36
votes
Accepted
Why is a mosquito feeding on human blood not a parasite?
A mosquito is a biological parasite, it is not a medical parasite.
There are two definitions of parasite. A biological/ecological definition and a medical/physiological interaction definition.
A ...
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33
votes
Why haven't prey evolved the ability to always outrun their predators?
There are (at least) three important factors to consider here; evolution under selection requires genetic variation upon which to act, selection can act on covarying traits causing trade-offs, and ...
- 16k
33
votes
Accepted
Earth overshoot day: is it a sound concept?
TL;DR: it's a simplified measure of sustainability, but accurate enough to be useful for public engagement
EOD is hosted and calculated by Global Footprint Network (GFN), an international think tank....
- 3,346
33
votes
Would fewer cows mean less methane emission?
Couple of thoughts:
(The OP's article is a low quality source of info with either an interview taken out of context or an inappropriately vague or under-informed interviewee. Reasons why will become ...
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24
votes
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What is Growing on These Tree Leaves? (Image)
This is actually not a gall as other answers have suggested.
This is likely a fungus called Cedar-apple rust (Gymnosporangium juniperi-virginianae).
The fungus only thrives in the presence of both ...
- 29.7k
22
votes
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How to get rid of mosquitoes in a small lake
There are a number of environmentally destructive methods that would be effective, including draining the lake, covering the surface with a continuous layer of oil, or adding toxins to the water, but ...
- 3,346
22
votes
What exactly is this small puffer fish doing and how did it manage to accomplish such a feat?
A tiny Japanese puffer fish creates a grand sand sculpture on the featureless seabed by using his fins to dig furrows. He uses this to attract the attention of passing females.
Why do puffer ...
- 1,562
20
votes
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Inexperienced divers damage coral, but parrot fish eating coral doesn't do damage?
You are absolutely correct in regards that marine life does cause damage to corals. In particular, parrotfish have been found to play an important role in regulating the biodiversity of coral reefs ...
- 1,007
19
votes
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Are there phage-eating bacteria?
It's suspected that some protists (namely choanozoans and picozoans) are proper/direct "virus eaters" due to the size of their "eating apparatus" and scarcity of bacterial remains ...
- 3,052
17
votes
Why haven't prey evolved the ability to always outrun their predators?
There are two reasons for this: evolutionary trade-offs and coevolution (the "Red Queen hypothesis", as mentioned in the comment above by Luigi).
Evolutionary trade-off describes situations where one ...
- 3,346
17
votes
Earth overshoot day: is it a sound concept?
I think that your question comes from a misunderstanding in the definition of the overshoot day, here is the definition in your question:
Regardless of how it's calculated, the claim that we have ...
- 307
17
votes
Antibacterial soap impacts on septic system?
The quick answer is: Yes, it can cause harm.
Think about it...The septic system (both the tank and your drain field) rely on bacteria, and antibacterial soap is not designed to kill only specific ...
- 29.7k
16
votes
What exactly is this small puffer fish doing and how did it manage to accomplish such a feat?
This "nest" is created by a male pufferfish for both courtship and for rearing young.
The male puffer fish uses its body and fins (a combination of pectoral, anal, and caudal -- see here) to ...
- 29.7k
14
votes
Accepted
Are there species that occupy several roles in the food hierarchy?
Food hierarchy and food web
Ecological trophic interactions are better represented by food webs rather than simple hierarchical relationships. As a consequence, the concepts of primary/secondary/...
- 68k
14
votes
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Why do birches have a white bark?
It is protection against rapid warming of the cambium layer. A lot of far northern timber has light colored bark which reflects sunlight. The rapid heating from very cold after sunrise can actually ...
- 14.3k
14
votes
Accepted
What is the body density of insects on average?
A recent studya measured the volumes (using a 3D scanner) and dry masses of 113 different insect species. They found the following relationship between the dry mass of the insects and their volumes ($...
- 2,106
13
votes
Accepted
Where can I find historical data on world-wide ecology parameters?
Adding some additional database sources:
-- Climate --
Prism
The PRISM Climate Group gathers climate observations from a wide range of monitoring networks, applies sophisticated quality control ...
- 29.7k
12
votes
Accepted
Does rainwater contain many fewer micro-organisms than river water?
According to a number of citations listed on Kenyon College's MicrobeWiki, rain can contain microorganisms via a process called "bioprecipitation."
Essentially, microorganisms, dust and other small ...
- 29.7k
12
votes
Accepted
Which anaerobic environments would exist without aerobic life?
In the question body it says:
After the great oxygenation event, there was oxygen in the atmosphere but no layers of aerobic life to stop it from diffusing to the bottom of the ocean or deep ...
- 9,024
11
votes
Accepted
What is full form of r and K in r-selection species and K-selection species?
This article discusses the origin of the terms. They come directly from the equation used to describe population dynamics. As Canadianer mentioned the Wiki also covers it quite well.
"r" stands for "...
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10
votes
Accepted
Are there any animals that gradually approaches the predator to search for food?
The behaviour that you describe is common in most animal species, as part of the natural trade-off between access to food, minimizing risk, habituation and hunger. Animals usually choose to forage in ...
- 16.7k
10
votes
Accepted
Algae or Lichen identification. Coastal BC, Canada
I want to propose you expand your search to a broader taxonomic scope. Specifically, I think you might be looking at a species of "red" green algae (family: Trentepohliaceae).
From Nelson ...
- 29.7k
9
votes
Accepted
Do camels pose an environmental threat to kangaroos?
Feral camels have environmental, economic and cultural impacts in Australia's Northern Territory (Dept of Land Resource Management, Australia).
In central Australia, camels feed on more than 80% of ...
- 52.3k
9
votes
Why is a mosquito feeding on human blood not a parasite?
Short answer
Female* mosquitoes are generally not to be considered ectoparasites because they spend so little time with the host. Instead, they are sometimes classified as micro-predators.
*Male ...
- 52.3k
9
votes
Accepted
Why do bumble bees run repeatedly into walls?
Crall et al., 2015, studied bumblebee collision avoidance (note the senior authors are the same from your link). It seems that, contrary to popular belief and experience, bumblebees are actually quite ...
- 44k
9
votes
Ecology of the environment for the ruffed grouse
When I am curious how things were with American birds back 200 years ago, I read Audubon.
https://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america/ruffed-grouse
Although these birds are particularly attached to the ...
- 2,964
8
votes
How to get rid of mosquitoes in a small lake
My suggestions, based on mosquitoe projects I've heard about in Sweden, would be to:
Thin vegetation along the shores
Remove accumulated detritus
Manage grasslands along the shore, by grazing if ...
- 16.7k
8
votes
Accepted
Why do bulls have a hump?
Bison humps are made of muscles, huge muscles. According to this and this pages bisons use their heads for snowplowing. This hump provides head support. It seems that also other animals have ...
- 560
8
votes
Accepted
At what temporal scales do forest structures change?
This question is too broad. What type of temperate forest?
The European Environment Agency recognized dozens of temperate forest types:
...
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Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible