Newswise Focus Channel: Wildlife Channel Featured Story 2

'Janitors' of the Sea: Overharvested sea cucumbers play crucial role in protecting coral

Georgia Institute of Technology — Tue, 27 Feb 2024 09:25:23 EST

In a first-of-its-kind study, researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology discovered that sea cucumbers -- sediment-eating organisms that function like autonomous vacuum cleaners of the ocean floor -- play an enormous role in protecting coral from disease. The problem is, they've been overharvested for more than 100 years, and they're now rare.

Sika deer overpopulation endangers beech forests in Southern Kyushu, Japan

Kyushu University — Thu, 25 Jan 2024 09:05:05 EST

A new study reveals how soil erosion caused by sika deer foraging reduces the growth of the beech trees.

Did Sabertooth Tigers Purr or Roar?

North Carolina State University — Mon, 21 Aug 2023 14:15:18 EST

When a sabertooth tiger called out, what noise did it make - a mighty roar or a throaty purr? A new study from North Carolina State University examined the data behind the arguments for each vocalization and found that the answer was more nuanced than they thought - and that it could depend on the shape of a few small bones.

Wildfire Smoke Threatens Already Endangered Orangutans

Cornell University — Thu, 15 Jun 2023 10:05:50 EST

Pronounced vocal and behavioral changes caused. by wildfire smoke make it possible to assess the health of wild orangutan populations by monitoring the frequency and quality of their sounds.

Out of the frying pan: Coyotes, bobcats move into human-inhabited areas to avoid apex predators -- only to be killed by people

University of Washington — Fri, 19 May 2023 11:05:03 EST

In Washington state, the presence of two apex predators -- wolves and cougars -- drives two mesopredator species -- bobcats and coyotes -- into areas with higher levels of human activity, with deadly results for the mesopredators.

Study Shows Oil and Gas Infrastructure Hurting Nesting Birds In Globally Important Breeding Area in Arctic Alaska

Wildlife Conservation Society — Tue, 02 May 2023 12:35:03 EST

A new WCS-led study that analyzed 17 years of migratory bird-nesting data in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, revealed that nest survival decreased significantly near high-use oil and gas infrastructure and its related noise, dust, traffic, air pollution, and other disturbances.

Most plastic eaten by city vultures comes straight from food outlets

Frontiers — Wed, 12 Apr 2023 13:15:17 EST

Since the 1950s, humanity has produced an estimated 8.3bn tons of plastic, adding a further 380m tons to this amount each year. Only 9% of this gets recycled.

Northern and southern resident orcas hunt differently, which may help explain the decline of southern orcas

University of Washington — Fri, 10 Mar 2023 08:00:19 EST

In the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia, southern resident orcas have experienced no net population growth since the 1970s. But northern resident orcas, with a similar diet and territory, have grown steadily. A new study may help explain why: The two populations differ in how they hunt for salmon, their primary and preferred food source.

Pregnant Shark birth tracking technology provides key data for species protection

Arizona State University (ASU) — Wed, 01 Mar 2023 14:00:00 EST

In a new study, researchers used new technologies to remotely document, for the first time in the wild, the location and timing of shark birth. Named the Birth-Alert-Tag (BAT), this new satellite tag remained inside the uterus, along with the developing shark pups, until the mother shark gave birth and expelled the newborn pups, along with the BAT, into the surrounding water. The BAT then floated to the surface and transmitted to satellites the location of where the shark birth took place. The first of its kind, the BATs were successfully deployed in a tiger shark and scalloped hammerhead shark, documenting the location birth.

Experts have discovered how zebra stripes work

University of Bristol — Mon, 20 Feb 2023 04:05:16 EST

Researchers at the University of Bristol have found why zebra fur is thinly striped and sharply outlined.

Watch the Fastest Fish in the World Hunt its Prey - For the First Time

Nova Southeastern University — Fri, 10 Feb 2023 09:45:23 EST

Thanks to researchers at NSU's Guy Harvey Research Institute (GHRI) who designed a novel electronic tag package incorporating high-tech sensors and a video camera, we now have for the first time, a detailed view of exactly how sailfish behave and hunt once they are on their own and out of view of the surface.

First Report of Rare Cat Discovered on Mt. Everest

Wildlife Conservation Society — Thu, 26 Jan 2023 10:35:39 EST

Findings from a new paper published in Cat News have identified the first ever report of Pallas's cat on Mount Everest, in the Sagarmatha National Park in Nepal.

There's something fishy about flake sold in South Australia

University of Adelaide — Sun, 22 Jan 2023 23:05:29 EST

It is a popular takeaway choice at fish and chip shops, but new research has revealed threatened species of shark are being sold as flake at some outlets across South Australia. The University of Adelaide study is the first of its kind to examine flake fillets sold at South Australian fish and chip shops.

Major Breakthrough As Scientists Sequence The Genomes Of Endangered Sharks

Nova Southeastern University — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 10:05:45 EST

Scientists have sequenced the genomes of Critically Endangered great hammerhead and Endangered shortfin mako sharks for the first time.

Female monkeys 'actively reduce' social network as they age

University of Exeter — Wed, 30 Nov 2022 13:50:47 EST

Female rhesus macaques "actively reduce" their social networks and prioritise friends and family as they get older, new research shows.

Photos Suggest Rhino Horns Have Shrunk Over Past Century, Likely Due to Hunting

University of Cambridge — Tue, 01 Nov 2022 13:25:13 EST

By scrutinising over a century's worth of photos, University of Cambridge researchers have made the first ever measurements that show rhinoceros horns have gradually decreased in size over time.

Asian elephants prefer habitats on the boundaries of protected areas

British Ecological Society — Tue, 18 Oct 2022 12:50:10 EST

New research, offering the most comprehensive analysis of Asian elephant movement and habitat preference to date, finds that elephants prefer habitats on the periphery of protected areas, rather than the areas themselves.

Wildlife trade threatening unprotected animals

University of Adelaide — Sun, 09 Oct 2022 21:05:27 EST

International trade in animals not regulated by multilateral agreements is putting them under increasing threat. More than three times the number of unregulated animal species are being imported into the United States compared to the number of regulated species. Closer monitoring of trade in these species is urgently required so that they may be protected.

Lagoons from the Arctic's "Forgotten Coast" Teem with Fish and Birds, Vulnerable to Climate Change and Human Development

Wildlife Conservation Society — Thu, 06 Oct 2022 15:35:25 EST

A new scientific review article led by WCS captures the unique and dynamic characteristics of coastal lagoon ecosystems in the Arctic Beringia Region, and discusses how climate change effects and human development could alter these habitats.

New York City coyotes do not need to rely on human food

PeerJ — Wed, 28 Sep 2022 16:40:10 EST

Researchers in New York City (NYC) have analyzed the DNA of urban coyotes and discovered that the coyotes eat a variety of native prey species and supplemented with human-sourced food items.