Spring invites us to witness the spectacle of bird migrations. But have you ever wondered how <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bird-flocks-social-relationships/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">birds</a> manage such precise, collective movement? A recent study from New York University (<a href="https://www.nyu.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NYU</a>) offers fascinating insights into bird flocking and their aerodynamic mystery.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bird-flocking-aerodynamics">Bird flocking aerodynamics</h2>



A team of mathematicians has recently illuminated the dynamics behind large, swirling flocks of birds. The research reveals that birds heavily depend on aerodynamics - the science of air movement around objects - to coordinate their seemingly effortless flight. 



Each <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-lead-flock-strongest-flyers/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bird</a> functions as a compact, feathery powerhouse. Its wings do more than propel it forward; they also generate swirling air currents. These currents are crucial, as they enable birds to manipulate the airspace around them. This manipulation forms the intricate patterns and synchronized movements observed in flocks.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-invisible-springs">Invisible springs</h2>



The scientists found that the air currents generated by <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-birds-brains-evolved-to-enable-them-to-fly/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">birds</a> are not random. They interact with each other in a highly organized manner. These interactions, which resemble the behavior of springs, create a network of unseen forces that link neighboring birds. 



The network helps maintain the positions of birds within the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mixed-species-foraging-flocks/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">flock</a>. If birds drift from their spots, the interactive forces pull them back into place. This contributes to the overall stability and structure of the formation.



"If a flyer is displaced from its position, the vortices or swirls of flow left by the leading neighbor helps to push the follower back into place and hold it there," explained Leif Ristroph, a co-author of the study.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-small-bird-flocks">Small bird flocks</h2>



While these helpful air currents create a beautiful order in small groups of birds, the system breaks down as the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-blend-in-to-adapt-to-diverse-environments/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">flock</a> size increases. In larger flocks, the individual air currents from many birds start to clash and interfere with one another. This disruption weakens the stabilizing "spring" forces. 



As a result, the formation becomes chaotic. Imagine lots of swirling forces bumping into each other. This leads to a loss of the organized structure seen in smaller flocks.



"The very long groups seen in some types of birds are not at all easy to form, and the later members likely have to constantly work to hold their positions and avoid crashing into their neighbors," explained Ristroph.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-flonons">Flonons</h2>



When a large flock is overwhelmed by these clashing air currents, the disruption doesn't hit all the birds at once. Instead, the scientists observed a ripple effect – the disorganized movement started with certain birds and then spread throughout the rest of the flock in a wave-like pattern. 



This chain reaction of jostling within the flock is a unique scientific phenomenon, and the researchers have given it a catchy name: "flonons." This term might become a new addition to our science vocabulary, especially as we learn more about the fascinating world of animal movement.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-broader-significance">Broader significance</h2>



The discovery of how birds flock reveals more than just the remarkable abilities of these creatures; it has significant potential implications for human-designed systems and technologies. 



The insights from studying aerodynamic interactions in bird flocks can enhance machine design. These insights could lead to more efficient, aerodynamically optimized machines. Possible improvements include better vehicle formation dynamics. 



This would reduce drag and lower energy consumption. There could also be advancements in deploying autonomous drones that need to operate effectively in swarms.



Additionally, the principles of bird flocking could enhance the design of wind turbines, optimizing them for better energy capture based on how air flows naturally around objects in motion. This research bridges the gap between natural phenomena and engineered solutions, offering a blueprint for innovation across various fields.



“This area of research is important since animals are known to take advantage of the flows, such as of air or water, left by other members of a group to save on the energy needed to move or to reduce drag or resistance,” explained Ristroph.



The next time you see a flock of birds painting the sky with their organized chaos, remember: you're witnessing some seriously complex engineering by Mother Nature. It's a symphony of aerodynamics, invisible springs, and perhaps some squawky arguments over who gets the best drafting position.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-47525-9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Communications</a>.



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Bird flocking dynamics inspire advancements in technology

Spring invites us to witness the spectacle of bird migrations. But have you ever wondered how birds manage such precise, collective movement? A recent study from New York University (NYU) offers fascinating insights into bird flocking and their aerodynamic mystery. Bird flocking aerodynamics A team of mathematicians has recently illuminated the dynamics behind large, swirling flocks of birds. The research reveals that birds heavily depend on aerodynamics - the science of air movement around objects - to coordinate their seemingly effortless flight. Each bird functions as a...

Two new studies led by the <a href="https://institutducerveau-icm.org/en/mission-en/">Paris Brain Institute</a> aim to clarify how <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/environmental-change-makes-animals-alter-their-behavior/">animals</a> interact with one another within social groups. The researchers are investigating how animals perceive the social interactions of other members of their species, as well as how they experience their own interactions with other members of their group.&nbsp;



The experts want to identify the brain mechanisms that constitute collective intelligence. Moreover, instead of analyzing interactions between only two animals, the studies are focused on all interactions that emerged within certain social groups.



All animals that live in social groups, from ants and birds to apes and humans, adapt their behavior to the group. Being part of a group represents a significant evolutionary advantage for a large number of species. It allows them to accomplish tasks that are impossible to achieve alone, such as building complex habitats, and to solve complex problems in order to avoid predation or find reliable food sources. Such behaviors arise from social interaction, which can range from verbal and non-verbal communication to mimicry, memorization, or other signaling processes.



Previous research in ethology has already investigated in great depth collective decision-making in animal groups. Such decisions are often made by individuals without them realizing that they are in fact collective efforts, as in the case of birds synchronizing their flight. Until recently, animal neuroscience has focused on how animal intelligence and decision-making function at the level of individual brains in isolation.



The new studies explore what happens to animal brains when they are embedded in social groups. The experts propose that the brains of animals change their functioning when they are evolving within social groups.&nbsp;



With new technological advances in brain imaging, EEG recordings can now be made using portable machines, allowing the scientists to study animal social interaction not only in the laboratory, but also in the wild.



It is known that, in humans and many other mammals, the brain activity of individuals belonging to a certain group can be synchronized during various social interactions. However, it is not yet clear how this synchronization process functions.&nbsp;



The researchers at the Paris Brain Institute are starting to uncover these mechanisms, together with other crucial aspects of social intelligence, such as some mammals’ ability to individually represent group decisions. Further research is needed to fully understand the complex interplay between individual cognition and group thinking in social animals.



