Sebecid fossils are changing everything we thought we knew about the ancient Caribbean. Imagine a crocodile built like a greyhound - tall, fast, and fully land-dwelling. These agile predators, some stretching up to 20 feet long, once ruled South American landscapes after the extinction of the dinosaurs.



Scientists believed they vanished around 11 million years ago. But a surprising discovery in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/caribbean-salt-affects-global-climate-study-reveals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Caribbean</a> tells a different story - one that begins with a few unusual fossilized teeth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-fossil-discovery-changed-the-story">A fossil discovery changed the story</h2>



Back in the 1990s, scientists discovered a pair of fossilized teeth in Cuba. The teeth, about 18 million years old, were serrated and sharp - built for tearing meat.



Then came another one in Puerto Rico, dated to 29 million years ago. The shape of these fossils clearly pointed to a large predator. 



But researchers were baffled. Until then, they thought the Caribbean had no land predators of that size. Without more bones to go on, the mystery sat unsolved.



Then in early 2023, something changed. A new fossil tooth turned up in the Dominican Republic, but this time it came with two vertebrae. It was a small clue, but it changed everything. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-large-predators-in-the-caribbean">Large predators in the Caribbean </h2>



The fossils confirmed the presence of a sebecid. That meant the Caribbean had been a safe haven for these large, land-based predators. They were still roaming these islands five million years after disappearing everywhere else.



This new discovery comes from a research team led by scientists from the <a href="https://www.ufl.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Florida</a>. 



“That emotion of finding the fossil and realizing what it is, it’s indescribable,” said Lazaro Viñola Lopez, the study's lead author.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crocodiles-that-ran-like-dinosaurs">Crocodiles that ran like dinosaurs</h2>



Sebecids were part of a long-extinct family of crocodile relatives called notosuchians. Unlike <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-amphibians-swam-like-modern-crocodiles/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">modern crocodiles</a> that lurk in rivers and swamps, sebecids were fully land-dwelling. 



They ran on strong limbs and hunted like the carnivorous dinosaurs that came before them. Some were enormous. 



Sebecids had armored bodies with tough bony plates beneath their skin. Their teeth were made for slashing meat, not catching fish.



When the mass extinction 66 million years ago wiped out most life, only the sebecids from the notosuchian line managed to survive in South America. With <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/nuclear-winter-dinosaurs-were-likely-killed-by-dust/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">dinosaurs</a> gone, they rose to dominate the food chain.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sebecids-may-have-crossed-the-sea">Sebecids may have crossed the sea</h2>



How did a sebecid get to the Caribbean? The ocean has always been a serious barrier for land animals. That’s where the GAARlandia hypothesis comes in. 



The theory suggests there was once a chain of temporary land bridges or stepping-stone islands between South America and the Caribbean. 



These paths may have allowed animals like sebecids to migrate and settle. If the other teeth found across the Caribbean also belonged to sebecids, it means these <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/past-climate-change-drove-the-rapid-evolution-of-reptiles/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reptiles</a> weren’t just visitors. They were long-term residents.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-land-bridges-reshaped-ecosystems">Land bridges reshaped ecosystems </h2>



The land bridges may have shaped island ecosystems for millions of years. Now that they’re gone, smaller animals like birds, snakes, and native crocodiles have taken their place.



“You wouldn’t have been able to predict this looking at the modern ecosystem,” said a paleontologist from the Florida Museum of Natural History. 



“The presence of a large predator is really different than we imagined before, and it’s exciting to think about what might be discovered next in the Caribbean fossil record as we explore back further in time.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fossil-secrets-of-the-caribbean">Fossil secrets of the Caribbean </h2>



Scientists often describe islands as natural museums. Their isolation makes them safe places for rare plants and animals to hang on after they’ve vanished elsewhere. But the Caribbean still holds many sebecid secrets - especially from deep in the past.



Until now, most Caribbean fossils have been found in caves and water-filled sinkholes called blue holes. Caves protect bones from the elements, while blue holes prevent decay by cutting off oxygen. 



These places have been valuable but only give a narrow view into recent biodiversity. They don’t tell us much about ancient species like sebecids.



Today, researchers are switching tactics. Instead of relying on caves and sinkholes, they’re going after older fossils in harder-to-reach spots.



“This is like a renaissance,” said Viñola-Lopez, describing the new wave of excitement in Caribbean paleontology.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-vanishing-fossil-sites">Vanishing fossil sites </h2>



In the Caribbean, fossil sites vanish quickly. Rain, wind, and forests erase rocky outcrops fast. When workers cut new roads or dig into hills, researchers have to act fast. 



