News

For several years now, cases of West Nile virus (WNV) infection have been occurring in Germany. The virus circulates between native mosquitoes and birds; human infections occur sporadically. Cases within the Berlin urban area have been reported during the summer months for several years, but until now it was not known which urban areas are conducive to the presence of WNV. Over a two-year period, a research team collected mosquitoes during the summer months from five closely neighbouring but distinct sites in Berlin and tested them for the presence of the virus. They found high infection rates in some of the mosquitoes, but the number of virus detections varied significantly between the sites. Urban planning has a significant influence on the infection rate of mosquitoes, the team concluded in a paper in the journal “Nature Communications”.

Sloths are the slowest mammals on the planet, and living in dense jungles has made them difficult to study. For the first time, scientists have now sequenced and analysed the two-toed sloth genome and revealed the genetics behind their extremely slow metabolism. By mapping their evolution, the international team discovered sloth-specific ‘jumping genes’ that have been conserved over millions of years and are linked to the metabolism. The results, published in the journal BMC Biology, reveal insights into the genetics behind the sloth’s unique biology. This could pave the way for further research into metabolism-related conditions and ageing in other mammals, including humans.

In late May 2026, five Przewalski's horses – one stallion and four mares – from breeding facilities across Europe took their first steps into the wild on the vast plains of the Altyn Dala region in central Kazakhstan. This was a significant milestone for the international reintroduction initiative aimed at returning the species to its ancient habitat. Prior to their release, the horses acclimatised for twelve months at the Wild Equid Reintroduction Center, where they were closely monitored by a team of wildlife veterinarians, biologists and caretakers. Two of the mares have been equipped with satellite collars, which will enable the team to see how well the horses are settling into their new home.

Spotted hyenas live in hierarchically organised groups (clans). An individual’s dominance over another determines priority access to resources such as food or mating partners, and thus reproductive success. However, the rank within the clan can be calculated using different metrics – and that matters. Using data from almost 500 hyenas collected over 28 years, scientists from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz-IZW) showed that different metrics best predict the animals’ reproductive success – depending on which reproductive trait they looked at. In the journal “Ecology and Evolution” the scientists argue that the calculation of social rank, and thus also the explanation of hierarchical mechanisms in the world of hyenas and other group-living animals need to be refined.

Bats are the only mammals that can actively fly, enabling many species to perform seasonal migrations. In migratory birds, remaining airborne for many hours is supported by burning fatty acids, something most mammals are uncapable of. Scientists at the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz-IZW) and Helmholtz Munich have now demonstrated that fatty acid oxidation plays a key role in the metabolism of some bats. By measuring metabolic by-products in the bats’ blood, they found that fatty acid oxidation is particularly important during migration in Nathusius' pipistrelles. The findings have been published in the journal The FASEB Journal.

A team of scientists from Berlin analysed water and sediment samples from six water bodies in Berlin and the adjacent federal states of Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, as well as the inflow and outflow of a wastewater treatment plant in Berlin. The scientists analysed bacteria found in these samples and detected a higher diversity and load of antibiotic resistance genes in urban samples. The inflow and effluent from the treatment plant were the most heavily contaminated, but resistant bacteria were also found in rural lakes far from urban areas. The study is published in the journal “iScience”.

A new study by scientists from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz-IZW), has revealed significant cryptic diversity within two-toed sloths (Choloepus) in Amazonia, challenging the long-established taxonomy of the genus. This international effort involved key South American collaborators. Utilizing the first genome-wide dataset from multiple two-toed sloth populations, the study published in the journal “Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution” provides critical new evidence that past environmental changes shaped the sloths’ evolutionary history, and highlights an urgent need for taxonomic revision and updated conservation assessment and strategies.

Roaring over long distances is a key behaviour of lions. They communicate within prides as well as with other animals using distinct sequences of moans and grunts. Scientists from the GAIA Initiative have now published a machine learning approach in the journal “Ecological Informatics” that improves how roaring behaviour can be studied. The algorithm can reliably detect long-distance roaring based solely on acceleration data (ACC) that is recorded by collars – without a microphone and without energy- and storage-intensive audio files. For the first time, such an algorithm works reliably with both male and female lions, and even with mixed signals when lions are walking while roaring.

The BioRescue Consortium has made progressive strides in its mission to save the Northern White Rhino from imminent extinction. At the beginning of 2026, scientists successfully conducted an oocyte (egg cell) pick up procedure from the Northern White Rhino female Fatu in Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Kenya, consequently yielding one new Northern White Rhino embryo. This brings the total number of pure Northern White Rhino embryos produced so far to 39, boosting our hopes for the future of this imperiled subspecies.

How stable are ecosystems? And how can stability be described and assessed using quantitative parameters? Providing answers to these seemingly simple questions is no easy task, as the stability of ecosystems can be measured at several levels – from individuals to complex species communities – using a variety of indicators at many different points in time. An international research team has now developed “estar”, a software programme that reflects this diversity of cases and allows for the standardised quantification of ecological stability. The software is presented in detail in a recently published article in the journal “Methods in Ecology and Evolution”.