The studies are published in the journal <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.abm3060">Science</a>. &nbsp;&nbsp;



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

How do animals interact within social groups?

Two new studies led by the Paris Brain Institute aim...

Dinosaurs are often portrayed to have been aggressive and territorial, suggesting that they would generally live in solidarity. However, a new research study has come to a very different conclusion that some of the earliest dinosaurs flourished by living <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/brazilian-jaguars-have-an-unexpected-diet-and-social-life/">socially</a> within herds.



Whilst past studies have already revealed that some dinosaurs lived in herds during the late stage of the Cretaceous Period, it has never been known exactly how and when this behavior emerged.



The research was carried out within a large fossil site in Patagonia, with fossilized eggs being analyzed with the <a href="https://www.esrf.fr/">ESRF</a> (European Synchrotron) tool. The 190-million-year-old nesting ground was discovered in the early 2000s, with scientists discovering skeletons belonging to Mussaurus patgonicus. “Such a preserved site was bound to provide us with a lot of information about how early dinosaurs lived," explained Diego Pol, the paleontologist who initially discovered the site.



The team used the ESRF tool to analyze 30 fossilized eggs containing embryos. The goal was to confirm whether the eggs were laid by Mussaurus or not. “We use high-energy X-rays to penetrate in the sample without destroying it and get a full view inside it," explained ESRF scientist Vincent Fernandez.



Ultimately, the high-resolution computed tomography confirmed that Mussaurus embryos were present in some of the eggs. Furthermore,&nbsp; it was concluded that the fossils belonged to a communal breeding site of a singular dinosaur species, showing that Mussarus would return to the same area (on the dry margins of a lake) to form breeding colonies.



The fossils were not scattered randomly but instead grouped according to their age, demonstrating the strategic grouping of eggs to form schools of young dinosaurs. While adults and subadults were more commonly found in pairs or alone, they were always within one square kilometer of each other.&nbsp;&nbsp;



In order to determine dinosaur age and conclude these results, the ESRF scientists had to cut thin bone samples and scrutinize them under a microscope. “The bones of these dinosaurs grew in annual cycles, much as the tree rings, so by counting the growth cycles we could infer the age of the dinosaur," explained Pol.



Considering that the Mussaurus species belonged to the first successful family of herbivorous dinosaurs, the research has presented clear evidence that dinosaurs developed strategic and well-organized herd structures over 40 million years before initial estimates.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“These are not the oldest dinosaurs, but they are the oldest dinosaurs for which a herd behavior has been proposed," said Pol. "Mussaurus belongs to the first successful family of herbivorous dinosaurs, so we postulate that being social and protecting their young together as a herd may have been part of the reason these long-necked dinosaurs were so common in all continents."



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep/">Scientific Reports</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:calumvaughan05@gmail.com">Calum Vaughan</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Social behavior helped early dinosaurs thrive

Dinosaurs are often portrayed to have been aggressive and territorial,...

A new study highlights the dangers of the ongoing <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/delta-variants-could-further-prolong-the-covid-pandemic/">COVID-19</a> pandemic for mountain gorillas, particularly those in Volcanoes National Park. The researchers determined that there is a very high probability that a COVID-19 outbreak would lead this population of wild mountain gorillas to collapse.



"Mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei), classified as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, have been the focus of intense study on the potential effects of diseases, particularly given that a significant percentage of the population is habituated and in close contact with humans on a daily basis for ecotourism, protection and research programs," wrote the study authors.&nbsp;



"Respiratory outbreaks occur on almost an annual basis - between 1990 and 2020, 18 outbreaks were recorded in the groups within Volcanoes National Park - and pneumonia is considered the second highest cause of mortality, although in only a few cases have illness be directly linked to human origins due to limited molecular data."



Even though COVID infections have been found in captive western lowland gorillas, the potential health risk that COVID-19 poses to mountain gorillas and other wild apes is not yet clear.&nbsp;



"The current COVID-19 pandemic has created unmeasurable damages to society at a global level, from the irreplaceable loss of life, to the massive economic losses. In addition, the disease threatens further biodiversity loss," wrote the researchers.



"Due to their shared physiology with humans, primates, and particularly great apes, are susceptible to the disease. However, it is still uncertain how their populations would respond in case of infection."



To investigate, a research team led by Fernando Colchero from the University of Southern Denmark obtained data on 396 gorillas from the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. The information was collected between 1967 and 2018 in Volcanoes National Park.&nbsp;



Taking into consideration the yearly variations in the size of the gorilla group, the experts used computer models to simulate the probability that a COVID-19 outbreak would lead to a population collapse.&nbsp;



The researchers also accounted for epidemiological factors that influence COVID-19 in humans, including the probability of death after infection and the probability of developing immunity.



Overall, the study authors ran 2,000 simulations in which the size and structure of the population in the park varied at different rates. The analysis revealed that 71 percent of these simulated populations would collapse within 50 years.&nbsp;



According to the researchers, the outlook could be even more grim due to the fact that mortality could be higher among gorillas with a limited availability of treatment options.&nbsp;



On the other hand, the experts noted that the tendency of gorilla groups to naturally socially distance from each other likely decreases the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission.&nbsp;



"The most evident and urgent goal is to avoid infection with COVID-19," wrote the researchers. "This requires that both, park personnel and tourists are vaccinated promptly, monitored for evidence of infection before they come in proximity of the mountain gorillas, and that mask wearing, hygiene measures and daily health checks before visiting gorillas are strictly followed."



"Similarly, it is fundamental to establish a monitoring protocol that allows testing regularly gorillas for possible infections."



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep/">Scientific Reports</a>.



---



By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

A COVID-19 outbreak could be devastating for mountain gorillas

A new study highlights the dangers of the ongoing COVID-19...

According to a new <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.10.10.463851v3.full">study</a> led by the <a href="https://www.soken.ac.jp/">Graduate University for Advanced Studies</a>, an extinct Japanese wolf (Canis lupus hodophilax) may hold clues to the origins of modern dogs. Genomic analyses indicate that the two might share a common ancestor, and that up to 5.5 percent of modern dog genomes throughout East Eurasia are derived from Japanese <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wolf-populations-are-expanding-across-europe/">wolf</a> ancestry.



