Scientists at the Woods Hole Research Center are producing a high-resolution “National Biomass and Carbon Dataset” for the year 2000 (NBCD2000), the first ever inventory of its kind. Through a combination of NASA satellite datasets, topographic survey data, land use/land cover data, and extensive forest inventory data collected by the U.S. Forest Service, this “millennium” dataset will serve as an invaluable baseline for carbon stock assessment and flux modeling in the United States.
The
Coral reefs, the rainforests of the sea, feed a large portion of the world’s population, protect tropical shorelines from erosion, and harbor animals and plants with great potential to provide new therapeutic drugs. Unfortunately, reefs are now beset by problems ranging from local pollution and overfishing to outbreaks of coral disease and global warming. Although most scientists agree that reefs are in desperate trouble, they disagree strongly over the timing and causes of the coral reef cri
The 3 day July whale and dolphin theme cruises in the Bay of Biscay produced sighting of 11 different species of whales, dolphins and porpoises – an impressive record for anywhere in the World.
The Biscay Dolphin Research Programme (BDRP) is at the forefront of scientific research into cetaceans (the collective term for whales and dolphins) in the Eastern European Atlantic and as part of its education role, the charitable organisation also operates a selected number of eco-touris
A robotic bat head that can emit and detect ultrasound in the band of frequencies used by the world’s bats will give echolocation research a huge boost.
The Bat-Bot, developed by IST project CIRCE, can also wriggle its ears, a technique often used by bats to modulate the characteristics of the echo.
CIRCE developed the Bat-Bot to closely mimic the amazing echolocation skills of bats and to act as a tool for further research in echolocation.
“Sonar in water is
Samples collected by WCS in international collaborative effort to ID, contain disease
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has positively identified the pathogenic form of avian flu–H5N1–in samples taken from birds last week in Mongolia by field veterinarians from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). It is the first instance of this viral strain occurring in wild migratory birds with no apparent contact to domestic poultry or waterfowl.
Present in Mon
Ecologists may need to reconsider methods of targeting conservation effort in species rich biodiversity hotspots such as rainforests, according to scientists in the journal Nature, 18 August 2005.
A consortium of scientists, funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), has produced the first global database of bird biodiversity. Their analyses show that hotspots of diversity in species richness, rarity and threat occur in widely differing geographical areas and th
If Cornell University researchers and their colleagues have their way, cheetahs, lions, elephants, camels and other large wild animals may soon roam parts of North America.
“If we only have 10 minutes to present this idea, people think we’re nuts,” said Harry Greene, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at Cornell. “But if people hear the one-hour version, they realize they haven’t thought about this as much as we have. Right now, we are investing all of our megafauna h
The first full map of where the world’s birds live reveals their diversity ’hotspots’ and will help to focus conservation efforts, according to research published in Nature today (18 August).
The findings are drawn from the most complete and detailed picture of bird diversity yet made, based on a new global database of all living bird species.
The map also shows that the pattern of bird diversity is much more complicated than previously thought.
The number of living Florida panthers has grown from a previously estimated 30 to a recently counted 87 as a result of a controversial breeding effort to improve the genetic health of the endangered and inbred animals, according to a new assessment.
Hybrid kittens born to panthers brought into the area from Texas have “about a three times higher chance of becoming adults as do purebred ones,” reports a paper planned for publication in January 2006 in the British journal Ani
The Technical Research Centre of Finland, VTT has developed a low-temperature plasma burning process for controlled and safe incineration of water purification resin used in the primary circuit of nuclear power plants. Storing radioactive waste in the form of ash takes less space and is easier to manage. VTT and its partners have signed an agreement to build a half-scale plasma burning process pilot.
Resin is used for purification of primary circuit water of nuclear power plants,
Marine environments around the world are being threatened by exotic species of the moon jellyfish being dispersed by international shipping, according to new research.
Using genetic data and computer simulations of ocean currents and water temperatures, researchers from the University of New South Wales and the University of California, Davis, have revealed that the moon jellyfish could not have migrated naturally, according to a report in today’s Proceedings of the Nationa
The impact of global warming has become obvious in high latitude regions, including Alaska, Siberia and the Arctic, where melting ice and softening tundra are causing profound changes. But, contrary to popular belief, the most serious impact in the next century likely will be in the tropics, says a group of researchers headed by a University of Washington ecologist.
Scientists have noted warming at higher latitudes that already appears to be causing some flowers to bloom earlie
Cornell University researchers will present new audio evidence supporting the existence of the phantomlike ivory-billed woodpecker Aug. 24 and 25 at the 123rd American Ornithologists’ Union meeting in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Cornell Lab of Ornithology researcher Russ Charif will begin presenting the new audio evidence at 10:30 a.m. PST Aug. 24 in Lotte Lehmann Hall at the University of California-Santa Barbara (UCSB). Lab members Ron Rohrbaugh and Ken Rosenberg and Director Jo
New York-based Veterinarians in Mongolia in unprecedented international effort
Wildlife health experts from the Bronx Zoo-based Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) warn that efforts to control the spread of avian flu across Asia and beyond must focus on better management practices on farms and in markets.
WCS is currently working with Mongolian agencies on the ground in Mongolia’s Kovsgol province, collecting samples from wild birds that have recently contracted the
Since passage of the Endangered Species Act in 1973, over 1,300 endangered species have been protected in the United States and its territories. In the forthcoming issue of Ecology Letters, Male & Bean assess 14 years of endangered plant and animal status trends and show that the length of time species are protected, and the amount of money spent on their conservation are key variables in explaining trends.
Overall, about half of species protected are no longer declining and only 35 % o
Coastal populations and ecosystems are more likely to bounce back from extreme coastal disasters by protecting local environments and building on local knowledge, according to a report published in Science today.
And the aftermath of the Asian tsunami has given valuable insight into handling extreme coastal disasters – inevitable as the world’s coastal population is set to double by 2030 and global warming continues to exacerbate extreme weather conditions.
The research t
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