Environment & Ecology News

Tel Aviv University News

Almost half of power consumption on TAU campus comes from green energy sources

The Green Council at Tel Aviv University (TAU) announced that approximately 45% of the campus’ power consumption comes from green energy sources, as part of the implementation of the Univeersity’s strategic plan for climate change and sustainability. This means that nearly half of the power consumed on the TAU campus is no longer based on… Read More

TAU documents sea urchin mass mortality event in the Canary Islands

A global study by an international research team including Professor Omri Bronstein of the School of Zoology at the George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences and the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History at Tel Aviv University (TAU) reveals new and particularly alarming findings: for the first time, evidence of apparent local sea urchin extinction… Read More

TAU study reveals secret behind coral’s rhythmic behavior

A joint study by Tel Aviv University (TAU) and the University of Haifa set out to solve a scientific mystery: how a soft coral is able to perform the rhythmic, pulsating movements of its tentacles without a central nervous system. The study’s findings may change the way we understand movement in the animal kingdom in… Read More

TAU research identifies causes of mass mortality events in sea urchins

Two pioneering studies led by Dr. Omri Bronstein and other researchers of the School of Zoology and the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History at Tel Aviv University (TAU), have identified the primary drivers of sea urchin mass mortality events over recent decades: pathogens, storms, and extreme temperatures. In addition, Dr. Bronstein and his team have… Read More

TAU research finds antibiotics and laxatives in corals at a depth of 40 meters

A new study from Tel Aviv University (TAU) and the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History at the university detected traces of ten common medications in coral samples collected from both shallow and deep sites in the Gulf of Eilat. Sulfamethoxazole, an antibiotic used for respiratory and urinary tract infections, was found in as many as… Read More

TAU research finds that sponges employ an original tactic to warn off predators

A new study from Tel Aviv University (TAU) found that sponges in the Gulf of Eilat have developed an original way to keep predators away. The researchers found that the sponges contain an unprecedented concentration of the highly toxic mineral molybdenum. In addition, they identified the bacterium that enables sponges to store such high concentrations… Read More

New TAU research enables biofuel production from organic waste

An innovative development by a team of Tel Aviv University (TAU) researchers allows for the conversion of the wet raw waste that we throw in the trash into liquid and solid biofuels, without the need to dry the waste. The researchers assess that fuels produced from organic waste can meet about a third of Israel’s… Read More