Rice plants and Venus flytraps share something in common that was not scientifically documented until recently. Using a faint smell to lure caterpillars into a trap, rice plants killed early-stage fall armyworm larvae by trapping them in a spikelet, the part at the end of a rice panicle where individual grains develop.

Pooling data from more than 4,900 European-flagged bottom trawlers—together spending more than 5.5 million hours fishing on average each year in the waters of the European Union, the UK, Norway and Iceland—the research demonstrates that atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from disturbed seafloor sediments are a major contributor to these costs. The study concludes that the net costs of bottom trawling to society are 90 times greater than the €180 million in profits raked in by the fishing industry each year.

"Our study makes it clear that bottom trawling in European waters is not just an environmental disaster, it's an economic failure," said Professor Enric Sala, National Geographic Explorer in Residence and one of the authors of the study, titled "The value of bottom trawling in Europe."

Studies indicate that the lack of human hunting, agriculture and development has a more positive impact on animal numbers than radiation has a negative one.

The team’s findings, which are published today in the journal Scientific Reports, are the first direct evidence that plant seeds and seedlings can sense sounds in nature. Their experiments involved rice seeds that they submerged in shallow water. Rice can germinate in both soil and shallow water. The researchers suspect that many similar seed types may also respond to the sound of rain.

The study: Seeds accelerate germination at beneficial planting depths by sensing the sound of rain

Scientists have uncovered a fascinating new species of pit viper in Myanmar that seems to blur the very definition of what a species is. This snake, now named the Ayeyarwady pit viper, puzzled researchers because it looks like a mix between two known species—sometimes resembling one, sometimes the other, and occasionally something in between. Initially suspected to be a hybrid, genetic analysis revealed it is actually its own distinct species.

Monoculture plantations are generally one-way tickets to producing wood. But these high-yield plantations are high risk and can be surprisingly fragile. When drought, pests, or forest fires strike, entire monoculture plantations can fail at once. In one example, nearly 90% of 11 million saplings planted in Turkey died within three months due to drought and lack of maintenance.

Forests are more than just timber factories. They regulate water, store carbon, provide habitat for wildlife, cool the landscapes around them and even provide human health benefits.

Rather than gambling on a single species and hoping for the best, science now points to a smarter path that captures both ecological and economic benefits while minimizing risk: mixed-species plantings that mirror the biodiversity of a natural forest, ultimately creating forests that grow faster and are more resilient in the face of constant threats.

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We are community and landscape ecologists at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Since 2013, we and our colleagues have been rigorously testing this idea in a large, ecosystem-scale experiment called BiodiversiTREE. The verdict is striking: Trees in mixed forests don’t just survive – they outgrow their monoculture counterparts and support dramatically more biodiversity.

In nocturnal animals, the tapetum lucidum acts like a mirror, reflecting light back through the retina and stimulating photoreceptors a second time, a process that basically doubles visual sensitivity. This heightened ability to see in the dark is useful for hunting—or to avoid being hunted.

“We know basically nothing about the evolution, genetics, and developmental biology of the tapetum,”

“The tapetum has appeared and disappeared countless times throughout the evolution and diversification of animals,”

A great deal of harm has been done, but I remain optimistic about restoration, otherwise I would not be doing this work. I take real pride in what has been achieved in supporting the recovery of endangered species such as the Roseate Tern and the Corncrake.

BirdWatch Ireland’s membership continues to grow, more people are taking up birdwatching, and public interest in nature is clearly strengthening.

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/36439196

• Tropical forests can regrow within decades, with species abundance and diversity recovering quickly, but full ecological recovery—especially the return of original species composition—takes much longer.
• Many mobile species such as birds, bats, and bees persist or return early, helping drive regeneration by dispersing seeds and pollinating plants, while slower-moving or long-lived species lag behind.
• Forests may regain high numbers of species relatively fast, but the specific mix of old-growth species takes decades or longer to reassemble, meaning a regrown forest is not the same as the one that was lost.
• Recovery depends on time, prior land use, and proximity to intact habitat, suggesting that protecting and allowing secondary forests to regenerate can be a practical and cost-effective path for restoring biodiversity.

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/36439190

• Estimated to be more than 2,400 years old, one alerce tree in Chile’s Alerce Costero National Park hosts about twice as much fungal diversity underground as younger alerce trees, a team of researchers found.
• The scientists found 361 fungal DNA sequences unique to this tree, indicating that older trees harbor a vaster fungal network that benefits other plants on the forest floor.
• Real estate expansion, climate change and infrastructure projects continue to threaten the alerce, which is listed as endangered. Although Chile protects the species, experts say older trees that support complex ecosystems should enjoy higher levels of protection and limited interaction from humans.