As the Northeast of the United States was hammered by thundersnow this week, students, parents and perhaps those working from home had the opportunity to indulge in outdoor winter activities. For many, being in the snow again is losing its luster. As an Associated Press article noted, “The Northeast has already been pummeled by winter not even halfway into the…

An impressive work of wasp art is discovered in an ordinary attic, lizards that use venom to lower the blood pressure of prey could contribute to new medications, researchers translate prairie dog alarms and discover a language, contestants submit ideas for bridges designed to prevent wildlife from becoming roadkill and street art in China raises awareness of wooden chopstick waste….

The unseen world of soil microbiota is full of surprises: Take, for instance, tiny animals called water bears that thrive in almost any location on Earth (and even outer space) through suspended animation. And even a shape-shifting slime mold that cultivates bacteria in order to  harvest it in the future. These are only two of the organisms populating soil—yet there…

A study published this week in Nature compared the U.S. economic downturn with a current ecological issue: a decline in biodiversity. In the study, economist Andrew Haldane of the Bank of England and zoologist Robert May of Oxford University basically described the financial system as having similar weaknesses as a monoculture. That is, if all banks are run equally, they…

Video games that guide the movement of paramecia, dogs trained to aid in data collection, the evolution of seeds in the Amazon Rainforest, environmental degradation captured as art and the successful rescue of more than 100 bats stranded by the devastating floods in Australia. Here are stories in ecology for the third week in January 2011. PAC-mecium: Stanford University researchers…

Here are some highlights from the latest ESA Policy News by Science Policy Analyst Terence Houston.  Read the full Policy News here. HOUSE: COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN TO REFOCUS PRIORITIES, PROBE CLIMATE SCIENCE Among the new priorities of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee in the 112th Congress will be an  investigation of climate science. Committee Chairman Ralph Hall (R-TX) opposes…

To an ant, a piece of garnet or a shark’s tooth is merely another boulder to excavate for the expansion of the nest. And for humans, these bits of treasure would largely go unnoticed as just another grain in an anthill. But, as the blog Neatorama pointed out this week, every inch of sand is a world of discovery to…

Recipes for lionfish and other invasive species, the microbial communities likely inhabiting Lady Gaga and other humans, hidden ecosystems in caves and underneath Antarctica, explaining evolution through a graphic novel and the big flavor of tiny life forms. Here are the latest stories in ecology for the first week in January 2011. Invasivore’s cookbook: Discover’s Discoblog listed a couple of…

In the case of the African butterfly Bicyclus anynana, females develop ornate wings and court males if they spend the larval stage in a dry, cool environment. The reverse occurs, according to Kathleen Prudic from Yale University and colleagues, when the butterflies are exposed to wetter, warmer environments. “As expected, female Bicyclus anynana in warmer moister conditions that mimic the…

This post contributed by Ashwin Bhandiwad, marine biologist and filmmaker When my colleague and good friend Austin Gallagher told me he was thinking of starting a film festival focused on science and conservation, I relished the opportunity. Austin and I are graduate students and share a passion for the marine environment. Like all graduate students, we have had many conversations…

The following links highlight ecology from the month of December, but there are several science-related end-of-year lists floating around as well.

This post contributed by Nadine Lymn, ESA Director of Public Affairs Clouds are not spheres, mountains are not cones, coastlines are not circles, and bark is not smooth, nor does lightning travel in a straight line. —Mandelbrot, The Fractal Geometry of Nature As the year 2010 draws to a close and we find ourselves in the midst of winter’s icy grip,…