Wild chimpanzees have surprised scientists again. They seem to combine single calls in ways that create new meanings for different situations.



In a new investigation led by Dr. Catherine Crockford of the <a href="https://www.eva.mpg.de/index/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology</a>, researchers have found that chimpanzees can embed one vocal call into another to shift its message in several ways.



This approach sheds light on how meaningful combinations of sounds might not be an exclusively <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-share-alcoholic-fruit-to-increase-social-bonding/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">human trick</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chimpanzee-calls-and-language-origins">Chimpanzee calls and language origins</h2>



Chimpanzees produce a set of pant calls, grunts, and hoos that can match specific events or contexts. Scientists studying <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bonobos-and-chimps-express-empathy-much-like-humans/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">primate</a> communication often focus on whether these calls can be recombined to express novel ideas.



“Generating new or combined meanings by combining words is a hallmark of human language, and it is crucial to investigate whether a similar capacity exists in our closest living relatives, chimpanzees and bonobos, in order to decipher the origins of human language,” said Dr. Crockford. 



Observing apes in rich forest environments over many years helped researchers gather thousands of vocal utterances, matching them to various daily events.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-chimpanzees-use-call-combinations">How chimpanzees use call combinations</h2>



Previous analyses suggested that primates usually rely on single calls. But chimpanzees in this project displayed a variety of two-call combinations that seemed to deliver more complex messages than either single call alone.



“Recording chimpanzee vocalisations over several years in their natural environment is essential in order to document their full communicative capabilities, a task that is becoming increasingly challenging due to growing human threats to wild chimpanzee populations,” said Roman Wittig, co-author of the study and director of the Taï Chimpanzee Project. 



Calls like hoo, pant, and grunt were often linked to feeding, traveling, approaching <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-select-the-best-materials-for-termite-fishing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">companions</a>, or even building a nest.



Some paired calls strayed far from the meaning of either individual call. Others narrowed or clarified the meaning of one call by combining it with another.



Researchers also discovered that a pair of calls could add both meanings together. Sometimes, flipping the order of the same two calls changed which events triggered that combination.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chimp-calls-are-complex">Chimp calls are complex</h2>



“Our findings suggest a highly generative vocal communication system, unprecedented in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/what-chimp-nests-can-tell-us-about-early-independence/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">animal kingdom</a>, which echoes recent findings in bonobos suggesting that complex combinatorial capacities were already present in the common ancestor of humans and these two great ape species,” said Cédric Girard-Buttoz, first author of the study. 



”This changes the views of the last century which considered communication in the great apes to be fixed and linked to emotional states.”&nbsp;



Humans rely on syntax to shift the message of a group of words by rearranging them. Chimpanzee call combinations seem to share a similar principle, at least in miniature form.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chimp-calls-and-specific-events">Chimp calls and specific events</h2>



Scientists matched each vocal utterance to events such as resting, traveling, or social interactions. 



Earlier <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982205010407" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">studies</a> found that certain hoo calls link with resting or feeding. This project took that approach further by analyzing two-call sequences in multiple communities of wild chimpanzees.



Some call pairs combined rest and social signals, while others popped up in contexts that had little to do with either call used alone. The addition or repositioning of a second call often changed the full vocal sequence’s event links.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chimp-calls-hint-at-early-language">Chimp calls hint at early language</h2>



Human language can create countless meanings from a limited set of sounds. These chimpanzee findings point to a flexible communication system that can widen its meaning capacity using simple steps.



Researchers say it is possible that human ancestors carried similar abilities. Over time, these may have expanded into the more detailed language structures we know today.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-researchers-still-need-to-learn">What researchers still need to learn</h2>



Questions remain about longer sequences that might chain three or more calls. Future studies may investigate how that chaining impacts clarity or social bonding among chimpanzees.



Scientists also want to see if other primates or animals use multiple call-combining strategies. Some suggest that more species might do the same if studied across enough time and daily contexts.



Experts emphasize that playback experiments could confirm how receivers interpret each combination. Wild animals rarely stand still for tests, but careful monitoring might reveal which part of a call they respond to.



There is also the question of whether some call pairs express reference to upcoming events. Knowing that certain sequences appear during, say, nest-building might help reveal how apes convey planning or intention.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-data-is-needed">More data is needed </h2>



With more data, researchers hope to better map how these combinations relate to specific events or states. Each new finding challenges the idea that only humans generate layered meanings from limited vocal elements.



