A new study from <a href="https://www.osu.edu/">Ohio State University</a> reveals what is going on inside of your <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gut-brain-interactions-have-an-influence-on-diseases/">brain</a> when you get lost in a fictional fantasy. The experts discovered that the more immersed we become in the lives of our favorite characters of fiction, the more our brain activity reflects how much we identify with them.
&#8220;When they think about a favorite fictional character, it appears similar in one part of the brain as when they are thinking about themselves,&#8221; said study lead author Timothy Broom.
The research was focused on self-described fans of the HBO series &#8220;Game of Thrones.&#8221; The individuals were instructed to think about themselves, nine of their friends, and nine characters from the drama series. The participants also reported on which character they felt closest to and liked the most.
According to Broom, Game of Thrones was ideal for this study because it attracted a devoted fan base and the large cast presented a variety of characters that people could become attached to.
One of the key findings involved participants who scored highest on &#8220;trait identification.&#8221; These individuals agreed most strongly with statements like &#8220;I really get involved in the feelings of the characters in a novel.&#8221;
&#8220;People who are high in trait identification not only get absorbed into a story, they also are really absorbed into a particular character,&#8221; said Broom. &#8220;They report matching the thoughts of the character, they are thinking what the character is thinking, they are feeling what the character is feeling. They are inhabiting the role of that character.&#8221;
The researchers used an fMRI machine to measure activity in various parts of the brain through small changes in blood flow. As the participants&#8217; brains were scanned, they were evaluating themselves, their friends, and Game of Thrones characters. 
A part of the brain called the ventral medial prefrontal cortex (vMPFC) is known to show increased activity when people think about themselves and, to a lesser extent, when they think about close friends.
While in the fMRI, the individuals were shown a series of names &#8211; including themselves, friends, or characters &#8211; along with a trait, such as lonely, sad, trustworthy, or smart. The participants simply said &#8220;yes&#8221; or &#8220;no&#8221; to imply whether the trait fit the person.
As expected, the vMPFC was most active when people were evaluating themselves, less active when they evaluated friends, and least active when they evaluated characters from Game of Thrones.
However, among those who were high in trait identification, the vMPFC was more active when they thought about the fictional characters than it was for participants who identified less with the characters. This region of the brain was particularly active when the individuals evaluated the character they identified with the most.
Study co-author Dylan Wanger said the findings help explain how fiction can have such a big impact on some people.
&#8220;For some people, fiction is a chance to take on new identities, to see worlds though others&#8217; eyes and return from those experiences changed,&#8221; said Wagner.
&#8220;What previous studies have found is that when people experience stories as if they were one of the characters, a connection is made with that character, and the character becomes intwined with the self. In our study, we see evidence of that in their brains.&#8221;
The study is published in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/scan">Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience</a>.
&#8211;&#8212;
By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

What happens in your brain while you're lost in fiction

For almost ten years, an aftershock linked to the May 30, 2015 magnitude 7.9 Bonin Islands <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-detect-a-rare-slow-motion-earthquake-along-japans-tsunami-fault/">earthquake</a> was touted as the deepest tremor ever measured, reported at 467 miles beneath the Pacific. 



That label has now been stripped away by a fresh look at the data that places the aftershock, and our understanding of deep seismicity, on firmer ground.



The new investigation combed through recordings from Japan’s dense <a href="https://www.hinet.bosai.go.jp/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hi‑Net array</a> and came up empty for any signal that would support a quake in the lower mantle. 



Instead, it found a modest cluster of events no deeper than the original mainshock at 422 miles, overturning the record‑depth claim.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-deepest-earthquake-ever-recorded">Deepest earthquake ever recorded</h2>



“Our results do reject the most compelling lower mantle seismicity claim to date,” <a href="https://zhsess.github.io/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hao Zhang</a>, a geophysicist at the <a href="https://www.usc.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Southern California</a>, writes. 



He led the re‑analysis that identified only fourteen aftershocks within about 93 miles of the mainshock’s focus. 



Deep earthquakes behave differently from their shallow cousins, because pressures so intense tend to make rock flow rather than snap. 



Decades of research show that quakes deeper than 310 miles rarely produce vigorous aftershock sequences. 



Earlier teams had claimed to spot a foreshock swarm and a single record‑breaking aftershock, but their techniques relied on template matching vulnerable to false alarms. 



Zhang’s group used a cleaner beamforming approach that lines up full‑wave data without preselecting templates, reducing the chance of mistaking noise for a quake.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mapping-the-aftershock-footprint">Mapping the aftershock footprint</h2>



By stacking thousands of seismograms with a beamforming technique, the study recreated the exact arrival times of faint aftershocks that earlier catalogs missed or misplaced. 



Eight events popped up during the first week after the mainshock and traced a neat plane that aligns with the initial rupture surface.



During the second week, six more quakes appeared in a loose halo above the rupture, suggesting that stress migrated upward through the descending Pacific slab. 



The deepest of the fourteen was only 16 miles below the mainshock, still safely within the upper mantle.



Aftershocks this sparse are not unusual at great depth. The <a href="https://epsc.wustl.edu/seismology/doug/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/wiens_jgr_2000.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tonga earthquake</a> of March 9, 1994, for instance, produced just a few dozen detectable aftershocks despite its comparable size.



All fourteen aftershocks released only about one‑ten‑thousandth of the energy of the main event, a ratio typical for very deep shocks. Such low productivity hints at rock that deforms smoothly once the initial rupture relaxes the stress.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-thin-slice-of-stubborn-olivine">A thin slice of stubborn olivine</h2>



Zhang’s team argues that the pattern of events fits a <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2019GL085665" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">metastable olivine wedge</a>, a sliver of the mineral olivine that lingers in a crystal state favored by colder temperatures. 



Laboratory experiments indicate that olivine can keep this structure far outside its usual comfort zone, provided the surrounding slab stays cool.



When olivine finally flips to a denser form, it shrinks, building local stress that can trigger transformational faulting, one of the leading candidates for deep‑quake initiation. 



In the Bonin slab, the wedge appears to be about 7.5 miles thick, narrower than similar structures in the Tonga or Bolivia slabs, a difference the authors tie to slower subduction and greater heating over time.



The narrow wedge also helps explain why the 2015 mainshock had few friends. Without a broad zone of brittle behavior, the slab loses its ability to generate the fracture networks that spawn rich aftershock clouds.



<a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9477848/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Experiments</a> that squeeze olivine at high pressure show that it can keep its ambient structure down to roughly 1200°F lower than predicted if the temperature drops suddenly, mirroring conditions in a cold slab. 



This delay stretches the mineral’s stability field and seeds the stress needed for transformational faulting.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-keeping-the-lower-mantle-quiet">Keeping the lower mantle quiet</h2>



The study adds weight to the view that the mantle’s <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-04157-z" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">410 mile boundary</a>, where minerals rearrange and the lower mantle begins, is a formidable barrier for earthquake rupture. 



Seismic experiments show that this boundary can sag to 460 miles under cold slabs, yet even that depression leaves little room for quakes to form below it.



By knocking out the strongest evidence for a true lower‑mantle aftershock, Zhang and colleagues strip the record depth back to familiar territory. 



The deepest confirmed events stay rooted in the transition zone, where mineral transformations, not classic rock breakage, appear to rule.



Seismic conversions recorded in the western Pacific reveal that the 410 mile discontinuity sags by almost 50 miles beneath the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/srep44487" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bonin arc</a>, yet it still separates the upper‑mantle quakes from any deeper disturbance. 



That observation matches the picture from global tomography studies that even the coldest slabs rarely puncture the lower mantle while still brittle.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-the-deepest-earthquake-matters">Why the deepest earthquake matters</h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/most-dangerous-part-of-this-west-coast-earthquake-fault-cascadia-subduction-zone/">Earthquake</a> depth records may feel like bookkeeping, but they feed directly into models of plate recycling, mantle flow, and even volcanic plumbing. 



A verified lower‑mantle quake would force geophysicists to rethink the strength and temperature of slabs far below our feet.



The updated catalog also sharpens the focus on transformational faulting as a viable engine for deep quakes, lending support to decades of lab and field evidence that point to phase transitions rather than friction as the spark. 



For hazard planners, the findings dampen concerns that an ultra‑deep quake might directly unleash tsunamis or stress neighboring faults, because energy at these depths dissipates before reaching the surface.



The work underscores the value of <a href="https://www.usgs.gov/programs/earthquake-hazards/gsn-global-seismographic-network" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">dense seismic networks</a> and careful signal tracking in a part of the planet where direct sampling is impossible. It also reminds us that science advances as much by pruning shaky claims as by adding new discoveries.



The more immediate impact is the academic one, refining boundary conditions in numerical models that aim to reproduce subduction over millions of years. 



Armed with a cleaner catalog, those models can now test how small wedges of metastable crystal might seed the planet’s deepest shocks.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/388298772_Aftershocks_on_the_Planar_Rupture_Surface_of_the_Deep-Focus_Mw_79_Bonin_Islands_Earthquake" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Seismic Record</a>.



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New analysis refutes the claim that the world's deepest earthquake happened in Japan

For almost ten years, an aftershock linked to the May...

Astronomers often search the skies for the familiar. Planets, moons, comets. But in early July 2025, something entirely unexpected arrived. The discovery sparked excitement and awe. A mysterious object, likely older than our solar system, made its presence known. This was no ordinary comet. Its name? 3I/ATLAS.



This comet's <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/interstellar-comet-31-atlas-stuns-astronomers-with-size-and-speed/">journey</a> has been billions of years in the making. Its story may rewrite what we know about the galaxy’s ancient building blocks. The discovery didn’t just add a new name to the comet list. It unlocked a time capsule from a part of the Milky Way we have never seen up close.



3I/ATLAS might be the oldest comet ever seen. Older than the Sun, the planets, and every familiar object in our celestial backyard.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ancient-comet-enters-our-solar-system">Ancient comet enters our solar system</h2>



3I/ATLAS is only the third object ever spotted entering our solar system from interstellar <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/comet-will-be-visible-for-the-first-time-in-50000-years/">space</a>. Unlike the famous 1I/'Oumuamua in 2017 and 2I/Borisov in 2019, this new arrival may hold secrets from even deeper in time. 



Its trajectory is unlike the others. It is not held on track by the Sun's gravity and is on a steep path through the galaxy that hints at a unique origin.



The object appears to come from the Milky Way’s thick disk, an area populated by some of the galaxy’s oldest stars. These stars orbit above and below the thin disk where our Sun resides. This region has remained mostly unexplored by astronomers until now.



"All non-interstellar comets, such as <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hunters-supermoon-comet-c-2023-and-orionids-meteors-sharing-the-sky-this-week/">Halley's Comet</a>, formed with our solar system, so are up to 4.5 billion years old," said Matthew Hopkins, astronomer at the <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Oxford</a>.



"But interstellar visitors have the potential to be far older and, of those known about so far, our statistical method suggests that 3I/ATLAS is very likely to be the oldest comet we have ever seen."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3i-atlas-may-be-older-than-the-sun">3I/ATLAS may be older than the Sun</h2>



What makes this object even more compelling is its composition. Hopkins and his team believe 3I/ATLAS likely formed around a thick-disk star. This leads them to think it is rich in water ice. 



That would be significant. It points to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/most-anticipated-comet-of-2024-returns-this-weekend-after-80000-years/">conditions</a> that existed long before our solar system was born.



The comet was first spotted by the ATLAS survey telescope in Chile. It appeared when it was 670 million kilometres from the Sun. Since then, astronomers have watched it closely. It has already begun to show signs of activity.



"This is an object from a part of the galaxy we've never seen up close before," said Professor Chris Lintott, co-author of the study and presenter of the BBC’s <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006mk7h" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Sky at Night</a>.



"We think there's a two-thirds chance this comet is older than the solar system, and that it's been drifting through interstellar space ever since."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-comet-shows-gas-and-dust-activity">Comet shows gas and dust activity</h2>



As 3I/ATLAS moves closer to the Sun, its frozen surface begins to react. Sunlight warms the surface, triggering what astronomers call cometary <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seven-new-dark-comets-discovered-in-our-solar-system/">activity</a>. Ice turns to vapour, releasing gas and dust. A glowing coma forms, followed by a tail. 



These signs are already visible. It is possible that 3I/ATLAS could be larger than the two earlier interstellar comets.



That scale makes a difference. It improves the chance that telescopes can study the object in detail. Already, some of the most powerful observatories are watching the comet as it awakens.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/3I-atlas-comet_Sun_milky-way-orbits_credit-RAS_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/31-atlas-comet_Sun_milky-way-orbits_credit-RAS_1s.webp" alt="Top view of the Milky Way galaxy showing the estimated orbits of both our sun and the 3I/ATLAS comet. 3I/ATLAS is shown in red dashed lines, and the sun is shown in yellow dotted lines. The large extent of 3I’s orbit into the outer thick disk is clear, while the sun stays nearer the core of the galaxy. Credit: M. Hopkins/Ōtautahi-Oxford team. Base map: ESA/Gaia/DPAC, Stefan Payne-Wardenaar" class="wp-image-1978158"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Top view of the Milky Way galaxy showing the estimated orbits of both our sun and the 3I/ATLAS comet. 3I/ATLAS is shown in red dashed lines, and the sun is shown in yellow dotted lines. The large extent of 3I’s orbit into the outer thick disk is clear, while the sun stays nearer the core of the galaxy. Click image to enlarge. Credit: M. Hopkins/Ōtautahi-Oxford team. Base map: ESA/Gaia/DPAC, Stefan Payne-Wardenaar</figcaption></figure>



"We're in an exciting time: 3I is already showing signs of activity. The gases that may be seen in the future as 3I is heated by the Sun will test our model," said Dr Michele Bannister, of the <a href="https://www.canterbury.ac.nz" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Canterbury</a> in New Zealand.



"Some of the biggest telescopes in the world are already observing this new interstellar object – one of them may be able to find out!"



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-like-3i-atlas">More like 3I/ATLAS</h2>



The timing of 3I/ATLAS’s appearance could not be more perfect. It came just as researchers were preparing the Vera C. Rubin Observatory for its survey operations. This new telescope, designed for sweeping sky scans, could detect many more interstellar objects. 



Until now, such objects have been rare. That may soon change.



The discovery gives researchers hope that Rubin could detect between 5 and 50 more such visitors over the next decade. If some are as large and bright as 3I/ATLAS, they could reveal even more about ancient galactic regions.



"The solar system science community was already excited about the potential discoveries Rubin will make in the next 10 years, including an unprecedented number of interstellar objects," said co-researcher Dr. Rosemary Dorsey, of the <a href="https://www.helsinki.fi/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Helsinki</a>.



"The discovery of 3I suggests that prospects for Rubin may now be more optimistic; we may find about 50 objects, of which some would be similar in size to 3I. This week's news, especially just after the Rubin First Look images, makes the upcoming start of observations all the more exciting."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-predicting-the-unknown">Predicting the unknown</h2>



Hopkins developed a model during his doctoral research to simulate how interstellar objects behave based on their orbits and stellar origins. Named the <a href="https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2025arXiv250216741D/abstract" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ōtautahi–Oxford Model</a>, it was ready just in time for this discovery.



Hopkins had just finished defending his thesis when the news broke. He was planning a quiet holiday, but fate had other plans.



"Rather than the quiet Wednesday I had planned, I woke up to messages like '3I!!!!!!!!!!'," related Hopkins. "It's a fantastic opportunity to test our model on something brand new and possibly ancient."



This marked the first real-time use of predictive modelling on an interstellar comet. Matching predictions to actual data gives the team confidence in their approach. It may also help guide future discoveries.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-you-can-see-3i-atlas-from-earth">You can see 3I/ATLAS from Earth</h2>



For those hoping to see 3I/ATLAS with their own eyes, there is good news. The comet should become visible through amateur telescopes by late 2025 or early 2026. 



Though it will not be as dramatic as some comets that pass close to Earth, its uniqueness makes it special.



This is a chance to look into the past. Possibly seven billion years into the past. As its glow becomes clearer, it carries with it the story of stars and planets long gone. 



3I/ATLAS reminds us that the galaxy is full of untold stories. They drift silently through space, waiting for the right moment to be seen.



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Interstellar object that invaded our solar system might be the 'oldest ever seen'

Astronomers often search the skies for the familiar. Planets, moons,...

Sugar-free treats have taken over the shelves. You’ve probably seen erythritol listed on sodas, protein bars, and even toothpaste. It’s everywhere. Almost zero calories, no sugar spikes, and perfect for keto diets. Sounds like a win, but maybe not.



A new study from the <a href="https://www.colorado.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Colorado Boulder</a> has cracked open a side of erythritol that few expected. It’s not about weight gain or tooth decay. It’s about what this <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/artificial-sweeteners-erythritol-directly-linked-to-heart-attacks-and-strokes/">sweetener</a> does to your brain’s blood vessels that may elevate the risk of a stroke.



“Our study adds to the evidence suggesting that non-nutritive sweeteners that have generally been purported to be safe, may not come without negative health consequences,” said Professor Christopher DeSouza, who led the study.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sweetener-changes-brain-cells">Sweetener changes brain cells</h2>



The researchers did not yet test this in people. They went straight to the cells that line your brain’s blood vessels. These cells regulate blood flow, keep inflammation in check, and help prevent clots.



The cells were exposed to erythritol for just three hours. The amount used was equal to what you would get from one sugar-free drink. That was all it took to cause noticeable changes.



The cells got stressed. They flooded with free radicals, also called reactive oxygen species or ROS. These unstable molecules damage proteins, DNA, and cell membranes. In response, antioxidant defenses went up, but not enough. 



It was like the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/artificial-sweetener-erythritol-sugar-substitute-linked-to-blood-clots-heart-disease/">cells</a> knew they were under attack and tried, unsuccessfully, to defend themselves.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-blood-vessels-started-misbehaving">Blood vessels started misbehaving</h2>



That same short exposure changed how the cells produced nitric oxide, a molecule that helps blood vessels relax. Less nitric oxide means tighter vessels. That’s bad news when your brain needs steady blood flow.



The total amount of the enzyme that makes nitric oxide didn’t change much, but its function tanked. It stopped doing its job well. 



Erythritol messed with the enzyme's activation at two specific sites. One turned down, one cranked up. The result was about 20 percent less nitric oxide production. This sets the stage for constricted <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/nutritionists-reveal-the-surprising-health-benefits-of-maple-syrup-including-less-belly-fat/">vessels</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sweetener-makes-brain-vessels-tighten">Sweetener makes brain vessels tighten</h2>



The same cells started pumping out more endothelin-1, a protein that tells blood vessels to tighten up. Compared to normal cells, the erythritol-exposed ones had a 30 percent increase in ET-1. They also had more of its precursor, Big ET-1.



That’s a double whammy. First, blood vessels lose their ability to widen. Then, they get signals to squeeze even more.



“Big picture, if your vessels are more constricted and your ability to break down blood clots is lowered, your risk of stroke goes up,” said first author Auburn Berry. “Our research demonstrates not only that, but how erythritol has the potential to increase stroke risk.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-clots-don-t-stand-a-chance">Clots don’t stand a chance</h2>



Blood clots are tricky. You want your body to stop bleeding when you get a cut. But you also want it to break down unnecessary clots inside vessels. One of the body’s tools for that is tissue-type plasminogen activator, or t-PA.



In this study, the researchers added thrombin, which mimics a clotting <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/common-sweetener-can-destroy-some-of-the-most-dangerous-bacteria/">signal</a>. Normally, that should have made the cells release more t-PA. In untreated cells, that’s exactly what happened. A nice 25 percent boost.



In erythritol-treated cells? Nothing. The response was completely muted. Clots form and cells don’t react. That’s the formula for a stroke.



One study tracked over 4,000 people in the U.S. and Europe. The research team found that those with high blood levels of erythritol had more strokes and heart attacks within three years. This happened across both sexes and regardless of other health issues.



The Colorado team didn’t just observe changes. They showed exactly how the sweetener weakens brain vessel cells in ways that match the stroke patterns found in people.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sweeteners-may-harm-blood-vessels">Sweeteners may harm blood vessels</h2>



DeSouza and his team exposed real human brain vessel cells to a typical drink-size dose of erythritol. Many people consume several such servings a day. And unlike some substances, erythritol crosses into the brain.



The study wasn’t designed to track long-term effects, but it does raise a concern. What happens when those cells face erythritol not just for three hours, but every day?



“Given the epidemiological study that inspired our work, and now our cellular findings, we believe it would be prudent for people to monitor their consumption of non-nutrient-sweeteners such as this one,” said DeSouza.



The study is published in the <a href="https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/japplphysiol.00276.2025" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal of Applied Physiology</a>. 



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Common sweetener may directly damage the brain

Sugar-free treats have taken over the shelves. You’ve probably seen...

For years, astronomers scanning the sky with NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) have cheered each new detection of a small, rocky planet. These findings seemed to inch us closer to answering the age‑old question of whether life exists elsewhere in the cosmos. 



However, a fresh look at the data suggests many of those celebrated worlds are not the Earth‑like bodies scientists hoped for.



According to a new study led by the <a href="https://uci.edu/">University of California, Irvine</a>, the radii of more than 200 <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/exotic-worlds-tess-unveils-126-new-exoplanets/">TESS</a> planets have been systematically underestimated - sometimes by enough to bump them out of the “potentially habitable” category altogether.



“We found that hundreds of exoplanets are larger than they appear, and that shifts our understanding of exoplanets on a large scale,” said Te Han, a UC Irvine doctoral student who led the research. “This means we may have actually found fewer Earth‑like planets so far than we thought.” 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-misjudging-exoplanet-size">Misjudging exoplanet size</h2>



Conventional planet-hunting relies on the transit method. Astronomers monitor a star’s brightness and watch for the slight dip that occurs when a planet crosses the star. 



From that dimming, they infer the planet’s radius. But the technique works only if the starlight is clean - an increasingly tall order in crowded regions of the sky.



“We’re basically measuring the shadow of the planet,” explained co‑author Paul Robertson, a UC Irvine astronomy professor. 



If the telescope’s pixels collect extra light from background stars, the shadow looks shallower than it really is, making the planet seem smaller. This dilution problem worried astronomers even during NASA’s <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/massive-new-super-earth-kepler-725c-found-in-habitable-zone-around-its-star/">Kepler mission</a>. 



However, TESS, with its wide‑field cameras and larger pixels, is even more vulnerable. Most teams assumed existing software pipelines handled the issue well enough. Han decided to test that assumption.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-calculations-of-planet-density">Calculations of planet density</h2>



Digging through hundreds of peer‑reviewed papers, Han compiled measurements for single‑planet systems announced by TESS teams through late 2024. He then applied a deblending code called TGLC, which models exactly how each pixel’s light gets smeared across the detector. 



The code incorporates star positions and brightness data from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency’s</a> ultra‑precise <a href="https://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu/Missions/gaia.html">Gaia catalog</a>. When TGLC processed the light curves, the transit dips deepened, implying bigger planets.



“TESS data are contaminated, which Te's custom model corrects better than anyone else in the field,” Robertson said.



Statistical tests showed the literature had, on average, shaved about six percent off planetary radii. That may sound minor, but a radius error compounds when scientists calculate density, leading to roughly 20 percent overestimates. 



Furthermore, densities feed directly into guesses about a planet’s composition - whether it is rocky like Earth, watery, or rich in gas.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-earth-twins-reclassified">Earth twins reclassified</h2>



Before the reanalysis, astronomers believed TESS had spotted three solo exoplanets close enough to Earth’s size and composition to warrant detailed follow‑up. Han’s corrections knock all three off that list.



“Of the single‑planet systems discovered by TESS so far, only three were thought to be similar to Earth in their composition,” noted Han. “With this new finding, all of them are actually bigger than we thought.”



The revamped sizes place them in the realm of so‑called water worlds - <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/exoplanet-discovery-nasa-identifies-over-5500-distant-worlds/">planets</a> cloaked in global oceans - or even miniature Neptunes, wrapped in thick envelopes of hydrogen and helium. 



Both categories are intriguing, but neither offers the same surface conditions that make Earth habitable.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-targets-for-the-webb-telescope">New targets for the Webb Telescope</h2>



The stakes go beyond tallying Earth analogues. Space- and ground‑based observatories have limited time, and astronomers rely on planet catalogs to decide which worlds merit a closer look.



“This has important implications for our understanding of exoplanets - including prioritization for follow‑up observations with the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/webb-telescope-may-have-just-found-its-first-planet/">James Webb Space Telescope</a>, and the controversial existence of a galactic population of water worlds,” Robertson said.



A planet now revealed to be larger - and therefore puffier - may actually be a better Webb target. Its atmosphere is easier to probe, making it more suitable for detailed study. Conversely, a world once hailed as a rocky twin could drop in priority.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-exoplanet-size-revisions-ahead">More exoplanet size revisions ahead</h2>



Han’s team will revisit planets previously dismissed as too large or too low‑density to support life. Some may shrink back into the habitable zone once more precise corrections are applied; others may grow even farther from it.



Equally important, the researchers urge colleagues to treat raw TESS light curves with caution. The same lessons apply to upcoming missions, such as the <a href="https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Plato">European Space Agency’s PLATO</a>, which will also rely on wide‑field, transit‑based searches.



The study highlights an ongoing theme in exoplanet science: indirect measurements of size and other properties can mislead, and small biases ripple outward into big conclusions about life in the universe.



But there is a bright side. Astronomers now have better tools to compensate for contamination. Thanks to Gaia, they also have a stellar map precise enough to support those tools.



Every correction sharpens our cosmic census, bringing the truly Earth‑like worlds into clearer focus - even if there turn out to be fewer of them than we hoped. In the hunt for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/extreme-planets-may-be-the-place-to-look-for-extraterrestrial-life/">extraterrestrial life</a>, knowing where not to look can be just as valuable as knowing where to point the telescope next.



