Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

  1. Animals

    Common parasite may help mussels survive heat waves

    By whitening shells, the organism helps the shellfish stay cool on sunny days, a new study suggests.

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  2. Animals

    Most species of beetles pee differently than other insects

    Scientists uncover their unique system for balancing ions and water. The findings may hint at why beetles are the most diverse animals on Earth.

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  3. Environment

    Pond scum can release a paralyzing pollutant into the air

    New study finds blooms of blue-green algae can seed the air with a poisonous pollutant.

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  4. Animals

    A common antibiotic might save some sick corals

    The antibiotic amoxicillin stopped tissue death in corals for at least 11 months after treatment.

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  5. Health & Medicine

    Warning: Wildfires might make you itch

    Western wildfires are on the rise due to climate change and land use. Now a study adds eczema to the list of health risks that smoke might trigger.

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  6. Earth

    Only 3 percent of Earth’s land is unchanged by people

    A sweeping survey of land-based ecosystems finds that very few still support all the animals they used to. Reintroducing lost species could help.

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  7. Ecosystems

    Analyze This: Invasive species cost the world billions each year

    A new study estimates that invasive species have cost the world more than $1 trillion since 1970. That’s almost certainly an underestimate.

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  8. Fossils

    Rhinos, camels and bone-crushing dogs once roamed Nebraska

    Scientists digging into the remnants of an ancient watering hole in Nebraska discovered evidence of an Africa-like savanna, complete with rhinos.

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  9. Animals

    Explainer: What are cicadas?

    There are more than 3,000 species of cicadas, but the best known in North America are periodical cicadas, which emerge every 13 or 17 years.

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  10. Animals

    How bees play telephone to form a swarm

    Honeybees use pheromones and flapping wings to tell each other where to find the queen — so they can all be together. Learn more with this web comic.

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  11. Ecosystems

    Urchin takeover underlies California’s vanishing kelp forests

    Some 95 percent of kelp forests along its northern coast are gone. Meanwhile, sea otters are helping slow the loss of surviving kelp farther south.

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  12. Life

    Let’s learn about dogs

    From learning the names of their toys to sniffing out viruses in human sweat, dogs are far more than household pets.

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