Viruses don’t immediately kill algae but live in harmony with them Scientists have long believed that ocean viruses always quickly kill algae, but Rutgers-led research shows they live in harmony with algae and viruses provide a “coup de grace” only when blooms of algae are already stressed and dying. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, will likely change how scientists view …
#EOAS in the News: Bat Ticks Discovered in NJ for the First Time
In this interview with 94.3 The Point, #EOAS faculty member Dina Fonseca and Rutgers Ph.D. student James Occi explain that they have found ticks that prey on bats in New Jersey, specifically in Mercer and Sussex counties. In this interview, Fonseca and Occi explain that people who have had bats removed from indoors should be aware that without the bats …
Indigenous People Vital for Understanding Environmental Change
Rutgers-led research shows how local knowledge can help manage ecosystems and wildlife Grassroots knowledge from Indigenous people can help to map and monitor ecological changes and improve scientific studies, according to Rutgers-led research. The study, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, shows the importance of Indigenous and local knowledge for monitoring ecosystem changes and managing ecosystems. The team collected more than …
Decline of Bees, Other Pollinators Threatens U.S. Crop Yields
Largest study of its kind highlights risk to global food security Crop yields for apples, cherries and blueberries across the United States are being reduced by a lack of pollinators, according to Rutgers-led research, the most comprehensive study of its kind to date. Most of the world’s crops depend on honeybees and wild bees for pollination, so declines in both …
Dangerous Tick-Borne Bacterium Extremely Rare in New Jersey
The mystery behind the rise in spotted fever cases continues There’s some good news in New Jersey about a potentially deadly tick-borne bacterium. Rutgers researchers examined more than 3,000 ticks in the Garden State and found only one carrying Rickettsia rickettsii, the bacterium that causes Rocky Mountain spotted fever. But cases of tick-borne spotted fevers have increased east of the Mississippi …
#EOAS in the News: Dina Fonseca on Mosquitos in NJ Summer 2020
By Amanda Oglesby, Asbury Park Press Bret Ulozas sprays his yard for mosquitoes in the New Egypt section of Plumsted in order to keep the blood suckers at bay. The 49-year-old applies insecticide to reduce the nuisance of mosquitoes, especially as his family spends more time in the backyard due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus they found in mosquitoes around that military …
#EOAS in the News: “Managing the Majestic Jumbo Flying Squid”
In an article in The New York Times titled “Managing the Majestic Jumbo Flying Squid,” EOAS faculty member Malin Pinsky, an associate professor in the Rutgers Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources, said, “The impacts of climate change and variability are playing out much more dramatically in the ocean than on land . . . It’s a largely unseen and yet incredibly dramatic …
Mangrove Trees Won’t Survive Sea-Level Rise by 2050 if Emissions Aren’t Cut
Scientists explored how the valuable ecosystems responded to rising seas in the past Mangrove trees – valuable coastal ecosystems found in Florida and other warm climates – won’t survive sea-level rise by 2050 if greenhouse gas emissions aren’t reduced, according to a Rutgers co-authored study in the journal Science. Mangrove forests store large amounts of carbon, help protect coastlines and provide habitat …
Oyster Farming and Shorebirds Likely Can Coexist
A red knot among a flock of migratory shorebirds foraging along the Delaware Bayshore. Photo: Brian Schumm
#EOAS in the News: Asian Giant ‘Murder Hornets’ Buzz Into U.S. Could they Get to Philly Area?
Asian giant hornets will swarm a honeybee hive with the purpose of decapitating thousands of bees and taking away their thoraxes to feed to the hornets’ young. On rare occasions, they will attack humans, sometimes fatally. Stories this week in various media outlets, including the New York Times, about the Asian giant hornet, Vespa mandarinia, making its way to Washington state have …