ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Expert assessment: Ocean acidification may increase 170 percent this century
• Fossil of new big cat species discovered: Oldest ever found
• Scorpions use strongest defense mechanisms when under attack
• Queen bee's honesty is the best policy for reproduction signals
• Buried leaves reveal precolonial eastern U.S. forests and guide stream restoration
• The big fish that got away… (it was let go)
• Deletion of any single gene provokes mutations elsewhere in the genome
• Nature's glowing slime: Scientists peek into hidden sea worm's light
• Warming since 1950s partly caused by El Niño
• New treatment discovered to cure MRSA infection
• Lignin-feasting microbe holds promise for biofuels
• Feral cats avoid urban coyotes, are surprisingly healthy
• Newly discovered protist suggests evolutionary answers, questions
• Generation length for mammals: An essential reference point for conservation studies
• Island biodiversity in danger of total submersion with climate change
• Monkeys 'understand' rules underlying language musicality
• Natural disasters of the past can help solve future problems
• Healing powers of cells
• Don't hold the anchovies: Study shows Peruvian fish worth more as food than feed
• 'Missing heat' discovery prompts new estimate of global warming: Arctic warming fast
• Largest lake in Britain and Ireland has lost three quarters of winter water birds
• When sex goes to their heads: Sea slugs have a two-pronged strategy
• Rare African golden cat caught on camera trap

Expert assessment: Ocean acidification may increase 170 percent this century Posted: 13 Nov 2013 06:38 PM PST In a major new international report, experts conclude that the acidity of the world's ocean may increase by around 170 percent by the end of the century bringing significant economic losses. People who rely on the ocean's ecosystem services -- often in developing countries -- are especially vulnerable.

Fossil of new big cat species discovered: Oldest ever found Posted: 13 Nov 2013 03:26 PM PST Scientists have discovered the oldest big cat fossil ever found -- which fills in a significant gap in the fossil record.

Scorpions use strongest defense mechanisms when under attack Posted: 13 Nov 2013 03:26 PM PST Scorpions tend to use their strongest defense mechanisms when they are being attacked.

Queen bee's honesty is the best policy for reproduction signals Posted: 13 Nov 2013 03:25 PM PST Queen bees convey honest signals to worker bees about their reproductive status and quality, according to an international team of researchers, who say their findings may help to explain why honey bee populations are declining.

Buried leaves reveal precolonial eastern U.S. forests and guide stream restoration Posted: 13 Nov 2013 03:25 PM PST Sediment behind milldams in Pennsylvania preserved leaves deposited just before European contact that provide a glimpse of the ancient forests, according to a team of geoscientists, who note that neither the forests nor the streams were what they are today.

The big fish that got away… (it was let go) Posted: 13 Nov 2013 03:24 PM PST It's not every day that fishermen catch the world's largest fish species in their nets, but this is what recently happened in Indonesia's Karimunjawa National Park, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Deletion of any single gene provokes mutations elsewhere in the genome Posted: 13 Nov 2013 01:25 PM PST Researchers report that the deletion of any single gene in yeast cells puts pressure on the organism's genome to compensate, leading to a mutation in another gene. Their discovery, which is likely applicable to human genetics because of the way DNA is conserved across species, could have significant consequences for the way genetic analysis is done in cancer and other areas of research.

Nature's glowing slime: Scientists peek into hidden sea worm's light Posted: 13 Nov 2013 12:26 PM PST Scientists are unraveling the mechanisms behind a little-known marine worm that produces a dazzling bioluminescent display in the form of puffs of blue light released into seawater. Found around the world in muddy environments, from shallow bays to deeper canyons, the light produced by the "parchment tube worm" is secreted as a slimy bioluminescent mucus.

Warming since 1950s partly caused by El Niño Posted: 13 Nov 2013 12:25 PM PST A natural shift to stronger warm El Niño events in the Pacific Ocean might be responsible for a substantial portion of the global warming recorded during the past 50 years, according to new research.

