In the natural world, family often defines survival strategies. Across species, cooperation among relatives has evolved into a powerful tool to ensure success in challenging environments. Yet few creatures embody this principle so intricately as the long-tailed tit.



Found flitting through British gardens, these small birds reveal extraordinary loyalty to their kin. Far from fleeting connections, long-tailed tits show unwavering commitment to family, even during the upheaval of migration. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cooperation-in-animal-societies">Cooperation in animal societies</h2>



Recent research from the <a href="https://www.sheffield.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Sheffield</a> brings the hidden social lives of long-tailed tits into sharp focus, offering new insights into how cooperation shapes animal societies.



Decades of careful observation and rigorous analysis culminated in a study that redefines what we know about the evolution of social behaviors. 



Through the lives of these tiny <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-adapt-their-survival-strategies-to-climate-change/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">birds</a>, we glimpse powerful lessons about kinship, resilience, and the surprising complexity of animal communities.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-long-tailed-tits-stay-loyal-to-family">Long-tailed tits stay loyal to family</h2>



The study, published in the Journal of Animal Ecology, draws on an extraordinary 30-year dataset. It confirms that long-tailed tits retain strong family bonds throughout migratory movements - a phenomenon never before documented so consistently in cooperative <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/big-brains-and-wide-ranges-cant-save-birds-from-climate-change/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">birds</a>.



Long-tailed tits migrate not as isolated individuals but as tightly knit family units. This behavior ensures that when they arrive at new locations, they are surrounded by familiar, trusted kin ready to support each other.



"This 30-year study is unique in its depth and has allowed us to understand the evolution of cooperation in a way that would not have been possible otherwise. The discovery of family ties persisting through migration is particularly exciting," noted Dr. Jennifer Morinay, co-lead author of the research.



"These tiny <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bird-evolution-timeline-pushed-back-20-million-years-by-baminornis-zhenghensis-discovery/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">birds</a> essentially travel with their support network, ensuring that when they reach their new location, they have their kin ready to assist. It highlights the profound importance of family in their social structure."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-family-groups-survive-together">Family groups survive together</h2>



The research identifies several intertwined processes that create and sustain these family structures. Limited natal dispersal ensures many young birds settle close to their birthplace. Even when they do move, long-tailed tits often migrate alongside their siblings, keeping family bonds intact across vast distances.



At the same time, environmental pressures, particularly high predation rates, play a significant role. Frequent nest failures result in clusters of surviving families, making the presence of close kin nearby more likely. Together, these ecological and demographic factors form what scientists term "kin neighborhoods."



Incredibly, even migratory long-tailed tits, such as those studied in Estonia, preserve these ties during long journeys. Studies found that 82% of migratory flocks included at least one first-order relative. These findings challenge longstanding assumptions that migration disrupts social cohesion among birds.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-evolutionary-roots-of-helping-behavior">Evolutionary roots of helping behavior</h2>



Long-tailed tits do not only stick close to their families; they actively help them. When breeding attempts fail, many individuals redirect their efforts to assist <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/most-birds-are-at-great-risk-from-climate-change/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">relatives</a> raising broods. This redirected helping strengthens the survival chances of their kin’s offspring, ultimately boosting their own inclusive fitness.



"The push and pull between cooperation and competition is something we readily recognize in our own lives. This study demonstrates that these same fundamental tensions are at play in the social dynamics of long-tailed tits and likely many other species," noted Professor Ben Hatchwell, co-lead author of the study.



"Our long-term research provides significant insights into the ecological and social conditions that favour cooperative behaviour and the evolutionary forces that sculpt these intricate social interactions."



Helping decisions are not random acts of kindness. They are influenced by various factors including the bird’s own breeding success, its relatedness to nearby individuals, and the strength of prior social bonds.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mistakes-in-kin-recognition">Mistakes in kin recognition</h2>



Despite their strong social instincts, long-tailed tits sometimes help unrelated individuals. 



About 30% of helpers were found assisting nests of non-kin. Scientists believe this stems from errors in kin recognition rather than a deliberate choice.



The birds rely heavily on learned acoustic cues to identify relatives. Calls learned during the nestling stage help them recognize kin, but these vocal cues are not always completely reliable. Studies show overlap in call similarities between kin and non-kin, leading to occasional misdirected care.



Efforts are ongoing to determine whether other cues, such as olfactory signals, also influence how long-tailed tits recognize their family and make crucial helping decisions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-environment-shapes-cooperation">Environment shapes cooperation</h2>



The study also shows how environmental pressures influence the rates of cooperation. Moderate levels of nest predation foster the highest levels of helping behaviour. 



If predation is too low, there are fewer failed breeders needing alternative strategies. If too high, there are simply fewer successful nests available to help.



Shorter breeding seasons similarly encourage cooperation. With less time to attempt new broods after failure, many birds abandon independent breeding and instead opt to help their kin.



Interestingly, overall population density did not seem to impact cooperation rates, suggesting that the quality of family connections matters more than simple numbers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-choosing-where-to-live">Choosing where to live</h2>



Where a bird chooses to settle has long-term fitness consequences. Males who stay close to their natal territory accrue higher indirect fitness by helping relatives. Conversely, males who disperse far have fewer opportunities to help and lower overall inclusive fitness.



Females experience a different dynamic. Those who disperse farther tend to achieve slightly better direct reproductive success, likely because dispersal reduces inbreeding risks.



These differing pressures create a fascinating tug-of-war, shaping dispersal behaviours across generations.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-family-ties-of-long-tailed-tits">Family ties of long-tailed tits </h2>



Perhaps the most striking revelation is that migration, once believed to hinder the evolution of cooperation, does not necessarily break social bonds. Long-tailed tits maintain their family ties even after traveling hundreds of kilometres.