The study is published in <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/ade794">The Astrophysical Journal Letters</a>.



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Hundreds of exoplanets are much larger than we thought

For years, astronomers scanning the sky with NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey...

Every year, billions of birds take on epic journeys between North America’s temperate zones and the tropical forests of South America. 



While their migration patterns have been studied extensively, most of what we know comes from data collected in North America and Europe. That’s left a big gap in our understanding - especially in tropical regions.



Researchers from the <a href="https://www.uchicago.edu/en">University of Chicago</a>, working with scientists in Colombia and at universities across the United States, are now filling in those gaps. 



The team used radar data from across Colombia to see how birds behave when migrating through tropical skies. What they found is changing how we think about migration, weather, and conservation.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-birds-migrate-without-weather-cues">Birds migrate without weather cues</h2>



In places like the U.S. and Canada, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/vanishing-forests-make-bird-migration-harder-across-the-corn-belt/">bird migration</a> often happens in big waves. Birds wait for just the right wind conditions - usually during cold or warm fronts - then take off by the thousands in a single night. But in Colombia, birds follow a different rhythm.



“Birds are great indicator species of environmental health, serving as bellwethers of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-biodiversity-crisis-is-actually-worse-than-we-thought/">global biodiversity</a> gain and loss," said Jacob Drucker, a doctoral student at the University of Chicago. "So understanding their migration on a global scale is extremely important.”



“But until now, our knowledge of this massive natural phenomenon has been heavily biased towards temperate latitudes in North America and Europe.”



Unlike temperate zones, Colombia doesn’t have strong seasonal wind patterns. Instead, its <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ai-can-predict-the-weather-but-what-about-extreme-events/">weather</a> is more stable. The study revealed that birds migrating over the country travel at a steadier pace. They don’t wait for perfect nights - they go when they need to.



“It turns out that wind isn't as important to birds in deciding which nights to fly in Colombia, but it plays a major role in deciding the altitude they fly,” noted Drucker.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-soaring-to-beat-the-wind">Soaring to beat the wind</h2>



The Colombian Andes offer a special case. High above the forests, winds blow southward as part of the Orinoco Low-Level Jet. 



These winds can either help or hinder birds, depending on the season. In the fall, they act as tailwinds. In the spring, they become headwinds.



“We saw birds flying as high as 3,000 meters above the Amazon to avoid headwinds. It was spectacular,” Drucker said. “When the wind weakened at lower altitudes, birds adjusted by flying lower.”



These shifts in altitude helped them conserve energy as they responded to changing wind conditions in the Andes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-migrating-birds-tracked-by-radar">Migrating birds tracked by radar</h2>



This study wouldn't have been possible without an unusual data source: Colombia’s national weather radar network. Seven years ago, 



Drucker reached out to fellow researchers with a simple idea - what if they used weather radar to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/machine-learning-may-solve-the-mystery-of-bird-movements/">track birds</a>? He teamed up with Nick Bayly from the Colombian conservation nonprofit SELVA and Alfonso Ladino, a meteorologist with ties to Colombia’s weather agency and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. 



Together, the researchers began a multi-year project to decode the tropical migration story. A major challenge was filtering out radar 'noise'. In tropical skies, there are a lot of insects - more than in temperate regions - and they can look a lot like birds on radar.



“We initially struggled to distinguish between insects and birds,” said Drucker. “There are far more insects in the tropics, creating substantial radar noise from an ornithological perspective."



"To solve this, we built a model that assumes <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/very-little-is-known-about-99-of-all-insects-on-earth/">insects</a> move passively with the wind, while birds move independently and purposefully.”



The researchers tested that model using radar data from both Colombia and Australia. It’s likely to help other scientists in future studies.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bird-safe-cities-need-rethinking">Bird-safe cities need rethinking</h2>



The study doesn’t just add to our understanding of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bird-behavior-productivity-being-directly-impacted-by-climate-change/">bird behavior</a> - it could shape how we protect birds in cities.



In cities like Chicago or Toronto, turning off lights during major migration nights can reduce bird deaths caused by building collisions. These “lights out” campaigns are carefully timed based on weather forecasts and migration patterns. But that strategy might not work in tropical cities.



“Since bird migration in Colombia isn't tied to predictable wind events, it becomes much harder to anticipate large migration nights and tell people when to turn their lights off,” Drucker said.



That means new strategies will be needed in cities like Bogotá, Medellín, and Calí. Conservation efforts in the tropics may need to focus less on timing and more on continuous solutions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-next-migration-frontier">The next migration frontier</h2>



This study is just the start. There’s still a lot to learn about how birds react to local weather and terrain as they move. For Drucker and his team, the goal is to go deeper - zooming in on finer scales to understand every twist and turn in a bird’s journey.



“We need to drill down into the granular details of how birds react to specific habitats and finer-scale weather patterns along migration routes,” he said.



By combining new technology with international teamwork, researchers are opening new ways to better understand and protect migratory birds - wherever they fly.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2024.2609">Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences</a>.



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Tropical birds migrate without riding the wind

Every year, billions of birds take on epic journeys between...

Typical,Dormant,Volcano,(costa,Rica,,La,Fortuna).

Most people assume an extinct volcano lies silent forever. Yet in Bolivia, the long‑quiet <a href="https://volcano.si.edu/volcano.cfm?vn=355838" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Uturuncu</a> volcano keeps rumbling, forcing scientists to rethink what “dead” really means.



A new study mapped more than 1,700 tiny earthquakes to reveal why the mountain twitches instead of blows. 



<a href="https://www.earth.ox.ac.uk/people/mike-kendall" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Professor Mike Kendall</a> of the <a href="https://www.earth.ox.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Oxford</a>, who helped lead the project, calls the work a blueprint for decoding other restless peaks.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-the-heat-hides">Where the heat hides</h2>



Beneath the Andes sits the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms13185" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Altiplano‑Puna Volcanic Complex</a>, an underground magma lake roughly the size of Lake Superior, making it the largest known melt body in Earth’s upper crust. 



That buried ocean feeds several peaks, including Uturuncu, keeping the so‑called zombie breathing.



Satellite surveys later showed the ground over this complex rising about 0.4 inches a year while ridges around it sag, forming the famous “sombrero” pattern. 



The deformation hinted at magma or fluids on the move, but the detailed plumbing stayed invisible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-extinct-volcano-rumblings">Extinct volcano rumblings</h2>



The project relied on seismic tomography, a scan that tracks earthquake waves as they cross different rock types. Slow zones revealed melted or fluid‑soaked rock, whereas fast lanes flagged cooler, solid crust.



“Our results show how linked geophysical and geological methods can be used to better understand volcanoes,” stated Kendall. 



Analysts stitched those velocity patches into a three‑dimensional cutaway stretching nearly nine miles deep.&nbsp;



The image traced narrow conduits climbing toward the summit, then widening into a lens of bubbly brine and semi‑molten rock about three miles below sea level. 



That lens forms the top of a hydrothermal system, a pressurized mix of hot water, gas, and crystal mush.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-liquid-gas-and-false-alarms">Liquid, gas and false alarms</h2>



Pressure swings inside the shallow lens explain why the central cone inflates while surrounding valleys sink. 



Computer models show that slight upticks in carbon dioxide or water vapor push the crust upward before venting and letting the land relax.



“Understanding the anatomy of the Uturuncu volcanic system was only possible thanks to the expertise within the research team,” added <a href="https://earthquake.ustc.edu.cn/zhjen/main.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Professor Haijiang Zhang</a> of the <a href="https://en.ustc.edu.cn/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Science and Technology of China</a>. 



His comment underscores how petrophysics, chemistry, and fieldwork mesh to translate motion into meaning.



The group found no large pool of eruptible magma near the crater, cutting the odds of a sudden blast. Independent coverage affirms that Uturuncu remains restless yet harmless for now.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-the-zombie-myth-began">How the zombie myth began</h2>



Geologists label a volcano extinct when no eruptions have occurred for at least 10,000 years, so Uturuncu’s 250,000‑year hiatus easily qualifies. 



Local <a href="https://minorityrights.org/communities/aymara/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Aymara communities</a>, however, have long reported wisps of sulfurous steam that seemed to challenge the textbook definition.



Seismic antennas first recorded runaway swarms in the late 1990s, and satellite radar soon confirmed a dome of uplift nearly 40 miles wide. 



Those two discoveries birthed the nickname “zombie,” suggesting a mountain that refuses to stay buried.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-roundup-of-extinct-volcanoes">Global roundup of extinct volcanoes</h2>



Uturuncu is hardly unique. The <a href="https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/how-many-active-volcanoes-are-there-earth" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">United States Geological Survey</a> counts about 1,350 potentially active volcanoes on land, though only 500 have erupted in recorded history.



“[The new toolkit could be deployed on] the more than 1,400 potentially active volcanoes and to the dozens of volcanoes like Uturuncu that aren’t considered active but that show signs of life,” noted co‑author <a href="https://www.engineering.cornell.edu/people/matthew-pritchard/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Matthew Pritchard</a>. 



Dozens, like Bolivia’s zombie, puff gas or shake but have not erupted since before human memory. 



When a mountain labeled extinct suddenly quakes, officials face a communication dilemma. People hear “extinct” and assume zero risk, yet geoscientists know Earth ignores such labels.



The <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/White-Island-volcanic-eruption-of-2019" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">White Island tragedy in 2019</a> showed how even well‑monitored peaks can surprise tourists with steam‑driven blasts. 



Though Uturuncu rises in a sparsely settled zone, mining projects and regional flights still depend on realistic alerts.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-climate-links-on-the-horizon">Climate links on the horizon</h2>



While Uturuncu lacks an ice cap, other dormant peaks may not stay quiet as the planet warms. 



A <a href="https://conf.goldschmidt.info/goldschmidt/2025/meetingapp.cgi" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a> to the 2025 Goldschmidt Conference warned that retreating glaciers can lift pressure off magma chambers and spark new eruptions in formerly sleepy regions.



Changes in rainfall could play a similar role in the high Andes by flushing extra groundwater into the crust, altering pressure in the hydrothermal lens and nudging the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/axial-seamount-large-underwater-volcano-off-us-coast-will-likely-erupt-in-2025/">volcano</a>’s elastic shell.



Tomographic scans cost far less than drilling and can be repeated every few years, giving planners a real‑time gauge of subsurface shifts. 



Coupled with satellite radar and gas sniffers, they let authorities move from folk wisdom to data when deciding evacuation thresholds.



Bolivian agencies have already installed new broadband seismometers around Uturuncu, and regional airports are integrating daily deformation bulletins into flight routing software.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tracking-extinct-volcanoes">Tracking extinct volcanoes</h2>



Researchers aim to extend their sensor net across the southern Altiplano to watch fluid pathways shift with rainfall and seasons. Time‑lapse tomography could track magma recharge years before it punches into the gas cap.



Meanwhile the “sombrero” bulge will keep lifting and settling, a geological chest rise mistaken by outsiders for resurrection. 



For Kendall the marvel is not whether the mountain will reawaken but how finely researchers can now eavesdrop on its breathing.



Zombies make catchy folklore, yet Uturuncu shows that geology seldom follows the script. A <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plants-and-trees-predict-volcano-eruptions-when-viewed-from-space-satellites/">volcano</a> can seem to wake without ever intending to erupt because the fluids that once built it never stop moving.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2420996122" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



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Can an extinct volcano come back to life? Scientists think they found out

Most people assume an extinct volcano lies silent forever. Yet...

Some of the most familiar atoms in the air above our heads appear to vanish when scientists audit Earth’s interior. Geochemists have spent decades tracing nitrogen’s trail yet always come up billions of tons short.



Earth’s rocky shell, the <a href="https://link.springer.com/rwe/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_5237-1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bulk silicate Earth (BSE)</a>, holds only one to five parts per million of nitrogen, a tally wildly below the cargo delivered by meteorites, say planetary physicists <a href="https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=56709030300" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Shengxuan Huang</a> and <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Taku-Tsuchiya-2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Taku Tsuchiya</a> of <a href="https://jpcup.niad.ac.jp/institute/0352.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ehime University</a> in a recent study.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-earth-has-a-nitrogen-gap">Earth has a nitrogen gap</h2>



The nitrogen gap also skews the ratios between carbon, nitrogen, and argon, leaving Earth with a super‑chondritic chemical fingerprint that standard accretion models cannot match. 



Solving the puzzle matters because those ratios control everything from mantle redox to atmospheric pressure.



Earlier <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-023-02102-w" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">studies</a> blamed violent impacts that might have blasted nitrogen into space or suggested the planet formed from odd, nitrogen‑poor building blocks. 



Neither idea fit every observation, especially the tight link between carbon and argon abundances.



Huang and colleagues wondered whether the answer lay not in the sky but in the metal heart of the planet. 



Their hunch turned on how elements swap partners when molten rock and liquid iron separate during core‑mantle differentiation.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-supercomputers-inside-a-magma-ocean">Supercomputers inside a magma ocean</h2>



To test it, the team recreated a primordial magma ocean, a globe‑spanning sea of lava that blanketed early Earth. 



They used quantum‑level simulations to push virtual samples to 135 gigapascals and 9,000°F, conditions matching depths well below today’s mantle.



The code tracked each nitrogen atom as it chose between silicate melt and liquid iron, tallying a mathematical <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/partition-coefficient" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">partition coefficient</a> for every depth. 



At 60 gigapascals (GPa), extreme pressure found deep inside the Earth, nitrogen was over 100 times more likely to bond with iron than with rock.



“Under the intense heat and pressure of a deep magma ocean, nitrogen became a ‘metal lover’,” said Huang. 



The strong preference rose even higher at core‑forming depths, then leveled off, revealing a curved, not linear, relationship with pressure.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pressure-as-matchmaker">Pressure as matchmaker</h2>



The curvature solves a long‑standing lab conflict in which some high‑pressure experiments saw <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/nitrogen-was-plentiful-for-early-life-on-earth/">nitrogen</a> favor metal while others did not. Those tests straddled the inflection point on the curve, so each captured a different slice of the trend.



Because the effect strengthens rapidly between 20 and 60 GPa, only a deep magma ocean can drain enough nitrogen into the core to match today’s <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-has-ghost-plume-rising-from-deep-within-the-planets-mantle-up-to-the-surface/">mantle measurements</a>. 



Shallow oceans, by contrast, would leave too much nitrogen behind and pull Earth’s volatile ratios in the wrong direction.



Calculations show that a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/evidence-magma-ocean-molten-rock-found-moons-surface-south-pole-chandrayaan-3/">magma ocean</a> reaching 60 GPa would lock roughly eighty percent of the planet’s nitrogen inside the core before the first crust ever solidified. The residual mantle concentration lands squarely in the observed one‑to‑five‑ppm window.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-earth-s-nitrogen-loves-metal">Earth's nitrogen loves metal</h2>



The simulations explain the atomic gymnastics behind the preference. Rising pressure breaks nitrogen’s bonds with itself and hydrogen, allowing single atoms to slip into gaps between iron atoms where they behave almost neutrally.



Inside <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/silicate-melt" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">silicate melt</a>, however, high pressure forces nitrogen to bond with silicon as nitride ions, making it act like a charged outsider in an oxygen‑rich network. The contrasting chemical states tip the energetic scales decisively toward the core.



Adding <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sulfur-may-have-played-key-role-origin-of-life-on-earth/">sulfur</a> or silicon to the metal cuts nitrogen’s affinity roughly in half, yet even an alloy doped with light elements still grabs the lion’s share. That robustness makes the core a dependable nitrogen vault throughout Earth history.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-carbon-and-argon-tag-along">Carbon and argon tag along</h2>



Carbon shows subtler metal attraction. Laboratory experiments find metal‑silicate partition coefficients for carbon that swing from tens to above a thousand depending on temperature and oxygen fugacity. 



Nitrogen’s coefficient, by contrast, rockets to several hundred under the same conditions.



Argon cares little for iron, preferring to stay either in silicate melt or in an atmosphere if one exists. This hierarchy (nitrogen &gt; carbon &gt; argon) naturally inflates <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0012821X20305185" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Earth’s atmospheric 36Ar/N ratio</a> while boosting its mantle C/N figure, without invoking exotic loss processes.



The model therefore reproduces two independent geochemical puzzles with one physical mechanism: deep core segregation in a thick magma ocean.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-clues-from-mantle-chemistry">Clues from mantle chemistry</h2>



Modern basalts <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-discover-why-stealthy-volcanoes-erupt-without-warning/">erupting</a> at mid‑ocean ridges still record the aftermath. Their nitrogen‑to‑argon ratios hover near chondritic values, a hint that the upper mantle has stayed nitrogen‑poor and argon‑moderate since the Hadean.



Diamonds mined from cratonic roots occasionally trap tiny blebs of iron nitride, mineralogical breadcrumbs that support a deep nitrogen transfer early in Earth’s life. Each inclusion whispers that some nitrogen did indeed ride metal downward.



Geochemists reached a similar <a href="https://arxiv.org/abs/1505.03813" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">conclusion</a> back in 2015 by tallying global isotope budgets. Scientists have confirmed that the majority of the planetary budget of Nitrogen is in the solid Earth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-earth-s-nitrogen-and-exoplanets">Earth's nitrogen and exoplanets</h2>



Keeping just a sliver of nitrogen in the mantle turned out to be a sweet spot. Too much core sequestration would starve the atmosphere, while too little would upset carbon balance and maybe climate stability.



The work therefore tightens the range of interior conditions that can yield a clement surface, a useful guide as astronomers weigh <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/white-dwarf-planets-are-more-habitable-than-we-thought/">exoplanet habitability</a>. 



Planets that form quickly and differentiate deeply may need later recycling to deliver enough nitrogen for life’s molecules.



Earth pulled off that tightrope act, but only just. Understanding how it happened helps scientists decode not only our own planet’s past but the prospects of rocky worlds scattered across the galaxy.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0012821X25000901?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Earth and Planetary Science Letters</a>.



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Scientists think they found Earth's 'missing nitrogen' in a very unexpected place

Some of the most familiar atoms in the air above...

Your heart does more than pump blood. It also broadcasts tiny timing shifts that doctors read as heart rate variability (HRV), a window into the balance of your autonomic nervous system (ANS).



A five‑month field study now suggests those shifts rise and fall with patterns in space weather.&nbsp;



"The study makes a striking correlation between people’s HRV and energetic environmental phenomena such as the electromagnetic energy from the sun, the <a href="https://www.heartmath.org/gci/gcms/live-data/gcms-magnetometer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Schumann resonance power</a>, and energy influxes coming from outside our solar system," said Rollin McCraty of the <a href="https://www.heartmath.org/">HeartMath Institute</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-solar-storms-spikes-heart-rate">Solar storms spikes heart rate</h2>



Dr. Abdullah Alabdulgader of the <a href="https://www.hziegler.com/employers/prince-sultan-cardiac-center.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Prince Sultan Cardiac Center</a> in Saudi Arabia led weekly 72‑hour ECG sessions for sixteen healthy volunteers. 



The researchers matched each session against hourly logs of solar wind speed, sunspot counts, cosmic ray flux, and local geomagnetic indices collected by NASA and <a href="https://www.sgo.fi/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Finland’s Sodankylä Observatory</a>.



"Increase in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/silent-storms-experts-identify-the-mysterious-source-of-solar-wind/">solar wind</a> intensity was correlated with increases in heart rate, which we interpret as a biological stress response," said Dr. Alabdulgader. 



When the wind strengthened, inter‑beat intervals shortened, hinting at a sympathetic spike even on calm clinical days.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-heart-variability-during-solar-storms">Heart variability during solar storms</h2>



Heart rate variability is commonly split into high‑frequency, low‑frequency, and very‑low‑frequency bands. The Saudi team saw all three bands climb when cosmic ray counts, solar radio flux, and local Schumann resonance power went up.



Cosmic rays seemed especially potent. Total HRV power rose for almost 40 hours after particle counts peaked. A European <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17338964/">study</a> echoed this effect, linking higher cosmic rays to lower C-reactive protein, a marker of inflammation.



Geomagnetic quiet was not always benign. A U.S. analysis of 263 cities found that disturbed fields, measured by Kp and Ap indices, coincided with increased cardiovascular deaths on the same day.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-electromagnetic-fields-and-the-heart">Electromagnetic fields and the heart</h2>



Why would charged particles millions of miles away nudge heart rhythms? One possibility is that they tweak the ionosphere, altering the ultra‑low‑frequency waves that bathe Earth’s surface.



Neuroscientists first noticed in the 1950s that the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26785376/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">primary Schumann</a> peak near 7.83 Hz matches <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3507158/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">alpha brain oscillations</a>. Modern EEG research shows brief real‑time coherence between Schumann power and cortical activity during geomagnetic spikes.



These same frequencies overlap with <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7560965/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">vagal signaling</a> that drives the high‑frequency band of HRV. The Saudi dataset supports the idea that the heart, like the brain, can phase‑lock to natural electromagnetic cues.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-calm-waves-calmer-beats">Calm waves, calmer beats</h2>



Schumann power rose during thunderstorms and quiet solar intervals alike. When this occurred, participants’ heart rates slowed and parasympathetic tone strengthened. 



These results mirrored a smaller trial in Japan that recorded lower blood pressure on strong Schumann days.



Laboratory studies show that mammals and birds align circadian genes with weak radio‑frequency fields, though precise receptors remain debated.



Magnetite nanoparticles in cardiac and neural tissue may act as primary sensors, while <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10966452/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">retinal cryptochromes</a> could relay secondary signals.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-solar-storms-impact-heart-health">Solar storms impact heart health</h2>



For most people, the effects are subtle, but population data suggest they are still significant. A global review conducted in 2023 showed that stronger overall geomagnetic fields were linked to slight increases in cardiovascular deaths. 



However, the horizontal part of the field appeared to have a protective effect - highlighting how geomagnetic exposure may influence health in complex ways.



Clinicians already use heart rate variability to flag autonomic imbalance in diabetes, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/meditation-can-rapidly-reduce-ptsd-without-revisiting-trauma/">PTSD</a>, and post‑infection fatigue. If space weather can tip that balance, wearable monitors might one day combine cardiology and heliophysics to time workouts, surgeries, or even trading floors.



Not every scientist is convinced. A National Institutes of Health panel recently referred to the current evidence as intriguing yet inconclusive, noting that lab replications with shielded chambers are still scarce.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-emergency-planning-for-space-weather">Emergency planning for space weather</h2>



If <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/massive-geomagnetic-storm-reveals-earths-technological-vulnerabilities/">geomagnetic</a> factors affect heart and nervous system activity - even subtly - then hospitals and emergency services may need to adjust staffing or readiness protocols during peak solar events.



Historical data already confirm that ER visits and psychiatric admissions spike during geomagnetic disturbances. People who are at risk from arrhythmia, hypertension, or mental illness may experience the strongest effects.



Weather forecasts increasingly include space weather alerts, but medical infrastructure hasn't caught up. 



Doctors, paramedics, and health agencies could benefit from predictive models that track these environmental stressors and inform care delivery for vulnerable groups.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-research-is-needed">Further research is needed</h2>



The Saudi volunteers were young, healthy, and living at low geomagnetic latitude. We do not yet know whether patients with arrhythmias, hypertension, or pacemakers react the same way at polar latitudes where field swings are stronger.



Dose matters too. Satellites warn of major solar storms days in advance, but subtle changes within the “quiet” range may fly below meteorological forecasts while still nudging sensitive physiology.



Finally, correlation is not causation. Although animal studies shows pulsed fields can shift heart‑rate timing, the precise chain from ionospheric disturbance to vagus nerve firing remains only partially mapped.



Future studies may include networks that monitor heart rate variability across multiple locations, along with magnetometers and possibly even <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/brain-mapping-research-mouse-neurons-revolutionary-advance/">genetic screening</a> for traits linked to magnetic sensitivity. 



In the meantime, the evidence suggests we should consider space weather as one more environmental factor that may influence heart health.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/323016904_Long-Term_Study_of_Heart_Rate_Variability_Responses_to_Changes_in_the_Solar_and_Geomagnetic_Environment" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Scientific Reports</a>.



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Solar storms that cause auroras may be messing with your heart

Your heart does more than pump blood. It also broadcasts...

For most of the 2000s, climate scientists could draw a fairly straight line through Earth’s rising temperature curve. The world was warming, yes, but the pace was predictable - until it wasn’t.



Sometime around 2010, the slope steepened, and over the past 15 years, the thermometer has shot up faster than many forecasts had anticipated. 



After back-to-back record-shattering years in 2023 and 2024, researchers began hunting for a hidden driver of warming and found an unexpected culprit: smog over East Asia had cleared too quickly, removing a key layer of atmospheric protection.



“When something like the anomalous, record‑breaking warmth of 2023 and 2024 happens, climate scientists start to wonder if there’s a factor we’re missing,” said co-author Robert Allen, a climatologist at the <a href="https://www.ucr.edu/">University of California, Riverside</a>. “This study was our effort to figure out what that might be.”



Allen teamed up with Bjørn Samset from <a href="https://cicero.oslo.no/en">Norway’s Center for International Climate and Environmental Research</a> and dozens of colleagues worldwide to run eight state‑of‑the‑art climate models through thousands of simulated futures. All roads pointed back to tiny, sun‑scattering particles called <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-tiny-aerosols-in-sea-spray-influence-earths-climate/">aerosols</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-from-choking-smog-to-clear-skies"><a></a>From choking smog to clear skies</h2>



Aerosols - think sulfate haze from coal smokestacks or the soot in diesel exhaust - cool the planet by reflecting sunlight and seeding bright, reflective clouds. 