Spending years in the field was crucial. It took that long to observe enough high-quality instances of different chimp calls, especially for rarer behaviors like nest-building.



Many wonder if these chimp call strategies might extend to gestures or other signals. Studies of both vocal and non-vocal communication could fill in gaps that remain.



Efforts to protect wild populations are also vital. Researchers stress that deforestation or poaching will cut short our chance to learn more about ape communication in its natural setting.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adq2879" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Science Advances</a>.



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Chimpanzees mix vocal calls to create new meanings, like humans

Wild chimpanzees have surprised scientists again. They seem to combine single calls in ways that create new meanings for different situations. In a new investigation led by Dr. Catherine Crockford of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, researchers have found that chimpanzees can embed one vocal call into another to shift its message in several ways. This approach sheds light on how meaningful combinations of sounds might not be an exclusively human trick. Chimpanzee calls and language origins Chimpanzees produce a set of pant calls, grunts,...

Experts are describing how fish eyes reveal clues about their surrounding environment. The researchers analyzed the eye lenses of salmon in California's Central Valley to gain a better understanding of how <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-with-big-eyes-avoid-bright-human-altered-landscapes/">landscape</a> disturbances impact fish.

While the same method has been used to examine fish in marine ecosystems throughout the ocean, the current investigation is the first to apply the technique to freshwater fish. 

The lenses of fish eyes are similar to tree rings in that they grow in layers throughout life, recording chemical signatures that store valuable information. In particular, data is recorded on the diets of fish in specific habitats.

Study lead author Miranda Bell Tilcock is an assistant specialist with the <a href="https://www.ucdavis.edu/">UC Davis</a> Center for Watershed Sciences. "It's like a little diet journal the fish keeps for us, which is really nice." 

Tilcock explained that the study was like "peeling the world's tiniest onion." The experts used fine-tipped forceps to remove the layers until they reached a tiny ball, which is where the fish eyes first began to develop. 

The eyeballs of fish are very rich in protein. According to the scientists, the isotopic values in food webs bind to protein in the eye, leaving geochemical fingerprints that can be uncovered with advanced analysis.

The researchers studied juvenile chinook salmon living in three distinct food webs - river, floodplain, and hatchery - on the Yolo Bypass of California's Central Valley.

Stable isotopes are forms of atoms that can be used to trace origins, diets, and migratory patterns of species. The team conducted stable isotope analyses on the eye lenses of an adult salmon to to determine which food webs and habitats the fish used at various stages over the course of life. 

During the 39-day study, fish on the floodplain grew quickly and accumulated additional laminae, or layers of lenses, compared to fish reared in the river or hatchery. 

"This tool is not just unique to salmon in the Central Valley," said Tilcock. "There are many migratory species all over the world that need freshwater habitat. If you can isolate their habitat and value for diet, you can quantify it for long-term success."

The research has implications for managing floodplains, fish and natural resources and prioritizing habitat restoration efforts.

"You use the otolith to trace the river or hatchery where a fish was born based on the unique geology and water chemistry of the tributaries in the San Francisco Bay watershed," said study co-author Rachel Johnson. "Then you have the eye lens, which tells you where it's eating to help identify floodplain habitats."

"They really work together to present a fuller picture of how salmon move and what they eat as they use different mosaics of habitats across the landscape over their lifetime," said study co-author Carson Jeffres. "Now we have the tool we have been looking for to link juvenile floodplain benefits across the salmon life cycle to adulthood. It's the holy grail of measuring restoration success."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/2041210x">Methods in Ecology and Evolution</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

The history of a fish can be traced through its eyes

Experts are describing how fish eyes reveal clues about their...

Bones found in Argentina may belong to the world's largest dinosaur. Experts in Argentina are reconstructing the fossilized bones of what may have been the largest <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/when-the-dinosaurs-vanished-forests-expanded-and-thrived/">dinosaur</a> that ever lived on Earth. 

The remains of a 98 million-year-old titanosaur were uncovered in Argentina's northwest Patagonia in 2012. The giant bones, including 24 vertebrae of the tail and elements of the pelvic and pectoral girdle, had been preserved in thick, sedimentary deposits known as the Candeleros Formation.

It was not immediately clear what type of animal had been found. In a new study published in the journal Cretaceous Research, paleontologists report that the remains belonged to a long-necked, plant-eating dinosaur called a titanosaur.

The experts believe the creature is "one of the largest sauropods ever found" and could exceed the size of a Patagotitan, a species which lived about 100 million years ago and measured up to 122 feet in length.