This finding challenges traditional theories and highlights the incredible flexibility of social strategies in the natural world. Stable territorial groups are not the only route to successful cooperation. 



Dynamic, migratory species can also evolve and sustain sophisticated social systems based on family loyalty.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-do-long-tailed-tits-recognize-family">How do long-tailed tits recognize family?</h2>



Looking ahead, the researchers aim to untangle the specific mechanisms that allow long-tailed tits to recognize and remember their kin.



Current efforts focus on understanding the role of calls, scents, and social associations built during early life stages. Scientists are investigating whether maintaining winter flock associations with relatives influences recognition in later breeding seasons.



These studies promise to deepen our understanding of how cooperation, kinship, and social cognition evolve across species.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tiny-birds-with-mighty-hearts">Tiny birds with mighty hearts</h2>



Through the lives of long-tailed tits, we see how powerful, enduring, and flexible family bonds can be, even in a world full of risks and change.



The study from Sheffield shows that nature’s loyalty is not reserved for mammals or large social species alone. In every tiny flutter of a long-tailed tit’s wing, there lies a rich story of kinship, survival, and the enduring power of cooperation.



The study is published in the <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2656.14237" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal of Animal Ecology</a>. 



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Long-tailed tits migrate in family units and maintain lasting bonds

In the natural world, family often defines survival strategies. Across species, cooperation among relatives has evolved into a powerful tool to ensure success in challenging environments. Yet few creatures embody this principle so intricately as the long-tailed tit. Found flitting through British gardens, these small birds reveal extraordinary loyalty to their kin. Far from fleeting connections, long-tailed tits show unwavering commitment to family, even during the upheaval of migration. Cooperation in animal societies Recent research from the University of Sheffield brings the hidden social lives of long-tailed...

A team of scientists led by <a href="http://www.ucla.edu/">UCLA</a> is reporting that <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/sea-otters-pattern-rocks-tools/">sea otters</a> have low genetic diversity, which is a characteristic commonly found among threatened or endangered animals. Low genetic variation prevents populations from adapting to changing environments, which increases the risk of extinction. 

"Sea otters may be at risk," said study co-senior author Professor Robert Wayne. "This is a warning sign, a red flag. We should make sure to not let their population decline again."

Genetic diversity is a measure of the differences found in the genomes of individuals within the same population. In populations that have less variation, there are fewer genes available that can be selected for future generations to inherit resistance to diseases or environmental stressors.

For the current study, which was led by  UCLA graduate student Annabel Beichman, the researchers reconstructed the otter's evolutionary history. This allowed them to analyze historical changes in its population size, the past extent of the sea otter's genetic diversity, and levels of potentially harmful genetic variation.

The investigation was focused on the genome of Gidget, a female sea otter from the Monterey Bay Aquarium who died this year, and the genome of a South American giant otter for comparison. These two species live in extremely different climates. The giant otter is found in warm freshwater environments and the sea otter is found in the frigid coastal waters of the North Pacific Ocean. 

The study produced evidence of potentially harmful genetic variation and of mating between closely related ancestors in the sea otter genome. This pattern is commonly found in endangered species with small population sizes. 

"While low diversity isn't necessarily dangerous by itself, we also found elevated levels of potentially harmful variation within genes, possibly due to a history of population declines - which could impact the population going forward."

Beichman compared the sea otter's low genetic diversity to a jar of marbles that has lost many of its colors.

"Having a large amount of diversity in the population, a lot of different colors of marbles, may be helpful if a disease arises or the environment changes - maybe green marbles are resistant to the disease, but blue and red are susceptible. But if you've lost all your green marbles by chance when the population declined, you may be stuck with only blue and red - and not able to resist the disease. More variety gives you more shots at survival."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/mbe">Molecular Biology 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

Image Credit: Courtesy Monterey Bay Aquarium

Threatened sea otters found to have low genetic diversity

A team of scientists led by UCLA is reporting that...

A team of researchers, led by J. Chris McKnight of the <a href="https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/">University of St. Andrews</a>, used a new wearable device based on near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to investigate how voluntarily diving <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/seals-ice-hole-mystery/">seals</a> manage their oxygen supply to their brains and blubber, and properly distribute blood, before diving into the depths of the ocean.

McKnight and his team hypothesized that the NIRS technology could provide high-resolution measures of oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin within certain tissues, and therefore be used to estimate blood volume changes before a dive, specifically for this study, published in <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3000306">PLOS Biology</a>, within the brain and blubber.

Before, only invasive technology was available to track such measurements. However, this new device, dubbed the PortaSeal, can simply be attached to the animal’s fur on either the head or shoulder to monitor cerebral blood or peripheral circulation.

The PortaSeal revealed that seals are able to constrict their peripheral blood vessels, and increase cerebral blood volume, about 15 seconds before they dive. They are also able to increase cerebral oxygenation at a consistent time throughout each dive. These circulation adjustments are under somewhat of a cognitive control and not simply a reflex. 

"Discovering that seals, which are physiologically fascinating animals, can seemingly actively exert control over their circulatory systems is really exciting," McKnight said. "It gives a new perspective on the capacity to control the body's fundamental physiological responses. Getting this insight with non-invasive wearable technology from the bio-medical field offers many exciting future research avenues. We can start to study organs, like the brain, of seals in the open ocean performing exceptional feats like diving to 2000m for 2hrs with heart rates as low as 2bpm, and yet somehow avoid brain trauma."

