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New Software for Researchers to Investigate Vegetation Dynamics in Forests

Modeling forest dynamics is fundamental to the study of future changes in climate and biodiversity. A new modeling framework developed in collaboration with IIASA researchers facilitates investigations of complex vegetation dynamics.

4 Mar 2016

Results of GLUES Project Provide New Insights into Sustainable Land Use

The way we use land is changing. Demand for farmland, food and energy seems insatiable, but land is a finite resource. The research programme "Sustainable Land Management" investigated the consequences of this land use under global change and developed strategies for a sustainable use within a 7-year research program ending in 2016.

4 Mar 2016

Significant Step Forward in Understanding Processes Naturally Occurring Enzymes Use to Degrade Microbe-Resistant Biomass

Scientists at the University of York are part of an international research team that has made a significant step forward in understanding the processes naturally occurring enzymes use to degrade microbe-resistant biomass, a key aim in the development of biofuels.

2 Mar 2016

New Study Assesses Impact of International Conservation Aid on Deforestation

With over $3.4 billion spent in international conservation funding to protect biodiversity and stop tropical deforestation in Africa since the early 1990s, it makes sense to ask if the funding is effective. A recent study finds that conservation aid alone has not been able to counteract deforestation pressures, and in some cases may have even exacerbated forest loss.

2 Mar 2016

Plastic Waste Could Move into Ocean Depths Through Faeces of Plankton

Plastic waste could find its way deep into the ocean through the faeces of plankton, new research from the University of Exeter and Plymouth Marine Laboratory shows.

1 Mar 2016

Researchers Study Impact of Freshwater Biodiversity on Inland Fishery Yields

A recent study from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the University of Southampton reveals that inland freshwaters with a wide range of fish species contain higher-yielding and less variable fisheries.

25 Feb 2016

Newly Exposed Edges of Deforested Areas Highly Susceptible to Drastic Temperature Changes

The newly-exposed edges of deforested areas are highly susceptible to drastic temperature changes, leading to hotter, drier and more variable conditions for the forest that remains, according to new research from the University of Colorado Boulder.

24 Feb 2016

Beneficial Fungi Associated with Tree Roots Can Boost Plant Diversity

The types of beneficial fungi that associate with tree roots can alter the fate of a patch of tropical forest, boosting plant diversity or, conversely, giving one tree species a distinct advantage over many others, researchers report.

23 Feb 2016

New Model for Population Management Measures for Species Facing Local Extinction

By developing a new model, researchers have provided the first detailed mortality estimates for male African lions. A comparison of two populations, including the one of Cecil, exposed the signature that human impact leaves on male lion mortality.

22 Feb 2016

Marine Organisms at Risk of Infectious Disease Due to Warmer Ocean Temperatures

A new study describes how diverse marine organisms are susceptible to diseases made worse by warming oceans. The research warns that warm sea temperatures in 2015 may increase the levels of epizootic shell disease in American lobster in the northern Gulf of Maine in 2016.

16 Feb 2016