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Some fungi are wasteful, while others recycle – and this can determine how much carbon is stored in a forest. Researchers at Lund University have now revealed how fungi manage their mycelium, the network that builds the structure of fungus. The results could provide new insights into the carbon cycle and climate. Researchers have investigated how fungi recycle their mycelium when they grow. Using

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/recycling-strategies-fungi-can-affect-how-forests-store-carbon - 2026-10-07

There is a tiny cyclops among your oldest ancestors, and humans share these remarkable ancestral roots with all other vertebrates. This according to new, surprising research on the evolution of the eye. Researchers from Lund University and University of Sussex have found that all vertebrates evolved from a distant ancestor that had a single eye located at the top of its head. The study also reveal

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/one-eyed-creature-gave-rise-our-modern-eyes - 2026-10-07

Beneath our feet, there is a bustling world of life that is crucial to both food and climate. Yet we often take this hidden ecosystem for granted. With new technology, research and culture, soil ecologist Edith Hammer and her colleagues, together with artist duo (p)Art of the Biomass, are opening a whole new window to the underground and a world few of us have seen. Edith Hammer is a soil ecologis

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/window-underground-where-soil-science-meets-culture - 2026-10-07

When fish from different habitats meet, it’s not always love at first swim. New research from Lund University in Sweden in collaboration with North Carolina State University shows that aggressive females can actively repel males from the “wrong” environment. This behaviour may ultimately contribute to the emergence of new species. Understanding how species evolve is one of the most fundamental que

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/aggressive-female-fish-put-stop-mating-may-lead-new-species - 2026-10-07

Mosses and liverworts are common in forests, wetlands and on rocky surfaces – yet their chemical composition remains relatively little explored. A European research project is now investigating whether these small plants could become a source of new bioactive compounds for applications such as cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. The BRYOMOLECULES project has now reached its halfway point. At Lund Unive

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/small-plants-big-potential - 2026-10-07

Every year a small songbird, no heavier than a letter, crosses the Sahara Desert, the Mediterranean and the Arabian Desert on its migration. New research from Lund University in Sweden now reveals how the tiny bird manages this arduous journey: by flying night after night - and doing nothing during the day. The thrush nightingale is a songbird is a long-distance traveller that arrives in Sweden in

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/songbirds-extreme-desert-migration-mapped - 2026-10-07

Moonlight determines when the red-necked nightjar feeds, migrates and raises its young. A groundbreaking long-term study from Lund University shows how the migratory bird’s entire annual cycle follows the moon’s rhythm. … the lovely, melancholy moonlight, which makes the birds dream in the trees…The French poet Paul Verlaine was seemingly wrong in his famous poem Clair de Lune. Moonlight does not

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/nocturnal-migratory-birds-follow-rhythm-moon - 2026-10-07

Underground fungi play a central role in the fragile ecosystems of atoll islands. The unique symbiotic relationship between these fungi and rainforest trees is vital for the restoration of nature and ultimately for the survival of coral reefs. New research shows how fungi help nutrients to move between the forest and the sea. Palmyra Atoll is a remote and uninhabited cluster of small islands halfw

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/fungi-crucial-recovery-tropical-islands - 2026-10-07

A carnivorous fruit fly living in bubbling African streams may sound like a fever dream. However, with the help of DNA analysis of a pinned insect from a museum in Zurich, researchers have managed to draw an evolutionary map of a mysterious species that has not been seen since 1981. Researchers at Lund University have successfully mapped the genome of one of the world’s most unusual fruit flies -

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/how-strange-fruit-fly-became-bloodthirsty-underwater-hunter - 2026-10-07

Extreme weather poses a big threat to birds. Yet there is a lack of both knowledge and methods for measuring its negative effects. In a new study, researchers from Lund University in Sweden have identified knowledge gaps and propose practical tools for analysing the risks to birds. Extreme weather has become increasingly common worldwide, often in the form of combinations of heat and drought. Thes

