Perennial crops are critical for buffering waterways from erosion and preventing pesticide pollution. (Credit: University of Wisconsin) MICHIGAN STATE (US) — Simplification of cropland has resulted in increased pests and insecticide, but planting pe...

In Texas, Coue's rice rats have most of their border range occupied by areas of high human impact and pedestrian fences. Reticulated collared lizards were identified as a species that would be at risk if extensive barriers were built across its range ...

By moving vineyards to areas where less drastic temperature change is likely, wine grape growers may be able to maintain quality, says Noah Diffenbaugh, but change is expensive and risky because climate may not change as expected. (Credit: L.A. Cicero...

Perception of how behavior affects the environment influences what actions people take to protect it. If they don't believe an action—like car pooling—will make a substantial difference, they are less likely to participate in it. (Credit: iStockph...

Researchers working in the Indian Ocean discovered that hard compacted sediments were likely the cause of the devastating earthquake and resulting tsunami that hit off the coast of Sumatra in December 2004. (Credit: Science Party of SO-198-2) U. TEXAS...

U. COLORADO-BOULDER (US) — Mountain pine beetles that have already killed more than 4 million acres of trees, could do further damage by forcing earlier snowmelt and increasing water yields. Researchers monitored eight pairs of tree stands, each pai...

Swings between the two climatic extremes, El Niño and La Niña, cause droughts, forest fires, and floods, like the one that occurred this year in Queensland, Australia. (Credit: iStockphoto) U. LEEDS (UK) — Swings between the two climatic extremes ...

Under all but one of 21 climate scenarios studied, Chicago heat waves are likely to be both more frequent and longer by the end of the 21st century. (Credit: Thinkstock) JOHNS HOPKINS (US) — Hundreds to thousands more city residents could die by the...

Biofuel crops, like sugarcane, are best located on land that is already used for agriculture because less carbon is released into the atmosphere by converting land where existing vegetation contains low amounts of carbon, such as pasture or crops, tha...

Small-scale mining, often done by the poorest and most marginalized members of society, is devastating the Peruvian Amazon. "There is no big 'Goliath' mining company to blame," says Jennifer Swenson. (Credit: Mongabay.com) DUKE (US) — Deforestation ...

A new survey identifying hundreds more barrier islands than previously thought, highlights the need for a new way to classify them that takes into account local, regional, and global issues that shape where the islands form and how they evolve. (Credi...

Setting policy for use of oceans, coastal waters, and the Great Lakes isn’t just a matter of ecological science. Local residents who regularly use the resources contribute valuable knowledge too. (Credit: Leila Sievanen) BROWN (US) — While a one-s...

The emergence of media outlets over the past several years where citizens can get news and ideas that mirror their own beliefs has magnified political differences on global warming. (Credit: iStockphoto) MICHIGAN STATE (US) — Over the past decade, R...

Most U.S. households can reduce their carbon footprints by 20 percent or more with just a handful of actions, including driving more fuel-efficient vehicles and improving diets. (Credit: iStockphoto) UC BERKELEY (US) — Who you are and where you live...

Even though Antarctica is isolated by the vast Southern Ocean, it is still affected by climate changes elsewhere on the planet. (Credit: Heidi Roop) U. WASHINGTON (US) — A large wave structure in the atmosphere has been bringing steadily warmer temp...

Ancestral proteins of the thioredoxin gene family were resurrected in the laboratory and are providing clues about the environmental conditions that hosted early life on Earth. (Credit: Gary Meek) GEORGIA TECH (US) — During the last 4 billion years,...

Natural gas mined from Marcellus shale is worse for the environment than conventional gas, coal, and oil. "We are not advocating for more coal or oil, but rather to move to a truly green, renewable future as quickly as possible," says Robert Howarth. ...

A new computer simulation that uses the tides, currents, the rotation of the Earth, and the physical structure of fish pens to know where fish waste will go could prove invaluable in choosing appropriate sites for future farms. (Credit: iStockphoto) S...

Despite being able to move from a native range to a new one, sometimes by jumping continents, grasses and flowering relatives of grasses like clover, sunflowers, and milkweed, are not as invasive as previously thought. (Credit: iStockphoto) U. MINNESO...

A 2008 law banning lead-ammunition in California's condor range had the added benefit of reducing lead exposure in golden eagles such as the one being readied for release by Nick Todd. (Credit: Terra Kelly) UC DAVIS (US) — In a somewhat skewed versi...

Water than contains a rich mix of algae is better at removing nitrate than water with only a single species. "Conserving natural biodiversity in our streams will have the added benefit of helping to clean up larger bodies of water," says Bradley Cardi...

While conservation efforts and a reduction in predators has caused an increase in leatherback turtle nests in Florida, Pacific coast nesting areas, including Mexico and Costa Rica, have not been so fortunate. (Credit: NOAA) DUKE (US) — Conservation ...

A bright green alga often seen in ponds is able to sequester radioactive material and may be useful in cleaning up accidental spills in the environment. (Copyright/Credit: Wiley-VCH, 2011) NORTHWESTERN (US) — A common freshwater alga acts like a spo...

Because it reacts quickly and dynamically to climate change, the Antarctic ice sheet, that has repeatedly expanded and retreated for 25,000 years, is of particular interest to geoscientists. (Credit: U. Leeds) U. LEEDS (UK) — At some point in time, ...

CARDIFF / NOTTINGHAM (UK) — When bad weather hits home, concerns about climate change increase—as does the willingness to engage in energy-saving behaviors. In particular, members of the British public are more prepared to take personal action and ...

TEXAS A&M (US) — Changing global climate due to ongoing warming will present national and homeland security challenges requiring the U.S. military to adopt new ways of doing business worldwide. A new report, issued by the National Research Counci...

PENN STATE (US) — Inexpensive hydrogen for automotive or jet fuel may be possible by mimicking photosynthesis, but the process needs to overcome several hurdles first. “We are focused on the hardest way to make fuel,” says Thomas Mallouk,...

STONY BROOK (US) — Cultivating coca bushes—the source of cocaine—is accelerating the destruction of Colombian rainforests and further threatening the region’s plant and animal diversity. The findings, reported in the journal Environmental S...

UC DAVIS (US) — The more carbon emissions a company produces, the less value its stock, according to new research. A new study says markets respond almost immediately when a company reports an event that could affect global climate change, with stock...

CALTECH (US) — New evidence supports the idea that a mass extinction 450 million years ago was linked to a cooling climate. More than 75 percent of marine species died during the extinction, the second-largest such event in Earth’s history. ...