The Japanese wolf was a subspecies of the gray wolf which inhabited the Japanese Archipelago until approximately 120 years ago. At least since they appeared in written records in the first century AD, these wolves were seen as pests, preying on horses and other livestock.&nbsp;



More recently, rabies outbreaks and habitat loss forced Japanese wolves into increased conflict with humans, making their eradication a national priority towards the end of the 19th century. The last known Japanese wolf was hunted and killed by humans in 1905.&nbsp;



By studying the genomes of nine Japanese wolves from the late 19th and early 20th centuries and 11 Japanese dogs (including popular breeds such as shiba inus), and comparing the results of the analysis to both modern and ancient wolves and dogs, the scientists found that both the Japanese wolves and modern dogs came from a vanished population of gray wolves in East Asia.



According to study senior author Yohei Terai, an evolutionary biologist at the Graduate University for Advanced Studies, the Japanese wolf appears to be a unique, genetically distinct subspecies of the gray wolf, different from both ancient and modern gray wolves. Surprisingly though, the Japanese wolf seemed to share significant genetic affinities to East Eurasian dogs. “It’s a sister relationship,” Terai said.



“If true, this is very important,” added Laurent Frantz, an evolutionary geneticist at the<a href="https://www.lmu.de/en/">&nbsp;Ludwig Maximilian&nbsp;University of Munich</a>. “It’s the first time we’ve seen a wolf population that’s close to dogs.”&nbsp;



However, not all dogs have a significant genetic overlap with the Japanese wolf. Western dogs such as Labradors or German Shepherds, for example, shared far less genetic material than eastern dogs, such as modern Japanese breeds, or ancient canines including the dingo or the New Guinea singing dog. Terai and his colleagues speculate that Japanese wolves bred with dogs that were moving east after a hypothesized east-west split of canine lineages.&nbsp;



Nevertheless, the discovery of these significant affinities between the Japanese wolf and eastern dogs is a crucial step forward in understanding the origins and evolution of modern dogs.



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Mysterious wolf may hold clues to the origins of modern dogs

According to a new study led by the Graduate University...

According to a recent <a href="https://public.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/climate-change-triggers-mounting-food-insecurity-poverty-and-displacement-africa">report</a> of the <a href="https://public.wmo.int/en">World Meteorological Organization</a> (WMO), Africa’s rare glaciers located on Mount Kilimanjaro, Mount Kenya, and the Rwenzori Mountains are retreating at an increasing speed due to global warming. Anthropogenic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-profoundly-affect-plankton-communities/">climate change</a> may cause the glaciers to disappear completely by 2040.



Between 2014 and 2020, Furtwängler, Mount Kilimanjaro's largest glacier, has shrunk 70 percent. This glacier is vital to the people living in the nearby areas, being a major source of freshwater. Moreover, its disappearance could severely impact Tanzania’s tourist industry, since the Kilimanjaro glaciers attract thousands of people from all over the globe each year.



The Rwenzori Mountains from Uganda, which are often referred to as the “African Alps,” the “mountains of the moon,” or “the snowy source of the Nile,” and are also important tourist attractions, have lost up to 90 percent of their mass during the past decades.&nbsp;



While the Kilimanjaro and the Rwenzori glaciers are expected to disappear by 2040, the situation in Kenya is even more dramatic: the Lewis Glacier, which lost over 90 percent of its volume since 1934, is expected to vanish completely by as early as 2030. &nbsp;



“When the melting starts, rivers first experience high flows because of the melting ice. But this subsequently reduces because the glaciers never really recover like they did before climate change became a reality. Because of this, there is less and less water in the rivers in the years that follow,” warned Isaac Kalua, a Kenyan environmentalist and chairman of <a href="https://watertowers.go.ke/">Kenya’s Water Towers</a> Management Authority.



"During 2020, the climate indicators in Africa were characterized by continued warming temperatures, accelerating sea-level rise, extreme weather and climate events, such as floods, landslides and droughts, and associated devastating impacts. The rapid shrinking of the last remaining glaciers in eastern Africa, which are expected to melt entirely in the near future, signals the threat of imminent and irreversible change to the Earth system,"&nbsp;said WMO Secretary-General Professor Petteri Taalas.



If no adequate response measures are urgently put in place, this weather and climate variability will lead to a significant disruption of ecological, economic, and social systems, and expose over 118 million people who already fight with poverty to droughts, floods, and extreme heat.&nbsp;



“This will place additional burdens on poverty alleviation efforts and significantly hamper growth in prosperity,” concluded H.E. Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture in the <a href="https://au.int/en">African Union Commission</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Africa’s glaciers may disappear by 2040

According to a recent report of the World Meteorological Organization...

Patience is sometimes seen as a uniquely human trait, but animals are also capable of waiting patiently. Studies have found that primates, birds and dogs can all delay immediate gratification and wait for a reward that is preferable.&nbsp;



In a recent study by scientists from the <a href="https://www.orn.mpg.de/en">Max-Planck-Institute for Ornithology</a>, 28 birds from four parrot species were tested for their ability to be patient. They were all expected to resist eating a food they did not prefer while they waited to be presented with a food they preferred.&nbsp;



The birds included eight great green macaws, six blue-throated macaws, six blue-headed macaws, and eight African grey parrots, all provided by the Loro Parque Fundación in Spain.&nbsp;



To test levels of self-control, the birds were presented with sunflower seeds – a food they did not prefer – through a gap in a transparent screen. If the birds delayed gratification and did not eat the sunflower seeds, a rotating apparatus would then present them (in 5 to 60 seconds) with walnuts, which were preferred by all the birds.&nbsp;



Both the seeds and the nuts were visible through the transparent screen. If the birds ate the sunflower seeds that were initially presented to them, the experiment ended and they were not given access to any walnuts.&nbsp;



The results showed that African grey parrots were able to wait an average of 29.4 seconds for their preferred food to become available; the great green macaws waited an average of 20 seconds, the blue-headed macaws waited 11.7 seconds and the blue-throated macaws waited only 8.3 seconds. The best performing parrot, an African grey named Sensei, was able to wait for a maximum of 50 seconds – 20 seconds longer than the maximum waiting time for the best performing macaw.



