http://phys.org/biology-news/ en-us Phys.Org provides the latest news on biology, evolution, microbiology, biotechnology The origins of a young animal might have a significant impact on its behavior later on in life. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Radolfzell, Germany, have been able to demonstrate in hand-reared blackbirds that urban-born individuals are less curious and more cautious about new objects than their country counterparts. This study sheds light on an interesting debate on whether personality differences between rural and urban birds are behavioral adjustments to urban environments, or if there is an underlying evolutionary basis to the existence of different personalities in urban habitats. http://phys.org/news290793526.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:10:01 EST news290793526 The history of a new type of crab, nicknamed 'The Hoff' because of its hairy chest, which lives around hydrothermal vents deep beneath the Southern Ocean and Indian Ocean, has been revealed for the first time. http://phys.org/news290793315.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:00:03 EST news290793315 Researchers at the University of Exeter found that older male burying beetles make better fathers than their younger counterparts. The study found that mature males, who had little chance of reproducing again, invested more effort in both mating and in parental care than younger males. http://phys.org/news290760963.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:00:01 EST news290760963 It's not a hacker lab. At Brandeis University, sophisticated computational models and advances in graphical processing units are helping scientists understand the complex interplay between genomic data, virus structure and the formation of the virus' outer "shell"—critical for replication. http://phys.org/news290789299.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:48:38 EST news290789299 Swainson' s Thrushes, from a local population near Bolinas, CA spend their winters together in Mexico, according to a new tracking study released by Point Blue Conservation Science, (Point Blue, formerly PRBO). This result is important because it shows that the conservation of habitat for these local populations in California is tightly linked with climate and habitat changes in Mexico, where these birds spend their winters, 1,600 miles away. http://phys.org/news290789247.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:47:34 EST news290789247 Anyone who has ever owned a pet will tell you that it has a unique personality. Yet only in the last 10 years has the study of animal personality started to gain ground with behavioral ecologists, said Jennifer Verdolin of the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, in Durham, NC. http://phys.org/news290782563.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:56:10 EST news290782563 Conservationists Tuesday warned that the number of rare Chinese white dolphins in Hong Kong waters has fallen to its lowest level in a decade of monitoring, and urged the government to immediately create more protected areas. http://phys.org/news290776591.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:40:01 EST news290776591 A team of internationally recognized feline experts including veterinarians and feline scientists co-chaired by Dr Sarah Ellis from the University of Lincoln, U.K. and Dr Ilona Rodan, Director of Cat Care Clinic, Wisconsin, U.S.A. were invited by the International Society of Feline Medicine (ISFM) and the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) to compile guidelines for veterinarians, owners and those working with cats on how to meet the environmental needs of the domestic cat. The new guidelines appear in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery. http://phys.org/news290773959.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 11:32:48 EST news290773959 Like a stealthy enemy, blast disease invades rice crops around the world, killing plants and cutting production of one of the most important global food sources. Now a study by an international team of researchers has shed light on how the rice blast fungus, Magnaporthe oryzae, invades plant tissue. The finding is a step towards learning how to control the disease, which by some estimates destroys enough rice to feed 60 million people annually. http://phys.org/news290773454.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 11:24:23 EST news290773454 Images of the inside of a domestic fly taken at the University of Granada using a microtomograph—an instrument that produces high resolution images by scanning tiny animals—has won the prize for Best Film of 2013 at "MicroCT Meeting 2013", an international conference in microtomography recently held in Hasselt, Belgium. http://phys.org/news290773371.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 11:23:00 EST news290773371 Conservationist group WWF on Tuesday urged Romania and Bulgaria, home to the last viable wild sturgeon populations in the European Union, to protect the species, threatened by illegal fishing and caviar trade. http://phys.org/news290766894.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:00:01 EST news290766894 Leon Cantas' doctoral research shows that the immune response of the host to a bacterial infection may have a significant effect on the development of bacteria's resistance to antibiotics. http://phys.org/news290763296.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:35:08 EST news290763296 Europe is home to a high proportion of the world's leading animal breeding organisations. Research being carried out by an EU-funded QUANTOMICS project is helping these breeders to remain competitive in global markets. http://phys.org/news290763203.