Round Goby fish invades Great Lakes, endangers native species

October 2nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a new research, biologists have genetically mapped the sex chromosomes of several species of cichlid fish from Lake Malawi, East Africa, and identified a mechanism by which new sex chromosomes may evolve. The research, by biologists Thomas Kocher, Reade Roberts and Jennifer Ser of the University of Maryland describe the genetic basis for two co-existing systems of sexual determination in cichlid fish from Lake Malawi.

September 28th, 2009 LONDON - Experiments in stickleback fish have shown for the first time that the evolution of new sex chromosomes is the driving force behind the formation of a new vertebrate species. Up until now, most evidence has shown that new species arise because they have adapted to new environments.

September 22nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists have discovered a previously unknown species off Brazil's Bahia coast, which is more than six feet long, has small teeth, and has no scales covering its gelatinous body. According to a report in National Geographic News, the fish that has a long tail, was found floating in the sea by researchers from the TAMAR Project, a sea turtle conservation project.

September 4th, 2009 NY researchers give ladybugs a birds-and-bees talkITHACA, N.Y. — A year after they launched a nationwide search for dwindling native ladybugs, New York researchers are breeding colonies of them from insects found by citizen scientists in Oregon and Colorado.

August 21st, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has determined that like police and nurses, cleaner fish on coral reefs wear 'uniforms', which are basically colors and body patterns, to signal their "professions" - a tactic that also helps the fish avoid being eaten by their clients. Several species of small reef fish are known to invite larger fish to stop by "cleaning stations," where the cleaners groom their customers and pick them free of parasites.

August 14th, 2009 MELBOURNE - A new research conducted by Australian scientists has shown that some female fish find different male traits attractive from year to year. According to the researchers, the changing preferences of female fish may play an important role in evolution.

July 21st, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new research by scientists from the University of Victoria has shown that fish avoid the divers and snorkelers who try to count them, and that is why using snorkelers and SCUBA divers may misrepresent the number of fish. Not all types of fish are equally frightened by the divers, and Faculty of 1000 member Helen Yap, who recommended the study, explains that therefore "such methods may not provide an accurate picture of the actual diversity and abundance of fish communities." Counting coral reef fish informs researchers about local ecological changes.

July 8th, 2009 Senate hearing focuses on threats to wildlifeWASHINGTON — From a mysterious fungus attacking bats in the Northeast to the emergence of Burmese pythons in Florida, native wildlife is facing new threats throughout the country. Protecting wildlife from new diseases and invasive species is a top challenge facing state and federal officials.

July 8th, 2009 From pythons to fungus, species invading USWASHINGTON — A pet Burmese python broke out of a glass cage last week and killed a 2-year-old girl in her Florida bedroom. The tragedy became the latest and most graphic example of a problem that has plagued the state for more than a decade: a nonnative species that is wreaking havoc in the Everglades, threatening people, the environment and native wildlife.

July 8th, 2009 Python attack shows threat from invasive speciesWASHINGTON — A pet Burmese python broke out of a glass cage last week and strangled to death a 2-year-old girl in her Florida bedroom. The tragedy was the latest and most graphic example of a problem that has plagued the state for more than a decade: a nonnative species that is wreaking havoc in the Everglades, threatening the environment, native wildlife and people.

June 30th, 2009 Protection sought again for giant, spitting wormsSPOKANE, Wash. — Fans of the giant Palouse earthworm are once again seeking federal protection for the rare, sweet-smelling species that spits at predators.

June 17th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Farmed fish, if fed by-products rendered from cows, could transmit Creutzfeldt Jakob disease-commonly known as mad cow disease. Questioning the safety of eating farmed fish, Dr.

June 16th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Researchers at McMaster University have discovered the existence of two types of males of a fiercely invasive fish spreading through the Great Lakes, which might help explain how they rapidly reproduce. They revealed that in addition to round goby males, which guard the nest from predators and look after their offspring, there exists what scientists call "sneaker" males - little males that look like females and sneak into the nests of the larger males.

June 6th, 2009 LONDON - A global documentary has claimed that the world's fish will be extinct by the middle of this century if humans continue to plunder the oceans. Dubbed "An Inconvenient Truth for fish", the two-year global documentary, titled "The End Of The Line", highlights the fact around 75 percent of the world's fish stocks are severely depleted.

June 5th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new research has shown that different genes can cause loss of body parts in similar fish, by comparing how 2 species of sticklebacks lost pelvises and body armor. The research, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF)'s Divisions of Environmental Biology and Integrative Organismal Systems, shows that when two species of stickleback fish evolved and lost their pelvises and body armor, different genes in each species caused the changes.