An unprecedented study integrating data from around the globe has shown that honey bees are the world's most important single species of pollinator in natural ecosystems and a key contributor to natural ecosystem functions. The first quantitative analysis of its kind, led by biologists at the University of California San Diego, is published Jan. 10...
Giant extinct burrowing bat discovered in New Zealand
[unable to retrieve full-text content]The fossilized remains of a giant burrowing bat that lived in New Zealand millions of years ago have been found by a UNSW Sydney-led international team of scientists. Teeth and bones of the extinct bat -- which was about three times the size of an average bat today -- were recovered...
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Scouting the eagles: Proof that protecting nests aids reproduction
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Reproduction among bald eagles in a remote national park in Minnesota was aided when their nests were protected from human disturbance, according to a new study....
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Deadly disinfection in ant colonies
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Ants kill colony mates infected with deadly diseases when they are unable to prevent them from falling sick in the first place. In doing so, the ants protect their colony from the outbreak of an epidemic....
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Closing roads counters effects of habitat loss for grizzly bears
[unable to retrieve full-text content]It's simple math, says a scientist. The closer grizzly bears are to humans, the more ways there are for the bears to die. Put more simply, more roads equal fewer grizzly bears....
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What species is most fit for life? All have an equal chance, scientists say
[unable to retrieve full-text content]There are more than 8 million species of living things on Earth, but none of them -- from 100-foot blue whales to microscopic bacteria -- has an advantage over the others in the universal struggle for existence.A trio of scientists report that regardless of vastly different body size, location and life...
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