In Uganda’s Budongo Forest, chimpanzees are doing more than just surviving. They’re treating their wounds with plants, cleaning each other’s injuries, and pulling snares off their companions’ limbs. 



These behaviors, documented in a new study, hint at something profound. Perhaps the roots of human medicine run deeper than we thought.



Elodie Freymann, a researcher from the <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Oxford</a> and the study’s lead author, believes these findings offer a fresh perspective on how our ancestors might have first learned to care for wounds. 



“<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-mix-vocal-calls-to-create-new-meanings-like-humans/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Animals</a> are helping each other out. They’re capable of identifying others in need and then addressing those specific needs,” Freymann said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-chimpanzees-treat-wounds">How chimpanzees treat wounds</h2>



For eight months, researchers watched two chimpanzee communities in Budongo - Sonso and Waibira. Injuries were common, from bites and scratches to deadly snares left by humans.



In Sonso alone, nearly 40% of the chimps bore snare scars. Freymann and her team saw twelve injuries in Sonso and five in Waibira during the study period. The injured chimps weren’t just tending to their own wounds. They were also helping each other.



A male chimp named KT managed to pull a nylon snare off his wrist. Another <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-use-rhythmic-drumming-to-communicate-in-forests/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">chimpanzee</a>, HW, licked the wound of a female after she had been attacked. 



In yet another case, a juvenile female chewed leaves, dabbed them onto her mother’s wounds, then licked her fingers and pressed them onto the injured area. This behavior wasn’t isolated to relatives. In four instances, chimps helped others unrelated to them.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chimpanzees-recognize-medicinal-plants">Chimpanzees recognize medicinal plants </h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/what-wild-chimpanzees-can-teach-us-about-parenting/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Chimpanzees</a> don’t just grab any leaf when they get hurt. They seem to know which plants help wounds heal. 



Freymann’s team documented several plant species used in wound care. Acalypha sp., for example, is known for its antimicrobial properties. Pseudospondias microcarpa has a reputation for soothing pain and reducing inflammation.



One chimp chewed Acalypha leaves, then pressed the pulp onto a cut. Another used Lasiodiscus pervillei leaves to wipe away dirt and blood. 



A juvenile male named KO even mashed the stem bark of Argomuellera macrophylla and rubbed it into a wound on his leg. The behavior mirrored traditional African medicine, where these plants treat everything from skin infections to digestive issues.



“It’s likely that our shared common ancestor also would have been capable of these care behaviors as well,” Freymann noted. If chimps know which plants heal wounds, maybe early humans learned from them.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-social-side-of-care">The social side of care</h2>



Prosocial care - helping others - is rare among non-human <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-share-alcoholic-fruit-to-increase-social-bonding/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">animals</a>. But Budongo’s chimps are doing it. During the study, researchers documented seven cases of one chimp helping another. In three of these instances, the caregiver and the injured chimp were unrelated.



A male chimp named ZG licked the blood off a female’s wound after she was attacked by other chimps. In another case, NT, a juvenile female, watched her mother chew leaves and press them onto a wound. NT then did the same, imitating her mother’s technique.



Freymann sees this as evidence that chimps aren’t just mimicking; they’re actively learning. 



“Our research helps illuminate the evolutionary roots of human medicine and healthcare systems,” said Freymann. “By documenting how chimpanzees identify and utilize medicinal plants and provide care to others, we gain insight into the cognitive and social foundations of human healthcare behaviors.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-threats-to-chimpanzee-healthcare">Threats to chimpanzee healthcare</h2>



Chimpanzees in Budongo face a constant threat from human snares. Nearly 40% of the Sonso chimps bear scars from these traps. 



Freymann’s team observed multiple instances of snare removal, some self-directed and others involving help from group members. But the danger remains.



The findings also suggest that chimpanzees in Budongo, Gabon, and other regions might share similar care behaviors. This could mean that these practices are widespread, not isolated. But there’s still much to learn.



For Freymann, the implications extend beyond chimpanzees and their use of plants. Observing how these primates use plants for healing might provide clues for new medicinal compounds. 



“If we want to hone in on these amazing medicinal resources, watching and learning from the animals is an incredibly effective way to do it if it’s done ethically and responsibly,” she said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-learning-plant-medicine-from-chimpanzees">Learning plant medicine from chimpanzees</h2>



The study doesn’t just document chimpanzee healthcare. It challenges how we think about the origins of medicine. Watching chimps chew leaves and press them onto wounds, it’s easy to imagine early humans doing the same. Maybe they learned from the chimps. Maybe they figured it out together.