Using NIRS to track blood volume and oxygenation in different tissues is vital for tracking and understanding physiological plasticity within diving mammals.

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Monica Arso Civil, Sea Mammal Research Unit

New wearable device shows how seals regulate oxygen flow while diving

A team of researchers, led by J. Chris McKnight of...

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tropical-deforestation-songbird-populations/">Migratory songbirds</a> in North America are facing rapid population declines. Tracking migration patterns could help with songbird conservation

To protect these songbirds, researchers need to know where the birds go during their annual migrations, as these overwintering locations could hold the key to the birds’ rapidly declining populations. 

To accomplish this, researchers at <a href="https://www.osu.edu/">Ohio State University</a> used 149 geolocators, which are small tracking devices that pinpoint a bird’s location in order to trace the migration patterns of Prothonotary Warblers. 

The researchers captured birds at their eastern US nesting sites and attached the locators before the birds left for Latin America.Tracking migration patterns could help with songbird conservation 

When the birds returned, the researchers recovered 34 locators. The data revealed that the majority of warblers congregated to a small area of northern Colombia and used the same two major stopover sites in Central America along the way to their winter destination. 

Many of the birds wintered in inland areas, which was a surprise considering past research has shown that the birds prefer coastal mangrove habitats. 

Deforestation and sociopolitical changes currently threaten the bird’s Colombia habitat. Knowing where the birds migrate to can help focus conservation efforts to specific areas most at risk of habitat declines. 

“The most surprising thing about the results was the overwhelming importance of Colombia to this species,” said Christopher Tonra, the leader of the study. “We weren’t sure what to expect in terms of migratory connectivity, but we never expected that nearly every bird would use the same wintering region. This provided a clear conservation message and shows the power of geolocators in addressing gaps in our knowledge of migratory songbirds.”

The researchers published their findings in The Condor: Ornithological Applications journal. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com </a>Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Joan Eckhardt

Tracking migration patterns could help with songbird conservation

Migratory songbirds in North America are facing rapid population declines....

A new study led by the <a href="http://www.buffalo.edu/">University at Buffalo</a> has revealed that hyenas once dwelled in a much different environment than the African and Asian ecosystems where they live today. Based on the first known fossils of hyenas found in the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/arctic-warming-cost-trillions/">Arctic</a>, the researchers discovered that ancient hyenas lived in this region during the last ice age.

The study was focused on two teeth discovered in the Canadian Yukon Territory in the 1970s. While paleontologists had initially suspected that the fossils belonged to hyenas, the current investigation is the first to confirm this theory. 

The researchers compared the teeth to a global sample of hyena fossils and ultimately linked them to the "running hyena" Chasmaporthetes. 

"Fossils of this genus of hyenas had been found in Africa, Europe and Asia, and also in the southern United States. But where and how did these animals get to North America? The teeth we studied, even though they were just two teeth, start to answer those questions," said study first author Dr. Jack Tseng.

Ancient hyenas likely entered North America through Beringia. This area, which includes Alaska and Yukon Territory, connects Asia with North America when the sea levels are low. Eventually, the animals moved south all the way to Mexico, according to the researchers. 

"It is amazing to imagine hyenas thriving in the harsh conditions above the Arctic Circle during the ice age," said study co-author Dr. Grant Zazula. "Chasmaporthetes probably hunted herds of ice age caribou and horses or scavenged carcasses of mammoths on the vast steppe-tundra that stretched from Siberia to Yukon Territory."

The fossil teeth are likely between 850,000 and 1.4 million years old. However, Dr. Tseng explained that the first hyenas crossed into North America long before that, as the earliest known hyena fossils on the continent date back about 5 million years.

Hyenas disappeared from North America somewhere between half a million to a million years ago before the first humans arrived. It is not clear why they vanished at this time, but it is possible they were replaced by the short-faced bear, which lived in North America until about 12,000 years ago.

"Our previous understanding of where these far-ranging hyenas lived was based on fossil records in southern North America on one hand, and Asia, Europe and Africa on the other," said Dr. Tseng. "These rare records of hyenas in the Arctic fill in a massive gap in a location where we expected evidence of their crossing between continents, but had no proof until now."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.openquaternary.com/">Open Quaternary</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Julius T. Csotonyi

Hyenas lived in the Arctic during the last ice age, study reveals

A new study led by the University at Buffalo has...

The <a href="https://www.noaa.gov/">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a> (NOAA) recently announced an <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/southeast/marine-life-distress/frequent-question-2019-bottlenose-dolphin-unusual-mortality-event">Unusual Mortality Event (UME)</a> after a record number of stranded bottlenose dolphins have been reported along the northern Gulf of Mexico across Louisiana, Mississippi and the Florida Panhandle. 

So far, at least 279 stranded dolphins have been discovered since February of this year, and 98 percent of them have died. 

In order for a UME to be declared under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, certain criteria have to be met surrounding the deaths of a large group of marine animals. 

Investigations are underway to determine potential causes. Necropsy examinations have been conducted on some of the dolphins, but the majority discovered were in too advanced a state of decomposition to examine properly. 

Many of the stranded dolphins have skin lesions which the NOAA reports are caused by exposure to freshwater. As freshwater from rivers flows into the ocean, it lowers salt levels which can harm the dolphins if salinity reaches too low a point. 

23 percent of the dolphins that were stranded along the Louisiana coast to the Florida Panhandle had freshwater wounds. 

There are also concerns that these increased strandings could be due to the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/long-term-damage-deepwater-horizon-oil-spill/">2010 BP oil spill </a>or a Louisiana spillway, according to Terri Rowles, the coordinator from the NOAA Fisheries Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program. 

