Bottom-up Ecological Processes Better For Clear Waters, Study Finds
...atorsand plants, but fewer herbivores, because the predators will eat all theextra herbivores, allowing the plants to grow and thrive. The UC Davis researchers found opposite results from the model predictionsfor the two-level food webs. "The crux of the model is that the numberof levels determines how energy...Summer Science: Firefly Babies Advertise Their Bitter Taste, UD Researchers Say
...cross the backyard, consider this: Light cues keep predators fromsnacking on baby fireflies, University of Dela...coloration--as an "aposematicdisplay," which warns predators of an unappetizing or hazardous meal. Brightcolors, such as the orange and black patterns on a monar...Cut Pesticide Use In Half, Urges SFU Biologist
...species- such as birds, fish and beneficial insect predators and parasites - andwreak havoc with natural food chains. They also lead to the evolution ofmore virulent, chemical-resistant pests. Yet the chemical bombardment continues. And who is winning this "modernwar against nature"? Not us, says Winston...SFSU Biologist Deciphers Desert Animals' Whistles And Drumbeats
...ude. Nocturnal, they ward off both competitors and predators by foot-drumming. But their genetic cousins, the super-social great gerbils of Central Asia, rely on each other when danger is near. Active during the day, when the threat of predation is high, they have developed two kinds of whistles and a pattern ...Research Finds Alligator Problems Also Evident In Less Polluted Lakes
... are the perfect animals to study because they are predators at the top of the food chain, have a long life span and take several years to mature. Researchers caught, measured, tagged and withdrew blood from 50 alligators each on Lake Okeechobee, Lake Apopka and Lake Woodruff, a relatively pristine lake loca...The Fishing Hole Had Better Be Upstream From Commercial And Industrial Centers
... it creates advantages fortolerant species. "Their predators may not be tolerant," McTammany says. "Algae,which can be a food source, grows well in urbanized systems in response torunoff from over-fertilized lawns and increased light and temperature from treeremoval. Organic matter, also a good food source, ca...Wildlife Dying At The Doorsteps Of World's National Parks, Study Says
...mals are killing grizzlies, tigers and other large predators atalarming rates when they leave the confines of n...esearchers documented staggering death rates among predators alongthe borders of protected areas throughout the world. In Algonquin National Parkin Canada, for ...USGS Scientists Find New Invasive Fish Species In Florida
... if the eel becomes a favorite food item of native predators such as alligators or water snakes." Swamp eels -- or rice eels as they are sometimes called -- were first discovered in Florida waters in 1997 in two widely separated sites. In late summer 1997, USGS researchers discovered a population of swamp ee...Destructive Algae Overtaking Mediterranean Waters
... make a dent in the algaes invasion, because these predators eat at a snails pace literally, says Meinesz. He presented his analyses at a recent meeting sponsored by the Redmond, Wash.-based Marine Conservation Biology Institute. Though biological control is becoming quite common in agriculture and ga...Detecting Deer: New Method For Counting Population In Urban Areas
...e increased dramatically due to thelack of natural predators for many years and because deer cannot be hunted byhumans in settled areas. "It looks for all the world like the animals are encroaching upon humans, butit's the other way around," notes Sexton. Counting The Herd The biologists captured, marked and...Clever Chemistry Protects Beetle Babies
...quash beetlepupae would be easy picking for insect predators if they hadn't long agoperfected a science called combinatorial chemistry. In the human world it is achemical skill that pharmaceutical researchers are still learning. By variously combining three simple molecules into a veritable arsenal ofcomplex...Study 'Gone With The Wind' Provides Stellar Ecological Example
...s in 1993 toconduct an experiment, "the effect of predators on island ecosystems." Theday after the hurricane blew through the large island of Great Exuma, where theywere staying, the biologists quickly took to their boats to re-examine theislands for a suddenly different study, "the effect of natural catas...Duke Studies Show U.S. Central Plains Vulnerable To Global Warming
... predict tree mortality, the effects ofseed-eating predators on the production of seedlings and how seed dispersalaffects biodiversity. This work was sponsored by the National ScienceFoundation. In their studies of climate changes in the Central Plains, Clark and hiscolleagues analyzed pollen and fire...Beaver, Architects To The Birds
...eate a pond where theycan build a lodge, hide from predators in the water, raise offspring and storefood for the winter," says Prosser. "In the process, they are creating avariety of wetland habitat for waterfowl and other wetland-dependent birds." Editor: Ms. Prosser may be reached at 814-865-2180 or...High Carbon Dioxide Levels May Be Killing Insects
...the larvae had died inside the mine,were killed by predators such as spiders or ants, or were eaten from the insideout by the larvae of parasitic wasps. Stiling conducted the experiment at theKennedy Space Center in Florida in 16 open-topped chambers containing myrtle oakand sand-live oak. Half of the chambers...French Researchers Breed Flightless Ladybirds As Pest-Killers
...at theystay around to eat the pests. Using predators to control pests is widely seen as less harmful to...m to breed to develop captive local populations of predators thateat a broad range of creatures, including aphid, scale insects, mites andmealybugs. In t...Fewer Songbirds May Be Result Of Forest Fragmentation Across The American South, New Study Suggests
...ve discovered that cutting forests can allow large predators likeraccoons and opossums access to ground-nesting...ous. Fragmentation can alsocreate avenues in which predators are virtually funneled to nesting sites. Whilethere have been studies in the Midwest and Northeast t......ike mussels and barnacles, marine birds, and other predators inthe system could all be impacted," Estes said. Estes attributed the change in killer whale feeding behavior to a collapse inpopulations of the killer whales' usual prey, seals and sea lions. Reducedabundance of certain fish species in the open ocea...Teaching Great White Sharks To Link People With Food Is A Recipe For Disaster
...ing with the greatwhite shark, one of the ultimate predators of the seas. Tourists go diving incages that are supposed to protect them. But as interest has grown, five or moreboats at a time have sometimes jockeyed for position in the narrow channel atDyer Island near Cape Town, a magnet for great whites thank...Monkeys Have Numerical Abilities, Two Columbia Psychologists Report
...s useful in foraging for food, assessing a groupof predators or ordering the number of dominant males in one's group." With further studies, the research team hopes to answer other questionson language and numerical abilities in non-human primates. Do monkeys, likehumans, immediately identify small nu...