Category Archives: Biodiversity

Climate change concentrates toxins in plants – bad news for herbivores

Posted on July 11, 2013 by

1 June 2012. Michael marshall. Climate change will create a toxic brew for herbivores. NewScientist. A warmer world could lead to more concentrated and higher levels of toxins in plants.  Herbivorous animals are also less able to process toxins when … Continue reading →

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Asian medicine a major cause of biodiversity loss

Posted on July 8, 2013 by

I haven’t noticed any shortage of people in China – what a tragedy the men there feel like they need to eat endangered animal penises, and for the government not to stop it. 6 Mar 2003. S. Malik et al. … Continue reading →

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Humanity will need 27 planet Earths by 2050, a new study estimates.

Posted on March 13, 2013 by

3 Aug 2011. Stephen Leahy.  Data Shows All of Earth’s Systems in Rapid Decline. Inter Press Service. Overpopulation is causing huge losses in biodiversity, and ‘protected areas’ such as national parks aren’t working. UXBRIDGE, Canada, Jul 29 (IPS) – Protecting … Continue reading →

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20% of Invertebrate species threatened with extinction.

Posted on September 4, 2012 by

Brendan Borrell. Sep 3, 2012. One Fifth of Invertebrate Species at Risk of Extinction. Freshwater snails and reef-building corals are among the threatened groups. Nature & Scientific American. One in five of the world’s invertebrate species are threatened with extinction, … Continue reading →

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Biodiversity loss impact on ecosystem worse than climate change and pollution

Posted on May 3, 2012 by

David U. Hooper, et al. A global synthesis reveals biodiversity loss as a major driver of ecosystem change. Nature, 2012; DOI: 10.1038/nature11118 “This analysis establishes that reduced biodiversity affects ecosystems at levels comparable to those of global warming or air … Continue reading →

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Fungi destroy bees, bats, amphibians, trees, etc

Posted on April 11, 2012 by

Attack of the Killer Fungi: Rising Threat Worries Scientists Wynne Parry, LiveScience   11 April 2012 An unprecedented number of diseases caused by fungi have been causing some of the most severe die-offs and extinctions ever witnessed in wild species and … Continue reading →

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Jellyfish

Posted on April 11, 2012 by

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20120405-blooming-jellyfish-problems (also see “The Jellyfish Joy Ride“) Smart Planet | 5 April 2012 Jellyfish blooms creating oceans of slime  by Gaia Vince In the last decade enormous plagues of jellyfish have been taking over the seas. And it is our … Continue reading →

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40% of amphibians face imminent extinction

Posted on March 24, 2012 by

Wake, D. 2 Mar 2012. Facing Extinction in Real Time. Science vol 335, 1052-53. Throughout the world, amphibians are in decline, and many species—perhaps 40%—face imminent extinction. Recent studies have discovered why amphibians are dying. The amphibian decline is happening … Continue reading →

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Hunting can drive species extinct

Posted on March 24, 2012 by

14 Jan 2009. Humans’ prey species evolving dangerously fast. NewScientist. Hunters and fishermen go after the largest catches they can find, which is driving evolution in a way unlike anything else on Earth, and the rapid changes triggered in wild … Continue reading →

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Biodiversity in glacier-fed rivers threatened by climate change

Posted on March 21, 2012 by

So many of these articles belong in several different places, the web of life is hard to categorize and put in one spot. 16 Mar 2012. “Glacial river biodiversity”. Nature Climate Change. Glacial melt water increases biodiversity in mountainous freshwater … Continue reading →

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