Western Chimpanzee mum and daughter

Young chimpanzees in a West African forest form either trusting or independent ties with their mothers, but they do not display the confused, “disorganized” attachment style seen in many human children. 



That pattern, common among orphaned chimps raised by people, seems to be absent when animals grow up under natural survival pressures.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-tale-of-two-attachment-styles"><a></a>A tale of two attachment styles</h2>



Field observers followed mother-infant pairs in Taï National Park, Côte d’Ivoire, for four years. They noted the parenting style of the chimpanzees. In particular, the experts studied how youngsters reacted when separated from or reunited with their mothers, and how boldly they explored.



Most fell into one of two familiar human categories. Some were secure: they checked in with their mothers during <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/stress-eats-away-our-brains-cognitive-defenses/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">stress</a>, then ranged out with confidence.



Others showed insecure-avoidant attachment: they coped alone and rarely sought comfort. No infant behaved in the erratic, approach-and-retreat fashion that defines disorganized <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/the-way-you-send-emojis-shows-your-attachment-style/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">attachment</a>.



According to attachment theory, secure bonds foster resilience, while insecure or disorganized ties can predict later anxiety or social trouble. In people, about one child in four shows the disorganized style.



Among captive, human-reared chimp orphans the rate soars to three out of five. The absence of that pattern in nature raises a striking possibility: the style may be maladaptive outside of sheltered environments.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-parenting-style-of-wild-chimpanzees">Parenting style of wild chimpanzees </h2>



Disorganized attachment often follows trauma, fear, or unpredictable care. In forest life, any infant who hesitates at danger may expose itself to leopards, rival males, or territorial disputes. 



“In the wild, we found no evidence of disorganized attachment patterns among chimpanzees, which supports the hypothesis that this type of attachment may not be an adaptive survival strategy in the face of environmental constraints,” said first author Eléonore Rolland, a scientist at the <a href="http://www.isc.cnrs.fr/index.rvt" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Institute of Cognitive Sciences Marc Jeannerod</a>.



If the response ever arises, its bearers probably fail to thrive or reproduce, erasing the trait from the visible population.



Captive <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-share-alcoholic-fruit-to-increase-social-bonding/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">chimpanzees</a>, by contrast, may live inside small enclosures, face no predators and rely on rotating human keepers. That unstable social mix can trigger the conflicted behaviors catalogued in laboratory tests. 



A parallel may exist for modern children who experience institutional care, high caregiver turnover, or chronic stress.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chimpanzee-lessons-for-parenting">Chimpanzee lessons for parenting</h2>



A deeper look at the findings nudges parents and policymakers to ask hard questions. “Our results deepen our understanding of chimpanzees' social development and show that humans and chimpanzees are not so different after all,” Rolland said.



“But they also make us think: have some modern human institutions or caregiving practices moved away from what is best for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/five-scientifically-proven-steps-for-thriving-infant-development/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">infant development</a>?”



Secure attachment in the forest emerged through steady proximity, gentle reassurance, and the freedom to explore within sight of the mother. Avoidant youngsters still stayed near but preferred self-soothing. Both strategies, the authors argue, work under natural constraints.



The third style appears only when normal mammalian care breaks down. If children in wealthy societies show that style at notable rates, the disruption may lie not in genetics but in caregiving routines: overstretched parents, frequent moves, rushed schedules, devices replacing touch.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chimpanzee-and-human-attachment">Chimpanzee and human attachment</h2>



“By identifying attachment patterns in wild chimpanzees, we provide important insights into the roots of human social behavior,” said senior author Roman Wittig from the <a href="https://www.eva.mpg.de/index/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology</a>.



The work links psychology with field primatology and anthropology, tracing how early bonds shape adult society across species.



“Our findings suggest that shared attachment strategies in primates may reflect a common evolutionary heritage,” said co-author Catherine Crockford, a scientist at the same institute.



“The high prevalence of disorganized attachment in humans and captive orphan chimpanzees, in contrast to wild chimpanzees, also supports the idea that the rearing environment plays an important role in shaping attachment types.”



That insight underlines a long-standing debate. Are certain emotional disorders products of modern life rather than ancient biology? If wild primates, who share 98 percent of human DNA, avoid a pattern linked to later mood and relationship problems, then context - not species - may tip the scale.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conservation-and-child-welfare">Conservation and child welfare</h2>



Protecting chimpanzee habitats does more than save a charismatic animal; it preserves the social conditions that allow normal attachment to flourish. 



Orphan rescue centers might adjust caregiving protocols to reduce inconsistency and replicate maternal security rather than relying on multiple human feeders.



In the human realm, the research supports policies that stabilize early care: parental leave, low child-to-caregiver ratios, trauma-informed schooling.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chimpanzee-parenting-next-steps">Chimpanzee parenting: Next steps</h2>



The Taï study followed infants until weaning, around age four to five. Future projects could test whether early attachment style predicts later rank, alliance skills, or parenting success.



Researchers also plan to compare <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bonobos-group-cohesion-common-enemy-effect-do-not-kill-inside-their-species/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bonobos</a>, whose matriarchal societies differ from chimpanzees, and to track hormone levels that might signal stress during separations. 



At the same time, developmental psychologists may revisit human data from cultures with extended family caregiving or from hunter-gatherer groups that mirror ancestral conditions.



If disorganized attachment drops in those settings, it would strengthen the case that modern disruptions - not innate tendencies - fuel the pattern.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-trust-risk-and-survival">Trust, risk, and survival</h2>



In the forest canopy, a mother chimp pauses, her infant scrambling over branches before returning to her side. The scene looks simple, yet it echoes deep principles about trust, risk and survival.



