scientists

Jellyfish May Benefit From Climate Change

Jellyfish May Benefit From Climate Change

By Jenessa Duncombe During some years in the spring, so many jellyfish wash ashore on the beaches of Washington, Oregon, and California that they carpet the sand in thick, gooey mats. The jellyfish Velella velella can pile so high that taken together, they likely equal six and half blue whales’ worth of stuff. Researchers now […]

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    Are We Managing Invasive Species Wrong?

    Are We Managing Invasive Species Wrong?

    By Tara Lohan European green crabs arrived on the eastern shores of North America in the early 1800s, likely as ship ballast stowaways or affixed to boat hulls. They found their way to the continent’s western shores by the 1980s, and they’ve caused trouble in every new ecosystem they invade. Wherever green crabs (Carcinus maenas) […]

    First-of-Its Kind Study Offers Blueprint for Ocean Protection

    First-of-Its Kind Study Offers Blueprint for Ocean Protection

    A first-of-its-kind study has examined the benefits of protecting the world’s oceans. The study, published in Nature on Wednesday, endorsed protecting 30 percent of the world’s land and ocean by 2030 in order to protect biodiversity, restore fisheries and combat the climate crisis. “Ocean life has been declining worldwide because of overfishing, habitat destruction and […]

    This Endangered Australian Bird Species Is Forgetting Its Song

    This Endangered Australian Bird Species Is Forgetting Its Song

    Can animals, like humans, lose their culture when separated from others like themselves? A new study provides rare evidence that they can. The study began when a research team searching for a critically endangered Australian bird noticed something unusual: The birds they encountered weren’t singing the songs the researchers expected to hear. “They didn’t sound […]

    Ozone-Depleting CFC Chemicals Will Reemerge From Ocean by 2075, Study Finds

    Ozone-Depleting CFC Chemicals Will Reemerge From Ocean by 2075, Study Finds

    The Montreal Protocol banning ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in 1987 has been hailed as an example of successful international collaboration to stop an environmental threat. But, like a creature from a horror movie, those banned chemicals could rise from the depths to stalk our atmosphere once again. That’s the finding of a new study, which concluded […]

    Amazon Rainforest Is Probably Contributing to Climate Crisis, Study Finds

    Amazon Rainforest Is Probably Contributing to Climate Crisis, Study Finds

    The Amazon rainforest likely emits more greenhouse gases than it absorbs, a first-of-its-kind study has found. The study, published in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change on Thursday, is the first to consider emissions other than carbon dioxide, such as methane from floods and cattle, and black carbon from forest-clearing fires. “Cutting the forest is […]

    Billions of Cicadas May Soon Be Coming to Trees Near You

    Billions of Cicadas May Soon Be Coming to Trees Near You

    By John Cooley and Chris Simon A big event in the insect world is approaching. Starting sometime in April or May, depending on latitude, one of the largest broods of 17-year cicadas will emerge from underground in a dozen states, from New York west to Illinois and south into northern Georgia. This group is known […]

    New Study Links Meat Consumption to Numerous Health Risks

    New Study Links Meat Consumption to Numerous Health Risks

    The World Health Organization has determined that red meat probably causes colorectal cancer in humans and that processed meat is carcinogenic to humans. But are there other health risks of meat consumption? A new study published in BMC Medicine on Tuesday sought to find out. Researchers investigated whether meat consumption was linked to any of […]