East Asia, and China in particular, pumped vast quantities of these particles into the atmosphere during its early‑2000s industrial boom.



Then, in response to dire health statistics, Beijing launched an aggressive clean‑air campaign. Between 2010 and 2020, sulfur dioxide emissions, a major source of sulfate aerosols, fell by roughly 75 percent.



In human terms, the smog cleanup is an unambiguous win; <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/understanding-how-air-pollution-forms-may-help-us-prevent-it/">air pollution</a> once killed more than a million Chinese citizens each year. In climate terms, though, it removed a temporary sunshade. 



Fewer reflective particles meant more solar energy reached Earth’s surface, especially over the Northern Hemisphere. "The spike in warming aligns with a dramatic drop in aerosol pollution from China’s skies,” Samset said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-smog-reduction-drives-warming-surge">Smog reduction drives warming surge</h2>



The models suggest that East Asia’s reduced smog and clearer air added about 0.05 °C of extra warming per decade - enough to account for most of the acceleration since 2010, even after natural swings like <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/el-nino-climate-shifts-date-back-250-million-years/">El Niño</a> are removed.



That figure might feel small, but in a world already teetering near 1.5 °C above pre‑industrial averages, every hundredth of a degree matters. Extreme heat waves become more frequent, glaciers melt faster, and coral reefs suffer additional <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/the-worlds-largest-coral-bleaching-event-is-now-underway/">bleaching</a>.



And the effects are not confined to East Asia. Atmospheric circulation spreads heat anomalies around the globe. The United States and Europe, for example, endured record‑breaking summers in 2023 partly because the planet as a whole was running warmer than usual.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cleaning-air-isn-t-enough">Cleaning air isn't enough</h2>



Allen calls the situation a cautionary tale. “Reducing air pollution has clear health benefits, but without also cutting CO2, you’re removing a layer of protection against climate change.”



In other words, focusing on smog particles while ignoring greenhouse gases is like taking off a pair of sunglasses and stepping into brighter light. The glare returns instantly because aerosols live only about a week in the lower atmosphere.



“Sulfur dioxide and sulfate aerosols have lifetimes of about a week. Once they’re removed, we’ll eventually settle back into a warming rate that’s more consistent with the long‑term trend,” Allen explained. Yet the planet must first absorb that short‑term pulse of extra heat.



Samset stresses that carbon dioxide and methane remain the main villains. “Our study focused on the recent, dramatic speedup in global warming, which is very concerning but still small compared to the overall, long‑term amount of warming from increased CO2 and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rising-methane-emissions-threaten-earths-habitability/">methane</a>.” 



Both gases linger for decades or centuries, meaning their warming power is cumulative and relentless.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-smog-cleanups-more-warming">More smog cleanups, more warming</h2>



China is not alone. India, parts of Africa, and even the United States continue to tighten air‑pollution rules.



RAMIP - the <a href="https://ramip.ncas.ac.uk/">Regional Aerosol Model Intercomparison Project</a> that supplied data for the current paper - plans to test how simultaneous clean‑ups might rewrite near‑term climate projections. Early hints suggest the global thermometer could tick upward even faster unless greenhouse‑gas cuts accelerate in parallel.



The dilemma has revived interest in geoengineering schemes that would mimic the cooling effect of aerosols by spraying reflective particles high into the stratosphere.



Allen urges extreme caution: “It’s a card we might have to play if we’re pushed into a corner,” he acknowledged, “but it comes with a host of risks, including disrupted rainfall patterns, food insecurity, and political tensions.”



Unlike accidental pollution, engineered aerosols could be difficult to govern and almost impossible to stop quickly without triggering a sudden rebound in temperatures.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-both-battles-must-be-fought">Both battles must be fought</h2>



For now, the lesson is clear. “<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-air-quality-trends-revealed-in-new-images/">Air quality</a> improvements are a no‑brainer for public health,” Allen said. “But if we want to prevent the worst impacts of climate change, we have to cut CO2 and methane too. The two must go hand in hand.”



Cleaner skies have bought East Asia healthier lungs and bluer horizons. They have also revealed, in stark relief, the heat still trapped by our greenhouse gas emissions. 



Ultimately, as the world works to end one environmental crisis, it cannot afford to ignore the other.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-025-02527-3">Communications Earth &amp; Environment</a>.



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China’s fight against smog has actually sped up global warming

For most of the 2000s, climate scientists could draw a...

Texas summers can turn brutal in a hurry, and when the temperature soars, your body loses water fast - often before you realize it. For athletes, firefighters, construction crews - or anyone who spends hours in the heat - spotting dehydration before it strikes is critical.



Yet today’s <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mosquitoes-bite-more-often-during-droughts-to-stay-hydrated/">hydration</a> checks usually mean poking fingers for blood, collecting urine, or lugging bulky lab gear around. None of that works when you’re running drills on a football field or climbing two flights of stairs in full turnout gear.



Engineers at the <a href="https://www.utexas.edu/">University of Texas at Austin</a> believe they have a simpler answer: a soft, sticker‑like sensor you can wear all day that quietly measures hydration in real time.



“Dehydration is a silent threat that affects millions of people every day,” said senior author Nanshu Lu, a professor at UT Austin. “Our wearable sensor provides a simple, effective way to monitor hydration levels in real time, empowering individuals to take proactive steps to stay healthy and perform at their best.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-patch-tracks-water-with-electricity">Patch tracks water with electricity</h2>



The patch relies on bioimpedance - basically, seeing how easily a faint electrical current moves through your tissue. 



Water conducts electricity well, so a well‑hydrated arm lets the current glide through, while a drier one slows it down.



Four tiny electrodes printed on the sensor send that harmless signal, then record how much resistance they meet. A built‑in transmitter beams the data to your phone, where an app translates the numbers into an easy‑to‑read hydration gauge.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-trials-show-strong-results">Trials show strong results</h2>



To prove the concept, Lu’s team ran two key experiments. In the first, volunteers took a common diuretic pill to flush water from their bodies. 



The researchers tracked water loss and hydration levels with the arm patch, then compared those readings to the gold-standard urine test. The two matched closely: as participants lost water weight, the sensor’s bioimpedance values climbed in lockstep.



Next came a 24‑hour “free‑living” trial. Subjects wore the patch while going about normal activities - walking to class, sitting at a desk, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/working-out-at-the-gym-you-may-need-to-check-the-air-quality/">hitting the gym</a>. Again, shifts in the electrical signal mirrored changes in body weight and fluid intake.



“Our experiments demonstrated that arm bioimpedance is not only sensitive to hydration changes but also aligns closely with whole‑body hydration measurements,” said lead author Matija Jankovic, a postdoctoral fellow at UT Austin.



“This means the sensor can be a reliable surrogate for tracking hydration levels, even during everyday activities like walking, working, or exercising.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-cost-of-losing-water">The cost of losing water</h2>



Water does more than quench thirst: it keeps organs humming, cools the body, cushions joints, and feeds countless biochemical reactions. 



Even mild dehydration can fog your brain and sap your strength; severe cases may trigger heatstroke, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/astronauts-kidneys-may-not-survive-a-roundtrip-to-mars/">kidney</a> stones, or heart stress.



Still, most people don’t notice they’re falling behind until headaches, dizziness, or cramps hit. A continuous monitor could sound the alarm sooner - say, when a runner loses two percent of body weight in sweat - and prompt a drink break before performance tanks.



While athletes and outdoor workers are obvious beneficiaries, the patch could also help hospital patients and older adults, who often struggle to stay hydrated.



Doctors managing kidney disease, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/living-close-to-bars-and-pubs-increases-the-risk-of-heart-failure/">heart failure</a>, or chronic dehydration could gain a noninvasive tool to watch fluid balance hour by hour instead of relying on occasional lab draws.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-from-patch-to-full-water-tracker">From patch to full water tracker</h2>



Right now, the patch tracks relative changes - basically, it tells you whether your water levels are rising or falling. Lu’s group wants to build a database of baseline values from a wide range of people so the device can eventually report absolute numbers, like “you’re down 1.5 liters.”



They’re also experimenting with new materials: breathable “e‑tattoos” that feel almost weightless, or sweat‑wicking fabrics that stick comfortably during intense workouts. 



Future trials may shift the electrodes to the forearm, thigh, or other spots to see which location gives the clearest signal.



“This is just the beginning,” Lu says. “Our goal is to make simple hydration monitoring accessible to everyone.”



If they succeed, refilling a water bottle could soon be guided not by guesswork or nagging thirst, but by a quick glance at your phone - and a smart patch quietly guarding your health in the summer sun.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2504278122">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



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Wearable sensor tells you when you need to drink water

Texas summers can turn brutal in a hurry, and when...

Calcium,Carbonate,Lime,For,Treat,(soil,Or,Water),With,Lime

Carbon dioxide usually floats away into the sky, but a tiny soil bacterium has a different plan. Under the right <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-system-captures-carbon-dioxide-directly-from-air/">conditions</a>, it converts the gas into solid limestone.



The trick belongs to Bacillus megaterium, and a new study shows how the microbe locks away carbon with remarkable efficiency.



Lead author <a href="https://people.epfl.ch/dimitrios.terzis?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dimitrios Terzis</a> of <a href="https://www.epfl.ch/labs/lms/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">EPFL’s Soil Mechanics Laboratory</a> reports the results.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bacteria-turn-carbon-into-limestone-fast">Bacteria turn carbon into limestone fast</h2>



Inside sealed flasks pressurized with <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-day-2025-innovation-takes-the-lead-in-environmental-action/">carbon</a> dioxide at more than 470 times atmospheric levels, the bacteria precipitated calcium carbonate with 94 percent of its carbon coming directly from the gas. Such efficiency dwarfs that of most engineered sorbents.



“We know that dozens of bacteria have the potential to mineralize crystals,” says Dimitrios Terzis. He argues that harnessing one that eats carbon directly will simplify industrial roll‑out.



That performance matters because the most polluting industries need options at the smokestack, not halfway around the world. 



A biological process that makes rock on demand could fit into cement plants, steel mills, or even soil stabilization rigs.



Isotope tracing showed that only six percent of the crystal carbon came from urea, confirming that the cells bypassed the older, ammonia‑producing route. 



The carbonate lattice even matched the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Scanning-electron-microscope-images-of-calcium-carbonate-crystals-a-Rhombohedral-calcite_fig1_342184846" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">rhombohedral morphology</a> of geologic calcite in electron‑microscope images.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-soil-microbe-traps-carbon-as-limestone">Soil microbe traps carbon as limestone</h2>



Bacillus megaterium is an aerobic, rod‑shaped organism about 4 micrometers long, known to <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00253-021-11424-6" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">biotech</a> engineers for vitamin B12 production, enzyme synthesis, and plant growth <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-faces-hidden-mechanical-stress-from-carbon-emissions/">promotion</a>. Few people, however, picture it as a mason.



The Swiss group exploited a less famous trait, the cell’s knack for <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969722075416" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">microbially induced calcite precipitation</a> when calcium ions are present. In lab culture that reaction can bind sand grains into a single block in hours.



The species earned its name, “mega‑bacterium,” in 1884 because its cells were considered giant for bacteria of the day. Modern genetic work has since moved it to the genus <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Taxonomy/Browser/wwwtax.cgi?mode=info&amp;id=1404" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Priestia</a>, yet its mineral talents remain intact.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-making-calcite-from-co₂">Making calcite from CO₂</h2>



The classic pathway, <a href="https://www.eeer.org/journal/view.php?doi=10.4491/eer.2020.379" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ureolysis</a>, uses the enzyme urease to split urea, raise the pH, and trigger calcite formation, but it leaves behind ammonia that needs costly cleanup. That waste stream limits large‑scale use.



The alternative relies on <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/carbonic-anhydrase" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">carbonic anhydrase</a>, an enzyme that hydrates carbon dioxide to bicarbonate, which then reacts with calcium to form rock without toxic residues. Because the reaction consumes acid, it can even run in slightly acidic flue gases.



The new study confirmed that CO₂ concentrations above the 470‑fold threshold switch the microbe from urease to carbonic anhydrase, accounting for the 94 percent mineralization observed. That metabolic flip is as close to a shut‑off valve for ammonia as biology offers.



Both enzymes sit in the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/periplasm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">periplasm</a>, so CO₂ or urea never needs to cross internal membranes. That localization speeds precipitation and gives engineers a handle on reaction rates through gas flow or nutrient dosing.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-cleaner-path-for-cement">A cleaner path for cement</h2>



<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41597-024-04234-8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cement production</a> is responsible for roughly eight percent of global carbon dioxide emissions, almost three billion tons a year. Cutting that share is one of the toughest problems in climate policy.



Replacing a slice of cement with bacteria‑grown calcite could shave millions of tons off that footprint while also storing carbon for centuries. Because the mineral is stable over geological timescales, the risk of re‑release is low.



Pilot <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0009250921001755" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">studies</a> in Denmark found that concrete blocks fortified with bio‑calcite lost less than two percent of their compressive strength after 300 freeze‑thaw cycles. 



Durability metrics matter because building codes reward long service life as much as low embodied <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-mangroves-could-store-more-carbon-as-oceans-rise/">carbon</a>.



Regulators from California to the European Union are drafting <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123024017729" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">performance‑based rules</a> that allow novel binders, provided safety tests match conventional materials. 



<a href="https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2014/ta/c4ta03235g" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bio‑calcite</a> supporters say those rules open doors for microbes where prescriptive cement standards once blocked change.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scaling-limestone-carbon-capture-for-industry">Scaling limestone carbon capture for industry</h2>



“This study shows how environmental microbiology, when combined with advanced laboratory techniques, can reveal mechanisms that would otherwise remain hidden,” says <a href="https://www.supsi.ch/en/pamela-principi" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pamela Principi</a>, researcher at <a href="https://www.supsi.ch/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SUPSI</a>. She credits <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6034115/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">isotope tracing</a> with proving where the carbon ended up.



Medusoil already operates pilot bioreactors and plans field trials that inject the culture into aggregate to make load‑bearing blocks. 



The company claims its prototype units capture several pounds of CO₂ per cubic foot of material treated.



<a href="https://microbialcellfactories.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12934-024-02437-7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Researchers at Newcastle University</a> recently engineered Bacillus subtilis with a carbonic anhydrase from <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/bacillus-megaterium" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">B megaterium</a> and cut flue‑gas CO₂ by nearly 80 percent in bench tests. The result hints at plug‑and‑play biology for existing industrial streams.



Economic models suggest that, if run on renewable electricity, the microbial units could deliver capture costs below $50 per metric ton, competitive with amine scrubbing at small scale. 



Calcium feedstocks could come from desalination brines, mine tailings, or recycled concrete fines, reducing mining impacts.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-boosting-limestone-growth-from-carbon">Boosting limestone growth from carbon</h2>



Challenges remain, including piping sterile media, balancing pH in large reactors, and sourcing calcium without extra emissions. 



None of those hurdles look insurmountable compared with the kilns that currently heat limestone to 2,642 °F.



Still, the twin‑enzyme strategy demonstrated by B megaterium offers a rare chance to turn an industrial liability into literal building material overnight. If it scales, future walls could double as carbon vaults.



Future research will probe whether gene editing can push the carbonic anhydrase pathway to work at normal atmospheric CO₂, eliminating the need for pressurization. 



Teams are also exploring how organic polymers secreted by the cells might tailor crystal shapes for specific mechanical properties.



-----



This research was completed by scientists from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (<a href="https://www.epfl.ch/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">EPFL</a>), the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (<a href="https://www.supsi.ch/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SUPSI</a>), and start‑up <a href="https://medusoil.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Medusoil</a>



The study is published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-07323-9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Scientific Reports</a>.



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Bacteria discovered that turns CO2 gas into stone, which could then be used for buildings

Carbon dioxide usually floats away into the sky, but a...

Close-up,Of,Antarctic,Moss,At,Fort,Point,,Antarctica

Hidden beneath East Antarctica’s thick ice lie secrets from a warmer, ancient world. For decades, scientists have speculated about what lies under this frozen continent.&nbsp;



Researchers have uncovered remnants of vast prehistoric river landscapes buried beneath East Antarctica. These hidden features could help refine predictions about the future of our planet’s <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarctic-sea-ice-extremes-disrupt-global-climate-systems/">ice</a> and oceans.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plains-found-under-east-antarctica-s-ice">Plains found under East Antarctica’s ice</h2>



A team led by researchers from <a href="https://www.durham.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Durham University</a> studied radar data across a 3,500 km (2,175 mile) stretch of Antarctica, from Princess Elizabeth Land to George V Land. 



They discovered 31 flat surfaces beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS). These surfaces, preserved under ice as thick as 2,500 meters (8,200 feet), appear as coherent, low-relief plains. 



The study showed that they were once part of a single fluvial landscape that formed after East Antarctica separated from Australia.



The researchers used data from four major airborne surveys. Their detailed analysis revealed gently sloping surfaces with consistent elevations, now separated by deep glacial troughs. 



These plains dip coastward and cluster around 200 to 450 meters (656 to 1,476 feet) above present sea level, once adjusted for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarctic-sea-ice-collapse-linked-to-a-sudden-surge-in-ocean-salt/">ice</a> unloading.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-origins-in-ancient-river-systems">Origins in ancient river systems</h2>



The scientists interpret the surfaces as remnants of ancient river plains. After the continents split, rivers eroded the land to a base level, creating a vast, seaward-sloping plain. 



These features closely resemble those along the Australian coast, which formed through similar processes.



According to the team, the plains likely developed between 80 and 34 million years ago, after the breakup and before widespread glaciation.



“Information such as the shape and geology of the newly mapped surfaces will help improve our understanding of how ice flows at the edge of East <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/what-lies-beneath-16000-feet-of-antarctic-ice-a-world-never-before-seen-by-humans/">Antarctica</a>,” said Dr. Guy Paxman.



“This, in turn, will help make it easier to predict how the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarctic-ice-sheet-past-present-and-future/">East Antarctic Ice Sheet</a> could affect sea levels under different levels of climate warming in the future.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-surfaces-in-east-antarctica-survived-ice">Surfaces in East Antarctica survived ice</h2>



Remarkably, these river-carved surfaces have survived beneath the ice for over 30 million years. 



They were not destroyed by glacial erosion. Instead, fast-moving ice carved deep troughs between them, leaving the flat surfaces mostly intact. These areas likely remained frozen at the base, which reduced erosion.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/antarctic-ice-sheet_underneath_topography_credit-S-Ink_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/antarctic-ice-sheet_underneath_topography_credit-S-Ink_1s.webp" alt="The topography beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet. Credit: Open-access s-ink.org repository" class="wp-image-1978129"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The topography beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Open-access s-ink.org repository</figcaption></figure>



Research shows that today's fast-flowing glaciers, such as Totten and Denman, move through these deeper troughs. 



Meanwhile, the ice above the flat surfaces is slow-moving and cold-based, further preserving the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarcticas-waters-are-getting-saltier-and-it-could-transform-earths-climate/">landscape</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bedrock-confirms-river-not-ice-origins">Bedrock confirms river, not ice origins</h2>



The researchers found that the surfaces cross different geological provinces, including crystalline gneisses and sedimentary rocks. 



This confirms that the surfaces did not form due to rock boundaries. They formed from river erosion, not through ice or marine processes. Their consistency in elevation and slope supports this.



Some of these surfaces now align with exposed regions like the Bunger and Vestfold Hills. These exposed features show signs of glacial scouring, but not enough to erase the original fluvial structure. 



The research suggests limited modification by ice, mostly during the Oligocene or early Miocene periods.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-influence-on-future-ice-sheet-retreat">Influence on future ice sheet retreat</h2>



These buried plains are not just ancient relics. They still shape the modern flow of the EAIS. Ice moves fastest through the troughs, not over the flat surfaces. 



The researchers argue that these plains could anchor ice during future warming events, potentially forming grounded ice rises.



“This study brings the jigsaw pieces of data together, to reveal the big picture: how these ancient surfaces formed, their role in determining the present-day flow of the ice, and their possible influence on how the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarctic-ice-sheet-patterns-point-to-rapid-melting-risks/">East Antarctic Ice Sheet</a> will evolve in a warming world,” noted Professor Neil Ross.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-slowing-east-antarctica-s-ice-loss">Slowing East Antarctica’s ice loss</h2>



The presence of these elevated plains buried under the ice could slow the retreat of grounding lines.



If ice shelves collapse during warming, some grounded ice might remain over these surfaces. This would reduce ice loss into the ocean. In regions like Law Dome, some surfaces already host ice rises, which help anchor and stabilize the inland ice.



However, current large-scale ice sheet models often overlook these features. Their resolution is too low to capture how these plains affect grounding-line behavior. 



The authors urge more drilling and high-resolution modeling to better understand the role of these features.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-this-could-change-sea-level-predictions">This could change sea level predictions</h2>



East Antarctica holds about 90 percent of Antarctica’s ice. If this ice sheet melted, it would raise sea levels by 52 meters (171 feet). Improving how we model its behavior is essential. 



These hidden landscapes offer a new constraint on where ice will likely remain stable.



The study's detailed data on elevation, slope, and bedrock composition provide critical insights. They help scientists to project more accurately the responses of the EAIS to future climate change.



The findings highlight the value of geophysical surveys in revealing what lies beneath the ice and how it might shape our future.



The research appears in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-025-01734-z" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Geoscience</a> and is supported by institutions in the U.K., Germany, China, and Australia. 



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Vast river landscapes discovered beneath Antarctica's thick ice sheet

Hidden beneath East Antarctica’s thick ice lie secrets from a...

For decades, reptiles - including tortoises - have lingered in the background of animal sentience discussions. Popular imagination often casts them as simple, instinct-driven beings - unfeeling and unaware. 



Unlike mammals and birds, they rarely show overt emotion, leading many to dismiss the idea that reptiles might feel in complex ways. 



But a new study from the <a href="https://www.lincoln.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Lincoln</a> has disrupted that belief, offering compelling evidence that red-footed tortoises (Chelonoidis carbonaria) can experience long-term mood states.



Published in the journal Animal Cognition, the study reveals that tortoises can show optimism and pessimism depending on their environment. These emotional states then shapes their response to the world around them.



The implications are profound. If tortoises can feel mood shifts similar to mammals and birds, we must rethink how they are treated in captivity and reconsider their place in the story of animal consciousness.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-moods-mean-in-animals">What moods mean in animals</h2>



Mood and emotion are not the same. Emotions are short-lived responses to immediate situations, like fear when chased or joy at finding food. Moods, on the other hand, linger. 



They form a kind of emotional background noise, influencing how an animal perceives new experiences. Scientists call these “free-floating” states, unattached to specific triggers but powerful in shaping behavior.



In humans and other mammals, we have tested mood using cognitive bias tasks. These tests explore how an individual interprets ambiguous situations. 



Someone in a good mood will expect a positive outcome, while someone in a bad mood will expect the worst. Until now, no study had used this method on <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/turtles-may-hold-the-secret-to-cancer-prevention/">reptiles</a>.



That gap has finally been closed. Researchers at Lincoln tested 15 red-footed tortoises to determine if they could exhibit mood-driven bias. Their approach was clear and controlled, building on established methods from mammal studies.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tortoises-respond-to-uncertainty">Tortoises respond to uncertainty</h2>



Each <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/turtle-heads-reveal-an-ancient-reptilian-secret/">tortoise</a> was trained in a simple spatial judgment task. A bowl placed in one spot always contained a food reward (rocket leaves). 



The same bowl, placed elsewhere, never had food. Once trained, tortoises were presented with the bowl at three new, in-between locations: one near the positive spot, one in the middle, and one near the negative.



How quickly a tortoise approached the bowl at each of these ambiguous points showed its expectation. Quick approach meant optimism. Hesitation meant doubt or pessimism. 



Every trial was carefully timed, filmed, and structured to avoid smell-based cues or random behavior. The test was fair.



Interestingly, the tortoises judged the near-positive and middle spots more optimistically. They moved faster toward these bowls, showing an “optimistic skew” similar to that seen in mammals and birds. This alone is a strong sign of mood in action. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-anxiety-measured-in-action">Anxiety measured in action</h2>



To confirm that mood shaped behavior beyond just one task, the tortoises were also subjected to two classic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-do-fear-and-anxiety-reside-in-the-brain-new-cells-identified/">anxiety</a> tests: the novel object test and the novel environment test. 



These are used widely in animal cognition to assess emotional reactions to unfamiliar situations.



In the novel object test, each tortoise encountered an unusual item, a colorful bead coaster, inside a familiar arena. 



The researchers recorded how long it took the tortoise to approach the object, how far it extended its head, and how quickly it began to move. Confident, relaxed tortoises moved sooner and extended their heads farther.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tortoise-mood-affects-behavior">Tortoise mood affects behavior </h2>



The novel environment test changed the tortoises’ surroundings. Different textures, colors, and patterns created a new sensory world. 



Again, tortoises were watched for how they responded to unfamiliarity. The researchers noted that tortoises who showed optimistic bias in the earlier task also behaved with more confidence in these settings.



For example, tortoises that approached ambiguous bowls faster also reached new objects more quickly. 



Some even extended their heads farther in strange environments, indicating comfort and curiosity. These behavioral links show a deep connection between mood and action.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rethinking-reptile-feelings">Rethinking reptile feelings</h2>



The authors of the study interpret these results as remarkable. The presence of a mood state in a tortoise means that reptiles do not simply react. They evaluate, anticipate, and feel. That changes the ethical landscape.



"Animal welfare concerns are reliant upon evidence that a given <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-turtle-day-protecting-turtles-tortoises-and-their-vanishing-habitats/">species</a> has the capacity to experience affective states," said Anna Wilkinson, a professor of Animal Cognition at the University of Lincoln. 