By watching our closest relatives, scientists remind us that the first ties we form still guide us decades later - and that nurturing those ties may be one of the most ancient, and vital, tasks any society undertakes.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-025-02176-8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Human Behavior</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-ralls/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

What wild chimpanzees can teach us about parenting

Young chimpanzees in a West African forest form either trusting or independent ties with their mothers, but they do not display the confused, “disorganized” attachment style seen in many human children. That pattern, common among orphaned chimps raised by people, seems to be absent when animals grow up under natural survival pressures. A tale of two attachment styles Field observers followed mother-infant pairs in Taï National Park, Côte d’Ivoire, for four years. They noted the parenting style of the chimpanzees. In particular, the experts studied how youngsters...

Non-biting midge flies (Chironomus riparius) are common in North America and Europe where they are often known as blood worms due to the red coloration of the larvae. These <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/invasive-insects-will-kill-more-than-a-million-street-trees-by-2050/">insects</a> lay their eggs in bodies of fresh water and the larvae develop in the sediment at the bottom. When they metamorphose into adult midges, they leave the water and continue their life cycle on land.



The aquatic life stages of these insects may take place in water bodies that are polluted by pesticides, fungicides and herbicides that run off from agricultural lands. Mixtures of pesticides, fungicides and herbicides are applied to farms, forests, yards and gardens and, when it rains, the contaminants may be washed into nearby streams, lakes and dams.&nbsp;



The larvae of many aquatic insects are known to accumulate these pollutants, particularly legacy pesticides that remain in the environment long after they were banned from use. Moreover, once in the bodies of the larvae, the contaminants are retained and passed from larvae to pupae to adults, as the life cycle progresses. The levels of contaminants carried in the bodies of male and female midges has not yet been compared, and it is also not known whether these insects accumulate currently used pesticides and carry them into adulthood.&nbsp;



Researchers Alexis Roodt and Ralf Schulz from the University of Koblenz-Landau in Germany, and their colleagues, tracked a range of pesticides, fungicides and herbicides throughout the life cycle of female and male non-biting midges. They also estimated the potential consequences for terrestrial insectivorous birds and bats that eat the contaminated flies. The results are published today in <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/journal/esthag">Environmental Science &amp; Technology</a>, the journal of the American Chemical Society.&nbsp;



The researchers kept midge larvae in containers with sediment and water, and exposed them to sub-lethal doses of a mixture of nine different pesticides. The exposure was at three different concentrations that were related to levels recorded in the field. They then assessed the extent to which the contaminants accumulated in the bodies of the insects over their full aquatic-terrestrial life cycle.&nbsp;



Larvae that lived in the contaminated environment for 14 days accumulated all of the nine different pesticides, fungicides and herbicides studied, and the adult flies retained most of these compounds after emergence. The process of metamorphosis did, however, lower the levels of the contaminants, except for the herbicide propyzamide which showed up in similar concentrations in larvae and recently emerged adult flies.&nbsp;



Adult female midge flies had higher concentrations of the contaminants, when compared to the males. But, as females mated and died, their contaminant levels generally decreased, which the researchers saw as a consequence of laying eggs and thereby transporting the compounds along to the next generation of midges. By contrast, contaminant levels remained steady for adult males from the time they emerged as flies to the end of their adult lives.&nbsp;&nbsp;



The researchers say that non-biting midge flies are thus a potential source of pesticides, herbicides and fungicides to terrestrial food webs when they are eaten by predators such as birds and bats. They estimated that tree swallow nestlings and two threatened bat species consume low to moderate levels of these contaminants&nbsp; daily, when they forage on adult-stage midges.&nbsp;



This means that current-use pesticides add to the diverse range of organic contaminants already known to be in the diets of tree swallows and insectivorous bats, some of which are already present at high concentrations.



“Considering the declines in bird and bat populations coinciding with increased pesticide use in recent decades, a better understanding of the potential dietary exposure to organic pesticides is of great relevance," concluded the study authors.&nbsp;



---



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

Birds and bats are eating midge flies that contain pesticides

Non-biting midge flies (Chironomus riparius) are common in North America...

Wolves used to be widely distributed throughout Europe, Asia and North America, but persecution and conflict with expanding human populations led to their extermination in many regions. They now only occupy approximately one-third of their original range. However, in recent decades wolves have been reintroduced to wilderness areas in many parts of the US, and their numbers are increasing. This development has not been greeted with enthusiasm by everyone, as these mammals can pose a threat to humans, livestock and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pets-are-exposed-to-toxic-chemicals-in-our-homes/">pets</a>.



Biologists know that predators help to keep prey population numbers in check by preying on older and more vulnerable individuals. Reducing the numbers of moose, deer or elk, for example, leads to less pressure on vegetation and is therefore beneficial for the ecosystem in general. In addition, carcasses left behind after wolf kills provide food for scavenging animals and birds.&nbsp;



It is also widely accepted that predators keep prey populations healthy by selectively removing individuals that are old, weak, sick or injured. This assumption, however, is seldom tested scientifically. In a new study, published today in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/ecology-and-evolution">Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution</a>, researchers from Michigan Technological University report that predation by wolves may be beneficial to prey populations in another, more unexpected way.&nbsp;



“Wolf biologists have in the past assumed that wolves play an important role in regulating the health of prey populations by selectively removing old or diseased animals,” said Dr Sarah Hoy, of Michigan Technological University. “However, a rigorous assessment of that idea has not been tested until now.”



The researchers assessed the extent to which wolves in the Isle Royale National Park, near Michigan’s border with Canada, select moose (Alces alces) on the basis of their age and the presence of osteoarthritis in their joints. Osteoarthritis is a chronic, non-communicable disease that affects the ability of an individual to move with ease. Its presence can be detected by analysis of skeletal remains.



“Osteoarthritis is a progressively crippling disease caused by deterioration of cartilage on the surfaces of moveable joints (for example, knees and hip joints),” explained Hoy.&nbsp;“As individuals get older, they are more likely to develop osteoarthritis and develop more severe forms of the disease.”