Budongo’s chimpanzees aren’t doctors, but they are healers. And in their actions, we might find the echoes of our own ancient medical traditions.



Freymann’s work reminds us that medicine is not just a human invention. It might be a shared legacy, passed down from ancestors who walked the forests long before us.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/ecology-and-evolution/articles/10.3389/fevo.2025.1540922/full" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Frontiers in Evolution and Ecology</a>.



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Chimpanzees know which plants to use for healing wounds

In Uganda’s Budongo Forest, chimpanzees are doing more than just surviving. They’re treating their wounds with plants, cleaning each other’s injuries, and pulling snares off their companions’ limbs. These behaviors, documented in a new study, hint at something profound. Perhaps the roots of human medicine run deeper than we thought. Elodie Freymann, a researcher from the University of Oxford and the study’s lead author, believes these findings offer a fresh perspective on how our ancestors might have first learned to care for wounds. “Animals are helping each...

According to current scientific knowledge, the history of life on Earth was marked until now by five mass <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/volcanic-fertilization-led-to-severe-mass-extinction-event/">extinctions</a>, which were caused by natural phenomena and resulted in great global losses of biodiversity. In a new study, a group of biologists from <a href="https://manoa.hawaii.edu/">University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa</a> and the <a href="https://www.mnhn.fr/en">National Museum of Natural History</a> in Paris, France, argue that we are currently experiencing a Sixth Mass Extinction which, in contrast to the previous ones, is caused entirely by human activities.



By extrapolating from estimates obtained through the analysis of snail and slug populations, the scientists have shown that, since 1500, the Earth could have lost between 7.5 percent and 13 percent of the approximately two million of known species, thus between 150,000 to 260,000 species.



“Drastically increased rates of species extinctions and declining abundances of many animal and plant populations are well documented, yet some deny that these phenomena amount to mass extinction,” said&nbsp;study lead author Robert Cowie, a research professor of Biosciences at the University of Hawai’i.



“This denial is based on a biased view of the crisis which focuses on mammals and birds and ignores invertebrates, which of course constitute the great majority of biodiversity. Including invertebrates was key to confirming that we are indeed witnessing the onset of the Sixth Mass Extinction in Earth’s history.”



According to Professor Cowie and his colleagues, the situation is not the same everywhere on Earth. Although increasingly more marine species are threatened, the crisis affecting the seas and oceans is not so severe as that impacting the land. Moreover, on land, island species are more affected than continental ones, and a much larger number of terrestrial animals are endangered in comparison to plants.



Unfortunately, this ongoing extinction is denied by most of the people, including key political actors and policy-makers, and while conservation initiatives have been successful for certain charismatic animals, they cannot target all endangered species and reverse the overall thread of extinction.



“Despite the rhetoric about the gravity of the crisis, and although remedial solutions exist and are brought to the attention of decision-makers, it is clear that political will is lacking,” said Professor Cowie. “Denying the crisis, accepting it without reacting, or even encouraging it constitutes an abrogation of humanity’s common responsibility and paves the way for Earth to continue on its sad trajectory towards a Sixth Mass Extinction.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/brv.12816">Biological Reviews</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



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

The Sixth Mass Extinction is currently in progress

According to current scientific knowledge, the history of life on...

When wild creatures gather at watering holes, they also bring along their parasites, according to a new study from <a href="https://www.ucsb.edu/">UC Santa Barbara</a>. The experts report that cattle and elephants have the highest increased risk of exposure to the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/if-primates-go-extinct-so-will-their-parasites/">parasites</a>.&nbsp;



"We think about watering holes as being iconic centers of these majestic animals, but they are also hotspots for the parasites that infect these animals," said study co-author Georgia Titcomb.&nbsp;



The researchers set out to investigate how watering holes may influence the distribution of the parasites across savannas in central Kenya.&nbsp;



The study revealed that parasite density is much higher around water sources compared to the surrounding landscape. The exposure risk varied among animal species, and the results suggest that cattle and elephants have by far the greatest risk. In fact, potential parasite exposure for cattle was 143 times higher, and 67 times higher for elephants.&nbsp;



Titcomb said she expected watering holes to aggregate parasites, leading to higher exposure for hosts. "But we didn't expect quite the degree of variation among different wildlife species. The animals that were most strongly affected, and that really followed our expectations, were ones that are quite water dependent: elephants and cattle."



