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Climate change can alter methane emission and uptake in the Amazon

Phys.org - Thu 10 Oct 24

Extreme temperatures and humidity levels (excessive rain or drought) projected for the Amazon in the context of climate change may increase the volume of methane-producing microorganisms in ...

Climate change can alter methane emission and uptake in the Amazon, Eurekalert - Thu 10 Oct 24

Environmental factors influence Southeast Brazil's coastal biodiversity more than ecological processes, study finds

Phys.org - Wed 9 Oct 24

Sea surface temperature, wave energy and freshwater discharge from rivers influence the abundance and size of the marine organisms that inhabit rocky shores along the coast of Southeast Brazil ...

Genomic study reveals fungal domestication by leafcutter ants

Phys.org - Mon 7 Oct 24

While our human ancestors began domesticating food crops around 10,000 years ago, a lineage of ants called the "attines" became fungus farmers 60 million years earlier. The attine ants and their ...

Asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs may have led to the invention of 'ant agriculture'

Phys.org - Sun 6 Oct 24

The event that wiped out the dinosaurs wasn't all bad. The low-light environment caused by the meteor impact some 66 million years ago favored the spread of fungi that feed on organic matter, ...

Scientists discover how ants took advantage of asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs

The Independent - Thu 3 Oct 24

The asteroid created ideal conditions for fungi to thrive

Catastrophe might have created the first ant farms

Cosmos Magazine - Thu 3 Oct 24

When an asteroid slammed into Earth 66 million years ago, it caused a mass extinction. Now researchers have evidence that this catastrophe ushered in the invention of agriculture by ants. “Extinction ...

Ant agriculture started 66 million years ago, study suggests

The Independent - Thu 3 Oct 24

Researchers say many animals have been growing their own food since long before humans existed.

Genetic database shows some fungal crops became completely reliant on ants 27 million years ago

Phys.org - Thu 3 Oct 24

When humans began farming crops thousands of years ago, agriculture had already been around for millions of years. In fact, several animal lineages have been growing their own food since long ...

The secret way insects (and their poop) are spreading plants around the world

Science Focus - Tue 1 Oct 24

Plants produce juicy, sweet fruit with secret seeds inside them so that fruit-eating mammals, from toucans to fruit bats to orangutans, are lured into taking a bite.Then, these animals fly or ...

Bird nests made with a toxic fungus seem to fend off attacking ants

ScienceNews - Tue 1 Oct 24

Two species of birds in Costa Rica build nests in trees defended by ants. Ants that encounter the horsehair fungus in the nests develop odd behaviors.

Ants might be pushing montane birds higher up, study finds

Phys.org - Mon 30 Sep 24

Mountains are home to 85% of the world's amphibian, bird, and mammalian species, despite covering only 25% of the Earth's surface. This makes them a highly diverse ecosystem and a key focus ...

Ants might be pushing montane birds higher up, study finds, Eurekalert - Mon 30 Sep 24

The dinosaur-killing asteroid turned ants into farmers

Popular Science - Mon 7 Oct 24

Dinosaurs certainly didn’t benefit from the Chicxulub asteroid impact, but that was a wholly different story for the ancestors of today’s ants. In fact, the climatic upheaval that rocked ...

Ants discovered agriculture 66 million years ago

ZME Science - Mon 7 Oct 24

The same asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs may have led ants to farm fungus.

Ants learned to farm fungi during a mass extinction

Ars Technica - Fri 4 Oct 24

We tend to think of agriculture as a human innovation. But insects beat us to it by millions of years. Various ant species cooperate with fungi, creating a home for them, providing ...

Ants Farmed Fungi in the Wake of Dinosaurs’ Demise 66 Million Years Ago

Smithsonian Magazine - Thu 3 Oct 24

A new study from Smithsonian scientists analyzes ant and fungus species, and uncovers the origins of their close partnership

Urgent warning over rare 'Devil's Fingers' fungus that smells like rotting FLESH and looks like a 'hand reaching out from a grave'

Daily Mail - Thu 3 Oct 24

The alien-like fungus has earned the nickname 'Devil's Fingers' thanks to its ghoulish, hand-like appearance.

Ant queens cannibalize their sick young to prevent disease outbreak

Mongabay.com - Fri 4 Oct 24

Ant queens practice a grim but effective form of childcare, eating their own sick larvae to recycle them into new, healthier eggs. A new study shows that by consuming their infected ...

Effects of environmental factors on Southeast Brazil’s coastal biodiversity surpass those of ecological processes

Eurekalert - Wed 9 Oct 24

Marine organisms in areas influenced by lower sea surface temperatures, such as the Lakes Region in Rio de Janeiro state, are between 25% and 100% larger than those inhabiting warmer water along ...

Genomic signatures of domestication in a fungus obligately farmed by leafcutter ants

Eurekalert - Mon 7 Oct 24

150 years after leafcutter ants were discovered deep in South American rainforests, scientists from the University of Copenhagen have revealed how these ant farmers achieved crop domestication ...

Dinosaur-Killing Asteroid Impact Turned Ants into Fungus Farmers, Study Says

Sci.News - Fri 4 Oct 24

In a new study published this week in the journal Science, researchers found that fungus-ant agriculture originated approximately 66 million years ago when the end-of-Cretaceous asteroid impact ...

Asteroid that doomed dinosaurs created ant agriculture, LSU researchers say

Eurekalert - Fri 4 Oct 24

Humans began farming thousands of years ago, but a new study co-authored by two LSU professors says ants had us beat by millions of years. LSU AgCenter mycologist Vinson P. Doyle and LSU ...

Asteroid impact may have prompted ants to begin farming fungi 66 million years ago

SpaceDaily - Fri 4 Oct 24

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Oct 04, 2024 The asteroid that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs also set the stage for the evolution of fungus-farming ants, according to a new study published ...

Asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs led to the invention of ‘ant agriculture’

Eurekalert - Fri 4 Oct 24

When the dust that covered the skies 66 million years ago prevented plants from photosynthesizing and benefited creatures that fed on decomposing organic matter, these insects selected species ...

Ant agriculture began 66 million years ago in the aftermath of the asteroid that doomed the dinosaurs

ScienceDaily - Thu 3 Oct 24

According to a new study, colonies of ants began farming fungi when an asteroid struck Earth 66 million years ago. This asteroid impact caused a global mass extinction but also created ideal ...

Ant agriculture began 66 million years ago in the aftermath of the asteroid that doomed the dinosaurs, Eurekalert - Thu 3 Oct 24

The true global impact of species-loss caused by humans is far greater than expected – new study reveals

Eurekalert - Thu 3 Oct 24

The extinction of hundreds of bird species caused by humans over the last 130,000 years has led to substantial reductions in avian functional diversity – a measure of the range of different ...