The researchers found, as expected, that wolves preyed preferentially on elderly moose and avoided prime-aged adults. “When it comes to wolves and moose, it makes a lot of sense that wolves would preferentially target moose that are in poorer condition because adult moose weigh between 800 and 900lbs which is between eight and 10 times as heavy as a wolf,”&nbsp;said Hoy.



However, among the prime-aged individuals that were killed by wolves, many showed evidence of severe osteoarthritis. The presence of severe osteoarthritis symptoms, but not mild or moderate symptoms, increased the vulnerability of prime-aged moose to predation.



“But the situation is different for older moose. While older moose are more vulnerable to predation, that vulnerability does not strongly depend on whether an old moose has osteoarthritis,” explained Hoy.



When the researchers examined how temporal variation in kill rates was associated with the subsequent incidence of osteoarthritis in the moose population, they found that, over a 33-year period, osteoarthritis in the moose population decreased following years with higher kill rates. This indicates that predation by wolves was resulting in an overall healthier moose population, in terms of osteoarthritis in particular.



“The decline in osteoarthritis following years with more predation is – we think – because wolves preferentially removed moose with osteoarthritis from the population,” said Hoy.&nbsp;



Furthermore, because osteoarthritis is influenced by genetic factors, these results highlight how wolf predation may be acting as a selective force against genes associated with developing severe osteoarthritis as a prime-aged adult. This finding supports the idea that predation can regulate the health of prey populations, and has implications for the management and conservation of wolf populations.&nbsp;



“The management and conservation of wolves is controversial among the public. Yet our results suggest wolves might be an effective, natural, and more ethical way of regulating the health of deer and moose populations – as opposed to using culls or recreational hunting to reduce the incidence of diseases or parasites of concern,” explained Hoy.



“The results are also relevant for policy-related arguments about reasons to refrain from intensively hunting wolf populations,” continued Hoy.



“When deciding whether to hunt wolves it is important to not only consider issues that may be caused by wolves (e.g., occasional predation of livestock) but to also consider the important ecological benefits that wolves may provide by removing old and diseased animals from the populations.”



---



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

Wolves improve the genetic fitness of moose populations

Wolves used to be widely distributed throughout Europe, Asia and...

Macro,Close,Up,Of,Fresh,Steamed,Blue,Sea,Mussels.

New research from <a href="https://www.flinders.edu.au/">Flinders University</a> has found further evidence of microplastics in our <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/marine-food-chains-threatened-by-ocean-acidification/">food chain</a>.&nbsp;In southern Australia’s most popular and remote beaches, microplastics were found in blue mussels and the surrounding water. 



The research team considers this a warning that our food chains are now polluted with plastic waste. From wild-caught fish and ocean-farmed seafood, microplastics are polluting the Southern Ocean and gulf waters of South Australia.



The world’s oceans are littered with plastic waste that breaks down into smaller fragments, known as microplastics. The highest concentration of microplastics have been reported in the shallow sea floor in the Maldives and lowest reported in the surface waters of the Antarctic Southern Ocean.



To measure concentrations of microplastics, the researchers analyzed samples from 10 beaches in South Australia's coastline. These areas are important for shipping, fishing and tourism, along with other industries and local communities.



The results showed that microplastic concentrations in the intertidal water are low to moderate compared to global levels. Microplastic concentrations in mussels are also within the range reported globally.&nbsp;



Blue mussels were studied because they are directly affected by ecosystem conditions. This allowed the research team to investigate the types of pollution that are affecting the local environment, “and single use plastics was the main offender” said study senior author Professor Burke da Silva.



Microplastics are usually abundant in mussel samples near large towns and cities. The experts found that concentration levels were four times higher at Semaphore Beach compared to the more remote beaches.



“By investigating microplastic load in the mussel, we call attention to the implications of microplastic pollution on South Australia’s unique marine ecosystems and on the local human food chain,” said study first author Janet Klein.



The types of plastics found in these beaches were synthetic, suggesting they came from single-use, short-life cycle products, fabrics, ropes and cordage from the fishing industry.&nbsp;



“The areas examined include some biodiversity hotspots of global significance – including the breeding ground of the Great Cuttlefish in the Northern Spencer Gulf and marine ecosystems more diverse than the Great Barrier Reef (such as Coffin Bay), so cleanup and prevention measures are long overdue,” said Professor da Silva.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“Apart from the harvesting of blue mussels, we also need to consider the impact of microplastic particles entering other parts of the human food chain with microplastic pollution expected to increase in the future.”



The findings demonstrate the urgent need to prevent plastic pollution. The research team concludes that this can only be done by working with the industries that produce these products, local communities, and government to best protect our ocean ecosystems.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/science-of-the-total-environment">Science of The Total Environment</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:katherinebucko@gmail.com">Katherine Bucko</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Study confirms: microplastics have entered our food chain

New research from Flinders University has found further evidence of...

The conch, one of the world’s largest invertebrates, is traditionally battered and fried in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/caribbean-corals-have-been-warming-for-at-least-a-century/">Caribbean</a>. The animal’s shell is famously used as a horn for long distance communications in Polynesia. Since 1969, the horse conch has been an official symbol of Florida and has been used to promote tourism in the sunshine state. But now, the animal inhabiting the shell is slipping toward extinction.