“Our findings suggest that the self-control abilities of closely related macaw species vary greatly between individuals and species. We hypothesize that these differences could be linked to differences in brain size or general intelligence," said study co-author Matthew Petelle.



"They could also be influenced by the foraging behaviors or social organization of different species as better self-control may have been more strongly selected for among birds who are required to invest more time in locating and extracting food or who live in more complex social environments.”



The birds were recorded engaging in a variety of displacement activities while they waited for their preferred food to become available. Sometimes they paced about, or manipulated objects while waiting. The more time a bird spent engaging in these behaviors, the more successful they were at waiting, especially when they had to wait for longer than ten seconds. The effectiveness of these behaviors varied between species.&nbsp;



African greys were more successful at waiting than blue-throated and blue-headed macaws, even though they engaged in these behaviors for similar amounts of time. Pacing was the behavior associated with the greatest success at waiting for the preferred food.



Matthew Petelle said:&nbsp;



“We propose that birds engaged in behaviors such as pacing in order to suppress the impulse to eat the food they did not prefer and better enable them to cope with waiting for the food they preferred to become available," said Petelle.



"Similar coping or distraction behaviors reported in other species, such as lying down and looking away in dogs or playing with toys in chimpanzees, have previously been associated with greater success at waiting.”



Little is currently known about how the species of parrots used in the study interact with their natural environments or with other wild parrots, and so the influence of these factors on the ability to delay gratification cannot be quantified. Limited conclusions can be drawn about the reasons for the inter- and intraspecific differences encountered in this study.&nbsp;



The study authors feel that future research could focus on the social organization, foraging behaviors and brain sizes of parrot species such as blue-headed and blue-throated macaws in order to determine the influence of these factors on the evolution of self-control and patience.



The research is published today in the journal <a href="https://www.springer.com/journal/10071">Animal Cognition</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

African grey parrots practice self-control and patience

Patience is sometimes seen as a uniquely human trait, but...

Chimpanzee,Against,A,Background,Of,Dark,Foliage/chimpanzee/chimpanzee

Although chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) are most commonly associated with forested habitats in Africa, there are several countries in both West and East Africa where chimpanzee populations inhabit savannas. This implies that the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/illegal-cannabis-farms-infringe-on-crucial-animal-habitats/">habitats</a> are more open, with higher temperatures and lower annual rainfall, which has required different adaptive strategies from the chimpanzees living there. 



Savanna chimpanzees are taxonomically identical to forest-dwelling chimpanzees, and thus comparisons of the behavior, morphology and ecology of the two groups help researchers to understand how early humans may have adapted, millions of years ago, when African forests began to recede and be replaced by open savannas.&nbsp;



Certain behaviors and physiological responses in savanna chimpanzees, such as resting in caves or digging to access water, are considered specific adaptations to life in savanna habitats and are not observed in their forest-dwelling counterparts.&nbsp;



Adriana Hernández, Serra Hunter professor at the Faculty of Psychology of the University of Barcelona, co-led a recent study conducted by an international team of primatologists that reviewed the existing research on the behavior and ecology of savanna chimpanzees to understand how these apes adapt to extreme conditions.



“The study on savanna chimpanzees and what we call the&nbsp;landscape savanna effect&nbsp;have important implications for reconstructing the behavior of the first hominins who lived in similar habitats and therefore, it helps us to better understand our own evolution,” said Professor Hernández, who co-led the study with Stacy Lindshield from the University of Purdue.



"We know that early hominins adapted to savanna environments similar to those occupied by chimpanzees today, and researchers think that savanna conditions caused adaptations in our ancestors, such as brain expansion or tolerance to high temperatures."



“Therefore, understanding how our genetically closest living relatives adapt to a dry, hot, seasonal and open environment, very similar to those where early hominins lived, helps us to model how our ancestors might have adapted and how the features that define us as humans might have emerged.”



Chimpanzees share 98.7 percent of their DNA with humans and have a common ancestor that lived between 4.5 and 6 million years ago. This makes them the closest living relatives of modern humans. However, they lack some of the physiological and cultural traits that help humans adapt to extreme heat, such as numerous sweat glands, relative lack of hair and the ability to fashion water containers in which to carry or store water.&nbsp;



The researchers found that savanna chimpanzees have developed specific strategies to help them cope with high temperatures.&nbsp;



“Understanding how they deal with heat can help us better understand what strategies human ancestors may have used to cope with high temperatures. Some strategies are probably the same for chimpanzees and hominins, such as the use of caves or going into water pools to cool down,” noted Professor Hernández. They also try to hydrate themselves during the advanced dry season by digging for water in certain places. “Early hominins also had to deal with low water availability during part of the year."



The study also found that chimpanzee social groups in the savanna have unusually large home ranges of around 100 km², whereas chimpanzees living in more forested areas have ranges between 3 and 30 km². "However, although group sizes are similar in different habitats, chimpanzees in the savanna have a much lower population density, which could be explained by the low availability of food in this habitat."



It is thought that there are fewer chimpanzees living in savanna habitats than in forests, although the exact numbers are not known. In general, knowledge about savanna chimpanzees is incomplete and much more research is needed.&nbsp;



"It should be noted that there are far fewer sites where savanna chimpanzees have been studied, as there are only two study sites where savanna chimpanzees are habituated to humans and their behavior can be observed directly. In contrast, there are many study sites where chimpanzees are fully habituated to researchers in the forest, a habitat where these primates have been studied for decades," explained Professor Hernández.



This study also makes a contribution to understanding the potential effects of climate change on forest chimpanzees, in particular. "The adaptation of savanna chimpanzees to extreme climates can help us model how chimpanzees that currently inhabit forests might adapt to changes that climate studies project will make their environments drier and warmer," said the researchers.



"This is important, since the species is categorized as Endangered and the West African subspecies (Pan troglodytes verus) is Critically Endangered."



The study is published in the journal&nbsp;<a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/15206505">Evolutionary Anthropology</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Chimpanzees give us clues about early human evolution

Although chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) are most commonly associated with forested...

