Nature : Science World Report

May 16, 2012 01:17 PM EDT

Elephant Seal Tracking Reveals Hidden Lives of Deep-diving Animals

Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, who pioneered the use of satellite tags to monitor the migrations of elephant seals have compiled one of the largest datasets available for any marine mammal species, revealing their movements and diving behavior at sea in unprecedented detail...

May 16, 2012 11:16 AM EDT

Nature: Microscope Looks into Cells of Living Fish

Microscopes provide valuable insights in the structure and dynamics of cells, in particular when the latter remain in their natural environment. However, this is very difficult especially for higher organisms.

May 15, 2012 03:10 PM EDT

Big-Mouthed Babies Drove the Evolution of Giant Island Snakes

Some populations of tiger snakes stranded for thousands of years on tiny islands surrounding Australia have evolved to be giants, growing to nearly twice the size of their mainland cousins. Now, new research in The American Naturalist suggests that the enormity of these elapids was driven by the nee...

May 15, 2012 02:30 PM EDT

Maps of Miscanthus Genome Offer Insight into Grass Evolution

Miscanthus grasses are used in gardens, burned for heat and energy, and converted into liquid fuels. They also belong to a prominent grass family that includes corn, sorghum and sugarcane. Two new, independently produced chromosome maps of Miscanthus sinensis (an ornamental that likely is a parent o...

May 15, 2012 11:47 AM EDT

When the Soil Holds Not Enough Phosphorus

Plants cannot survive without phosphorus. It forms the backbone of many crucial molecules (such as DNA) and is a key player in energy transfer reactions. Low availability of phosphorus is a major environmental stress for plants and can lead to great losses in crop production.

May 15, 2012 07:23 AM EDT

Annual NOAA Report Shows a Record Number of Rebuilt Fisheries

A record six fish populations were declared rebuilt to healthy levels in 2011, bringing the number of rebuilt U.S. marine fish populations in the last 11 years to 27, according to a report to Congress out today from NOAA's Fisheries Service. This report documents historic progress toward ending over...

May 14, 2012 04:58 PM EDT

New Species of Fish in Sweden

Reticulated dragonet have been found in VÃ¤derÃ¶arna - "Weather Islands" - off the west coast of Sweden. It is not often that a new species of fish is discovered in Sweden.

May 14, 2012 04:50 PM EDT

Nearly One-tenth of Hemisphere's Mammals Unlikely to Outrun Climate Change

A safe haven could be out of reach for 9 percent of the Western Hemisphere's mammals, and as much as 40 percent in certain regions, because the animals just won't move swiftly enough to outpace climate change.

May 14, 2012 04:29 PM EDT

The Gut Could Reveal Effect of Climate Change on Fish

As sea temperatures rise, stocks of some fish species can decline while others may grow, reveals new research from the University of Gothenburg looking at gastrointestinal function in fish.

May 14, 2012 03:50 PM EDT

Where Bees Are, there Will be Honey even Pre-historic

Amber from Cretaceous deposits (110-105 my) in Northern Spain has revealed the first ever record of insect pollination. Scientists have discovered in two pieces of amber several specimens of tiny insects covered with pollen grains, revealing the first record of pollen transport and social behavior i...

May 14, 2012 02:28 PM EDT

Hitch-hiking with Birds for Life

Although chewing lice spend their entire lives as parasites on birds, it is difficult to predict patterns of lice distribution, new research from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, reveals.

May 14, 2012 01:23 PM EDT

Brain Oscillations Reveal Our Senses Do not Experience the World Continuously

Now, researchers at the University of Glasgow have demonstrated this is indeed the case. Just as the body goes through a 24-hour sleep-wake cycle controlled by a circadian clock, brain function undergoes such cyclic activity - albeit at a much faster rate.