The researchers also surveyed 17 watering holes and 17 dry locations at the Mpala Research Centre, in central Kenya, as well as three wet and dry sites at Ol Pejeta Conservancy. The team found that in the driest areas and time periods, parasite density around water sources was more than 150 times higher than that of locations without water.



"If a cattle herder wants to reduce the chances that their cattle are exposed to parasites, they may want to avoid grazing their animals within 150 meters of water," said Titcomb.&nbsp;



Next, she hopes to investigate how parasite infections in cattle might affect wildlife. "Because cattle are so numerous, their infection patterns have really strong potential to affect less numerous wildlife in the area."



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



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

When animals flock to watering holes, so do their parasites

When wild creatures gather at watering holes, they also bring...

Many animal species exhibit behaviors that are linked to moon phases. A new study led by <a href="https://www.lsu.edu/">Louisiana State University</a> (LSU) and the <a href="https://www.ufl.edu/">University of Florida</a> is one of the first to investigate the connections between lunar phases and shark attacks. The findings suggest that more shark attacks occur during fuller phases of the moon.



The researchers analyzed a global shark attack record (<a href="https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/shark-attacks/">The International Shark Attack File</a>) collected during over half a century (from 1960 to 2015) and discovered an unmistakable correlation between a large number of these attacks and periods with higher lunar illumination. However, it is not yet clear what the precise cause of this phenomenon is.&nbsp;



“It’s not a matter of more light at night for sharks to see. Most shark attacks occur in the daylight. However, the moon can exert other forces on Earth and its oceans in ways that are much more subtle—for example, the gravitation pull that we see affect the tides,” explained study co-author Steve Midway, an associate professor of Fisheries Ecology and Statistics at LSU.



According to Professor Midway and his colleagues, it is still too early to claim that lunar illumination is a causative factor for shark attacks. Since the relationship between moon phases and shark attacks may not be causal, scientists are not necessarily claiming that there are any immediate risk management benefits arising from these findings. Yet, the study contributes to a better understanding of shark behavior, which could help risk management in the future.



“Ultimately, moon phase and lunar illumination will not likely be a strong predictor that alone can forecast risk of shark attack. Local environmental variables are expected to continue to be more practical information for assessing risk.”&nbsp;



“However, the results here strongly support the idea that moon phase does play a role in overall risk of shark attack, and if future studies are able to consider local and regional environmental conditions along with lunar illumination, both understating shark attacks and forecasting risk may improve,” the authors concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.745221/full">Frontiers in Marine Science</a>.



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

Shark attacks linked to phases of the Moon

Many animal species exhibit behaviors that are linked to moon...

Eyes are important. They help <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-plants-wont-survive-the-loss-of-seed-dispersing-animals/">animals</a> find food and avoid becoming a meal themselves. Eyes also help animals scope out potential mates and watch out for rivals.&nbsp;



Looking into the eyes of a fossil can thus tell you a lot about how the creature once lived. Was the animal nocturnal or diurnal? An active hunter or shy and retiring? Unfortunately, however, eyes are rare fossils and scientists don’t often get an opportunity to look at them.&nbsp;



A research team spent years examining the eyes of a 95-million-year-old fossil crab,&nbsp;Callichimaera perplexa, found in the Colombian Andes. The crab was first described in 2019 by Harvard postdoctoral fellow Javier Luque. The fossil had preserved unusual elements of both the outer eye and internal structures.&nbsp;



In a new study led by Luque and scientists at Yale University, it is suggested that Callichomaera perplexa was a rare, active swimming predator. Much of this conclusion comes from examination of the eyes, which are quite large for those of an adult crab.&nbsp;



To make sure that they were in fact looking at an adult crab rather than an immature stage where eyes appear larger, Yale PhD candidate Kelsey Jenkins examined more than 1,000 crab specimens, both living and extinct. The research involved looking at crabs at different stages of development to finally determine that indeed, Callichomaera perplexa was an adult with exceptionally large eyes.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“Having such big and unprotected eyes implies that they were exposed at all times, plus eyes that big impose a huge investment of energy and resources to maintain them. Thus, this animal must have relied considerably on vision,” said Luque.



&nbsp;“If something has eyes this big, they're definitely very highly visual. This is in stark contrast to crabs with tiny, vestigial eyes where they may only be 1 to 3% of the animal's body size,” said Jenkins.



Further research showed that the crab had high visual acuity, comparable to other predators such as dragonflies and mantis shrimp. Its vision was adapted to high light environments, meaning the animal was probably most actively hunting during the day.&nbsp;



“Even though it’s the cutest, smallest crab, the big eyes of Callichimaera and its overall body form with unusually large oar-like legs indicate that it might have been a fierce, swimming predator, rather than a bottom-crawler as most crabs are,” said Luque.



