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Heat stress in gestating dairy cows impairs performance of future generations
Scientists investigated the performance and profitability of two future generations of cows born to mothers exposed to heat stress during pregnancy. According to senior author Jimena Laporta, PhD, of the Department of Animal Sciences at the University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA, previous research has found that heifers born to cows that are heat-stressed during…
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Shifting ocean closures best way to protect animals from accidental catch
A new analysis looks at how effective fishing closures are at reducing accidental catch. Researchers found that permanent marine protected areas are a relatively inefficient way to protect marine biodiversity that is accidentally caught in fisheries. Dynamic ocean management — changing the pattern of closures as accidental catch hotspots shift — is much more effective.…
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Skeletal study suggests at least 11 fish species are capable of walking
An international team of scientists has identified at least 11 species of fish suspected to have land-walking abilities. The findings are based on CT scans and a new evolutionary map of the hillstream loach family, which includes the only living fish species caught in the act of walking: a rare, blind cavefish known as Cryptotora…
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Metal pollution in British waters may be threatening scallops, study reveals
Research suggests that the contamination of Isle of Man seabed sediments with zinc, lead and copper from the mining of these metals, which peaked on the island in the late 19th century, is causing the shells of king scallops to become significantly more brittle. The research, led by an interdisciplinary team at the University of…
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Hidden magnitude-8.2 earthquake source of mysterious 2021 global tsunami
Scientists have uncovered the source of a mysterious 2021 tsunami that sent waves around the globe. In August 2021, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake hit near the South Sandwich Islands, creating a tsunami that rippled around the globe. The epicenter was 47 kilometers below the Earth’s surface — too deep to initiate a tsunami — and…
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DNA in fringe-lipped bat feces reveals unexpected eating habits
By examining the guano of the fringe-lipped bat (Trachops cirrhosus), biologists encountered surprising results about its eating habits and foraging abilities. Bats hunt at night. This makes it challenging to observe their foraging behavior in nature. Analyzing DNA traces in bat guano offers a more specific way to explore how bats feed in the wild…
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Better way to study reputedly secretive toad
New research has upended the conventional wisdom that for a century has incorrectly guided the study of a toad listed as endangered in part of its range. Anne Devan-Song used spotlighting — shining a light in a dark spot and looking for eye reflections — to find large numbers of the eastern spadefoot toad. The…
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How do snakes ‘see’ in the dark? Researchers have an answer
Certain species of snake — think pit vipers, boa constrictors and pythons, among others — are able to find and capture prey with uncanny accuracy, even in total darkness. Now scientists have discovered how these creatures are able to convert the heat from organisms that are warmer than their ambient surroundings into electrical signals, allowing…
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Successful Zika vaccine in preclinical studies
Researchers have demonstrated the success of a vaccine against Zika virus. The vaccine was generated using a novel platform technology. Verardi, a Brazilian native, was in Brazil visiting family in the summer of 2015 when the Zika outbreak first began to make waves and soon reached epidemic status. Back in the United States, Verardi kept…
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Methane-producing microorganism makes a meal of iron
A new understanding of how a microorganism produces methane and carbon dioxide could eventually allow researchers to manipulate how much of these important greenhouse gases escape into the atmosphere. «The microorganism Methanosarcina acetivorans is a methanogen that plays an important part in the carbon cycle, by which dead plant material is recycled back into carbon…