News tagged with natural habitat

Fruit flies use alcohol as a drug to kill parasites

Fruit flies infected with a blood-borne parasite consume alcohol to self-medicate, a behavior that greatly increases their survival rate, an Emory University study finds.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Feb 16, 2012 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 12 | with audio podcast

Scientists study why the blind salamander lives so long

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have long been intrigued by the longevity of a tiny amphibian known as the blind salamander, but it now seems it may live a long time because it basically has no life.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Jul 22, 2010 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (14) | comments 7 | with audio podcast report

Bizarre giant oarfish filmed (w/ Video)

(PhysOrg.com) -- A rare giant oarfish, probably the largest bony fish in the ocean, has been filmed off the Gulf of Mexico. This is possibly the first time the fish has been observed in its natural environment.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Feb 10, 2010 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (23) | comments 5 | with audio podcast report

Plastic trash altering ocean habitats, study shows

A 100-fold upsurge in human-produced plastic garbage in the ocean is altering habitats in the marine environment, according to a new study led by a graduate student researcher at Scripps Institution of Oceanography ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created May 08, 2012 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (8) | comments 8 | with audio podcast

Endangered Philippine hawk-eagle bred in captivity

A Philippine hawk-eagle feared to be heading for extinction has been bred in captivity for the first time, its breeders said Thursday.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Apr 19, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Most stretchable spider silk reported

The egg sac silk of the cocoon stalk of the cave spider Meta menardi is the most stretchable egg sac silk yet tested, according to a study published Feb. 8 in the open access journal PLoS ONE.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Feb 08, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Tiny primate 'talks' in ultrasound

One of the world's smallest primates, the Philippine tarsier, communicates in a range of ultrasound inaudible to predator and prey alike, according to a study published on Wednesday.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Feb 08, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (5) | comments 0

New research shows how male spiders use eavesdropping to one-up their rivals

Researchers have made a new discovery into the complex world of spiders that reflects what some might perceive as similar behavior in human society. As male wolf spiders go searching for a mate, it appears they eavesdrop, ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Jan 04, 2012 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (4) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Researchers document caterpillars that mimic one another for survival

(PhysOrg.com) -- In the world of insects, high risk of attack has led to the development of camouflage as a means for survival, especially in the larval stage. One caterpillar may look like a stick, while another disguises ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Dec 15, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Endangered horse has ancient origins and high genetic diversity, new study finds

An endangered species of horse -- known as Przewalski's horse -- is much more distantly related to the domestic horse than researchers had previously hypothesized, reports a team of investigators led by Kateryna ...

Biology / Evolution

created Sep 07, 2011 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (7) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Protecting wild species may require growing more food on less land: study

In parts of the world still rich in biodiversity, separating natural habitats from high-yielding farmland could be a more effective way to conserve wild species than trying to grow crops and conserve nature on the same land, ...

Biology / Ecology

created Sep 01, 2011 | popularity 2.3 / 5 (3) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Wind farm in North Sea has positive net impact on fauna

A North-Sea wind farm has hardly any negative effects on fauna. At most, a few bird species will avoid such a wind farm. It turns out that a wind farm also provides a new natural habitat for organisms living ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Aug 08, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Increased insecticide use in the Midwest linked to landscape change

The continued growth of cropland and loss of natural habitat have increasingly simplified agricultural landscapes in the Midwest. A Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) study concluded that this simplification ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jul 11, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Parasitoid wasps protect lettuce and celery from pests

Scientists have found that a native British parasitoid wasp has been found to be very effective at controlling the shore flies that infest lettuce and celery greenhouses, damaging crops and annoying farmers.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Jul 05, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Spectacular discoveries in New Guinea

A frog with fangs, a blind snake and a round-headed dolphin are among more than 1,000 new species recently found on the incredible Melanesian island of New Guinea, environment group WWF said.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Jun 27, 2011 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (16) | comments 38