After the BP oil spill, studies found that exposed marine wildlife had breathing problems, abnormalities in the blood, and deteriorating health overall. 

The Gulf of Mexico’s largest dolphin die-off in recorded history was due to the spill, and these recent strandings may be part of the lingering aftermath. 

“We do know some of the health conditions ... are improving, but some have been slow to improve,” Rowles told the Associated Press. “Reproduction in the heaviest-oiled areas continues below normal.”

Other potential causes could be pollutants in the river spilling out into the oceans or decreases in fish stocks and crabs, which are also impacted by low salinity and forced to seek out to more suitable habitats. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Tory Kallman

Nearly 300 dolphins dead after being stranded along the Gulf of Mexico

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently announced an...

Growing global demand for commodities is pushing primates toward extinction. A new study is strongly emphasizing the fact that commodity export is limited for countries that are home to the world's primates. These limitations are relative to the extreme environmental costs of pollution, loss of biodiversity, habitat degradation, food insecurity, and the threat of emerging diseases.

Distributed throughout the Neotropics, Africa, and Asia, primates represent a critical component of the Earth's land-based biodiversity. Through various activities such as seed dispersal, primates provide vital resources to natural ecosystems and to local human populations. Growing global demand for commodities is pushing primates toward extinction

About 60 percent of all <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/wild-primates-human-activities/">primate species</a> are currently threatened with extinction, and up to 75 percent have declining populations as a direct result of human activities like deforestation and habitat degradation.

According to the researchers, the growing market demand for commodities by other nations is a significant driver of rapid and widespread primate habitat loss and degradation.

[caption id="attachment_1874054" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/priamtes-impacted.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1874054" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/priamtes-impacted.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="309" /></a> Primate species impacted, Image Credit: 2019 Estrada et al.[/caption]

An increasingly globalized economy combined with the global consumption of food and natural resources has created a larger international market for agricultural products. The growth of this market is directly reflected in the growth of commodity-driven deforestation. 

The study revealed that between 2001 and 2015, 160 million hectares of forest were lost in the tropics due to human activities and half of these losses were commodity driven. For example, forests were converted to agricultural fields, cattle pastures, or mines.

The global commodity resource extraction is predicted to more than double by the year 2050. This means that a stronger resolve to reduce the world's demand for forest-risk food and commodities from primate habitats will be required to reverse the current trend of primate population decline and extinction.

[caption id="attachment_1874055" align="aligncenter" width="636"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/primates-graphic.png"><img class="size-full wp-image-1874055" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/primates-graphic.png" alt="" width="636" height="634" /></a> Image Credit: 2019 Estrada et al.[/caption]

"Growing global consumer demands for food and non-food commodities from primate range regions are placing primate populations at risk of extinction. These increasing demands have resulted in an accelerated global expansion of agriculture and of extractive industries and in the growth of infrastructure to support these activities leading to widespread primate habitat loss and degradation," wrote the study authors. 

"Primates and their habitats are a vital component of the world's natural heritage and culture and as our closest living biological relatives, nonhuman primates deserve our full attention, concern, and support for their conservation and survivorship."

The study is published in the <a href="https://peerj.com/">Journal of Life and Environmental Sciences</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Main Image Credit: Shutterstock/LMspencer

Growing global demand for commodities is pushing primates toward extinction

Growing global demand for commodities is pushing primates toward extinction....

According to a new study from the <a href="https://www.coralcoe.org.au/">ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (Coral CoE)</a> at <a href="https://www.jcu.edu.au/">James Cook University (JCU)</a>, squid will not only survive during climate change-caused <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/ocean-acidification-consequences/">ocean acidification</a>, but they could even flourish within their changing habitat thanks to their unique energy-taxing swimming technique. 

These findings are published in <a href="https://academic.oup.com/conphys">Conservation Physiology</a>.

"Their blood is highly sensitive to changes in acidity, so we expected that future ocean acidification would negatively affect their aerobic performance," said study leader Dr. Blake Spady.

However, when Dr. Spady’s team subjected two-toned pygmy squid and bigfin reef squid to the CO2 levels in ocean water predicted for the end of the century, they were surprised at what they found.

"We found that these two species of tropical squid are unaffected in their aerobic performance and recovery after exhaustive exercise by the highest projected end-of-century CO2 levels," said Dr. Spady.

Furthermore, Dr. Spady said that squid may even have an advantage in more acidic oceans because their predators could lose performance in the same ocean scenario.

"We think that squid have a high capacity to adapt to environmental changes due to their short lifespans, fast growth rates, large populations, and high rate of population increase," Dr. Spady added.

"We are likely to see certain species as being well-suited to succeed in our rapidly changing oceans, and these species of squid may be among them,” he concluded. "The thing that is emerging with most certainty is that it's going to be a very different world.”

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Image Credit: Shutterstock/DiveIvanov

Why squid may actually flourish amidst a changing climate

According to a new study from the ARC Centre of...

Experts at the UK's <a href="https://www.chesterzoo.org/">Chester Zoo</a> have essentially saved the greater Bermuda land snail from extinction. Until a small group of the species was found in Bermuda's capital city of Hamilton in 2014, they were thought to have been completely wiped out by invading <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/top-predators-porcupine-quill/">predators</a>.

Some of the snails, which were discovered in an alley behind a restaurant, were taken into captivity for breeding. The offspring were then transported to Chester Zoo and the Zoological Society of London, before zookeepers released 4,000 of them back into the wild.

"At the last count we've got somewhere around 13,000 snails - we've probably got more than that, they've had a lot of babies since then," Amber Flewitt of Chester Zoo told the <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/">BBC</a>. She said the secret to successfully breeding the snails was providing them with rich soil and their favorite foods, including sweet potatoes and lettuce.

