Plant and Animal Science

A group of conservation biologists at the University of Exeter have confirmed that the extinction of one species of a carnivore can lead to the extinction of fellow species of predators. The research team placed several species of aphids and parasitoid wasps, which are aphids’ natural enemies, in experimental communities with complex food webs in outdoor field cages. Read more about their research here.

A team led by Barbara Goettsch of the IUCN’s Cactus and Succulent Plant Specialist Group analyzed the cacti’s distributions, population trends, habitat preferences, ecology, conservation actions, and human uses and found that of the 1,480 known species of cactus found on the planet, an estimated 31% are threatened. Read more about their research here.

Humans are intelligent creatures and use medicines to treat themselves. However, do ants know how to treat their ailments? Researchers from the University of Helsinki, Finland, discovered that ants are capable of recognizing that they are sick and can self-medicate. Read more about their research here.

Stick insects, one of the most peculiar insects found on earth, have intrigued scientists by exhibiting how the process of natural selection can prevent the formation of new species. A team of researchers from the University of Sheffield in England and the University of Colorado Boulder studied a plant-eating stick insect species from California called Timema cristinae. Read more about their research here.

Researchers from Arizona State University, University of Helsinki, University of Jyväskylä, and Norwegian University of Life Sciences have discovered that queen bees have a unique way of immunizing their babies against external pathogens found in the environment. Read on to learn more about this.

The discovery of a four-legged fossil snake has provided a new direction to the long-standing argument of researchers over the evolution of snakes. The fossil is named Tetrapodophis amplectus, which loosely translates as ‘four-legged hugging snake,’ and is being considered as a missing link between snakes and lizards. Read on to learn more about this.

Researchers from the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, New York, have developed a computer-based model using large data sets to accurately predict outbreaks of zoonotic diseases spread by rodents. Read on to learn more about this.

Jeffrey Marlow and his team at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, discovered microbes below the seabed around methane seeps near Oregon that are unlike most microbes found on earth. Read on to learn more about this.

Toxoplasma gondii – an intracellular, parasitic protozoan that causes the disease toxoplasmosis – has reportedly infected many humans. The parasite makes significant alteration in astrocytes, which seemingly causes subtle behavioral changes in humans. Read on to learn more about this.

In a drought-like situation, plants naturally secrete abscisic acid (ABA), inhibiting plant growth and reducing water consumption. While crops can be sprayed with ABA to help them survive droughts, producing ABA is expensive. A team of scientists, led by Sean Cutler at the University of California, Riverside, developed a new method of assisting draught-inflicted plants using synthetic biology. Read on to find out more.