News tagged with habitat changes

Time to find a second Earth, WWF says

Carbon pollution and over-use of Earth's natural resources have become so critical that, on current trends, we will need a second planet to meet our needs by 2030, the WWF said on Wednesday.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Oct 13, 2010 | popularity 3.4 / 5 (17) | comments 46

Rainforest collapse drove reptile evolution

(PhysOrg.com) -- Global warming devastated tropical rainforests 300 million years ago. Now scientists report the unexpected discovery that this event triggered an evolutionary burst among reptiles -- and ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created Nov 29, 2010 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (12) | comments 16 | with audio podcast

Hunters, not climate change, killed giant beasts 40,000 years ago

The first Australians hunted giant kangaroos, rhinoceros-sized marsupials, huge goannas and other megafauna to extinction shortly after arriving in the country more than 40,000 years ago, new research claims.

Biology / Ecology

created Mar 22, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (12) | comments 25 | with audio podcast

Scientists set 2020 goal for improving Pacific Ocean's health

The world faces well-known milestones for reducing carbon dioxide emissions in the coming decades to reduce the dangers of climate change. Now an international consortium is doing the same to demand action against threats ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jun 01, 2009 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (14) | comments 2

When evolution is not so slow and gradual

What's the secret to surviving during times of environmental change? Evolve…quickly.

Biology / Evolution

created Jun 02, 2009 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (8) | comments 0

Climate change models may underestimate extinctions

Predictions of the loss of animal and plant diversity around the world are common under models of future climate change. But a new study shows that because these climate models don't account for species competition ...

Biology / Ecology

created Jan 04, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (8) | comments 6 | with audio podcast

World-first global study links climate to severe habitat loss

(PhysOrg.com) -- In a world first, University of Queensland and CSIRO scientists have measured the relationship between current climate, climate change and habitat loss on plants and animals on a global scale. ...

Biology / Ecology

created Jan 05, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 3

Study documents widespread extinction of lizard populations due to climate change

A major survey of lizard populations worldwide has found an alarming pattern of population extinctions attributable to rising temperatures. If current trends continue, 20 percent of all lizard species could ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 13, 2010 | popularity 2.8 / 5 (10) | comments 5 | with audio podcast

Latest suspect in colony disorder: Australian honeybees

Disease-carrying honeybees imported from Australia may be responsible for a mysterious disorder that's decimated bee hives around the country, and federal regulators say they'd consider import restrictions if necessary.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Jun 22, 2010 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (6) | comments 8

Fanged frog, 162 other new species found in Mekong

(AP) -- A gecko with leopard-like spots on its body and a fanged frog that eats birds are among 163 new species discovered last year in the Mekong River region of Southeast Asia, an environmental group said ...

Biology / Ecology

created Sep 25, 2009 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (6) | comments 0

Adding vast forests to cut climate change could boomerang, study says

Planting a tree is always a good thing, right? After all, trees provide natural beauty and wildlife habitat, and are good for the environment.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 13, 2011 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (6) | comments 5

Rapid coral death by a deadly chain reaction

(Phys.org) -- Most people are fascinated by the colorful and exotic coral reefs, which form habitats with probably the largest biodiversity. But human civilisation is the top danger to these fragile ecosystems ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created May 24, 2012 | popularity 4.2 / 5 (5) | comments 6 | with audio podcast

New study ranks 'hotspots' of human impact on coastal areas

(Santa Barbara, Calif.) -- Coastal marine ecosystems are at risk worldwide as a result of human activities, according to scientists at UC Santa Barbara who have recently published a study in the Journal of ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jul 09, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (5) | comments 1

Feds designate polar bear habitat in Alaska

(AP) -- The Obama administration said Thursday it is designating more than 200,000 square miles in Alaska and off its coast as "critical habitat" for polar bears, an action that could add restrictions to ...

Biology / Ecology

created Oct 22, 2009 | popularity 2.9 / 5 (7) | comments 1

Cutting fishing could buy time for coral reefs

Stopping people fishing around Caribbean coral reefs by designating them legally protected marine reserves could help some of them survive the effects of a changing climate by more than 50 years.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jun 29, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 3 | with audio podcast