Is your garden bee-friendly? – City gardens promote bee parasites

Parasites are threatening pollinator populations worldwide, raising concerns for the future of our food security. How we manage our gardens in cities could impact parasite transmission among pollinators, especially bees. Researchers found that bee parasites decrease when we plant plenty of flowers to promote diverse pollinators. We also reduce parasites when we refrain from mulching our gardens, as mulch covers nests for ground-nesting bees. As spring approaches, will your garden be friendlier to bees or their parasites?

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The Potential of Parasites

Although parasites have a negative reputation, they can be a valuable conservation tool. Their diversity means they can be used in many applications, and this range of known potential purposes will only increase with further exploration. This article explores how parasites have been used to better understand habitat fragmentation, invasive species movement, harvested species overexploitation, and even climate change!

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Freshwater ecosystems need our help, and citizen science could be part of the solution

Freshwater resources around the globe are becoming increasingly degraded. Although humans are a major cause of this problem, they can also be part of the solution, especially when we all work together to tackle environmental issues. One way we can do this is through citizen science, where scientists and members of the public work together to perform research and advance scientific knowledge. Read on to learn more about freshwater citizen science, its benefits and challenges, and how you can get involved!

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Is it a Bird? Is it Batman? Filtering and Extracting DNA from the Air Can Provide a Clue

Environmental DNA or eDNA is DNA that has been released by organisms into their surroundings. This article presents a fascinating discovery: sampling air for eDNA can ultimately show what terrestrial vertebrates are nearby. Long-range monitoring of vertebrate biodiversity is explored as well.

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Talk Turtle to Me: How Algae Could Drive Sea Turtle Populations to Extinction

Rising ocean temperatures have been increasing the size of algal blooms, with Sargassum being one of the most prominent algae species affecting coastlines in the Caribbean. When beached, Sargassum can only be removed from shores through human intervention, which is both costly and time-consuming. These algal outbreaks are ending up on beaches where sea turtles are known to nest, affecting their biology and survivability. Will beached Sargassum on Caribbean shores affect sea turtle populations irreversibly, or will we find a more effective way of dealing with the changing algal populations?

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