"It is a huge dinosaur, but we expect to find much more of the skeleton in future field trips, so we'll have the possibility to address with confidence how really big it was," said study lead author Alejandro Otero of the Museo de La Plata.

Titanosaur fossils have been found on almost every continent, but the largest "multi-ton" individuals, including those that exceeded 40 tons, have been primarily unearthed in Patagonia.

The experts still need the dinosaur's humerus or femur bones to accurately estimate how much the creature weighed. At the same time, the researchers believe the enormous dinosaur had a body mass as large or larger than that of a Patagotitan or Argentinosaurus.

"While anatomical analysis does not currently allow us to regard it as a new species, the morphological disparity and the lack of equivalent elements with respect to coeval taxa also prevent us from assigning this new material to already known genera," wrote the study authors. 

"This set of extremely large taxa from Patagonia has contributed to a better understanding of the phylogenetic relationships of titanosaurs, revealing the existence of a previously unknown lineage and shedding new light on body mass evolution."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/cretaceous-research">Cretaceous Research</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Bones found in Argentina may belong to the world's largest dinosaur

Bones found in Argentina may belong to the world's largest...

A new study from <a href="https://www.elte.hu/en/">Eötvös Loránd University</a> (ELTE) shows that some <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/the-first-american-settlers-arrived-with-their-dogs/">dogs</a> can learn a new word after hearing it only four times. The preliminary findings indicate that most dogs do not learn words, such as the names of objects, without extensive training. However, there are some dogs that have an exceptional gift for learning language.

Researchers with the Family Dog Project from the ELTE Department of Ethology have been analyzing talented dogs that seem to learn words in the absence of any formal training. According to the study, the dogs learn language simply by socializing with their owners in a human family. 

The research was focused on two gifted dogs, a Border Collie named Whisky from Norway and a Yorkshire terrier named Vicky Nina from Brazil. The experts tested their ability to learn a new word after hearing it only a few times.

"We wanted to know under which conditions the gifted dogs may learn novel words. To test this, we exposed Whisky and Vicky Nina to the new words in two different conditions - during an exclusion-based task and in a social playful context with their owners. Importantly, in both conditions the dogs heard the name of the new toy only 4 times," explained study first author Claudia Fugazza.

In the first task, the dogs showed that they were able to select the correct toy when their owner said an unfamiliar name. They did this by excluding all the other toys that had already been assigned a name, and by then selecting the one toy that had not. However, when they were asked to recognize the toy by its name, the dogs were unsuccessful.

It turned out the dogs were successfully learning words while they were socializing with their owners, who pronounced the name of toys as they played with them together. 

Both Whisky and Vicky Nina were able to select the toys based on the names pronounced by their owners, even though the names were only spoken four times. 

"Such rapid learning seems to be similar to the way human children acquire their vocabulary around 2-3 years of age," said study co-author Adam Miklósi.

The team tested 20 other dogs using the same condition, but none of them showed evidence of learning the names of the toys. This confirms that the capacity for dogs to learn words rapidly is very rare without formal training.

Even the gifted dogs could not commit the words to memory after such a few exposures, and the words faded pretty fast. Whisky and Vicky Nina could remember the words a few minutes after they learned them, but had typically forgotten them by an hour later without any further exposure. 

To investigate further, the ELTE team recently launched the <a href="http://geniusdogchallenge.com/">Genius Dog Challenge</a>, and the project has since gone viral in social media.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep">Scientific Reports</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Gifted dogs can learn words after hearing them four times

A new study from Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) shows that...

The first people to settle in the Americas arrived with their own dogs, according to a new study led by archaeologist Dr. Angela Perri of <a href="https://www.dur.ac.uk/">Durham University</a>.

For the investigation, an international team of experts analyzed archaeological and genetic records of ancient people and dogs. The analysis showed that the first people to cross into the Americas before 15,000 years ago, who were of northeast Asian descent, were accompanied by their dogs.

The researchers said their findings suggest that dog domestication likely took place in Siberia sometime prior to 23,000 years ago. People eventually traveled west into the rest of Eurasia and east into the Americas, and they took their dogs with them.

"When and where have long been questions in dog domestication research, but here we also explored the how and why, which have often been overlooked," said Dr. Perri.

"Dog domestication occurring in Siberia answers many of the questions we've always had about the origins of the human-dog relationship."

"By putting together the puzzle pieces of archaeology, genetics and time we see a much clearer picture where dogs are being domesticated in Siberia, then disperse from there into the Americas and around the world."

