A new analysis of more than 20,000 trees on five continents shows that old-growth trees are more drought tolerant than younger trees in the forest canopy and may be better able to withstand future climate extremes. The findings highlight the importance of preserving the world's remaining old-growth forests, which are...
Male orb-weaving spiders fight less in female-dominated colonies
Orb-weaving spiders cooperate for more peaceful colonies, a surprising revelation given that most spiders live solitarily. In the colonies that researchers observed, male spiders fought less with one another when there were more female spiders in a colony. But colonies with large numbers of larger and medium-sized female spiders tended...
Dusty Copper River Delta
Dust storms are common in dry, sandy places like the Sahara, but they also happen beyond the planet’s desert regions.
Heatwaves Could Reduce the Survival of Coral Larvae and the Connectivity of Coral Populations in the Mediterranean Sea
Global climate change and, in particular, the warming of the oceans has caused the frequency and severity of marine heatwaves to increase every year, with serious consequences for the stability and resilience of coral populations.
Mauna Loa Awakens
The world’s largest active volcano—Hawaii’s Mauna Loa—has been quiet for the past four decades. But in November 2022, the volcano began to stir.
How giant-faced owls snag voles hidden in snow
Several of great gray owls' physical features, especially parts of their wings and face, help them correct for sonic distortions caused by snow, enabling them to find hidden, moving food with astonishing accuracy, according to a new study.
Landslide risk remains years after even a weak earthquake
Satellite observations have revealed that weak seismic ground shaking can trigger powerful landslide acceleration -- even several years after a significant earthquake.
Findings from 2,000-year-old Uluburun shipwreck reveal complex trade network
Using advanced geochemical analyses, a team of scientists has uncovered new answers to decades-old questions about trade of tin throughout Eurasia during the Late Bronze Age.
Ant pupae secrete fluid as ‘milk’ to nurture young larvae
Life in an ant colony is a symphony of subtle interactions between insects acting in concert, more like cells in tissue than independent organisms bunking in a colony. Now, researchers have discovered a previously unknown social interaction that unites the colony, linking ants across developmental stages -- adults, larvae, and...
New quantum computing feat is a modern twist on a 150-year-old thought experiment
New research demonstrates a 20x improvement in resetting a quantum bit to its '0' state, using a modern version of the 'Maxwell's demon'.