Unregulated harvest of the gastropod has led to a drop in population, and this decline turns out to be greater than scientists realized. Previously, it was believed that conchs could live for up to 50 years. A new study led by researchers at the <a href="https://www.usf.edu/">University of South Florida</a> tells a different tale.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



The new research shows that the horse conch lives for only an average of 8 to 10 years, reaching reproductive maturity at 6 and giving birth to 28,000 offspring annually. A record breaking two-foot-long conch shell in Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum was found to be only 16 years old. Even with the large amount of offspring, the study shows that fewer conchs are replaced each year than are harvested.&nbsp;



"Our research shows that horse conch reproduction is less likely to keep pace with intense harvest than previously thought," said study lead author Greg Herbert, an associate professor in the USF School of Geosciences.&nbsp;



"Horse conch populations are important. They create habitat for other species by leaving empty shells of dead prey around for fish, crabs and other animals to use as homes. They also contribute to the unique experience that we have in Florida of being able to go to the beach and seeing one of the largest seashells in the world at the water's edge."



The researchers estimated the age of conchs by chemically analyzing the layers in the animal’s shell. They found that males grow slower than females and mature at a smaller size. The experts also discovered that females start laying eggs at the age of six.



The researchers analyzed data from Florida Fish and Wildlife Commision (FWC) to determine population trends over time. They found a decline from a peak conch harvest of 14,511 in 1996 steadily dropping to a mere 67 in 2020.&nbsp;



"We still know very little about how many horse conchs exist and where their preferred habitats or what their optimal environmental conditions are," said study co-author Stephen Geiger, research scientist at the FWC. "Because we have no dedicated funding for more than 1,500 species of mollusks found in the waters that surround Florida, we continue to seek grants that enable us to study their biological traits, including those that will help managers decide if some species are in need of better protection."



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a>,



---



By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Florida’s horse conch is closer to extinction than expected

The conch, one of the world’s largest invertebrates, is traditionally...

A team of paleontologists led by the <a href="https://www.swinburne.edu.au/">Swinburne University of Technology</a> in Melbourne has recently described the smallest <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sauropod-dinosaurs-lived-only-in-earths-warmer-regions/">sauropod</a> dinosaur ever discovered in Australia. Measuring 11 meters in length and weighting about 4.2 tons at its time of death, the juvenile Diamantinasaurus matildae, nicknamed “Ollie,” is the third of its species to be discovered. Its fossils – which included several thoracic vertebrae and ribs, together with a humerus, a scapula, a thumb claw, and a femur - were found on a sheep station near Winton in western Queensland in 2012.



Ollie roamed the Earth around 95 million years ago and, like his sauropod relatives, was an herbivorous dinosaur, feeding exclusively on plants such as&nbsp;conifers, angiosperms, ginkgoes, cycads, ferns, or horsetails. Since most other sauropods measured between 20 and 30 meters in length, researchers believe that Ollie was a juvenile dinosaur that died before reaching adulthood, most likely by getting stuck into the mud and sinking near a watering hole. The fact that Ollie’s bones were not completely fused confirm the hypothesis that the fossils belonged to a juvenile sauropod.



According to study lead author Samantha Rigby, a graduate student at Swinburne University, the discovery of these fossils will likely help researchers better understand the patterns of growth characterizing this dinosaur species. “I spent a really long time comparing Ollie with all of the adult specimens&nbsp;here in Winton and we found that Ollie is not an exact copy of the adult,” she said.&nbsp;



“The limb bones of this juvenile titanosaur grew at a more rapid rate than its back and shoulder bones. The bones are also narrower in width when compared with the robust limb bones of an adult Diamantinasaurus. Ollie's limbs were a lot more overgrown and, as he grew up, he grew into his limbs. He would have looked a bit weird with really long legs and a small body.”



Ollie’s bones are now part of the sauropod collection at the <a href="https://www.australianageofdinosaurs.com/">Australian Age of Dinosaurs</a>, a museum of Paleontology in Winton, Australia. These fossils will likely boost “dino-tourism,” by drawing many visitors from Australia and perhaps even abroad.



A detailed description of this dinosaur is published in the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02724634.2021.2047991">Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</a>.



---



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

The smallest sauropod has been found in Australia

A team of paleontologists led by the Swinburne University of...

A research team led by <a href="https://vt.edu/">Virginia Tech</a> has recently identified and described a new <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-acidification-reduces-the-hatching-success-of-a-keystone-fish-species/">species</a> of millipede from the Appalachian Mountains in the United States. The researchers named this species Nannaria swiftae, after famous musician Taylor Swift - an artist deeply admired by study lead author and entomologist Derek Hennen.



“Her music helped me get through the highs and lows of graduate school, so naming a new millipede species after her is my way of saying thanks,”&nbsp;explained Hennen.



Scientists have long suspected that twisted-claw millipedes include many more species than formally described until now. In order to expand our understanding of these creatures’ biodiversity, Hennen and his colleagues embarked on a multi-year project to collect new millipede specimens throughout the eastern United States. They travelled through 17 states, searching new millipedes under rocks, logs, or leaf litter.&nbsp;



By investigating over 1,800 specimens collected on their field trips or found in university and museum collections, the researchers have managed to describe 17 new species, including Nannaria marianae, which was named after Hennen’s wife. Most of these species preferred to live in forested habitats near streams, and were often found buried under the soil, thus exhibiting more cryptic behavior than many of their relatives.



Nannaria swiftae is between 18 and 38 millimeters long, has a shiny, caramel-brown to black body with white, red, or orange spots, and white legs. The males have small, twisted and flattened claws on their anterior legs (hence the common name “twisted-claw millipedes”). Together with the other species of millipedes discovered in the Appalachian Mountains, N.swiftae have a valuable role as decomposers. They feed on decaying leaves and other plant matter, and, by breaking down leaf litter, they release precious nutrients into the ecosystem.&nbsp;



According to the scientists, even more species of millipedes are expected to be discovered in the southern Appalachian Mountains in further expeditions.



A detailed description of this new species can be found in the open-source journal <a href="https://zookeys.pensoft.net/article/73485/">ZooKeys</a>.&nbsp;



Image Credit: Dr Derek Hennen



---



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

Millipede discovered in the Appalachian Mountains named after Taylor Swift

A research team led by Virginia Tech has recently identified...