Study co-author Laurent Frantz is a geneticist at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.

"The only thing we knew for sure is that dog domestication did not take place in the Americas," said Frantz. "From the genetic signatures of ancient dogs, we now know that they must have been present somewhere in Siberia before people migrated to the Americas."

During the Last Glacial Maximum about 23,000 to 19,000 years ago, the land between Canada and Russia, and most of Siberia, was extremely cold and dry. The harsh climate likely placed humans and wolves in close proximity given their attraction to the same prey. Increasing interactions between humans and wolves may have led to the domestication of dogs. 

"We have long known that the first Americans must have possessed well-honed hunting skills, the geological know-how to find stone and other necessary materials and been ready for new challenges," said study co-author and archaeologist David Meltzer of Southern Methodist University.

"The dogs that accompanied them as they entered this completely new world may have been as much a part of their cultural repertoire as the stone tools they carried."

Future studies will reveal more about how the relationship between people and dogs led to their worldwide distribution.

"Researchers have previously suggested that dogs were domesticated across Eurasia from Europe to China, and many places in between," said study co-author Professor Greger Larson of Oxford University. 

"The combined evidence from ancient humans and dogs is helping to refine our understanding of the deep history of dogs, and now points toward Siberia and Northeast Asia as a likely region where dog domestication was initiated."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

The first American settlers arrived with their dogs

The first people to settle in the Americas arrived with...

Researchers at the <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/">University of Cambridge</a> have identified a fossil of the earliest known starfish relative. The origin of starfish has eluded scientists for decades, but the new specimen is so well preserved that it is shedding brand new light on the evolutionary history of the starfish <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/family-wastes-food/">family</a>.

"Finding this missing link to their ancestors is incredibly exciting. If you went back in time and put your head under the sea in the Ordovician then you wouldn't recognize any of the marine organisms - except the starfish, they are one of the first modern animals," said study lead author Dr. Aaron Hunter.

"The level of detail in the fossil is amazing - its structure is so complex that it took us a while to unravel its significance."

The fossil, named Cantabrigiaster fezouataensis, was discovered in Morroco's Anti-Atlas mountain range. The specimen and its intricate details, including feathery arms, have been preserved for roughly 480 million years.

The fossil's features are a combination of a starfish and a sea lily, which is a plant that is fixed to the seafloor by a stalk.  

According to the researchers, the discovery captures the early evolutionary steps of the animal at a time in Earth's history when life suddenly expanded, a period known as the Ordovician Biodiversification Event.

Modern starfish and sea lilies both belong to a family of spiny-skinned animals called echinoderms. Dr. Hunter's experience studying both living and fossilized echinoderms is what helped him recognize the features of the specimen. 

"I was looking at a modern crinoid in one of the collections at the Western Australian Museum and I realized the arms looked really familiar, they reminded me of this unusual fossil that I had found years earlier in Morocco but had found difficult to work with."

Modern echinoderms have extremely different shapes and sizes, so it can be challenging to determine how they are related to each another. The new species is unusual because it does not have many of the key features of its relatives. It lacks roughly 60 percent of a modern starfish's body plan. 

In collaboration with study co-author Dr Javier Ortega-Hernández, Dr. Hunter compared the new species to hundreds of starfish-like animals to map the echinoderm skeleton. The researchers looked for similarities and differences between the body plan of modern echinoderms to reveal how each family member was linked to Cantabrigiaster.

The experts found that only the key or axial part of the body, the food groove, was present in Cantabrigiaster. All of the extra-axial body parts evolved later. 

Going forward, the researchers hope to expand their work in search of early echinoderms. 

"One thing we hope to answer in the future is why starfish developed their five arms," said Dr. Hunter. "It seems to be a stable shape for them to adopt - but we don't yet know why. We still need to keep searching for the fossil that gives us that particular connection, but by going right back to the early ancestors like Cantabrigiaster we are getting closer to that answer."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/journal/rsbl">Biology Letters</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Fossil sheds new light on the evolution of starfish

Researchers at the University of Cambridge have identified a fossil...

In a new report from <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/">NOAA Fisheries</a>, experts have evaluated the effectiveness of regulations that were issued in 2008 to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales from deadly <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/shipwrecked-ivory-sheds-new-light-on-african-forest-elephants/">ship</a> strikes. According to the assessment, vessels are ignoring both voluntary and mandatory speed zones with no regard for the safety of the whales. 

