As COP26 leaders gather in the UK, new research shows a temperature increase of around 1.5°C -- just under the maximum target agreed at the COP23 Paris meeting in 2017 -- can have a marked impact on algae and animal species living on our coastlines.

The mid-ocean 'twilight zone' holds the key to several tantalizing questions about the marine food web and carbon-sequestering capacity of the ocean. But studying this vast and remote area is extremely difficult. Many inhabitants of the twilight zone are easily destroyed during sampling -- or are quick to avoid any disturbance -- so it's difficult to sample them with traditional nets. Advances in acoustics have enabled more accurate estimates of biomass, but questions about the diversity and distribution of species within that biomass remain unanswered.

Genetic detective work has uncovered an obscure ancestor of modern bread wheat, in a finding similar to uncovering a famous long-lost relative through DNA analysis in humans.

New research has found that isolated Perth tiger snake populations, such as those surrounded by urban development or seawater, are more likely to resort to inbreeding than those in less 'cut off' communities.

Prior infections appear to shield enteric neurons, preventing these key components of the body's 'second brain' from dying off when future pathogens strike.

Scientists used to think that only mammals sought out truffles, but a new study shows that birds also pursue these underground fungi. The researchers collected the feces of two common ground-dwelling bird species in Patagonia and found they contained truffle DNA and viable truffle spores. The spread of truffles is important to the health of forest ecosystems, where truffle species and other mycorrhizal fungi have a symbiotic relationship with trees.

Developing below the soil surface, desert truffles are hard to find. Recently, researchers updated the number of known species of the desert truffle genus Terfezia occurring in Portugal from three to ten species. They thoroughly characterized their ecological preferences, adding new knowledge on Terfezia's cryptic lifestyle. These findings are of major importance, as desert truffles have a high economic value.