science top stories popular news  

Daily non-political popular news in brief.

Tropical insects 'go the distance' to inform rainforest conservation

08-09-2007 · EurekAlert!

The long-held belief that plant-eating insects in tropical forests are picky eaters that stay "close to home" -- dining only on locale-specific vegetation -- is being challenged by new research findings that suggest these insects feast on a broader menu of foliage and can be consistently found across hundreds of miles of tropical forestland. These findings have significant implications related to the sustainability and conservation of these globally-important areas.

Read more »

Keywords: tropical, insects, distance, inform, rainforest, conservation, insect

« Previous | Next »

Similar news on "Tropical insects 'go the distance' to inform rainforest conservation":

  1. A bio-inspired flying robot sheds light on insect piloting abilities
    02-08-2007 · EurekAlert!
    Insects and other flying animals are somehow able to maintain appropriate flying heights and execute controlled takeoffs and landings despite lacking the advantage of sophisticated instrumentation available to human aviators. By characterizing the behavior of a specially designed flying robot, researchers have now been able to test a theory that helps explain how visual cues are used by insects during flight to ensure appropriate distance from the ground.
    Similar news · Read more »
  2. Researchers find 24 species believed new to science in Suriname rainforest
    06-04-2007 · EurekAlert!
    Scientists exploring the remote highlands of eastern Suriname discovered 24 species believed to be new to science, including a frog with florescent purple markings and other amphibians, fish and insects. Presented in a report made public today, the findings from a 2005 expedition led by Conservation International's Rapid Assessment Program demonstrate the value of exploring unknown regions such as Suriname's rainforest to assess the need to conserve them.
    Similar news · Read more »
  3. New study warns limited carbon market puts 20 percent of tropical forest at risk
    08-13-2007 · EurekAlert!
    In an ironic twist, 11 countries that have avoided widespread destruction of their tropical forest are at risk of being left out of an emerging carbon market intended to promote rainforest conservation to combat climate change.A new study warns that "high forest cover with low rates of deforestation" nations could become the most vulnerable targets for deforestation if the Kyoto Protocol and upcoming negotiations on carbon trading fail to include intact standing forest.
    Similar news · Read more »
  4. Refugia of the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest could be the basis for its regeneration
    09-05-2007 · EurekAlert!
    Changes that have occurred in Brasil tropical rainforest for more than 100 000 years were studied by a team of IRD researchers. They combined data from botany, palynology and genetics. Results indicated that this tropical. Such a finding should be useful for identification of such blocks of original forest, refugia that could be the basis for the forest's conservation in the face of climate change.
    Similar news · Read more »
  5. Insect gut detects unhealthy meal
    12-20-2007 · EurekAlert!
    Plant leaves and surfaces are teeming with microbial life, yet the insects that feed on plants lack adaptive immune systems to fend off any intruding microorganisms they eat along with their greens. Now research published in the online open access journal, BMC Biology shows how food-borne bacteria affect an insect's immune system.
    Similar news · Read more »
  6. DNA clues to inform conservation in Africa
    05-22-2007 · EurekAlert!
    Tracing the evolutionary history of wildlife could improve global habitat conservation, a major Cardiff University study has found. Researchers in the School of Biosciences analysed the African bushbuck -- a common species which lives in most sub-Saharan habitat types -- to test whether DNA similarity between populations living in different habitats can reveal the similarity of those ecoregions now and in the past.
    Similar news · Read more »
  7. Single-largest biodiversity survey says primary rainforest is irreplaceable
    11-14-2007 · EurekAlert!
    As world leaders prepare to discuss conservation-friendly carbon credits in Bali and a regional initiative threatens a new wave of deforestation in the South American tropics, new research from the University of East Anglia and Brazil’s Goeldi Museum highlights once again the irreplaceable importance of primary rain forest.
    Similar news · Read more »
  8. Novel insecticidal toxins from bacteria
    09-04-2007 · EurekAlert!
    A light-emitting strain of bacteria and a nematode worm, which work together to prey on soil-dwelling insects, use insecticidal toxins to kill their insect hosts. Scientists speaking today, Sept. 5, 2007, at the Society for General Microbiology's 161st Meeting are now investigating the potential role of these toxins in bacteria pathogenic to humans. The meeting is at the University of Edinburgh, UK, and runs Sept. 3-6, 2007.
    Similar news · Read more »
  9. Ocean temperature predicts spread of marine species
    12-25-2006 · EurekAlert!
    Scientists can predict how the distance marine larvae travel varies with ocean temperature -- a key component in conservation and management of fish, shellfish and other marine species -- according to a new study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
    Similar news · Read more »
  10. Tough policing deters cheating in insects
    11-25-2006 · Science News Online
    In insect societies that have tough police, it's coercion, rather than kinship, that's preventing crime.
    Similar news · Read more »