The current environmental crisis associated with human activities is more damaging to some wildlife than tens of thousands of years of major <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/growing-perennial-grasses-could-help-curb-climate-change/">climate</a> changes, according to a new study led by the <a href="https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/">Florida Museum of Natural History</a>. The experts report that mollusk communities, which were incredibly resilient to major climatic shifts during the last ice age, are now withering under the strain of human activities.&nbsp;



The results of the study show that mollusk communities were extremely resilient to past changes in temperature, salinity and sea level, but are struggling to endure the burden of human development and overfishing in the region.&nbsp;



“It is sobering to consider that about 120,000 years of major climate change did not affect these ecosystems nearly as much as the human-induced changes of the last few centuries,” said study senior author Michał Kowalewski.



This is not the first time that scientists have recognized a human driven shift in modern Adriatic ecosystems.



“There are multiple human-driven stressors on these ecosystems, such as changes in land use that increase sedimentation rates,” said study co-author Rafał Nawrot. “This has occurred as far back as the Roman Empire, when increased agriculture led to higher rates of erosion.”



While prior civilizations along the Italian peninsula have left a notable signature on Adriatic ecosystems, most of the changes have occurred within the last century, explained Nawrot. These changes include pollution, as well as fertilizer runoff that has depleted oxygen in marine and freshwater environments.&nbsp;



In particular, commercial fishing is possibly the biggest threat to Adriatic mollusks. “The Adriatic Sea is the most heavily trawled area in the world,” said Nawrot.



“By looking at the fossil record, you can reconstruct a range of natural variability," said study lead author Professor Daniele Scarponi of the University of Bologna. "If the present-day community falls outside that range, it’s probably because of us."



For the investigation, the researchers analyzed more than 70,000 marine mollusk fossils dating back to the Late Pleistocene.&nbsp;



At the peak of the last ice age, sea levels dropped by about 400 feet and the northern portion of the Adriatic nearly vanished altogether. The shores retreated over 150 miles south toward the Mediterranean.



“It would have been possible to walk from modern-day Italy to Croatia,” said Professor Scarponi. “The entire northern part of the basin was exposed and transformed into an immense lowland plain.”



The experts focused their study on fossils which date back to before, during and after the last ice age to identify changes to mollusk communities. The results show that as oceans receded, mollusks that live in colder regions flourished in the Adriatic, while those that need warmer water did not.&nbsp;



Despite some severe population declines, however, the researchers note that very few species disappeared altogether.&nbsp;



“The main difference between mollusk communities through the glacial/interglacial cycles isn’t extinction or the appearance of new species, but rather changes in relative abundance,” said Nawrot.



At the end of the ice age, the Adriatic Sea bounced back - along with the abundance of mollusks.&nbsp;



“Our fossil analyses show that communities of mollusk species along northern Adriatic coasts essentially re-assembled into a nearly identical image of themselves when the sea returned,” said Kowalewski.



“Temperatures during the last interglacial were actually a few degrees higher than they are at present, and yet we see the same associations of mollusks,” said Professor Scarponi. “That means near-shore mollusk communities will likely be resilient to a slight increase in temperature going forward.”



On the other hand, Nawrot warns that a warmer world brings with it a unique set of compounding problems. “Many stressors, like anoxia and the effects of invasive species will only intensify with warming, even if higher temperatures alone wouldn’t be a huge deal."



The study was published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652486">Global Change Biology</a>.



---



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

Human activities are ravaging Adriatic mollusk communities

The current environmental crisis associated with human activities is more...

Since the second half of the 20th century, scientists have discussed at length the negative impact of excess nitrogen on both terrestrial and aquatic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dog-feces-can-harm-the-environment-and-disrupt-ecosystems/">ecosystems</a>. However, a new study published in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abh3767">Science</a> argues that nitrogen insufficiencies in certain areas of the world could affect the proper functioning of ecosystems. 



“There is both too much nitrogen and too little nitrogen on Earth at the same time,” said study lead author Rachel Mason, a former postdoctoral researcher at the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center.



During the 20th century, humans have more than doubled the global supply of nitrogen through agricultural and industrial activities. Most of this ended up in coastal waters, inland lakes, or streams, often resulting in harmful algae blooms, low-oxygen zones, and eutrophication. The negative impacts of excess nitrogen has led the scientists to consider this substance a dangerous pollutant.&nbsp;



However, nitrogen remains an essential element for plants and the animals that consume them. When fertilized with nitrogen, gardens, forests, or fisheries are much more productive. With declines in plant nitrogen, trees grow slower and their leaves become less nutritious for insects and their predators such as birds or bats. Moreover, less of this element can constrain the ability of plants to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and thus participate in climate change mitigation.



“When nitrogen is less available, every living thing holds on to the element for longer, slowing the flow of nitrogen from one organism to another through the food chain. This is why we can say that the nitrogen cycle is seizing up,” explained study senior author Andrew Elmore, a professor of Landscape Ecology at the <a href="https://www.umd.edu/">University of Maryland</a>.



By reviewing long-term global and regional studies, the scientists found evidence of declining nitrogen availability in various terrestrial ecosystems. These worrisome declines are caused by multiple environmental changes, such as rises in atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide, which help plant fertilization but, at the same time, dilute the nitrogen plants store. Other causes of this decline include increases in global temperatures, which affect plant and microbial processes associated with nitrogen supply and demand, or wildfires that can remove nitrogen from ecosystems and significantly reduce its availability over time.



“These results show how the world is changing in complex and surprising ways,” said study co-author Peter Groffman, a professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the <a href="https://www.cuny.edu/">City University of New York</a>. “Our findings show the importance of having long-term data as well as focused synthesis efforts to understand these changes and the implications they have for ecosystem and human health and well-being.”



