Tag

ecosystems

Stalagmites from Iranian Cave Foretell Grim Future for Middle East Climate

Researchers from the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science used two stalagmites from an Iranian cave to reconstruct the existing water resources in the Middle East over 130,000 years ago. The results, which include information during the last gla
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"Big Muddy" Missouri River needs a plan

As the Missouri River flows across the Great Plains to where it meets the Mississippi River at St. Louis, it accumulates such a large sediment load that it has earned the nickname “Big Muddy.”  A recent University of Illinois study looks at the history of the river, damages and change
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Dartmouth Study: Highway Salt Is Polluting Our Lakes

Salt can be good, and it can also be bad. Sprinkled on food, it makes things tastier, but it may also raise your blood pressure. Spread on winter roads, it can make driving safer, but the melting runoff contaminates nearby lakes and ponds. In a study that gathered data from hundreds o
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Hundreds of species of fungi in deep coral ecosystems discovered by University of Hawaii at Manoa botanists

Researchers from the University of Hawai?i at M?noa Department of Botany have discovered hundreds of potentially new species of fungi in the deep coral ecosystem in the ?Au?au channel off Maui, Hawai?i. Mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCE) are generally found at depths between 130–500 fe
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Groundwater pumping drying up Great Plains streams, driving fish extinctions

Farmers in the Great Plains of Nebraska, Colorado, Kansas and the panhandle of Texas produce about one-sixth of the world’s grain, and water for these crops comes from the High Plains Aquifer — often known as the Ogallala Aquifer — the single greatest source of groundwater in North Am
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Greenland's summer ocean bloom likely fueled by iron

Iron particles catching a ride on glacial meltwater washed out to sea by drifting currents is likely fueling a recently discovered summer algal bloom off the southern coast of Greenland, according to a new study. Microalgae, also known as phytoplankton, are plant-like, marine microorg
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Camera-trap research paves the way for global monitoring networks

Biodiversity loss is one of the driving factors in ecosystem change, on par with climate change and human development. When one species, especially a large predator, disappears from an area, other populations will be affected, sometimes changing entire landscapes. In recent years, the
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A study warns about the impact of the carp in shallow lakes with high ecological value for the preservation of waterbirds

The presence of the carp, a freshwater invasive species spread worldwide, is alarmingly reducing the populations of diving ducks and waterbirds, according to a study published in the journal Biological Conservation by the researchers Alberto Maceda Veiga, from the Biodiversity Researc
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Prelude to global extinction: Stanford biologists say disappearance of species tells only part of the story of human impact on Earth's animals

No bells tolled when the last Catarina pupfish on Earth died. Newspapers didn’t carry the story when the Christmas Island pipistrelle vanished forever. Two vertebrate species go extinct every year on average, but few people notice, perhaps because the rate seems relatively slow – not
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Marine Vessels are Unsuspecting Hosts of Invasive Species

Invasive ascidians — sac-like marine invertebrate filter feeders — are nuisance organisms that present a global threat. They contribute to biodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation and impairment of ecosystem services around the world. A new Tel Aviv University study finds that ships p
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