That’s how the sebecid fossils were found. Road work in the Dominican Republic exposed the fossil bed just in time.



A graduate student from the University of Puerto Rico in Mayagüez was studying the rocks in the area and spotted the site. He notified his colleagues, and soon after, the team from the University of Florida arrived to excavate the bones.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-surprises-to-come">More surprises to come</h2>



The sebecid fossils are only one piece of a much larger puzzle. In recent years, researchers have also found the first signs of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mosasaurs-had-fierce-survival-strategies-including-cannibalism/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">mosasaurs</a> - massive sea reptiles - in the Caribbean. 



The experts have identified the region’s oldest ground sloth fossils. And new work is hinting that early human arrival may have led to the extinction of native rodents.



It’s clear there’s more to uncover. “The sebecid is only the tip of the iceberg,” said Viñola-Lopez. And with more eyes now turned to the Caribbean, who knows what ancient giants might turn up next?



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2024.2891" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences</a>.



Image Credit: Illustration by Jorge Machuky



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Giant crocodile in the Caribbean? Fossils reveal a lost apex predator

Sebecid fossils are changing everything we thought we knew about the ancient Caribbean. Imagine a crocodile built like a greyhound - tall, fast, and fully land-dwelling. These agile predators, some stretching up to 20 feet long, once ruled South American landscapes after the extinction of the dinosaurs. Scientists believed they vanished around 11 million years ago. But a surprising discovery in the Caribbean tells a different story - one that begins with a few unusual fossilized teeth. A fossil discovery changed the story Back in the 1990s,...

A potentially new species of killer hornet was recently discovered in China along the border of Myanmar. Measuring 2.4 inches long and with a wingspan of 3.5 inches, the killer hornet is one of the largest Asian <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/worlds-largest-bee-spotted/">giant hornets ever recorded</a>. 

The hornet may not even be the largest of its kind, as the researchers say they have yet to locate the queen of the hive which would likely be larger than the specimens they found. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9Eel67aXZc">Huaxi Insect Museum</a> in Chengdu city led by Zhao Li, the curator of the Insect Museum of West China in Sichuan Province, were on an expedition to the city of Pu’er in the Yunnan province. 

After a local showed Li a picture of a giant hive on a cell phone with a man who could barely wrap his arms around the diameter of the hive, Li was instantly intrigued.

[caption id="attachment_1869344" align="aligncenter" width="628"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/hornets.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-1869344" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/hornets.jpg" alt="" width="628" height="400" /></a> Image Credit: Huaxi Insect Museum - Zhao Li[/caption]

Soon, Li was able to see the hive up close when he spotted it in the market where the hive was being used to sell fresh honey. 

Zhao Li followed the seller to the location where the hive was found at the border between China and Myanmar, and the researchers were able to collect hundreds of hornet samples for future analysis. 

After examining the specimens, the researchers say that the hornet is unlike any other Asian giant hornet species prompting Li to conclude that the hornet belongs to a never before described subspecies of killer hornet. 

The killer hornet gets its name because it preys on honeybees, sometimes stealthily waiting outside hives and snatching up worker bees by their wings. 

While native to East Asia, invasive killer hornets in Europe threaten honeybee populations and apiaries.

--

By<a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com"> Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

Main Image Credit: Huaxi Insect Museum - Zhao Li

Giant killer hornet discovered in China may belong to a new species

A potentially new species of killer hornet was recently discovered...

Marine flatworms and sea slugs have more in common with kale than you might think. Both the plant and the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rising-sea-temperatures-can-alter-dna-in-marine-invertebrates/">invertebrates</a> have “frilly” surfaces and new research into the geometry of frills could help engineers develop flexible soft-body robots that move around with ease. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.arizona.edu/">University of Arizona</a> used mathematics to study inflected nonsmooth surfaces which are the folds of a frilly surface like those found on corals. 

The frills, in combination with a smooth surface like that of a flatworm, made up of the focus of the research which was presented at the 2019 <a href="https://www.aps.org/">American Physical Society</a> March Meeting in Boston.

“People have looked at these hyperbolic surfaces for 200 years, but nobody has thought about the role of smoothness in relation to how these things move, their mechanics,” said Shankar Venkataramani, who presented his team’s findings “Nobody saw a relevance to these things until now.” 

It was long thought that natural frills are the result of both bending and stretching a surface, but the researchers found frills could occur without stretching. 

The researchers also discovered that movement of frilly surfaces required very little energy. So if you think about a flatworm seamlessly gliding through the ocean as it’s wavy edges move up and down, these shifts do not expend too much costly energy. 