Further research is needed to better understand the spatial and temporal patterns of nitrogen availability in order to efficiently direct global management efforts.&nbsp;



---



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

Earth has too much and too little nitrogen at the same time

Since the second half of the 20th century, scientists have...

Colombia is one of only 17 megadiverse countries in the world. It has an unusually high <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/a-single-gene-could-control-biodiversity-in-an-ecosystem/">biodiversity</a> and is home to many rare and endemic species, including the pink river dolphin, cotton-top tamarin, giant capybara and Orinoco crocodile. Although the country’s biodiversity has been inadvertently protected by years of human conflict and governmental instability, Colombia is now at a crossroads where peace has brought agricultural expansion and a consequent threat to its precious biodiversity.



A recent study by researchers from <a href="https://www.asu.edu/">Arizona State University</a> has identified priority areas where the benefits of conservation actions would be the greatest, while the economic impacts from not developing the land for agriculture would be the least. This is largely in response to the findings of the IPBES (Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) report of 2019 that pointed the finger at human land-use changes as the major cause of biodiversity loss around the world.



“We focused on the case study of the country of Colombia to demonstrate an approach to maximize the biodiversity benefits from limited conservation funding while ensuring that landowners maintain economic returns equivalent to agriculture,” said Leah Gerber, who was lead author of the IPBES report, and is a&nbsp;<a href="https://conservation-innovation.lab.asu.edu/leah-gerber/">professor</a>&nbsp;in the&nbsp;School of Life Sciences&nbsp;and founding director of the&nbsp;Center for Biodiversity Outcomes&nbsp;(CBO) at&nbsp;ASU.&nbsp;



In the study, Professor Gerber teamed up with Colombian native Camila Guerrero-Pineda, who, just three years ago, left her home country to join the ASU and hopefully make a difference back home in Colombia. The study developed a prioritization map showing areas of the country that were at highest risk of being developed agriculturally, and areas where biological diversity could be protected most effectively. &nbsp;



“It’s fair to categorize that Colombia is a megadiverse country,” said Guerrero-Pineda, who is first author on the publication. “It arguably has some of the greatest biodiversity in the world, given its size, and a lot of scientists and academics in Colombia fear the ecological consequences of human actions.”&nbsp;



Although years of guerrilla war, led by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), kept many forest areas from being settled and developed, the peace treaty of 2016 has led to the opportunity for agricultural expansion and to the consequent loss of vital habitats for the resident fauna and flora.



“FARC had a lot of control over the forests, and it prevented a lot of economic development,” said Guerrero-Pineda. “It also prevented a lot of scientific monitoring because scientists were afraid of going into the forests,” said Guerrero-Pineda. &nbsp;&nbsp;



FARC controlled the forests for coca leaf (the plant used to produce cocaine) production and the drug trade, which financed five decades of warfare. Coca tends to be grown in remote, isolated areas, away from roads. In fact, the ASU-led study found that the probability of forests being cleared for use in farming cattle and other crops decreases with increasing distance to roads, while the probability of transformation to coca plantations increases. One of the unplanned consequences of the way in which FARC operated was that development was limited and the spectacular biodiversity was preserved.



The presence of FARC was the most influential variable determining the fate of deforested areas, as the odds of forest conversion to coca crops over conversion to cattle or other crops in areas with presence of FARC was around 300 percent higher than the odds in areas where FARC was not active.



Gerber’s team feels that if no action were taken to change the current trajectory of farmland development, Colombia’s current biodiversity loss rate could increase by 50 percent by the year 2033. The challenge, therefore, is to balance the need to preserve biodiversity with the country’s need to develop economically.&nbsp;



In order to tackle this dilemma, the researchers applied a unique quantitative model that relates investment in conservation to national biodiversity outcomes.&nbsp;



“The methods developed here offer an approach to identifying areas of&nbsp;greatest conservation returns on investment by balancing cost of conservation action,&nbsp;measured as opportunity cost for agriculture, and biodiversity impacts,” said Guerrero-Pineda.



The declaration of any conservation area will come with inherent costs to people who would otherwise have developed and used the area for generating a livelihood. Therefore, the opportunity cost is a measure of foregone benefits that would otherwise have been derived by farmers who have now lost the opportunity to develop the land.&nbsp;



“Opportunity cost is what you're missing out on or what you're not doing because of a decision to do something else,” said Guerrero-Pineda. “What that means is that someone is not going to be able to use the land that is going to be used for conservation.”



Professor Gerber’s team modeled the opportunity cost of conservation (OCC) to agriculture as an approximation of the expected cost of compensating a landowner for avoiding conversion of their property. They assumed that deforestation can be counteracted by compensating the land owner, either by purchase – such as setting the sale value of a piece of land equal to its expected future cash flow – or in the form of continued payments for ecosystem services.



“Our strategy for targeting conservation funding involves first identifying regions with a high risk of forest conversion to agriculture (such as cattle ranching or other crops),” said Professor Gerber. “More broadly, the research agenda is around incorporating cost into decision-making to achieve the most outcomes, given limited resources.”



They found that the Andean region of Colombia contains the highest mean OCC, reflecting a very strong probability that the remaining forests in this region will be converted to agricultural lands. This was followed by the OCC in the Pacific, the Caribbean and the Orinoquía regions. The Amazon region had the lowest mean probability of conversion to agricultural land and the greatest percentage forest cover remaining. According to the team’s model, it also had a much lower OCC.&nbsp;



The researchers estimated that Colombia would have to invest US$37 - 39 million annually (in the best and worst-case scenarios of deforestation) to avoid further severe loss of biodiversity. According to them, this means an increase in its conservation spending of between 7.69 and 10.16 million USD per year. In total, preventing further biodiversity loss in Colombia would require between US$61 and 63 million annually, which is more than twice the amount spent on conservation before the peace agreement.



