News by Subject Biology

Researchers witnessed a hummingbird defending its nest from what it interpreted to be a snake, but was actually a caterpillar of the moth Oxytenis modestia. The encounter is described in a new paper published in the Ecological Society of America's journal Ecology. 

A 'gold rush' of seabed mining could lead to unprecedented damage to fragile deep-sea ecosystems, researchers have warned.

A new study shows that the roots used by three close species of microscopic Daphnia crustaceans to settle across the territory of Northern Eurasia differed greatly. This findings shed light on how the continental freshwater fauna was formed. They are published in PLOS ONE.

A team of researchers led by wildlife ecologist Theresa Walter analyzed over 1,100 fox sightings made by the public as part of the citizen science project StadtWildTiere (www.stadtwildtiere.at). The joint team of researchers from the Vetmeduni Vienna and the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU) now showed that foxes prefer specific city areas and environments. The study also revealed that reports of fox sightings correlated with the educational level of the population.

Michigan State University scholar Andrea Glassmire and her colleagues have revealed how the mixture of chemical weapons deployed by plants keeps marauding insects off base better than a one-note defense. This insight goes beyond the ecological convention of studying a single chemical compound a plant is packing and offers new ways to approach agricultural pest management. The research was published in today's Ecology Letters.

Scientists have identified 66 alien plant and animal species, not yet established in the European Union, that pose the greatest potential threat to biodiversity and ecosystems in the region. The research, led by the UK's Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, lists the invasive species that are likely to arrive and spread in the region over the next decade.