"With reptiles becoming increasingly common as pets, it is essential for us to study their moods and emotions to try to understand how captivity may impact them."



Professor Oliver Burman noted that the research represents a significant shift in our understanding of what reptiles can experience, with important implications for how we care for these animals in captivity and interact with them in the wild.



The researchers emphasized that these findings align reptiles more closely with mammals and birds in terms of emotional capacity.



While reptiles may lack certain emotional expressions seen in other animals, they still experience shifts in affective state. Their moods impact how they explore, respond, and behave.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tortoise-mood-and-the-roots-of-emotions">Tortoise mood and the roots of emotions</h2>



Reptiles diverged from mammals and birds hundreds of millions of years ago. That makes this discovery even more significant. If a tortoise, members of one of the oldest lineages of land animals, can experience mood, then the evolutionary roots of emotion run deeper than we thought.



The study references earlier research that found reptiles do show some emotional behavior, such as emotional fever and response to enrichment. 



But until now, no one had shown that they could experience long-lasting, mood-like states. These new results argue against the idea that reptiles have a narrow emotional spectrum.



They suggest that affective states, both emotional and mood-based, might be ancient features of vertebrate brains. These are not recent innovations. This insight matters for biology, psychology, and ethics.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-reptiles-need-more-than-basics">Reptiles need more than basics</h2>



The researchers argue for major changes in how we house and care for reptiles. Current enclosures often focus on physical health and basic habitat needs. 



But if tortoises have moods, then their emotional well-being must also be addressed. That means offering larger enclosures, complex terrain, opportunities for exploration, and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/brain-stimulation-could-change-the-future-of-math-education/">mental stimulation</a>.



According to the researchers, we should assume that they are not only capable of suffering but also experiencing enduring positive moods. Captive reptiles deserve spaces that support both.



The research also expands the toolkit for welfare assessments. Behavioral and mood-based testing can help zookeepers, researchers, and pet owners recognize when a reptile like a tortoise is distressed or thriving.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rethinking-how-we-see-tortoises">Rethinking how we see tortoises</h2>



For too long, tortoises have been treated as slow-moving curiosities. But this new evidence invites us to see them differently. They can be optimistic, feel anxiety, and might even experience contentment.



This is not just about red-footed tortoises. It is about revising our relationship with all <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/reptile-ancestors-appeared-40-million-years-earlier-than-we-thought/">reptiles</a>. The cold-blooded no longer seem cold-hearted. They are thinking, feeling beings. And now we have the science to prove it.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10071-025-01973-y" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Animal Cognition</a>.



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Grumpy tortoise? Reptiles can experience mood swings too

For decades, reptiles - including tortoises - have lingered in...

Sharks have survived five mass extinctions and ruled the oceans for over 400 million years. As apex predators, they play a critical role in maintaining the balance of marine ecosystems.&nbsp;But today, sharks are more threatened than ever. 



On Shark Awareness Day, we highlight the science behind their importance. Without sharks, ocean ecosystems would become unbalanced, leading to overpopulation of some species and the collapse of others.



This disruption would harm the overall health of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-climate-fixes-could-worsen-the-oxygen-crisis/">ocean</a>, ultimately affecting food security and coastal economies.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-happens-when-sharks-disappear">What happens when sharks disappear?</h2>



A <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/top-predator-missing-what-happens-when-great-white-sharks-disappear/#google_vignette">long-term study</a> conducted in False Bay, South Africa, offers a real-world example of what happens when sharks disappear from an ecosystem.



The researchers found that by mid‑2018, great white sharks had vanished from the region. This led to dramatic shifts throughout the ecosystem.&nbsp;



With the disappearance of great whites, Cape fur seal and sevengill shark populations surged, while their prey - smaller fish and bottom-dwelling shark species - declined sharply.&nbsp;



The findings provide real-world evidence of a “trophic cascade,” where the loss of a top predator triggers a ripple effect through lower levels of the food web.



The researchers suggest that the sharks may have disappeared due to several potential causes, including targeted attacks by orcas - which have been observed killing and eating great white livers.&nbsp;



The study demonstrates the importance of apex predators in maintaining ocean health. The research highlights how their loss can destabilize marine webs and reduce biodiversity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-declining-shark-populations-nbsp">Declining shark populations&nbsp;</h2>



According to a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/overfishing-has-caused-a-50-decline-in-sharks-and-rays/">study</a> led by researchers from Simon Fraser University, over half of all sharks and rays have disappeared globally since 1970 - with overfishing identified as the primary cause.&nbsp;



Sharks and rays, serving as critical predators and sediment stirrers, help maintain food webs and nutrient flows. The report revealed that around one-third of shark and ray species now face extinction. 



However, there is cause for hope: countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the US, parts of Europe, and South Africa have implemented science-based fishing limits, reduced bycatch, and protected critical habitats.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-endangered-shark-species-nbsp">Endangered shark species&nbsp;</h2>



Among the most threatened are the great <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-some-great-hammerhead-sharks-rarely-leave-home/">hammerhead</a> and the scalloped hammerhead sharks - both of which have seen dramatic population declines worldwide.&nbsp;



These species are particularly vulnerable because they grow slowly and reproduce rarely, making it hard for their populations to bounce back once they decline.



The oceanic whitetip shark, once abundant across tropical and subtropical waters, has suffered steep losses from bycatch and targeted fishing - pushing it toward critical endangerment.&nbsp;



Many deep-sea sharks, like the bluntnose sixgill and the gulper shark, are also threatened due to slow reproduction rates combined with increased fishing pressures.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-campaigns-around-the-world">Campaigns around the world</h2>



Around the world, numerous campaigns and organizations are dedicated to protecting sharks and raising awareness about their critical role in ocean ecosystems.&nbsp;



One of the most widely recognized efforts is <a href="https://www.discovery.com/shark-week/shark-week-2025-kicks-off-july-20">Shark Week</a>, a series on the Discovery Channel that draws millions of viewers each summer. Through documentaries and expert interviews, the series highlights both the awe-inspiring nature of sharks and the threats they face from human activity.



<a href="https://iucn.org/our-union/members/iucn-members/project-aware-foundation">Project AWARE</a> mobilizes scuba divers globally to advocate for shark conservation by pushing for bans on shark finning and the creation of marine protected areas.&nbsp;



On a larger scale, coalitions like the <a href="https://www.globalsharkmovement.org/">Global Shark Movement Project</a> work to influence policy and fisheries management worldwide.



The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) <a href="https://www.iucnssg.org/">Shark Specialist Group</a> also plays a vital role by assessing species status and guiding conservation strategies globally.&nbsp;



Together, these campaigns combine public education, advocacy, and policy efforts to reduce shark deaths and support healthier oceans for future generations.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-celebrate-shark-awareness-day-nbsp">Celebrate Shark Awareness Day&nbsp;</h2>



Shark Awareness Day highlights the urgent need for stronger protections and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sustainable-fishing-must-be-redefined-to-halt-ocean-destruction/">sustainable fishing practices</a> to prevent the irreversible loss of these vital ocean predators.



Today, people around the world are encouraged to learn about sharks and the threats they face from human activities. We are also encouraged to take action by choosing sustainable seafood and speaking up for better laws to protect sharks.&nbsp;



Shark Awareness Day helps build a stronger global community committed to conservation efforts. Ultimately, protecting sharks is about protecting the entire ocean system - and a planet that depends on it.



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Shark Awareness Day: Protecting the balance of the ocean 

Sharks have survived five mass extinctions and ruled the oceans...

What started as a student field trip along the cliffs of Dorset turned into the discovery of a new prehistoric species. A 16.5-millimeter lower jaw, embedded in rock near Swanage, is now reshaping how scientists view early mammal evolution.



The discovery was made by an undergraduate student from the <a href="https://www.port.ac.uk/">University of Portsmouth</a>. The fossil belongs to a type of extinct mammal called a multituberculate. 



These small, rodent-like creatures once lived alongside <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-did-dinosaurs-come-from-missing-fossils-hold-the-secret/">dinosaurs</a> and were known for their distinctively complex teeth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-curious-jaw-a-surprising-species">A curious jaw, a surprising species</h2>



The fossil was uncovered at Durlston Bay, a site famous for its rich geological layers. It’s the first multituberculate jaw found there since the 1800s. 



Though it looks a bit like a rabbit's jaw at first glance, the structure of the teeth tells a different story. A sharp incisor juts out at the front, followed by a gap, and then four blade-like premolars.



“I instantly had my suspicions of what the jaw was when I found it at the beach, but couldn’t have imagined where the discovery would take me,” said Ben Weston,&nbsp;an undergraduate paleontology student.



“I’m extremely grateful to the team and to the university for helping me take my first steps into academic paleontology.”



Researchers at the University of Portsmouth confirmed that the fossil is from a species that had never been identified before.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-technology-brings-the-fossil-to-life">Technology brings the fossil to life</h2>



The fossil wasn’t easy to examine. Rock still clung to key parts of the specimen. To get around this, the team turned to high-resolution <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gordonia-traquairi-pig-like-creature-discovered-roamed-earth-250-million-years-ago/">CT scanning</a>. 



Dr. Charles Wood, a senior scientific officer at the university, scanned the fossil, allowing scientists to see inside the rock without damaging the sample.



Jake Keane, a former Portsmouth paleontology student now working in Abu Dhabi, helped process the scans. In just a few hours, he digitally removed the surrounding rock and isolated the teeth in fine detail.



The scans were then turned into 3D-printed models by John Fearnly, lead technician in the university’s Faculty of Technology. These models were ten times larger than the original, making it safer and easier to study the fossil in depth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-mammal-gets-a-name">New mammal gets a name</h2>



The team named the new species Novaculadon mirabilis. “Novacula” means razor, a nod to its sharp back teeth. “Mirabilis” refers to the jaw’s almost perfect preservation.



Portsmouth student Hamzah Imran created an artistic rendering of the animal. It’s imagined as a small, furry creature with a mix of spots and stripes - though its actual appearance remains speculative.



Based on its teeth, Novaculadon mirabilis likely ate <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/very-little-is-known-about-99-of-all-insects-on-earth/">insects</a> and other small <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-noise-can-be-fatal-to-marine-invertebrates/">invertebrates</a>. Its slicing premolars and pointed incisors set it apart from modern rodents like rats or squirrels.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-hotspot-for-new-mammal-species">A hotspot for new mammal species</h2>



This isn't the first time a student has made a big find in the same area. In 2017, another Portsmouth undergraduate, Grant Smith, discovered fossils of two new <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-mammals-live-depends-more-on-climate-than-human-activities/">mammal</a> species thought to be among humanity’s earliest relatives.



Dr. Steve Sweetman, a researcher at the University of Portsmouth, also worked on this new discovery. 



“This is a remarkable find that reminds me of when Grant found those extraordinary eutherian mammal teeth," said Dr. Sweetman.



"When I first saw Grant's specimens, my jaw dropped - and I had exactly the same reaction to Ben's multituberculate jaw. It's incredible that Durlston Bay keeps delivering such significant mammal discoveries by our undergraduate students.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-evolution-insights-from-tiny-jaw">Evolution insights from tiny jaw </h2>



Beyond the scientific importance, the discovery highlights the value of collaborative research. 



“Looking back now that the discovery has been published, I am amazed at how many people it took to describe this little mammal," said Professor David Martill.



"I especially appreciated that all team members were University staff or present and former students - a true team effort including academics, technicians, alumni, and students with diverse talents across three departments.” 



The fossil helps researchers better understand how early mammals survived during the age of dinosaurs. While multituberculates lived through the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/what-was-the-cause-of-earths-largest-mass-extinction/">mass extinction</a> that wiped out dinosaurs, they eventually died out during the Oligocene, around 33 million years ago.



With over 200 known species, multituberculates were the most diverse group of mammals in the Mesozoic era. They filled many ecological roles - some burrowed, others climbed trees. This new discovery adds to what we know about their evolution and survival.



And it serves as a reminder that major scientific contributions can come from anyone - even a 22-year-old student on a windy beach in Dorset.



Image Credit: Hamzah Imran



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pgeola.2025.101128">Proceedings of the Geologists Association</a>.



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Tiny fossil, big discovery: Student uncovers a lost mammal species

What started as a student field trip along the cliffs...

Diseño sin título - 1

A beautiful turquoise‑and‑lilac sea creature that has been kept in hobbyist aquariums around the world for nearly two decades has finally been given a scientific species name. 



The modest crustacean hiding in plain sight turns out to be Cherax pulverulentus, an entirely new crayfish species no biologist had cataloged until now.



<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jiri-Patoka" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jiří Patoka</a> of the <a href="https://www.czechuniversities.com/catalogue-of-universities/czech-university-of-life-sciences-prague" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Czech University of Life Sciences Prague</a> and an international team realized the oversight while inspecting a shipment of Indonesian pets in 2023. 



Their detective work now ends years of speculation about the animal’s identity in the scientific community worldwide.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meet-cherax-pulverulentus">Meet Cherax pulverulentus</h2>



Ever since the early 2000s, importers have marketed the animal under nicknames such as “Blue Moon” and “Hoa Creek,” labels that lumped several look‑alike <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-may-have-three-million-undiscovered-animal-species/">species</a> together. 



Dealers moved thousands of specimens across Europe, the United States, Japan, and Indonesia, yet museum drawers remained empty of an official voucher specimen.



Collectors recognized the flashy colors, but the mix of hues muddied any attempt to match the pet to known taxa. Without an authoritative description, conservation agencies could not track exports or assess wild harvest pressure.



Field notes hinted that the mystery crayfish came from forested headwaters near Ayamaru Lake in the Bird’s Head Peninsula of western New Guinea. 



Border checkpoints rarely scrutinized small ornamental shipments, allowing animals to flow from creeks to storefronts without paperwork.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cherax-pulverulentus-has-two-forms">Cherax pulverulentus has two forms</h2>



The research team reports that purple‑form individuals sport turquoise bodies dusted with violet specks. Their joints and tail fans fade to a chalky white, producing an almost pastel appearance that appeals to aquarists.



Blue‑form animals replace those lilac freckles with a deep navy background that drifts toward black around the claws. 



Bright orange stripes frame the abdomen and legs, giving the crayfish a stark, two‑tone look unique within the genus.



Patoka and colleagues chose the species epithet pulverulentus, Latin for “covered with dust,” to capture these pinpoint spots. 



The name, Cherax pulverulentus, cements the animal’s singular identity and separates it from <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jcb/article-abstract/35/6/830/2547908" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cherax pulcher</a>, a close relative described in 2015.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-detective-work-in-the-lab">Detective work in the lab</h2>



Traditional morphometrics ranked claw shape, eye size, and rostrum length against 38 allied species. DNA barcoding of the mitochondrial COI gene then revealed at least 2 percent divergence from every known member of the genus.



“This <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/saving-biodiversity-scientists-discover-hidden-pattern-guiding-species-distributions/">species</a> has been exploited in the ornamental aquarium trade at least for 21 years,” wrote Patoka in the report. That long tenure outside science underscores how commercial networks can outpace taxonomy.



A second line of <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/387844505_Cherax_pulverulentus_a_new_freshwater_crayfish_Decapoda_Parastacidae_from_Southwest_Papua_Province_Indonesia" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">evidence</a> came from nuclear 28S sequences that grouped Cherax pulverulentus as a sister lineage to C. pulcher, yet still distinct enough to rule out color morph status. 



The dual approach gives regulators a clear diagnostic toolkit should confiscated shipments require forensic identification.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-guinea-streams-to-aquariums">New Guinea streams to aquariums</h2>



In the wild, the dusty crayfish digs shallow burrows into sandy streambeds shaded by rainforest canopy. Water temperatures hover near 75°F, oxygen levels stay high, and leaf litter offers both shelter and food.



The <a href="https://wwf.panda.org/discover/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/new_guinea_forests/conservation_new_guinea_forests/sites_new_guinea_forests/papua_new_guinea_bird_head_peninsula/">Bird’s Head Peninsula</a> ranks as a biodiversity hotspot, yet many of its tributaries remain unsampled by crustacean specialists. 



Local fishers collect juveniles during the dry season when water levels drop, a practice that feeds the export pipeline but leaves population trends unknown.



Little is published on the crayfish’s diet, growth rate, or breeding season. Patoka’s team calls for ecological studies that could inform sustainable quotas before demand removes more animals than nature can replace.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dumping-cherax-pulverulentus">Dumping Cherax pulverulentus</h2>



During the survey, one dusty crayfish turned up in a thermal spring near Budapest, Hungary, evidence that at least one aquarist released an unwanted pet. 



Similar introductions have seeded invasive populations of marbled crayfish and signal crayfish across Europe.



Non‑native crustaceans often carry the oomycete Aphanomyces astaci, the agent of crayfish plague, a disease lethal to indigenous European stocks. Even a handful of carriers can trigger a cascade that empties streams of native fauna.



Thermal refuges give tropical <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/more-than-3500-animal-species-are-directly-threatened-by-climate-change/">species</a> a foothold in colder climates. Once established, escapees outcompete local detritivores, alter nutrient cycling, and nibble on amphibian eggs, multiplying their ecological footprint.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-formal-naming-matters">Why formal naming matters</h2>



Legal frameworks that govern wildlife trade, such as <a href="https://cites.org/eng/disc/what.php">CITES</a>, depend on precise species lists. 



An unnamed organism cannot be added to an appendix, leaving customs officials powerless to intercept over‑harvested cargo.



Taxonomic clarity also guides aquaculture biosecurity. Without diagnostic characters, hatchery operators may unknowingly mix species, breeding hybrids that compromise genetic integrity in the source range.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-s-next-for-cherax-pulverulentus">What's next for Cherax pulverulentus?</h2>



Patoka’s group urges Indonesian authorities to map the crayfish’s distribution and to monitor harvest volumes. 



Citizen scientists photographing stream fauna with location tags could accelerate the search for hidden colonies.



Aquarists can help by buying captive‑bred stock, quarantining new arrivals, and never releasing pets into local waterways. 



Responsible hobby practice will allow enthusiasts to enjoy the dusty crayfish’s colors without endangering ecosystems.



The study is published in <a href="https://mapress.com/zt/article/view/zootaxa.5566.3.4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Zootaxa</a>.



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Colorful aquarium creature turns out to be a new species never catalogued by scientists

A beautiful turquoise‑and‑lilac sea creature that has been kept in...

Four tiny predators were hiding in South Korea’s limestone and lava caves, waiting for the right flashlight beam to catch their gleaming, pincer‑like jaws. These pale, eyeless pseudoscorpions - nicknamed “dragon pseudoscorpions” for their fierce-looking claws - had remained invisible to science until recently.



<a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=do5tcEAAAAAJ&amp;hl=en">Ki-Hoon Jeong</a> of the <a href="https://www.nibr.go.kr/">National Institute of Biological Resources</a> and his colleagues, who made the discovery, say the creatures spend their entire lives in complete darkness - which explains their ghostly lack of color and total blindness.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-caves-hide-rare-life">Caves hide rare life</h2>



Researchers have identified more than 1,000 caves across South Korea, yet many remain biologically uncharted. Caves form inside <a href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/caves/karst-landscapes.htm">karst landscapes</a>, where acidic water dissolves limestone, creating isolated pockets that act like evolutionary islands for small creatures.



The perpetual night drives what biologists call <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3639761/">troglomorphic change</a>, most often the loss of eyes and pigment together with elongated limbs and sensory hairs. 



Because each cave system isolates itself from its neighbors, animals that stumble inside can quickly diverge, creating swarms of localized species that go unnoticed by science - unless someone rappels in



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dragon-jaws-and-vacant-eyes">Dragon jaws and vacant eyes</h2>



Jeong’s team named them Spelaeochthonius dugigulensis, S. geumgulensis, S. magwihalmigulensis, and S. yamigulensis. The adults are only about 0.08 inches long, but their chelicerae spread wide like grappling hooks.



“All species are strongly cave‑adapted and known from a single cave or karst system only,” wrote the authors. 



The pseudoscorpions wield venom‑tipped pedipalps that snap shut on springtails and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-mites-survived-without-sex-for-millions-of-years/">mites</a>, yet they lack the sting and tail that give true scorpions their reputation.



Worldwide, the order <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/13/1/25">Pseudoscorpiones</a> already boasts more than 3,300 described species, with dozens added every year.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-genes-confirm-the-newcomers">Genes confirm the newcomers</h2>



Field collections supplied just a handful of specimens, sometimes only one, but that was enough for DNA work. The researchers sequenced the <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1691236/">mitochondrial COI barcode</a>, a 650‑base snippet widely used for species delimitation.



In arthropods, a 10 percent COI gap usually separates good species boundaries. The four Korean lineages showed between 13.7 and 19.8 percent divergence, easily clearing that bar. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pseudoscorpions_Spelaeochthonius-dugigulensis_new-species_images_credit-Jeong_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pseudoscorpions_Spelaeochthonius-dugigulensis_new-species_images_credit-Jeong_1s.webp" alt="Habitus of Spelaeochthonius dugigulensis sp. nov. A. Holotype male, dorsal view; B. Holotype male, ventral view; C. Paratype female, dorsal view; D. Paratype female, ventral view. Scale bar: 1 mm. Credit: Jeong et al." class="wp-image-1977845"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Habitus of Spelaeochthonius dugigulensis sp. nov. A. Holotype male, dorsal view; B. Holotype male, ventral view; C. Paratype female, dorsal view; D. Paratype female, ventral view. Scale bar: 1 mm. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Jeong et al.</figcaption></figure>



Even the closest pair differed by 6.8 percent, still above the in‑house variation of less than 0.6 percent reported for single populations.



These genetic splits mirror geography: each species occupies one cave, separated from its nearest relative by scores of rocky ridges and dry valleys, natural walls that arthropods the size of sesame seeds rarely cross.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-endemic-treasures-under-threat">Endemic treasures under threat</h2>



Blind cave life is fragile. Many Korean caves double as tourist attractions or concrete‑lined storage depots, and runoff can introduce pesticides, sewage, or construction dust.



Karst breakdown already erased one beetle, Coreoblemus parvicollis, which vanished after its only cave flooded behind the Chungju Dam, a cautionary tale cited by local conservationists.



Because the dragon pseudoscorpions live nowhere else, a single blocked entrance or polluted drip could wipe out each entire species. 



Jeong’s group urges formal protection for cave ecosystems before “dark extinction” claims more unseen lineages.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-taxonomy-protects-cave-life">Taxonomy protects cave life</h2>



Accurate species identification is more than just naming. It sets the groundwork for conservation laws, biodiversity metrics, and habitat protection. 



Without formal recognition, these pseudoscorpions wouldn’t qualify for endangered listings or land protections, leaving them invisible in policy.



Jeong’s team used both physical features and genetic data to verify each new species. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pseudoscorpions_Spelaeochthonius_new-species_genetic-analysis_credit-Jeong_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pseudoscorpions_Spelaeochthonius_new-species_genetic-analysis_credit-Jeong_1s.webp" alt="Phylogenetic analyses of Spelaeochthonius shed light on species diversity and the biogeographical complexity of this genus. Credit: Jeong et al." class="wp-image-1977847"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Phylogenetic analyses of Spelaeochthonius shed light on species diversity and the biogeographical complexity of this genus. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Jeong et al.</figcaption></figure>



Their work followed standards set by the <a href="https://www.iczn.org/">International Code of Zoological Nomenclature</a> and included digital archiving in <a href="https://zoobank.org/">ZooBank</a> to make the names valid and permanent.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-one-cave-equals-one-species">One cave equals one species</h2>



Each cave system in this study hosted a different pseudoscorpion, and none were found anywhere else. That makes them single‑karst endemics, meaning their entire population lives in one small, isolated location. If a single cave collapses or gets sealed, that species could disappear permanently.



This kind of hyper‑local distribution is common in cave life, especially among small <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cambrian-fossils-reveal-new-clues-about-arthropod-evolution/">arthropods</a> with limited mobility. It also means conservation decisions can’t rely on broad habitat ranges. 



Protecting these pseudoscorpions requires protecting individual caves, each one may be home to a species found nowhere else on Earth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-next-finds-lie-underground">Next finds lie underground</h2>



Every cave the team explored held at least one unknown pseudoscorpion, hinting that South Korea’s tally could climb from the current seven cave‑adapted species to dozens once systematic surveys begin.



With next‑generation sequencing now portable and cheap, even a few legs from a hand‑collected specimen can yield full mitochondrial genomes, opening the door to deeper evolutionary studies and faster threat assessments.



The discovery also reminds <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humans-can-accurately-perceive-biodiversity-through-the-senses/">biodiversity</a> workers that tiny arthropods matter. They patrol fungal films, recycle bat guano, and feed larger cave invertebrates, weaving subterranean food webs every bit as intricate as those above ground. 



Protecting the darkness, therefore, protects an entire hidden branch of the Korean biosphere, one dragon‑jawed pseudoscorpion at a time.



The study is published in <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0325375">PLOS One</a>.



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'Dragon pseudoscorpions' discovered living in caves have no fangs or eyes

Four tiny predators were hiding in South Korea’s limestone and...

You’ve seen them on shirts, in documentaries, and maybe jumping at a theme park. They look bold and sound fierce. But orcas, also called killer whales, aren’t what the name suggests. They’re smart, social, and loyal. Every year on July 14, we celebrate World Orca Day.



It started in New Zealand. A young orca got stuck in shallow water. Locals worked together to help him return to the sea. That rescue turned into something bigger. Now, people around the world use this day to honor <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/orcas-have-hunting-and-eating-habits-that-we-never-imagined/">orcas</a> - not only celebrating their strength but also highlighting the challenges they face.