“One of the things we're excited about with this work is that it's a demonstration of the potential of this idea of using return on investment for thinking about allocated conservation resources,” said study co-author Gwenllian D. Iacona. “And so, we took these two high profile approaches that are out there, called the Waldron Model and the Species Threat Abatement and Restoration (STAR) metric, and we put them together so country-level decision makers can make the best-informed decisions at that type of scale.”



Professor Gerber’s team thinks they have developed a new blueprint, not only to aid Colombia but also to extend to other policymakers in other countries where biodiversity and economic development are in conflict.&nbsp;



The study results can also assist in the planning of land preservation and national parks. In Colombia, the National Natural Park System is working to declare five new protected areas, and to expand three more. This builds on evidence showing that more effective and lasting conservation outcomes are achieved when governance empowers local communities and supports their environmental stewardship, including indigenous communities, reserves and Afro-Colombian lands. &nbsp;



“I think Camila’s work really sets us up to assist entities, whether they be countries or companies, in quantitatively measuring the impact of conservation interventions on different metrics, whether they need biodiversity or climate mitigation, or other types of conservation strategies,” said Gerber. “I'm optimistic that we'll be able to build and scale this to improve conservation outcomes more generally.”



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



---



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

Balancing agricultural expansion and biodiversity loss in Colombia

Colombia is one of only 17 megadiverse countries in the...

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-may-be-more-similar-to-humans-than-expected/">Chimpanzees</a> are known to interact with dead members of their species, often revisiting corpses, and even showing signs of mourning-like <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/study-uncovers-4000-years-of-foraging-behavior-among-albatrosses/">behaviors</a>. But do they show recognition and preference when it comes to skeletons belonging to their conspecifics? 



A new study led by <a href="https://www.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en">Kyoto University</a> has answered affirmatively, by arguing that chimpanzee skulls possess face-like cues, general contours, and eye-nose-teeth arrangements that likely activate a network of brain areas that originally evolved to detect and process faces. In other words, chimpanzees seem to know when a skull is chimpanzee-like due to their brains’ inherent capacity to detect faces (a phenomenon called “pareidolia”).



Previous research has found that African elephants also show more interest in elephant skulls and tusks than in any other stimuli. However, since elephant skulls lose many important facial traits such as their ears or trunks, the recognition mechanisms might be different than in the case of chimpanzees, most probably relying on the elephants’ past experiences. 



According to study lead author André Gonçalves, a primatologist at Kyoto University, chimpanzee skulls still retain the general facial arrangements, suggesting that pareidolia may indeed be the mechanism behind chimpanzee’s interactions with their dead conspecifics. Pareidolia “explains why we see illusory faces in things like clouds and rocks, and primate skulls are as face-like as anything in nature,” he explained.



To test this hypothesis, Dr. Gonçalves and his colleagues conducted a series of three experiments using an eye-tracker to map where chimpanzees are looking and for how long. The results revealed that not only do the chimpanzees show the most preference for chimpanzee faces, they also have a strong attentional bias towards chimpanzee skulls, looking the longest and most intently at their teeth.



“When a wild chimpanzee finds a skull, it will likely be attentive to it like no other inanimate object in his surroundings as it bears a resemblance to one of its own,” Dr. Gonçalves said. Further research is needed to fully map the brain mechanisms responsible for this phenomenon, and to investigate whether other species of primates exhibit similar behaviors.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.210349">Royal Society Open Science</a>.&nbsp;&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

Chimpanzees can recognize the skulls of their conspecifics

Chimpanzees are known to interact with dead members of their...

A new study led by the <a href="https://www.wisc.edu/">University of Wisconsin-Madison</a> has developed detailed maps of bird <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/higher-levels-of-biodiversity-reduce-extinction-risks-in-birds/">biodiversity</a> across the entire United States in order to help conservation managers focus their efforts in areas where they are more likely to help endangered bird populations. 



Since many resources previously available to conservation managers – such as species range maps – are both too broad and not rigorously tested for accuracy, the new maps focus on individual counties or forests rather than on whole states or regions, and are based on both detailed observations of birds and various environmental factors that affect bird ranges, such as forest cover or temperature levels in specific areas.



“With these maps, managers have a tool they didn’t have before that allows them to get both a broad perspective as well as information at the level of detail that’s necessary for their action plans,” said study co-author Anna Pidgeon, a professor of Forest and Wildlife Ecology at UW-Madison.



“Across the world we’re seeing huge species losses. In North America, three billion birds have been lost since 1970. This is across virtually all habitat types,” added study lead author Kathleen Carroll, a postdoctoral researcher in Wildlife Conservation at the same university. “And we’re seeing a disconnect between what scientists produce for conservation and how that translates to boots-on-the-ground management.”



In order to address these problems, Dr. Carroll and her colleagues produced data-driven maps of bird biodiversity by extrapolating observations of birds from scientific surveys to mile-by-mile predictions of where specific species actually live. The predictions were based on factors such as rainfall, forest coverage, or the extent of human influence on the environment, such as the presence of urban areas or farms.



The scientists clustered individual species by habitat, diet, behavior, or conservation status, grouping them in “guilds” such as fruit eaters or forest dwellers.&nbsp;The final maps cover 19 different guilds at resolutions of 0.5, 2.5, and 5 kilometers. According to the researchers, the 2.5 km resolution maps provided the best balance of accuracy and usefulness for realistic conservation needs.&nbsp;



“We see this being really applicable for things like forest management action plans for the U.S. Forest Service,” explained Dr. Carroll. “They can pull up these maps for a group of interest, and they can get a very clear indication of what areas where they might want to limit human use.” In addition, these maps could also help private land conservancies decide where to prioritize their frequently limited resources to maximize biodiversity protection.&nbsp;



The researchers plan to extend their analyses down to individual species instead of guilds made up of different species in order to help conservation managers aiming to protect specific species improve their work.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/eap.2624">Ecological Applications</a> and the full set of maps are available for download from the open-access website <a href="https://datadryad.org/stash/landing/show?id=doi%3A10.5061%2Fdryad.vq83bk3v0">Dryad</a>.&nbsp;



---



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

Maps of bird populations can help protect biodiversity

A new study led by the University of Wisconsin-Madison has...