The researchers were able to develop a theory that helped describe the inflected nonsmooth surfaces and then created a mathematical model of a thin film that had six up and down portions or frills. 

The question was how to get the model to move in a similar non-energy expending way.

“We realized that nature already solved the problem millions of years ago. Some sea slugs and marine worms use this geometry to get around,” said Venkataramani. 

With this in mind, the researchers were able to get their model to “stroke” or swim, and the sheet was able to remain unstretched as it moved.

The researchers say that further studies into the smooth gliding movements of marine invertebrates could help with engineering energy efficient and flexible robots in the future. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Studying sea slug movement could help develop energy-efficient robots

Marine flatworms and sea slugs have more in common with...

Carnivores play an important role in many ecosystems, and by preying on herbivores, they ensure that plants and vegetation aren’t grazed into extinction. 

A diverse and balanced food chain is key to a healthy ecosystem, but in general <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/medium-sized-carnivores-climate/">carnivores are declining</a> worldwide. 

In the <a href="http://www.gorongosa.org/">Gorongosa National Park</a> in Mozambique, important carnivores like leopards, hyenas, and African wild dogs have disappeared entirely due to the Mozambican civil war. 

While this has emboldened large herbivorous mammals to seek out new grazing areas, new research shows that unchecked herbivores with no predators degrade the ecosystem.  

Seeing a unique opportunity to study large-mammal ecosystems and the impacts of carnivore declines, researchers from <a href="https://www.princeton.edu/">Princeton University</a> monitored Gorongosa National Park, recording the number of herbivores in the area, what they ate, and how vegetation recovered when protected from grazing. 

A study detailing their findings was published in the journal Science, and the results provide hope that degraded ecosystems can recover upon the reintroduction of large carnivores. 

In Gorongosa, the researchers discovered that the lack of carnivores created a “landscape of fearlessness” or where herbivores, no longer afraid of being eaten, would graze in open areas that were previously too risky. 

“We found that one of the common antelope species, bushbuck, which typically is a very shy, secretive forest-dweller, has expanded out into the open plains,” said Robert Pringle, a senior author of the study. “The plants in the plains are very nutritious, and the bushbuck that have colonized those areas are bigger and in better shape than their counterparts in the forest. And the presence of bushbuck in this new habitat has negative effects on the plants that bushbuck eat.”

The presence of herbivores in previously high-risk areas has created ripples throughout the entire food chain according to the researchers. 

Starting in 2015, the Princeton researchers surveyed the park and GPS collars were used to track movements and locations of different herbivores.

The researchers also analyzed animal scat to find out what plants what were being eaten and how nutritious each plant was. All of the data was used to help develop experiments that would illustrate the impacts of predation and lack thereof on an ecosystem with large herbivorous mammals. 

“The two most important pieces of the study were two experiments that Justine [Justine Atkins was the lead researcher of the study] performed in the field in 2016 and 2017,” said Pringle. “One was to use the sounds and scents of large carnivores to simulate risk -- the idea was to try to scare the bushbuck into thinking that predators were present and see how that affected their behavior.”

Once the bushbuck sensed that their predators had returned through the scents of carnivore urine and the sounds of leopard calls, they retreated to the cover of wooded areas. Atkins also prevented the bushbuck from eating plants in the open plains they preferred. 

Once grazing stopped there, the plants recovered and grew back rapidly which was good news to the researchers. 

Since the plants rebounded so quickly, the researchers say that reintroducing carnivores into an ecosystem would be beneficial to plant diversity and growth.

“Our work really underscores the importance of top carnivores, which are declining globally,” said Ryan Long, a co-author on the project. “Carnivores influence ecosystems in complex ways that go beyond just killing and eating other animals, but it can be really challenging to get experimental evidence of those kinds of effects in large-mammal systems.”

In 2018, a pack of African wild dogs was introduced into the park, and the project has been extremely successful in bringing balance back to the park’s food chain and ecosystem. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

Carnivores play a key role in a healthy ecosystem

Carnivores play an important role in many ecosystems, and by...

An international team of researchers from the <a href="https://www.eva.mpg.de/index.html">Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology</a>, the <a href="https://www.idiv.de/">German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research</a>, and <a href="https://www.asu.edu/">Arizona State University</a>, recently studied the human impact on the behavioral diversity of chimpanzees. Their findings, published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a>, show that human intervention causes a massive drop in the overall behavioral diversity of chimps.

