Philosopher Peter Godfrey-Smith has devoted his career to examining how animal minds evolved. He blends formidable analytical skills with a deep curiosity about the natural world, mostly experienced at first hand in his native Australia. While writing his latest book, Living on Earth, he spent many hours scrutinizing noisy parrots and cockatoos in his back…
A new study suggests that a more complex understanding of how wealth and biodiversity are linked may help communities with little wealth achieve the levels of diversity typically associated with more affluent areas. Researchers have long understood that areas with more wealth tend to have higher biodiversity, a phenomenon known as the “luxury effect.” However,…
Alcohol isn’t solely a human construct. Ethanol, a type of alcohol, naturally occurs across ecosystems. From jungles to deserts, wherever sugary foods ferment, ethanol is found. So, behavioral ecologist Kimberley Hockings from the University of Exeter challenges the traditionally human-centered view of ethanol, suggesting it has a broader ecological role. “We’re moving away from this…
Fire behaviour in the Mediterranean region has been altered by climate change. In the last decade, not only has the occurrence of fires increased but also their virulence. This is primarily due to higher temperatures and the decrease in the rainfall, which have made forest ecosystems less able to withstand fires. It has also been…
Extreme fire seasons in the Mediterranean basin have received international attention due to the damage caused to people, livelihoods, and vulnerable ecosystems. There is a body of literature linking increasingly intense, large fires to a build-up of fuel from rural land abandonment exacerbated by climate change. However, a better understanding of the complex factors driving…
This article aims to review the existing literature on the impact of climate change on Greece’s primary sector, focusing on sustainable management. Climate change has already caused and will persistently cause significant adverse impacts in various sectors due to environmental degradation, resource depletion, and extreme weather events. These impacts are evident in the natural environment,…
New mathematical model by CASUS researcher explains the different interactions of pioneer plants with other plants over time Some plants are able to take over uninhabited spaces like sand dunes, volcanic substrates and rockfall areas. The first colonizers have specific traits that allow them to grow in such hostile environments. Other plants lack such traits…
Wildfires can be considered as a natural part of many ecosystems, but their frequency and heightened risk have been notably influenced by climate change. This amplified threat poses a significant concern that necessitates further study on the properties and behavior of smoke particles. The 2023 was a year of intense wildfires worldwide with Greece experiencing…
Liz Truss, the new UK prime minister, isn’t a fan of solar farms. In 2014, when she was environment secretary, she described rows of panels arranged in a field to capture energy from the sun as a “blight on the landscape”. Eight years later, as a candidate for the 2022 Conservative Party leadership election, she…
Today coastal erosion is usually exacerbated by anthropogenic climate change and results in the loss of income and cultural norms, as well as in the loss or degradation of ecosystem … >>> Tourlioti, P.N., Portman, M.E., Tzoraki, O., Pantelakis, I. Ocean & Coastal Management 210,105705 (2021) Recent related articles in this category