There’s more to these leaves than their soft and fuzzy side–the fine hairs trap drifting pollen grains, which the plant can use to bait arthropods to stop by for a snack of pollen and stick around to munch on pests that harm the plant.
Read MoreFrom designer babies to GMOs, gene editing biotechnology is behind some of the most controversial issues on the news. Is it feasible and safe to use gene editing as a conservation tool?
Read MoreExtinct organisms may seem like grim study subjects, but their bones can teach us a lot about their role in the environment and what led to their extinction. By knowing how these animals contributed to their environment, we can better understand how ecosystems have changed over time. Studying their bones can also give us insight into why the organisms went extinct so that we can help prevent similar extinctions of modern species.
Read More“Fire exclusion policies forced California Indian communities and forest managers to curtail their routine cultural and prescribed burning practices. Despite these policies, Karuk and Yurok basketweavers retained their knowledge, maintained their practices and, most importantly, developed several innovative techniques to replicate fire’s effects on hazelnut to produce essential basketry materials.” (Marks-Block 2019)
Read MoreElectronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are largely marketed as safer, cleaner alternatives to conventional smoked tobacco products. However, the use of these smokeless products, often referred to as “vaping”, presents its own set of concerns to human health and indoor air quality. How can just vapor cause so many problems? Read more to find out!
Read More3D printing is a new tool that is starting to be used in ecology. Researchers from the University of Delaware conducted an experiment to test whether 3D printed corals impact the behavior of a coral reef fish, the blue green chromis, in a laboratory setting. The results of experiments like these can pave the way for innovative techniques for habitat manipulation studies in the future.
Read MoreOur cars are taking on more of the work of driving, and someday we may not have to drive ourselves at all. We might think this is great for the environment, but that may not be the case.
Read MoreClimate warming in the Arctic is happening faster than other regions of the globe and leading to earlier springs. The timing of spring is important for ecosystems because it often signals the arrival of food resources and favorable weather. In Arctic seabirds, springs arrival often begins the start of breeding season. A recent study looked at how the timing of spring has changed in the Arctic and what impact this may be having on Arctic seabirds based on where birds forage for food. The results suggest that birds that feed in the upper layers of the ocean have been strongly impacted by climate change and have significantly advanced their breeding.
Read MoreUnhealthy foods are a major cause of several human diseases today. The harm caused by such foods to human health is well known. Recent research shows that some of the unhealthiest foods may also be the most damaging to the environment.
Read MoreHalf of the world’s population depends on rice. We’ve studied how rice will respond to predicted changes in climate. But do we know how it will also interact with one of its most common pollutants? Researchers study how rice responds to the dual stressors of both climate change and arsenic, and ultimately find that arsenic may be the stressor we should be worried about.
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