The ancient Maya empire that flourished in Central America more than a thousand years ago left behind plenty of eye-catching ruins and art. But it also appears to have left its mark on something a little less obvious: The DNA of an endangered river turtle. A new study suggests that ancient hunting, trading and raising […] Read More »
Lots of researchers have studied how green space affects human health and well-being. But what about “blue space” created by more liquid landscapes? It appears that inland waters offer a range of benefits, a review by two German researchers finds – but there are still plenty of questions left to answer about how people respond […] Read More »
A continuing global failure to crack down on a booming trade in body parts from endangered animals could soon cause some species – including rhinos and tigers — to “wink out” of existence, a conservation advocate warns. But a couple of recent developments, including a recent United Nations decision to make combating wildlife crime a […] Read More »
A group of prominent ecologists is calling on conservationists to stop bad-mouthing introduced species – and accept the fact that ecosystems will increasingly be a melting pot of “long-term residents and of new arrivals.”
“Over the past few decades, ‘non-native’ species have been vilified for driving beloved ‘native’ species to extinction and generally polluting ‘natural’ […] Read More »
Turns out we still don’t like to stray too far from a refreshing drink. A global analysis finds that, despite urbanization and modern pipelines that can carry water long distances to users, over 50% of the world’s population still lives a short walk from a river, lake or pond. But people in some parts of […] Read More »
If green is your color, then cotton may be your cloth. A new effort to rank commonly-used textiles by their environmental impact has found that organic cotton tops the list of the least damaging threads, while synthetic acrylic finished last.
“Surprisingly, very little research has been carried out to assess the currently available fibers in […] Read More »
In June 2009, researchers in Rwanda noticed a female mountain gorilla coughing as she fed in her forest home. Within days, she was dead—and researchers now conclude that she and an infant gorilla were killed by a virus that appears to have spread from human visitors.
“We usually think of viruses as jumping from […] Read More »
Across South and Central America, forests are reclaiming large swathes of countryside as rural residents move to the city. The migration trend is often seen a boon for biodiversity, as fewer people can mean less hunting, fishing, logging and land clearance. A provocative new study from Mexico’s southwestern highlands, however, argues that fewer people could […] Read More »
Here’s another unintended side effect of our feline fancy: Housecats gone wild are helping spread a potentially deadly parasite to wildlife living in protected areas, researchers in Illinois have confirmed. They study also identifies a way to use small mammals as an early-warning system for the parasite’s spread.
Toxoplasma gondii is a parasite that reproduces […] Read More »
A ban on a veterinary drug that has caused devastating vulture die-offs in South Asia is beginning to produce benefits, a new survey concludes. But vulture populations in India and neighboring nations will continue to decline without greater efforts to banish the compound from the birds’ food supply.
Since the 1990s, the region’s once robust […] Read More »
In 1280, victorious Teutonic Crusaders began building the world’s largest castle on a hill overlooking the River Nogat in what is now northern Poland. Malbork Castle became the hub of a powerful Teutonic state that crushed its pagan enemies and helped remake Medieval Europe. Now, ancient pollen samples show that in addition to converting heathens […] Read More »
The Capital of Biodiversity is facing a tsunami of toxic mercury. Spurred by rising prices, unregulated gold miners are flooding into a remote part of the Peruvian Amazon, clearing forests and contaminating the landscape with mercury used to extract the precious metal. And mercury releases could double this year alone, a new study predicts, as […] Read More »
When the chills and fever of malaria strike, some people East Africa turn to a plant known as Knobwood for relief. An extract taken from the leaves, bark or root can help tame the fever and still the chills. But Knobwood and some of Africa’s other anti-malarial plants are now threatened with over-harvesting and possibly […] Read More »
In late June 2009, researchers in Rwanda noticed a female mountain gorilla coughing as she fed in her forest home. Within days, she was dead – and a new study concludes that she and an infant gorilla were killed by a virus that appears to have spread from human visitors. The news highlights the risk […] Read More »
That Merlot with the plastic bottle-stopper may be threatening biodiversity, according to a new study of bird life in the Mediterranean oak forests that produce traditional corks.
“Montados” in Portugal and “dehesas” in Spain are agricultural grasslands dotted with the cork oak (Quercus suber) and holm oak (Quercus ilex) trees. The cork oaks produce much of […] Read More »
