News and Opinion - British Ecological Society

Roaming cats prey on their owners' minds

Owners often dislike their feline companions’ compulsion to catch wildlife but feel unable, or unwilling, to control it.

Hen harriers and red grouse: Finding common ground in a persistent conflict

Conflicting management views between hen harrier conservationists and red grouse shooting organisations in England.

When ‘aliens’ attack Antarctica: Terrestrial ecosystems are vulnerable to single introduced insect species

An invasive midge species could alter terrestrial ecosystems in Antarctica.

Using endangered barbary macaques as photo props could have negative impacts on tourism in Morocco

Tourists in Morocco object to the use of barbary macaques as photo props, according to a new study presented at BES2018 today.

Hurricane Maria gave ecologists rare chance to study how tropical dry forests recover from extreme weather events

After Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rican trees adjusted key characteristics of newly grown leaves.

Warmer winters threaten UK blackcurrant farming

New research presented at the BES annual meeting suggests milder winters may cause UK blackcurrant crops to flower later in the year and produce less fruit.

Drones can detect protected nightjar nests

Ecologists from Cardiff University recently conducted a pilot study at a conifer plantation in South Wales to test the suitability of drones to detect nightjar nest sites.

More “heatwave” summers will affect animals

Overheated birds have smaller offspring with lower chances of survival.

Capturing Ecology – Winning images of British Ecological Society competition announced

Capturing flora and fauna from across the planet, subjects range from African wild dog research to an artistic take on Galapagos iguanas to images exploring the relationships between people and nature.

Monitoring urban biodiversity with machine learning

A new algorithm monitoring biodiversity in urban environments could improve our understanding of how cities can best support plant and animal life.

Landscapes full of maize harm bumblebee colonies

Göttingen scientists analyse growth and foraging behaviour of insects.

Soil moisture matters, even in tropical rainforests

Growth rates shape species distributions of tropical tree seedlings on a soil moisture gradient.

Sequencing pollen DNA to discover insect migratory routes

This British Ecological Society funded study shows that transcontinental pollination mediated by migrating insects is possible.

New research shows pretend porpoise sounds are helping conservation efforts

Playing back porpoise sounds to an acoustic logger can be used to assess the detection area of the device.

Ice cave reveals environmental forcing of long-term Pyrenean treeline dynamics

Subalpine forests were generally more widely distributed during the last 5700 years, when summer temperatures were warmer than today.