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« Back to NewsTurtle and crocodile species with unique characteristics are more likely to go extinct
28 March 2023
New research led by the Department of Biology has revealed that the most endangered turtle and crocodile species are those that are most unique. Their loss could have widespread impacts on the ecosystems they live in since they carry out critical processes important for many other species.
Oxford biologists comment on new Genetic Technology Act
24 March 2023
Biology Food security & biodiversity Sustainability & the environment
Oxford biologists comment on new legislation that will unlock key technologies to improve UK food security, reduce pesticide use, and enhance climate-resilience in our crops.
IOI Research Director meets Prime Minister of Bangladesh to discuss joint action against antimicrobial resistance
3 March 2023
Antimicrobial resistance Biology
The Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, met Professor Timothy Walsh, Research Director (Biology) at the Ineos Oxford Institute for Antimicrobial Research, to discuss her continued commitment to tackling the issue of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Bangladesh and around the world.
Dame Angela McLean named new Chief Scientific Adviser
20 February 2023
Dame Angela will be the first woman to hold the role of Government Chief Scientific Adviser and takes up the post on 1 April.
Operation Pangolin launches to save world’s most trafficked wild mammal
17 February 2023
Biology Sustainability & the environment
Ahead of World Pangolin Day tomorrow, the University of Oxford announces that it is joining a bold initiative to save this iconic animal: Operation Pangolin.
New study identifies key success factors for large carnivore rewilding efforts
16 February 2023
The findings, published today in Biology Conservation, could support global rewilding efforts, from reintroducing lynx in the UK to efforts to restore logged tropical forests.
University marks ‘topping out’ milestone for new Life and Mind Building
15 February 2023
Around 100 guests gathered at the construction site of Oxford’s new Life and Mind Building this afternoon to celebrate a major milestone towards completion of a new home for the Department of Biology and the Department of Experimental Psychology.
World’s oldest European hedgehog found
15 February 2023
The world’s oldest scientifically-confirmed European hedgehog has been found in Denmark by a citizen science project involving hundreds of volunteers.
From The Conversation: Bird flu continues to spread in mammals – what this means for humans and wildlife
13 February 2023
Biology Research The Conversation
'As bird flu continues to decimate poultry and wild bird populations around the world, the virus – a deadly strain called H5N1 – appears to be spreading to mammals', writes Divya Venkatesh, BBSRC Discovery Fellow in the Department of Biology.
From The Conversation: Deep sea reefs are spectacular and barely-explored – they must be conserved
26 January 2023
Biology Research Sustainability & the environment The Conversation
Largely hidden from the masses lie great expanses of deep reefs, which collectively have a larger geographic footprint than their shallower counterparts.
New study shows that most plastic debris on Seychelles beaches comes from far-off sources
19 January 2023
Biology Earth sciences Research Sustainability & the environment
A new high-resolution model to quantify the sources of plastic debris accumulating on beaches across the Seychelles and other island states in the western Indian Ocean reveals that most of this waste originates from distant sources and not from the islands themselves.
Raising the minimum age of trophy hunted lions could make hunting more sustainable
13 January 2023
Biology Research Sustainability & the environment
Raising the minimum age threshold for trophy hunted male lions, and accounting for additional deaths caused by poaching and conflict with people, could increase hunting sustainability, suggests a new study from WildCRU, based in the Department of Biology.
Organisations must set bold targets for their catering to become 'nature-positive'
12 January 2023
Biology Research Sustainability & the environment
Making catering more sustainable can make genuine positive contributions, but coming close to fully mitigating biodiversity loss within the current food system will take extremely ambitious action.
From The Conversation: Elephant poaching rates vary across Africa - 19 years of data from 64 sites suggest why
11 January 2023
Timothy Kuiper (Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Cape Town) and EJ Milner-Gulland (Tasso Leventis Professor of Biodiversity, Department of Biology) explore what varying poaching rates can tell us about what drives, motivates and facilitates poaching.
From The Conversation: UN biodiversity conference: what does living in harmony with nature look like?
20 December 2022
Biology Food security & biodiversity The Conversation
Senior Research Fellow Dr Alexandra Zimmermann from the Department of Biology writes about the complexities of resolving human-wildlife conflict and achieving coexistence.
Satellite imagery reveals that wild African elephants choose paths leading directly to their favourite food
16 December 2022
A study from Save the Elephants and University of Oxford researchers used high-resolution satellite imagery to investigate how plant diversity affects elephant movements.
Global coalition of experts urge COP15 negotiators to uphold 2030 targets
12 December 2022
Biology Sustainability & the environment
Researchers and conservation experts reinforce the need for ambitious targets by 2030 to focus, motivate and finance actions to start reversing biodiversity loss.
New study highlights urgent need to safeguard deep reefs
12 December 2022
Biology Research Sustainability & the environment
University of Oxford researchers have contributed to a study which found that very few deep reefs have any form of protection, despite facing a multitude of threats.
From The Conversation: Shark fishing is a global problem that demands local solutions
12 December 2022
Biology Research The Conversation
Hollie Booth, Oxford Policy Engagement Network Post-doc Fellow in the Department of Biology, writes about her research into ways to reduce catches of threatened shark species that also support the rights and welfare of small-scale fishers.
Oxford leads Nature Positive Universities Alliance to reverse biodiversity decline
8 December 2022
Biology Sustainability & the environment
Announced today at the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15), this push is part of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a movement to avert climate catastrophe and mass extinction.