"It's incredible to be involved in a project that has prevented the extinction of a species," said Dr. Gerardo Garcia, the Curator of Lower Vertebrates and Invertebrates at Chester Zoo. "The Bermuda snail is one of Bermuda's oldest endemic animal inhabitants."

"It has survived radical changes to the landscape and ecology on the remote oceanic islands of Bermuda over a million years but, since the 1950s and '60s, it has declined rapidly."

The snails have been released on a protected nature reserve called Nonsuch Island, which experts believe is an ideal location for them to continue their recovery. The species' main predators, carnivorous snails and flatworms, are not present on the island. 

Special fluorescent tags tested at the zoo by snail specialist Kristiina Ovaska will be used to monitor the snails and their progress as they adapt to life in a new environment. 

Dr. Mark Outerbridge is the wildlife ecologist for the Bermuda Government. He said it has been " tremendously gratifying" to witness the reintroduction of the snails to Bermuda. 

"Not only did they escape the axe of extinction but they have rebounded so well in captivity through breeding that now what we're doing is we're identifying islands in Bermuda that don't have the predators and reintroducing them to those islands, and our expectations are very high that they'll do well," said Dr. Outerbridge.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Press Association

Bermudan snail species has been brought back from the brink of extinction

Experts at the UK's Chester Zoo have essentially saved the...

There are currently at least 2,360 cetaceans (whales and dolphins) in captivity worldwide, according to estimates by the <a href="https://www.changeforanimals.org/whales-and-dolphins-in-captivity">Change for Animals Foundation</a>. Since the 1950s, more than 5,000 cetaceans have died in captivity. 

Captive cetaceans and other sea life are big business, bringing in millions of tourists each year to gawk at the acrobatics or sheer natural beauty of whales and dolphins. The documentary <a href="http://www.blackfishmovie.com">Blackfish</a> and a growing public concern over the wellbeing of captive dolphins, orcas and whales has put a dent into businesses like SeaWorld, but the demise of captive cetacean entertainment is still far off. The <a href="https://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-seaworld-earnings-attendance-20180508-story.html">Los Angeles Times</a> reported in 2018 that more than 3.2 million people visited SeaWorld during the first three months of that year, reversing a downward trend in visitation and profit. Despite the ongoing controversy of keeping cetaceans in captivity, no laws in the US really limit the keeping or capturing of many cetaceans for shows open to the public or for research.

<a href="https://www.worldanimalprotection.us/our-work/animals-wild/marine-animals-captivity/us-dolphin-regulations">World Animal Protection</a> reports that it is still legal in the US to capture wild <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/brazilian-river-dolphins-communication/">dolphins</a> with a permit. No permits for capture have been issued in the US since 1989, but this is largely because a large number of whale beaching has supplied dolphins kept in captivity instead. It’s still perfectly legal to capture dolphins with a permit. 

Even the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 stipulates that dolphins and other marine mammals may be captured with the proper permits. Along with permits for capture, there is a 30 day period open for public objections to issue a capture permit and facilities must meet basic requirements for captivity of the marine mammals in question. Some contend that animals like orcas, dolphins and whales are too large or require too much space to ever be adequately cared for in captivity. No additional permit is required for a facility to export a captive cetacean to a foreign zoo or aquarium. This lack of substantial regulation of captivity for large and potentially dangerous animals leaves the industry open for criticism.

The <a href="https://www.humanesociety.org/sites/default/files/docs/case-against-marine-captivity.pdf">Humane Society</a> paints a bleak picture of captivity for cetaceans. The organization points out that captive facilities purport to give their animals good lives, partially by removing them from the ‘rigors’ of the wild, however these are rigors these animals evolved with. Lack of opportunities to travel long distances or to hunt and a change in normal mating and other social behaviors are part of captivity for cetaceans. These forced changes in behavior lead to stress-related conditions, and captive cetaceans develop ulcer, mutilate themselves and are abnormally aggressive. Mortality rates for orcas in captivity are also higher than in the wild. 

All of this leads to a distorted view of these wild animals by the public that comes to view them in their cages, undermining what many of these organizations bill as education. Despite a slowly changing public opinion and the outrage expressed by animal organizations like the Humane Society, the US government has been slow to change any laws regarding cetaceans or other marine mammals in captivity. 

Canada’s government is another story. Last October, Canada’s senate passed bill S-203 that would make illegal holding cetaceans in captivity or breeding them. The bill was first introduced in 2015 by a now retired senator and had the backing of Canada’s Green Party. The bill was vocally opposed by Canada’s <a href="https://marineland.ca">Marineland</a>, a popular marine theme park that currently holds 61 captive cetaceans. After years of debate and pushback from some conservative senators, the bill passed the senate last year.

Now, the bill has passed Canada’s House of Commons and has almost become law. All that stands in the way of the bill becoming law is royal consent, merely a formality in modern times. The bill has been hailed as Canada’s ‘Free Willy’ law, based on the 1993 movie where a young boy frees an orca from captivity. Animal rights groups have been thrilled with the new law and the progress it represents. The new law was also celebrated by Green Party leader Elizabeth May in a speech, calling it a ‘really good day for animals in Canada’, <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/ottawa-passes-legislation-that-bans-whale-and-dolphin-captivity-in-canada-1.4459753">CTV</a> reported. Marineland for its part says it will abide by what will be the new law. For now, parks that already exist, like Marineland, will continue to operate as the law grandfathered them in.

