https://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. During his morning runs, Rod Keogh had no doubt that the whale poo he saw washed up on the beach had value. Science has finally caught up with him. Samples collected by the South Australian man have contributed to a groundbreaking study of the diets and microbiomes of southern right whales, led by Macquarie University in Sydney and Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland. The study is now published in the journal Molecular Ecology. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-beachcomber-fuels-whale-breakthrough.html Ecology Fri, 03 Jul 2026 08:50:06 EDT news702287382 Australia is home to some of the world's most beautiful reefs. This includes the lush Great Southern Reef, which wraps around Australia's southern coastline, and the world-renowned Great Barrier Reef. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-starfish-urchins-decimating-australia-reefs.html Ecology Wed, 01 Jul 2026 12:20:07 EDT news702125041 Australia's Great Southern Reef is built not by coral but by seaweed. The seaweed forests on these rocky reefs stretch more than 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles) around southern Australia. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-destroying-australia-underwater-forests-seaweed.html Ecology Mon, 29 Jun 2026 14:00:01 EDT news701952361 The closest thing marine taxonomists have to the Olympics is now underway in San Diego. But instead of racing for medals, leading scientists are spending two weeks working together to catalog the extraordinary diversity of life along the California coast. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-california-unidentified-coastal-species-dna.html Ecology Fri, 26 Jun 2026 12:00:02 EDT news701684521 Destructive fishing practices and inadequate management allowed industrial fisheries operating in the waters of Saint Pierre and Miquelon to dump about 80,000 metric tons of fish back into the ocean from 1950 to 2022, with authorities failing to track the wasteful practice. This is enough fish to fill 32 Olympic-sized pools. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-industrial-fisheries-discarded-metric-tons.html Ecology Mon, 22 Jun 2026 11:30:02 EDT news701078943 Many animals exhibit fascinating collective behaviors, which allow them to move, search for food, reproduce and avoid threats more effectively than they would alone. One of these behaviors is queuing migration, which essentially entails traveling as a group in an organized line or procession. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-ancient-amber-fossil-captures-mites.html Evolution Wed, 17 Jun 2026 07:00:01 EDT news700735961 Around the world, ocean warming is causing fish to move poleward in search of cooler water. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-climate-fish-cooler-route-blocked.html Plants & Animals Fri, 12 Jun 2026 11:40:05 EDT news700477980 Fossil fragments found in the U.K. have been identified as remains of the largest scorpions ever. Measuring more than a meter in length, Praearcturus gigas was among the first large predators to ever stalk the land. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-world-largest-scorpion-revealed-million.html Evolution Wed, 03 Jun 2026 09:40:02 EDT news699695521 You're cooking dinner, distracted, and your hand brushes a hot pan. Nerve signals race to your spinal cord and back to yank your arm away in a fraction of a second, with no thought required. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-billion-crickets-farmed-food-year.html Plants & Animals Mon, 18 May 2026 15:20:05 EDT news698324411 Lobster had one of the greatest reputation makeovers in food history. Once treated as "food for the poor," it is now served in expensive restaurants, dipped in butter and presented as a delicacy. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-cricket-nuggets-caterpillar-cookies-canadians.html Economics & Business Mon, 18 May 2026 14:40:01 EDT news698326801 Most of the Bahamas' signature seafood stocks are being fished harder than the sea can replace them, according to a new paper led by Sea Around Us researchers and published in Frontiers in Marine Science. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-overfishing-bahamian-seafood-staples-years.html Ecology Mon, 18 May 2026 12:28:44 EDT news698326081 U.S. consumers are willing to pay more for lobster harvested using ropeless fishing technology designed to reduce whale entanglement risks, according to new University of Maine research. A study led by Qiujie "Angie" Zheng, associate professor of business analytics in the University of Maine's Maine Business School, found that consumers are willing to pay an average of $3.42 more for a lobster roll made with lobster harvested using ropeless fishing technology when presented with information on animal welfare. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-consumers-pay-lobster-harvested-ropeless.html Economics & Business Sat, 16 May 2026 17:30:01 EDT news697810215 As ocean temperatures rise and marine ecosystems change, scientists are working to understand how valuable species like the American lobster will respond. New research from William & Mary's Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences & VIMS suggests that one source of resilience may come from the microscopic bacterial communities living on lobster embryos. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-lobster-embryo-microbiomes-resilient-future.html Ecology Sat, 16 May 2026 10:00:01 EDT news697991220 The first study to measure the full economic value of bottom trawling in Europe's waters calculates that the destructive fishing practice imposes up to €16 billion annually in net costs to society. The research is published in the journal Ocean & Coastal Management. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-europe-seafloor-fishing-profitable-societal.html Environment Tue, 28 Apr 2026 18:00:01 EDT news696615361 It might be a divided lobster, but it has united New Englanders in fascination. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-rare-lobster-caught-fishermen-cape.html Ecology Tue, 28 Apr 2026 02:31:14 EDT news696562234 Amber from the Kachin region of Myanmar has preserved a wealth of fossils, offering insights into the diversity of the Cretaceous fauna of a 100-million-year-old forest ecosystem. The site continues to yield previously unknown species. LMU researchers have now discovered the fossil of a true bug (Heteroptera) with an unusual morphological feature for insects—large claws on its front legs which recall the grasping appendages of crabs. These so-called chelae, which function like pincers or forceps, are extremely rare in insects. The finding is reported in the journal Insects. