(Click the below image to view the photo gallery.) This week, the American Museum of Natural History launched the exhibit “Picturing Science: Museum Scientists and Imaging Technologies” which explores the images produced by scientists while performing research. The images range from bug genitalia to staghorn coral (see video at the end of this post). As quoted in a recent Wired…
Read MoreThe secret to the Japanese jewel beetle’s shine is layers of chitin, threats to the ancient nautilus, a “walking cactus” provides a link between worm and insect, researchers propose drying out Australia’s cane toads, macaques display awareness of their own uncertainty and Florida’s alligator mating season is close at hand. Here is research in ecology and beyond from the last…
Read MoreWhen it comes to habitat destruction, startling events like oil spills and deforestation are certain to grab the headlines. Yet as a new study in the journal Animal Conservation shows, sometimes habitat destruction can be so subtle that it passes under the eyes of all but the most astute scientists. David Pike and fellow researchers from the University of Sydney look at the case of reptiles in outcrops and find that people moving rocks less than 30 centimeters out of place can ruin the habitat for species like the endangered broad-headed snake that shelter in narrow crevices.
Read MoreScientists from the University of Sydney are getting creative with their efforts to combat destructive cane toad populations in Australia and to protect native species from the pests. Cane toads were introduced to Australia in 1935. Cane toads, which were introduced to Australia in 1935 from Hawaii in an attempt to eradicate cane beetles, have caused a decline in other…
A new study out in the December issue of the ESA journal Ecological Applications has shown that human interests are having a disproportionate impact on the selection of marine protected areas, or MPAs, which are meant to protect biodiversity in marine ecosystems. Their paper shows a consistent bias in Australian and Tasmanian MPAs toward areas with little commercial resource value….
The 10th International Congress of Ecology is taking place this week in Brisbane, Australia. This conference happens once every four years and aims to bring together ecologists from all corners of the world. The theme is “Ecology in a Changing Climate – Two hemispheres, one globe.” With the conference being held down under and hosted by the Ecological Society of Australia…