There has been much debate and hypothesizing about the origins of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/domestication-shrunk-rabbits-brains/">domestication</a> in horses (Equus caballus). Where were they first domesticated, and by whom? How did they spread around the globe and what were their ancestors like? Many previous studies have attempted to answer these questions but no final resolution has been forthcoming, and the early domestication of the horse has remained exceedingly difficult to trace in the archeological record.&nbsp;



In a new study led by Professor Ludovic Orlando of <a href="https://www.cnrs.fr/">CNRS</a>, a team of 162 international scientists has had a breakthrough. The experts, who specialize in archeology, paleogenetics and linguistics used the modern technologies of genetic analysis.&nbsp;



In recent years, a scientific consensus had emerged linking the Botai culture of northern Kazakhstan with the first domestication of horses, based on the presence of 5,500-year-old skeletal remains with damage to the dentition that is commonly linked to the use of bridle mouthpieces. However, when Ludovic Orlando's team looked at the DNA from the archeological remains, they found that the animals were Przewalsky’s horses (Equus przewalski), a totally different species from modern domesticated horses.&nbsp;



In all other locations hypothesized to be potential foci for domestication, for example Anatolia, Siberia and the Iberian Peninsula, the evidence turned out to be false. “We knew that the time period between 4,000 to 6,000 years ago was critical but no smoking guns could ever be found,” said Professor Orlando.&nbsp;



The scientific team thus decided to extend their study and analyze the genomes of 273 horses that lived between 50,000 and 200 years BC, at sites throughout Eurasia. This information was sequenced at the Centre for Anthropobiology and Genomics of Toulouse (CNRS/Université Toulouse III – Paul Sabatier) and Genoscope&nbsp;(CNRS/CEA/Université d’Évry) before being compared with the genomes of modern domestic horses.



The results indicated that, although Eurasia was once populated by genetically distinct horse populations, a dramatic change occurred between 2000 and 2200 BC. “That was a chance: the horses living in Anatolia, Europe, Central Asia and Siberia used to be genetically quite distinct,” explained study first author Dr. Pablo Librado. 



Then, a single genetic profile, previously found only on the Pontic steppes (North Caucasus), began to spread beyond its native region, replacing all the wild horse populations from the Atlantic to Mongolia. From this the authors conclude that horses were first domesticated in the Pontic-Caspian steppes,&nbsp;northern Caucasus, before spreading out through the rest of Eurasia within a few centuries.&nbsp;



“The genetic data also point to an explosive demography at the time, with no equivalent in the last 100,000 years,” said Professor Orlando. “This is when we took control over the reproduction of the animal and produced them in astronomic numbers.”



Two striking differences were found in the genome of this horse that spread so rapidly throughout Eurasia: the new horses had more docile behavior and stronger backbones than the breeds they replaced. The researchers suggest that these characteristics ensured the animals’ success at a time when horse travel was becoming more commonplace and widespread.



Indeed, the research also showed that the genetically different horse spread throughout Asia at the same time as spoke-wheeled chariots and Indo-Iranian languages. However, the migrations of Indo-European populations, from the steppes to Europe during the third millennium BC&nbsp;could not have been based on the horse, as its domestication and diffusion came later. This demonstrates the importance of incorporating the history of animals when studying human migrations and encounters between cultures, state the authors.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/">Nature</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

The origin of horse domestication has finally been revealed

There has been much debate and hypothesizing about the origins...

Mammoths, the woolly cousins of today’s <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/elephants-can-be-very-cooperative-until-the-food-gets-scarce/">elephants</a>, roamed the Earth for over five million years before they mysteriously vanished about 4,000 years ago. A new study led by the <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/">University of Cambridge</a> has found that the cause of their extinction was not humans, as previously thought, but climate change.



Mammoths lived alongside early humans and were regularly hunted by hominids for food and clothing. Moreover, the animals’ skeletons were used to build shelters and various tools and instruments, ranging from harpoons to flutes.



“Scientists have argued for 100 years about why mammoths went extinct. Humans have been blamed because the animals had survived for millions of years without climate change killing them off before, but when they lived alongside humans they didn’t last long and we were accused of hunting them to death,” said study leader Eske Willerslev, a fellow at the University of Cambridge’s St. John’s College. However, humans in fact lived over 2,000 years alongside mammoths, without causing their extinction.



By analyzing ancient DNA samples from plants and animal remains collected over a period of 20 years from sites in the Arctic where mammoths used to live, Professor Willerslev and his colleagues have found that, after the last Ice Age from late Pleistocene, the climate got wetter and the ice began to melt, leading to the formation of rivers, lakes, and marshes. These changes in the ecosystems significantly reduced the vegetation on which mammoths relied, including various types of grass, small shrubs, plants, and flowers, and made it impossible for them to survive.



“We have finally been able to prove was that it was not just the climate changing that was the problem, but the speed of it that was the final nail in the coffin – they were not able to adapt quickly enough when the landscape dramatically transformed and their food became scarce,” explained Professor Willerslev.



“This is a stark lesson from history and shows how unpredictable climate change is – once something is lost, there is no going back. Precipitation was the cause of the extinction of woolly mammoths through the changes to plants. The change happened so quickly that they could not adapt and evolve to survive,” he concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/">Nature</a>.



Image Credit: Daniel Eskridge



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Mammoths were wiped out by climate change, not humans

Mammoths, the woolly cousins of today’s elephants, roamed the Earth...

Arctic krill are tiny, shrimp-like crustaceans that drift in the ocean’s currents. They form part of the floating zooplankton and are eaten by many vertebrates, including fish, birds and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/killer-whales-are-not-short-of-prey-in-southwestern-canada/">whales</a>.&nbsp;



Krill have evolved a pattern of daily migration, up and down the water column, as a way of avoiding the many predators that threaten them. Their circadian rhythm involves moving to the surface of the ocean to feed at night, and then moving down into the depths during the day, to avoid detection by predators.



But how do these small crustaceans distinguish night from day during the polar winter, when the sun does not rise above the horizon?&nbsp;



In a recent study led by Jonathan Cohen from the University of Delaware, experts measured midday and midnight light intensity during winter months across the Svalbard Archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. The measurements were made from a marine research vessel, as well as from a land-based light observatory. In addition, the daily migrations of Arctic krill (Thysanoessa inermis), were monitored using acoustic recording equipment.&nbsp;



The researchers found that light availability was just two-fold higher at midday than at midnight in the middle of the Arctic winter. By comparison, midday light availability during spring and autumn is seven-fold higher than the light at midnight. The Arctic krill can detect this miniscule change in light intensity and this allows them to maintain their biological rhythms.