Last year, an investigation by <a href="https://oceana.org/">Oceana</a> had drawn the same conclusion, finding that ships were ignoring a voluntary speed zone in an area south of Nantucket designated specifically for the protection of the whales.  

Whitney Webber is the director of an Oceana campaign designed to reduce threats to North Atlantic right whales, including entanglement in fishing gear and ship strikes.

“We’ve long known that current efforts to protect North Atlantic right whales are not enough, and today the federal government agreed. NOAA’s evaluation of its own rule on vessel speeds related to North Atlantic right whales shows that we need stronger protections for these whales from speeding ships," said Webber.   

"Heavy vessel traffic puts North Atlantic right whales at great risk of being killed by ship strikes -  one of their leading causes of death. With only about 360 whales remaining, time is running out."

"Oceana previously launched a tool called <a href="https://usa.oceana.org/illegal-fishing/ship-speed-watch">Ship Speed Watch</a> that allows anyone to monitor the slow zones established to protect North Atlantic right whales. An analysis released  in March showed vessels ignoring voluntary speed zones designed to protect this critically endangered species. This data is supported by today’s government analysis." 

The right whales were pushed to near extinction before a ban was placed on hunting them in 1935. Today, the whales are primarily threatened by collisions with commercial ships. Without slowing down, ships cannot maneuver to avoid right whales. 

Furthermore, an obstacle course of about a million fishing lines is sprawled out across right whale migration routes and feeding areas in the United States and Canada. These ropes get wrapped tight around the whales, which can lead to life-threatening infections

"These slow-moving whales, that are often found near shore, must navigate an obstacle course of speeding ships and fishing gear on their north and south migrations every year," said Webber. "Requiring vessels to slow down is the least we can do to help save this iconic species. Studies have found that slowing speeds to 10 knots or less in areas where these whales may be encountered can reduce the risk of death by 86%."

"NOAA agrees that more needs to be done to protect North Atlantic right whales from vessel strikes. Now it’s time for the federal government to act. Voluntary speed restriction zones must be made mandatory, and the current mandatory speed restriction zones must be expanded and enforced. Oceana calls on NOAA to update the shipping regulations to protect these rare whales before it’s too late.” 

To learn more about Oceana’s campaign to save North Atlantic right whales from extinction, please click <a href="https://usa.oceana.org/our-campaigns/right_whale/campaign">here</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Ships are disregarding efforts to protect North Atlantic right whales

In a new report from NOAA Fisheries, experts have evaluated...

A new study from the <a href="https://www.adelaide.edu.au/">University of Adelaide</a> has revealed that some fish develop larger sex organs when they are exposed to high levels of CO2. The experts report that the reproductive capacity of these fish will increase as the oceans continue to absorb carbon emissions.

The researchers said that far from the negative effects expected under the elevated CO2 levels in our oceans predicted for the end of the century, these fish capitalize on changes to the underwater ecosystems to produce more sperm and eggs.

"The warming oceans absorb about one-third of the additional CO2 being released into the atmosphere from carbon emissions, causing the oceans to acidify," said study lead author Professor Ivan Nagelkerken.

"We know that many species are negatively affected in their behavior and physiology by ocean acidification. But we found that in this species of temperate fish - the common triplefin - both males and females had larger gonads under conditions of ocean acidification. This meant increased egg and sperm production and therefore more offspring."

The experts studied the common triplefin near underwater volcanic CO2 vents to analyze how fish will respond to the ocean conditions predicted for the end of this century. The researchers found that higher levels of ocean acidification did not have negative effects on the fish. For example, developing larger gonads did not come at a physiological cost for the triplefins.

"We found males were eating more. They showed intensified foraging on more abundant prey - which was more abundant because of the increased biomass of algae that grows under the elevated CO2," said Professor Nagelkerken.

"The females, on the other hand, did not eat more. They instead reduced their activity levels to preserve energy and then invested this in larger ovaries."

"We also found there were more mature males under elevated CO2 and, in this species where it is the males that take care of the eggs, that means we have more parents nurturing the egg nests, which could increase offspring."

According to the researchers, less dominant fish species did not exhibit higher reproductive output, which was likely due to their less competitive nature.

"We think it likely that the triplefin and similar species will do very well under increased ocean acidification," said co-author Professor Sean Connell. "The study shows that some, more dominant, species will be able to capitalise on changes to ecosystems under ocean acidification, increasing their population."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/">PLOS Biology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Some fish develop larger sex organs when CO2 levels are high

A new study from the University of Adelaide has revealed...

