news 2023

An experiment on coral reefs provides the first evidence that predators use other animals for motion camouflage to approach their prey without detection. The shadowing behaviour of the trumpetfish appears a useful strategy to improve its hunting success. James Herbert-Read A new study provides the first experimental evidence that the trumpetfish, Aulostomus maculatus, can conceal itself by swimming closely behind another fish while hunting - and reduce the likelihood of being detected by its prey.

New nanoporous membrane allows highly efficient separation of wastewater components for reuse, offering industries sustainability and added-value benefits Engineers have developed a new kind of membrane that separates chemicals within wastewater so effectively that they can be reused, presenting a new opportunity for industries to improve sustainability, while extracting valuable by-products and chemicals from wastewater.

Taking inspiration from spirit mediums can give researchers powerful new tools to discover more about their specialism. Tourism researchers could learn from spirit mediums to develop a better way of researching by embracing 'nothingness' and opening themselves up to the mysterious and unseen 'atmospheres' that surround us, a new study reveals.

A new method for recycling coloured plastics has been developed by scientists at Cardiff University. The process, which breaks down coloured polymers, the principal component of plastics, into their original components, could lead to a circular plastic recycling economy reducing pollution on land and in our oceans, the researchers claim.

Sargassum seaweed - which wreaks annual havoc on coastal communities across the tropical Atlantic - is predicted to creep further north and into Europe in the coming decades. New research, led by the University of Southampton, has also concluded that sargassum is not the carbon sink it was initially hailed as.

A Canadian lake has been proposed as the official point marking the onset of the Anthropocene period by a committee led by a UCL academic. The Anthropocene is a proposed geological time period starting in the 1950s, defined by the impact of human activity on Earth. The term "Anthropocene" has been informally used by scientists for some time to refer to the modern era, but defining the point in time through observed geologic processes is an important step to officially recognising it as a new epoch in Earth's geologic timeline.

The family, wing length and wing colour of tropical butterflies all influence their ability to withstand rising temperatures, say a team led by ecologists at the University of Cambridge. The researchers believe this could help identify species whose survival is under threat from climate change. Ultimately all insects, including butterflies, the world over are likely to be affected by climate change.

A new study has revealed that two-fifths of species likely threatened by the international wildlife trade are not covered by the global agreement that regulates it. This includes 370 species that are Critically Endangered or Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Overexploitation is a major threat to vulnerable animal and plant species, and one of the key drivers of biodiversity loss.

An international team of researchers has chosen the location which best represents the beginnings of what could be a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene. The Anthropocene Working Group have put forward Crawford Lake, in Canada, as a Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) for the Anthropocene.

An international team of scientists claim to have discovered the source of warm super salty water that rushed up the Atlantic Ocean 15,000 years ago, ushering in the end of the last ice age. Their study traces the history of ocean temperature and salinity during each ice age cycle of the last 1.5 million years.

Keeping tropical fish as pets could contribute up to 12.4% of the UK's annual average household CO2 emissions and up to 30% of the UK annual average household water usage, a new study finds. The carbon footprint and environmental impacts of keeping pet fish has been calculated for the first time by Cardiff University's Water Research Institute.

Research shows global cooling of the climate 10 million years ago led to an explosion of diversity in terrestrial orchids. Research led by the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath looking at the evolution of terrestrial orchid species has found that global cooling of the climate appears to be the major driving factor in their diversity.

Researchers at the UCL Institute of Archaeology have discovered some of the largest early prehistoric stone tools in Britain. The excavations, which took place in Kent and were commissioned in advance of development of the Maritime Academy School in Frindsbury, revealed prehistoric artefacts in deep Ice Age sediments preserved on a hillside above the Medway Valley.

Millennials and Gen-Z experience greater levels of fear, guilt and outrage about the impacts of climate change compared to older Gen-X, baby boomer and post-war groups, new research suggests. The research by the Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations (CAST), at Cardiff University and the University of Bath, collected data across the UK to examine generational differences in attitudes towards climate change.

Analysis of global tracking data for 77 species of petrel has revealed that a quarter of all plastics potentially encountered in their search for food are in remote international waters - requiring international collaboration to address. Ocean currents cause big swirling collections of plastic rubbish to accumulate far from land Lizzie Pearmain The extensive study assessed the movements of 7,137 individual birds from 77 species of petrel, a group of wide-ranging migratory seabirds including the Northern Fulmar and European Storm-petrel, and the Critically Endangered Newell's Shearwater.

Sea urchin, Asthenosoma varium, entangled with fishing line while camouflaging itself with a plastic bag at 130 m depth in the Philippines. Image credit: Luiz Rocha © California Academy of Sciences. In the most comprehensive survey to date, researchers have revealed the scale of plastic pollution on coral reefs, even at great depths.

Cambridge scientists have set out principles for how computational science - which powers discoveries from unveiling the mysteries of the universe to developing treatments to fight cancer to improving our understanding of the human genome, but can have a substantial carbon footprint - can be made more environmentally sustainable.

Governments and companies planning to pursue the circular economy need to involve scientists more directly, states a new report published by the International Society for Industrial Ecology, and led by UCL's Dr Stijn van Ewijk. The report, published today, draws attention to the weight of relevant expertise found in the field of industrial ecology, a discipline that has been focusing on the minimisation of waste, predicting the impacts of new products, and designing environmentally friendly systems for decades.

Researchers have found that the cooling effect that volcanic eruptions have on Earth's surface temperature is likely underestimated by a factor of two, and potentially as much as a factor of four, in standard climate projections. These small-magnitude eruptions may not have a measurable effect individually, but collectively, their effect is significant.

Extreme weather events combined with rising environmental stress levels are increasing the likelihood of ecosystem collapse, according to new research involving the University of Southampton. A new study published in Nature Sustainability describes a "perfect storm" of continuous stress from factors such as unsustainable land use, agricultural expansion and climate change, coupled with extreme weather events, like floods and wildfires.