? In a new study whose findings are published in Science (5 January), an international team1, including scientists from the CNRS and Université Toulouse III–Paul Sabatier, has demonstrated a loss of glacial mass greater than earlier projected—and specifically, 11% to 44% higher than estimates used in the most recent IPCC report.

Newswise: Researchers find that wind turbines repel bats in Finnish forests
Released: 5-Jan-2023 1:35 PM EST
Researchers find that wind turbines repel bats in Finnish forests
University of Turku (Turun yliopisto)

Wind turbines are built at an increasing pace but their effect on nature and animals are poorly known.

Released: 4-Jan-2023 6:55 PM EST
Nature conservation needs to incorporate the human approach
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

An international study led by the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ICTA-UAB) stresses the need to apply a biocultural approach in nature conservation programs.

Newswise: Surf, Sand and Seaweed: The latest breakthroughs in Marine Science
Released: 4-Jan-2023 1:40 PM EST
Surf, Sand and Seaweed: The latest breakthroughs in Marine Science
Newswise

Here are some of the latest articles that have been added to the Marine Science channel on Newswise, a free source for media.

Released: 3-Jan-2023 11:15 AM EST
Yes, it’s true – a walk in the woods actually helps with anxiety and depression
Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)

You've probably felt it yourself at some point. After a walk in the woods, your shoulders drop several notches. Your heart stopped pounding. Your thoughts flowed a little more calmly.

   
Newswise: Ethereal color variant of mysterious plant is actually a new species
Released: 27-Dec-2022 7:40 PM EST
Ethereal color variant of mysterious plant is actually a new species
Kobe University

Green leaves and photosynthesis were once considered essential characteristics of plants.

Newswise: Palau’s Rock Islands Harbor Heat-resistant Corals
Released: 21-Dec-2022 1:10 PM EST
Palau’s Rock Islands Harbor Heat-resistant Corals
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Ocean warming is driving an increase in the frequency and severity of marine heatwaves, causing untold damage to coral reefs. Tropical corals, which live in symbiosis with tiny single celled algae, are sensitive to high temperatures, and exhibit a stress response called bleaching when the ocean gets too hot. In the last 4 decades, marine heatwaves have caused widespread bleaching, and killed millions of corals. Because of this, a global search is underway for reefs that can withstand the heat stress, survive future warming, and act as sources of heat-tolerant coral larvae to replenish affected areas both naturally and through restoration.

Newswise: Evening hot spring soaks lower cases of hypertension in older Japanese adults
Released: 21-Dec-2022 11:45 AM EST
Evening hot spring soaks lower cases of hypertension in older Japanese adults
Kyushu University

Nothing beats a good soak in a hot bath, and when it really hits the spot, you can almost feel your worries and ailments diffusing out into steam.

20-Dec-2022 7:05 AM EST
Study reveals the true value of elephants
University of Portsmouth

An international team of researchers has mapped out the values and benefits of elephants to help overcome conservation challenges and conflict.

Released: 20-Dec-2022 7:10 PM EST
New study finds animals play key role in restoring forests
Yale University

As nations meet this week in Montreal on efforts to address an unprecedented loss of biodiversity — more than a million species are threatened with extinction — a new study published in The Royal Society journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B points to the unique and vital role animals play in reforestation.

Released: 20-Dec-2022 3:35 PM EST
UK woodlands could store almost twice as much carbon as previously estimated
University College London

UK forests could store almost double the amount of carbon than previous calculations suggest, with consequences for our understanding of carbon stocks and humanity’s response to climate change, according to a new study involving UCL researchers.

Newswise: Human activities degrade hippopotamus homes at Bui National Park, Ghana
Released: 20-Dec-2022 2:30 PM EST
Human activities degrade hippopotamus homes at Bui National Park, Ghana
Pensoft Publishers

The Bui National Park is one of the few areas where the common hippopotamus resides in Ghana.

Newswise: New research uncovers hidden long-term declines in UK earthworms
Released: 19-Dec-2022 2:15 PM EST
New research uncovers hidden long-term declines in UK earthworms
British Ecological Society

British Trust of Ornithology researchers call for better monitoring of soil invertebrates after new research, collating 100 years of data, suggests significant and previously undetected declines in UK earthworm abundance could have occurred.

Newswise: Two fungi work together to kill fig trees
Released: 16-Dec-2022 11:45 AM EST
Two fungi work together to kill fig trees
Nagoya University

In many countries, the number of fig trees have been declining. While there are numerous explanations, one key problem is fig-wilting disease. A recognized cause of this disease is a fungus, Ceratocystis ficicola, which is transmitted by an ambrosia beetle, Euwallacea interjectus.

Newswise: Dynamical fractal discovered in clean magnetic crystal
Released: 15-Dec-2022 6:20 PM EST
Dynamical fractal discovered in clean magnetic crystal
University of Cambridge

The nature and properties of materials depend strongly on dimension.



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