For the third consecutive year, gray whales have been turning up in poor condition or dead along their <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/human-migrations-to-the-ryukyu-islands-were-led-by-explorers-not-drifters/">migration</a> route on the Pacific coast of Mexico, the United States, and Canada. 

Researchers at <a href="https://www.au.dk/">Aarhus University</a> have found evidence that starvation is contributing to the unusual mortality event, which has killed at least 378 gray whales since January of 2019.

Each January, the whales set out on an annual southward journey from their feeding grounds in the Bering, Chukchi, and Arctic Seas to their breeding grounds off the coast of Southern California and Mexico.

During the feeding season in the summer, the whales build up enough energy - mainly in the form of blubber - to sustain them throughout the breeding season. These energy reserves are critical for reproduction because the whales do not feed during the breeding season.

Study co-authors Mary Lou Jones and Steven Swartz conducted the first research and monitoring of gray whales from 1977 to 1982 in Laguna San Ignacio (LSI) in Baja California Sur, Mexico. In 2006, they established the Laguna San Ignacio Ecosystem Science Program (LSIESP), a project of the Ocean Foundation, in collaboration with Dr. Jorge Urban.

In 2017, Dr. Fredrik Christiansen joined LSIESP to study the body condition of gray whales with drones. The team used a technique known as photogrammetry, which involves measuring the body length and width of animals from drone images, to assess their body condition. 

The researchers noted a marked decline in the body condition of both juvenile and adult gray whales visiting Laguna San Ignacio early on in the drone experiment.

According to the study authors, the decline in body condition coincided with a drop in the number of mother-calf pairs sighted in Laguna San Ignacio. 

While the researchers believe that starvation is to blame for the lower survival and reproductive rates of gray whales, the underlying factors are not yet clear. Since the whales were already in bad shape when they arrived in Mexico, the decline must be tied to the previous breeding season. 

"It appears that a large number of gray whales are leaving their feeding grounds already in a poor nutritional state and by the time they have completed the breeding season in Mexico they have depleted their energy reserves and starve to death," said Dr. Christiansen.

The gray whales are most likely struggling with a lack of prey availability on the main feeding grounds. Since the late 1980s, there has been a decline in the abundance of amphipods, the main prey for gray whales, in their main feeding area in the Bering Sea. This food shortage is thought to be tied to climate change, which means that gray whales could continue to suffer from mortality events in the coming decades. 

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.jstor.org/journal/mariecolprogseri">Marine Ecology Progress Series</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Gray whales are dying in alarming numbers

For the third consecutive year, gray whales have been turning...

Chimpanzees are more likely to fight neighboring groups when their <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/otters-can-count-on-their-friends-to-gain-access-to-food/">friends</a> are involved, even though they are risking serious injury and even death. A study from the <a href="https://www.eva.mpg.de/index.html">Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology</a> has shown that strong social bonds increase the willingness to join others in battle.

The experts analyzed long-term observations of chimpanzee communities in the Tai National Park, documenting social relationships, territory range, and intergroup encounters. The observations were conducted as part of the Tai Chimpanzee Project in Cote d'Ivoire, West Africa.

"We have been able to analyze almost 500 vocal and physical battles from the last 25 years with participation of at least one of the three habituated communities, some of which have caused severe injury or death," explained study first author Liran Samuni.

The researchers found that both males and females participate in the battles. The experts pinpointed the factors that increased the likelihood of participation in an intergroup encounter, including when maternal kin and non-related social partners were present. 

"It seems chimpanzees not only consider the sheer number in their sub-group when moving into battle, but they consider the presence of a trusted group member, who will support them in case of an attack," said study senior author Catherine Crockford. 

According to Samuni, the results suggest that the link between strong social relationships and costly collective acts is not uniquely human, but is shared with one of our closest living relatives - the chimpanzee.

"This study is part of a series of several investigations linking in-group cooperation with out-group competition," said study co-author Roman Wittig, who is the director of the Tai Chimpanzee Project. 

"We were able to show that out-group competition reduces chimpanzees' reproduction and their territory size. On the other hand, out-group competition increases in-group cohesion and, likely facilitated by the neurohormone oxytocin, reduces the likelihood of defection in battle."

Experts with the Tai Chimpanzee Project monitor four neighboring chimpanzee communities on a daily basis. These observations will provide new insight into group-level cooperation. 

"The Tai chimpanzees can teach us what social tools enable human's unique capacity for large-scale cooperation with non-kin," said Wittig.

