http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (AP)—Scientists in Zimbabwe say a fresh water crayfish brought from Australia is breeding out of control in the northern Lake Kariba, devouring the food sources of other fish and putting the nation's entire aquatic ecosystem at risk. http://phys.org/news279884162.html Biology Tue, 12 Feb 2013 10:00:02 EST news279884162 (Phys.org)—The environment of group-living animals influences their social behaviour in a stronger way than was previously thought, says a new study from behavioural researchers at ETH and the University of Zurich. They thereby support the very counterintuitive argument that randomness is responsible for the establishment and the maintenance of social networks. http://phys.org/news273396644.html Biology Thu, 29 Nov 2012 07:40:01 EST news273396644 University of Alberta researchers discovered that elk are more frequently and more easily disturbed by human behaviour such as ATV drivers than by their natural predators like bears and wolves. http://phys.org/news273343048.html Biology Wed, 28 Nov 2012 17:00:38 EST news273343048 Furry, agile, intelligent and voracious: the raccoon is far from being a cuddly toy, which is what many people believe when they get one as a pet. It is more like an invader that escapes and is able to adapt and survive in new habitats. According to a study, its expansion across Spain and Europe is bringing infectious and parasitic diseases like rabies. This puts the health of native species and people at risk. http://phys.org/news265372898.html Biology Tue, 28 Aug 2012 11:42:11 EST news265372898 Australia's feral camel population has dropped by an estimated 250,000 in recent years, but the arid outback is still home to the world's largest wild herd, officials said Tuesday. http://phys.org/news262353985.html Biology Tue, 24 Jul 2012 13:07:50 EST news262353985 Ladybird larvae that eat prey raised on organically-grown crops are more likely to survive than those eating aphids raised on crops grown with conventional fertiliser, a new experiment shows. http://phys.org/news260782955.html Biology Fri, 06 Jul 2012 08:50:02 EST news260782955 Ammonites changed their reproductive strategy from initially few and large offspring to numerous and small hatchlings. Thanks to their many offspring, they survived three mass extinctions, a research team headed by paleontologists from the University of Zurich has discovered. http://phys.org/news254399274.html Biology Mon, 23 Apr 2012 11:28:17 EST news254399274 The brushtail possum, a cuddly-looking marsupial protected in its native Australia, has become a reviled feral pest in New Zealand, its fur providing a lucrative sideline for hunters who supply a burgeoning luxury goods industry. http://phys.org/news254034552.html Biology Thu, 19 Apr 2012 06:30:01 EST news254034552 Rice farmers should cut the use of pesticides that kill the natural predators of the planthopper, one of the most destructive pests of the key crop, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) has said. http://phys.org/news243241709.html Biology Fri, 16 Dec 2011 07:30:01 EST news243241709 Authorities in the Spanish tourist hotspot of Benidorm said Friday they have reopened its beaches to tourists after removing more than a tonne of dangerous jellyfish. http://phys.org/news225719764.html Biology Fri, 27 May 2011 12:56:26 EST news225719764 (AP) -- An insect with a voracious appetite, no domestic natural predators and a taste for everything from apples to lima beans has caused millions of dollars in crop damage and may just be getting started. http://phys.org/news225089326.html Biology Fri, 20 May 2011 05:49:44 EST news225089326 (PhysOrg.com) -- Invasive species cost more than $100 billion a year in damages in the United States, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. While most researchers attribute their success to a lack of natural predators in their new territory, Cornell researchers offer proof for a less popular explanation: Invasive species fare so well in their new digs because their host species lack an evolutionary history with -- and defenses against -- the new invaders, making the hosts especially vulnerable to attack. http://phys.org/news221815510.html Biology Tue, 12 Apr 2011 08:25:33 EST news221815510 A giant red stag thought to be Britain's biggest wild animal was killed for its antlers, according to reports on Tuesday. http://phys.org/news207313114.html Biology Tue, 26 Oct 2010 12:10:10 EST news207313114 The White House has tapped a former leader of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and the Indiana Wildlife Federation as the Asian carp czar to oversee the federal response to keeping the invasive species out of the Great Lakes. http://phys.org/news203273933.html Biology Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:59:14 EST news203273933 (PhysOrg.com) -- Since the early nineties the EU has implemented policies to reduce the dramatic negative effects of the use of pesticides on farmland. Nevertheless, a Europe wide study showed that insecticides and fungicides still had major negative effects on wild plant and animal species on arable farms. http://phys.org/news183883746.html Biology Thu, 28 Jan 2010 07:30:01 EST news183883746 (PhysOrg.com) -- Cornell researchers released a well-studied beetle predator to test its ability to ward off a hemlock-killing aphid-like insect. http://phys.org/news177151741.html Biology Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:20:02 EST news177151741 (PhysOrg.com) -- In addition to providing fundamental insights into the early evolution of the estrogen receptor, research by a team at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine may lead to a contraceptive for female lampreys - a jawless fish considered an invasive pest species in the Great Lakes region of the United States. This could prove important to the Great Lakes region, where lampreys aggressively consume trout, salmon, sturgeon and other game fish. http://phys.org/news165125517.html Biology Thu, 25 Jun 2009 05:40:01 EST news165125517 Authorities in northwestern China have resorted to using a contraception-abortion pill to rein in a plague of gerbils which is threatening the local desert ecosystem, state media said Wednesday. http://phys.org/news157186549.html Biology Wed, 25 Mar 2009 07:56:23 EST news157186549