To support their findings in the field, the scientists also conducted lab experiments to investigate the visual sensitivity of Arctic krill to light. Using a technique called extracellular electroretinogram recording (ERG), they found that the krill were more sensitive to light at night than during the daytime.&nbsp;



This extra sensitivity helps them to identify when it is night time and then to migrate to the surface to feed. In this way, they are able to synchronize their circadian rhythms with very small variations in external light cues. Such adaptations may also be essential in regulating monthly and annual cycles of behavior and physiology, the study authors explained.



“We found that the light environment during the high Arctic polar night has a complex timing of ‘light’ and ‘dark’ due to light coming from the sun below the horizon, the moon, and the aurora borealis," said Cohen.&nbsp;



"While this light is dim and unlike the typical photoperiod at lower latitudes, we show that it is sufficient to set a biological clock in krill, showing this animal has one of the more sensitive biological rhythms studied to date.”



The study is published today in the open-access journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/">PLOS Biology</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Arctic krill can distinguish night from day, even in polar winter

Arctic krill are tiny, shrimp-like crustaceans that drift in the...

The diet of land-based <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-explain-longevity-in-mammals/">mammals</a> is generally considered to be carnivorous, with creatures preying on other mammals within their territory. However, this is not always the case. Some mammals, such as the Brazilian jaguar, survive together harmoniously under unusual circumstances.



Researchers from <a href="https://oregonstate.edu/">Oregon State University</a> have been investigating the diet, population density, and social interactions of jaguars in a remote wetland area of Brazil.&nbsp;



Jaguars are expected to be solitary mammals, but the results of the study contradict the idea that social interactions among these animals are limited to mating and defending their territory. For example, the researchers documented adult males playing together.&nbsp;



The Brazilian population was also found to feed minimally on mammals, instead thriving on a diet of fish and aquatic reptiles.



The study was conducted by lead author Charlotte Eriksson, Professor Taal Leviwithin, and Professor Carlos Peres within a seasonally flooded area of the Northern portion of the Brazilian Pantanal, the largest freshwater wetland worldwide.



The researchers tracked a pack of the mammals in the region through motion-triggered video cameras and GPS collars. They collected samples of jaguar feces and observed the behavior of the animals while they played, fished and traveled.



Throughout the feces samples, the researchers identified nine prey items. The jaguars had diets that consisted of 55 percent aquatic reptiles, 46 percent fish,&nbsp; and only 11 percent mammals.&nbsp;



The jaguars demonstrated unusual social behaviors, moving liberally within the study area, and even playing with each other. The area of study presented a jaguar density of 12.4 per 100 square kilometers, a density which is around three times higher than the average found for other Jaguars in South American regions.&nbsp;



Across 59 camera stations that were operational for 8,065 days between 2014 and 2018, jaguars were detected on 95 percent of the cameras. Overall, the cameras captured 1,594 videos of 69 individual animals.



“Typically you see an apex predator very infrequently on camera because they move over really large areas,” said Eriksson. “Jaguars were the most frequently seen mammal on camera – which is really unusual.”



Throughout the study period, 80 social interactions were documented between adult jaguars, with 85 percent being between males and females and 12 being between same-sex jaguars. Nearly all of the same-sex interactions were male-to-male, with two males spending half an hour in front of a camera playing together.



The researchers believe that the abundance of fish and reptiles in the area is key to explaining this behavior: “If there is a lot of food around, there is less of a need to fight over it,” explained Eriksson.



The study has been published in the journal <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/19399170">Ecology</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:calumvaughan05@gmail.com">Calum Vaughan</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Brazilian jaguars have an unexpected diet and social life

The diet of land-based mammals is generally considered to be...

As human activities alter the environment at an accelerating rate, scientists are scrambling to understand how animals will respond. A new study from the <a href="https://www.helsinki.fi/en">University of Helsinki</a> has investigated which human-induced environmental changes that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/islands-are-not-evolutionary-dead-ends-for-animals/">animals</a> are the most sensitive to, and how these changes will alter their behavioral patterns.



"Currently, human-induced rapid environmental change (HIREC) is exposing organisms to novel selection pressures that are vastly different from those experienced previously," wrote the study authors.&nbsp;



"Whilst evolutionary responses to environmental change can occur quickly and buffer the ability of species to persist in a changing environment, behavioral responses are often the initial response of organisms to change."



The researchers noted that understanding how an animal's behavior will be modified by environmental change is critically important.&nbsp;



"In response to environmental change, organisms can adapt, relocate and/or acclimatise. First, populations can respond to changing environments at a genetic level, through evolutionary adaptation resulting from selection," said the researchers.



"Secondly, organisms can relocate via dispersal into habitats in different geographic spaces in response to environmental factors such as temperature and resource availability."&nbsp;



"Finally, organisms can acclimate through phenotypic plasticity, which may be physiological, morphological or behavioral."



According to the experts, behavioral plasticity allows organisms to respond to environmental changes very quickly by modifying their behavior to better suit the new conditions.



The study was focused on data from more than one hundred animal species, including fish, birds, insects, amphibians and mammals. The experts found that all of the behavioral traits examined - such as aggression, boldness, sociability and activity - were significantly changed by environmental changes.



“The biggest change was seen in the animals’ activity in exploring their environment. Animals have a strong response to all forms of environmental change, but climate change engendered the greatest change in animal behavior,” explained study co-author Petri Niemelä.



Beyond climate change, the researchers considered changes in carbon dioxide concentration, fluctuations in nutrient levels, and invasive species. Direct human impacts like urbanization were also modeled.&nbsp;



Overall, the experts concluded that modifications in activity or other behavior are often the initial response to climate change. They determined that more research is needed on individual populations to gain a better understanding of how animals respond to environmental changes.&nbsp;



“Behavioral change can serve as a buffer with which animals avoid the immediate negative effects of environmental change," said Niemelä.&nbsp;



"For instance, such change can compensate for low reproductive success or increased mortality caused by environmental change. By changing their behavior, animals can also gain more information on the altered environment.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/16000706">Oikos&nbsp;</a>



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Environmental change makes animals alter their behavior

As human activities alter the environment at an accelerating rate,...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Lake Trasimeno, which is located west of Perugia in central Italy. It is the fourth largest lake in the country. While Trasimeno’s water level varies, it has a maximum depth of approximately six meters.&nbsp;



"In this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image, captured on 6 August 2022, the lake’s emerald green colour is likely due to the presence of phytoplankton. Streaks in the water, particularly visible in the west, indicate the presence of soil and sediments which have been stirred up by winds. Dark colored waters in the southern part of the lake indicate a presence of submerged and floating macrophytes (aquatic plants) as well as algae," says ESA.