When law, the bill will punish violators will fines of up to CAD $200,000 (roughly US $150,000). Animals kept in captivity during rehabilitation are also allowed by the bill.  

Some groups celebrating the bill want the Canadian government to go further and not grandfather in the existing marine parks, and instead outlaw all captive marine mammal parks now. <a href="https://www.onegreenplanet.org/animalsandnature/exposed-marineland-canada-a-living-nightmare-for-whales-and-dolphins/">One Green Planet</a> reports that Marineland has a checkered history. SeaWorld once sued Marineland for the return of an orca lent them for breeding due to a decline in the orca’s health. In 50 years of operation, 17 orcas, 25 belugas and approximately 22 dolphins have died at Marineland. A solitary orca that outlived her children and the other orcas she once shared her enclosure with lives in Marineland. The practice of keeping an orca alone in captivity is illegal in the US, due to the social nature of the animals. Former employees of the park have painted a dark picture of neglect in media interviews. Dirty water, not changed often enough led to disease, eye infections even possibly blindness in some animals. 

Some animal rights advocates started a <a href="https://www.thepetitionsite.com/383/379/232/the-animals-at-this-zoo-keep-on-turning-up-dead./#published">petition</a> to push Canada’s government to go further. The petition asks that existing marine parks are not grandfathered into the law. Whether the old parks exist for a while longer or not, they’ve led to their own, eventual demise. Perhaps the new law in Canada will also be an inspiration to other nations, like the US. 

This morning I was sea kayaking in a cheap inflatable boat in the Gulf of Mexico. By coincidence, I saw sleek grey bodies moving through the water, dorsal fins slicing quickly. A dolphin, perhaps curious, surfaced about 6 feet from me for a second and then was gone. The dolphin had more important business than a person, as it should.    

--

By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Image Credit: Thanaphong Araveeporn / Shutterstock

Canada passes bill to protect whales and dolphins from the cruelty of captivity

There are currently at least 2,360 cetaceans (whales and dolphins)...

Monogamous fish species found to form human-like bonds with their partners. Among humans, pair-bonding relies heavily on the moods and feelings, or the affective state, of the two mates. In a recent study, a team of scientists set out to examine whether the affective states of other <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/animals-evolved-monogamous/">monogamous animal species</a> may be equally important for reproductive success and pair stability.

The investigation was focused on the convict cichlid, a Central American fish that forms long-lasting pairs and collaborates closely as parents. 

"In this monogamous fish species, the young are highly vulnerable to predation, and parents must coordinate their behaviors for several weeks, during which the young develop from eggs to independent fry," wrote the study authors. 

"Finding a suitable mate is thus decisive for long-lasting pair-bonding and reproductive success. We predicted that the presence of such a male induces a positive affective state in the female, whereas being separated from a suitable male and remaining with a less suitable male induce a negative affective state."

The researchers gave female convict cichlids a choice of two mates by separating the fish with mesh screens. The females were found to bond with their favorite males by engaging in courtship displays and swimming closer to them. Once the pairs had bonded, one of the male fish was removed. Out of 35 females, 18 were assigned their non-preferred male and 17 were assigned their preferred male.

The females were also trained to distinguish between two boxes placed in opposite corners of their tanks. The boxes had lids that were either black or white, and the fish learned which box contained food and which was empty based on the colors of the lids. These colors ultimately represented a positive or a negative signal to the fish.

To analyze the moods of the fish, the researchers introduced a new box into the tank with a neutral gray lid. A happy, optimistic fish would look in the box right away, while a pessimistic fish would show less interest and approach the box more slowly. 

The experiment showed that the females who had been separated from their preferred partners were less motivated to explore the new box, while some showed no interest at all.

"In addition to the relationship between the presence of a female's partner and her affective state, we observed that being paired with a non-preferred partner decreased compatibility between partners, the female's investment in reproduction and the reproductive success of the pair," wrote the study authors. 

"Our results suggest that the relationship between affective state and pair-bonding has evolved not only in humans but also in at least one other monogamous species, the convict cichlid."

"In humans, the influence of a partner on affective state is well established, but such a relationship has never been investigated in non-human species."

The study is published in the <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/journal/rspb">Proceedings of the Royal Society B</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Dmitry V. Petrenko

Monogamous fish species found to form human-like bonds with their partners

Monogamous fish species found to form human-like bonds with their...

When I was 6 or 7, a package came for me. I awaited it breathlessly, having never received more than a card in the mail. It’s contents would complete the gift my mother had given me … for Christmas or my birthday, I don’t remember. Since both were in winter, I’d had to wait several months until Chicago weather conditions relented and shipping conditions were safe. You see, the contents of the package were alive. 

Some may remember having received their own Grow a Frogs—distributed by a company that I was mildly surprised to learn <a href="https://www.growafrog.com/">still exists</a>. The idea was this: a loving relative purchased a kit at a science supply store and then placed an order for the tadpole that would inhabit the tiny plastic tank. It would then metamorphose into a full grown frog, given the proper care. It was, really, just a more advanced incarnation of Sea Monkeys. 

Reader: if you were one of these lucky kids, I hope your initial experience was less traumatizing. What arrived that spring day was a small baggie of blue water, more suited to holding illicit substances than a living amphibian larvae. Bobbing in the murky cerulean liquid—which appeared to have been scooped from the bottom of a urinal—was a deliquescing comma-shaped form. The only thing growing from that tadpole was some kind of aquatic mold. My Grow a Frog was unambiguously deceased. Early pet ownership is nothing if not an object lesson in mortality. 

A phone call and a week or two later, another package arrived. 

