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Categories: Biology: Zoology, Ecology: Sea Life
Published New threat to Antarctic fur seals
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Populations of charismatic animals have recovered since hunting ban but now struggle to find enough food.
Published Marine bacteria take a bite at plastic pollution
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A bacterium found in the sea can degrade a plastic that otherwise resists microbial breakdown in marine environments.
Published New study confirms presence of flesh-eating and illness-causing bacteria in Florida's coastal waters following Hurricane Ian
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source When Hurricane Ian struck southwest Florida in September 2022, it unleashed a variety of Vibrio bacteria that can cause illness and death in humans, according to a new study.
Published Climate change coping mechanism discovered in humble algae
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source One of the building blocks of ocean life can adapt to cope with the effects of climate change, according to new research. The discovery holds promises for biotechnology developments that could counter the negative effects of changing environmental conditions, such as ocean warming and even the reduction in the productivity of crops.
Published What phytoplankton physiology has to do with global climate
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Phytoplankton, tiny photosynthetic organisms in the ocean, play a crucial role in the global carbon cycle and influence Earth's climate. A new study reveals how variations in the physiology of phytoplankton, particularly regarding nutrient uptake, can impact the chemical composition of the ocean and even the atmosphere. This suggests that changes in marine phytoplankton physiology can affect global climate.
Published 200-year-old DNA helps map tiny fly's genetic course to new lands, modern times
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have extracted and analyzed DNA from fruit flies housed in museum collections in Lund, Stockholm and Copenhagen. Surprisingly, the researchers found the fruit flies collected in Sweden in the early 1800s were more genetically similar to 21st century flies than the Swedish samples from the 1930s.
Published Gray whales experience major population swings as a result of Arctic conditions
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Dynamic and changing Arctic Ocean conditions have likely caused three major mortality events in the eastern North Pacific gray whale population since the 1980s.
Published Coffee and cocoa plants at risk from pollinator loss
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Tropical crops such as coffee, cocoa, watermelon and mango may be at risk due to the loss of insect pollinators, finds a new study.
Published Honey bees may inherit altruistic behavior from their mothers
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source True altruism is rare behavior in animals, but a new study has found that honey bees display this trait. Additionally, they found that an evolutionary battle of genetics may determine the parent they inherit it from.
Published Win-win in muscle research: Faster results and fewer laboratory animals thanks to new method
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source To study muscle diseases, scientists rely on the mouse as a model organism. Researchers have now developed a new method that is not only faster and more efficient than conventional ones but also greatly reduces the number of experimental animals needed for studying the function of genes in muscle fibers.
Published Extraordinary fossil find reveals details about the weight and diet of extinct saber-toothed marsupial
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A 13-million-year-old saber-toothed marsupial skeleton discovered during paleontological explorations in Colombia is the most complete specimen recovered in the region.
Published Tens of thousands of endangered sharks and rays caught off Congo
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Tens of thousands of endangered sharks and rays are caught by small-scale fisheries off the Republic of the Congo each year, new research shows.
Published Killer whales' diet more important than location for pollutant exposure
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Both elegant and fierce, killer whales are some of the oceans' top predators, but even they can be exposed to environmental pollution. Now, in the largest study to date on North Atlantic killer whales, researchers report the levels of legacy and emerging pollutants in 162 individuals' blubber. The animals' diet, rather than location, greatly impacted contaminant levels and potential health risks -- information that's helpful to conservation efforts.
Published Not lazy at all: Honey bee drones
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Sometimes it is worthwhile to look at the details, to study aspects that seem to be uninteresting or were previously ignored, and see noteworthy phenomena come to light. Researchers showed that male honey bees (drones), long considered lazy, are (at times) the most active members of the colony.
Published Remains of artificial turf is an important source of pollution of the aquatic environment
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Every year, around 1,200 and 1,400 artificial turf sports fields are installed in the European Union. These fields are made up of synthetic fibers, mainly plastics, that mimic the appearance of natural grass. Recently, scientists conducted a study that characterizes and quantifies the presence of artificial turf fibers in samples collected from surface waters of the Catalan coast and the Guadalquivir River. The findings indicate that artificial turfs can be an important source of pollution in the aquatic environment, accounting for up to 15% of the plastics larger than 5 mm in length that are found floating in the aquatic environment.
Published Study clearly identifies nutrients as a driver of the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Under normal conditions, the floating macroalgae Sargassum spp. provide habitat for hundreds of types of organisms. However, the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt (GASB) that emerged in 2011 has since then caused unprecedented inundations of this brown seaweed on Caribbean coastlines, with harmful effects on ecosystems while posing challenges to regional economies and tourism, and concerns for respiratory and other human health issues.
Published Evolutionary secrets of 'Old Tom' and the killer whales of Eden revealed by genetic study
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Evolutionary biologists have for the first time decoded the genetic lineage of a famous killer whale and a pod that once worked alongside whale hunters off the coast of Australia. In the Australian tradition of claiming New Zealand's celebrities as its own, Old Tom, the leader of a pod of killer whales that famously helped whalers hunt baleen whales in the 20th century, has ancestral links to modern-day killer whales in New Zealand, according to new DNA research. Old Tom also shared a common ancestor with killer whales from Australasia, the North Pacific, and North Atlantic Oceans, but is most similar to modern New Zealand killer whales. However, most of Tom's DNA code is not found in other killer whales globally suggesting that the killer whales of Eden may have become extinct locally.
Published Epiphytes, amazing plants like moss and bromeliads found in trees, face growing threats
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Epiphytes, plants such as orchids and mosses that grow in trees, draw nutrients from the air and create refuge for all sorts of other life forms. They are the foundation of forest canopy ecosystems, but they are facing threats from human and natural disturbances.
Published Death is only the beginning: Birds disperse eaten insects' eggs
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Relationship patterns among flightless stick insects suggest that birds disperse the eggs after eating gravid females. Lab experiments previously suggested the possibility, but a new genetic analysis of natural populations in Japan now supports the idea.
Published Predator-prey defense mechanisms unlock key to marine biofuel production
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have unpicked the mechanism behind a marine feeding strategy that could provide a valuable renewable source of biofuel.