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The ambient temperature has a profound impact on the physiology and behavior of most species. In regions where individuals rely on low temperatures to hibernate effectively, global warming is likely to significantly affect their survival.

Some reef fish have the unexpected ability to move their jaws from side to side, biologists at the University of California, Davis have discovered. This ability—which is rare among vertebrate animals—allows these fish to feed rapidly and efficiently on algae growing on rocks. The work is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Sophie Cohen-Bodénès and Peter Neri, neuroscientists at École Normale Supérieure, in France, report possible evidence of cuttlefish communicating by waving their 'arms' at one another. Their paper is posted on the bioRxiv preprint server.

Friendship comes with complex pros and cons—possibly explaining why some individuals are less sociable, according to a new study of gorillas.

The Monte Gordo grasshopper (Eyprepocprifas insularis) has proved to be a rare and elusive species: its last, and, until now, the only sighting was a single specimen found in 1980. This is why researcher Dr. Michel Lecoq declared it extinct in 1996.

Some red algae exhibit structural color that gives their growth tips a blue hue and the rest of their bodies, including their fruiting structures, a white hue. Moreover, since the color-producing structures are located together with anti-herbivory chemicals, the Kobe University discovery is the first to suggest that red algae use colors for inter-species communication.

Intensive farming is one of the biggest factors contributing to biodiversity loss. While prior research has focused primarily on the effects of habitat loss and fragmentation, intensive farming also has other environmental effects, including the use of pesticides in agricultural environments.

Endemic to China's Yangtze River, the Yangtze finless porpoise is known for its intelligence and charismatic appearance; it looks like it has a perpetual smile on its face. To track how this critically endangered porpoise's habitat range has changed over time, a team of biodiversity and conservation experts compiled 724 ancient Chinese poems referencing the porpoise from historic collections across China.

Even biologists only capture a glimpse of the lives of whales. There are still many species whose lives are largely a mystery, particularly the deep diving whales.

A new study has revealed how the loss of experienced individual elephants stops the knowledge transfer between generations, putting elephant societies at risk.

By using antibodies from a human donor with a self-induced hyper-immunity to snake venom, scientists have developed the most broadly effective antivenom to date, which is protective against the likes of the black mamba, king cobra, and tiger snakes in mouse trials. Described in the journal Cell, the antivenom combines protective antibodies and a small molecule inhibitor and opens a path toward a universal...

The intensification of existing farmland can sometimes be more harmful to local biodiversity than expanding the area covered by agricultural land, finds a new study led by University College London (UCL) researchers.

Imagine trying to tell identical twins apart just by looking at their fingerprints. That's how challenging it can be for scientists to distinguish the tiny powdery pollen grains produced by fir, spruce and pine trees.

Before they can fight to survive, some endangered songbirds are losing their groove and being robbed of their chance at love—all because of what's in their food.

Relief may be in sight for kākāpō affected by an extremely painful disease, thanks to a University of Otago—Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka-led study.

Results from a long-term field experiment shed new light on how grasslands can be restored for nature, the environment, and for farmers.

As urban development continues to creep further into Earth's oldest and most diverse rainforests, a Swansea University-led study reveals native and invasive small mammals aren't just adapting to their changing habitats—they may also be sharing their microbes.

Marine habitats are facing unprecedented threats, with 66% of coastal areas already altered and degraded. Bottom-contact fisheries, which use indiscriminate trawling, physically damage almost 5 million square kilometers of the seafloor each year.

Animal research on biomusicality, which looks at whether different species are capable of behaving in ways that show they recognize aspects of music, including rhythm and beat, remains a tantalizing field at the intersection of biology and psychology.

Increased vegetation growth in European mountains, driven by climate and land-use changes, reduces the genetic diversity of medicinal plants, suggests a new study using satellite data and genetic analyses on Greek mountain tea.

New research led by Monterey Bay Aquarium reveals a surprising ripple effect in coastal ecosystems: the collapse of one marine predator can benefit another.

Scientists at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) found that the fringe-lipped bat, known to eavesdrop on frog and toad mating calls to find its prey, learns to distinguish between palatable and unpalatable frogs and toads through experience.

Thousands of hectares of Chernobyl-affected farmland, long deemed too dangerous for cultivation in northern Ukraine can safely return to production, according to new research.

Although many conservationists believe biodiversity is intrinsically valuable, the protection of biodiversity has also been argued for on the basis that diversity makes ecosystems healthier and more stable. But are highly diverse ecosystems more stable and productive than ecosystems with low diversity?