By Point Blue Conservation Science 2/21/2019 How wildlife respond to climate change is likely to be complex. To better understand the effects of climate change on the bird community in the Sierra Nevada region, new research published today from Point Blue Conservation Science examines the impacts to birds from a recent extreme drought (2013-2016). The drought resulted in the widespread…
By Princeton University 2/20/2019 Tokita, a graduate student in ecology and evolutionary biology (EEB), is partially funded by a fellowship from the National Science Foundation. He works with Corina Tarnita, an associate professor in EEB, to create computational models for how social groups — including ants and humans — develop properties like division of labor and social networks. Read more here: https://www.princeton.edu/news/2019/02/20/tokita-receives-graduate-student-policy-award-ecological-society-america
By UC Santa Cruz 2/13/2019 Sara Gonzalez, a Ph.D. student in ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz, is among the recipients of the Katherine S. McCarter Graduate Student Policy Awards from the Ecological Society of America (ESA). This award provides graduate students with the opportunity to receive policy and communication training in Washington, D.C., and meet with lawmakers….
By National Science Foundation 2/6/2019 Scientists find that decades of degradation created ‘resistant’ coral reefs Marine biologist Peter Edmunds was prepared for the worst. Back-to-back Category 5 hurricanes had torn through the Caribbean in September 2017. The scientist and his colleagues weren’t sure what they’d find when they visited fragile coral reefs near the island of St. John after the…
Read more about each award winner and view photos on ESA’s Ecotone blog February 13, 2019 For Immediate Release Contact: Alison Mize, alison@esa.org, (202) 833-8773 ext. 205 The Ecological Society of America (ESA) is honored to announce this year’s Katherine S. McCarter Graduate Student Policy Award (GSPA) recipients. This award provides graduate students with the opportunity to receive…
By THÜNEN INSTITUTE 2/4/2019 Sustainable exploitation of wild fish is possible, but only when fisheries policies are implemented that ensure precautionary catch regulations Due to overcapacities in fishing fleets and insufficiently regulated catches, many fish stocks in the Northeast-Atlantic had reached very low levels by the end of the 20th century. However, an increasing number of stocks has shown signs…
By The University of Oklahoma 2/6/2019 An OU team from the Geographical Ecology Group conducted 54 experiments in both grazed and ungrazed grasslands to determine the salt cravings of insects and the types of insects that crave salt. NORMAN–A University of Oklahoma team from the Geographical Ecology Group has published a new study in the journal Ecology on the nutritional preferences of…
By University of Tasmania 2/7/2019 Monitoring of sea urchins in Port Phillip Bay over a four-year period has revealed that booming urchin populations and the barren grounds they created by overgrazing kelp beds are likely to persist in the long term unless drastic action is taken. High-density populations of the Australian urchin Heliocidaris erythrogrammahave been monitored in Port Phillip Bay since…
By Deakin University 2/1/2019 Decades after their implementation, no-take marine reserves are coming up short in their ability to nurture the Great Barrier Reef’s shark populations back to natural levels, according to new research from a Deakin University ecologist. The research, published today in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, found that after decades of protection, shark populations on the…
In the Pacific Northwest, dry air interacts with low snow conditions to affect pika abundances at different elevations February 4, 2019 For Immediate Release Contact: Zoe Gentes, 202-833-8773 ext. 211, zgentes@esa.org Although it has been ranked as the cutest creature in US National Parks, the American pika is tough, at home in loose alpine rocks in windswept mountain…
Researchers say mismatches of scale between social and ecological systems are a key contributor to many conflicts involving introduced-species management February 4, 2019 For Immediate Release Contact: Zoe Gentes, 202-833-8773 ext. 211, zgentes@esa.org Introduced and invasive species can present big problems, particularly when those species are charismatic, finds a recently published paper in the Ecological Society of America’s…
By Simon Fraser University 1/25/2019 A species of frog endemic to the Pacific Northwest faces a 50 per cent increase in the probability of extinction by the 2080s due to climate change, according to a new study published by SFU researchers. The mountain-dwelling Cascades frog thrives in extreme climatic conditions, ranging from dozens of feet of snow in winter to…
Upcoming research in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment Wednesday, 30 Jan 2019 For Immediate Release Contact: Zoe Gentes, 202-833-8773 ext. 211, zgentes@esa.org Get a sneak peek into these new scientific papers, publishing on January 31, 2019 in the Ecological Society of America’s journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. Parks for sharks are most successful when humans…
By Swansea University Prifysgol Abertawe 1/23/2019 A new study of Tasmanian devils has revealed that a transmissible cancer which has devastated devil populations in recent years is unlikely to cause extinction of the iconic species. New research led by Dr Konstans Wells from Swansea University has revealed that it is more likely that the disease will fade-out or that the devils will coexist…
New mathematical model shows dramatic decreases in ringed seal populations due to projected low snow conditions January 23, 2019 For Immediate Release Contact: Zoe Gentes, 202-833-8773 ext. 211, zgentes@esa.org Arctic sea ice is now declining at a rate of 12.8 percent per decade – 2012 had the lowest amount of summer ice on record. The drastic change has…
By MBARI 1/17/2019 Oxygen—it’s a basic necessity for animal life. But marine biologists recently discovered large numbers of fishes living in the dark depths of the Gulf of California where there is virtually no oxygen. Using an underwater robot, the scientists observed these fishes thriving in low-oxygen conditions that would be deadly to most other fish. This discovery could help…
By University of Wisconsin-Madison 1/17/2019 The fires in Yellowstone National Park began to burn in June 1988. A natural feature of the landscape, park managers expected the fires to fizzle out by July, when rains historically drenched the forests and valleys of the world’s first national park. But the rains never came. Unusually hot, dry and windy that year, more fires…
By University of Tokyo 1/16/2019 Whale sharks, the world’s largest fish, likely endure periods of starvation and may eat more plants than previously thought, according to the first results of a new health check developed at the University of Tokyo. Ocean scientists now have a powerful, simple tool to discover the diets, migrations, and conservation needs of this endangered species….
By Michigan State University 1/11/2019 A team of scientists from Michigan State University (MSU) and the University of Wisconsin analyzed 30 years of data for 365 lakes in the northeastern and Midwestern U.S. to test whether changes in temperature and precipitation affect water clarity, which measures the cloudiness of the water. The group’s work is featured in a paper in…
January 14, 2018 For Immediate Release Contacts: Teresa Mourad, 202-833-8775, teresa@esa.org Alison Mize, 202-833-8773, alison@esa.org The Ecological Society of America announces a Society-endorsed undergraduate education framework, termed the Four-Dimensional Ecology Education (4DEE) framework. The 4DEE framework positions ESA as a leader in educational programming and/or professional development, provides opportunities to expand membership and partnerships, and can serve as a…
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