Ecosystems
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Plants
Forest invades tundra
The Arctic tundra is under assault from trees, with serious implications for global climate change.
By Janet Raloff -
Animals
Peril of play
A new study shows that playful 2-year-old chimpanzees may be particularly vulnerable to infectious diseases — some caught from humans.
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Agriculture
A vanilla Vanilla
The orchid that gives us vanilla beans has startlingly low genetic diversity, suggesting crops might be susceptible to pathogens, researchers report.
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Humans
Wash Your Veggies!
The lesson in all of these food-poisoning outbreaks is that we must not expect a risk-free food-supply chain.
By Janet Raloff -
Climate
Goldilocks tree leaves
Leaves mostly keep their cool (or warmth) wherever they live, a finding that might affect reconstructions of past climates.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Invasion of the salmon
Chinook salmon, dwindling in the United States, go wild in South America.
By Susan Milius -
Life
Zombie babysitters
Wasp attack creates undead caterpillars that protect wasp young
By Susan Milius -
Ecosystems
That sinking feeling
The sea level rise expected in the coming century will swamp the Everglades unless current management is adjusted or climate change is curbed.
By Sid Perkins -
Ecosystems
Better than a local lady
Orchids lure male pollinators by mimicking the scent of out-of-town female bees.
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Ecosystems
BOOK LIST | Trees, Truffles, and Beasts: How Forests Function
An argument that simple policies will not save complex forests.Rutgers Univ. Press, 2008, 280 p., $26.95 (paperback). TREES, TRUFFLES, AND BEASTS: HOW FORESTS FUNCTION
By Science News -
Animals
Pandamonium over a Tiny Pest
A parasite threatens efforts to protect China's endangered icon.
By Janet Raloff