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Conservationists urge treaty panel to reject ivory sale by Tanzania, Zambia By News Releases (University of Washington) An international team of conservationists, writing in Science, says relaxing a current moratorium on ivory sales to allow one-time sales by Zambia and Tanzania could lead to increased slaughter of elephants for their ivory throughout Africa.

AIBS names emerging public policy leaders By News Releases (American Institute of Biological Sciences) The American Institute of Biological Sciences has selected Meredith Niles, a graduate student at the University of California, Davis, Ryan Richards, a graduate student at the University of Maryland, College Park, and Leslie Smith, a graduate student at the University of Rhode Island, to receive the 2010 AIBS Emerging Public Policy Leadership Award.

Smelling the scenery in stereo By News Releases (Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology) Desert ants are well-known for their remarkable orientation: they use a compass along with a step counter and visible landmarks to locate their nest. After researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology discovered that these ants can navigate also by using olfactory cues, they now found that the animals even can take advantage of the distribution of different odors in a map-like manner by utilizing their antennae to smell their environment in stereo.

Pew announces 2010 recipients of distinguished marine conservation fellowship By News Releases (Pew Environment Group) The Pew Environment Group announced today that five individuals, representing Australia, Sweden, United Kingdom and Uruguay, received the 2010 Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation.

Endangered Species Research publishes theme section on biologging science By News Releases (Stanford University - Hopkins Marine Station) Biologging -- the use of miniaturized electronic tags to track animals in the wild -- has revealed previously unknown information about a wide variety of ocean animals. Biologging science is showing researchers how animals work in the furthest reaches of the ocean environs. A collection of papers on Biologging Science is being published Wednesday, March 3, 2010, in the scientific journal Endangered Species Research, which features a wide array of cutting-edge biologging research from around the world.

Barnacles prefer upwelling currents, enriching food chains in the Galapagos By News Releases (Brown University) The barnacle, a key thread in the marine food web, was thought to be missing along rocky coasts dominated by upwelling. Now a research team headed by Brown University marine ecologist Jon Witman has found the opposite to be true: Barnacle populations thrive in vertical upwelling zones in moderately deep waters in the Galapagos Islands. The findings appear in Ecological Monographs.

Marine reserves hit the spotlight in PNAS special issue, AAAS press briefing By News Releases (University of California - Santa Barbara) Marine reserves are known to be effective conservation tools when they are placed and designed properly. This week, a special issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences is dedicated to the latest science on marine reserves, with a focus on where and how reserves can most effectively help to meet both conservation and fisheries goals.

Marine spatial planning: A more balanced approach to ocean management By News Releases (Duke University) The old balkanized approach to ocean management, in which different resources and activities are governed by different laws and agencies, has failed to protect ocean ecosystems or reduce conflicts between ocean users, a panel of international scientists says. It should be replaced with a more balanced approach using marine spatial planning. The panel, organized by scientists from Duke University, will make its case at a symposium at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 20, at the AAAS annual meeting in San Diego.

Rise of sexual predators in energy boomtowns highlights social problems By News Releases (Wiley-Blackwell) Research into the social and environmental effects on communities that are economically dependent on oil and gas industries has revealed "social dysfunction and biological impoverishment." The research, published in Conservation Biology, revealed that over a nine year period the number of registered sex offenders in energy "boomtowns" was two to three times higher than towns dependent on other industries.

Local social dynamics key to success of tropical marine conservation areas By News Releases (University of Washington) As biologists and ecologists propose ever-larger conservation areas in the tropics, ones that encompass multiple countries, social scientists say it's local people banding together with their community leaders who ultimately determine the success or failure of such efforts in many parts of the world.