Ecosystems

Researchers used DNA from leeches' last blood meals to find out what animals live where in China's Ailaoshan Nature Reserve.
Nala Rogers, Staff Writer
Iron-laden particles fertilized areas of the ocean thousands of kilometers away.
Charles Q. Choi, Contributor
The carnivores play a unique role in breaking down calcium, phosphorous from prey.
Joshua Learn, Contributor
Cave microbes on Earth may help guide scientists toward life on Mars.
Nala Rogers, Staff Writer
Researchers found fewer tree seedlings on noisy plots in a pinyon-juniper woodland, likely because the sound drove away animals that disperse seeds.
Nala Rogers, Staff Writer
Researchers discover hot spot off the coast of Italy with up to 1.9 million pieces of plastic per square meter.
Joshua Learn, Contributor
Study of fish personalities highlights the importance of wildlife as individuals, not just species.
Nala Rogers, Staff Writer
Researchers suggest that a previously unidentified factor may drive whales to migrate.
Jesse Kathan, Contributor
Bacteria help drive Earth's chemical cycles and climate. Viruses drive the bacteria.
Nala Rogers, Staff Writer
A new study in Vietnam offers hope for a massive freshwater species.
Amanda Heidt, Contributor
Expeditions in remote Amazon waterways result in identification of two previously unknown electrified fish.
Joshua Learn, Contributor
Researchers are learning how to cope with the arrival of the sargassum’s “brown tide."
Rodrigo Pérez Ortega, Contributor