This one, which contained an identical baggy of water, contained the promised larvae, squirming and ramming against its plastic prison. This <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/tadpoles-regenerate-tails-cell/">tadpole</a> would, indeed, grow into an African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis), so named for the unique claws on the first three toes of its hind legs, unique to the species. Within months, the translucent blob had sprouted legs, absorbed its tail, and become a tiny, web-footed creature with the charming habit of shoving food into its mouth with its front legs. In retrospect, I believe it was a female due to its protuberant genitalia, though I can’t be sure. I dubbed her Jetsam. From there, she continued to grow, eventually reaching the size of my palm.

One day, while I was cleaning her tank, something awful happened. Jetsam, who had been comfortably ensconced in a glass of water, made a run for it. For a predominantly aquatic creature, she made impressive progress across the laminate of the kitchen counter and launched herself into the kitchen sink. I grabbed for her and, for a moment, had her in my fist. But, with surprising force, she squelched her way from my grasp and disappeared down the drain. Impressive on an evolutionary level, to be sure. How many of her wild conspecifics had executed similar maneuvers when faced with the fish and birds that prey upon them in their native southern Africa? But, for a first grader, it was desolating. I’d failed my poor pet and allowed her to be sucked into the horrors of the suburban Chicago sewage system.

In hysterics, I conveyed the situation to my parents through a film of snot and tears. My father, ever the pragmatist, proceeded to remove the u-bend pipe beneath the sink. A deluge of solidified grease and other unspeakable things poured from the pipe into the bucket below. And, finally, miraculously, my frog plopped into the putrid mess, apparently unphased.

Such is the indomitable constitution of the African clawed frog (Xenopus sp.), a genus recently discovered to <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0142823">contain close to 30 species</a>, many of them difficult to differentiate. Xenopus laevis and Xenopus tropicalis are the most-studied. Largely aquatic, this amphibian has nonetheless managed to invade most continents and has proven adept at overland travel provided that the surrounding environment is not too arid. Transported across the world due to its utility as a laboratory animal, and, latterly, as a novelty pet, it has adapted to a wide variety of habitats. Native to southern Africa from Angola to Namibia, <a href="http://www.gt-ibma.eu/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/10-2012_Measey-et-al_Ongoing-invasions-of-the-African-clawed-frog.pdf">it has invaded</a> some 15 countries in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. Like the American bullfrog  (Lithobates catesbeianus) and the cane toad (Rhinella marina), the African clawed frog has proven to be an amphibian cosmopolitan.

It all started when in 1930 it was discovered by scientist Lancelot Hogben that Xenopus laevis could be used to test for human pregnancy. When injected with the urine of a pregnant woman, which contains the hormone chorionic gonadotropin, female frogs would begin to lay eggs and males would produce sperm. Within the next decade, enormous numbers of clawed frogs were sold to laboratories for use in such tests. Initially wild-caught specimens met the demand, but the species proved easy to breed in captivity, further facilitating its takeover of the pregnancy test industry. Xenopus also proved to be a useful model organism and ultimately became one of the most studied animals in the world. Xenopus tropicalis was the first amphibian to have its genome sequenced <a href="https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/first-frog-genome-sequenced">in 2010</a>.

By the 1960s, more advanced (and less horrifying) means emerged for determining whether a woman was in the family way. (I mean, really, can you imagine how different sitcoms would be if the ingenue had to stick a syringe into a frog to determine whether or not she was expecting?) Having outlived their usefulness, innumerable Xenopus were dumped into nearby waterways to fend for themselves. For them, this was probably all to the good. I’d certainly rather live out my life in a ditch than spend my days dodging hypodermics full of pee. 

For the environment, and the native organisms inhabiting those waterways, not so much. African clawed frogs are voracious eaters and nightmarishly fecund to boot, producing upwards of 30,000 eggs at a time. And they can do this several times over a season. They are particularly well-adapted to colonization of man-made bodies of water that have few other occupants. In these cases, they may subsist through cannibalism of their own tadpoles, which are capable of feeding on microscopic organisms as small as viruses and can thus extract nutrients from even relatively lifeless cesspools.

[caption id="attachment_1873921" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/african-clawed-frog.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1873921" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/african-clawed-frog.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="391" /></a> Image Credit: Brian Gratwicke[/caption]

In natural bodies of water, they can seriously impact the survival of native species. Their adaptable nature allows them to thrive in all sorts of waterways. Though they prefer the still waters of ponds and lakes, they can inhabit flowing streams and rivers as well and can even tolerate extremely brackish water. Persistent populations exist in California and Arizona and they have been found in nine other states, including those with harsh winters. A specimen was found in a nearly frozen pond in Colorado in 1990 despite having evolved in a hot climate. They have also invaded the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Portugal, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico and Chile with varying degrees of success. In arid climates such as that of Arizona, the frogs typically remain in the bodies of water to which they were originally introduced, and may even survive periods of drought by burrowing into the mud for up to eight months. In damper climates that allow them to avoid dessication, they may migrate overland in large groups.

Among the best-studied of the invasive populations are those in California, where the Mediterranean climate has allowed the species to spread to multiple locations since it was first discovered there in 1968. In the Golden State, the frogs may pose a threat to a number of endangered species, including the tidewater goby (Eucyclogobius newberryi), the three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), and the California red-legged frog (Rana aurora draytonii), as well as to the near threatened western spadefoot toad (Spea hammondii). The species has also been implicated in declines of the western toad (Anaxyrus boreas) in some areas. This is likely due to its taste for the <a href="https://peerj.com/articles/3250/?utm_source=TrendMD&amp;utm_campaign=PeerJ_TrendMD_0&amp;utm_medium=TrendMD">eggs of other amphibians</a>, a welcome supplement to a diet comprised largely of aquatic invertebrates. Voracious predators, swarms of the frogs are capable of dismembering even larger food items using their hind legs. It is perhaps a small comfort that this brutal technique is most frequently used on carrion rather than on living prey.

