All Ecology articles – Page 9
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NewsMedications change our gut microbiome in predictable ways
A study shows that many of the changes to the gut microbiome are driven by competition for nutrients – medications reduce certain bacterial populations and change the availability of nutrients, and the bacteria most able to capitalize on those changes are the ones to survive.
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NewsResearchers identify mangrove tree stems as previously underestimated methane source offsetting blue carbon benefits
A new study reveals that mangrove tree stems represent a significant yet previously underestimated source of methane. Additionally, stem emissions showed a strong correlation with soil methane fluxes, indicating that methane produced by anaerobic microbial activity in mangrove soils is transported upward through specialized aerenchyma tissues within the trees.
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NewsBacterial scents behind oak tree decline may be luring deadly beetles
The deadly decline of Britain’s native oak trees may be driven by an unexpected accomplice: their own smell. Scientists have discovered that trees affected by Acute Oak Decline (AOD) emit distinct odours that are highly attractive to the beetle Agrilus biguttatus, a key contributor to the decline.
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NewsPredicting the development of biological communities in different kinds of ecosystems
Researchers tested a mechanistic consumer-resource model and confirmed its high predictive capacity. Using the model, the researchers refined current rules on the coexistence of species, too. Their findings can be applied to any situation in which communities of organisms compete for resources.
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NewsNew study reveals microbial network restructuring mitigates long-term soil carbon emissions from warming
Scientists conducted a decade-long study that uncovered a previously unrecognized buffering mechanism in subtropical forest soils mitigating the effects of climate warming.
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NewsRainfall and temperature shape mosquito fauna in Atlantic Forest bromeliads, including malaria vectors
Results from a study of mosquito larvae conducted in a natural area in the municipality of São Paulo (Brazil) may help estimate the effects of climate change on disease transmission risk in the biome.
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CareersSummer studentship: Jonas investigates how metals influence bacterial ecosystems
Jonas Flohr from Portsmouth reports back on his AMI-sponsored summer studentship at Durham University investigating how metals influence bacterial ecosystems.
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NewsDestroying crazy ant nest structure makes them vulnerable to pathogens
Scientists have devised a reliable way to introduce a natural pathogen in colonies, so that invasive tawny crazy ant populations collapse and other native species can recover.
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NewsCracking leishmaniasis: new DNA test to track infection
A new study offers an innovative way to track the spread of leishmaniasis, a parasitic disease affecting both animals and humans. Researchers developed a fast, reliable method to identify sand fly species, detect Leishmania parasites, and determine the source of their blood meals from a single sample.
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NewsGrassland degradation reshapes relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem multifunctionality
Grassland degradation fundamentally reshapes how biodiversity supports ecosystem multifunctionality, shifting it from being plant-dominated to being mediated by soil microbes, according to a new study of alpine grassland on the Tibetan Plateau.
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NewsHow are metabolism and cell growth connected? — A mystery over 180 years old
A research team has identified a novel principle in biology that mathematically explains why the growth of organisms slows as nutrients become more abundant—a phenomenon known as “the law of diminishing returns.”
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News Sea stars show surprising resilience after disease outbreak
A decade after sea star wasting disease devastated ochre sea star populations along the U.S. West Coast, new research suggests that the epidemic shifted populations from a stable, adult-dominated state to one marked by fluctuations in sea star sizes and ages.
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NewsUpwelling promotes N-fixing symbiont of Sargassum algae - giving it an edge
An international research team has uncovered the main mechanism behind the algae blooms of the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt. Identification of the climatic conditions that facilitate this phenomenon allows them to predict future stranding events of Sargassum.
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NewsCAROSEL offers new ‘spin’ on monitoring water quality in real time - and tracking harmful algal blooms
Researchers can continuously track the exchanges of different forms of nitrogen between bottom sediments and the overlying water. Their novel approach enables measuring how much ammonium (NH₄⁺) is released from sediments in real time, multiple times a day, over an extended period.
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NewsTiles, leaves and cotton strips offer practical, affordable method for measuring river health
With the aim of standardising methods for assessing river health and providing a simple, accessible guide for environmental management bodies, researchers analysed the performance of different materials that enable the decomposition processes and organic matter production to be measured.
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NewsNovel technique reveals insights into soil microbe alarm clock
A new study yields clues about when dormant microscopic bacteria and fungi in soil ‘wake up’ and colonize roots, which influences plant growth and health.
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NewsHorizon Awards 2025: Professor Thomas Crowther named as winner of Rachel Carson Award 2025
British ecologist Professor Thomas Crowther has been named as the newest winner of the Rachel Carson Environmental Conservation Excellence Award.
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NewsFunctional extinction of Florida’s reef-building corals following the 2023 marine heatwave
The record-breaking 2023 marine heatwave has killed nearly all of Florida’s critically endangered Acropora coral colonies, marking the species’ functional extinction in Florida’s Coral Reef (FCR), researchers report.
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NewsTiny ocean organisms missing from climate models may hold the key to Earth’s carbon future
The ocean’s smallest engineers, calcifying plankton, quietly regulate the Earth’s thermostat by capturing and cycling carbon. However, a new review finds that these organisms are oversimplified in the climate models used to predict our planet’s future.
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NewsMarine algae use unique pigment to shield photosynthesis from excess light
Researchers have discovered that marine algae have evolved unique pigments not only to capture the green-blue light available underwater but also to enhance their resilience against excessive sunlight.