Image Credit: Masato Hattori



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

Secrets of a big-eyed crab fossil revealed

Eyes are important. They help animals find food and avoid...

In the past, when climates changed, forests became distributed more to the north or to the south of their previous locations. This is not to say that the trees, themselves, moved. Rather, the ranges of the tree species changed. For example, fossil plant and pollen records show that the ranges of tree species shifted northward at a rate of 50km per century as the climate warmed after the retreat of the North American ice cap.&nbsp;



Tree range migration is facilitated by the movement of seeds. When the climate changes, trees begin to form more seeds; these get spread around by dispersal agents and may germinate in areas that are more favorable for growth. Although wind and water may carry some seeds, the vast majority of trees depend on animals to disperse them to new areas. But now, many of these seed-dispersing animals are themselves threatened, as climate changes and habitats are lost.



In&nbsp;<a href="http://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abk3510?adobe_mc=MCMID%3D84587913426847399401258317155412422308%7CMCORGID%3D242B6472541199F70A4C98A6%2540AdobeOrg%7CTS%3D1641994662">a study</a>&nbsp;featured on the cover of this week’s issue of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.science.org/">Science</a>, U.S. and Danish researchers consider how the loss of species of birds and animals will impact the ability of plants to adapt to human-induced climate change in future. While animals can often fly, walk, run or swim to more suitable areas, trees cannot escape the heat. Tree species that need to move their offspring away from warmer temperatures will only be able to do so via the activities of seed-dispersal agents, such as mammals and birds.&nbsp;



“Some plants live hundreds of years, and their only chance to move is during the short period when they're a seed moving across the landscape,” said <a href="https://www.rice.edu/">Rice University</a> ecologist&nbsp;<a href="https://www.evanfricke.com/">Evan Fricke</a>, the study's first author. “If there are no animals available to eat their fruits or carry away their nuts, animal-dispersed plants aren’t moving very far."



In collaboration with researchers from the University of Maryland, Iowa State University and Aarhus University, the Rice team used machine learning and data from thousands of field studies to map the contributions of seed-dispersing birds and mammals worldwide. They compared maps of seed dispersal today with maps showing what dispersal would look like if there were no human-caused extinctions or species range restrictions.



The experts also used data synthesized from field studies around the world to train a machine-learning model for seed dispersal, and then used the trained model to estimate the loss of climate-tracking dispersal caused by animal declines.



Fricke explained that developing estimates of seed-dispersal losses due to animal and bird extinctions or changes in their ranges required two significant technical advances: “First, we needed a way to predict seed-dispersal interactions occurring between plants and animals at any location around the world."



For this, they used data on species interactions from over 400 field studies that detailed how many seeds are dispersed by particular species of birds and mammals, how far they are dispersed and how well those seeds germinate. Based on this data, the researchers could predict interactions between plants and seed dispersers.



“Second, we needed to model how each plant-animal interaction actually affected seed dispersal,” said Fricke. “For example, when an animal eats a fruit, it might destroy the seeds or it might disperse them a few meters away or several kilometers away.”



The results of the study showed that many seed-dispersing mammals and birds have already been lost, particularly in temperate regions across North America, Europe, South America and Australia. In addition, if currently endangered species go extinct, tropical regions in South America, Africa and Southeast Asia would be severely affected.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“We found regions where climate-tracking seed dispersal declined by 95%, even though they’d lost only a few percent of their mammal and bird species,” said Fricke.&nbsp;



The findings showed that the ability of animal-dispersed plants to keep pace with climate change has been reduced by 60% due to the loss of mammals and birds that help such plants adapt to environmental change.&nbsp;



“In addition to the wake-up call that declines in animal species have vastly limited the ability of plants to adapt to climate change, this study beautifully demonstrates the power of complex analyses applied to huge, publicly available data,” said Doug Levey, program director of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Directorate for Biological Sciences, which partially funded the work.



Fricke explained that the study is the first to quantify the scale of the seed-dispersal problem globally and to identify the regions most affected. He emphasized that declines in the populations of seed dispersers highlight an important intersection between the climate and biodiversity crises impacting natural environments today.