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/birds-can-suffer-serious-harm-heatwaves - 2026-10-07

They cross oceans, glide on monsoon winds, and can appear in new places after thousands of kilometres in the air. Now a new study from Lund University shows that dragonflies are among nature’s most extreme migrants - and that their journeys may help us understand climate change. Dragonflies and damselflies are predatory insects with powerful jaws, compound eyes and spectacular colours. What is les

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/featherlight-long-distance-fliers-parchment-thin-wings - 2026-10-07

Flower-rich road verges may attract hungry bumblebees, but at the same time they risk being dangerous for the buzzing insects – if the traffic is too heavy. This is shown in a new research study from Lund University in Sweden. The new research examined the role that roadsides play for bumblebees. The results show that road verges can be a dangerous environment for insects searching for food. The t

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/blooming-busy-roadsides-can-harm-bumblebees - 2026-10-07

Honey bees have long been the model species for studying insect vision. However, new research from Lund University shows that several smaller bee species might actually have sharper eyesight. The honey bee has held a special place in vision research. It is one of the best-studied insects, and much of what scientists know about how bees perceive the world is based on studies of honey bees.The honey

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/bees-see-world-more-ways-previously-thought - 2026-10-07

An extensive study has mapped RNA viruses in a large number of cities around the world. The researchers identified nearly 55,000 different types of virus, the vast majority of which had never been observed before. The virus atlas could be useful in both biological risk assessment and crime scene investigations. Surprisingly little is known about how virus populations are distributed across the pla

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/thousands-new-findings-contribute-global-virus-map - 2026-10-07

Air pollution does not only harm human health. New research shows that birds also experience measurable biological changes after breathing in soot particles from traffic emissions. While the effects of polluted air are well documented in humans, far less is known about how animals with different physiologies respond. A new doctoral thesis from Lund University provides fresh evidence of how vehicle

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/car-exhaust-fumes-linked-dna-damage-and-weakened-immunity-city-birds - 2026-10-07

Where were the suspects located before a crime was committed? Where was a bomb assembled or a batch of drugs produced? A new technique that analyses environmental DNA could help provide answers. Geneticist Eran Elhaik at Lund University has developed an AI-based tool designed to support forensic investigations. The technology uses environmental DNA (eDNA) to help determine geographical origin from

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/new-dna-technology-could-support-police-investigations - 2026-10-07

A tiny insect that lives on snow has revealed an unexpected survival trick: it can generate its own heat to withstand sub-zero temperatures. The finding sheds new light on how life endures in extreme environments. The snow fly – a winter-active crane fly – moves across snow at temperatures between 0 and −7°C. Conditions that would be lethal to most insects instead leave this species active, thanks

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/snow-fly-beats-freeze-built-heat-pulses - 2026-10-07

Researchers have now tested a prevailing theory about the relationship between body size and metabolism in animals. Their study overturns decades of research that has maintained that metabolic rate always increases more slowly than body size. For decades, it has been regarded in biology as a natural law that there is a fixed relationship between body size and metabolic rate across all animal group

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/dragonflies-challenge-classical-theory - 2026-10-07

A pied flycatcher from Siberia flies over 4,500 kilometres farther than necessary to reach its wintering grounds in Africa. The reason is that the birds’ migration route is still guided by genetic instructions from the last Ice Age. How migratory birds find their way to their wintering grounds and back to their breeding sites has long been one of biology’s great mysteries. In a new study published

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/genes-ice-age-guide-migratory-birds-detours-africa - 2026-10-07

A feather-light touch can trigger a chain reaction in a plant in less than a minute. Researchers at Lund University have identified the molecular signaling pathway that links mechanical stimulation to changes in plant genes and growth. Plants cannot run away when the wind picks up, rain lashes down, or a hungry herbivore begins chewing on their leaves. Instead, they must sense their surroundings a

https://www.biology.lu.se/article/researchers-solve-mystery-how-plants-sense-touch - 2026-10-07