Press Releases — Page 58

Josh Miller likes to call himself a conservation paleobiologist. The label makes sense when he explains how he uses bones as up-to-last-season information on contemporary animal populations. Bones, he says, provide baseline ecological data on animals complementary to aerial counts, adding a historical component to live observation. In his November cover article for the Ecological Society of America’s journal Ecology, he…

Landscape corridors and connectivity in conservation and restoration planning   We live in a human-dominated world. For many of our fellow creatures, this means a fragmented world, as human conduits to friends, family, and resources sever corridors that link the natural world. Our expanding web of highways, cities, and intensive agriculture traps many animals and plants in islands and cul-de-sacs…

The pressures of global trade may heighten disease incidence by dictating changes in land use. A boom in disease-carrying ticks and chiggers has followed the abandonment of rice cultivation in Taiwanese paddies, say ecologist Chi-Chien Kuo and colleagues, demonstrating the potential for global commodities pricing to drive the spread of infections. Their work appears in the September issue of ESA’s…

Scott Collins, Regent’s Professor of Biology and Loren Potter Chair of Plant Ecology at the University of New Mexico became President of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) on August 10, 2012. Elected by the members of ESA for a one-year term, Collins will chair the ESA Governing Board, the elected governing body of the Society, which provides vision and…

The Ecological Society of America (ESA) will present its fifth annual Regional Policy Award to Ken Bierly of the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board during the Society’s upcoming conference in Portland, Oregon. The ESA award recognizes an elected or appointed local policymaker who has an outstanding record of informing political decision-making with ecological science. “We are delighted to present this prestigious…

Special “Citizen Science” issue of Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment accompanies the event   Media Advisory For immediate release: 20 July 2012 Contact: Liza Lester (202) 833-8773 x 211; llester@esa.org   Though public participation in scientific research has deep roots in the history of science, in the last few years it has taken off spectacularly from launch pads across…

Scientists examine process chain of natural gas, from rural extraction to urban distribution   For immediate release: 12 July 2012 Contact: Nadine Lymn (202) 833-8773 x 205; nadine@esa.org   “Fracking” stories about shale gas extraction hit the news daily, fueling a growing conflagration between environmental protectionism and economic interests. Otherwise known as hydraulic fracturing, fracking has become a profitable venture…

The Ecological Society of America (ESA) will present eight societal awards recognizing outstanding contributions to ecology during ESA’s 97th annual meeting in Portland, Oregon. The meeting, which will be held from August 5 – 10, is expected to draw over 4,500 scientists from around the globe to share their research and ideas. Eminent Ecologist Award: Robert Naiman, University of Washington,…

Symposium takes on the ecological science underpinning dollar assessments of ecosystem services at the 97th annual meeting of the Ecological Society of America in Portland, Oregon   Media Advisory For immediate release: 21 June 2012 Contact: Liza Lester (202) 833-8773 x 211; llester@esa.org   How much is a stream worth? Can we put a dollar value on a wetland? Some…

Ecologists review the human and biological communities of wadis, arroyos, gulches, washes, and other intermittent flows. WASHINGTON-‘When the River Runs Dry’ is a familiar song in Australia. Some rivers in the arid center of the continent flow only after a stiff monsoon season, and smaller tributaries all over the country commonly shrink to puddled potholes and dry river beds during…

Congressmen lauded for their commitment to biological research WASHINGTON-‘When the River Runs Dry’ is a familiar song in Australia. Some rivers in the arid center of the continent flow only after a stiff monsoon season, and smaller tributaries all over the country commonly shrink to puddled potholes and dry river beds during the dry season. But rivers also run dry…

President Steward Pickett and other ESA members to talk to kids and families about ecology in nation’s capitol WASHINGTON, DC – The Ecological Society of America (ESA), a professional organization of 10,000 ecological scientists, will join 500 other scientific societies for the second annual USA Science & Engineering Festival on April 28 and 29 in Washington, DC. Hosted by Lockheed…

Exploring Life on Earth: Preserving, Utilizing and Sustaining our Ecosystems   Registration is now open for the Ecological Society of America’s (ESA) 97th Annual Meeting on August 5-10, 2012, in Portland, Oregon. The meeting is expected to draw more than 4,300 scientists, policy makers, educators and concerned citizens to share emerging research. Jane Lubchenco, an Oregon State marine ecologist and…

Implications for ducks, fish, and landscape management During peak migration days in the early 1900s, tens of thousands of canvasback ducks could be seen floating and diving on Minnesota’s Lake Christina. Since midcentury, changes to the lake have diminished this grand, iconic spectacle. Restoring it will require both top-down control of life in the lake, and bottom-up management of the surrounding…

Ecosystems are shifting under pressure from human activities, invasive species, and a changing climate, presenting us with hard philosophical and practical choices on conservation strategy. Should we preserve parkland as time capsules of past and current wilderness, or embrace changing species ranges and demographics to encourage new diversity as new ecosystems form? Eighty scientists, policy makers and resource managers will…

Graduate students from Washington University, University of Tennessee and Florida International University will travel to nation’s capital to speak to lawmakers about investment in science WASHINGTON, DC – The Ecological Society of America (ESA), a professional organization of 10,000 ecological scientists, is pleased to announce the recipients of its 2012 Graduate Student Policy Award.   The award affords ESA graduate student…

Interdisciplinary panel reviews US nitrogen pollution trends, risks, and mitigation strategies Nitrogen is both an essential nutrient and a pollutant, a byproduct of fossil fuel combustion and a fertilizer that feeds billions, a benefit and a hazard, depending on form, location, and quantity. Agriculture, industry and transportation have spread nitrogen liberally around the planet, say sixteen scientists in the latest…

New report reviews strategies to monitor and set standards for mercury, sulfur and nitrogen emissions   Air pollution is changing our environment and undermining many benefits we rely on from wild lands, threatening water purity, food production, and climate stability, according to a team of scientists writing in the 14th edition of the Ecological Society of America’s Issues in Ecology. In…

This month in ecological science: the evolution of a stream, from barren moonscape to salmon run, modeling the contribution of sport fishermen’s skills and preferences to patterns of overfishing, and the unknown risks of fracking for nearby streams and rivers. These articles are published in the October issues of the Ecological Society of America’s (ESA) journals. Evolution of a Stream:…

This month in ecological science, researchers report on evolutionary traps, the strong response of an undesirable non-native plant to elevated CO2 and the potential of new crop cultivars to meet human needs and ease environmental costs of agriculture. These articles are published in the September issues of the Ecological Society of America’s (ESA) journals. Evolutionary traps in human-dominated landscapes A…