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Globally, more than 13,000 plant species, equivalent to the entire native flora of Europe, have been naturalized outside their native ranges. A study, jointly conducted by scientists from China and the U.S., provides new insights about biodiversity, exotic invasion, and their relationship to climate change.

Only about 10% of the world's roughly 4,000 snake species have venom strong enough to seriously hurt a human, but that's enough for snake bites to be an important public health concern. To help better understand how snakes make their venom and how venoms differ from one species to another, researchers developed a new way to zero in on the genes that snakes use...

A newly identified wasp species, Chrysonotomyia susbelli, has been discovered in Houston, Texas, marking the 18th new species identified by Rice University's Scott Egan and his research team since 2014. The discovery, the fourth wasp species found on the university grounds in seven years, reveals the hidden world of parasitoid wasps and the intricate ecosystems that thrive outside our doors.

SECORE International's Coral Seeding approach utilizes assisted reproduction, the breeding of corals, for reef restoration. This approach is realized within a training and partner network throughout the Caribbean. Now, a study shows that all the effort was worthwhile: during the devastating heat wave in the Caribbean in 2023, the young, bred corals out on the reef stayed healthy while most of the remaining wild...

Climate change and a range of other human impacts are putting marine animals at risk of extinction—even those living in almost pristine marine habitats and diverse coastal regions—reports a new study by Casey O'Hara of the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis at the University of California, Santa Barbara, U.S., and colleagues, published September 18, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE.

Monash University biologists have discovered that evolution can significantly impact the stability and tipping points of ecosystems, potentially causing early ecosystem collapse or aiding in their recovery.

A team of chemists and zoologists from Israel, Italy and Russia, has found evidence suggesting that part of the reason woolly mammoths went extinct was the onset of allergies that made it difficult for them to find mates.

Millions of birds migrate every year to escape winter, but spending time in a warmer climate does not save them energy, according to research by the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior (MPI-AB). Using miniaturized loggers implanted in wild blackbirds, scientists recorded detailed measurements of heart rate and body temperature from birds every 30 minutes from fall to the following spring—the first time the...

Researchers have discovered that seabirds, including penguins and albatrosses, have highly-sensitive regions in their beaks that could be used to help them find food. This is the first time this ability has been identified in seabirds.

Presenting the world's smallest (and scrappiest) scuba diver: A species of semi-aquatic lizard produces a special bubble over its nostrils to breathe underwater and avoid predators, according to new research from Binghamton University, State University of New York.

The fruit flies that hover around the apples on your counter have to navigate a cluttered environment to find that food, from the built environment and vegetation around your house to the objects in your kitchen. Desert fruit flies, not so much.

Earth's majestic "apex predators" are some of the most prolific hunters in the world. But which ones kill the most?

Small marine crustaceans are as valuable as key coastal habitats for storing carbon and should be similarly protected, according to new research.

Some plants are able to take over uninhabited spaces like sand dunes and volcanic substrates. These first colonizers have specific traits that allow them to grow in such hostile environments. Other plants lack such traits but will soon follow these pioneers.

Adversity early in life can have permanent health consequences for people—even if their circumstances improve dramatically later on. Scientists use a cumulative adversity index, or CAI, which quantifies measures of hardship including poverty and stress, to understand health and longevity over the course of an individual's life. This has been helpful in identifying specific measures governments, health care providers and families can take to...

Homing is an animal's ability to navigate towards an original location, such as a breeding spot or foraging territory. Salmon and racing pigeons are famous for homing, but similar behaviors occur in groups as diverse as bees, frogs, rats, and sea turtles. There, homing individuals are known or suspected to rely on landmarks, the Earth's magnetic field, or the sky's pattern of polarized light...

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior in Germany, in collaboration with the Swiss Ornithological Institute in Switzerland and the University of Vienna in Austria, investigated how young golden eagles improve their flight skills as they age.

A team of researchers at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology and the University of Washington has discovered a new species of fish that seems perpetually displeased. The researchers decided to call this new species the grumpy dwarfgoby.

Flowers like hibiscus use an invisible blueprint established very early in petal formation that dictates the size of their bullseyes—a crucial pre-pattern that can significantly impact their ability to attract pollinating bees.

Though a founding concept of ecology suggests that the physical environment determines where organisms can survive, modern scientists have suspected there is more to the story of how microbial communities form in the soil.

A study led by Prof. Liu Xiaojuan from the Institute of Botany of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IBCAS) has demonstrated that the association between multitrophic diversity and ecosystem multifunctionality is stronger than the relationship between the diversity of individual trophic groups and multifunctionality.

A study published in Science reveals that plant-derived secondary organic aerosols (SOAs) can act as mediators of plant-plant interactions. This research was conducted through the cooperation of chemical ecologists, plant ecophysiologists and atmospheric physicists at the University of Eastern Finland.

A hawk-eyed photographer has thrilled scientists by snapping a threatened bird of prey in Papua New Guinea, more than five decades since it was last officially documented, the World Wildlife Fund said Friday.

Sea otters are famed for their luscious pelts, but the fur almost led to their extinction. By 1938, only a tiny population of ~50 remained clinging to the central California coast. Since then, the mammals have battled back. However, the charismatic creatures are still at risk from crude oil spilled by offshore rigs.