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:33:30 EST news290763203 Treezilla, the monster map of trees, was launched by The Open University and partners on 14 June 2013. The citizen science project aims to map every tree in Britain through Treezilla.org and the related apps. http://phys.org/news290759007.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:50:01 EST news290759007 Many people in Europe are critical of genetically modified (GM) food, due to safety concerns. A Eurobarometer survey, published in 2010, revealed that the European public tends to be worried on a "mediate level" about GM food, with people in Austria being particularly concerned. Today, genetically modified maize is cultivated commercially, mainly in Spain and Portugal. Nonetheless, authorised GM Organisms (GMO) may enter the European market as feed for animals or in food products. http://phys.org/news290758971.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:40:01 EST news290758971 The discovery of a gene associated with a persistent viral infection that causes an incurable disease—ovine progressive pneumonia (OPP)—in sheep has led to the development of a genetic test that can be used to help reduce the impact of the disease. http://phys.org/news290758166.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:30:01 EST news290758166 Solitary bees are twice as likely to pollinate the flowers they visit as their more sociable counterparts, according to a new study. http://phys.org/news290754784.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:30:08 EST news290754784 Research undertaken by the Cardiff University Otter Project has revealed a number of disease-causing parasites in the bodies of dead otters. The findings were revealed at the BBC Summer of Wildlife event held at the National Museum of Wales. http://phys.org/news290754457.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:07:45 EST news290754457 (Phys.org) —A species of spider that, unusually, lives in a colony but hunts alone at night is the subject of a new study by an international team of scientists including University of Sussex biologists. http://phys.org/news290753733.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:00:51 EST news290753733 (Phys.org) —A new species of fungus that causes life-threatening infections in humans and cats has been discovered by a University of Sydney researcher. http://phys.org/news290753692.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:55:09 EST news290753692 Proposed experiments with animal-human embryos cleared the first regulatory hurdle Tuesday, reports said, as Japanese scientists seek permission for tests that could see human organs produced inside the growing body of an animal. http://phys.org/news290748684.html Biology Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:31:31 EST news290748684 Millions of moths have engulfed Madrid in a population explosion blamed on spring rains, a sudden blast of summer heat and winds that have wafted them in as unwelcome guests to the Spanish capital. http://phys.org/news290710077.html Biology Mon, 17 Jun 2013 17:48:03 EST news290710077 The pesticides, many of which are currently used in Europe and Australia, are responsible for reducing the regional diversity of invertebrates in streams and rivers by up to 42 percent, researchers report in the Proceedings of the US Academy of Sciences (PNAS). http://phys.org/news290695155.html Biology Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:00:15 EST news290695155 An antibiotic has been found to stimulate its own production. The findings, to be published in PNAS, could make it easier to scale up antibiotic production for commercialisation. http://phys.org/news290695227.html Biology Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:00:01 EST news290695227 Iceland has resumed its disputed commercial fin whale hunt, with two vessels en route to catch this season's quota of at least 154 whales, Icelandic media reported on Monday. http://phys.org/news290698748.html Biology Mon, 17 Jun 2013 14:42:53 EST news290698748 Amphibian populations are declining worldwide and a major cause is a deadly fungus thought to be spread by bullfrogs, but a two-year study shows they can also die from this pathogen, contrary to suggestions that bullfrogs are a tolerant carrier host that just spreads the disease. http://phys.org/news290691794.html Biology Mon, 17 Jun 2013 12:43:38 EST news290691794 When it comes to honey bees, more mates is better. A new study from North Carolina State University, the University of Maryland and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that genetic diversity is key to survival in honey bee colonies – meaning a colony is less likely to survive if its queen has had a limited number of mates. http://phys.org/news290683913.html Biology Mon, 17 Jun 2013 10:32:02 EST news290683913 How does a social animal – mouse or human – gain dominance over his or her fellow creatures? A unique experiment conducted by Dr. Tali Kimchi and her team in the Weizmann Institute's Neurobiology Department provides some unusual insight into the social behavior that enables a social hierarchy, complete with a head honcho, to form. http://phys.org/news290682869.html Biology Mon, 17 Jun 2013 10:14:37 EST news290682869 The plant genus Lepidiums is a small group of representatives of the economically important cabbage family Brassicaceae. Most commonly known as peppercress or peppergrass Lepidiums includes around 180 species worldwide. In a new extensive study, published in the open access journal PhytoKeys, scientists explore the diversity within the New Zealand Lepidiums oleraceum and allied species. http://phys.org/news290681936.html Biology Mon, 17 Jun 2013 09:59:17 EST news290681936 Researchers at the UPM have revealed decisive aspects to address the control of the fusariosis, a disease caused by garlic rot during storage. http://phys.org/news290677995.html Biology Mon, 17 Jun 2013 09:10:03 EST news290677995