Tag Zoology
Understanding the human-animal interplay of COVID-19 and other diseases
Most human diseases don’t start — or end — with our species. Only by looking at the whole picture can scientists like UW–Madison's Tony Goldberg uncover the full story of viruses on Earth.
Wisconsin corn maze features resilient tardigrade
Tardigrades, also known as water bears, look kind of like a cross between a bear and a caterpillar, are known for their incredible resilience. As such, they're the perfect organism for 2020.
Study suggests trees are crucial to the future of our cities
According to a new UW–Madison study, the right amount of tree cover can lower summer daytime temperatures in a city by as much as 10 degrees Fahrenheit.
Successful mouse couples talk out infidelity in calm tones
The quality of their conversations between pairs of California mice after one partner has been unfaithful can help predict which mouse pairs will successfully produce a litter of mouse pups and which males are good fathers, according to a new UW–Madison study.
Monkey study shows a path to monitoring endangered species
“We think this may be one of the most comprehensive efforts to analyze the data monitoring needs for ensuring the survival of an endangered animal,” says Karen Strier, who has observed muriquis in Brazil for 35 years.
Citizen scientists scour Madison area for invasive jumping worms
The worms churn through leaf litter at a faster clip than their more sluggish earthworm cousins, potentially processing nutrients faster than plants are able to use them and disrupting ecosystems.
Cultural value of natural world doesn’t depend only on species diversity
Researcher Rose Graves' work in North Carolina has implications for other regions with deep ties to nature, such as lake- and forest-filled Wisconsin.
Enormous swarms of midges teach about interconnected landscapes
Research into the insects' behavior aims to better understand lake-dominated environments, including those of Wisconsin.
Zebra mussels invade Lake Mendota
In the last four months, UW–Madison researchers have started to find zebra mussels congregating in large numbers all over Lake Mendota.
Voracious Asian jumping worms strip forest floor and flood soil with nutrients
Asian jumping worms, an invasive species first found in Wisconsin in 2013, may do their work too well, speeding up the exit of nutrients from the soil before plants can process them.
Panda poop study provides insights into microbiome, reproductive troubles
Gastrointestinal diseases are a major cause of mortality in pandas but scientists understand little about their digestive process.
Regeneration pioneer to join Morgridge Institute, UW–Madison faculty
Phil Newmark is a developmental biologist studying the mysteries of how the body regenerates damaged tissue.
Remembering late UW–Madison Zoology Professor Jack P. Hailman
Hailman was a professor emeritus of zoology and well-known experimentalist and animal behaviorist. His UW–Madison career spanned 30 years.
UW scientists say invasive species impacts much worse than thought
According to UW researchers, a single non-native species in a single inland lake has racked up $80 million to $163 million in damage.
60 years after pioneering survey, Wisconsin prairies are changing rapidly
Researchers have found that human influence has accelerated the rate of species change in these prairies and likely in other natural places.
Galapagos tortoise species ID’d from specimen in UW museum
A new species of giant Galapagos tortoise, revealed this week in a study conducted by scientists at Yale University, also happened to be lurking in the collections of the University of Wisconsin–Madison's Zoological Museum, it turns out.
UW-Madison researcher chosen to lead Ecological Society of America
Monica Turner has made a career of studying ecosystem resilience in the face of ecological challenges, from severe forest fires and bark beetle outbreaks in Greater Yellowstone and the northern Rockies to climate and land use change in Wisconsin.
Wisconsin’s fish – all of them – star in new poster series
Fully grown, the least darter is one inch long — Wisconsin’s smallest fish. The lake sturgeon, which can grow to more than 6 feet in length, is Wisconsin’s biggest. In between are 181 other species, and each and every one of them will soon have its moment in the spotlight, thanks to scientific illustrator Kandis Elliot.
Two faculty members named Steenbock Professors
University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty members Anthony Ives and Su-Chun Zhang have been named Steenbock Professors.
Grasshoppers signal slow recovery of post-agricultural woodlands, study finds
New research by Philip Hahn and John Orrock at the University of Wisconsin–Madison on the recovery of South Carolina longleaf pine woodlands once used for cropland shows just how long lasting the legacy of agriculture can be in the recovery of natural places. By comparing grasshoppers found at woodland sites once used for agriculture to similar sites never disturbed by farming, Hahn and Orrock show that despite decades of recovery, the numbers and types of species found in each differ.