Ecology (Biology & Medicine)

Close-up of a carved wood surface with intricate textures, housing beetles within narrow tunnels.

Beauveria bassiana detoxifies the defense substances of the beetles and can successfully infect these insects more

Playa del Carmen, a popular vacation destination on Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, faces significant Sargassum strandings during summer months, as do other Caribbean coastlines. To maintain beach access for swimmers, the brown algae must be regularly cleared using machinery.

Upwelling of phosphorus-rich deep water promotes an N-fixing symbiont of the Sargassum algae giving it a competitive advantage. more

A male great-tailed grackle.

Researchers find that behavioral flexibility is related to exploration, and that great-tailed grackles disperse farther at their range edge more

Reed beetle Donacia marginata on the leaf of a cattail.

The symbionts of reed beetles can adapt their gene activity flexibly to the developmental stages and ambient temperatures of their hosts more

A male boat-tailed grackle on a roof at a cattle ranch in Lake Placid, Florida.

Researchers find that foraging behavior breadth, persistence, and variability of flexibility could facilitate a rapid geographic range expansion more

Detailed front view of a mosquito on a smooth surface, emphasizing its transparent wings and intricate body structure.

Lunar rhythms combined with the tides can help separate midge strains and set the stage for new species to evolve more

Close-up of rough tree bark showing a small hole filled with sticky brown resin, indicating possible insect activity or tree response.

Norway spruce trees produce various monoterpenes to defend themselves against bark beetles and microbial pathogens more

Hidden allies

Endophytic fungi inside the leaves strengthen the chemical defenses of black poplars and influence the interactions between insect populations living on the trees more

Close-up of a rock slab. The rock is dark gray to black. A complex pattern of light gray, almost white, branching, and interconnected structures is visible across the surface of the slab. These structures resemble a network or a colony of small, interconnected organisms. A small, light-colored, somewhat circular area near the center appears to be different from the surrounding patterns, potentially a part of fossilized remains embedded in the rock matrix. A scale bar,in the lower right corner of the image indicates about 1 centimeter.The edges of the slab are irregular and broken. The lighting is even, casting no significant shadows. The rock slab is presented against a plain white background.

Analysis of nitrogen isotopes provides evidence of the earliest known photosymbiosis in corals of the Devonian more

Pit-building venom mixers

A complex venom system allows antlions to overpower large prey more

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Playa del Carmen, a popular vacation destination on Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, faces significant Sargassum strandings during summer months, as do other Caribbean coastlines. To maintain beach access for swimmers, the brown algae must be regularly cleared using machinery.

Upwelling of phosphorus-rich deep water promotes an N-fixing symbiont of the Sargassum algae giving it a competitive advantage. more

Close-up of a rock slab. The rock is dark gray to black. A complex pattern of light gray, almost white, branching, and interconnected structures is visible across the surface of the slab. These structures resemble a network or a colony of small, interconnected organisms. A small, light-colored, somewhat circular area near the center appears to be different from the surrounding patterns, potentially a part of fossilized remains embedded in the rock matrix. A scale bar,in the lower right corner of the image indicates about 1 centimeter.The edges of the slab are irregular and broken. The lighting is even, casting no significant shadows. The rock slab is presented against a plain white background.

Analysis of nitrogen isotopes provides evidence of the earliest known photosymbiosis in corals of the Devonian more

Aerial view depicting extensive destruction in a coastal city, with buildings reduced to rubble, debris scattered, and muddy water visible near the shoreline.

The devastating storms, rainfall, heatwaves and droughts of the past year have become more likely and more severe as a result of global warming more

Symbiotic fungi produce attractants for bark beetles

When metabolizing spruce bark, the insect’s fungal partners release volatile compounds that bark beetles  recognize through specialized olfactory sensory neurons more

Leibniz Prize 2023 for Sarah Ellen O'Connor

Director at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena honoured for her discoveries on plant natural product biosynthesis more

The Mona Lisa effect: Eyespots deter predators that approach from different directions

Experiments with chicken chicks and artificial peacock butterflies prove that predators are intimidated by eyespots more

Scientists unearth another brain-shrinking mammal

A study of moles reveals that cold weather – not lack of food – drives the rare phenomenon of reversible brain shrinkage in mammals more

Pollination by Crustaceans

Bee of the sea: A small marine isopod aids in pollinating red algae more

Tobacco hawkmoths always find the right odor

The moths can distinguish crucial from irrelevant odors more

Microparticles with feeling

Researchers develop a new method to simultaneously measure flow and oxygen more

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Scientific highlights 2022

Scientific highlights 2022

December 14, 2022

Many publications by Max Planck scientists in 2022 were of great social relevance or met with a great media response. We have selected 12 articles to present you with an overview of some noteworthy research of the year more

“The only things you want to conserve are the things you know”

Jana Wäldchen has played a key role in developing the plant identification app, Flora Incognita. We discussed with her how being able to identify different plants contributes to species diversity, which plant species are particularly under threat and how non-native species are suppressing local plants more

A Stickleback - Full of Worms

Around 40 percent of all species on Earth are parasitic – apparently a highly successful way of life. Even a fish such as the three-spined stickleback is plagued by up to 25 different parasites. more

The irresistible fragrance of dying vinegar flies

Bacterial pathogens cause infected flies to produce more sex pheromones and so expand their deadly reach more

A parasite involved in the plant alarm system

Host plants communicate warning signals through a parasite network, when insects attack more

Oil as energy source for deep-sea creatures

Scientists discover mussels and sponges in the deep sea which can thrive on oil with the help of symbiont bacteria more

Reptile vocalization is surprisingly flexible

Phenotypic plasticity of gecko calls reveals the complex communication of lizards more

Bergamotene—alluring and lethal for <em>Manduca sexta</em>

The volatile compound bergamotene increases the moths’ pollination success and protects tobacco leaves against their voracious offspring more

Bushmeat consumption decreases during the Ebola epidemic

Household income and knowledge about health risks drive the consumption of wild animal meat in West Africa more

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