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. Open ecosystems—nonforested landscapes such as grasslands, shrublands and savannas—can store vast amounts of carbon while supporting water supply, biodiversity and other ecosystem services. Yet the potential of open ecosystems to serve as natural climate solutions remains ignored by policies that privilege forests. So reports a team of researchers in a policy brief published today in PLANTS, PEOPLE, PLANET. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-massive-carbon-stocks-grasslands-climate.html Environment Fri, 23 Oct 2026 13:40:01 EDT news711972747 A University of Cambridge–led analysis of maps made from satellite imagery covering over three decades and seven presidents shows how the winner of Brazil's national elections since 1990 directly affected the preservation of its globally vital ecosystems. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-brazil-presidential-elections-linked-decades.html Environment Thu, 22 Oct 2026 18:20:07 EDT news711886197 A pilot project in which Indigenous people in the Peruvian Amazon were given an unconditional basic income significantly improved community well-being, strengthened food security and supported rainforest protection, according to analysis by the University of Bath released today. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-world-basic-income-trial-boosts.html Environment Thu, 22 Oct 2026 11:30:07 EDT news711874905 A new University of Otago—Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka study reveals two vastly different life courses for one of Aotearoa New Zealand's least-studied penguin species. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-schrdinger-penguin-species-contrasting-outcomes.html Ecology Thu, 22 Oct 2026 09:20:01 EDT news711877201 Giant manta rays can grow up to nine meters (30 feet) long with a disk size of seven meters (23 feet) across and weigh up to 2,000 kg (4,400 pounds). This size leaves them with very few natural enemies once they reach adulthood at around eight to 10 years old. But giant manta ray babies, called pups, cannot rely on their size to protect them from predators that live in the open ocean, including several species of shark and orcas. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-baby-manta-rays-hunker-coasts.html Plants & Animals Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:01 EDT news711799141 An insect-driven disease that causes high mortality in white-tailed deer and mimics the symptoms of foot-and-mouth disease in cattle is still rare in New York state, but the warming climate may increase its future spread. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-virus-sickens-cows-deer-rare.html Veterinary medicine Wed, 21 Oct 2026 20:40:01 EDT news711802216 Populations of many pollinators, including bumblebees, have been crashing over the last few decades, thanks to the widespread use of chemical pesticides, loss of habitat and the acceleration of climate change. But it can be hard to know just how bad the problem is, or whether conservation strategies are helping, without relying on lethal traps—which can kill tens of thousands of bees in order to get an accurate count of their populations. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-ai-bee-lethal.html Plants & Animals Wed, 21 Oct 2026 19:40:05 EDT news711817081 Salt marsh sediment and vegetation can remain largely intact even during extreme storm surges. This was demonstrated in a large-scale experiment in which researchers transported sections of salt marsh to an experimental facility capable of producing the world's largest artificial waves. The results show how salt marshes can contribute to natural coastal protection, both in the Netherlands and beyond. The results were published in the journals Nature and Communications Sustainability. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-salt-marshes-powerful-allies-climate.html Earth Sciences Wed, 21 Oct 2026 16:40:01 EDT news711807002 New research suggests the same personality traits associated with toxic corporate leaders today may have been present at the very birth of global capitalism 400 years ago. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-world-corporate-psychopath.html Economics & Business Wed, 21 Oct 2026 14:40:06 EDT news711796285 Less favorable ocean conditions mean marbled murrelet chicks take longer to leave the nest, making them more vulnerable to predation, according to a new study of the Pacific Northwest seabird by Oregon State University scientists. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-poor-ocean-conditions-murrelet-chicks.html Plants & Animals Wed, 21 Oct 2026 13:10:01 EDT news711805021 Sitting in his narrow dugout canoe, Jean-Romeo Senguemboli frowned at the meager catch in his nets on the Central African Republic's Mbali River, where experts say deforestation is devastating the fish population. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-fishing-terrible-deforestation-devastates-central.html Ecology Wed, 21 Oct 2026 11:40:06 EDT news711794221 Anyone living along the coast of Lake Erie will be well aware of the periodic algal blooms that appear on its surface. The greenish blooms can cause rashes and other health problems and pose risks to both humans and animals. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-tackling-lake-erie-algal-blooms.html Environment Wed, 21 Oct 2026 08:40:01 EDT news711783494 Late last year, scientists in Germany published findings on a World War II munitions dump in the Baltic Sea. Some may dismiss the dump as hazardous waste, but to marine biologists it was something far more exciting: a thriving ecosystem. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-shipwrecks-reefs-hidden-toxic.html Ecology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 19:40:12 EDT news711718819 Millions of large feral animals roam Australia. Pigs, camels, deer, horses, water buffalo, cattle and goats were introduced deliberately as transport, livestock or to hunt. Many have since established wild populations. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-feral-threatened-endangered-camels-banteng.html Plants & Animals Tue, 20 Oct 2026 17:50:04 EDT news711735961 Plastics are accumulating in ecosystems around the world, and their tiny fragments can collect and carry chemical pollutants and pathogens into plants, animals and people. When fishermen in Cambodia's Mekong River became alarmed about the amounts of plastic they were hauling up with each catch, they reached out to scientists for help. