"We have modified the ecosystems by diminishing the big predators.
Fires can actually benefit ecosystems by clearing brush and regenerating forests.
It therefore looks as though gulls are homogenising the local ecosystems by carrying invertebrates around.
The Smithsonian effort could help foster better policies for coastal ecosystems by centralizing all the information.
The risk of damage to terrestrial ecosystems by putative Martian or Europan microbes is slim, but it is not zero.
Coal combustion is the leading source of atmospheric mercury, which also enters ecosystems by wet and dry deposition.
"We can learn a lot about what was happening at the base of the ecosystems by looking at what is happening to the plants and insects," said Donovan.
They are saying it is almost certain that corals will disappear as major parts of ecosystems by the middle of this century.
Those include driving species toward extinction, disrupting ecosystems by removing crucial native species and introducing exotics and importing animals with pathogens that can afflict livestock, wildlife and humans.
For example, the report shows that low-emissions pathways not only reduce countries' vulnerability to energy price volatility and supply disruptions, they produce significant benefits for human health and ecosystems by curbing air pollution.
Krause wants more scientists to monitor the health of ecosystems by regularly recording the collective sounds of a particular habitat, generating "solid baseline data to use in comparing site changes over time".