“Biodiversity of seed-dispersing animals is key for the climate resilience of plants, which includes their ability to continue storing carbon and feeding people,” he said, adding that restoration of ecosystem connections in natural habitats could counteract some declines in seed dispersal, but not all of them. People also rely, both economically and ecologically, on seed-dispersing birds and mammals to ensure the supply of important resources.&nbsp;



“Large mammals and birds are particularly important as long-distance seed dispersers and have been widely lost from natural ecosystems,” said Svenning, the study’s senior author. “The research highlights the need to restore faunas to ensure effective dispersal in the face of rapid climate change.”&nbsp;



“When we lose mammals and birds from ecosystems, we don’t just lose species. Extinction and habitat loss damage complex ecological networks," said Fricke. "This study shows animal declines can disrupt ecological networks in ways that threaten the climate resilience of entire ecosystems that people rely upon.”



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

Some plants won't survive the loss of seed-dispersing animals

In the past, when climates changed, forests became distributed more...

Bald eagle populations have steadily increased in recent decades, after the use of DDT was banned in 1972. However, according to a new study led by <a href="https://www.cornell.edu/">Cornell University</a>, this rebound is currently weakened by the threat of lead <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/poisonous-frogs-warmer-temperatures/">poisoning</a> from gunshot ammunition.&nbsp;



Despite increasing numbers of bald eagles, lead poisoning from eating dead carcasses or parts contaminated by lead ammunition has reduced eagle population growth by 4 to 6 percent annually in the Northeast United States.



“Even though the population seems like it’s recovered, some perturbation could come along that could cause eagles to decline again,” said study senior author Krysten Schuler, an assistant professor in the <a href="https://www.vet.cornell.edu/departments/public-ecosystem-health">Department of Public and Ecosystem Health</a> at Cornell University.



Besides being potentially threatened by habitat loss, climate change, or the West Nile virus and other viral or bacterial outbreaks, bald eagles are increasingly affected by current hunting practices. Many hunters “field dress” game they shot with lead ammunition, leaving contaminated organs where the animal was killed. Bald eagles are scavenging such carcasses, often consuming bullet fragments that later on cause lead poisoning.



Although bald eagle numbers nearly <a href="https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2021/03/bald-eagle-count-quadruples-thanks-part-ebird-data-boost">quadrupled</a> in the lower 48 states between 2009 and 2021, reaching about 316,000, the current findings on the dangers of lead poisoning raise alarms among scientists and conservationists.



“Hopefully, this report will add information that compels hunters, as conservationists, to think about their ammunition choices,” said Professor Schuler. In her view, a better alternative would be the use of copper-based ammunition.



Bald eagles are not the only species endangered by these hunting practices. Trail cameras have repeatedly shown that owls, crows, bears, foxes, coyotes, or <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fisher-populations-will-struggle-to-survive-increasing-wildfires/">fishers </a>also scavenge the remains left by hunters.



“We haven’t collected data on these other species in the same way that we pay attention to eagles," said Professor Schuler. "We’re putting eagles out there as a poster species for this issue, but they’re not the only ones being impacted."



The study is published in the <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jwmg.22177">Journal of Wildlife Management</a>.&nbsp;



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

Bald eagles are threatened by poisoning from lead ammunition

Bald eagle populations have steadily increased in recent decades, after...

The world's largest fish breeding area has been discovered in the Antarctic Weddell Sea. Using an advanced underwater camera system, a team of scientists led by the <a href="https://www.awi.de/en/">Alfred Wegener Institute</a> found what is estimated to be 60 million icefish nests near the Filchner Ice Shelf.&nbsp;



The colony represents a fish biomass of more than 60,000 tons, or over 135 million pounds. According to the study authors, their findings provide support for the establishment of a Marine Protected Area in the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean.&nbsp;



The researchers towed a camera system and photographed the massive breeding site. The photographs suggest that the icefish nests cover about 240 square kilometers, which is roughly the size of the island of Malta.&nbsp;



"The idea that such a huge breeding area of icefish in the Weddell Sea was previously undiscovered is totally fascinating," said study lead author Autun Purser, a deep-sea biologist at the AWI Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research.



Since the early 1980s, AWI scientists have been exploring the Weddell Sea with Polarstern, a German research icebreaker. Prior to this study, the team had only detected small clusters of nests.



The observations were made using the Ocean Floor Observation and Bathymetry System (OFOBS), a camera sledge built to survey the ocean floor in extreme conditions.&nbsp;



"After the spectacular discovery of the many fish nests, we thought about a strategy on board to find out how large the breeding area was - there was literally no end in sight. The nests are three quarters of a metre in diameter - so they are much larger than the structures and creatures, some of which are only centimeters in size, that we normally detect with the OFOBS system," said Purser.&nbsp;



"So, we were able to increase the height above ground to about three metres and the towing speed to a maximum of three knots, thus multiplying the area investigated. We covered an area of 45,600 square metres and counted an incredible 16,160 fish nests on the photo and video footage."



