https://phys.org/biology-news/plants-animals en-us The latest science news on plants and animals A small team of bio-scientists from the University of Rostock's Institute for Biosciences and Nuremberg Zoo's Behavioral Ecology and Conservation Lab, both in Germany, has found evidence that bottlenose dolphins can sense electric fields. In their study, reported in the Journal of Experimental Biology, the group tested the ability of two captive bottlenose dolphins to sense a small electric field. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-bottlenose-dolphins-electric-fields.html Plants & Animals Sun, 03 Dec 2023 08:20:01 EST news620648234 A golden mole that "swims" in sand has resurfaced in South Africa after 87 years in the wilderness when many specialists feared it had become extinct, researchers have said. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-bashful-golden-mole-south-africa.html Plants & Animals Sat, 02 Dec 2023 10:40:01 EST news620476777 James Cook University researcher Matthew Connors has discovered two new praying mantis species with the help of citizen scientists. The finds have been published in Zootaxa. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-citizen-scientists-mantis-species.html Plants & Animals Ecology Fri, 01 Dec 2023 10:18:00 EST news620648278 The tridentiger typically inhabits semi-saline and freshwater environments located in the tropical, subtropical, and temperate regions of the western Pacific Ocean. It occupies a crucial position in the food chain, making it ecologically important. As an indicator species, the tridentiger is highly vulnerable to environmental changes, and it is likely that global climate change will result in significant changes or even loss of its habitat. Therefore, it is vital to systematically analyze the response strategies of the tridentiger to global climate change in various habitats. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-global-climate-fish-zones-typical.html Plants & Animals Ecology Fri, 01 Dec 2023 08:47:03 EST news620642821 When it comes to studying patterns in how bugs damage plants, is it important to know the average amount and type of damage? Or the variation around the average? https://phys.org/news/2023-12-key-patterns.html Plants & Animals Agriculture Fri, 01 Dec 2023 08:33:04 EST news620641982 Logging typically degrades tropical forests. But what if logging is carefully planned and carried out by well-trained workers? https://phys.org/news/2023-12-sustainably-harvest-trees-tropical-forests.html Plants & Animals Ecology Fri, 01 Dec 2023 07:57:04 EST news620639822 Recent research led by Tigga Kingston, a professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Texas Tech University, delivers a stark warning concerning the distressing decline of flying foxes and related species, also known as Large Old World Fruit Bats (LOWFBs). https://phys.org/news/2023-12-vital-species-emphasizes-action.html Plants & Animals Ecology Fri, 01 Dec 2023 06:58:04 EST news620636281 University of California, Davis, researchers are working with the Sacramento SPCA to alleviate a near-universal source of stress for cats and those who care for them: nail trimming. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-science-trim-cat.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Fri, 01 Dec 2023 03:11:45 EST news620622702 Born tail first, bottlenose dolphin calves emerge equipped with two slender rows of whiskers along their beak-like snouts—much like the touch-sensitive whiskers of seals. But the whiskers fall out soon after birth, leaving the youngster with a series of dimples known as vibrissal pits. Recently, Tim Hüttner and Guido Dehnhardt, from the University of Rostock, Germany, began to suspect that the dimples may be more than just a relic. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-bottlenose-dolphin-weak-electric-fields.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 18:00:01 EST news620582542 New research from Northern Arizona University has explained coast redwood's remarkable ability to recover from very severe fire, a rare sign of optimism amid a landscape increasingly scarred by severe fires. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-cautious-resilience-redwoods.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 17:31:03 EST news620587861 Researchers are realizing that animal communication is more complicated than previously thought, and that the information animals share in their vocalizations can be complex. For example, some animals produce calls that warn of specific dangers in the environment, such as a predator, and these calls can even contain information about the type of predator (e.g., flying vs. ground predator). These calls are known as referential calls. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-galpagos-island-warbler-population-mainland.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 17:20:04 EST news620587202 Hemlocks [Tsuga (Endl.) Carrière] are foundational, climax coniferous evergreen trees in forested ecosystems and are also iconic in cultivated landscapes. In the United States, the eastern hemlock, T. canadensis (L.) Carr., is a well-known and economically significant species for forest and cultivated landscapes. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-adelgid-resistant-hemlock-hybrids-crossroad-unveiled.html Plants & Animals Agriculture Thu, 30 Nov 2023 17:13:02 EST news620586781 Scientists are working to protect the unique qualities of cacao beans grown in the Buenaventura region on the Pacific coast of Colombia. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-tis-season-chocolate-highlight-high.html Plants & Animals Agriculture Thu, 30 Nov 2023 16:59:03 EST news620585941 Animals often use vocalizations to warn of nearby danger to others. While this information is generally intended for members of the same species, other species can eavesdrop on the warnings to use the information for their own benefit. Sentinels are animals that have warning calls so widely understood by others that those other species will form groups with them, relying on the sentinels to provide warnings of danger. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-sentinel-universally-understood-continents.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 15:16:55 EST news620579812 In humans, nodding off for a few seconds is a clear sign of insufficient sleep—and can be dangerous in some situations, such as when driving a car. