News and Opinion - British Ecological Society

Tiny woodlands are more important than previously thought

Small woodlands in farmland have more benefits for humans per area compared to large forests according to a new study.

Scientists develop new method to estimate seal breeding frequency

New research, led by the Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) at the University of St Andrews, develops method to better record breeding histories of seals, allowing for improved fecundity calculations.

A decade after the predators have gone, Galapagos Island finches are still being spooked

A new study has found that the finches’ fearful response – known as antipredator behaviour - was sustained through multiple generations after the threat was gone, which could have detrimental consequences for the finches’ survival.

Emerging through the haze: Moving forward to tackle Indonesia’s fire crisis

With widespread forest and peatland fires occurring in Indonesia this year, a new article aims to plot a way forward from this ecological crisis by outlining the key challenges facing conservation efforts and how these might help fire prevention.

Ant cravings for sugar and salt vary across the U.S.

A U.S wide study finds that ants' cravings for salt and sugar can be predicted by how liberally plants in their ecosystem gives these away.

New generation insecticide reduces bumblebee egg laying

Research shows for the first time that bumblebees exposed to field realistic concentrations of the insecticide sulfoxaflor laid fewer eggs and produced fewer larvae.

Migratory birds are worse off in West Africa

Migratory sandpipers breeding in Greenland who choose to spend the winter in West Africa instead of elsewhere along the East Atlantic coast have a lower chance of survival, are more likely to skip their first breeding season and arrive later at their breeding grounds.

New study finds ants are darker in rainforest canopies

New research shows for the first time that ants in the rainforest canopy are on average twice as dark as ants found on or below the ground, an adaptation thought to protect them from UV-B rays and water loss.

Badger behaviour inside the cull zone

ZSL study shows survivors of culls cover 61% greater areas potentially increasing risk of transmission to cattle.

A modelling tool to rapidly predict weed spread risk

A new statistical modelling tool will enable land management authorities to predict where invasive weed species are most likely to grow so they can find and eliminate plants before they have time to spread widely.

Researchers use drones to weigh whales

Researchers have devised a way to accurately estimate the weight of free-living whales using only aerial images taken by drones.

Private boats in the Mediterranean have extremely high potential to spread alien species

A Mediterranean wide study has found that 71% of sampled recreational boats hosted alien marine species. Over half carried an alien species that was not yet present in the marina the boat was visiting.

Scientists and key figures develop vision for managing UK land and seas after Brexit

Researchers have outlined how fishing and farming policies could be created to protect employment opportunities and the environment after Brexit.

Breeding songbirds alter their singing behaviour in selectively logged tropical forests

Researchers working in Malaysian Borneo are learning that songbirds change how they sing in tropical forests degraded by selective logging.

New study measures how much of corals’ nutrition come from hunting

Research reveals that corals source more nutrients than previously thought from hunting, information that may help predict the fate of coral reefs as global ocean temperatures rise.