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Low-Res_20210216_FishnestsWeddellSea_PS124_AWI_OFOBS_Team_003.jpg.png" alt="" class="wp-image-1900975"/><figcaption>Image Credit: AWI OFOBS Team</figcaption></figure>



Based on the images, the round fish nests were about 15 centimeters deep and 75 centimeters in diameter, and were clearly distinguishable from the muddy seafloor.



The team found several types of nests, including active nests that contained an average of 1,700 eggs. About 75 percent of the time, these active nests were guarded by an adult icefish. Overall, about 100,000 nests were captured on film, and many of them were unused.&nbsp;



Further research is needed, but the experts speculate that the colony is an important source of food for predators such as Weddell seals.



“A great many Weddell seals spend much of their time in close proximity to the fish nests,” said Purser. “We know this from historical tracking data and fresh tracking data from our cruise. The nests are exactly where the warmer water is upwelling. These facts may be coincidence, and more work is needed, but the recorded seal data show seals do indeed dive to the depths of the fish nests, so may well be dining on these fish."



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.



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

Scientists have found the world's largest fish breeding site

The world's largest fish breeding area has been discovered in...

Newborn dairy calves are most often housed separately from each other after being removed from their mothers. Farmers state that keeping calves separate reduces the risk of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fast-food-diets-linked-to-rise-in-autoimmune-diseases/">disease</a> transmission, prevents the calves from suckling on one another, and enables more careful feeding and monitoring of individual calves during the first weeks or months of their lives.&nbsp;



Approximately 75 percent and 60 percent of preweaning dairy calves in the United States and Europe, respectively, are housed individually, despite the growing criticisms of this practice in terms of its impacts on calf behavior, welfare and health. The alternative of raising young calves in social groups has, however, received increasing support from scientific quarters and from the concerned public.&nbsp;



A new study published this week in <a href="https://www.jdscommun.org/">JDS Communications</a>, the journal of the American Dairy Science Association, quantifies the motivation of socially naive calves to seek companionship with another calf, when they have the choice.&nbsp;



“Past behavioral studies have indicated that lack of social interaction can negatively affect calves’ feed intake, social skills, coping abilities, and cognitive performance,” stated lead investigator Dr. Marina von Keyserlingk. “However, previous studies on social motivation among young cattle have not addressed the first six to eight weeks of life, when individual housing is the most common.”&nbsp;



In the study, 10 male Holstein calves (average age 5.4 days) were separated into pairs, one of each pair being termed the “subject” while the other was the “partner.” Each pair was housed in a facility consisting of a central home pen with adjacent pens to the left and the right. Pens were separated by one-way push-gates made of plexiglass sheets. After the morning feed of milk, the subject was placed in the central pen, the partner was randomly allocated (by coin toss) to one of the side pens, and the other side pen was left empty.



For 15 days, the calves were checked twice daily at the time of milk feeding (approximately 0800 and 1600 h). At that time, the subject would be found in the central pen, or could have pushed his way through the door into a side pen, either the one containing the partner calf, or the one that was empty. The push-gates swung closed after a calf passed through and would not open in the opposite direction. The subject was returned to the central pen at feeding time.



Each time the subject had pushed his way into one of the side pens, the weight of the gate into that side pen would be increased. This meant that gates were relatively light to push open at the start of the study, when calves were learning the system, but they became more difficult to push as the experiment continued. The maximum weight pushed and number of pushes by each subject calf over the 15-day trial were recorded separately for the two side pens.&nbsp;



“Each time the test calf pushed open the gate to access a side pen, he would remain in it until the next milk feeding (approximately 0800 and 1600 h), at which time he was returned to the central home pen,” explained Dr. von Keyserlingk. “After each successful pushing event, additional weight was added to the gate – initially a small amount, then incrementally higher.”&nbsp;



With this design, the researchers were able to quantify the motivation of the young calves to access company in the form of the partner calf. No prior training of the subject calf was necessary, and the calves learned quickly how to open the gates after first coincidentally pushing a gate open as they investigated it.



