How donkeys digging wells help life thrive in the desert
For thousands of years, horses and donkeys have been some of our species' most important partners.
Plants & Animals
Apr 29, 2021
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News tagged with sonoran desert
DNA helps conservation of elusive tequila bat
Scientists studying the near-threatened tequila bat, best known for its vital role in pollinating the Blue Agave plant from which the drink of the same name is made from, have analyzed its DNA to help inform conservationists ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 6, 2020
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214
Research suggests that trees absorb less carbon dioxide as the world's temperature rises
The world's forests play an important role in mitigating climate change. They are carbon sinks, meaning they absorb more carbon dioxide than they emit. But according to new research, the most prolific tree in North America—the ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 25, 2020
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326
Biologists discover why one species of fruit fly is dependent on a single cactus species
(Phys.org)—Researchers studying Drosophila pachea, a species of fruit fly that lives only in the Sonoran desert, have discovered why it is that the fly is wholly dependent on a single cactus species. It's due, they write ...
Heat waves like the one that's killed 14 in the southern US are becoming more frequent and enduring
Heat waves like the one that engulfed parts of parts of the South and Midwest and killed more than a dozen people are becoming more common, and experts say the extreme weather events, which claim more lives than hurricanes ...
Environment
Jun 30, 2023
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When hotter and drier means more, but eventually fewer, wildfires
There is abundant evidence that changes in the climate, both increased temperature and reduced precipitation, are making wildfires worse in the western U.S. The relationship between climate and wildfire seems obvious and ...
Environment
Aug 19, 2021
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Cardinals living in adjacent deserts are sharply distinct in genetics and song
New research suggests that populations of the Northern Cardinal —one of the most ubiquitous backyard birds in the United States— are undergoing speciation in two adjacent deserts. This study, which analyzed genetics and ...
Ecology
Dec 12, 2018
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3
Distant volcanic eruptions foster saguaro cacti baby booms
One hundred and thirty years ago, the volcano Krakatoa erupted in what is now Indonesia, unleashing a cataclysm locally and years of cool temperatures and rain globally. On the far side of the world, a bumper crop of saguaro ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 25, 2016
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A new ocean for the desert
As I let the air out of my buoyancy vest and slip under the water of the University of Arizona's Biosphere 2 ocean, I hear a steady hum reminding me of the machinery working behind the scenes to filter the water and keep ...
Environment
Apr 1, 2014
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Competition in a rough neighborhood: Plant success in a desert environment
Many people think of deserts as inhospitable places devoid of life, but numerous plants and animals have adapted to this harsh environment, where they often compete for limited resources. In desert environments, the most ...
Ecology
Dec 31, 2013
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