While some orcas are thriving, many are struggling. They face pollution, food shortages, and in some cases, captivity in tanks. World Orca Day presents an opportunity to learn about the real challenges they endure.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-orcas-live-in-pods-and-pass-on-skills">Orcas live in pods and pass on skills</h2>



Orcas aren’t whales - they’re actually <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-are-killer-whales-struggling-to-survive-in-the-pacific/">dolphins</a> that live in social groups called pods. Every pod has its unique way of communicating. Some feed exclusively on fish, others hunt seals, and a few even pursue sharks. Each group follows its own distinct hunting strategy.



Orcas learn how to hunt from each other. Young ones watch the adults. They copy what they see, and then get better at it. Some pods chase fish into tight balls. Others slide onto beaches to grab seals. These skills don’t come from instinct - they’re passed down like family recipes.



Orcas stick together. Mothers lead, sons often stay for life, and grandmothers play a big role. They know the best places to find food and guide the group with memory and experience. These pods aren’t random groups - they are families.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-awareness-on-world-orca-day">Awareness on World Orca Day </h2>



The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/prehistoric-marine-reptiles-would-have-eaten-killer-whales-as-snacks/">ocean</a> has gotten louder due to ships, drills, sonar. It’s equal to trying to talk in traffic. Orcas use sound to hunt and stay close. Ocean noise messes that up.



Food is another problem. Some orcas depend on salmon, but in some places, these fish are disappearing. Less food means weaker orcas, affecting moms, calves, and the whole pod.



Pollution adds to the stress. Orcas store fat. When they don’t eat enough, they burn that fat for energy. That’s when stored toxins enter the bloodstream, impacting their health and survival.



Some orca populations are shrinking. They can’t bounce back if the ocean stays loud and empty.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tanks-are-not-healthy-homes">Tanks are not healthy homes</h2>



Captive orcas live in marine parks. They spend years in tanks that are too small and restrictive.



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/photographer-captures-killer-whales-wearing-fish-hats/">Orcas</a> kept in tanks often suffer from illness. They may grind their teeth and display unusual behaviors, and they tend to have shorter lifespans than their wild counterparts. 



While some parks continue to feature them in shows, this is more for entertainment than genuine education.



A few places have banned <a href="https://savedolphins.eii.org/campaigns/fow">orca captivity</a>. Others still allow it. World Orca Day reminds people that wild animals belong in the wild. Tanks don’t offer a healthy life.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-world-orca-day-inspires-action">World Orca Day inspires action</h2>



To help protect orcas, you can start with the basics. Learn what makes them unique and share those facts with others. Stay away from parks that keep orcas in tanks. Choose brands that care about the ocean.



You don’t need to live near the coast to make a difference. You can watch orcas through live cams, read their stories, and talk about them. You can join a cleanup in your area or support groups working to protect marine life. Every small step counts.



On World Orca Day, schools and science centers often join the effort. Kids ask questions. Teachers explore ocean life. Artists and researchers also get involved. And you can too, in whatever way fits you best.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-this-day-still-matters">Why this day still matters</h2>



Orcas play a big role in the ocean. They help keep balance in marine food webs. When they suffer, the whole system shifts. They’re not just animals. They’re indicators of ocean health.



World Orca Day calls on us to care - to recognize how our actions impact the ocean. Orcas don’t seek applause; they need clean waters, plenty of food, and peaceful places to raise their young.



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World Orca Day 2025: Saving the ocean's top predators

You’ve seen them on shirts, in documentaries, and maybe jumping...

Fish have voices, and the sea is never silent. From croaks that ricochet through mangroves to deep‑sea booms, these conversations guide courtship, navigation, and survival.



A new analysis from <a href="https://www.sfu.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Simon Fraser University</a> shows that Canada’s flagship conservation policies almost never recognize those <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/small-fish-species-are-the-big-catch-of-the-future/">voices</a>, leaving vital acoustic habitats unguarded. 



Marine ecologist <a href="https://www.sfu.ca/postdoctoral-fellows/profiles/kieran-cox.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Cox</a> of Simon Fraser University co‑authored the study that sifted through two decades of federal paperwork.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-use-sound-to-survive-and-reproduce">Fish use sound to survive and reproduce</h2>



More than 1,000 known fish species are <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41597-023-02745-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">soniferous</a>, meaning they deliberately produce sound to communicate, and hundreds more are suspected to do the same. Male toadfish drone like idling motorcycles, while haddock tick and grouper boom, each signal tuned to species‑specific ears.



“A male <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-fish-bones-reveal-clues-about-the-evolution-of-eating/">fish</a> might hum or sing to attract their mates, and the longer his song, or the louder it is, the more eggs he will get from females,” explained Cox. 



Atlantic cod <a href="https://academic.oup.com/tafs/article/135/2/529/7887937" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Gadus morhua</a> grunt through swim‑bladder muscles during spawning, and researchers have tracked entire aggregations by listening to those calls.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ocean-noise-drowns-out-fish-voices">Ocean noise drowns out fish voices</h2>



The <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aba4658" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ocean soundscape</a>, the mix of biological, physical, and human noises filling the water, has changed faster than any other habitat feature in recent decades. 



Ship engines, seismic air guns, and pile drivers add low‑frequency roar that travels farther than light or chemicals, masking the fine‑tuned signals fish depend on.



Most of this din comes from <a href="https://wwwcdn.imo.org/localresources/en/OurWork/PartnershipsProjects/Documents/GloNoise-Library/MEPC.1-Circ.833-7April2014.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">underwater radiated noise</a> generated when propeller bubbles collapse and machinery vibrates the hull. As depth increases and daylight fades, sound replaces vision, so the risk rises for deep‑water species that have no other way to find mates or food.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conservation-laws-ignore-acoustic-habitats">Conservation laws ignore acoustic habitats</h2>



<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320725003763" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">COSEWIC</a>, the expert panel that advises Ottawa on endangered wildlife, acknowledged fish sound production in just one assessment out of 204. Neither of the 56 recovery strategies drafted under <a href="https://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/s-15.3/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SARA</a>, Canada’s endangered‑species law, mentioned soundscapes or noise threats.



Anthropogenic noise has <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aah4783" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">doubled</a> background sound levels in more than half of U.S. protected areas, hinting at the scale of the problem in Canadian waters as well. 



When noise blocks communication, the effect mirrors habitat loss, shrinking a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fish-dont-rest-while-hovering-its-actually-hard-work/">fish</a>’s functional living space even though the water looks unchanged.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-learning-from-the-whales">Learning from the whales</h2>



Regulators already protect communication spaces for southern resident <a href="https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/species-especes/publications/mammals-mammiferes/whalereview-revuebaleine/review-revue/killerwhale-epaulard/index-eng.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">killer whales</a>, setting vessel speed limits and buffer zones in the Salish Sea. During voluntary slow‑down trials, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X21010109" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">quieter ships</a> raised successful foraging dives by the whales, proving that less noise can yield instant biological payoffs.



Fish biologists argue the same principle should apply below the whales, because many coral, seagrass, and deep‑sea communities are built on acoustic cues. 



The International Maritime Organization’s revised <a href="https://wwwcdn.imo.org/localresources/en/Documents/MEPC.1-Circ.906%20-%20Revised%20Guidelines%20For%20The%20Reduction%20Of%20Underwater%20Radiated%20NoiseFrom%20Shipping%20To%20Address...%20%28Secretariat%29.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">guidelines</a> outline hull forms, propeller tweaks, and resilient engine mounts that slash cavitation clatter at the design stage.



For existing fleets, slower speeds remain the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X21013357" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">quickest fix</a>, trimming hull noise in minutes and saving fuel at the same time. On land, urban planners already impose airport curfews; similar acoustic zoning could shield key spawning refuges from seismic blasts.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-voices-must-be-included-in-planning">Fish voices must be included in planning</h2>



<a href="https://sites.google.com/site/ecoacousticssociety" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ecoacoustics</a>, the cross‑disciplinary science of environmental sound, now lets managers deploy autonomous recorders that log fish choruses year‑round with little labor. 



Cox and his team want Ottawa to add acoustics to every new status report, a change that would trigger legal duties to weigh noise limits before approving coastal developments.



“These three aspects of sound create different types of marine noise pollution, and each kind of noise pollution poses potential risks to marine species, from whales to fish to crustaceans,” said Kiara Kattler, who led the analysis in Isabelle Côté’s <a href="https://tmel.wordpress.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">lab</a>.



If policy follows the evidence, tomorrow’s endangered‑species plans could include quiet hours, ship‑route changes, and protected “singing grounds” for fish.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-policymakers-can-do-now">What policymakers can do now</h2>



Fisheries managers don’t have to wait for more studies to take action. Passive acoustic monitoring gear is already cheap, easy to deploy, and able to track seasonal behavior in many key species. 



Adding simple guidance on soniferous species to existing review checklists could prevent new development from degrading acoustic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-alternative-seafood-can-help-save-our-oceans/">habitats</a> by accident.



Acoustic degradation doesn’t only affect fish. Crustaceans, cephalopods, and even coral larvae also use sound to find mates or settle in reef habitats, which means entire ecosystems could be thrown off balance. 



By integrating sound into conservation policies, agencies could protect dozens of marine species at once without needing separate rules for each.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320725003763?dgcid=coauthor" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Biological Conservation</a>.



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Fish have voices but conservation policies ignore them

Fish have voices, and the sea is never silent. From...

A four week voyage across the North Atlantic has uncovered a pollutant so small that standard nets could never snag it. Researchers found that plastic particles under one micrometer, known as nanoplastics, saturate ocean water from the Azores to Europe.



When the team scaled their measurements up, they calculated roughly <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09218-1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">twenty seven million tons</a> of these specks floating in the top 650 feet of the North Atlantic, rivaling every estimate of larger debris for the entire world <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-plastic-crisis-goes-way-deeper-than-we-thought/">ocean</a>.



This estimate comes from geochemist Helge Niemann of the <a href="https://www.nioz.nl/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research</a> and <a href="https://www.uu.nl/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Utrecht University</a>, who worked with graduate student Sophie ten Hietbrink aboard the research vessel RV Pelagia.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-detecting-invisible-plastic-particles">Detecting invisible plastic particles</h2>



Ten Hietbrink drew two‑liter samples at twelve stations, collecting <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-environment-day-2025-plastic-pollution-is-choking-our-planet/">water</a> from the surface, 3,300 feet, and near the seabed. She passed each sample through filters finer than a red blood cell.



Back in the Utrecht lab, the residue was baked inside a proton transfer reaction mass spectrometer, a device that fingerprints polymers by the gases they release. “By drying and heating the remaining material, we were able to measure the characteristic molecules of different types of plastics,” noted Ten Hietbrink.



The approach allowed the crew to log <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/polyethylene-terephthalate" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">polyethylene terephthalate</a>, polystyrene, and polyvinyl chloride even at 15,000‑foot depths. Every vial, no matter its origin, contained plastic.



Because the mass spectrometer ignores <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ai-algorithms-can-increase-ocean-plastic-cleanup-efficiency/">pieces</a> above one micrometer, the expedition focused exclusively on bits far smaller than conventional <a href="https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/microplastics.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">microplastic</a>, the fragments between one micrometer and five millimeters often photographed on beaches.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-shocking-amount-of-ocean-plastic">Shocking amount of ocean plastic</h2>



When the numbers from each station were extended across latitudes eight to fifty-five degrees north, the tally reached masses never before assigned to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/coca-cola-may-dump-1-3b-pounds-plastic-into-oceans-by-2030/">plastic</a> pollution. The final figure equals the combined cargo of almost 2,000 container ships.



Niemann described the result as a shocking amount and explained that it finally answers the puzzle of missing plastic that production statistics could not account for.



“There is more plastic in the form of nanoparticles floating in this part of the ocean than there is in larger particles floating in the Atlantic or even all the world's oceans,” said Niemann.



The data also reshape the popular image of ocean garbage patches. Nets that trap bottle caps and food wrappers sample only a thin veneer; the bulk of the load is invisible and dispersed.



Within the <a href="https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/gyre.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">North Atlantic subtropical gyre</a>, currents corral microplastics at the surface, yet the researchers found the highest nanoplastic concentrations closer to the European shelf, hinting at strong land-based sources.



The nanoplastic concentration dropped by roughly one half at 3,300 feet, and fell to about a third of surface levels near the seabed - yet plastic still appeared at every depth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-nanoplastics-harm-animals-and-humans">Nanoplastics harm animals and humans</h2>



Laboratory and clinical <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412022001258" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">studies</a> show that particles smaller than a micrometer can slip past the intestinal lining and enter the bloodstream, where they appear in human blood samples.



Once circulating, they can also cross the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35302003/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">blood‑brain barrier</a>, ferrying other contaminants into nervous tissue - as demonstrated in mice.



Marine life confronts the same risk. Bacteria may mistake nanoplastics for food, zooplankton ingest them, and the particles ascend the food web to fish and seabirds.



A recent <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30861380/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">meta‑analysis</a> concludes that smaller pieces accumulate more readily than larger debris and may trigger oxidative stress in cells.



Field experiments in the Mediterranean have linked nanoplastic exposure to reduced filtration rates in farmed <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37379876/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">filter feeder mussels</a>, a sector worth more than $4 billion to coastal economies.



Economic losses could rise if shellfish accumulate particles that lower growth or market appeal, adding a financial dimension to what was once viewed solely as an environmental issue.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-the-fragments-come-from">Where the fragments come from</h2>



Sunlight bleaches and cracks larger items at the surface, eventually grinding them into nanoscale dust. River mouths add steady plumes of city trash each day.



The air itself delivers particles. Atmosphere monitors detect plastic aerosols over both continents and oceans, which settle by rainfall or dry deposition.



Once in seawater, nanoplastics no longer obey buoyancy rules. Their motion is governed by <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11905425/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Brownian motion</a>, letting them drift vertically and reach depths where light never penetrates.



Sediment cores from the deep <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10919090/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">North Pacific</a> and equatorial trenches already hold threads of polyester and shards of polyvinyl chloride, proving that tiny plastics sink or hitchhike on marine snow to the seabed.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-types-of-ocean-plastic-still-unclear">Types of ocean plastic still unclear</h2>



Curiously, the expedition detected no nanoparticles of polyethylene or polypropylene, the two polymers that dominate surface trash. Niemann suspects chemical weathering may hide their fingerprints, or the fragments may degrade faster than they form.



Future cruises will test other oceans and refine techniques to reveal modified polymers, because the Atlantic is unlikely to be unique.



Researchers also need time‑series records to track whether nanoplastic levels continue climbing or have reached a plateau.



Equally urgent is understanding how mixtures of plastic and natural organic matter interact, potentially altering toxicity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-choosing-prevention-over-cleanup">Choosing prevention over cleanup</h2>



Niemann stresses that the particles already adrift are beyond recovery; their size makes skimming devices useless. The logical path is to curb new emissions.



Several countries now restrict the use of microbeads in cosmetics and plan to phase out certain single‑use items, yet production of virgin plastic keeps rising faster than recycling capacity.



Standardized monitoring that includes nanoscale particles would give policymakers a clearer target and let them judge whether interventions are working.



Citizen science beach cleanups, while unable to net nanoparticles, still remove items that would otherwise weather into new fragments, providing a frontline defense against future invisible pollution.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09218-1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a>.



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Nanoplastic particles have infiltrated the ocean's food web at the most important levels

A four week voyage across the North Atlantic has uncovered...

Long before the first mammals walked the Earth, the oceans were home to strange, powerful fish. Some of these ancient fish eventually crawled onto land and kicked off a new chapter in evolution. 



Now, thanks to new fossil research, we’re learning even more about how these early animals lived - and ate.



In a new study led by scientists from <a href="https://www.flinders.edu.au/">Flinders University</a>, researchers examined jawbones from 380-million-year-old lungfish found in Western Australia's remote Gogo fossil field. 



The findings shed light on the evolution of feeding strategies in fish that are closely related to all land-dwelling <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/over-half-of-the-worlds-vertebrates-reside-in-the-tropics/">vertebrates</a>, including us.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-biting-power-of-ancient-fish">Biting power of ancient fish</h2>



The researchers used 3D finite element modeling (FEM) - a tool more commonly seen in engineering. They digitally tested how different fossilized jaws handled biting stress. 



By running simulations on fish jawbones from multiple species, the team revealed surprising variation in shape, strength, and eating behavior.



“Lungfish are ‘sister taxa’ to the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/we-know-far-less-about-four-footed-animals-than-expected/">tetrapods</a> - or all four-limbed animals with a backbone, including humans - which means they are our closest ‘fishy’ relatives,” noted Dr. Alice Clement.



“They have an extensive fossil history stretching back over 400 million years and still with living representatives today and their phylogenetic proximity to tetrapods giving insight into our long-distant ancestors who first made the move from water to land.”



That close relationship makes lungfish fossils especially valuable. The Gogo Formation in northern Western Australia is a goldmine of such specimens. With 11 known species, it holds the most diverse group of lungfish ever discovered from one place or time.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-bite-force-and-eating-style">Fish bite force and eating style</h2>



Until now, scientists knew these fish had different jaw shapes. What they didn’t know was how those jaws worked. The new models changed that.



“We’re slowly teasing apart the details of how the bodies and lifestyles of these animals changed, as they moved from being fish that lived in water, to becoming tetrapods that moved about on land,” said Dr. Clement.



By scanning seven fossil species and applying FEM to five of them, the team was able to measure how the jawbones responded to stress during simulated bites.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fossil-bites-defy-expectations">Fossil bites defy expectations</h2>



The dataset is the most detailed look yet at biting performance in any <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fossilized-fish-lived-15-million-years-ago-still-has-preserved-food-in-stomach-ferruaspis-brocksi/">fossil fish</a>. It provides biomechanical evidence for diverse feeding adaptations and niche partitioning within Gogo lungfishes, noted Dr. Olga Panagiotopoulou, a functional anatomist at Touro University California.



Some of the findings contradicted assumptions. Jaws that looked sturdy on the outside didn’t always perform well in bite-force simulations. And some that looked more delicate turned out to be much stronger than expected.



“The results were somewhat surprising, with some ‘robust’-looking lower jaws appearing to not be all that well suited to biting stress, and some of the more gracile or slender jaws appeared to be able to withstand stress and strain very well,” said Professor John Long of Flinders University.



“This diversity of biomechanical function seen in the Gogo lungfishes suggest that there was niche partitioning and trophic differentiation among lungfishes, possibly accounting for their incredibly high species diversity at this site.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-fish-reinvented-eating">When fish reinvented eating</h2>



The Devonian period, often called the “<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/early-jawless-fish-rhinopteraspis-dunensis-filter-feeders/">Age of Fishes</a>,” was ruled by placoderms and other ancient species for about 60 million years. Many of their fossils were found decades ago, but new tools like FEM are finally revealing how these animals actually lived.



Joshua Bland, a researcher at the Flinders Palaeontology Lab, is the study's lead author. He noted that the Gogo lungfish of the Late Devonian reefs were truly unique, with species possessing a host of different behaviors and abilities.



“To capture parts of that story, hidden in the bone, was extremely rewarding. It felt like we lifted the veil on some real functions behind the form. It was impressive to see the more complex morphology perform better in our tests," said Bland. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-science-from-old-bones">Future science from old bones</h2>



All 3D models from the study are now available on Morphosource, allowing other researchers to explore and expand on this work.



By combining old fossils with new technology, the team has brought us one step closer to understanding the creatures that helped shape life on land. 



The researchers have also shown that even after 380 million years, ancient bones can still have something new to say.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/iscience/fulltext/S2589-0042(25)01231-3?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS2589004225012313%3Fshowall%3Dtrue">iScience</a>.



Image Credit: John Long, Flinders University



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Ancient fish bones reveal clues about the evolution of eating

Long before the first mammals walked the Earth, the oceans...

'Zombie' fungi that hijack insects are not just a modern forest horror story. A pair of tiny fossils locked in Burmese amber shows that these parasites stalked ants and flies nearly 100 million years ago in what is now Myanmar.



The newly described fungi, Paleoophiocordyceps gerontoformicae and Paleoophiocordyceps ironomyiae, sprouted from their long‑dead hosts, just like today’s entomopathogenic relatives. This gruesome strategy has clearly been in play since ancient times. 



Study co‑author <a href="https://www.biotaxa.org/pe/article/view/palaeoentomology.5.3.1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Professor Edmund Jarzembowski</a> of the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology (<a href="http://english.nigpas.cas.cn/">NIGPAS</a>) and London’s <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Natural History Museum</a> helped craft the formal description.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ancient-outbreak-of-parasitic-fungi">Ancient outbreak of parasitic fungi</h2>



Amber from the Hukawng Valley captures an ant pupa with a slender fungal stalk, and a fly pierced by a second projectile‑like stroma. 



The position of each growth mirrors the way that modern zombie fungi erupt from soft joints after the host’s last breath.



Palaeontologists reconstructed the scene and noted that the ant appears to have been dragged away from the nest before the infection reached its spore‑spraying stage. Social insects often quarantine sick kin, a behaviour already in place during the <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/the-cretaceous-period.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cretaceous</a>.



“It’s fascinating to see some of the strangeness of the natural world that we see today was also present at the height of the age of the dinosaurs,” said Jarzembowski, reflecting on the familiar menace that infected the ancient insects.



The research team counted flask‑shaped perithecia, the microscopic chambers where sexual spores mature, on the fossilized stalks. 



Their arrangement ties the ancient genus to living Ophiocordyceps, even though the lineage split more than 130 million years ago.



Very few fossil pathogens display intact reproductive parts. This makes every new specimen a potential window into deep‑time disease ecology. 



The rarity arises because fungi are soft and because an insect corpse rarely fossilizes side by side with its killer, scientists noted.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-makes-a-fungus-a-zombie">What makes a fungus a zombie</h2>



Members of <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1005037" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ophiocordyceps</a> start with a pin‑sized spore that germinates. It drills through the exoskeleton of a living insect, and sets up shop in the haemolymph. 



Chemical signals then steer the victim to a perch that maximizes wind exposure for the dispersal of spores released after death.



A genome survey of ant‑infecting species uncovered dozens of genes that code for enterotoxin‑like proteins. This suggests that the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/deadly-fungus-aspergillus-that-can-eat-you-from-the-inside-out-is-quietly-spreading-around-the-world/">fungus</a> rewires muscles and nerves using the same tricks that bacteria use to upset mammalian guts.



Transcript <a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/blog/accumulating-glitches/how_fungus_makes_ant_zombies/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">studies</a> show that as the infection peaks, genes tied to serotonin and dopamine pathways in the ant surge or plunge, matching the precise timing of the so‑called death grip.



Today more than 1,500 insect‑killing <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia-articles/understanding-fungi-characteristics-and-function/">fungi</a> are catalogued, yet only a handful make headlines. Specialists target beetles that bore into crops or mosquitoes that spread malaria, demonstrating the ecological punch of these microbes, even outside tropical forests.



Their life cycle is a masterclass in recycling nutrients: the mycelium consumes host tissues from within, then the emergent stalk spreads fresh <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/biodegradable-living-plastic-contains-bacterial-spores-that-break-it-down/">spores</a> that restore carbon and nitrogen to soil food webs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-amber-as-nature-s-time-capsule">Amber as nature's time capsule</h2>



Tree resin entombs soft bodies in minutes and hardens into amber that resists water, oxygen, and microbial decay. 



That airtight seal lets researchers inspect insect cuticles along with fungal filaments that are thinner than a human hair.



Kachin amber is celebrated for its clarity, but the deposit also raises ethical concerns because mining revenues can fund armed conflict. International guidelines now press museums to verify provenance before accepting new pieces.



Gem cutters often discard cloudy chunks, yet those fragments may shelter the best biological inclusions. Researchers therefore sift mine tailings for overlooked specimens, rather than fueling fresh extraction.



Because resin flows layer over layer, a single piece can trap snapshots separated by hours. That layering helps date biological events with unusual precision when volcanic ash beds bracket the deposit.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fungi-give-clues-to-insect-evolution">Fungi give clues to insect evolution</h2>



Comparative anatomy and molecular clocks place Paleoophiocordyceps on a branch that diverged from the modern zombie‑ant fungus during the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/392592127_Cretaceous_entomopathogenic_fungi_illuminate_the_early_evolution_of_insect-fungal_associations" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Early Cretaceous</a>. this was at the time that flowering plants began reshaping terrestrial food webs.



The study’s host‑switch analysis flagged a likely jump from beetles to flies and ants, mirroring the radiation of pollinators and social insects. Such leaps underline how a parasite’s fate is tied to the fortunes of its preferred prey.



Beetles already thrived in decaying wood, an environment humid enough for fungal spores, while the rise of canopy flowers led <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/swarm-intelligence-ants-can-anticipate-obstacles-and-plan-ahead/">ants</a> to exploit new niches. The fungus followed its insect food, so to speak, adapting its toolkit for each cuticular landscape.



Host regulation may have checked insect booms long before birds or bats evolved sophisticated appetites for six‑legged prey. 



That invisible policing force could explain relatively stable herbivore damage in Cretaceous leaf fossils, despite soaring insect diversity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-tale-familiar-to-modern-forests">A tale familiar to modern forests</h2>



Field surveys in Thailand show that fungus-infected ant graveyards form in patches where humidity hovers near 95 percent, suggesting the parasite needs microclimates as well as hosts.



Timing is equally precise. Infected carpenter ants bite down at solar noon more often than chance predicts, hinting that fungal circadian genes sync with the host’s biological clock.



When <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0004835" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">cadavers</a> pile up, each fungal stalk releases millions of spores, yet infections remain patchy. Colony grooming, corpse removal, and antimicrobial secretions keep outbreaks from wiping out entire nests.