The researchers found that, of the 10 calves tested, 8 pushed more weight for the pen on the social side, 1 pushed more for the empty side, and 1 pushed the same weight for both sides. Over the 15-day trial, calves pushed gates weighing, on average 1.0 kg more in order to access the social pen. All calves but one opened a gate on the first day of testing, with the remaining calf pushing a gate open for the first time on the third day.&nbsp;



The results indicate that young calves are motivated to seek full social contact, even when they have to work harder to achieve this. They are clearly social animals and derive benefit from contact with other calves.&nbsp;



A recent U.S. survey found that approximately half the participants considered individual housing of calves unacceptable, often mentioning the lack of socialization as a major issue. The results of the current study add to the body of research evidence that highlights the importance of social contact for calves.&nbsp;



The authors also note that the testing method used in this study did not require training, but calves quickly learned to use the gates on their own, suggesting that this task could be readily used to assess spontaneous motivation in other situations as well.



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

Dairy calves prefer to be housed with a companion

Newborn dairy calves are most often housed separately from each...

New research led by the <a href="https://www.columbia.edu/">University of Columbia</a> and the <a href="https://www.wild-tiger.org/">Wild Tiger</a> non-profit organization has found that the United States plays a much greater role in illegal tiger parts trade than previously thought. While most of the studies on tiger trafficking patterns focused on 13 Asian countries, the new findings show that the United States was responsible for almost half of the global illegal tiger trade between 2003 and 2012.



Tigers are an <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/switching-to-solar-energy-affects-endangered-florida-panthers/">endangered</a> species, with less than 5,000 specimens estimated to remain in the wild. Illegal trade in tiger parts (mostly for medicinal purposes) plays a significant role in threatening tiger populations worldwide.



While China has been and remains the main destination and consumer of tiger parts, data from the <a href="https://www.fws.gov/">U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services</a> shows that the United States’ import seizures of tiger parts between 2003 and 2012 represented a staggering 46.8 percent of total global seizures.



“People in the U.S. have this false notion that the illegal trade in tiger parts is half a world away. In reality, we in the U.S. are involved in and driving a large portion of the illegal trade,” said study lead author Sarika Khanwilkar, a Ph.D. candidate at Columbia University and the founder of the non-profit&nbsp;organization Wild Tiger. “This research is a step to better understand the role of the U.S. in the global tiger trade, which will improve policy and enforcement and direct future research efforts.”



According to Khanwilkar and her colleagues, there were 292 seizures of tiger parts illegally entering the United States between 203 and 2012, the majority of them being imported from China (34.2 percent) and Vietnam (29.5 percent). However, since the use of digital platforms to trade illegal wildlife products has increased, and economic prosperity has expanded demand, the current study may underestimate the full scale of illegal tiger parts trafficking in the United States.



In order to better monitor the source and trafficking routes of tiger parts, the researchers propose enhancing detection efforts in main hotspots for illegal tiger imports such as San Francisco, Dallas, and Atlanta. They also recommend using forensic DNA analysis to determine the origin and source (wild or captive) of the tiger parts and thus help providing guidance on where to focus conservation and enforcement efforts.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/csp2.622">Conservation Science and Practice</a>.



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

The U.S. plays a major role in the illegal tiger trade

New research led by the University of Columbia and the...

A new study led by the <a href="https://www.rsmas.miami.edu/">University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science</a> has found that the locations and timing of tiger <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sharks-important-deserve-protections/">shark</a> movements in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean have shifted due to rising ocean <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/marine-heatwaves-could-severely-affect-the-fishing-industry/">temperatures</a> caused by climate change. By pushing tiger sharks outside of protected areas, these climate-induced factors make the animals more vulnerable to commercial fishing.&nbsp;



The tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier) is the largest cold-blooded predator in tropical and warm-temperate seas and oceans. While waters off the United States’ northeast coast have historically been too cold for these fierce predators, recent increases in ocean temperatures have made them suitable.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag, the director of the University of Miami’s <a href="https://sharkresearch.rsmas.miami.edu/">Shark Research and Conservation Program</a>. “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.”



Professor Hammerschlag and his colleagues analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, together with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/document/cooperative-shark-tagging-program">Cooperative Shark Tagging Program</a>, in order to assess how changes in water temperatures affected shark habitats and movements.



They found that during the last decade (when ocean temperatures were the warmest on record), for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. Moreover, they also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



According to the scientists, these results have greater ecosystem implications. “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.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16045">Global Change Biology</a>.



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

Tiger shark migrations are shifting as temperatures rise

A new study led by the University of Miami Rosenstiel...