"Chimpanzees are highly intelligent and adaptable creatures," said coauthor Kevin Lee from Arizona State University, "and there have been various reports of chimpanzees, both in captivity and in free-living conditions, that have relatively more frequent contact with humans exhibiting some 'novel' behaviors not observed in more remote populations, but it was not clear how overall behavioral diversity would be affected."

Before this study, behavioral diversity of chimps was lumped into overall biodiversity changes in chimp populations, which is often attributed to the decline of wild chimp populations in their native habitats, caused by human-linked deforestation, hunting, and diseases. 

However, more recently, behavioral diversity has been distinguished as its own unique entity, and the <a href="https://www.cbd.int/">Convention on Biological Diversity</a> and the <a href="https://www.cms.int/">Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals</a>, of the United Nations Environment Programme, now call specifically for its protection under the umbrella of biodiversity protection.

In order to get a better grasp on how humans have impacted behavioral changes in chimps, the research team compiled a dataset of 31 chimpanzee behaviors across 144 chimp social groups/communities located throughout the entire global range of chimpanzees. Behaviors noted in this study included “extraction and consumption of termites, ants, algae, nuts and honey; the use of tools for hunting or digging for tubers; and the use of stones, pools and caves among several others.”

The behaviors were studied in each chimp group and then put into perspective of the amount of human impact on said group.

"We measured multiple levels of human impact, including human population density, roads, rivers and forest cover," said coauthor Kevin Langergraber, also from Arizona State University. "The analysis revealed a strong and robust pattern — chimpanzee behavioral diversity was reduced by 88 percent when human impact was highest compared to locations with the least human impact."

It is believed that chimps may act differently knowing humans are in such close range. They may steer clear of actions that would inform hunters of their presence, like cracking nuts. 

Furthermore, habitat depletion and lack of resources may be preventing the next generation from learning behaviors from older generations. Climate change might also play a role in loss of behavioral diversity due to the fact that certain foods and resources have become less available and have forced chimps to rework their lifestyle to adapt.

--

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: Kevin Langergraber

Chimpanzee behavioral diversity is reduced by human impact

An international team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute...

Over a hundred new species of beetle have recently been discovered on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi – known for being home to unique species like the deer-pig and the midget buffalo. 

What the island wasn’t known for was its <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/beetle-species-game-thrones/">beetle</a> inhabitants, specifically the tiny weevils of the genus Trigonopterus, as only a single species had been classified on the island since 1885. But now thanks to new research in the open-access journal <a href="https://zookeys.pensoft.net/">ZooKeys</a>, a total of 103 new Trigonopterus species have been identified and described.

“We had found hundreds of species on the neighboring islands of New Guinea, Borneo and Java - why should Sulawesi with its lush habitats remain an empty space?” asks Dr. Alexander Riedel, lead author of the study and an entomologist at <a href="https://www.smnk.de/en/">Natural History Museum Karlsruhe</a> in Germany. 

Riedel actually came across the first specimens of these new species back in 1990 while doing a survey of the fauna living in the rainforest foliage in Central Sulawesi. Over the coming years, he collaborated with the Indonesian Institute of Scientists (LIPI) to fill out the rest of the picture.

“Our survey is not yet complete and possibly we have just scratched the surface. Sulawesi is geologically complex and many areas have never been searched for these small beetles,” explains Raden Pramesa Narakusumo, curator of beetles at the Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense (MXB), <a href="https://www.gbif.org/publisher/07acecfd-5994-47a7-bd1b-ccdbf534973b">Indonesian Research Center for Biology</a>.

[caption id="attachment_1869285" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/beetles.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1869285" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/beetles.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="282" /></a> Trigonopterus asterix, T. obelix and T. idefix, Image Credit: Alexander Riedel[/caption]

These beetles have likely remained overlooked for so long due to their size (no bigger than 2-3 millimeters) and superficial resemblance amongst their genus. Many look so similar that DNA sequencing is the only efficient method to determine if they are in fact separate species. 

Along with figuring out which beetles were members of different species, the researchers were faced with the daunting task of naming 103 separate species. While some species were named in ways that indicated their localities or characteristic morphology, others received much more unique names.

One small, green and forest-dwelling species was named after the Star Wars character Yoda, while three other species were named after the main characters in the French comics series The Adventures of Asterix. Two species were named after Greek mythological characters Artemis, the goddess of hunting and nature, and Satyr, a male nature spirit inhabiting remote places.

With all the work done to find, identify, and name these species, the researchers wanted to ensure that future taxonomists could easily access information about these species.

