Ecology & Zoology

Isthminia Panamensis: New Species Of Ancient River Dolphin Discovered

Examination of fossil fragments from Panama has led Smithsonian scientists and colleagues to the discovery of a new genus and species of river dolphin that has been long extinct. The team named it Isthminia panamensis. The specimen not only revealed a new ...

Article - News Staff - Sep 4 2015 - 8:00am

Polar Bears Will Survive Ice Melt With Or Without Seals

As climate change accelerates ice melt in the Arctic, polar bears may find caribou and snow geese replacing seals as an important food source, shows a recent study. The research, by Linda Gormezano and Robert Rockwell at the American Museum of Natural His ...

Article - News Staff - Sep 16 2015 - 7:00am

Africanized Bees Continue To Spread In California

A new study has found that the Africanized honey bee, an aggressive hybrid of the European honey bee, is continuing to expand its range northward since its introduction into Southern California in 1994.  The paper in PLOS ONE showed that more than 60 perc ...

Article - News Staff - Sep 23 2015 - 8:30am

Green Paradox: Monarch Butterflies Turn Out To Be GMOs

Do monarch butterflies need mandatory labeling? New research proves that the favorite butterfly of anti-science activists is actually a GMO. Irony or paradox? Maybe both. In one of the more memorable original Star Trek episodes, Captain Kirk uses a parado ...

Article - News Staff - Sep 17 2015 - 7:14pm

Flower Declines Shrink Bee Tongues

Climate-related changes in flower diversity have resulted in a decrease in the length of alpine bumble bees' tongues, a new paper in Science says, leaving these insects poorly suited to feed from and pollinate the deep flowers they were adapted to pr ...

Article - News Staff - Sep 30 2015 - 5:54am

Wild Plants Use Carnivores To Get Rid Of Pests-- Could Crops Do The Same?

Rose gardeners have a lot to say about aphids. Some may advise insecticides as a way to manage an infestation, but others will swear by live ladybugs (natural predators of aphids). The latter is more environmental friendly, and once the ladybugs run out o ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 7 2015 - 11:00am

Wild Fish: It's Time For A Depth Limit On Trawling

Since publishing our study on “ A scientific basis for regulation deep-sea fishing by depth “ we’ve been subjected to criticism online and in print from fisheries organizations and most recently on this website in an article by Magnus Johnson. ...

Article - The Conversation - Oct 13 2015 - 6:30am

Inside/Out Plants Show How Cellulose Forms

Researchers have been able to watch the interior cells of a plant synthesize cellulose for the first time by tricking the cells into growing on the plant's surface. "The bulk of the world's cellulose is produced within the thickened seconda ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 16 2015 - 7:30am

Bees Love Caffeinated Nectar

Many humans like to start the day with a jolt of caffeine and it turns out bees do also. They may even select caffeinated nectar over an uncaffeinated but otherwise equal alternative. As a result, researchers say, plants may be lacing their nectar with ca ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 19 2015 - 2:14pm

How Plants Turn Into Zombies

When flowering plants are surrounded by a large number of insects, usually both sides profit from the encounter. Feasting on the plant juice and pollen, the insects pollinate the flowers and thus secure the survival of the plants. However, sometimes the i ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 25 2015 - 6:30am