A new study reveals that the genetic uniqueness of the Basque population is not due to its external origin in respect of other Iberian populations, but reduced contacts as of the Iron Age.
Tag: POPULATION BIOLOGY
University of Ottawa receives $9 million from CIHR to track COVID-19 variants of concern
Project spearheaded by Faculty of Medicine researcher to create a Canadian network for better researching and responding to the global threat COVID-19 variants pose
Two new species of already-endangered screech owls discovered in Amazon rainforest
Recordings of owls’ screeches used to help tell species apart
New insights into close encounters between albatross and fishing vessels
CORVALLIS, Ore. – A novel analysis of encounters between albatross and commercial fishing vessels across the North Pacific Ocean is giving researchers important new understanding about seabird-vessel interactions that could help reduce harmful encounters. The new research method, which combines…
Ocean’s mammals at crucial crossroads
The ocean’s mammals are at a crucial crossroads – with some at risk of extinction and others showing signs of recovery, researchers say. In a detailed review of the status of the world’s 126 marine mammal species – which include…
Corals may need their predators’ poop
Coral-eating fish excrete symbiotic algae by the millions, may keep reefs healthy
Global biodiversity awareness tracked with Wikipedia page views
Wikipedia page views could be used to monitor global awareness of biodiversity, proposes a research team from UCL, ZSL, and the RSPB. Using their new metric, the research team found that awareness of biodiversity is marginally increasing, but the rate…
Houston refines hunt for COVID in wastewater
Rice University-led study evaluates methods to find signs of virus in municipal plants
Hidden genetic defects contain real risks for serious diseases
Genome test for consanguineous couples makes sense
Tropical species are moving northward in U.S. as winters warm
Insects, reptiles, fish and plants migrating north as winter freezes in South become less frequent
Escape from mongoose: frog’s novel strategy
Invasive mongooses altered leg length and endurance of endangered island frogs
Climate change ravages coralligenous architects in the Mediterranean
Increasing the vulnerability of the ecosystem
Artificial light at night may disrupt firefly mating
New research published in Insect Conservation and Diversity indicates that artificial light at night likely interferes with the courtship and mating of bioluminescent fireflies. For the study, investigators exposed courting pairs of fireflies to five colors of light at two…
New study reveals habitat that could increase jaguar numbers
Tucson, Ariz. (March 16, 2021) – This week, a new, peer-reviewed scientific study finds that there is far more potential jaguar habitat in the U.S. than was previously thought. Scientists identified an area of more than 20 million acres that…
The trouble of being tall
The giraffe is a truly puzzling animal. With its exceptional anatomy and suite of evolutionary adaptations, the giraffe is an outstanding case of animal evolution and physiology. Now, an international team of researchers from the University of Copenhagen and Northwestern…
Deforestation taking a heavy toll on international bird haven
An analysis has found deforestation is severely affecting forest bird species in Colombia, home to the greatest number of bird species in the world. University of Queensland-led research, steered by Dr Pablo Negret, analysed the impact of deforestation on 550…
Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in US adult asymptomatic population
What The Study Did: The findings of this study suggest that, based on a sample from an otherwise healthy population, the overall number of SARS-CoV-2 infections in the U.S. may be substantially higher than estimates based on public health case…
New probe set unravels evolutionary history of second-most diverse group of land plants
In 2016, a collaborative group of research and education specialists received funding from the National Science Foundation for the project ‘Building a Comprehensive Evolutionary History of Flagellate Plants’ — also known as ‘Genealogy of Flagellate Plants’ (GoFlag). Members of the…
When ‘eradicated’ species bounce back with a vengeance
Lessons from a failed experiment mark new way forward
The narwhal’s tusk reveals its past living conditions
Every year, a new growth layer is added to the narwhal’s spiralled tusk. The individual layers act as an archive of data that reveals what and where the animal has eaten, providing a glimpse of how the ice and environmental…
Whooping cranes steer clear of wind turbines when selecting stopover sites
Proliferation of wind-energy infrastructure across the Great Plains has created obstacles along key migration routes; future developers could place infrastructure outside of migration corridors to avert negative impacts
Birds learn to avoid flashy, hard-to-catch butterflies and their lookalikes
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The showy colors of some butterflies could advertise their speed and nimbleness, much like a coat of bright yellow paint on a sports car. A new study shows birds can learn to recognize these visual cues, avoiding…
Bioaccumulation of phased-out fire retardants is slowly declining in bald eagles
Research published in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry shows that the presence of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in bald eagle populations is slowly declining. Bald eagles are apex predators that nest and, more importantly, feed along water bodies, making them excellent…
Warming climate slows tropical birds’ population growth rates
30-year study in Tanzania shows temperature-linked population declines in species important to forests
Citizen scientists help expose presence of invasive Asian bamboo longhorn beetle in Europe
A worryingly high number of Asian bamboo longhorn beetles ( Chlorophorus annularis ) turn out to have been emerging across Europe for about a century already, finds an international research team, headed by researchers from the Center of Natural History…
Two species and a single name: ‘Double identity’ revealed in a venomous banana spider
Spiders from the genus Phoneutria – also known as banana spiders – are considered aggressive and among the most venomous spiders in the world, with venom that has a neurotoxic action. These large nocturnal spiders usually inhabit environments disturbed by…
Tracing malaria’s ecology using blood samples from birds
Malaria is the deadliest pathogen in human history. Nearly half the people on Earth are at risk of contracting the disease from the parasites that cause it. But humans aren’t the only ones who can get these parasites–different forms are…
Rise of marine predators reshaped ocean life as dramatically as sudden mass extinctions
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Evolutionary arms races between marine animals overhauled ocean ecosystems on scales similar to the mass extinctions triggered by global disasters, a new study shows. Scientists at Umeå University in Sweden and the Florida Museum of Natural History…
‘Island of Rats’ recovers
Island birds, seashore ecosystem return to natural balance after invasive rodent removal
Chimpanzees without borders
A new large-scale study uncovers recent genetic connectivity between chimpanzee subspecies despite past isolation events
New ‘split-drive’ system puts scientists in the (gene) driver seat
Researchers develop tunable system that harnesses the spread of cargo carried by gene drives
What can stream quality tell us about quality of life?
