Birds of a feather better not together

Birds of a feather better not together

Diversity plays a key role in maintaining the stability of plant and animal life in an area. But it’s difficult to scale up smaller experiments to understand how changes will impact larger ecosystems. A new study of North American birds from biologists in Arts & Sciences reveals the importance of both total numbers and variation in species identities.
Tracking the migration of a naked mole rat

Tracking the migration of a naked mole rat

Stan Braude, a biologist in Arts & Sciences, published a new study in the African Journal of Ecology that considers the role of the moon in driving a particularly rare occurrence: the solo journey of a naked mole rat from one underground colony to start a new one.
And then there was light

And then there was light

New research from Washington University in St. Louis provides insight into how proteins called phytochromes sense light and contribute to how plants grow. Biologists used sophisticated techniques to structurally define the sequence of events that support the transition between light- and dark-adapted states.
Four ways to curb light pollution, save bugs

Four ways to curb light pollution, save bugs

Want to help stop the decline of our insect friends? A new publication from Brett Seymoure in Arts & Sciences shows how artificial light at night negatively impacts thousands of species that have evolved to use light levels as cues for courtship, foraging and navigation.
Straight from the source

Straight from the source

Arpita Bose, assistant professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, has published new work that reveals how one kind of bacteria “eats” electricity by pulling in electrons straight from an electrode source. The research is published Nov. 5 in mBio.
NSF funds research on nitrogen fixation

NSF funds research on nitrogen fixation

Himadri B. Pakrasi, professor of biology in Arts & Sciences and director of InCEES, was recently awarded a $1.2-million grant for a collaborative study of cyanobacteria with the ultimate purpose of producing nitrogen-fixing crop plants.
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