Tardigrades – colloquially known as water bears or moss piglets – are eight-legged segmented micro-animals that are found everywhere on Earth, from mountaintops to deep <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-acidification-reduces-the-hatching-success-of-a-keystone-fish-species/">oceans</a>, and from tropical rainforests to polar regions. Although they are only about 0.5 millimeters-long when fully grown, they are among the most resilient species of animals, being able to survive extreme conditions, such as high temperatures and pressures, dehydration, or even exposures to massive amounts of radiation.&nbsp;



However, since they are so small, they can only travel very short distances by themselves. This made scientists wonder how it is possible that they populate the entire biosphere, exhibiting a genetic diversity of over 1,400 species. A new study led by the <a href="http://international.amu.edu.pl/">Adam Mickiewicz University</a> in Poland has found that these fascinating creatures can travel long distances by clinging to the bodies of larger, more mobile animals, such as snails.



In a laboratory experiment, the scientists placed a number of tardigrades belonging to the species&nbsp;Milnesium inceptum&nbsp;by themselves in a box. In a second box, they put tardigrades together with a species of snail that can be found in their natural habitats (Cepaea nemoralis), while in a third box they put together tardigrades, snails, and moss – a plant species on which tardigrades often reside in nature.&nbsp;



After three days, the researchers checked how many tardigrades remained in the same location and how many of them moved. They discovered that tardigrades only left their original location in the box with snails but no moss. These findings suggests that they might be picked passively by moving snails, a phenomenon that is less likely if they are embedded in moss.



“This emphasizes the role of the fine-scale dispersion of tiny animals,” said study lead co-author Milena Roszkowska, a doctoral student in Bioenergetics at the Adam Mickiewicz University. “Short-distance transportation of invertebrate animals may have a significant impact on their genetic diversity.”



Sadly, the researchers discovered that some of the tardigrades died from contact with the snails’ mucus. However, since these animals reproduce asexually, only one needs to survive the journey in order to establish a population in a new area. Thus, snail travel could still remain a viable and effective way for tardigrades to populate new habitats.



Further research is needed to clarify whether this type of transport occurs in natural environments too, and, if so, how often. In the future, scientists aim to conduct field studies to explore the patterns of movement of these fascinating organisms in the wild.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-08265-2">Nature Scientific Reports</a>. ---



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

Tardigrades can hitch rides on snails to travel farther

Tardigrades – colloquially known as water bears or moss piglets...

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing it with probiotics and prebiotics, aiming to create a treat that satisfies cravings while supporting gut health. 



The challenge lies in maintaining chocolate's beloved texture and flavor while adding health benefits.



<figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://youtu.be/Ug657J67iEo?si=w96YjGMsg939LD_3
</div></figure>



Probiotics - beneficial microbes that balance gut bacteria and aid digestion - are typically fragile and can be destroyed by stomach acid or processing. 



Prebiotics act as food for these microbes, helping them thrive. Together, they form "synbiotics," a powerful health combination.



Researchers Smriti Gaur and Shubhi Singh from India's Jaypee Institute of Information Technology took an innovative approach, using natural prebiotics like corn and honey instead of complex processing methods. 



They created five chocolate varieties: a control and four synbiotic versions containing different combinations of prebiotics, probiotics (Lactobacillus strains), and flavor enhancers (cinnamon or orange).



Laboratory simulations of human digestion showed the probiotics remained viable for over five hours, suggesting they could survive long enough to benefit gut health.



Taste tests were positive, with researchers particularly enjoying the orange-flavored variety, describing it as having "vibrant citrus notes" complementing the "rich cocoa" with a "luxurious" texture.



This research represents just the beginning. With further refinement of strains, textures, and flavors, chocolate could evolve beyond mere indulgence to become a functional food that nourishes while it delights.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.4c00741" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ACS Food Science &amp; Technology</a>.

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="0ynNMYkMKa-2340414-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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

[sendtonews key="0ynNMYkMKa-2340414-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="3upvlAaHgO-2256633-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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

[sendtonews key="3upvlAaHgO-2256633-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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

[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"] Astronomers at Johns Hopkins University have created...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="uV9Lh2fQbV-1760058-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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"

[sendtonews key="uV9Lh2fQbV-1760058-12187" type="single"] Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="qjvhBOBnY8-2426650-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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

[sendtonews key="qjvhBOBnY8-2426650-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="oL4FnPTGCV-2384527-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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

[sendtonews key="oL4FnPTGCV-2384527-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="0879czfG3k-1785905-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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 rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

[sendtonews key="0879czfG3k-1785905-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from NASA...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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 Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="QIoVYJqRBi-2434608-12187" type="single"]</div>



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)



---



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.

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

[sendtonews key="QIoVYJqRBi-2434608-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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

[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"] Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected...

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



---



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="qARzJPSabQ-2270617-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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

[sendtonews key="qARzJPSabQ-2270617-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="qas3EhyI0Y-2220951-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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

[sendtonews key="qas3EhyI0Y-2220951-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="vpljfR2VBX-2560867-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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

[sendtonews key="vpljfR2VBX-2560867-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="MHyhtebibJ-2200368-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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

[sendtonews key="MHyhtebibJ-2200368-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from NASA...

News coming your way