Biodiversity News

February 25, 2025

Top Headlines

Environment Nudges Birds to Fast, or Slow, Life Lane

Feb. 25, 2025 — A study shows birds worldwide make strategic decisions about how they live based on their environmental conditions. Some live fast, die young, and leave as many chicks as possible. Others live long and prosper by not breeding ...

The Rising Tide of Sand Mining: A Growing Threat to Marine Life

Feb. 21, 2025 — Scientists outline the urgency to better identify the significant damage sand extraction across the world heaps upon marine ...

10 New Sponge Species Near Hawaii

Feb. 20, 2025 — Biologists, using a technique that explores both genes and structural characteristics, have introduced 10 new species of marine sponge. Despite their distinction as one of Earth's oldest lifeforms and the key role they play in sustaining coral reef ...

We Can Farm More Seafood While Minimizing Its Impact on Biodiversity

Feb. 19, 2025 — Humanity can farm more food from the seas to help feed the planet while shrinking mariculture's negative impacts on biodiversity, according to new ...

Latest Headlines

updated 11:20pm EST

Biodiversity in England's Rivers Improved as Metal Pollution Reduced

Feb. 19, 2025 — An improvement in freshwater biodiversity in England's rivers was linked to reductions in pollution of zinc and copper, largely due to the decline of coal burning and heavy industry, say researchers. ...

Urban Environments Promote Adaptation to Multiple Stressors

Feb. 19, 2025 — Animal populations from urban areas show significantly higher resilience to stressful environmental conditions. The mussel and crustacean species studied were able to adapt to disturbed environments, ...

Animals as Architects of Earth: First Global Study Reveals Their Surprising Impact

Feb. 17, 2025 — Animals are not just inhabitants of the natural world -- they are its architects. A new study has revealed how hundreds of species shape the ...

Rapid Environmental Change Can Threaten Even a Peaceful Daisyworld

Feb. 18, 2025 — Using mathematical modeling, researchers have discovered that rate-induced tipping, which can happen if an environment changes too fast, can happen even in Daisyworld, a simple daisy-filled ...

Protected Habitats Aren't Enough to Save Endangered Species, Study Finds

Feb. 13, 2025 — In tropical forests, endangered species inside protected habitats are still in danger from threats from beyond their sanctuaries, according to a new ...

Reintroducing Wolves to Scottish Highlands Could Help Address Climate Emergency

Feb. 17, 2025 — Reintroducing wolves to the Scottish Highlands could lead to an expansion of native woodland which could take in and store one million tons of CO2 ...

Restoring Wildlife Habitats in Wealthy Nations Could Drive Extinctions in Species-Rich Regions, Experts Warn

Feb. 13, 2025 — Researchers call on the international community to recognize and start tackling the 'biodiversity ...

Where Do Invasive Species Spread and Why? Researchers Take a Novel Approach to Find the Answer

Feb. 12, 2025 — Researchers took a deep dive to understand why certain locations are more susceptible and attractive to invasions by non-native plants or animals, ...

PIK PR: Little Potential for 'Climate Plantations' Within Planetary Boundaries

Feb. 12, 2025 — Planting fast-growing crops, burning them, capturing the released CO2 and storing it: this is being discussed as a way to remove greenhouse gases ...

Global Warming and Mass Extinctions: What We Can Learn from Plants from the Last Ice Age

Feb. 12, 2025 — Global warming is producing a rapid loss of plant species -- according to estimates, roughly 600 plant species have died out since 1750 -- twice the ...

DNA Barcodes and Citizen Science Images Map Spread of Biocontrol Agent for Control of Major Invasive Shrub

Feb. 7, 2025 — New research using publicly-shared DNA barcodes and citizen science images have provided new evidence on the establishment and spread of a biological control agent used for the control of the major ...

Twenty Years On, Biodiversity Struggles to Take Root in Restored Wetlands

Feb. 7, 2025 — While the restoration of natural areas is high on political agendas, a comprehensive new study shows that -- after more than two decades -- biodiversity growth has stalled in restored Danish ...

