Since Japanese knotweed won a gold medal in 1847 as 'interesting new ornamental of the year', it has become far too much of a good thing, writes Kate Constantine. But could the oriental triffid be tamed following the UK introduction of a specialist pest from Japan's volcanic uplands?
… weed in the EU. A key finding from invasion biology is that there is usually a time-lag …
Modern agriculture - even among organic farmers - is often seen as a matter of soil chemistry, writes Lynda Brown. But an alternative view is gaining ground: that it's really about soil life. Nurture your soil-dwelling micro-organisms, and your crops look after themselves.
… soil turned on its head and find out why soil biology should matter to you. As most of us … that producing food presents. Get your soil biology right - ensuring the 'good guys' … inputs that destroy soil life. Get your soil biology right, and you don't need to spread …
The first in a new series on biodiversity conservation offers a radical perspective on ecological crisis.
… a temptation to generalise from our evolved biology, from our apehood-ancestral origins. … cynicism and fatalism. Prisoners of our biology we may be to some degree but humanity … Richard Lewontin’s eloquence helps: “Biology is not physics, because organisms are …
The president of the Biomimicry Institute on learning from nature, designing cities to perform like ecosystems and why chemists, engineers and architects need to learn more biology
… engineers and architects need to learn more biology Laura Sevier: How did you get into … architects, etc - are not trained in biology. They don't know how life filters, …
Are we risking serious problems if action to tackle deforestation assumes that a tonne of tree carbon is the same as a tonne of fossil carbon?
All carbon is not born equal Eric Marx | 17th November 2009 News Climate Change Natural World Redd Deforestation Forests Trees oiltree.jpg Are we risking serious problems if action to tackle …
The pandemic itself is a powerful, daily reminder and with an extremely high cost of life showing how nature and human species are interdependent.
… at the Federal University of Pelotas/Biology Institute. José Domingues de Godoi … at the Federal University of Pelotas/Biology Institute. We have incompetent, …
In BC, Canada, a surge in trophy hunting may be reducing Grizzly bear populations, writes Anna Taylor. A new study finds evidence of serious Grizzly bear 'overkill' from multiple causes of mortality - in which trophy hunting is a big contributor.
… hunting affects other aspects of Grizzly bear biology such as genetics, social interactions … error - because of their reproductive biology populations that suffer declines often … issues and new discoveries in conservation biology. She posts regular blogs on …
A survey of threatened Arctic mammals highlights melting sea ice as a prime threat to eleven keystone species, writes Tim Radford - meaning that efforts to conserve them may be doomed to failure unless we also tackle the causes of climate change.
… Seattle, reports in the journal Conservation Biology that marine mammals are … L. Laidre et al is published in Conservation Biology . Tim Radford writes for Climate News …
BP is in trouble. Big trouble. But others are to blame for the ongoing oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico, and the US Mineral Management Service is at the top of the list...
MMS - the three initials behind the BP Deepwater Horizon oil disaster Phil England | 17th May 2010 Comment Energy Natural World Bp Politics And Economics mmsdrip.gif BP is in trouble. Big trouble. …
With Monarch butterfly numbers down by 90% in 20 years - largely as a result of GMO crops in key feeding areas - the US Fish and Wildlife Service is reviewing the insect's status with a view to granting it legal protection under the Endangered Species Act.
… period, including: The subspecies' biology, range and population trends, habitat …
With global warming putting pressure on animals and biodiversity in the tropics, is it time we had a new poster child for climate change, asks William Laurance
… president of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, he has received …
Packing 4.5 billion years of history into 416 pages is a truly Herculean task, but it's one, says Hannah Corr, that Douglas Palmer has managed to do in style
… Earth Climate Change Reviews Natural World Biology Species Wildlife Geology Books …
Record leap in methane levels as greenhouse gases reach new highs in 2021.
Greenhouse gases reached record highs Emily Beament | 28th October 2022 | News Methane Climate Breakdown 3426995578_34d8c65207_k.jpg Record leap in methane levels as greenhouse gases reach new highs …
The mystery of legless and multi-limbed frogs and toads has captivated artist and ecological researcher Brandon Ballengée for over a decade. Here's how he blends science with art
… an amphibian specialist and professor of biology at Hartwick College, in Oneonta, New …
The Baja California peninsula is rich in history and natural beauty, with thousands of unique plants and animals making up its globally unique ecosystems, write Sula Vanderplank & Benjamin Wilder. Just the place for a new giant hotel resort?
Mexico: 22,000 room mega-hotel threatens 'biodiversity hotspot' Sula Vanderplank Benjamin Wilder | 28th May 2014 News Mexico Natural World Oceans Water Consumerism Travel Development …
A 'microbat' that has remained unrecorded since 1890 has been discovered in Papua New Guinea. But with the country's forests under growing pressure from logging and for conversion to plantations, this and thousands of other biological treasures are at risk.
… over time. Not enough is known about the biology of microbats throughout the world, and …
Methane emissions from fossil fuels owing to human activity is around 25 percent to 40 percent higher than thought
Methane shock Nilima Marshall | 20th February 2020 News Climate Breakdown Greenhouse Gasses Methane Science & Systems methaneice.jpg Methane emissions from fossil fuels owing to human activity is …
Can food crops really be engineered to thrive - and to yield more - under drought conditions? After 25 years we're still waiting for the flood of evidence, says Prof Jack Heinemann
… of crop plants in different environments. The biology of drought-tolerance Plants respond to … is a professor of genetics and molecular biology at the University of Canterbury, New …
Species may be able to adapt to gradual increases in temperature preventing the collapse of biological communities in the face of global climate change
Study of spiders shows species may be able to adapt to global warming William McLennan | 10th March 2011 News Natural World Spiders Climate Change Global Warming Spiders Ecosystems pisaurina-mira.jpg …
A key NAFTA body has recommended a formal investigation into Canada's refusal to protect its polar bears despite the grave threats posed to them by climate change.
NAFTA: Investigate Canada's failure to protect Polar Bears The Ecologist | 20th November 2013 News Canada Climate Change US Natural World A key NAFTA body has recommended a formal investigation into …
Yellowstone's Grizzly bears are facing multiple threats, writes Anna Taylor - from proposals to remove their protection under the US Endangered Species Act, and shortages of key foods caused by climate change.
… issues and new discoveries in conservation biology. She posts regular blogs on … and the Amazon. She has a BSc in Conservation Biology and a Masters in Ecology and Environmental Biology. Delisting would leave grizzly bears …
Tension is mounting in one of the remotest regions in the Peruvian Amazon over plans to build a highway through the country's biggest national park
Amazon 'uncontacted' tribes at risk from new highway plan David Hill | 19th January 2012 News Amazon Tribes Natural World Deforestation Peru tribe2.jpg The Mashco-Piro tribe is believed to live in …
An intensive study of the flora of one meadow in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado over 39 years reveals a consistent long term pattern of change: first flowers 6 days per decade earlier, last flowers 3 days per decades later.
Rockies flora signal warming times Tim Radford | 20th March 2014 News USA Natural World Climate Change alpine_tundra_copper_mountain_colorado.png An intensive study of the flora of one meadow in the …
A new study led by RSPB shows that more than half of Britain's most precious upland moors are suffering from burning - widely used to increase the numbers of red grouse available for recreational shooting.
Britain's 'protected' moorlands go up in flames The Ecologist | 21st July 2015 News Natural World Biodiversity Conservation Birds UK Law burning-moorland-cut.jpg A new study led by RSPB shows that …