Nature reports

Many native animals that disperse plant seeds on the island of Mauritius have gone extinct during the past centuries. This includes iconic species such as the dodo and giant tortoises, now replaced by non-native fruit-eating..

The rate of deforestation in the Amazon is much higher than previously thought. As a result, there is a risk of reaching a tipping point, after which the ecosystem will be irreversibly altered. And that could have catastrophic..

Researchers at the University of Amsterdam have developed a model that can accurately predict the current migration routes of migratory birds. This offers the possibility of taking adequate measures at the right time when birds..

Automated approaches and remote sensing can greatly improve biodiversity monitoring. A new European consortium of partners, including researcher W. Daniel Kissling from the Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, will..

More than one million people in the Netherlands are using medication against mental illnesses such as depression and psychosis. Residues of these medicines are found in waste water. After many cleansing treatments, our waste water..

Sponges are among the oldest creatures on Earth and play a key role in many underwater ecosystems. A new study by Niklas Kornder of the University of Amsterdam and colleagues finds that sponges ‘sneeze’ to clear their water..

Coral reefs host a complex underwater metropole of organisms living by their own day and night rhythms. A new study by Benjamin Mueller and colleagues shows that the nighttime activity of one reef inhabitant, the turf algae, might..

64 million square kilometres – 44 percent of Earth’s land area – require conservation to safeguard biodiversity. This is revealed in a new research led by biologists of the University of Amsterdam, that was published on June 3rd..

An international team of biologists has successfully used biologgers to reveal insights into the lifestyle and hunting behaviour of the little-known species Sowerby’s beaked whale. The team’s first results show that these dolphins..

Sequestration of carbon from the atmosphere into tropical vegetation has been suggested as a mitigating factor of anthropogenically elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. A new study now shows that over the long term there is..