As the source of most of the water we drink and a place where we often go to recreate and enjoy nature, streams represent a crucial point-of-contact between human beings and the environment. Now researchers in the College of Natural…
Ecology: Gene drives may help control invasive grey squirrel in the UK
Existing gene drive technologies could be combined to help control the invasive grey squirrel population in the UK with little risk to other populations, according to a modelling study published in Scientific Reports. Gene drives introduce genes into a population…
Dramatic decline in western butterfly populations linked to fall warming
Western butterfly populations are declining at an estimated rate of 1.6% per year, according to a new report to be published this week in Science . The report looks at more than 450 butterfly species, including the western monarch, whose…
Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on mammals at tourist destinations
How have travel restrictions and reduced tourism in response to the COVID-19 pandemic affected mammals in different tourist destinations? Researchers recently reviewed published studies and news stories to consider this question. Their findings are published in Mammal Review . The…
Researchers offer new insights on bird migration
During their seasonal migration, birds typically travel between breeding and non-breeding grounds along migratory routes grouped into major flyways, such as the Indo-European flyway between Europe and the Indian subcontinent. In a new study published in the Journal of Biogeography…
Tracking data reveals shared political responsibility for the conservation of albatrosses and petrel
Global political responsibility for the conservation of albatrosses and large petrels
Diversity of fish species supply endangered killer whale diet throughout the year
Chinook salmon play major role as Southern Resident prey across seasons.
Camera traps reveal newly discovered biodiversity relationship
Data scientists analyze photos from 15 tropical rainforests
Nature: new compound for male contraceptive pill
Dr. Wei Yan discovered a natural compound that exhibits almost ideal male contraceptive effects in pre-clinical studies
Sniffing in the name of science
Detection dogs help generate important data for research and conservation
Evolution of one of the fastest jaws in nature – function before form in trap-jaw ants
The trap-jaw ants are famous for having one of the natural world’s fastest movements, but how did the latch-spring mechanism that drives their jaws evolve? According to a study published on March 2nd, 2021 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology…
Model for wildlife tourism
New method helps to ensure sustainable industries
Wrasses dazzle: how fairy wrasses got their flamboyant colours
Coral reef fish diverged in ‘evolutionary arms race’ during last ice age
Half a trillion corals: world-first coral count prompts rethink of extinction risks
For the first time, scientists have assessed how many corals there are in the Pacific Ocean–and evaluated their risk of extinction. While the answer to “how many coral species are there?” is ‘Googleable’, until now scientists didn’t know how many…
A research group proposes six guidelines for managing the impacts of invasive species
Researchers in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, and the UK are participating in the initiative; results are published in the journal BioScience
Behavior of wild capuchin monkeys can be identified by marks left on their tools
Scientists who study capuchin monkeys on a nature reserve in Brazil found that stone tools are used for digging, seed pounding, and stone-on-stone percussion. The monkeys can serve as a model to help understand how humans evolved to use tools.
Global warming poses threat to food chains
Rising temperatures could reduce the efficiency of food chains and threaten the survival of larger animals, new research shows. Scientists measured the transfer of energy from single-celled algae (phytoplankton) to small animals that eat them (zooplankton). The study – by…
Agents of food-borne zoonoses confirmed to parasitise newly-recorded in Thailand snails
Parasitic flatworms known as agents of food-borne zoonoses were confirmed to use several species of thiarid snails, commonly found in freshwater and brackish environments in southeast Asia, as their first intermediate host. These parasites can cause severe ocular infections in…
Oahu marine protected areas offer limited protection of coral reef herbivorous fishes
Marine protected areas (MPAs) around O?ahu do not adequately protect populations of herbivorous reef fishes that eat algae on coral reefs. That is the primary conclusion of a study published in Coral Reefs by researchers from the University of Hawai?i…