Thailand is often overlooked in terms of its natural beauty and biodiversity, even as its natural environments face the threats of development that loom everywhere in the world. Illustrating this point is the discovery of a new genus of tarantula that lives inside of bamboo stalks.



Dr. Narin Chomphuphuang, an arachnologist at Khon Kaen University, explained the context of the discovery. “Few people realize how much of Thailand's wildlife remains undocumented. Thai forests now cover only 31.64% of the country's total land area. We are primarily on a mission to research and save the biodiversity and wildlife within these forests from extinction, especially species-specific microhabitats.”



The tarantula was first found by JoCho Sippawat, a famous Thai wildlife YouTuber, who later teamed up with Dr. Chomphuphuang. The pair also collaborated with Chaowalit Songsangchote of Kasetsart University, who formally described the newly discovered tarantula.



The scientists named the spider Taksinus bambus, the generic name honors the Thai king Taksin the Great, who was once governor of Tak province - where the tarantula was found. Bambus is in reference to the arachnids' curious way of living in bamboo, something never before seen in a tarantula.&nbsp;



The spiders themselves do not create holes or cracks in bamboo stalks but instead rely on other animals such as bamboo worms, carpenter beetles or rodents to do this work. Once the spider moves into a bamboo stalk, the animal lines the new home with silk.&nbsp;



There are other arboreal tarantulas found in southeast Asia, but this is the first to be discovered in northern Thailand. It’s also unusual because it specializes in one particular type of plant.



&nbsp;“We examined all of the trees in the area where the species was discovered. This species is unique because it is associated with bamboo, and we have never observed this tarantula species in any other plant. Bamboo is important to this tarantula, not only in terms of lifestyle but also because it can only be found in high hill forests in the northern part of Thailand, at an elevation of about 1,000 m. It is not an exaggeration to say that they are now Thailand's rarest tarantulas,” said Dr. Chomphuphuang.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://zookeys.pensoft.net/">ZooKeys</a>.



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



Image Credit: JoCho Sippawat

New tarantula found in Thailand lives in bamboo stalks

Thailand is often overlooked in terms of its natural beauty...

A study published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-03599-9">Nature Scientific Reports</a> reveals fascinating new details about Struthiosaurus austriacus, a relatively small nodosaurid from the Ankylosaur family that lived in the Late <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tiny-pterosaurs-were-fierce-competitors-in-the-late-cretaceous/">Cretaceous</a>. The experts report that the dinosaur had a lonesome lifestyle due to its inferior sense of hearing and sluggish movement.&nbsp;



Ankylosaurs are a group of herbivorous dinosaurs that grew up to eight meters and had bodies cluttered with bony plates and spikes, resembling “living fortresses.” Some of their most representative members, such as ankylosaurids, has a club tail, while nodosaurids were famous for their elongated spikes on their necks and shoulders.



While many dinosaurs were rather gregarious creatures, living in social groups, at least some ankylosaurs seemed to prefer a lonesome life. By studying with a high-resolution computer tomograph the fossil braincase of a specimen discovered near Muthmannsdorf, a town south of Vienna, Austria, a team of paleontologists led by the <a href="https://www.uni-greifswald.de/">University of Greifswald</a> and <a href="https://www.univie.ac.at/en/">University of Vienna</a>, has found that Struthiosaurus austriacus most probably had significant difficulties in locomotion and audition, which made it less prone to social interaction.



The dinosaur’s flocculus, an evolutionary old part of the brain responsible for the fixation of the eyes during motions of the head, neck, and body was very small. Together with the extremely short lagena (the part of the inner ear where hearing takes place), this feature suggests that the dinosaur probably had an exceptionally sluggish lifestyle compared to other species.&nbsp;



“In contrast to its Northamerican relative Euoplocephalus, which had a tail club and a clear flocculus on the brain cast, Struthiosaurus austriacus may have rather relied on its body armor for protection,” said study lead author Marco Shade, a paleontologist at the University of Griefswald.



“The short anterior and angular lateral semicircular canals, combined with the relatively shortest dinosaurian cochlear duct known so far and the lack of a floccular recess suggest a rather inert lifestyle without the necessity of sophisticated senses for equilibrium and hearing in&nbsp;S. austriacus. These observations agree with an animal that adapted to a comparatively inactive lifestyle with limited social interactions,” concluded the study authors.



Image Credit: © Fabrizio De Rossi



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

Late Cretaceous dinosaur was sluggish and nearly deaf

A study published in the journal Nature Scientific Reports reveals...

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.



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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...

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

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

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA



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



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

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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



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

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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