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ancient-amber-reveals-true-bug.html Evolution Wed, 22 Apr 2026 17:30:03 EDT news696093481 Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) rank among the most powerful explosions in the universe, releasing immense energy in intense flashes of gamma rays. The most distant GRBs originate from the era when the first stars and galaxies formed. Detecting them allows astronomers to probe the early universe and understand how the first heavy elements formed and how the earliest stellar populations lived and died. Missions like HiZ-GUNDAM, a satellite planned for launch in the 2030s by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), aim to detect these distant explosions in real time. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-distant-gamma-ray-explosions-precisely.html Astronomy Tue, 14 Apr 2026 18:30:01 EDT news695404202 Common human painkillers also work on Norway lobsters, according to research from the University of Gothenburg. This is further evidence that crustaceans may feel pain and that more humane methods of killing them need to be developed. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-painkillers-pain-responses-norway-lobsters.html Plants & Animals Mon, 13 Apr 2026 09:20:02 EDT news695289050 Researchers from the University of Maine, in partnership with the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR), are analyzing more than 20 years of fishery survey data from the Gulf of Maine to examine how environmental change is reshaping marine ecosystems. The work aims to understand how changes impact the effectiveness of long-running DMR surveys that inform fishery management. It will also provide a model for evaluating and adapting survey methods to inform effective, science-based assessment and management of culturally and economically important marine resources like lobster, herring, and shrimp. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-analysis-tracks-years-coastal-species.html Ecology Wed, 01 Apr 2026 15:00:03 EDT news694260961 Solutions for a sustainable future can sometimes be found in centuries-old traditions. Indonesia's Blue Economy Roadmap is about driving economic growth through the sustainable use of ocean resources, while protecting marine ecosystems for the future. One promising way to achieve this goal is to integrate regional fishing practices based on Indigenous knowledge. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-indigenous-wisdom-indonesia-efforts-sustainable.html Ecology Sun, 22 Mar 2026 10:00:03 EDT news693050801 Jie Wu, an engineering graduate student, was studying a type of striking white beetle found in Southeast Asia and attempting to figure out how to mimic its brilliant color when an unexpected discovery upended the experiment. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-biodegradable-plantbased-packaging-natural-fibers.html Materials Science Tue, 17 Mar 2026 12:40:01 EDT news692969582 When she was growing up, Sophie Adenot plastered her childhood bedroom with posters of rockets launching from Cape Canaveral. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-sophie-adenot-french-woman-fly.html Space Exploration Fri, 13 Feb 2026 16:30:01 EST news690207044 Some lobster mothers produce offspring that are far more likely to survive—in findings that could help safeguard lobster diversity. University of Exeter researchers, working in partnership with the National Lobster Hatchery (NLH) in Cornwall, studied European lobsters that survived the first few weeks of life. The paper, published in the journal Aquaculture, is titled "Hatchery lobster releases risk genetic bottlenecking via survival skews with maternal effects." https://phys.org/news/2026-02-lobster-hatcheries-safeguard-genetic-diversity.html Ecology Fri, 13 Feb 2026 14:10:01 EST news690205633 On July 2, 2025, the China-led Einstein Probe (EP) space telescope detected an exceptionally bright X-ray source whose brightness varied rapidly during a routine sky survey. Its unusual signal immediately set it apart from ordinary cosmic sources, triggering rapid follow-up observations by telescopes worldwide. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-einstein-probe-black-hole-white.html Astronomy Tue, 10 Feb 2026 10:27:44 EST news689941621 Cold spray whipped off the ropes as a diesel engine throbbed in the background. One by one, empty shellfish pots came over the side of the fishing boat, occasionally containing the remnants of crab and lobster claws and carapaces. Something strange was going on. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-octopus-uk-south-west-coast.html Plants & Animals Sat, 31 Jan 2026 13:40:04 EST news688743285 Governance arrangements that fit social-ecological context help support fishery sustainability. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-context-role-fishery-sustainability-foundation.html Agriculture Tue, 27 Jan 2026 11:47:23 EST news688736822 A new report has revealed that a dramatic population bloom of the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) off the South West coast is having significant effects on fisheries and marine ecosystems. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-reveals-scale-consequences-uk-south.html Plants & Animals Tue, 27 Jan 2026 11:08:34 EST news688734481 A dome-fronted submersible sinks beneath the waves off Indonesia, heading down nearly 1,000 meters in search of new species, plastic-eating microbes and compounds that could one day make medicines. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-submersibles-revealing-deep-sea.html Earth Sciences Mon, 26 Jan 2026 02:08:01 EST news688615583 Around the world, wildlife and environmental crime is surging. It is estimated to be the fourth largest organized transnational crime sector, and to be growing at a rate two to three times faster than the global economy. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-crime-wildlife-surging-australia-reforms.html Ecology Mon, 19 Jan 2026 11:00:01 EST news688042485 In the shallow waters of the Florida Keys, juvenile Caribbean spiny lobsters are unwittingly meeting their doom by stumbling into naturally occurring ecological traps, according to a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-juvenile-lobsters-fall-deadly-natural.html Plants & Animals Fri, 02 Jan 2026 11:10:01 EST news686572696