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

Chimpanzees risk their lives to fight alongside friends

Chimpanzees are more likely to fight neighboring groups when their...

Researchers have discovered that giant sandworms, previously known only in fiction, actually roamed the seafloor near Taiwan millions of years ago. The predatory creatures were identified based on the reconstruction of an ancient trace <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/fish-fossils-provide-new-insight-into-the-origins-of-teeth/">fossil</a> that turned out to be a burrow used by the worms. 

Study lead author Yu-Yen Pan is a PhD student in Earth Sciences at <a href="https://www.sfu.ca/">Simon Fraser University</a>. She explained that the trace fossil was found in a rocky area near coastal Taiwan. These types of fossils are part of a research field known as ichnology. 

"I was fascinated by this monster burrow at first glance," said Pan. "Compared to other trace fossils which are usually only a few tens of centimeters long, this one was huge; two meters long and two to three centimeters in diameter. The distinctive, feather-like structures around the upper burrow were also unique and no previously studied trace fossil has shown similar features."

An international team of researchers, including SFU Professor Shahin Dashtgard, has named the giant sandworm burrow Pennichnus formosae. 

Before reconstructing the morphological model of the trace fossil, the experts analyzed 319 specimens preserved in early Miocene strata in northeast Taiwan that dated back at least 20 million years.

"Shahin encouraged us to reach out to marine biologists, marine photographers and aquarium keepers to compare the burrows to biological analogs, which enabled us to reach the conclusion that this trace fossil was produced by giant, ambush-predatory worms," said Pan.

By comparison, the modern-day Bobbit worm is also large and predatory. It is sometimes called the "sand striker" because it uses its antennae to detect prey, grabs them with its jaws, and retreats into its burrow. When the Bobbit burrows, its body occupies the entire space. This explains the two-meter-long burrow observed in Pennichnus.

The researchers found a high concentration of iron around the upper burrow. This indicates that the giant sandworms secreted mucus to reinforce and rebuild their burrow walls after each feeding.

Marine predatory worms have existed since at least 400 million years ago, but their body tissues are soft - when they decay, there is no evidence left behind. Pennichnus formosae is believed to be the first known trace fossil produced by an underwater ambush predator.

The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep/?gclid=CjwKCAiA6aSABhApEiwA6Cbm_9Mu69fXRJQfOKxDEGfpXrV_4iG_xrF_X_qEl02QNc89jAytqGzkjBoC3woQAvD_BwE">Scientific Reports</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

Giant sandworms existed in Taiwan 20 million years ago

Researchers have discovered that giant sandworms, previously known only in...

Over the course of evolution, sex chromosomes start out as regular, matching chromosomes. Eventually, one of the chromosomes gains a "switch" that causes an embryo to develop as male or <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/blue-orchard-bees-respond-to-fires-by-producing-more-females/">female</a>. 

According to Daniel Winston Bellott of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, it is really easy to make a sex chromosome. "In most cases, you only need to change one or two genes and you've started the sex chromosome system."

In the lab of David Page, Bellott used snakes to study the evolution of sex chromosomes. In particular, he set out to investigate whether certain chromosomes are predisposed to become sex chromosomes

"Snakes have a relatively old system of sex chromosomes, where you have a lot of time for the chromosomes to diverge," said Bellott. "Time has swept away all the genes that aren't important, and you can see what kind of genes are left."

The researchers first gathered a list of "ancestral genes," which were likely present on the chromosome from which the snake sex chromosomes evolved. Based on sequencing data for several species of animals distantly related to snakes, they identified 1,648 candidates. 

Bellott analyzed the genes that are still present on the sex-specific chromosomes of three snake species, including the pygmy rattlesnake, mountain garter snake, and the five-pacer viper. He ultimately found 103 ancestral genes that had persisted for up to 90 million years of evolution on the snakes' sex chromosomes. 

Now that these genes were identified, Bellott wanted to know what these surviving genes had in common that set them apart from the hundreds of genes that were eliminated from the snakes' sex chromosomes over time.

Surprisingly, the study revealed that the ancestral genes that persisted on the sex chromosomes of snakes had nothing to do with sex determination. The genes were not expressed more often in one sex-specific tissue than the other.

The researchers identified key properties that the ancestral genes have in common. For example, the gene must be dosage sensitive - the snake must produce an exact amount of the protein produced by the gene to prevent illness or even death. In addition, the gene is broadly expressed in different tissues across the body. Essntially, the snake depends on these genes for its ability to survive and produce offspring.

