Latest science news in Biology & Nature

Russian 'spy' beluga whale spotted in Swedish waters

4 weeks ago from UPI

A beluga whale believed to have been trained for surveillance by the Russian military has been spotted off the coast of Sweden, according to advocates who track the whale.

Research project analyzes medical, nutritional and environmental applications of new Antarctic bacteria

4 weeks ago from Physorg

A scientific collaboration between the University of São Paulo (USP) in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil, and Clemente Estable Institute of Biological Research (IIBCE) in Montevideo, Uruguay, is experimenting with two new...

How Insects Track Odors by Navigating Microscale Winds

4 weeks ago from Newswise - Scinews

Insects use odor plumes -- which travel like smoke and form when the wind blows odor molecules from their source -- to track down sources such as flowers or pheromones....

Look: Red panda escapes British zoo, visits local grocery store

4 weeks ago from UPI

A red panda escaped from a zoo in England and was safely recaptured after wandering to a grocery store, where it was treated to an apple.

How insects track odors by navigating microscale winds

4 weeks ago from Physorg

How do flying insects like important pollinators locate odor sources in the great outdoors, despite encountering highly variable wind conditions? They use odor plumes—which travel like smoke and form when...

Scientists may be able to put Mars-bound astronauts into 'suspended animation' using sound waves, mouse study suggests

4 weeks ago from Space.com

Firing ultrasound signals into rodent brains puts them in a torpor-like state. Scientists are wondering if it could be used on humans.

Frog with baggage: Invasive species do not arrive alone

4 weeks ago from Physorg

Senckenberg researchers have introduced a new invasion biology concept, so-called "nested invasions." Using Johnstone's whistling frog as an example, they show that this amphibian not only colonizes foreign regions, but...

Evolution of human foot arches put the necessary pep in our upright steps

4 weeks ago from PopSci

Arch mobility could be the key to our species' successful bipedalism. Deposit Photos Efficiently standing up and walking and running on two feet  stands out among the traits that separates Homo sapiens from...

Study reveals widgeongrass has replaced eelgrass as the dominant seagrass species in Chesapeake Bay

4 weeks ago from Physorg

Mangroves are growing in areas historically dominated by salt marshes and oyster reefs. Invasive pacific oysters are replacing native blue mussels in the Wadden Sea. Macroalgae are exhibiting dominance over...

Unveiling the RNA-guided mechanisms driving cell fate

4 weeks ago from Physorg

The early stages of embryonic development contain many of life's mysteries. Unlocking these mysteries can help us better understand early development and birth defects, and help develop new regenerative medicine...

Polar fish are less likely to die early, so they prioritize growth over reproduction

4 weeks ago from Newswise - Scinews

Polar fish experience lower mortality than tropical fish, allowing them to delay reproduction until later in life when they are larger and can produce more eggs, according to a study...

Climate-stressed trees get a boost from new microbial partnerships

4 weeks ago from Newswise - Scinews

Plants live across wide ranges of heat and cold and rain and drought, but they don't fill their niches alone. Along with the animals and insects that live on and...

LJI-led team wins top Nucleate honors for virus vaccine development proposal

4 weeks ago from Newswise - Scinews

A San Diego team, led by scientists at La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI), has won the top prizes in the Nucleate Activator competition. Out of 1,000 initial competitors, the...

Groundbreaking Images of Root Chemicals Offer New Insights on Plant Growth

4 weeks ago from Newswise - Scinews

Applying imaging technology to plant roots, researchers have developed a new understanding of chemicals that are responsible for plant growth. The chemical "roadmap" identifies where key molecules are distributed along...

Termite mounds reveal secret to creating 'living and breathing' buildings that use less energy

4 weeks ago from Newswise - Scinews

Among the approximately 2,000 known species of termites, some are ecosystem engineers. The mounds built by some genera, for example Amitermes, Macrotermes, Nasutitermes, and Odontotermes, reach up to eight meters...

Mystery pathogen is stripping sea urchins of their flesh and turning them to skeletons — and it's spreading fast

4 weeks ago from Live Science

A mysterious epidemic that began in the Mediterranean at the start of the year looks set to wipe out all of the Mediterranean and Red Sea’s urchins, and possibly their...

With tools from Silicon Valley, Quinton Smith builds lab-made organs

4 weeks ago from Sciencenews.org

While volunteering at the University of New Mexico’s Children’s Hospital in Albuquerque, Quinton Smith quickly realized that he could never be a physician. Then an undergrad at the university, Smith was too sad...

Humans evolved to walk with an extra spring in our step, shows foot arch study

4 weeks ago from Physorg

A new study has shown that humans may have evolved a spring-like arch to help us walk on two feet. Researchers studying the evolution of bipedal walking have long assumed...

How a Cucamonga Peak hiker survived a 200-foot fall from an icy trail

4 weeks ago from LA Times - Health

As winter storms make hiking more dangerous in Southern California, one Cucamonga Peak hiker talks about how she survived a 200-foot fall from an icy trail.

The secret to overcoming hardship? Comedian Aidan Park calls it 'the art of Yay!'

4 weeks ago from LA Times - Health

Aidan Park launched the Yay! Foundation to 'bring hope and strength to young adults ages 14-24 in underserved and disenfranchised communities.'

Sloth schedules are surprisingly flexible

4 weeks ago from PopSci

Sloths the slowest digestive system of any animal on Earth. It can take the mammals two weeks to digest an entire meal, and they sleep about 20 hours a day to conserve...

How forest fragmentation affects birds depends on their wings

4 weeks ago from Physorg

A new study shows why tropical birds are likely to be more vulnerable to forest fragmentation, and suggests conservation policies need to take into account the role of climate in...

A simple model to evaluate skeletal muscle-macrophage interaction during skeletal muscle regeneration

4 weeks ago from Physorg

A research group led by Dr. Naoya Kase and Prof. Megumu Saito have successfully established a model to evaluate skeletal muscle regeneration efficiency and determine how macrophages contribute to the...

Australian shelters, pounds kill 50,000 healthy cats and kittens a year: Research suggests there's a way to prevent it

4 weeks ago from Physorg

Stray cats are a longstanding problem in Australian towns and cities. Common complaints about roaming cats include nuisance (fighting and urinating), disease risks to humans and other animals, and predation...

What causes decline of tropical seagrass meadows?

4 weeks ago from Physorg

Seagrass, a group of aquatic angiosperms, grows in shallow waters in the coastal sea and contributes most of the primary production while participating in many important ecological processes. Heat stress...

New vegetation photosynthetic phenology dataset generated in northern terrestrial ecosystems

4 weeks ago from Physorg

Vegetation phenology, the cycle sequence of the vital activities, is a highly sensitive indicator of the climate impacts on terrestrial ecosystems. Most recent studies focus on the structural changes in...

Sympatric sloths adapt to their surroundings in the face of environmental fluctuations

4 weeks ago from Physorg

Researchers have shed light on the activity patterns and behavioral adaptations of two sympatric sloth species, Bradypus variegatus and Choloepus hoffmanni. This study, conducted in the lowland rainforests of the...

Bacteria are vital for the diversity and survival of insects, shows new study

4 weeks ago from Physorg

Insects are crucial for biodiversity and among the most successful species on the planet. However, until now, it has been unclear how they could exploit such a diversity of food...