Lab trials with generalist insect fungi show a trade‑off between killing speed and spore burden, meaning parasites that act too quickly may sacrifice dispersal success.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-it-matters-today">Why it matters today</h2>



Entomologists already deploy fungal <a href="https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/what-are-biopesticides" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bio‑pesticides</a> against insects such as locusts and crop‑boring moths. 



This method of control targets the insects without drenching fields in chemicals. Lessons from ancient lineages could sharpen that strategy by revealing how host jumps evolve.



Climate models predict that warmer nights and shifting rainfall will widen the habitat for many fungal pathogens. 



Tracking their evolutionary playbook helps forecast which <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/insect-populations-dramatically-declining-around-the-world-rising-temperatures/">insect</a> groups, helpful or harmful, might feel the heat next.



The fossils nevertheless remind us that even tiny microbes leave fingerprints on evolution, shaping who thrives and who fails. 



The study is published in <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rspb.2025.0407" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences</a>.



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'Zombie' fungus that lived almost 100 million years ago found preserved in amber

'Zombie' fungi that hijack insects are not just a modern...

Ever wonder what kind of videos would keep monkeys glued to a screen? Turns out, their preferences aren’t all that different from ours.



A recent study found that long-tailed macaques are especially drawn to watching aggressive behavior and familiar faces - just like us. The findings offer new insight into the social instincts we share with other primates.



The study was led by researchers at <a href="https://www.uu.nl/en">Utrecht University</a> in the Netherlands, in collaboration with The Ohio State University.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-inside-the-monkey-theater">Inside the monkey theater</h2>



The team showed two-minute videos to 28 <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/japanese-macaques-have-social-bonds-that-persist-beyond-death/">macaques</a> living at the Biomedical Primate Research Centre in Rijswijk, the Netherlands. 



Each video featured monkeys from the same group or complete strangers, engaged in one of four activities: fighting, grooming, running, or just sitting around.



The macaques were free to enter a testing corridor where laptops played the videos. These testing areas were already familiar to the animals, so the environment wasn’t new or stressful. While watching, researchers tracked how long the monkeys looked at the screen.



The results were clear: the macaques paid the most attention to videos showing fights between monkeys. Running came in second. Grooming and sitting barely registered.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conflict-grabs-attention">Conflict grabs attention</h2>



Brad Bushman is co-author of the study and professor of communication at The Ohio State University.



“<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/social-bonds-drive-learning-in-monkeys-and-humans-alike/">Humans</a> and macaques are both social animals who have a fundamental need to belong,” he said. “It’s not surprising that they both would be most interested in the video content that may help them navigate relationships in their groups.”



“We have plenty of research showing the popularity of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/early-exposure-to-violent-media-increases-aggression-in-teens/">violent media</a> with humans. Now we have some evidence that other primates might also be attracted to conflict and aggression in videos."



“From an evolutionary perspective, this makes sense. Both humans and other animals may be hardwired to pay attention to aggression because that is an adaptive response that increases survival,” Bushman added.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-groupmates-get-more-views">Groupmates get more views</h2>



The macaques didn’t just favor <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/visually-striking-primate-features-ease-tension-and-reduce-conflict/">conflict</a> - they also preferred to watch monkeys they knew. Videos of their own group members got more attention than clips featuring strangers.



“This indicates that gathering social information on group members is more important than getting information about strangers,” said Elisabeth H.M. Sterck, professor of animal behavior and cognition at Utrecht University.



“When we as humans watch movies, we like to see actors we know – we like to see the stars playing in big movies more than we do actors who are not familiar to us,” Bushman said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-monkey-social-status">Monkey social status </h2>



Not all monkeys watched with equal interest. Lower-ranking and less aggressive macaques were more attentive to the videos than their dominant peers.



“More dominant individuals can be more confident that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/alcohol-increases-pain-tolerance-and-fuels-aggression/">aggression</a> will not affect them – they don’t have to pay attention to others as much,” Sterck said.



“Lower-ranking individuals can become an aggression victim and that may be why they pay more attention to what others are doing in the videos.”



Interestingly, monkeys that were more anxious or easily stressed were less focused on group members.



“We found that the gathering of social information from the videos differed with dominance rank and behavioral tendencies, which may reflect personality,” Sterck said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-shared-curiosity-across-species">A shared curiosity across species</h2>



These monkeys, known for their visual acuity, watched the videos on their own terms - walking into the test space voluntarily. Each session was brief, but the pull of conflict on screen was undeniable.



“The macaques are very visual animals. Their eyesight is similar to that of humans, and they are very interested in watching videos,” Sterck said.



And while the videos were short, their effect was real. Bushman noted that even this brief exposure to aggressive media captured the attention of macaques in the study.



“When you see this in some of our closest primate relatives, it is easy to see why humans are so interested in violent media," said Bushman. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-primate-preference-for-drama">A primate preference for drama</h2>



What we see on screen says a lot about who we are - and apparently, that’s true for monkeys too.



In this study, our primate cousins showed they’re drawn to social drama and familiar faces, just like humans sitting down with popcorn for a movie night. 



Whether it’s about survival, curiosity, or just plain interest, the content that grabs attention may be more universal than we thought.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10071-025-01970-1">Animal Cognition</a>.



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Monkeys love watching videos of fights and friends - just like humans

Ever wonder what kind of videos would keep monkeys glued...

A new fossil skull, dug out of purple siltstone in northern China, belongs to a creature that walked the planet about 259 million years ago. The animal was named Yinshanosaurus angustus, and the find helps fill a gap in the family tree of large plant‑eating reptiles that roamed just before the greatest die‑off in Earth’s history.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-unearthing-yinshanosaurus-angustus">Unearthing Yinshanosaurus angustus</h2>



<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jian-Yi-9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dr. Jian Yi</a> and <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jun-Liu-222" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dr. Jun Liu</a> of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (<a href="http://english.ivpp.cas.cn/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">IVPP</a>), compared two well‑preserved specimens from Shanxi and Inner Mongolia.



Both fossils include almost complete skulls, giving researchers a rare full view of the head and much of the spine.



“Pareiasauria are a bizarre herbivorous clade of tetrapods that existed in the Guadalupian and Lopingian and were victims of both the <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/earth-science/articles/10.3389/feart.2021.631198/full" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Late Capitanian</a> and the end‑Permian mass extinction events,” reminded Liu. 



The more complete of the two skulls measures 10 inches long yet barely 4 inches wide across the cheeks, the narrowest head known for any pareiasaur.



That unusual shape is not the only odd trait. The snout is as wide as it is high, the frontal bone is slender and twice as long as it is wide, and the upper‑jaw teeth stand almost vertical instead of tilting backward as in relatives.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-on-earth-is-a-pareiasaur">What on Earth is a pareiasaur?</h2>



A pareiasaur is a stocky, barrel‑bodied tetrapod that carried a tiny tail and a head often ringed with bony knobs. Most species topped out at about 8 feet long and weighed as much as today’s American bison.



They thrived across the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22096103/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">late Permian period</a>, serving as key plant chompers in ecosystems from South Africa to Russia. Their success ended abruptly when roughly 90 percent of marine species and 70 percent of land vertebrates vanished at the close of the era.



Yinshanosaurus angustus foraged on the northern shoulder of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/forest-fossils-from-earths-largest-mass-extinction-carry-a-climate-warning/">Pangea</a>, the single landmass that stitched together today’s continents. 



At the time, the interior of the supercontinent swung between searing summers and bitter winters, pressuring animals to adapt or disappear.



China’s Naobaogou and Sunjiagou formations capture that turbulent landscape in stacked mudstones and siltstones. 



Periodic floods buried carcasses quickly enough to preserve delicate <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-discover-a-33-foot-jurassic-giant-twice-as-big-as-its-cousin-xingxiulong/">skeletal</a> links, a stroke of luck for modern paleontologists.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-clues-written-in-bone">Clues written in bone</h2>



Yi and Liu spotted a forked rear projection on the nasal bone and a notch in the tabular bone at the back of the skull, features never seen together before. 



They also noticed a U‑shaped paraoccipital process that differs from the V‑shaped version in close cousins.



“The skeleton of Yinshanosaurus angustus provides the complete cranial and articulated postcranial details of Chinese pareiasaurs for the first time,” added Jian Yi after months of lab preparation. 



Using 183 anatomical characters, the team ran computer analyses that split Chinese pareiasaurs into three distinct branches, placing the new taxon beside <a href="https://dbpedia.org/page/Shihtienfenia" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Shihtienfenia completus</a> within a fresh sub‑group.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-the-permian-still-matters">Why the Permian still matters</h2>



The Permian ended with volcanic eruptions in what is now Siberia, pumping out enough carbon dioxide to warm oceans by at least 14°F. 



That spike drove <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cascading-oxygen-loss-could-endanger-our-oceans/">ocean anoxia</a>, acid rain, and habitat collapse, setting the stage for the dinosaurs that would follow in the Triassic.



Each newly described pre‑extinction species sharpens models of how ecosystems responded to rising heat and disrupted carbon cycles. 



Because pareiasaurs sat low on the land food chain, they reflect the health of primary plant production more directly than predators do.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-from-dig-site-to-digital-tree">From dig site to digital tree</h2>



CT scans of the Shanxi skull reveal replacement tooth buds waiting beneath worn crowns, confirming lifelong dental turnover like that in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fossil-discovery-shifts-the-origin-of-lizards-back-35-million-years/">modern lizards</a>. 



The scans also expose internal canals that once carried blood vessels to horn‑like bosses, suggesting seasonal growth tied to mating display or species recognition



Digital models of those structures feed into the expanding open database hosted by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. 



By pooling 3‑D files from separate labs, researchers can test competing family trees without moving fragile <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/what-fossils-tell-us-about-life-after-mass-extinction/">fossils</a> across borders.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-yinshanosaurus-angustus-and-the-future">Yinshanosaurus angustus and the future</h2>



Work now shifts to beds just above the current fossil horizon, layers that may hold early <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/triassic-fossils-shed-new-light-on-ancient-ecosystems/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Triassic</a> survivors or fresh victims of the end‑Permian crisis. 



Liu’s group plans a targeted survey during the next field season, armed with drone‑based photogrammetry to map promising outcrops.



The team also hopes to sample bone collagen, if any remains, for stable‑isotope studies that could reveal diet and seasonal water stress. 



Combined with climate models, those data might show whether narrow‑snouted herbivores had a feeding edge in arid late Permian landscapes.



Understanding how a mid‑sized, flat‑snouted browser fit into the pre‑extinction puzzle helps scientists refine the timeline of faunal turnover. 



Each added piece, however small, tests broader ideas about resilience and collapse as Earth’s systems tip past critical thresholds.



-----



Yinshanosaurus angustus <a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Yinshanosaurus-angustus_tetraod_illustration_credit-Guo-IVPP_1m.jpg">image credit</a>: Guo, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP)



The study is published in <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/spp2.70020" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Papers in Palaeontology</a>.



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Scientists discover a prehistoric animal that lived on Earth 259 million years ago

A new fossil skull, dug out of purple siltstone in...

As oceans heat up, coastal sharks are adjusting their calendars. Instead of swimming south in early fall, many are now sticking around longer due to global warming. 



Researchers at <a href="https://www.stonybrook.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stony Brook University</a> tracked this trend by following six shark species along the U.S. East Coast. They used acoustic tags and detection models to uncover how ocean warming delays the sharks’ southern migrations by up to 29 days.



"Both temperature and photoperiod (length of sunlight) influenced the timing of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/greenland-sharks-survive-for-centuries-in-icy-waters/">sharks</a>’ southernly migration, and it is likely that they both cumulatively influence migratory patterns,” said lead author Maria Manz.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sharks-delay-migration-due-to-warming">Sharks delay migration due to warming</h2>



The study observed blacktip, dusky, sand tiger, sandbar, thresher, and white <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-the-sharks-body-grows-with-geometric-precision/">sharks</a>. Among them, sandbar sharks showed the longest delay of up to 29 days. They also used the widest range of latitudinal zones, from the New England Shelf to Florida.



White sharks, by contrast, showed the least delay. Being partially warm-bodied (regional endotherms), they are less dependent on external temperature shifts. Their migration changed by only one day under future climate scenarios.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-east-coast-is-warming-fast">East Coast is warming fast</h2>



The study focused on the Mid-Atlantic Bight. This region, especially the New York Bight and New England Shelf, is heating faster than many other parts of the Atlantic. 



According to projections based on the high-emissions SSP5 8.5 scenario, the New England Shelf could warm by over 2°C (3.6°F) by 2049.



This rise in temperature affects not just the water, but everything in it. Fish prey species may move earlier or later, altering food availability for predators like sharks.



“Results of the models suggested that projected increases in SST across decades may delay southern autumn <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rare-video-footage-of-an-elusive-deep-sea-predator-pacific-sleeper-shark/">migrations</a> of coastal sharks with many species remaining in northern habitats for longer durations," wrote the researchers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-sharks-were-tracked-in-warming-waters">How sharks were tracked in warming waters</h2>



The researchers tagged 155 sharks and monitored their movements using over 390 acoustic receivers. These receivers picked up signals from the tags whenever sharks came within 900 meters (2,953 feet).



The sharks’ migrations were tracked across five defined zones: New England Shelf (NES), New York Bight (NYB), Mid-Atlantic (MA), Southern Atlantic (SA) and Florida (FL).



Some species, like sandbar and thresher sharks, appeared in all zones. Others, like white sharks, showed more restricted ranges.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-predictors-of-migration-timing">Predictors of migration timing</h2>



To understand what drives sharks to migrate, the researchers fed their data into mixed-effect Cox models. 



The team tested sea surface temperature (SST), photoperiod, and lunar phase. Photoperiod emerged as a consistently strong predictor, especially for thresher <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/shark-skeletons-could-lead-to-technological-innovations/">sharks</a>.



Interestingly, lunar phase had less influence than expected. Only sandbar sharks showed some sensitivity to moonlight patterns. 



Most migration timing was better explained by combinations of light and temperature, which can vary regionally.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-warming-delays-and-shark-survival">Warming delays and shark survival</h2>



If sharks delay migration but human activities continue on schedule, it could spell trouble. For example, commercial fishing in the Northeast typically ramps up in the fall. Sharks that remain in the area face a higher risk of accidental catch.



“Our findings suggest that climate change could increase vulnerability to bycatch, particularly in mixed-use areas like the New York Bight,” the authors wrote.



There is also concern that shark diets and reproductive cycles may shift out of sync with prey availability. A mismatch in timing could reduce feeding success or breeding success.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-strategies-for-a-changing-ocean">New strategies for a changing ocean</h2>



Static conservation policies will not hold up if shark behavior keeps changing. The researchers suggest dynamic management tools, like adjusting fishery closures based on temperature data.



Sandbar sharks, which showed the most migration delay, may require special focus. They are already listed as vulnerable due to previous overfishing and slow reproduction.



Successful conservation now depends on real-time data and predictive modeling. As this study shows, changes in migration are not hypothetical. They are already underway.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-shark-migration-is-shifting-with-warming">Shark migration is shifting with warming</h2>



The timing of shark migrations is shifting. Some species are adapting by staying longer in warming northern waters. While that may suit them for now, it raises questions about long-term ecological impacts.



Maria Manz and her team stress the importance of using both regional climate data and shark movement models. Doing so can improve predictions and help managers adjust strategies before the ocean changes even more.



"Our study adds to the growing body of evidence demonstrating how migratory populations will respond to a warming climate, potentially altering regional ecosystem dynamics and exposure to anthropogenic threats."



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cobi.70080" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Conservation Biology</a>.



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Warming oceans are changing shark migration patterns

As oceans heat up, coastal sharks are adjusting their calendars....

Rainforests thrive on delicate relationships. Plants, animals, and insects like ants constantly interact, creating a web of survival and competition. Amid this chaos, unexpected harmony sometimes blooms.



In the tropical rainforests of Fiji, scientists uncovered a fascinating story of peacekeeping. It is not a tale of advanced creatures or complex brains. Instead, it centers around a plant with an unusual design. 



This plant has developed a surprisingly simple strategy to solve conflict among aggressive ants.



This discovery from <a href="https://www.durham.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Durham University</a> reshapes our understanding of cooperation in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-future-climate-conditions-will-transform-plant-growth/">nature</a>. It shows how something as basic as plant architecture can manage aggression and encourage mutual support. 



The study reveals that, sometimes, structure itself can shape behavior and nurture harmony among rivals.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ants-and-plants-team-up">Ants and plants team up</h2>



The plant at the center of this story belongs to the genus Squamellaria. It is part of the Rubiaceae family, also known as the coffee family. These plants grow on the branches and trunks of rainforest trees.



The plants form large, bulbous structures called domatia. These domatia are not just growths - they serve as homes for ants. In return for shelter, ants provide the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-finally-learn-what-makes-plants-roots-grow-faster-and-stronger-autophagy/">plant</a> with essential nutrients from their waste.



However, the ants that live in these plants are not naturally friendly neighbors. Many of them are highly aggressive and often engage in violent fights with other species. 



This raises an important question: how can so many aggressive species coexist peacefully inside a single plant?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-walls-keep-rivals-apart">Walls keep rivals apart</h2>



The answer lies in the design of Squamellaria’s domatia. Professor Guillaume Chomicki of Durham University led an international team to investigate the mystery. 



Using high-resolution 3D CT scans, the researchers explored the inner structure of the plant’s domatia. What they found was remarkable. The plant creates domatia with multiple chambers, each completely sealed off from the others inside.



Every chamber has its own entrance, but inside, walls separate them from their neighbors. This design prevents physical contact between ant <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plant-roots-could-be-key-to-fighting-climate-change/">species</a>. It is as if the plant built a miniature apartment complex, with each species living in its own secure unit.



This clever separation prevents fights and keeps the peace within the plant. It is not a chemical trick or behavioral adaptation by the ants. The plant’s architecture itself enforces harmony.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-one-plant-many-ants">One plant, many ants</h2>



To test the effectiveness of this system, the researchers conducted extensive fieldwork. They observed Squamellaria plants on three Fijian islands for over a decade.



The team's observations revealed that a single Squamellaria <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plants-could-soon-talk-to-farmers-and-listen-too/">plant</a> could house as many as five different ant species simultaneously. Despite their natural tendency to fight, the ants coexisted peacefully.



The researchers also performed nutrient labeling experiments using nitrogen isotopes. These experiments confirmed that all of the ant species provided valuable nutrients to the plant. 



Each ant colony contributed to the plant’s well-being, making the relationship mutually beneficial for all involved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-peace-breaks-down">When peace breaks down</h2>



To truly understand the importance of separation, the researchers conducted a bold experiment. They surgically removed the internal walls between the chambers of the domatia.



The results were immediate and violent. Ant species that had previously lived peacefully erupted into fierce battles. These fights led to many ant deaths on both sides.



In contrast, plants with intact chambers saw no such conflict. Even outside the plant, ants shared food sources without issue. This highlights the importance of physical separation inside the plant.



“It is incredible how such an odd group of organisms, restricted to a couple of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/nasa-warning-sea-level-rise-in-pacific-island-nations-is-irreversible/">Fijian islands</a>, can provide general insights into the stability of cooperation between species,” noted Professor Chomicki.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-plant-that-solves-conflicts">A plant that solves conflicts</h2>



The team also created mathematical models to further explore the plant’s strategy. The models confirmed that compartmentalization helps maintain long-term partnerships. 



The system prevents fights during the early stages of colony establishment. This allows each chamber to develop into a stable, nutrient-contributing <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/just-a-few-ants-can-change-an-entire-colonys-social-structure/">colony</a>.



Even in situations where only a small fraction of arriving ants were aggressive, the models showed that compartmentalized domatia performed better than single-chambered ones.



This shows that separating rivals is not just a short-term solution. It has lasting benefits for both the plant and its ant residents. The architecture ensures that mutualism remains stable over time, providing security and resources for all involved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hidden-harmony-in-nature">Hidden harmony in nature</h2>



This discovery helps solve a long-standing mystery in ecology. Scientists have wondered how unrelated and sometimes hostile species manage to maintain cooperation.



The findings suggest that physical separation could be a widely used strategy in nature. Many organisms may rely on similar methods to prevent conflict and maintain beneficial relationships.



The study of Squamellaria shows that architecture alone can shape ecosystems. It highlights the hidden power of structural design in keeping peace among species that would otherwise be at odds.



In the rainforests of Fiji, a simple plant demonstrates that sometimes, the best way to manage conflict is to keep your neighbors at a safe distance.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu8429" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Science</a>.



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Some plants have a strategy to prevent violent ant fights

Rainforests thrive on delicate relationships. Plants, animals, and insects like...

The,Galapagos,Islands.,Ecuador.,Galapagos,Tortoise,In,Motion.,Island,Of

For centuries, turtles have fascinated people with their remarkably long lifespans.&nbsp;A new study reveals something even more extraordinary. Cancer is extremely rare in turtles, which makes them a promising model for cancer research.



The study, led by Dr. Ylenia Chiari at the <a href="https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/">University of Nottingham</a>, shows that cancer affects only about 1% of turtles. This rate is much lower than in mammals or birds.



The team analyzed decades of health records from zoos across Europe and the United States, including <a href="https://www.chesterzoo.org/">Chester Zoo</a>. 



The findings suggest that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-turtle-day-2025-ancient-creatures-with-modern-challenges/">turtles</a> could help scientists learn new ways to prevent or fight cancer in humans.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-turtles-rarely-get-cancer">Turtles rarely get cancer</h2>



The experts reviewed necropsy records from hundreds of zoo turtles. According to the detailed analysis, only about 0.34% of the turtles examined showed any abnormal growth. 



Cancer cases were even rarer. Most cancers found were isolated cases, and they rarely spread. Turtles show no clear pattern of cancers affecting specific organs.



Compared to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/beating-the-heat-how-sea-turtles-cope-with-warming-waters/">mammals</a> and birds, turtles remain outliers. Mammals have average cancer rates of 10 percent, while birds have rates around three percent. By contrast, cancer rates in turtles are consistently under one percent.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-turtles-have-strong-cancer-defense">Turtles have strong cancer defense</h2>



Turtles have slow metabolisms and strong defenses against oxidative stress. These traits reduce cellular damage over time.



Genomic studies revealed that turtles, especially Galapagos and Aldabra giant tortoises, have unique genetic mutations. These mutations enhance tumour suppression and help maintain DNA stability.



Functional tests on Galapagos giant tortoise cells showed an ability to trigger cell death early. This prevents damaged cells from becoming cancerous. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/turtle-heads-reveal-an-ancient-reptilian-secret/">Turtles</a> also exhibit robust antioxidant responses, even under stress.



Turtles’ low metabolic rates also limit the buildup of harmful byproducts. This may explain their strong cancer resistance.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-turtles-stay-cancer-free-despite-size">Turtles stay cancer-free despite size</h2>



Turtles challenge common biological patterns. Large, long-lived species often have higher cancer risks because of more cells. But turtles defy this rule.



Some species, like Galapagos and Aldabra tortoises, weigh over 660 pounds. Others, such as leatherback sea turtles, can exceed 1,100 pounds. Still, their cancer rates remain extremely low.



“Turtles, especially iconic species like Galapagos and Aldabra giant <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/young-sea-turtles-swim-and-choose-their-paths-instead-of-drifting/">tortoises</a>, are famous for living long lives and growing to tremendous sizes," noted Dr. Chiari.



"You’d expect that to mean more cancer, but our study, which combines decades of zoo records with previous research, shows how incredibly rare cancer is in these animals." 



Dr. Chiari said that the study highlights turtles as an untapped model for understanding cancer resistance and healthy aging, and it shows the vital role zoos play in advancing science through collaboration.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-turtle-secrets-and-medical-insights">Turtle secrets and medical insights</h2>



According to study lead author Dr. Scott Glaberman from the University of Birmingham, biodiversity has a lot to teach us about how the world works. 



"While fascinating in their own right, extreme species like giant tortoises may have already solved many of the problems humans face, including those related to aging and cancer. That makes biodiversity doubly worthy of protection,” said Dr. Glaberman.



Dr Helena Turner, Research Officer at Chester Zoo, said her team has been long been committed to detailed health monitoring and the long-term care of their animals. 



"It’s fantastic to see these efforts not only contribute to advancing scientific knowledge around cancer resistance but also support vital conservation work to protect these remarkable species that may hold keys to medical breakthroughs benefiting both wildlife and humans,” said Dr. Turner.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-studying-turtles-in-the-wild">Studying turtles in the wild</h2>



Much of the current data comes from zoo populations. Zoo turtles often live longer than wild ones. This could increase chances of detecting cancer. However, researchers still lack cancer data from wild turtles.



Tracking turtles across their long lifespans remains difficult. Many species live as long as humans. Without decades of monitoring, it is hard to collect enough data.



Researchers suggest using turtle cell lines for laboratory studies. These experiments could reveal how turtle cells respond to stress, DNA damage, and other cancer-related triggers.



Such studies may unlock hidden mechanisms behind turtles’ resistance to cancer and aging. Insights from turtles could help both human medicine and wildlife conservation.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conservation-efforts-remain-critical">Conservation efforts remain critical</h2>



Many turtle species face extinction threats. The <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">IUCN Red List</a> categorizes several as Endangered or Critically Endangered.



Threats include habitat loss, illegal wildlife trade, and climate change. Many zoos in the study also lead breeding programmes to save these species.



Protecting turtles could also protect vital genetic secrets that benefit human health. Their remarkable resistance to cancer makes their conservation even more urgent.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/advance-article/doi/10.1093/biosci/biaf100/8185759" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BioScience</a>.



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Turtles and tortoises may hold the secret to cancer prevention in humans

For centuries, turtles have fascinated people with their remarkably long...

