A new study contradicts the widely held hypothesis that fear of recently reintroduced wolves in Yellowstone National Park would force elk to browse more selectively and therefore lead to a resurgence of growth of aspen trees. In fact, a study conducted by Matthew Kauffman, a scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey, found that since wolves were reintroduced in the park in 1995, elk have continued to browse young aspen at a rapid rate, preventing the trees from re-growing in many sections of Yellowstone. Relying on a map showing areas where elk have been killed by wolves in the park, Kauffman discovered that even in those areas — where grazing should theoretically have been reduced in a so-called “landscape of fear” — elk consumed young aspen at a rate similar to regions where wolf packs were not as active. Writing in the journal Ecology, Kauffman said that while elk have changed their foraging behavior somewhat in response to the wolf reintroduction, the changes do not appear to be sufficient to cause a revival of aspen stands. Since the reintroduction of wolves, elk populations have declined by roughly 60 percent in Yellowstone, but Kauffman concluded that they would have to decline even further to bring about a regeneration of aspen.

A former hedge fund manager and his college-buddy-cum-insider-source have settled Securities and Exchange Commission insider-trading charges.

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The European Union is poised to harmonize its short-selling policies by empowering a newly-created bloc-wide regulator to temporarily ban “abusive” and naked short-selling.

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The most comprehensive study to date comparing commercial organic farms with conventional farms shows that the organic farms produce more flavorful and nutritious fruit and help create soils with superior chemical and biological properties. Researchers from Washington State University, conducting a multi-disciplinary study of 13 organic and 13 conventional strawberry farms in California, found that the organic strawberries had significantly higher antioxidant activity and concentrations of ascorbic acid; had a longer shelf life; contained more dry matter, or “more strawberry in the strawberry”; led to superior soils with improved carbon sequestration, microbial biomass, enzyme activities, and micronutrients; and produced strawberries whose flavor matched or exceeded the taste of berries from conventional farms, which use pesticides and herbicides. “Our findings have global implications and advance what we know about the sustainability benefits of organic farming systems,” said John Reganold, lead author of the study, published in the journal PLoS ONE. “We also show that you can have high quality, healthy produce without resorting to an arsenal of pesticides.”

Hedge funds were burned by plummeting equities markets in August, according to one industry benchmark.

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A pair of major New York hedge funds bucked swooning markets and the marginal losses suffered by its average peers with positive performance last month.

Greenlight Capital and Och-Ziff Capital Management both padded their year-to-date returns in August, although the former did so much more than the latter. Greenlight rose 4.1% net of fees.

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Assets under management aren’t the only things fleeing Gartmore Group.

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Bank of New York Mellon has made its first foray into the Canadian advisory space with the acquisition of hedge fund and wealth adviser I(3) Advisors.

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The financial crisis has taken its toll on Vanity Fair’s annual “New Establishment” rankings. And the list of the 100 most influential people is especially light on alternative investment honchos.

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Hedge fund administrator JD Clark & Co. and its parent, UMB Fund Services, have a lot to crow about. The firm said it enjoyed a “surge” in new clients in the first half, and has added more than 50 new employees to help serve them.

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Collard Capital Management yesterday launched a discretionary macro fund designed to offer investors a highly-liquid approach to the strategy.

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Hedge fund veteran Colin Fenton has joined JPMorgan Chase to head its global commodities strategy.

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The freshwater eel, which spawns in the middle of the ocean, was once abundant in much of the world. But the proliferation of dams, coastal development, and overfishing have drastically reduced eel populations, with few defenders coming to the aid of these fascinating — though still not fully understood — creatures. BY JAMES PROSEK

Chinese regulators in July eased restrictions on asset managers’ trading of index futures, giving the green light to launch separately-managed account products aimed at high-net-worth investors. The first firm to walk through that new door will be E Fund Management, which plans to launch China’s first officially-registered hedge fund.

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Two former Mizuho Securities proprietary traders and Japan hedge fund veterans have launched a hedge fund of their own.

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On the day its acquisition of GLG Partners was approved by shareholders, the Man Group named GLG’s Emmanuel Roman as chief operating officer.

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Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research reported that deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon declined 48 percent in the past year, falling from 1,689 square miles to 886 square miles for the 12-month period ending July 31. A Brazilian conservation group, Imazon, issued a more conservative estimate, saying deforestation declined by 16 percent, falling from 682 square miles to 575 square miles for the same period. The large discrepancy is because the space agency uses visual interpretation by analysts of satellite pictures, while Imazon uses an automatic deforestation detection method based on satellite photos. Both track the “deforestation year” ending on July 31, when cloud cover is minimal. The government said stricter enforcement of environmental laws contributed to the drop in deforestation, while environmental groups said it was a temporary decline related to the global recession. The continuing threat of deforestation in the Amazon and surrounding regions was highlighted by the release of a NASA satellite photo showing a 1,500-mile pall of smoke hovering over central South America, particularly in Bolivia. Most of the estimated 150,000 fires were set by people clearing forest for grazing and agriculture.

August was a boon for at least some hedge funds, even as the broader market swooned in the late-summer heat.

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It may be the King (it’s the second-largest U.S. hamburger chain, actually), but Burger King has been doing some homage in recent weeks.

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JPMorgan Chase will shutter its proprietary-trading desk and has notified those desks’ employees that their jobs are being cut.

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