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-limited-rural-communities-linked-high.html Environment Tue, 20 Oct 2026 15:10:11 EDT news711726301 California's Central Coast is headed toward more climate extremes, with hotter days, stronger storms and more intense droughts. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-central-coast-extremes-regional-california.html Environment Tue, 20 Oct 2026 14:00:19 EDT news711710862 In a boost for the conservation of one of the world's most elusive and least-understood whale species, researchers analyzing more than 18 years of underwater acoustic recordings collected off northwest Australia have discovered that Omura's whales are most likely to be found in warm, food-rich waters. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-eighteen-years-whale-reveals-key.html Ecology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 12:40:06 EDT news711708676 Archaeologists have uncovered the largest collection of Latin cave inscriptions anywhere in the Roman Empire. Early analysis of the inscriptions discovered at Cova Dones reveals that a female deity was worshipped at the site and that women had a prominent role in rituals there—highly unusual in Roman society. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-largest-roman-cave-inscriptions-spain.html Archaeology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 12:20:15 EDT news711711363 Black-necked swans, spot-flanked gallinules, southern lapwings, austral thrushes and dozens of other bird species fly across the Río Cruces Wetland, carrying the biocultural memory of the territory. Both resident birds and species that migrate throughout the year bear witness to the many changes this landscape has undergone over time. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-explore-valuable-birds-memory-territory.html Ecology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 09:20:04 EDT news711700407 Rivers provide water for everything from growing crops and running factories to the taps in our homes, but droughts can leave them struggling to meet all these demands. A new study, published in Water Resources Research, suggests that changing how water is shared could help make limited supplies go further. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-river-reveals-ease-drought-unequal.html Earth Sciences Tue, 20 Oct 2026 09:00:16 EDT news711638259 The interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS brought material from another planetary system within reach of our telescopes, but reading its chemistry poses a problem. Energetic particles encountered during its journey through space may have changed its outer layers, so how much of what astronomers detect still reflects the comet's birthplace? https://phys.org/news/2026-10-sun-meters-interstellar-comet-3iatlas.html Astronomy Tue, 20 Oct 2026 08:10:01 EDT news711696503 Juan Mayorga smiled as a stingray glided across his computer screen, moving gracefully over the seabed near Portugal's Desertas Islands, part of the Madeira archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-front-line-ocean-portugal-madeira.html Ecology Mon, 19 Oct 2026 04:40:01 EDT news711601036 A shipwreck off the coast of Turkey is the oldest shipwreck in the world, our team of archaeologists believes. There's little left of the ship itself, but based on clues from its cargo—including pottery vessels—a research team I was part of has tentatively dated the wreck to around 2700–2400 B.C. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-world-oldest-shipwreck-coast-turkey.html Archaeology Sat, 17 Oct 2026 20:30:01 EDT news711297961 A plant's roots do much of their work out of sight, pulling in water and nutrients and holding the plant in place. That makes it hard to see how plants respond when conditions underground change, and how a warming climate affects them. New Dartmouth-led studies look at the strategies plants use below the surface to adapt and survive. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-climate-tree-roots-soil-microbes.html Plants & Animals Fri, 16 Oct 2026 15:40:01 EDT news711369664 A study led by the Centre for Global Wood Security formally defines the concept of global wood security and identifies the 20 greatest challenges to wood security in the 21st century. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-wood-global-agenda-outline-core.html Environment Fri, 16 Oct 2026 11:40:03 EDT news711361875 How can bodies adapt to survive environments completely different from the ones they evolved for? https://phys.org/news/2026-10-crabs-reveal-evolution.html Ecology Fri, 16 Oct 2026 09:20:09 EDT news711355881 Manhattan's Upper West Side has been reveling in the company of its latest celebrities: a family of barn owls nested in a water tower atop a building near Central Park. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-rare-family-barn-owls-manhattan.html Ecology Thu, 15 Oct 2026 22:00:01 EDT news711292918 A University of Portsmouth scientist has helped lead a major global study, which finds that 44% of the world's reef-building coral species are now threatened with extinction—and warns the true figure is likely to be even higher. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-reef-coral-species-higher-extinction.html Ecology Thu, 15 Oct 2026 18:40:01 EDT news711291466 As governments prepare to gather in Armenia for the U.N. biodiversity summit, researchers are highlighting a conservation approach that recognizes places where nature thrives beyond conventional protected areas. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-national-explore-broader-future.html Environment Thu, 15 Oct 2026 18:00:01 EDT news711287110 Researchers from the Bazaruto Center for Scientific Studies (BCSS) Ocean Observatory have documented ancient forests that grew on the Mozambican coast thousands of years ago and have been found beneath the sea, where they now serve as hotspots teeming with marine life similar in biodiversity to coral reefs. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-year-forests-reborn-peat-reefs.html Plants & Animals Thu, 15 Oct 2026 10:00:16 EDT news711275883