In the arid, fossil-rich landscape of Arizona’s Petrified Forest National Park, a team of paleontologists stumbled across something unexpected. The experts found the fossilized jawbone of a pterosaur that may be the oldest ever found in North America.



The discovery came from a remote site that revealed not just one remarkable creature, but a whole ecosystem preserved in stone.



The study was led by scientists from the Smithsonian’s <a href="https://www.si.edu/museums/natural-history-museum">National Museum of Natural History</a> and <a href="https://www.nps.gov/pefo/index.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Petrified Forest National Park</a>. The research introduces a new pterosaur species alongside more than 1,000 other fossils.



Some of these include one of the world’s oldest turtle specimens. Together, the fossils paint a vivid picture of life just before one of Earth’s biggest mass extinctions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-life-before-mass-extinction">Life before mass extinction</h2>



The pterosaur fossils come from rock layers that date back to the Late <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-did-not-impact-dinosaur-abundance-in-the-triassic/">Triassic</a> period. During this time, ancient amphibians and crocodile-like reptiles lived side by side with animals that would go on to shape the future of the planet, including early turtles, frogs, and flying reptiles.



“The site captures the transition to more modern terrestrial vertebrate communities, where we start seeing groups that thrive later in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dinosaurs-were-not-the-only-animals-that-grew-fast-during-the-mesozoic/">Mesozoic</a> living alongside these older animals that don’t make it past the Triassic,” said study lead author Ben Kligman.



This glimpse into prehistoric life is especially valuable because it dates to just before the end-Triassic extinction - about 201.5 million years ago - when massive volcanic eruptions dramatically altered Earth’s climate. 



The event wiped out roughly 75% of all species, paving the way for dinosaurs to rise to dominance.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fossils-hidden-by-ash">Fossils hidden by ash</h2>



Direct fossil evidence from just before this extinction is hard to come by. Few fossil-rich outcrops from this time exist, but Petrified Forest National Park is one of the rare exceptions. 



Known for its colorful layers of petrified wood and Triassic fossils, the park has long been a treasure trove for paleontologists.



One rock layer, called the Owl Rock Member, has proven especially important. It’s full of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fire-and-ice-volcanic-ash-plays-a-surprising-role-in-cloud-formation/">volcanic ash</a>, which helped scientists date it precisely to around 209 million years ago. These are some of the park’s youngest rocks - but also among its least explored.



Study co-author William Parker explained that the Owl Rock exposures are tucked away in extremely remote areas. Few teams have been able to study them in detail.



In 2011, a research group led by Kay Behrensmeyer decided to take on the challenge. Braving the rugged terrain - complete with rattlesnakes and wild horses - they went in search of mammal-like fossils. 



What they found instead was a densely packed bonebed, full of life from a vanished world.



“That’s the fun thing about paleontology: you go looking for one thing, and then you find something else that’s incredible that you weren’t expecting,” said Kligman, who started working at the site during his PhD studies in 2018.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ancient-life-buried-by-floods">Ancient life buried by floods</h2>



Back in the Triassic, this part of Arizona was located near the equator and sat in the center of the supercontinent <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia-articles/supercontinents-101-pannotia-gondwana-and-pangea/">Pangaea</a>. 



The land was semi-arid, with winding river channels and a seasonal flood cycle. One of those floods likely buried the animals that are now preserved in the bonebed.



The fossil layer was so dense with tiny remains that collecting them onsite was impossible. Instead, researchers carved out large blocks of sediment, wrapped them in plaster, and brought them back to the lab.



Many of these blocks were sent to the Smithsonian’s FossiLab, where volunteers spent thousands of hours carefully exposing the bones. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-small-fossils-major-clues">Small fossils, major clues</h2>



The rivers teemed with fish like coelacanths and freshwater sharks. Giant amphibians - some stretching over six feet long - swam through the streams. On land, armored herbivores and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-crocodile-like-beast-was-a-terrifying-predator/">crocodile-like predators</a> ruled.



At the same time, smaller creatures were starting to make their mark. The team identified early frogs, relatives of today’s tuataras, and a turtle with spike-like armor that could fit in a shoebox. 



The remains of a small pterosaur were also hidden among the layers - just one part of a fossil record that shows how quickly new groups were emerging and spreading across Pangaea.



“This suggests that turtles rapidly dispersed across Pangaea, which is surprising for an animal that is not very large and is likely walking at a slow pace,” said Kligman.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pterosaur-that-perched-like-a-bird">Pterosaur that perched like a bird</h2>



One of the most exciting finds was a jawbone with teeth still in place. It belonged to a small pterosaur, one of the first vertebrates capable of powered flight. This early flier could have perched on a person’s shoulder.



The pterosaur fossil was uncovered by Suzanne McIntire, a volunteer who spent 18 years working in the FossiLab.



“What was exciting about uncovering this specimen was that the teeth were still in the bone, so I knew the animal would be much easier to identify,” McIntire said.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pterosaur_Eotephradactylus-mcintireae_Arizona_illustration_credit-Brian-Engh_1big.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pterosaur_Eotephradactylus-mcintireae_Arizona_illustration_credit-Brian-Engh_1s.webp" alt="An artist's reconstruction of the fossilized landscape, plants and animals found preserved in a remote bonebed in Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. The newly described pterosaur Eotephradactylus mcintireae is seen eating an ancient ray-finned fish alongside an early species of turtle and an early frog species, with the skeleton of an armored crocodile relative lying on the ground and a palm-like plant growing in the background. Credit: Brian Engh" class="wp-image-1977432"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">An artist's reconstruction of the fossilized landscape, plants and animals found preserved in a remote bonebed in Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. The newly described pterosaur Eotephradactylus mcintireae is seen eating an ancient ray-finned fish alongside an early species of turtle and an early frog species, with the skeleton of an armored crocodile relative lying on the ground and a palm-like plant growing in the background. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Brian Engh</figcaption></figure>



The wear on the teeth gave scientists a clue about the pterosaur’s diet. It likely fed on armored fish that were common in the area. 



The new species was named Eotephradactylus mcintireae, which translates to “ash-winged dawn goddess." This title honors McIntire, who retired last year.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-exactly-is-a-pterosaur">What exactly is a pterosaur?</h2>



Pterosaurs were flying reptiles that existed during the time of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-did-dinosaurs-come-from-missing-fossils-hold-the-secret/">dinosaurs</a>. They were the first animals with backbones to evolve powered flight, well before birds or bats came on the scene.



Powered by skin stretched across an extended fourth finger, they ranged in size and shape from something no larger than a crow to giants with wings up to 30 feet or more.



Pterosaurs were not dinosaurs. They formed their own group of reptiles and possessed special adaptations for flight. Some flew above coastlines, while others preyed on fish or small land animals inland.



The new fossil contributes to what is known about those early birds and how they expanded around the globe.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2505513122" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



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North America's oldest known pterosaur discovered in a petrified forest

In the arid, fossil-rich landscape of Arizona’s Petrified Forest National...

Most people think aging always brings health problems. Inflammation seems like a part of getting older. It slowly builds up, leading to serious diseases. 



Doctors call this slow-burning process “inflammaging.” But not everyone is sure that this process is unavoidable. Some scientists are starting to ask new questions. Does every species experience inflammaging? Is it something we can avoid?



Elaine Guevara from <a href="https://duke.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Duke University</a> studies primates, a group that includes both lemurs and humans. Her work focuses on aging and how it works in different species.



Recently, Guevara began looking at lemurs for answers. These animals may look far removed from humans, but their biology has much to teach us. In fact, her latest <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/endangered-lemurs-millions-of-years-of-diversity-at-risk/">research</a> suggests that inflammation during aging may not be as inevitable as people believe.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lemurs-challenge-our-view-of-aging">Lemurs challenge our view of aging </h2>



Guevara's study was focused on two <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hormones-influence-power-and-peace-in-lemur-society/">species</a>: the ring-tailed lemur and the sifaka lemur. These species have many similarities but also some key differences. They have different lifespans and distinct life patterns, which makes them perfect for comparison.



Lemurs share an ancient ancestor with humans. This connection makes them valuable for studying human biology. Scientists often use primates to answer tricky questions about human health.



Guevara wanted to see if lemurs show signs of inflammaging as they grow older. The idea was simple. If inflammation rises in both humans and lemurs, it might be a natural part of aging for all primates. But the results took everyone by surprise.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lemurs-aged-without-more-inflammation">Lemurs aged without more inflammation</h2>



The team expected to see clear signs of inflammaging in lemurs. This would have matched patterns seen in humans. But that is not what happened.



“Contrary to our predictions, neither <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hibernation-allows-lemurs-to-slow-down-their-aging/">species</a> showed age-related change in either marker of oxidative stress," said Guevara.



"Neither lemur species exhibited age-related change in inflammation; if anything, contrary to our prediction, ring-tailed lemurs showed marginal declines in inflammation with age."



The findings challenge what many people think about aging. If lemurs do not show inflammaging, maybe it is not something all species must face.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-is-inflammaging-really-unavoidable">Is inflammaging really unavoidable?</h2>



Lemurs are not alone in this unexpected pattern. Researchers have seen similar results in other primate species. Christine Drea, a scientist involved in the lemur study, explained the bigger picture.



According to Drea, the research suggests inflammaging is not universal across primates. If that is true, it raises an important question. Could some humans also avoid inflammaging?



The idea turns traditional thinking about aging upside down. Many believed inflammaging was simply part of life, but the study shows it might not be that simple.



Scientists are now looking at aging in a whole new way. They are asking if the right conditions might prevent or delay inflammation in humans too.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-inflammaging-causes-health-issues">Inflammaging causes health issues</h2>



Inflammaging sounds like a problem only scientists worry about, but it affects millions of people. As people age, their bodies often enter a state of low-level inflammation. This quiet <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/endangered-lemurs-now-prey-for-equally-endangered-fosas/">process</a> can cause serious harm over time.



Inflammaging connects to many common diseases. These include heart problems, strokes, diabetes, cancer, and arthritis.



Doctors and researchers are working hard to find solutions. If they can understand why inflammaging happens, they may find ways to stop it.



The lemur study offers new hope. It suggests that inflammaging is not locked into our biology. That alone is an exciting discovery.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-challenge-of-studying-lemurs">The challenge of studying lemurs</h2>



Studying aging in lemurs is not easy. The animals cannot explain their health. Researchers had to come up with a safe way to collect data.



"Our role at the beginning was planning, designing, brainstorming, comparing and getting these samples,” said Drea.



The team collected urine samples from the lemurs. This method allowed them to study oxidative stress and inflammation without harming the animals.



The research was conducted at the Duke Lemur Center. This facility only allows non-invasive studies. The lemurs remained unharmed throughout the entire project.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-research-on-lemurs-and-aging">Future research on lemurs and aging</h2>



Guevara now wants to expand her research. Her next focus will be wild lemurs living in their natural environment.



“There are a lot of good reasons to think that aging can be quite different in captivity and in the wild, and that in itself, is informative to evaluating the degree to which human inflammation is intrinsic versus environmental,” she said.



Wild lemurs face many challenges that captive lemurs do not. Their diet, stress, and activity levels all vary. 



By studying lemurs, scientists can learn whether environment shapes aging. The ongoing research could reveal even more about human aging.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lemurs-offer-new-aging-insights">Lemurs offer new aging insights</h2>



People around the world are living longer. However, many of those extra years come with health issues. Inflammaging is a major reason for this.



Guevara believes her work is an important first step toward finding new solutions. "These insights are essential for mitigating disability and improving quality of life in later years."



This study shows that aging does not look the same in every species. Lemurs have shown a very different path. They age without the same inflammation humans often face. 



Researchers now have a fresh question to explore. Can humans also avoid inflammaging? The answer could change how we think about growing older. It could shift how we approach health care for aging populations.



Lemurs may not have provided all the answers yet, but they have certainly started an important conversation.



The study is published in the <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00360-025-01619-y" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal of Comparative Physiology B</a>. 



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Lemurs reveal surprising new clues about healthy aging

Most people think aging always brings health problems. Inflammation seems...

It’s easy to assume that when fish hang still in the water, they’re taking a break. After all, they look motionless - just calmly suspended in place. But new research shows that this “hovering” is actually a demanding task that takes more effort than resting.



The study comes from scientists at the University of California San Diego’s <a href="https://scripps.ucsd.edu/">Scripps Institution of Oceanography</a>. It focused on how fish manage to stay still in open water without sinking or drifting away.



The team found that fish burn nearly twice as much energy while hovering as they do when resting on the tank floor. That means what looks like rest is really anything but.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rethinking-stillness-in-fish">Rethinking stillness in fish</h2>



Most bony fish have swim bladders - gas-filled sacs that help them stay neutrally buoyant, which make them neither float upward nor sink. 



Because of this, researchers once thought that hovering was easy. But the new findings challenge that idea.



The scientists studied 13 different <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/small-fish-species-are-the-big-catch-of-the-future/">fish species</a> with swim bladders. Each fish was placed in a special tank where its oxygen use was recorded during two behaviors: resting on the bottom and hovering midwater. 



At the same time, high-speed cameras captured every fin twitch and tail flick.



The team also measured body features like the shape of the fish and the position of its <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fins-and-limbs-share-a-deep-evolutionary-history/">fins</a>. One key measurement was the distance between the fish’s center of mass and center of buoyancy. 



These don’t always align. That small misalignment creates instability, which the fish must constantly correct.



“Hovering is a bit like trying to balance on a bicycle that’s not moving,” said Valentina Di Santo, an assistant professor at UC San Diego and study author.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-stability-drains-fish-energy">Stability drains fish energy</h2>



Because of the mismatch between mass and buoyancy, hovering fish have to work against the natural tendency to roll, tilt, or drift. 



The more misaligned those centers are, the more energy the fish burns trying to stay still. That constant effort means hovering is far from restful.



“What struck me was how superbly all these fishes maintain a stable posture, despite their intrinsic instability,” said Di Santo.



Fish with more compact, deeper bodies like goldfish or pufferfish were better at hovering efficiently. In contrast, longer, thinner fish - like giant danios or shell dwellers - had to work harder. 



Fin position also played a role. Fish with pectoral fins placed farther back on their bodies generally hovered more efficiently. The researchers believe this may be due to improved leverage.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-goldfish-have-an-edge">Goldfish have an edge</h2>



“This changes how we see hovering. It’s not a form of rest at all,” said Di Santo. “It’s an energetically costly activity but one that fish engage in anyway because it can be very useful.”



Fish may hover when guarding a nest, feeding in a specific spot, or holding their place in fast-moving water. These tasks require them to stay stable in one position, even when it’s exhausting. 



The study also pointed out a trade-off. Fish with shapes that give them greater control and agility often burn more energy while hovering. Meanwhile, more stable shapes are less agile.



But that trade-off may be worth it. Being able to move nimbly through coral reefs or complex underwater environments is key to survival.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-inspire-robot-design">Fish inspire robot design</h2>



The findings could also influence the next generation of underwater vehicles. Most robots today are built to be stable. But like fish, that stability may limit their agility.



“By studying how fish achieve this balance, we can gain powerful design principles for building more efficient, responsive underwater technologies,” said Di Santo.



For engineers, this could mean building in a bit of instability and designing systems that, like fins, actively correct for it. 



Doing so could allow underwater robots to better explore tight or cluttered environments, such as coral reefs or wreck sites.



“If you want a robot that can maneuver through tight spaces, you might have to learn from these fishes to design in some instability and then add systems that can dynamically maintain stability when needed,” said Di Santo.



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Fish don’t rest while hovering - it's actually hard work

It’s easy to assume that when fish hang still in...

Bees have long been admired for their delicate beauty and essential role in pollination. These small creatures, however, face growing challenges from their environment. 



Rising temperatures and pollution continue to reshape bee behavior in unexpected ways. Recent research is unveiling surprising links between environmental changes and the subtle buzzes bees produce.



These quiet vibrations are more than just background noise. They hold deep meaning for the survival of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-bee-day-2025-protecting-the-pollinators-that-feed-the-world/">bees</a> and the ecosystems they support. As environmental pressures increase, understanding these sounds becomes even more important. 



Researchers are now focusing on how changes in temperature and exposure to heavy metals affect these essential vibrations. The findings offer insight into the hidden world of bee communication and pollination.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hidden-power-of-bee-muscles">Hidden power of bee muscles</h2>



Bees are renowned for their efficient flight. Their wings beat rapidly, allowing them to hover and move gracefully between flowers. However, not many know that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/honey-bee-invasion-a-growing-threat-to-native-pollinators/">bees</a> also use their flight muscles for other important tasks.



“People have been long interested in how insect flight muscles work, as these muscles power the most efficient flight systems in nature,” said Dr. Charlie Woodrow, a post-doctoral researcher at <a href="https://www.uu.se/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Uppsala University</a>. “However, many do not know that bees use these muscles for functions other than flight.”



These non-flight muscle vibrations help in several key behaviors. Bees use them for communication within the hive, to ward off threats, and during a special kind of pollination known as buzz pollination.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bees-buzz-flowers-to-collect-pollen">Bees buzz flowers to collect pollen</h2>



Buzz pollination stands out as one of the most fascinating <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-bumble-bees-are-sabotaging-their-own-health/">behaviors</a> in the insect world. It is a process where bees vibrate their bodies to dislodge pollen from certain types of flowers.



“Buzz pollination is an incredible behavior whereby a bee will curl its body around the pollen-concealing anthers of some flowers, and contract the flight muscles up to 400 times per second to produce vibrations which shake the pollen loose,” said Dr. Woodrow.



This act requires great energy and precision. The buzzing shakes the flower at exactly the right frequency, releasing the trapped pollen. 



Dr. Woodrow and his team aim to understand how these vibrations vary between species and environmental conditions. They hope to uncover how these differences affect pollination success and bee behavior.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tools-to-study-bee-buzzing">Tools to study bee buzzing</h2>



To explore these mysteries, Dr. Woodrow’s team turned to advanced technology. They studied buff-tailed bumblebees (Bombus terrestris), a common species found across Europe. These bees are ideal subjects because they are well-researched and easily handled.



Using accelerometers, the researchers measured the frequency of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/organic-farms-and-meadows-can-help-save-wild-bees/">buzzing</a>. This frequency corresponds to the pitch of the sound we can hear.



“They are super easy to use in the field,” said Dr. Woodrow. “We press these against the thorax of the bee, or against the flower the bee is visiting, and we can record the vibrations the bee produces.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-bees-handle-buzzing-heat">How bees handle buzzing heat</h2>



Beyond vibration measurements, the team also used thermal imaging to understand how bees manage heat during buzzing. This approach allowed them to observe how bees balance their body temperature while performing demanding tasks.



“We have also been using high-speed filming to uncover never before seen behaviors,” said Dr. Woodrow. “For example, we recently discovered that bees don’t just vibrate on flowers, but they periodically transmit these vibrations to flowers by biting.”



These unexpected discoveries reveal how much remains hidden in the world of bees. They also highlight the importance of studying these creatures in detail, especially as the climate warms.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hidden-role-of-temperature">Hidden role of temperature</h2>



One of the most surprising findings from Dr. Woodrow’s research involves temperature. His experiments showed that temperature has a much stronger impact on buzzing than scientists had previously realised.



“We have recently found that temperature plays a vital role, much more than was previously appreciated, and this work is currently in review for publication,” said Dr. Woodrow. 



“This has many implications for how we study buzz-pollination, as temperature is not really something that has been considered up to this point.”



This insight could reshape how pollination research is conducted in the future, as temperature clearly affects buzzing behavior.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pollution-changes-bee-buzzing">Pollution changes bee buzzing</h2>



In addition to temperature, pollution also affects bee vibrations. Dr. Woodrow teamed up with Dr. Sarah Scott from <a href="https://www.ncl.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Newcastle University</a> to investigate how heavy metals influence buzzing.



The experiments showed that heavy metal exposure reduces buzzing frequency during non-flight activities. 



Surprisingly, when the researchers tested bees in Arctic regions compared to those further south, they found no difference in the temperature’s effects on buzzing.



This suggests that internal muscle physiology may govern buzzing traits more than local adaptation does.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-new-way-to-monitor-bee-health">A new way to monitor bee health</h2>



The research offers exciting possibilities beyond academic study. Understanding how environmental changes alter buzzing can reveal much about bee health and behavior. This knowledge can also improve technology designed to detect bee species using sound.



“Perhaps buzzes could even be used as a marker of stress or environmental change,” said Dr. Woodrow. “For example, we now know that certain environmental pollutants can affect the buzzes bees produce, so they could even serve as an indicator of ecosystem health.”



Monitoring bee buzzes could help identify species at risk and provide early warnings about environmental threats.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-buzzing-changes-may-harm-bees">Buzzing changes may harm bees</h2>



The potential risks from disrupted buzzing extend beyond bees. Dr. Woodrow points out that changes in buzzing could damage several aspects of bee life.



“It is important we understand how these changes will affect non-flight buzzes because they are responsible for so many aspects of a bee’s ecology,” said Dr. Woodrow. 



“If these vibrations are disrupted, this could lead to poor communication in the colony, inefficient thermoregulation, or poor resource acquisition for their offspring.”



This disruption could limit pollination, affecting plant reproduction and biodiversity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rising-heat-may-shift-bee-behavior">Rising heat may shift bee behavior</h2>



One particularly worrying result relates to the combination of high temperatures and energy costs.



“For example, buzz-pollination is energetically expensive and causes the bee to generate metabolic heat - therefore if the environment gets too warm, it may simply choose to avoid buzz-pollinated flowers,” noted Dr. Woodrow.



This behavioral change could weaken entire ecosystems, as many plants rely on bees for pollination. If bees avoid these plants, pollination rates could drop sharply.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-of-research-and-technology">Future of research and technology</h2>



While these findings raise concerns, they also point toward future innovation. Dr. Woodrow’s team is working on applying their research to robotics.



“We are working towards understanding bee vibrations through micro-robotics, so our results are also going towards developing micro-robots to understand pollen release,” said Dr. Woodrow.



This cross-disciplinary work may someday help protect pollination services by mimicking bee buzzing with machines.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-urgent-need-to-protect-pollinators">Urgent need to protect pollinators</h2>



These discoveries will be shared at the <a href="https://www.sebiology.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Society for Experimental Biology Annual Conference</a> in Antwerp, Belgium, on July 8, 2025. 



The findings show that bees face increasing challenges from environmental shifts, but they also present new tools to help understand and protect them.



As temperatures climb and pollutants spread, paying attention to the quiet buzz of bees could become more important than ever. Their tiny vibrations may hold the key to preserving plant life, biodiversity, and our shared future.



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Heat and pollution are changing the buzz of bees

Bees have long been admired for their delicate beauty and...

Koalas are everywhere on postcards and souvenirs. People think of them as calm animals sleeping in trees. But life isn’t simple for koalas anymore.



Their numbers keep dropping across Australia. Habitat loss, disease, and land clearing cause serious damage. Many forests are now small patches surrounded by roads and buildings.



Most people don’t realize how risky it is for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/koalas-face-critical-threats-from-disease-and-habitat-loss/">koalas</a> when they leave trees. New research now shows something alarming. Koalas spend only about ten minutes a day on the ground, but those short minutes cause almost two-thirds of all recorded koala deaths.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-koalas-risk-lives-when-leaving-trees">Koalas risk lives when leaving trees</h2>



Gabriella Sparkes, a PhD student at the <a href="https://www.uq.edu.au" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Queensland</a>, wanted to gain a better understanding of koala behavior.



“Koalas are mostly tree-dwelling, but due to extensive land clearing, they’re increasingly forced to travel on the ground, which puts them at serious risk of injury and death,” said Sparkes. “I wanted to better understand what koalas do during these ground movements.”



Vehicles and dogs kill most <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/koalas-can-predict-hot-days-and-adjust-their-body-temperature/">koalas</a> while they walk on the ground. Even though this danger is known, many details about their movements remained unknown.



“We don’t yet have a clear understanding of how often koalas come down from trees, how far or fast they move, how long they stay on the ground, or what influences those decisions,” noted Sparkes. 



“These are critical knowledge gaps if we want to identify high-risk areas or times and develop strategies to reduce threats during these vulnerable moments.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tracking-koalas-in-their-habitats">Tracking koalas in their habitats</h2>



Sparkes and her team used special collars on <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-wildlife-day-2025-a-global-call-to-protect-nature/">wild</a> koalas. These collars had GPS trackers and sensors called accelerometers.



The GPS recorded their locations every five minutes. When koalas started walking on the ground, the system switched to record every five seconds. 



The sensors measured their movements in detail. They showed if a koala was walking, sitting, or climbing.



“When paired with GPS tracks, this gives us an incredibly detailed view of how koalas move through their habitat,” said Sparkes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-koalas-prefer-staying-in-trees">Koalas prefer staying in trees </h2>



The results were clear. Koalas prefer staying in trees. They sleep, eat, and rest there most of the time. The researchers were surprised by how rarely koalas use the ground.



“What surprised us was how infrequently and briefly they use the ground—just 2-3 times per night, averaging around 10 minutes in total, or less than 1% of their day,” says Ms. Sparkes.



Koalas only climb down when they need to move between trees. But when trees are far apart, ground travel becomes unavoidable.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-koalas-move-slowly-between-trees">Koalas move slowly between trees</h2>



People often think <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/un-report-disturbing-details-about-the-state-of-earths-wildlife/">animals</a> move quickly when they’re in danger. But this research showed that koalas don’t rush. They move slowly and pause often. They spend almost as much time sitting as they do walking.



“They spent nearly as much time sitting and pausing as they did walking, and only about 7% of their time on the ground was spent bounding,” said Sparkes. 