"Surrounded by hills on three sides, Trasimeno is subject to heavy storms created by winds, especially from the north and west. There are three islets in the lake: Maggiore, Minore and Polvese (the largest). The lake’s shores are sparsely inhabited with only two popular villages: Castiglione del Lago and Passignano sul Trasimeno."



"Italy is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years which has affected drinking water supplies, hydroelectric power and agricultural production. High temperatures, hot winds and lack of rainfall are the main causes of drought in the Umbrian region which saw Lake Trasimeno’s drop 1.3 m, reaching the limit of the hydrometric zero in July 2022."



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes a new self-powered nanosensor that can instantly detect mercury contamination with the tap of a finger.&nbsp;



The oxidized form of mercury can be harmful when it is ingested through contaminated water or food. This makes it necessary for experts to develop sensors that can quickly and accurately detect the presence of mercury.&nbsp;



Zong-Hong Lin and colleagues have now created a triboelectric nanosensor (TENS) that can detect mercury by simply by touching a sample. According to the researchers, their TENS could serve as the basis for similar devices to safely and remotely monitor other pollutants.



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



One previous study showed that, not only does salt suppress bitterness, but also enhances sweetness and sourness. Another study revealed that bitterness reduction by salt seems to be happening at the tongue receptor level as well as in the brain.&nbsp;



While it is known that salt taste is mediated by the presence of sodium channels in the form of taste buds, experts believe that there is also an unknown receptor responsible for how we taste salt that has not yet been identified.&nbsp;



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

How does salt makes things taste better?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



'The weather of Santiago resembles the Mediterranean climate with dry and warm summers with temperatures reaching up to 35°C (from October to March) and cool and humid winters that can drop to 0°C (from April to September)."



"The city lies in the centre of the country’s central valley around 80 km from the Pacific Ocean to the west and borders Argentina to the east. A tiny part of Argentina is visible in the top-right corner of the image where the mountain crest of the Andes Mountains acts as a divider between the two countries," says ESA.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Santiago, Chile in South America

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

Spiral,Galaxy,,Illustration,Of,Milky,Way

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Astronomers at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">Johns Hopkins University</a> have created an interactive map of the universe, including the actual position and real colors of 200,000 galaxies. The map allows the public to access data that was previously only available to scientists.



The map was developed using data collected by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. For over two decades, a telescope in New Mexico was aimed at slightly different locations to capture the night sky.&nbsp;



"Growing up I was very inspired by astronomy pictures, stars, nebulae and galaxies, and now it's our time to create a new type of picture to inspire people," said map creator Brice Ménard, a professor at Johns Hopkins. "Astrophysicists around the world have been analyzing this data for years, leading to thousands of scientific papers and discoveries. But nobody took the time to create a map that is beautiful, scientifically accurate, and accessible to people who are not scientists. Our goal here is to show everybody what the universe really looks like."



"In this map, we are just a speck at the very bottom, just one pixel. And when I say we, I mean our galaxy, the Milky Way which has billions of stars and planets. We are used to seeing astronomical pictures showing one galaxy here, one galaxy there or perhaps a group of galaxies. But what this map shows is a very, very different scale."



"From this speck at the bottom, we are able to map out galaxies across the entire universe, and that says something about the power of science."



The <a href="https://mapoftheuniverse.net/">interactive map</a> is available online, where it can be downloaded for free.



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features northwest Lesotho in South Africa.



According to ESA, Lesotho is the only nation in the world that lies completely above 1,000 m in elevation. The country is famous for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, and is known as Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky."



Out of a population of around two million people, about 80 percent live in rural areas. More than 75 percent of these people are engaged in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-have-a-global-impact-on-agriculture/">agriculture</a>, including rainfed cereal production and animal grazing.&nbsp;



ESA reports that the country’s agricultural system faces a growing number of issues, with climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently. 



Diamonds are amongst the minerals found in the mountains. Indeed, Lesotho can truly be called the Kingdom in the Sky. Beautiful, culturally rich, safe, affordable, and easily accessible from Durban and Johannesburg, mountainous Lesotho is a vastly underrated travel destination. the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa Lesotho) is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in size and has a population of around 2 million.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland. Beyond its pub culture, Dublin is known as a modern culinary destination and a UNESCO City of Literature.



"Dublin is located near the midpoint of Ireland’s east coast in the province of Leinster. The city, which covers an area of around 115 square kilometers, is bordered by the Dublin Mountains, a low mountain range to the south, and is surrounded by flat farmland to the north and west," says ESA.



"The city straddles the River Liffey, which rises in the Wicklow Mountains and flows around 80 kilometers eastwards through the city of Dublin, in which it is canalised and bordered with quays. It then empties into Dublin Bay, an arm of the Irish Sea."



Dublin has an abundance of green spaces, including one of the largest enclosed public parks in any European capital city. Phoenix Park, which was originally formed as a royal hunting park in the 1660s, includes 707 hectares of green space.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain. The image was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.



"Together with the provinces of Huesca and Teruel, Zaragoza formed the old kingdom of Aragon. Its capital, also called Zaragoza (not visible in this image) is home to around half of Aragon’s population," says ESA.



"The Ebro River can be seen winding its way through the province from west to east in this image. Between its source in the Cantabrian Mountains in the northwest and its delta on the Mediterranean coast, the Ebro River is fed by more than 200 tributaries as it flows 910 km across much of northern Spain."



Since rainfall is very scarce in this region, irrigation in the Ebro basin is critically important. In the valleys surrounding the Ebro River, many fields are used for growing crops such as corn, wheat, and barley.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the Pyrenees Mountains, which form a natural boundary between France and Spain in southwest Europe.



The mountain range is 430 kilometers in length. It stretches from the Mediterranean Sea on the east to the Atlantic Ocean on the west.