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-penguins-hours-seconds-long-micronaps.html Plants & Animals Thu, 30 Nov 2023 15:10:30 EST news620579424 A new species of stalked puffball, a gasteroid fungus, has been named after the "Shai-Hulud" sandworms of Frank Herbert's iconic science fiction novel series "Dune." https://phys.org/news/2023-11-fungus-arrakis-species-dune-giant.html Plants & Animals Thu, 30 Nov 2023 15:03:58 EST news620579036 As California, the U.S. and the world work to make good on commitments to conserve 30% of oceans and lands by 2030, all strategies are on the table—and under the microscope. When it comes to the ocean, one valuable tool is marine protected areas (MPAs), regions that are defined, designated and managed for long-term conservation. Among other benefits, MPAs protect habitats and promote species diversity. They also hold value for communities and industries. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-illuminating-benefits-marine-areas-ecotourism.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 15:02:52 EST news620578968 New research on tree reproduction is helping solve a puzzle that has stumped tree scientists for decades. Many tree species exhibit a reproductive phenomenon known as "masting," where individual trees have very low seed production in most years, followed by a sudden burst of seed production that is synchronized over large parts of its range. The reason for this coordinated reproduction within a species is unclear. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-hurricanes-boost-cone-production-longleaf.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 14:59:04 EST news620578742 As Earth's climate continues to change, a plant's ability to adapt to its shifting environment is critical to its survival. Often, to stay alive a plant must move locations by releasing its seeds, but plants are rooted in the ground and cannot move themselves. Instead, they are dependent on animals or the wind to carry their seeds to a new location. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-deep-relationship.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 14:09:04 EST news620575741 A new study of a migratory songbird shows that individuals with average-sized white tail spots—a trait that is critical to successful foraging—live longer than individuals with more extreme amounts of white in the tail. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-migratory-songbird-link-white-tail.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 13:18:51 EST news620572729 A Venezuelan zoo this week welcomed the country's first three white lion cubs born in captivity, a boost for the genetically rare animal whose wild population numbers only about a dozen living in their native South Africa. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-venezuela-zoo-white-lion-cubs.html Plants & Animals Thu, 30 Nov 2023 13:14:51 EST news620572489 Dog and cat owners are familiar with the age-old debate: which of the two species is smarter? However, answering this question is impossible, especially due to the difficulty of a sound comparison. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-dogs-cats-skilled-human-gestures.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Thu, 30 Nov 2023 12:39:14 EST news620570352 There's a species of ant that is so rare, only a handful of records exist from across the entire eastern United States. North Carolina State University researcher Michelle Kirchner not only found these ants in the Triangle region of North Carolina, she is the first to document an entire colony for scientists, taxonomists and ant-thusiasts everywhere. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-rare-ant-species-rediscovered-north.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 11:58:12 EST news620567889 Plants regulate their development with a distinct group of molecular players. ROP proteins, a group of plant-specific proteins, are known to control plant tissue formation. Now, Hugh Mulvey and Liam Dolan at the GMI show that ROP proteins evolved at the transition between unicellular and multicellular plant life. The findings were published on November 30 in the journal Current Biology. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-rop-exploring-dawn-multicellular-life.html Plants & Animals Evolution Thu, 30 Nov 2023 11:00:01 EST news620557073 Hung from a common utility pole, a fiber optic cable—the kind bringing high-speed internet to more and more American households—can be turned into a sensor to detect temperature changes, vibrations, and even sound, through an emerging technology called distributed fiber optic sensing. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-periodical-cicadas-chorus-fiber-optic.html Plants & Animals Biotechnology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 10:00:04 EST news620560802 In a study published in Current Biology, researchers from the Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, together with their collaborators, reveal a groundbreaking discovery: Morphology of the orchid mantis' petal-shaped femoral lobes actually serves as structures for gliding, rather than the long-held belief that these lobes mimic flowers to attract pollinating prey. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-orchid-mantises-petal-shaped-femoral-lobes.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 08:31:16 EST news620555473 After five straight years of troubling data on the population of young rockfish in the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland officials plan to enact emergency regulations canceling this spring's trophy season for recreational anglers. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-rockfish-population-maryland-cancel-trophy.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 07:10:27 EST news620550623 A research team led by the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences' (VMBS) Gastrointestinal Laboratory (GI Lab) has validated a new diagnostic index that will help veterinarians assess chronic GI dysfunction in dogs and may hold the key to diagnosing and treating GI disease in the future. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-method-chronic-gi-disease-dogs.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Thu, 30 Nov 2023 06:28:32 EST news620548108 We humans are fixated on big brains as a proxy for smarts. But headless animals called brittle stars have no brains at all and still manage to learn through experience, new research reveals. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-brittle-stars-fine-brain.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 06:27:05 EST news620548017 University of Queensland scientists have analyzed more than 3.8 million volunteer hours of birdwatching data to identify Australia's most elusive species. The research is published in the international journal Emu. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-australia-elusive-birds.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 30 Nov 2023 04:36:53 EST news620541388