Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Virus prevalence associated with habitat
Levels of virus infection in lobsters seem to be related to habitat and other species, new studies of Caribbean marine protected areas have shown.
Ecosystem diversity drives the origin of new shark and ray species
Biologists how different oceanographic conditions in the Gulf of California and the Baja California Peninsula influenced formation of new species of sharks and rays.
Hunting threatens one of the world's most amazing wildlife migrations
As the world looks to tighten up the illegal capture of wildlife, migratory birds are being threatened by widespread and unsustainable hunting across the Asia-Pacific region. New research has revealed...
Microplastics found in Florida's birds of prey for first time
A new study has confirmed and quantified, for the first time, the presence of microplastics in terrestrial and aquatic birds of prey in Florida, including hawks, ospreys and owls. The...
Mammoths, mastodons and the fruit they left behind at Fermilab
Scientists at the Department of Energy's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory are constantly pushing at the boundaries of the unknown in their attempt to understand the origin and physical properties of...
Scientists alter genes of innate immune cells with DNA-snipping tool
A UCLA research team has successfully used the powerful gene-editing tool known as CRISPR-Cas9 to alter the DNA of mature innate immune cells, some of the body's first responders to...
Immunity passports could help end lockdown, but risk class divides and intentional infections
If you've already recovered from the coronavirus, can you go back to the workplace carefree?
'Vampire fish' gorged on Great Lakes trout until the invasive species was subdued
A sea lamprey has no jaw, no proper teeth and no bones. Yet this predator can attach like a suction cup to a fish 100 times its size, use its...
Genetic study suggests domestic goats got pathogen-resistant gene from wild relatives
An international team of researchers has found evidence that suggests wild relatives of domestic goats passed on a gene to their domesticated relatives that boosts their pathogen resistance. In their...
Producing ethane from methane using a photochemical looping strategy
A team of researchers from the University of Lille, CNRS, Centrale Lille, University of Artois, in France, and Keele University in the U.K has developed a way to produce ethane...
Bullied South Korea apartment workers killing themselves, reports say
Employees of South Korea's vast apartment complexes who have been bullied are resorting to suicide, according to local press reports.
New UC Merced chancellor is a farmworker's son and UC alum
Juan Sánchez Muñoz, 53, the son of a Joaquin Valley farmworker, has been named the new chancellor of UC Merced. Muñoz will lead the youngest and most diverse UC campus.
Grasshoppers are perfectly aware of their own coloration when trying to camouflage
A research team from the Pablo de Olavide University of Seville, led by Pim Edelaar, from the institution's Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemical Engineering, has carried out an experimental...
The genome of jojoba: The only plant to store wax in its seeds
The seeds of jojoba are one of the only known sustainable sources of liquid wax esters. They have been used as an eco-friendly replacement for similar oils that were once...
Plant virus-like particles as vehicles for therapeutic antibodies
Monoclonal antibodies are those that originate from identical immune cells having a common origin. They are highly effective, non-toxic and can specifically target diseased cells, and are therefore used in...
Sex as stress management in microbes
Why is sex so popular? The question of why so many organisms reproduce sexually has mystified evolutionary biologists since before Darwin, who wrote, "The whole subject is as yet hidden...
The ins and outs of sex change in medaka fish
Larval nutrition plays a role in determining the sexual characteristics of Japanese rice fish, also called medaka (Oryzias latipes), report a team of researchers led by Nagoya University. The findings,...
New velvet gecko discovered on one of Australia's northern islands
Scientists from Queensland Museum, Griffith University, University of Melbourne and the Northern Territory Government have described a colorful new velvet gecko from Groote Eylandt in the Northern Territory.
'Heat resistant' coral developed to fight bleaching
A team of scientists has successfully produced in a laboratory setting a coral that is more resistant to increased seawater temperatures.
'A unique circumstance': Black bear sow with 5 cubs spotted near Penticton
The B.C. Conservation Service is warning people in the Penticton, B.C., area about a black bear sow, recently out of hibernation, with five cubs and it's asking members of the...
How the Coronavirus Has Changed Animals' Landscape of Fear
The pandemic lockdowns are providing a window into how a wariness of humans uniquely shapes other species’ behavior -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
Pandemics and Intensive Farming: is there a relationship?
The current pandemic caused by COV-SARS-2 is the result of the transmission of a virus from animals to humans. Today, we know the root cause was a virus found in...
Global coronavirus cases surpass 5M
Global COVID-19 cases passed 5 million Thursday after the World Health Organization announced the largest single-day increase in infections.
Global coronavirus cases pass 5M
Global COVID-19 cases passed 5 million Thursday after the World Health Organization announced the largest single-day increase in infections.
Test finds iPhone 7 emitted twice the amount of radiation reported to regulators
The Chicago Tribune spent approximately a year investigating the radiofrequency radiation emitted by cellphones. They stuck an iPhone 7, among other phones, into liquid that mimics human tissue, and found...
The dog park is open again. Should you use it?
As cities and province begin to ease COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, off-leash dog parks are being reopened. But is it safe to go back?
Researchers show how fishmeal and oil alternatives can support aquaculture growth
As the world increasingly turns to aqua farming to feed its growing population, there's no better time than now to design an aquaculture system that is sustainable and efficient.
Look: Reported alligator in Oklahoma neighborhood was exotic lizard
Police in Oklahoma said officers who responded to a report of an alligator wandering in a residential neighborhood ended up capturing something no less unusual -- a tegu lizard.