At an elevation of 3404 meters, Pico de Aneto is the highest mountain peak in the Pyrenees, and the third-highest peak in Spain. Pico de Aneto is located in the Posets-Maladeta Natural Park, which spans more than 82,000 acres.&nbsp;



"Geological studies have revealed that the Pyrenees Mountains have been around for longer than the Alps, with their sediments first deposited in coastal basins during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras," reports ESA.



"The entire mountain range formed due to the upwelling of large sedimentary rocks by the collision of the Iberian and the Eurasian plate around 100 to 150 million years ago, followed by intense erosion from ice and water."



The western Pyrenees receive more precipitation due to moisture blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. The mountain range contains many lakes, several small glaciers, and some of the highest waterfalls in Europe.



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



The experts used data from NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes. They discovered that exoplanets Kepler-138 c and Kepler-138 could be composed largely of water.



"We previously thought that planets that were a bit larger than Earth were big balls of metal and rock, like scaled-up versions of Earth, and that's why we called them super-Earths," explained study co-author Björn Benneke.&nbsp;



"However, we have now shown that these two planets, Kepler-138 c and d, are quite different in nature and that a big fraction of their entire volume is likely composed of water. It is the best evidence yet for water worlds, a type of planet that was theorized by astronomers to exist for a long time."



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and Leah Hustak (STScI)



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science explores how changes in water temperatures have affected tiger shark habitats and movements in the North Atlantic Ocean. The study reveals that rising temperatures have caused the sharks to shift toward the poles over the past 40 years.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag. “These results have consequences for tiger shark conservation, since shifts in their movements outside of marine protected areas may leave them more vulnerable to commercial fishing.”



The researchers analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, combined with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.



The experts found that during the last decade of record heat, for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. They also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



“Given their role as apex predators, these changes to tiger shark movements may alter predator-prey interactions, leading to ecological imbalances, and more frequent encounters with humans,” concluded Professor Hammerschlag.



Video Credit: University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

Today’s Video of the Day from the University of Miami...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> is focused on the melt ponds that emerge during the spring and summer on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which is the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere.



"Melt ponds are vast pools of open water that form on both sea ice and ice sheets and are visible as turquoise-blue pools of water in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image," says ESA.



"When snow and ice melts atop glaciers, water flows in channels and streams and collects in depressions on the surface. These melt ponds can speed up the melting of the surrounding ice since they greatly reduce the ice’s ability to reflect sunlight."



"This can create a positive feedback where an increasing number of melt ponds absorb more heat which causes ice cover to melt even faster."



According to ESA, Greenland has been hit with a late-season heatwave that began in early September. This caused the type of melt event that usually occurs in the middle of summer.



"In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, scientists found that major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now ‘inevitable’ even if the burning of fossil fuels were to halt overnight," says ESA. "Using satellite observations of Greenland ice loss and ice cap from 2000 to 2019, the team found the losses will lead to a minimum rise of 27 cm regardless of climate change."



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes a new map of Mars that is providing insight into the planet’s watery past. The map also reveals where future missions could safely land on Mars.&nbsp;



The map has been created over the last decade using observations of water-rich rocks and mineral deposits. The images were captured by ESA’s Mars Express and NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.



"A big surprise is the prevalence of these minerals, with the map revealing hundreds of thousands of water-affected locations in the oldest parts of the planet," says ESA. "The new data will help answer exciting questions about Mars’ climate history, whether water was globally persistent or confined to short, intense episodes, and whether the conditions were ever suitable for life."



"Specifically, the map shows the locations and abundances of aqueous minerals. These are from rocks that have been chemically altered by the action of water in the past, and have typically been transformed into clays and salts."



According to John Carter of the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS), our collective understanding of Mars has been oversimplified. He explained that planetary scientists have tended to think that only a few types of clay minerals on Mars were created during its wet period, then as the water gradually dried up, salts were produced across the planet.



The new map shows that the composition of Mars is much more complicated than what we thought. For example, while many salts formed after Martian clays, there are some salts that are presumed to be older than some of the clays.&nbsp;



“The evolution from lots of water to no water is not as clear cut as we thought, the water didn’t just stop overnight. We see a huge diversity of geological contexts, so that no one process or simple timeline can explain the evolution of the mineralogy of Mars. That’s the first result of our study. The second is that if you exclude life processes on Earth, Mars exhibits a diversity of mineralogy in geological settings just as Earth does,” said Carter.



Video Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes how cavefish adapted to a sedentary lifestyle over tens of thousands of years. 



The experts found that the muscle metabolism of cavefish has been genetically reprogrammed over time. As a result, the animals have experienced major changes in their morphology and behavior. Despite these changes, however, the cavefish remain healthy and fit.



The research may provide new clues about the evolutionary consequences of prolonged physical inactivity in humans.&nbsp;



“It’s no surprise that people are moving less and less as technology has advanced,” said Rohner. “With cavefish, we have a unique system where we can study what might happen if people remained couch potatoes over very, very long periods of time.”



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> some of the most incredible waves in the world, as seen by Landsat satellites.



"With more than 370,000 miles of coastline on Earth, there are plenty of places where epic waves build up, curl over, and hurtle toward the shore.- much to the thrill of surfers," says NASA. "There are some places where these waves are so magnificent that they can be seen from space."



"With the broad perspective of satellites, we can see how these iconic waves develop into the world’s tallest, longest, fastest, and heaviest."



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes why satellite images and measurements of our planet have become "essential to our survival, offering a new outlook of our world."&nbsp;



Rising sea levels pose one of the biggest societal threats associated with climate change. According to ESA, satellite altimeter missions such as Copernicus Sentinel-6 are essential in monitoring global and regional changes in sea level.



"Unbeknown to many, the island of Crete, Greece, plays an important role in the Copernicus satellite altimetry constellation and on an international stage," reports ESA.



"Satellite altimetry data have to be continuously monitored at the ESA’s Permanent Facility for Altimetry Calibration where different techniques have pioneered the use of transponders to provide the best measurements to validate satellite altimeters in space soon after launch."



Dr. Craig Donlon explains that, by understanding planet Earth through satellite measurements, we are able to find evidence of change.&nbsp;



Video Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Satellites have become essential to our survival

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