Scientist Discovers 16 New Grasshopper Species, Champions Desert Biodiversity

Feb. 7, 2025 — A scientist has discovered a hopping treasure trove -- 16 new species of grasshoppers living in the thorny scrubs of U.S. and Mexican ...

Multinational Research Project Shows How Life on Earth Can Be Measured from Space

Feb. 6, 2025 — Measurements and data collected from space can be used to better understand life on Earth. An ambitious, multinational research project has demonstrated that Earth's biodiversity can be ...

Fishing and Conserving in Great Barrier Reef's Marine Reserves

Feb. 5, 2025 — A new study of the Great Barrier Reef has revealed that the network of no-take marine reserves supplies nearly half of the region's coral trout fishery ...

New Study Assesses Impact of Agricultural Research Investments on Biodiversity, Land Use

Feb. 4, 2025 — New, groundbreaking research shows how, at a local scale, agricultural research and development led to improved crop varieties that resulted in global benefits to the environment and food system ...

Burn Grasslands to Maintain Them: What Is Good for Biodiversity?

Jan. 31, 2025 — As grasslands get abandoned, controlled burning is discussed as a labor-saving method of keeping forests at bay. A research team found that this method results in higher biodiversity and a higher ...

Future of UK Peatlands Under Threat Due to Climate Change

Jan. 30, 2025 — The UK's peatlands face an uncertain future amid the escalating impacts of climate change. Peatlands are critical ecosystems for carbon storage and biodiversity, containing more carbon than all ...

Cold Waves in the Rainforest: What They Mean for Wild Animals

Jan. 30, 2025 — It's not always cozy and warm in the Amazon rainforest: Cold waves can cause temperatures to drop drastically. Researchers have investigated how animals react to ...

Sharks and Rays Benefit from Global Warming, but Not from CO2 in the Oceans

Jan. 30, 2025 — Sharks and rays have populated the world's oceans for around 450 million years, but more than a third of the species living today are severely threatened by overfishing and the loss of their ...

Promoting Cacao Production Without Sacrificing Biodiversity

Jan. 30, 2025 — The productivity of cacao trees decreases with time, forcing farmers to renew their plantations by either cutting down the old trees or establishing a new crop elsewhere. Frequently, new plantations ...

A Window Into the Future of Amazonia

Jan. 29, 2025 — New research from a team of tropical biologists forecasts some of the changes that may occur in the Amazon rainforest as temperatures rise due to climate ...

Landmark Genetic Study: Fresh Shoots of Hope on the Tree of Life

Jan. 29, 2025 — In the most comprehensive global analysis of genetic diversity ever undertaken, an international team of scientists has found that the genetic diversity is being lost across the globe but that ...

Pairing Old and New Technologies Could Unlock Advances in Plankton Science

Jan. 29, 2025 — New research highlights the benefits of combining existing long-term plankton monitoring programs and emerging technologies in monitoring the health of our ...

Protecting the Plains: Conserving Prairie Dogs Will Revitalize North America's Grasslands

Jan. 29, 2025 — Researchers have identified priority areas for conserving the black-tailed prairie dog in the United States. Protecting these regions will also benefit North America's Central Grasslands and the ...

Complexity of Tree-Planting Schemes

Jan. 28, 2025 — Research with smallholder farmers in Kenya shows that tree-planting schemes must account for complex local issues and ...

Mapping Antarctica's Hidden Ice-Free Lands: A Blueprint for Conservation

Jan. 28, 2025 — Researchers unveil a new map and classification system that will help protect the unique plants and animals of Earth's most remote and fragile ...

How Tiny Algae Shaped the Evolution of Giant Clams

Jan. 27, 2025 — New research reveals how resident algae altered the genome of these fabled sea creatures, allowing them to access more ...

Botanic Gardens Must Team Up to Save Wild Plants from Extinction

Jan. 27, 2025 — The world's botanic gardens must pull together to protect global plant biodiversity in the face of the extinction crisis, amid restrictions on wild-collecting, say ...

Underwater Mud Volcanos Are a Haven for Marine Organisms

Jan. 27, 2025 — One would think that a volcano was not the most hospitable place for living organisms. However, the Borealis Mud Volcano, at 400 m water depth, acts as a sanctuary for a number of marine ...