Ecology, The Environment and Conservation

Rogue trees are being ‘fingered’ by gene detectives using a well-known technique to catch criminals.

Newcastle University scientists are using DNA fingerprinting to help insurers identify trees that are causing houses to subside.

Often disputes can last for several years, as when two trees of the same kind grow in an area it is very difficult to find out which one is behind the problem. This is because their roots – which can grow underneath a house and cause the subsidenc

Extinction rates of native California plants have been studied by three researchers who found that previously designed mathematical and computer models were biased because they left out the human element in their predictions, according to an article published in the August 20 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. They conclude with the key concern that “understanding the relationship between habitat loss and loss of biodiversity is central to the development of sound conservation policy.”

UC Irvine researchers are leading the effort to understand the causes and effects of one of the world’s leading environmental problems — air pollution. They are studying both regional and worldwide air pollution issues, ranging from the effects of freeway exhaust to the role dust storms and forest fires may play. UCI is also involved in a large-scale commuter transportation project designed to cut back on auto emissions and is home to the Air Pollution Health Effects Laboratory, which continues

A new study of marine ecosystems suggests that the preservation of biodiversity is more than just a lofty goal – it’s an absolute necessity to keep the system healthy and prevent both local or regional extinction of multiple species.

The population balance between various fish species, their competitors and their predators are all essential to the proper functioning of the ecosystem, the study showed, and overfishing of any one species can have ripple effects that destabilize the whole

Though it has long been known by scientists that an ecosystem needs different kinds of plants and animals for optimal functioning, University of Georgia scientists have recently found that the genetic diversity of species within a habitat also affects ecosystem processes.

“It is not just the quantity of species diversity that matters, it is also the quality of genetic diversity,” said lead author Mike Madritch, an ecology doctoral student at UGA. Madritch studied carbon and nitrogen fluxes

Russian scientists have found one more cause of depletion of the ozone layer. They think that abyssal gases can go to the surface and reach stratosphere, deteriorating the ozone shield. Underground nuclear explosions enforce this process. A geologist Boris Golubov of the Institute of Geosphere Dynamics RAS and a climatologist Grigoriy Kruchenitsky of Central Aerology Observatory are authors of this hypothesis.

Winter and spring are the most common seasons for ozone holes above Yakuti