The forest owlet (Heteroglaux blewitti), an owl endemic to the forests of Central India, has been the centre of a century-old debate among ornithologists. Its classification into the particular genera is at the stem of this debate. Now, a new study by researchers, involving genetic analysis of the owl’s genome, may put an end to this debate forever.

Termites are known to be efficient farmers who farm a kind of fungus in their colonies to digest the wood that they feed. Scientists from the Indian institute of Science, Bangalore and École Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Montpellier, Montpellier, France, explore whether the termites prefer a certain species of fungus and if they can identify weed fungi and remove them.

Whales are magnificent creatures. Not only are they the some of the largest mammals on the planet, they also have the longest mammal migrations. Why and how do whales migrate? And what are some of the challenges they face on the way?

Bobbing up and down on the seabed are beautiful little creatures called Seahorses, sometimes vigorously trying to swim with the currents and other times, anchoring to seaweed.  Nature’s extraordinary organisms, where only males get pregnant so females can make more eggs; sadly some species may disappear before we can learn more about them. Let us take you underwater and introduce you to fascinating little world of the seahorses.

A group of researchers from Anna University, Chennai and University of Madras, Chennai have studied the influence of seawater intrusion on groundwater in the coastal aquifers of Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu.

Scientists from National Center for Biological Sciences, Wildlife Conservation Trust, FERAL and University of Montana, examine genetic diversity of tigers in India to identify the importance of connected forest corridors to future populations and minimize their risk of extinction in the coming century.

FrogFest is a unique exhibition held at the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) office at New Delhi showcasing frogs in art and in nature. It showcases around 500 frog artefacts with a spotlight on the need for conservation of the amphibians.

Scientists from Birla Institute of Technology, Pilani, uncover the mechanism behind how plants tolerate and grow in soils with high salt content. The study also explore the role of the bacteria Enterobacter cloacae, which is a known plant growth promoting rhizobacteria.

The Young Ecologists Talk and Interact (YETI) conference is underway at the Maharaja Saiyajirao University in Vadodara—commonly referred to as the cultural capital of Gujarat. The four-day conference, commencing on the 22nd of January and concluding on the 25th of January, 2018, gives early career ecologists an opportunity to interact with like-minded students from across the country to exchange ideas and collaborate.

The words ‘insect migration’ bring to mind the vibrantly coloured monarch butterflies, making their way from Mexico to the south of Canada by the tens of thousands. Less conspicuous but just as spectacular is the migration that takes place across the Indian Ocean, which is believed to be the longest insect migration ever recorded.