ecology

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China Uses 'the Pill' to Stop Gerbil Overpopulation

Officials hide contraceptive meds in gerbil feed

(Newser) - Chinese officials have resorted to contraceptive pills to control the exploding gerbil population threatening a fragile desert ecosystem, the BBC reports. The government is placing feed pellets mixed with the medication by the gerbils’ burrows, which damage the roots of what plants survive there. Authorities have tried measures to boost...

As Temperatures Rise, West's Trees Dying Faster

New study paints dire picture for US forests which are releasing carbon dioxide—not storing it

(Newser) - America’s trees are dying at an alarming rate in the nation's western forests, a new study says. Death rates have more than doubled over the last two to three decades, Time reports, even in seemingly healthy locales. All types and sizes of trees, and at all elevations, have been...

Bat Deaths Perplex Scientists
 Bat Deaths Perplex Scientists 
Aug 1, 2008 2:50 PM CDT

Bat Deaths Perplex Scientists

Syndrome could devastate population

(Newser) - Experts are still in the dark about what’s causing the deaths of vast numbers of bats in the Northeast, but some theories have emerged, Salon reports. Some scientists believe white-nose syndrome is driven by global warming, while others are looking hard at pesticides. In either case, humans may have...

Out of Land, Monaco Eyes Ocean

Tiny, rich principality wants landmark on stilts, but environmental concerns loom

(Newser) - Monaco, flush with cash from tourism and its status as a tax haven, is trying to acquire the one thing it lacks: space. Its square mile of space is full (it's the world's second-most-densely populated country), moving Prince Albert II to decide to build an artificial offshore district—on stilts,...

Companies Go Green for Consumers— and Profit

Frito-Lay works to turn a chip plant eco-friendly

(Newser) - As consumers look for more eco-friendly products, a Frito-Lay plant in Arizona is working toward ways to turn 500,00 pounds of spuds into environmentally friendly potato chips, the New York Times reports, changing an energy- and water-hogging process into one that uses renewable fuel, solar energy, and recycled water...

World's Best Green Hotels
World's Best Green Hotels
Nov 5, 2007 10:15 AM CST

World's Best Green Hotels

Leave a footprint as small as your carry-on at a luxurious eco-hotel

(Newser) - Solar-heated pools, energy-conserving lights, composted food scraps . . . hotels aren't all bastions of consumption and waste. Travel+Leisure teamed up with Conservation International to assemble a list of 20 eco-friendly hotels:
  1. Spice Island Beach Resort, Grenada
  2. Soneva Fushi Resort & Six Senses Spa, Maldives
  3. Heritance Kandalama, Sri Lanka

What to Do With a Dead Whale
What to Do With a Dead Whale
Oct 8, 2007 9:59 AM CDT

What to Do With a Dead Whale

Washed-up hulks are difficult to dispose of

(Newser) - The rash of dead whales washing onto California shores recently isn’t just an ecological tragedy; it’s a mammoth challenge. Disposing of whale carcasses is notoriously difficult, the LA Times explains. Pull one out to sea, and it will probably drift back—as a 70-ton whale did in Malibu...

Puffin Love Flies High in Maine
Puffin Love Flies High in Maine
Aug 26, 2007 5:28 PM CDT

Puffin Love Flies High in Maine

Penguin lookalikes need 24-hour protection from swooping gulls

(Newser) - Puffin-love is flying high in Maine, where hundreds of these penguin look-a-likes are lured by wooden decoys and given 24-hour protection, the AP reports. Supervisors endure screeching gulls and pooping dive-bombers to protect these finned waddlers and their nests. So just what are puffins? Birds that look like penguins, but...

Straw Goes Green
Straw
Goes
Green
Aug 20, 2007 11:59 AM CDT

Straw Goes Green

Eco-friendly building material branches out beyond fairy tales

(Newser) - The newest surprise climate-saving tool is straw walls, and the Big Bad Wolf may have underestimated the First Little Pig’s shelter, the Washington Post reports. Instead of drywall or insulation, contractors stack the farm waste around buildings’ skeletons and then coat it with plaster. The eco-friendly result looks like...

Stranded by War, Forest Yields Treasures

Remote, unspoiled region of Congo conceals 6 new species

(Newser) - Scientists have discovered six animal species in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, an area closed to scientists for nearly 50 years. The region is rich in biodiversity, Reuters reports, and beyond the bat, rodents, frogs, and shrews found on a brief trip this past winter, the...

Mexico Calls for Eco-Friendly Border Fence

Environment minister warns US against proceeding with plan

(Newser) - Citing environmental concerns, Mexico is calling on the US to revise its plan to expand border fences. The current layout threatens fragile ecosystems in the Sonora Desert area and could wipe out endangered species like the Mexican black bear, a new report shows. Mexico is ready to take the US...

Factory, Flamingos Go on Strike
Factory, Flamingos Go on Strike
Jul 19, 2007 1:29 PM CDT

Factory, Flamingos Go on Strike

With no runoff from saltworks filling their lagoon, flamingos didn't lay eggs

(Newser) - In a bizarre ecological twist, flamingos in a French lagoon were imperiled by a nearby salt factory—not by the saline runoff when the factory was operating, but the lack of runoff when it stopped. It seems that workers went on strike, the saltworks closed, and the wetlands dried up....

Don't I Know You? Plants Can Tell Siblings From Strangers

Flora share resources with nearby kin

(Newser) - Plants are smarter than people think: New research shows flora can distinguish between members of their own family and unrelated vegetation, Nature reports. Plants tend to share resources more equitably with nearby siblings by developing smaller root systems, but compete for available nutrients when neighbors are strangers. "Plants have...

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