Nature & Environment : Science World Report

Jun 07, 2019 01:35 PM EDT

Four New Species of Plume Moths Discovered in Bahamas

GAINESVILLE, Fla. --- Deborah Matthews hunts for plume moths in darkness, waiting for the halo of her headlamp to catch a brief flicker. About the size of mosquitoes, the delicate, feathery moths fly only a few feet at a time. Matthews must watch for that short flight while keeping clear of poisonwo...

Jun 05, 2019 08:18 AM EDT

Researchers Discover Cells That Change Their Identity During Normal Development

A new study by researchers at the University of Virginia and other institutions has discovered a type of pigment cell in zebrafish that can transform after development into another cell type.

Jun 05, 2019 08:02 AM EDT

New Research Explores the Mechanics of How Birds Flock

Wildlife researchers have long tried to understand why birds fly in flocks and how different types of flocks work. A new study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill explores the mechanics and benefits of the underlying flock structure used by four types of shorebirds. Understanding mo...

Jun 01, 2019 05:20 PM EDT

New Research Shows How Habitat Loss can Destabilise Ecosystems

An international study has revealed new evidence to help understand the consequences of habitat loss on natural communities.

Jun 01, 2019 05:16 PM EDT

Native Plant Species May be at Greater Risk From Climate Change than Non-Natives

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- As spring advances across the Midwest, a new study looking at blooming flowers suggests that non-native plants might outlast native plants in the region due to climate change.

May 31, 2019 10:05 AM EDT

Scientists Demonstrate Plant Stress Memory and Adaptation Capabilities

Russian and Taiwanese scientists have discovered a connection between the two signaling systems that help plants survive stress situations, demonstrating that they can remember dangerous conditions that they have experienced and adapt to them. This memory mechanism will help improve agricultural pla...

May 29, 2019 01:25 PM EDT

Some Songbird Nests are Especially Vulnerable to Magpie Predation

A new study has revealed a range of factors that cause a variation in predation by magpies on farmland songbirds.

May 28, 2019 01:38 PM EDT

New Mutations for Herbicide Resistance Rarer than Expected, Study Finds

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- After exposing more than 70 million grain amaranth seeds to a soil-based herbicide, researchers were not able to find a single herbicide-resistant mutant. Though preliminary, the findings suggest that the mutation rate in amaranth is very low and that low-level herbicide applicati...

May 27, 2019 03:47 PM EDT

More Fishing Vessels Chasing Fewer Fish, New Study Finds

A new analysis of global fishing data has found the world's fishing fleet doubled in size over the 65-years to 2015 but for the amount of effort expended the catch fell more than 80 percent.

May 27, 2019 03:19 PM EDT

A Forest 'Glow' Reveals Awakening from Hibernation

Winters in the northern hemisphere are brutal. The harsh conditions drive some species to hibernate; bears reduce their metabolic state to conserve energy until spring. Forests also endure winter by conserving energy; they shut down photosynthesis, the process by which a green pigment called chlorop...

May 27, 2019 03:11 PM EDT

Exploring the Origins of the Apple

Recent archaeological finds of ancient preserved apple seeds across Europe and West Asia combined with historical, paleontological, and recently published genetic data are presenting a fascinating new narrative for one of our most familiar fruits.

May 24, 2019 11:28 AM EDT

Climate Change Affects the Genetic Diversity of a Species

What effects does climate change have on the genetic diversity of living organisms? In a study led by Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, an international team of researchers studied the genome of the alpine marmot, an ice-age remnant that now lives in large numbers in the high altitude Alpine m...