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…
Steward T.A. Pickett, a plant ecologist with the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies has been named President of the Ecological Society of America (ESA). Elected by the members of ESA for a one-year term, Pickett presides over the world’s largest professional society of ecologists. Its membership comprises of 10,000 researchers, educators, natural resource managers, and students representing over 20 topical…
Honduran earthquake of 2009 destroyed half of coral reefs of Belizean Barrier Reef lagoon Earthquake underscores need for conservation planning to take into account infrequent natural disasters Earth’s coral reefs have not been faring well in recent decades, facing multiple threats from pollution, disease, elevated water temperatures, and overfishing. Often referred to as the “rainforests of the Sea,” coral reefs support…
Bat conservation and the emerging field of aeroecology to be featured at ESA’s 2011 Annual Meeting in Austin, Texas Golf courses and coffee plantations are some of the unlikely bat habitats that could be considered in conservation plans, say scientists presenting research at the Ecological Society of Americas (ESA) 96th Annual Meeting from August 7-12, 2011. Using Doppler weather radar…
Ecological Society of America announces 2011 award recipients The Ecological Society of America (ESA) will present seven awards to distinguished ecologists at its 96th Annual Meeting from August 7-12, 2011 in Austin, Texas. The meeting, which has the theme “Earth Stewardship: Preserving and enhancing the earth’s life-support systems,” draws a critical combination of more than 3,500 scientists, policymakers and concerned…
The Ecological Society of America (ESA) will present its fourth annual Regional Policy Award to Karen Hixon of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission (TPWC) at the Society’s 96th Annual Meeting on Sunday August 7 in Austin, Texas. The ESA award recognizes a regional or local policymaker who has an outstanding record of informing political decision-making with ecological science. Hixon…
This month in ecological science, researchers evaluate the U.S. National Fire Plan to restore western U.S. forests, fire’s key role in the return of a native lizard to the Ozarks and what historical fire records and sediment cores can tell us about the Arctic Tundra’s fire regime. These articles are available online or published in recent issues of the Ecological…
Press registration now open for meeting of the world’s largest organization of ecological scientists Registration is now open to members of the media for the Ecological Society of America’s (ESA) 96th Annual Meeting on August 7-12, 2011 in Austin, Texas. The meeting, which has the theme “Earth Stewardship: Preserving and enhancing the earth’s life-support systems,” is expected to draw more than…
Research shows that low frequency sound, such as noise produced by offshore activities, causes lesions in the sensory organs of squid, octopus and cuttlefish Noise pollution in the oceans has been shown to cause physical and behavioral changes in marine life, especially in dolphins and whales, which rely on sound for daily activities. However, low frequency sound produced by large…
Lowering ship speed reduces encounter distances with humpback whales and off-road vehicles alter moose distribution and habitats This month in ecological science, researchers find that cruise ships travelling at faster speeds have closer encounters with humpback whales in Alaskan waterways and ecologists assess the damage to wildlife from off-road vehicles in rural Alaska. These articles are available online or published in…
Graduate students from the University of Illinois, West Virginia University and University of Washington 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 2011 Graduate Student Policy Award. The award affords ESA…
Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment issue examines the basic elements of life In the search for life on Mars or any planet, there is much more than the presence of carbon and oxygen to consider. Using Earth’s biogeochemical cycles as a reference point, elements like nitrogen, iron and sulfur are just as important for supporting life. As explored in…
Ask the Eucalyptus connoisseurs Koalas may be the pickiest marsupials around: They evolved to feed almost exclusively on the leaves of Eucalyptus trees, and they are highly selective when it comes to which species and even which individual trees they visit. When the furry leaf-eater settles on a particular tree, it relies on a number of factors, including taste, to…
Study finds that bare, beetle-killed trees may actually decrease crown fire likelihood Conventional wisdom about the effects of the mountain pine beetle (MPB) on forest fires across western North America has often assumed that the beetle-induced death of trees has led to an increase in rapidly spreading forest fires. However, in a study published online recently in Ecological Monographs, a journal…