“This may indicate that koalas are carefully assessing their environment as they move, possibly evaluating trees before selecting one to climb, or it may reflect the energetic costs of bounding.”



Koalas may need to check for safety before climbing a tree. They might also avoid fast movements to save energy.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ways-to-keep-koalas-safe">Ways to keep koalas safe</h2>



This study, which was the first to track fine details of ground movement in wild koalas, has revealed clear risks and raised more questions. Sparkes and her team now study what makes koalas stay longer in trees.



“We’re now looking at environmental features that influence how long koalas stay in trees,” said Sparkes. 



“If we can identify the kinds of trees or habitat conditions that encourage koalas to remain in trees for longer, we may be able to design or manage landscapes in ways that reduce the need for ground travel.”



The goal is to find trees that keep koalas off the ground. The researchers also wanted to see if certain habitats lower the need for risky movements.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-small-changes-can-help-koalas-survive">Small changes can help koalas survive</h2>



The team hopes their research can guide better conservation work. They suggest keeping tree canopies connected and reducing the space between trees.



Simple actions like planting the right trees may help. Koalas need safer, connected habitats to avoid ground travel.



“This research is just one piece of the puzzle, but it adds an important layer to our understanding of how koalas interact with increasingly human-altered environments,” said Sparkes.



The findings will be presented at the <a href="https://www.sebiology.org/">Society for Experimental Biology</a> Annual Conference in Antwerp, Belgium, in July.



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Most koalas don’t survive after leaving the safety of trees

Koalas are everywhere on postcards and souvenirs. People think of...

A fossilized rhino tooth, buried for over 20 million years, is now helping scientists rewrite the history of early rhino evolution. 



Inside the tooth enamel, researchers found something remarkable: preserved proteins that held clues to the animal’s lineage and evolutionary split from other species.



This breakthrough came from scientists at the <a href="https://www.york.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of York</a>. By analyzing enamel proteins in the tooth, the experts traced key moments in rhino evolution much further back than previously possible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-reconstructing-the-rhino-family-tree">Reconstructing the rhino family tree</h2>



The team discovered that this particular rhino diverged from other members of the family <a href="https://www.su.se/english/news/geneticists-map-the-rhinoceros-family-tree-1.568317" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rhinocerotidae</a> during a window between 41 and 25 million years ago. This coincides with a time between the Middle Eocene and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-climate-shift-sheds-light-on-future-global-warming/">Oligocene</a> Epochs. 



Even more surprising was that the data revealed that the two main subfamilies of rhinos - Elasmotheriinae and Rhinocerotinae - split later than previously thought.



Instead of parting ways in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fossils-reveal-a-previously-unknown-mass-extinction-event/">Eocene</a>, as earlier bone studies suggested, this separation likely occurred during the Oligocene, between 34 and 22 million years ago.



This new timeline helps scientists better understand how different rhino species emerged, adapted, and survived (or didn’t) through changing environments.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rhino-evolution-revealed-in-dna">Rhino evolution revealed in DNA</h2>



Ancient DNA has helped researchers study <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cave-art-discovery-depicts-animal-dicynodont-that-went-extinct-280-million-year-ago/">extinct</a> species, but it rarely survives beyond a million years. This fossil tooth changes that. 



The successful recovery of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/enamel-protein">enamel proteins</a> from a sample over 20 million years old extends the timeline for molecular research by a factor of ten.



This is important because it allows scientists to explore evolutionary history through molecular evidence - not just fossil shapes. Well-preserved enamel proteins offer access to valuable genetic information, opening new avenues for discovery.



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tooth-enamel-analysis-suggests-early-eurasians-were-multiple-species-paranthropus-robustus/">Enamel</a> is the hardest tissue in the body. Its mineral-rich structure protects proteins for millions of years, especially in cold environments where this tooth was found.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-keeping-the-fossil-tooth-data-pure">Keeping the fossil tooth data pure</h2>



The fossil tooth was found in Canada’s High Arctic - a region where permafrost still dominates. That cold environment played a key role in keeping the proteins intact, but cold alone wasn’t enough.



To make sure the proteins were truly ancient, researchers at the University of York ran tests using a method called chiral amino acid analysis.



This technique helped the team distinguish between original proteins from the rhino’s life and any later contamination. 



By comparing the degraded proteins in this tooth with those from previously studied rhino fossils, they confirmed the material was genuine.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-unique-environmental-history-of-the-site">Unique environmental history of the site</h2>



Professor Enrico Cappellini from the University of Copenhagen’s Globe Institute emphasized the significance of the fossil site.



“The <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0016703721002234" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Haughton Crater</a> may be a truly special place for palaeontology: a biomolecular vault protecting proteins from decay over vast geological timescales,” said Cappellini.



“Its unique environmental history has created a site with exceptional preservation of ancient biomolecules, akin to how certain sites preserve soft tissues. This finding should encourage more paleontological fieldwork in regions around the world."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-exploring-further-back-in-time">Exploring further back in time</h2>



Dr. Marc Dickinson, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of York’s Department of Chemistry, was one of the co-authors on the study.



“It is phenomenal that these tools are enabling us to explore further and further back in time. Building on our knowledge of ancient proteins, we can now start asking fascinating new questions about the evolution of ancient life on our planet,” said Dickinson.



The team sees this fossil tooth as more than just an isolated find. It’s a signal that there may be more ancient biomolecules waiting to be studied.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-perspective-on-rhino-evolution">New perspective on rhino evolution </h2>



“Successful analysis of ancient proteins from such an old sample gives a fresh perspective to scientists around the globe who already have incredible fossils in their collections. This important fossil helps us to understand our ancient <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/supernovae-explosions-seem-to-have-altered-earths-climate-in-the-past-and-could-do-so-again-at-any-time/">past</a>,” said Fazeelah Munir, who analyzed the tooth during her doctoral research at York.



Modern rhinos are threatened by habitat loss, poaching, and climate change. Tracing their evolutionary history reveals how past environmental shifts shaped the species we see today. 



The more we understand what helped ancient rhinos survive - or led to their decline - the better equipped we are to protect the few that remain.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09231-4">Nature</a>.



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Secrets of rhino evolution found in 20-million-year-old tooth

A fossilized rhino tooth, buried for over 20 million years,...

New scans of two small predatory dinosaurs reveal a pea-sized wrist bone once thought unique to birds. The research suggests that the engines of flight were revving inside dinosaur arms long before any creature flapped skyward.



The study was led by James Napoli of <a href="https://www.stonybrook.edu/">Stony Brook University</a> with colleagues at the <a href="https://www.amnh.org/">American Museum of Natural History</a> and the <a href="https://mas.ac.mn/en/">Mongolian Academy of Sciences</a>. 



The research overturns earlier claims that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/large-theropod-dinosaurs-thrived-in-polar-environments/">theropods</a> lacked a bird-like pisiform and raises the possibility that the path to powered flight was, as the authors put it, “all in the wrist.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dinosaur-wrist-bone-on-the-move">Dinosaur wrist bone on the move</h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earliest-modern-bird-lived-in-antarctica-69-million-years-ago/">Modern birds</a> fold their wings automatically when the elbow bends. The hinge works because a tiny carpal called the pisiform migrated from the edge of the wrist to replace another bone, the ulnare. 



Its new spot lets a V-shaped notch clamp the hand bones and stop them from popping loose during vigorous flapping.



For years, paleontologists assumed non-avian dinosaurs never made that switch. Napoli’s team tested the dogma by CT-scanning an exquisitely preserved troodontid, a quick, velociraptor-like hunter. They also scanned an oviraptorid, a beaked omnivore with a long neck.



Digital slices peeled away surrounding rock, isolating each pebble-sized carpal in three dimensions. The images showed a bead-like bone tucked where the pisiform sits in modern birds.



“We believe this is the first time a migrated pisiform in a non-bird meat-eating dinosaur has been identified,” Napoli said. 



The discovery pushes the joint’s redesign back to Pennaraptora, a diverse branch of feathered theropods that includes velociraptors, troodontids, and oviraptorosaurs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-flight-link-to-wrist-evolution">Flight link to wrist evolution</h2>



“While we currently do not know precisely how many times dinosaurs learned to fly, it is intriguing that experimentation with flight in these creatures appears only after the pisiform migrated into the wrist joint,” Napoli explained.



“Therefore, it is possible this established the automated mechanisms found in current living birds, though we would need to test this hypothesis with more research and analysis of dinosaur wrist bones.”



The scientists argue that the pisiform’s relocation was gradual. Early pennaraptorans still carried a small ulnare. Later species lost that bone entirely as the pisiform enlarged and took over its role.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-gradual-wrist-bone-replacement">Gradual wrist bone replacement</h2>



The replacement mirrors other avian traits - hollow bones, enlarged brains, filamentous feathers - that spread outward through theropod evolution before coalescing into true birds.



According to the authors of the study, the findings make clear that the topological and functional replacement of the ulnare by the pisiform occurred much deeper in theropod history than has been previously understood and was a stepwise process.



“Over the past few decades, our knowledge of theropod <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dinosaur-extinction-theories-are-challenged-by-new-research/">dinosaur</a> anatomy and evolution has increased exponentially, much of it revealing that classically ‘avian’ traits such as thin-walled bones, an enlarged brain, and feathers, all characterize more inclusive groups of theropod dinosaurs," noted the researchers.



"Our results suggest that the construction of the avian wrist is no exception and follows topological patterns laid down by the origin of Pennaraptora.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scans-reveals-hidden-features">Scans reveals hidden features</h2>



Identifying the bone took both luck and technology. The fossils - discovered in Mongolia’s Cretaceous rocks - had escaped crushing, so their wrist bones lay undisturbed. 



Micro-CT resolution below 50 microns allowed the researchers to trace delicate sutures, distinguishing the pisiform’s spoon-like head and its telltale notch. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/dinosaur-wrist-bone_Citipati_flight-evolution_credit-Henry-Sharpe_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/dinosaur-wrist-bone_Citipati_flight-evolution_credit-Henry-Sharpe_1s.webp" alt="This is an illustration of an oviraptorid dinosaur called Citipati. The scene depicts Citipati being startled while resting on a sand dune. The creature raises its arms in a threat display, which reveals its wrists, highlighting the small migrated pisiform carpal (blue X-ray view) bone. Credit: Henry S. Sharpe" class="wp-image-1978020"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">This is an illustration of an oviraptorid dinosaur called Citipati. The scene depicts Citipati being startled while resting on a sand dune. The creature raises its arms in a threat display, which reveals its wrists, highlighting the small migrated pisiform carpal (blue X-ray view) bone. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Henry S. Sharpe</figcaption></figure>



Without such scans, the structure would look like one of several nubs commonly lumped together as generic carpals.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wrist-bone-shaped-evolution">Wrist bone shaped evolution</h2>



Flight appears to have evolved at least twice within Pennaraptora and perhaps as many as five times. If the pisiform swap predates those experiments, it may have primed the limb for aerial feats in separate lineages. 



That echoes convergent “upgrades” seen in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pterosaurs-mastered-land-before-dominating-the-sky/">pterosaurs</a>, bats, and birds, where wrist and shoulder tweaks unleash new kinematic possibilities.



The finding also casts fresh light on grounded relatives like Velociraptor. Though too heavy to fly, such animals wielded feathered arms for display, brooding, or balance.



A bird-style pisiform would have let them tuck and unfurl their limbs with mechanical efficiency. This hints that the crouched, wing-guarding pose seen in some fossil nests used the same automatic folding action modern roosters employ.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-fossil-finds">Future fossil finds</h2>



Future work will scan additional fossils to see exactly when the pisiform first slid into place. The researchers want to investigate whether the move coincided with feather lengthening or muscle shifts.



They also hope to model forces across the joint to test how much stability the new bone adds during flapping or mantling motions.



For now, the lesson is clear: tiny parts can steer colossal evolutionary leaps. A marble-sized bone drifting a few millimeters may have set the stage for the skies to fill with beating wings. It began inside dinosaur wrists millions of years before the first true birds appeared.



Image credit: Henry Sharpe



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09232-3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a>.



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Flight may have started with a tiny wrist bone from a dinosaur called "Citipati"

New scans of two small predatory dinosaurs reveal a pea-sized...

Humans have limited regenerative abilities compared to some animals. Once sensory hair cells in the inner ear are damaged, hearing and balance often decline for good. Meanwhile, animals like fish, frogs, and chicks use gene-driven repair to easily renew these cells.



Scientists at the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> have discovered how two genes guide this regeneration in zebrafish. This research may shape future work on hearing loss in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/common-genetic-mutation-dramatically-increases-the-risk-of-dementia-in-men/">humans</a>.



“Mammals such as ourselves cannot regenerate hair cells in the inner ear,” said study co-author Dr. Tatjana Piotrowski. “As we age or are subjected to prolonged noise exposure, we lose our hearing and balance.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-genes-and-hearing-cells">Fish genes and hearing cells </h2>



The study was designed to investigate how zebrafish control cell division during hair cell regeneration. The team, led by Dr. Mark Lush, found two genes that regulate how two support <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gene-regulation-controlling-cells-to-improve-medical-treatments/">cell</a> types divide.



The researchers used single-cell RNA sequencing and lineage tracing to uncover gene activity patterns. This helped them see which genes were responsible for maintaining stem cells and triggering regeneration.



“During normal tissue maintenance and regeneration, cells need to proliferate to replace the cells that are dying or being shed - however, this only works if there are existing cells that can divide to replace them,” said Piotrowski.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-zebrafish-offer-rare-insight">Why zebrafish offer rare insight</h2>



Zebrafish have sensory structures called neuromasts, which contain hair <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-dna-reveals-37000-years-of-hidden-human-infections/">cells</a> resembling those in the human inner ear. These neuromasts are distributed in a line from head to tail and help detect water motion.



Because zebrafish larvae are transparent, scientists can observe their cells directly. The team studied how hair cells regrow using imaging, gene editing, and molecular tracing.



“We can manipulate genes and test which ones are important for regeneration,” said Piotrowski. “By understanding how these cells regenerate in zebrafish, we hope to identify why similar regeneration does not occur in mammals and whether it might be possible to encourage this process in the future.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-two-genes-control-hearing-cell-repair">Two genes control hearing cell repair</h2>



Within neuromasts, two groups of support cells drive <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drugs-may-be-available-to-prevent-hearing-loss/">regeneration</a>. Stem cells lie at the edges, while progenitor cells are in the center. The research team discovered two cyclinD genes, each linked to only one cell group.



“When we rendered one of these genes non-functional, only one population stopped dividing,” said Piotrowski. 



“This finding shows that different groups of cells within an organ can be controlled separately, which may help scientists understand cell growth in other tissues, such as the intestine or blood.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-uncoupling-division-and-differentiation">Uncoupling division and differentiation</h2>



When the progenitor-specific gene was removed, those cells stopped dividing but still turned into hair cells. This meant cell division wasn’t always needed for differentiation. When the stem-cell gene was added to progenitors, their division restarted.



The ability to separate growth from differentiation could have broad biological implications.



The&nbsp;study&nbsp;illustrates this gene-switching in detail, using labeled cell populations and fluorescent markers to track regeneration.



"Our findings have important implications for the understanding of how proliferation of symmetrically dividing stem and progenitor cells is controlled during homeostasis and disease," wrote the researchers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-genes-may-help-human-hearing">Fish genes may help human hearing</h2>



Dr. David Raible, a professor at the <a href="https://www.washington.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Washington</a>, highlighted the significance of the research. 



“This work illuminates an elegant mechanism for maintaining neuromast stem cells while promoting hair cell regeneration. It may help us investigate whether similar processes exist or could be activated in mammals," said Dr. Raible.



CyclinD genes also affect many human tissues, such as the gut, brain, skin, and blood. The findings in zebrafish may offer clues for regenerative therapies beyond hearing.



“Insights from zebrafish hair cell regeneration could eventually inform research on other organs and tissues, both those that naturally regenerate and those that do not,” said Piotrowski.



The study received funding from the <a href="https://www.nih.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NIH</a>, the <a href="https://hearinghealthfoundation.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hearing Health Foundation</a>, and the Stowers Institute. The findings reflect the authors' views and not necessarily those of the NIH.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-60251-0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Communications</a>.



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Fish genes offer clues to reversing human hearing loss

Humans have limited regenerative abilities compared to some animals. Once...

Butterflies are slipping away from the British countryside. Yet hope may lie in some of its most familiar sights: thorny hedges, pocket-sized woods, even a single oak in the middle of a field.



A new study led by the <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/">University of Oxford</a> and <a href="https://butterfly-conservation.org/">Butterfly Conservation</a> shows that these modest features can lift <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/butterflies-can-adapt-quickly-but-evolution-has-its-limits/">butterfly</a> numbers in ordinary farmland.



This gives species such as the Speckled Wood and Meadow Brown a fighting chance just as national counts have hit historic lows.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-ten-year-countryside-snapshot">A ten-year countryside snapshot</h2>



The research team mined ten years of records from the <a href="https://butterfly-conservation.org/our-work/recording-and-monitoring/wider-countryside-butterfly-survey">Wider Countryside Butterfly Survey</a>, in which volunteers stroll one-kilometer routes around farmland and record every butterfly they see.



Altogether, they analyzed more than a thousand routes scattered across England. They then matched each one to habitat maps that reach three kilometers in every direction.



Wherever hedgerows, groves, or field trees took up more space on that map, the counts rose. The pattern was clearest in arable regions where otherwise tidy fields leave few wild corners.



Dr. Ruth Feber, lead author of the study, pointed out numbers told only part of the story. 



“As well as demonstrating the importance of trees and hedgerows for biodiversity on farmland, our results also highlighted the relatively lower numbers of butterflies on intensively managed grassland compared to arable land," said Dr. Feber.



Those silage pastures, cut and fertilized for maximum yield, now cover more than a quarter of the country. Even small changes in how they are managed could tip the scales for wildlife.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-farmers-want-to-help-and-need-support">Farmers want to help, and need support</h2>



The scientists also spoke with 31 farmers who manage land near the survey squares. Most recognized the upside of hedges and shade trees - from sheltering <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/livestock-grazing-is-changing-soil-plants-and-insect-populations/">livestock</a> to soaking up floodwater.



But nearly expressed concern about the cost and commitment of planting, trimming, and replacing them. That tension sits at the heart of the study.



“It is clear that farmers recognize the importance of these crucial habitats," noted Dr. Feber. "But they need to be supported. We need to recognize that these trees and hedgerows provide public goods which benefit <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/un-report-disturbing-details-about-the-state-of-earths-wildlife/">wildlife</a> and people."



She noted that agri-environment payments must stretch beyond basic prescriptions and cover the true expense of keeping woody features healthy for decades. Otherwise, good intentions can wither the moment grain prices tighten.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-farmland-hedges-are-butterfly-highways">Farmland hedges are butterfly highways</h2>



Hedges do more than mark a boundary. Their tangled branches serve as food plants for caterpillars and provide adult butterflies with a buffet of nectar. Thick growth breaks the wind, allowing butterflies to warm up and fly on cooler days. 



Above all, lines of woody cover act as green corridors, guiding insects from one flower-rich patch to another so that no colony becomes isolated.



That highway network is exactly what common butterflies need right now. Fresh figures show that 2024 ranks among the worst years on record. For the first time, more than half of U.K. species have slipped into long-term decline.



“We know that butterflies are in desperate trouble, including our common countryside species. Butterflies are important indicators of wider biodiversity, so actions that help butterflies will also help other declining wildlife,” said Dr. Feber.



“With 70 percent of the U.K.'s land area being farmland, our farmers and landowners play a vital role in helping these species recover, through protecting and restoring hedgerows and trees.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-farming-with-butterflies-in-mind">Farming with butterflies in mind</h2>



Dr. Feber’s group is already probing one promising route. At Northfield Farm near Oxford, cattle are moved daily in a “mob grazing” system that leaves each paddock to regrow for weeks.



“My current project is investigating regenerative <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/feeding-the-world-without-harming-nature-the-complex-balance-of-farming/">farming</a>, which uses livestock grazing and other practices to help promote soil health and increase soil carbon,” said Dr. Feber. 



“This is receiving increasing attention as an approach to grassland management that might contribute to tackling some <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-and-agriculture-are-locked-in-a-destructive-feedback-loop/">climate impacts of agriculture</a>."



Dr. Feber added that more research is needed on how this may impact biodiversity, particularly above-ground invertebrate groups, such as butterflies, moths, and other pollinators.



Early surveys will track whether butterflies bounce back when lush grass is replaced by more varied, flower-rich swards.



“In this system, areas of land are grazed for a short period of time before the cattle are moved on and the pasture allowed to recover,” Dr. Feber said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-butterflies-need-better-farmland">Butterflies need better farmland</h2>



The study’s message is disarmingly simple: keep - or better yet, expand - the scruffy, butterfly-friendly edges of Britain’s farmlands. A single thorn hedge or an untidy willow clump can be enough to connect the dots for butterflies.



For farmers, the next step is clear financial backing that rewards the effort year after year. For policymakers, it means seeing hedges and field trees as green infrastructure every bit as vital as roads and drains.



Butterflies respond quickly; give them corridors and they will return. The countryside may look pared to the bone, but its recovery could begin with nothing fancier than a line of hawthorn left to bloom or a young oak allowed to stand. Recognizing that these small gestures stitch life back into the land is the first step.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2688-8319.70042">Ecological Solutions and Evidence</a>.



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Simple farmland features can reverse butterfly declines

Butterflies are slipping away from the British countryside. Yet hope...

In 1960, a young woman walked into the forests of Gombe with a notebook and binoculars. Jane Goodall didn’t have formal scientific training, but she had a question: what are chimpanzees really like? Her observations would change science forever. 



On July 14 of that year, Goodall saw her first chimp using a stick to fish for termites. Until then, tool use was considered uniquely human. Today, we remember that moment with World Chimpanzee Day.



But this day is not just about honoring Jane’s legacy. It’s about recognizing who chimpanzees are and why they matter. They’re not just fascinating <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/social-curiosity-starts-young-and-helps-us-survive/">animals</a>. They are our closest living relatives, and they need our help.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-day-to-focus-on-chimpanzees">A day to focus on chimpanzees </h2>



Chimpanzees don’t just live in the wild. They live full, emotional lives. They use tools, share food, form friendships, and sometimes even hold hands. 



In some places, chimps use leaves like sponges. In others, they sharpen sticks to hunt. Every <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-select-the-best-materials-for-termite-fishing/">group</a> has its own habits and culture, passed down through generations.



Chimpanzees care for their young for years. They play, tease, and comfort each other. And when a chimp dies, others mourn. One mother carried her infant’s body for days, unable to let go. 



These aren’t instincts on repeat. These are actions driven by memory, emotion, and thought. The more we watch chimps, the more familiar they feel.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-threats-to-chimpanzees">Threats to chimpanzees </h2>



Despite all this richness, chimpanzees are vanishing. Habitat loss is their biggest enemy. Forests are cleared for farming, roads, and mining. As the trees fall, so do the homes and feeding grounds of chimpanzees. 



Illegal hunting also takes a toll. Some chimps are killed for bushmeat. Others are captured and sold as pets or performers.



Diseases passed from humans spread quickly among <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/social-chimpanzee-mothers-raise-babies-more-successfully/">chimps</a>. Unlike us, they don’t have the immunity to fight back. What feels like a harmless cold to a human can be deadly for them. 



Climate change adds pressure too, shrinking food sources and drying up water. Fewer than 200,000 wild chimpanzees remain, and that number is dropping fast.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-jane-goodall-changed-everything">Jane Goodall changed everything</h2>



<a href="https://janegoodall.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jane Goodall</a> broke the rules of science. She named chimps instead of numbering them. She saw personalities, not data points. There was David Greybeard, the first chimp she saw using a tool. There was Flo, a strong mother, and Flint, her emotional son. 



Goodall didn’t just watch - she listened, and that made all the difference. Her compassionate approach lives on through the Jane Goodall Institute and conservation efforts around the world. 



These programs safeguard forests, support education, and empower future generations. Her legacy proves the power of one person who chooses to truly care.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-take-action-on-world-chimpanzee-day">Take action on World Chimpanzee Day </h2>



You don’t have to be a scientist to make a difference. Start small - learn something new about chimpanzees. Watch a documentary, share a story, or tell a child that chimps laugh and grieve just like we do. The more we understand them, the harder it becomes to ignore their <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-copy-strange-useless-trends-just-like-humans-do/">struggles</a>.



Supporting trusted conservation groups can help protect wild habitats. Speaking out against wildlife trade and unethical animal shows can also help. 



Even simple choices, like avoiding unsustainable palm oil, can reduce pressure on forests. Every action matters, no matter how small it seems.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-safe-places-new-beginnings">Safe places, new beginnings</h2>



Across Africa, sanctuaries now give rescued chimpanzees a second chance. In Uganda, Ngamba Island houses chimps rescued from illegal trade. 



In Liberia, hundreds of chimps once used in medical research now roam protected river islands. These places do more than provide safety. They offer peace, freedom, and healing.



Many of these chimpanzees arrive fearful and malnourished. With time, they climb again. They play again. They trust again. Sanctuaries remind us that healing is possible - not just for animals, but for the people who help them too.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-this-day-still-matters">Why this day still matters</h2>



World Chimpanzee Day isn’t just a date on the calendar. It’s a moment to stop and remember that chimpanzees are still here - but they’re in danger. 



If we let them disappear, we lose more than animals. We lose their stories, their intelligence, and a part of our own history.



Chimpanzees are more than a species in decline - they’re a reflection of who we are and what we choose to value. World Chimpanzee Day isn’t about sympathy; it’s about connection, respect, and a promise to protect a future we still share.



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World Chimpanzee Day 2025: Protecting our closest relatives

In 1960, a young woman walked into the forests of...

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