Perhaps even more concerning than its consumption of native species is the fact that, along with the American bullfrog, the clawed frog appears to be one of the main vectors of chytridiomycosis (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis), a fungal disease that has devastated amphibian populations world-wide. A <a href="https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/10/12/03-0804_article">2004 analysis</a> of preserved specimens found evidence of the fungus dating as far back as 1938. The disease causes thickening of the skin, which frogs and other amphibians use in osmotic regulation. Infection is fatal to many species and has caused a number of extinctions. Interestingly, the African clawed frog appears to be unaffected. The tadpoles <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0191537">may even eat the zoospores</a>. 

I’m thus doubly glad that Flotsam didn’t succeed in her jailbreak. Had she survived her journey through the sewers—not unlikely given the dauntless nature of the species—she may have unwittingly become a web-footed Typhoid Mary. In fact, she lived another 10 years, alongside another frog and an equally intrepid feeder goldfish in a tank on my desk. The species has reached ages of up to 25 in captivity; her untimely demise was the result of a toxic slow-release feeder tablet intended to tide her over during a family vacation. A tragic end, to be sure, but at least she lived a life free of intravenous insult.

--

By <a href="mailto:rtpallardy@gmail.com">Richard Pallardy</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Main Image Credit: Brian Gratwicke

Quantum leap: The invasion of the African clawed frog

Atmospheric oxygen leads to the development of fingers over webbed digits. The presence of webbed fingers on an animal typically indicate that the species either lives in an aquatic environment, or gets around by gliding through the air, as these are where webbed fingers have an advantage. On land, free fingers allow us and many other species to grasp objects and move around easily. But how does the developing body decide whether its fingers should be webbed or free? 

New research published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/developmental-cell/home">Developmental Cell</a> has found that during embryo development, some animal species detect the presence of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/evolutionary-booms-oxygen-levels/">atmospheric oxygen</a>, which causes the removal of interdigital webbing.Atmospheric oxygen leads to the development of fingers over webbed digits

Amphibians and amniotes – which includes mammals, reptiles, and birds – can have webbed digits. Amniotes rely on interdigital cell death to form fingers, while amphibians have differential growth patterns between the digits and the areas between them, known as interdigital regions. The researchers found that removal of the interdigital membrane through cell death by amniotes depends on the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Embryos are only able to produce ROS when they are exposed to sufficient oxygen levels during their development.

Because high oxygen levels are able to cause cell death in frogs, the researchers believe that this mechanism is shared by both amphibians and amniotes. 

“But amphibians do not employ cell death to shape their interdigital regions; it is the difference in growth rate between the digital and interdigital regions that will determine their final proportions,” explains Mikiko Tanaka of the <a href="https://www.titech.ac.jp/english/">Tokyo Institute of Technology</a>. “We think that interdigital cell death appeared in amphibians only as a by-product of the high oxygen levels, a first step in this evolutionary process. This new step eventually was integrated to the limb development and became essential to shape the limbs of modern amniotes.”

The study led by Tanaka involved analyzing embryos from a number of species. When oxygen levels were changed for chicken embryos – an amniote with interdigital cell death – this directly affected the number of dying cells. When oxygen levels were increased for African clawed frog embryos, interdigital cell death was induced, which is out of the norm for this amphibian.

[caption id="attachment_1873848" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Interdigital-Cell-Death-in-Tetrapods-.jpeg"><img class="wp-image-1873848" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Interdigital-Cell-Death-in-Tetrapods-.jpeg" alt="" width="650" height="231" /></a> How interdigital cell death and environmental oxygen are correlated in various tetrapods. Image Credit: Cordeiro et al. / Developmental Cell[/caption]

In an effort to expand their evolutionary perspective, the research team also studied cell death and ROS in the Japanese fire-bellied newt and the coqui frog. Similar to the African clawed frog, the Japanese fire-bellied newt had not interdigital cell death, but coqui frogs did have cell death in their interdigital regions. But one important distinction is that, unlike the other two amphibians, coqui frogs grow as terrestrial eggs and breathe oxygen from the air. “This way, we show both experimentally and comparatively that interdigital cell death is correlated with life history strategy and oxygen availability in tetrapods (four-legged vertebrates),” Tanaka says.

While these findings being related to ROS is interesting, particularly because ROS is usually considered a detriment in aging and fertility, Tanaka also explains that “while both amniotes and amphibians can have either free or webbed fingers, they are formed in different ways in these two groups. The new developmental mechanism acquired by amniotes – interdigital cell death – allowed for the evolution of a great variety of limb shapes, such as the lobed fingers of coots, and even removal of some fingers in horses and camels.”

For future research, the researchers want to figure out exactly which pathways are regulated by ROS during development. They also are looking to discover how cell death became a key part of the limb development of amniotes. Furthering our understanding of these processes could help us gain insight into how drugs that combat excessive ROS production (i.e. ethanol, phenytoin, and thalidomide) may cause development defects.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Paikong

Atmospheric oxygen leads to the development of fingers over webbed digits

Atmospheric oxygen leads to the development of fingers over webbed...

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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https://youtu.be/Ug657J67iEo?si=w96YjGMsg939LD_3
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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

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

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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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



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How does salt makes things taste better?

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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



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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 



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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



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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



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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



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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

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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



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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



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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



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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



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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



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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



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Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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