Gutless marine worms on a Mediterranean diet: Animals can synthesize phytosterols
Cholesterol and phytosterol are sterols, fatty compounds essential for many biological processes such as the functioning of cell membranes. Up to now, it has been assumed that phytosterols are characteristic for plants, and cholesterol for animals, a.....»»
New biosensor illuminates physiological signals in living animals
Eric Schreiter and Luke Lavis thought they had figured it out. In 2021, the Janelia group leaders reported that they had developed a way to combine Schreiter's engineered protein biosensors and Lavis's bright, fluorescent Janelia Fluor dyes......»»
A 41-year-old transformed his body with 2 diet changes and 1 simple workout technique
A 41-year-old transformed his body with 2 diet changes and 1 simple workout technique.....»»
Small "no-take zone" can help protect critically endangered hammerhead shark in Columbia
Researchers are advocating for a "no-take zone" off the coast of Colombia after one of the world's smallest and most threatened hammerhead species was found to do very little traveling outside of a Marine Protected Area in the region......»»
Female elephants rumble to say "let"s go!" Namibian study shows males do too, a sign of unexpected social bonds
In elephant family groups made up of related females and their young, it is clear that the animals produce vocal sounds to coordinate action. This happens when it's time to leave a waterhole, for example. The matriarch or dominant female steps away f.....»»
Scientists track plastic waste in pristine Canada marine park
Old tires, discarded cups, and cigarette butts litter the magnificent Saguenay Fjord, a marine protected area in eastern Canada that attracts belugas and other whales seeking respite......»»
How plastic pollution poses challenge for Canada marine conservation
One of the largest producers of plastic waste per capita, Canada is struggling to protect its designated marine protected areas from this pollution, experts warn......»»
Mysterious Pacific Ocean sounds identified as a type of whale—a new AI app helps track them
A team of oceanographers and marine biologists from the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center and Oregon State University has identified a mysterious noise heard in the Pacific Ocean for two decades as the sounds of Bryde's whales......»»
A new genetic analysis of animals in the Wuhan market in 2019 may help find COVID-19"s origin
A new genetic analysis of animals in the Wuhan market in 2019 may help find COVID-19"s origin.....»»
Tropical cyclone intensity exacerbated by increasing depth of ocean mixed layer, finds study
Tropical cyclones can have severe consequences for both the marine and terrestrial environments, as well as the organisms and communities who inhabit them. In the oceans, there can be alterations in sea surface temperature that disrupt biological pro.....»»
Beetles cooperate on tricky dung moves
Dung beetles are among the strongest animals in the world. They also possess an exceptional ability to cooperate. Research shows that female and male spider dung beetles together are able to move large dung balls across difficult obstacles. However,.....»»
Small populations of Stone Age people drove dwarf hippos and elephants to extinction on Cyprus
Imagine growing up beside the eastern Mediterranean Sea 14,000 years ago. You're an accomplished sailor of the small watercraft you and your fellow villagers make, and you live off both the sea and the land......»»
Surface water sampling reveals large numbers of juvenile krill undetected by conventional monitoring methods
In 2018–2019, researchers of Wageningen Marine Research joined the Japanese research vessel Kaiyo-maru (Fisheries Agency Japan; FAJ) on an Antarctic expedition to sample the upper surface waters with the Surface and Under Ice Trawl. Results showed.....»»
Unraveling an ancient European extinction mystery: Disappearance of dwarf megafauna on paleolithic Cyprus
Scientists have unraveled a mystery about the disappearance of dwarf hippos and elephants that once roamed the picturesque landscape on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus before paleolithic humans arrived......»»
Team discovers naturally occurring DNA-protein hybrids
Thanks to a serendipitous discovery and a lot of painstaking work, scientists can now build biohybrid molecules that combine the homing powers of DNA with the broad functional repertoire of proteins—without having to synthesize them one by one, res.....»»
Antarctic krill can lock away similar levels of carbon as seagrass and mangroves, finds study
Small marine crustaceans are as valuable as key coastal habitats for storing carbon and should be similarly protected, according to new research......»»
"Marine identity" can help restore the ocean, say researchers
People's deep connection with the ocean—their "marine identity"—can help us reset society's relationship with the seas, new research led by Dr. Pamela Buchan, from the University of Exeter, suggests......»»
Are white patches on whale shark skin cause for concern?
Marine scientists have been taking samples from whale shark skin to try and determine the effect of pollutants on whale health......»»
Paleontologists find omnivorous ancestor of the giant panda, revealing it was not always just a bamboo eater
The Hammerschmiede fossil site in southern Germany has yielded finds from about 11.5 million years ago that have rewritten evolutionary history. The sole species of bear discovered to date at the site was a relative of the giant panda. Its diet, howe.....»»
Backside breathing and pigeon bombers studies win Ig Nobel prizes
Mammals that can breathe through their backsides, homing pigeons that can guide missiles and sober worms that outpace drunk ones: these are some of the strange scientific discoveries that won this year's Ig Nobels, the quirky alternative to the Nobel.....»»
A single peptide helps starfish get rid of a limb when attacked
A signaling molecule that's so potent injected animals may drop more than one limb. Enlarge (credit: Hal Beral) For many creatures, having a limb caught in a predator’s mouth is usually a death sentence. Not starfish,.....»»