Upon further analysis of the function of these survival genes, Bellott discovered that the equivalent of some of the genes in humans are involved in key developmental processes such as the formation of the face. If these genes were mutated in humans, their faces and other body parts would not develop properly.

"What Winston is seeing here is that the genes that were preserved on the sex specific chromosomes in snakes are disproportionately involved in birth defects in people," said Page. "We think that nature is selecting for the survival of (sex chromosome) genes whose dosage in certain parts of embryonic development is especially critical."

Bellott explained that in time, this may allow scientists to predict genes whose role in developmental disorders is yet to be discovered.

"In some sense, you get to the place where you're starting to work the experiment backwards in your mind, and say, 'Let's take the set of genes that are on sex specific chromosomes in snakes and birds, but that have not yet been implicated in birth defects in humans,'" said Page. "They might be prime candidates to be responsible for heretofore unexplained birth defects."

The team compared ancestral genes across the three species of snakes and 38 species of birds and mammals. For the most part, the surviving sex chromosome genes in birds and mammals had different functions than those in snakes, but still had little to do with sex determination.

"Adding the snakes in with the birds and the mammals gave Winston enough data points to be able to see further and to see more precisely, and now for the first time, he was able to confirm something that we had been suspecting for a long time but really didn't have sufficient data to pin down," said Page. "And that is that the chromosomes that became sex chromosomes were not sort of inclined to function in sex differences. Before they got picked out of the crowd, they weren't specialized towards differentiating between the sexes in much of any way."

"I hope people will pick up on this idea that the chromosomes that became sex chromosomes weren't in any way preordained. They were just ordinary chromosomes out for a walk in the park, and something happened."

Going forward, the experts plan to broaden their research to include other animals, with an ultimate goal of understanding our own sex chromosomes. 

"We take these results, and we turn them into a lens through which we look at sex differences in health and disease in our own species," said Page. "This research really refines our ideas about what it means to be a gene on the human X or Y chromosome, and how we should think about those genes that survive."

"Winston's study is absolutely foundational to our understanding of what the sex chromosomes are, how the two sexes come to be, and how health and disease traits play out similarly or differently in males and females."

The study is published in the journal Genome Research.

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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

Snakes depend on their sex chromosomes for survival

Over the course of evolution, sex chromosomes start out as...

Common pesticides keep some of the most important <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/arctic-plants-face-more-competition-for-pollinators-as-temperatures-rise/">pollinators</a> from getting a good night's sleep, according to a new study from the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/">University of Bristol</a>. The research shows that bees and flies exposed to neonicotinoid insecticides, which are commonly used worldwide, are struggling with their sleep and memory.

As a result of their findings, the researchers are urging policymakers in the UK to protect a ban on neonicotinoid insecticides.

A team of scientists led by Dr. Kiah Tasman in Bristol's School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience conducted two studies to investigate the effects of neonicotinoids on bumblebees and fruit flies. The substances were found to prevent sleep, which may help explain why many insect pollinators are vanishing.

"The neonicotinoids we tested had a big effect on the amount of sleep taken by both flies and bees. If an insect was exposed to a similar amount as it might experience on a farm where the pesticide had been applied, it slept less, and its daily behavioral rhythms were knocked out of sync with the normal 24-hour cycle of day and night," said Dr. Tasman.

In the first study, the researchers examined the neurological effects of the pesticides in the brains of fruit flies. 

The investigation revealed that typical agricultural concentrations of neonicotinoids completely disrupted the flies' ability to remember. The substances also changed the circadian clock in the fly brain that controls sleep-wake cycles.

"Being able to tell time is important for knowing when to be awake and forage, and it looked like these drugged insects were unable to sleep. We know quality sleep is important for insects, just as it is for humans, for their health and forming lasting memories," explained study senior author Dr. James Hodge.

"Bees and flies have similar structures in their brains, and this suggests one reason why these drugs are so bad for bees is they stop the bees from sleeping properly and then being able to learn where food is in their environment," said study co-author Dr. Sean Rands.

"Neonicotinoids are currently banned in the EU, and we hope that this continues in the UK as we leave EU legislation."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep/?gclid=CjwKCAiA6aSABhApEiwA6Cbm__YOwy9MowoWdZ8avjx_G1gQMhTPSkWy2lnRlWg48fS8vS5bqsim8xoCKboQAvD_BwE">Scientific Reports</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

Bumblebees and flies lose sleep when they are drugged by insecticides

Common pesticides keep some of the most important pollinators from...

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

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

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

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

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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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

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

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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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