New treatment discovered to cure MRSA infection Posted: 13 Nov 2013 11:41 AM PST Recent work promises to overcome one of the leading public health threats of our time. In a groundbreaking study, the team presents a novel approach to treat and eliminate methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, a potent bacterium whose resistance to antibiotics has kept it one step ahead of researchers. That is, until now.

Lignin-feasting microbe holds promise for biofuels Posted: 13 Nov 2013 11:36 AM PST Researchers have identified a rain forest microbe that feasts on the lignin in plant leaf litter, making it a potential ally for the cost-effective production of advanced biofuels.

Feral cats avoid urban coyotes, are surprisingly healthy Posted: 13 Nov 2013 11:36 AM PST Cats that live outdoors in the city do their darnedest to steer clear of urban coyotes, a new study says. The cats cause less damage to wildlife in urban green spaces, such as city parks and nature preserves, because of that dodging.

Newly discovered protist suggests evolutionary answers, questions Posted: 13 Nov 2013 10:21 AM PST From Massachusetts to Mississippi, a unicellular protist is hinting at answers about the evolution of multicellularity while raising a whole new set of questions.

Generation length for mammals: An essential reference point for conservation studies Posted: 13 Nov 2013 10:01 AM PST Life history traits are the basic ecological descriptors of a species. These include physical traits, such as body mass and physiological traits, such as reproductive rate. A recent article provides the first comprehensive attempt to complete a database of generation lengths for all extant mammals. This database represents an essential reference point for ecological and conservation-related studies that need pragmatic information on species generation length.

Island biodiversity in danger of total submersion with climate change Posted: 13 Nov 2013 10:00 AM PST Island ecosystems constitute the most biodiverse regions in the world, holding a large number of endemic flora and fauna. Islands are also under direct threat of predicted sea level rises, with gloomy prognoses predicting large areas submerged, whole islands sinking and up to 11 percent islands inundated. A new study looks at three scenarios to estimate the risks posed by global change to island ecosystems.

Monkeys 'understand' rules underlying language musicality Posted: 13 Nov 2013 10:00 AM PST Many of us have mixed feelings when remembering painful lessons in German or Latin grammar in school. Languages feature a large number of complex rules and patterns: using them correctly makes the difference between something which "sounds good," and something which does not. However, cognitive biologists have shown that sensitivity to very simple structural and melodic patterns does not require much learning, or even being human: South American squirrel monkeys can do it, too.

Natural disasters of the past can help solve future problems Posted: 13 Nov 2013 07:57 AM PST Nobody can predict the future, of course -- but we can learn from the past. The past could teach us a lot about how natural disasters influence society at many different levels.

Healing powers of cells Posted: 13 Nov 2013 07:57 AM PST How do cells spread to cover and close a wound? A team of researchers publishes new insights into epithelial cell spreading.

Don't hold the anchovies: Study shows Peruvian fish worth more as food than feed Posted: 13 Nov 2013 06:25 AM PST The true potential of Peruvian anchovy lies not in fishmeal but as food for people and as part of the ocean food web, according to Canadian and Peruvian researchers.

'Missing heat' discovery prompts new estimate of global warming: Arctic warming fast Posted: 13 Nov 2013 06:22 AM PST Scientists say they have found "missing heat" in Earth's climate system, casting doubt on suggestions that global warming has slowed or stopped over the past decade. The new research shows that the Arctic is warming at about eight times the pace of the rest of the planet.

Largest lake in Britain and Ireland has lost three quarters of winter water birds Posted: 13 Nov 2013 05:01 AM PST The largest lake in Britain and Ireland, Lough Neagh, has lost more than three quarters of its overwintering water birds.

When sex goes to their heads: Sea slugs have a two-pronged strategy Posted: 12 Nov 2013 05:04 PM PST Slugs may ensure mating success with a shot to beloved's forehead, say evolutionary biologists.

Rare African golden cat caught on camera trap Posted: 12 Nov 2013 09:33 AM PST New camera trap footage from Uganda's Kibale National Park shows a rarely seen African golden cat.

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