Scientists have uncovered rare fossil evidence of an inter-species relationship between two different types of worms more than 500 million years ago in what is now the Canadian Rockies. It’s one of the oldest examples in the fossil record of symbiosis, a close, long-term interaction between two species.
Scientists Learn About Elusive Beaked Whales by Studying Carcasses courthousenews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from courthousenews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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Summary: A new study published by the open access publisher Frontiers shows the usefulness of opportunistically collected specimens, such as stranded carcasses, to study elusive species. The researchers used stable isotope analysis of skin, muscle, and bone tissue of Sowerby s beaked whales to study their spatial ecology. They found that the species exhibits both short- and long-term habitat fidelity. The results are published in
Frontiers in Conservation Science and show the importance of such studies for marine wildlife conservation.
A mysterious whale species
Beaked whales, a species of toothed whales, make up more than 25% of extant cetaceans (dolphins, porpoises, and whales), but are elusive and notoriously difficult to study. They live in deep waters and stay away from shores. Due to a lack of observations from the wild, little is known about their ecology and biology. Because of this, they are considered data deficient by the IUCN Red List and developing conser
May 20th, 2021, 6:00AM / BY Emily Leclerc
Coral reef health is an important indicator of the ocean’s well-being. Scientists can study corals to learn more about how climate change is affecting the oceans. (Wise Hok Wai Lum, CC-BY-SA-4.0)
Coral reefs house roughly a quarter of all known marine species, making them some of the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet. But as their environments have become less friendly from climate change in recent decades, corals are struggling to stay healthy and support the life that relies on them.
Now, thanks to an emerging technique called environmental DNA (eDNA), researchers at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History can support worldwide efforts to understand how corals and the communities that depend on them are responding to global ocean change. What they find could help scientists understand and anticipate the threats coral reefs face.