“This provides a face to the species name, and this is an important prerequisite for future studies on their evolution,” explained the researchers. “Studies investigating such evolutionary processes depend on names and clear diagnoses of the species. These are now available, at least for the fauna of Sulawesi.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Main Image Credit: Alexander Riedel

Over 100 new species of beetle found on remote Indonesian island

Over a hundred new species of beetle have recently been...

The <a href="https://www.fws.gov/">United States Fish and Wildlife Service</a> has announced a proposal to <a href="https://apnews.com/b2e0ee9f81da4e1db9672a3725354720">lift federal protections</a> for gray wolves and revoke their endangered status in the lower 48 states. 

If approved, gray wolf management would return to states and tribes. The proposal was announced by former lobbyist and acting Secretary of the <a href="https://www.doi.gov/">Interior Department</a> David Bernhardt. 

In 1975, there were just 1,000 gray wolves in the US and in 1978 the gray wolf was classified as an endangered species. Now, gray wolf populations have recovered significantly, and there are around 5,000 wolves. 

Even though this <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/good-environmental-news-change/">conservation success story</a> is a hopeful sign that protections and management have helped gray wolves re-establish themselves, there are concerns that lifting protections will cause declines in unstable and vulnerable populations. 

In the Adirondacks and the southern Rocky Mountains, biologists have predicted that gray wolf populations could thrive but current gray wolves that live there still need protections because populations only recently recovered. 

“The proposal will also all but ensure that wolves are not allowed to recover in the Adirondacks, southern Rockies and elsewhere that scientists have identified suitable habitat,” the Center for Biological Diversity said in response to the new proposal. 

The <a href="http://www.beefusa.org/">National Cattlemen’s Beef Association</a> lauded the proposal as farmers and ranchers have had to deal with encroaching wolf populations hunting their livestock. 

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/protect-livestock-impact-ecosystems/">Non-lethal methods</a> exist to help farmers keep wolves away from their livestock, but it may be some time before these methods are implemented on a wide scale. A farmer may also have less incentive now going forward to use non-lethal methods under the new proposal. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Trump administration plans to end protections for gray wolves

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has announced a...

A new species of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/tarantulas-migrating-new-areas/">tarantula</a> with bright blue legs has been described for the first time by arachnologists Ray Gabriel and Danniella Sherwood. However, there is controversy surrounding whether two specimens of the palm-sized tarantula were illegally removed from their habitats in Malaysia. 

Wildlife photographer Chien Lee, who first posted a photo of the spider on Facebook in 2017, said the spider was “hands down” the most beautiful tarantula he had ever seen. Lee said it is possible that the experts were not aware that the spiders were obtained illegally. Lee theorizes that after he posted the image, collectors went out searching for the spiders. 

However, experts in Britain believe that the proper procedures were followed. <a href="https://www.thebts.co.uk/">British Tarantula Society</a> chairman Peter Kirk told <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/index.html">MailOnline</a> that he supports Lee's claim that he originally found the new species. He said that the two specimens were received in “good faith,” adding that the society was told “they were legally collected with all appropriate paperwork needed.”

Kirk also explained that the collectors did not smuggle the tarantulas out of Malaysia, but that two dead spiders were mailed to Europe.

“It would be down to the Malaysians to sort out the paperwork, the collectors had a permit,” Kirk told MailOnline. “We published it from the authors without any reason to believe that the spiders were illegally obtained. How easy is it to identify someone selling something illegally?”


The spider has been classified as a new species in a new genus called Birupes simoroxigorum, named after the children of the three Malaysian collectors who provided the spiders. According to MailOnline, the spiders will be held at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History until they are sent back to Malaysia.    

Birupes simoroxigorum is described in the <a href="https://www.thebts.co.uk/">Journal of the British Tarantula Society</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: British Tarantula Society Journal

New species of tarantula found in Malaysia has electric blue legs

A new species of tarantula with bright blue legs has...

Conservationists brand tortoise shells to save species from the pet trade. The Ploughshare tortoise is known throughout the world for its memorizing, geometric shell. This shell makes the species stand out, especially in the illegal pet trade, which is causing Ploughshare tortoise populations to plummet.

The Ploughshare tortoise is currently listed as <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/9016/12950950">Critically Endangered</a> on the IUCN Red List as a result of smuggling for the pet trade and human-caused fires. Today, there are only around 400 individuals left living solely in Madagascar. The species holds the undesired title of the world’s rarest tortoise.

Demand for the Ploughshare tortoise has risen in recent decades among hobbyists and collectors who are willing to shell out large amounts of money for the tortoises. Conservationists brand tortoise shells to save species from the pet trade

This demand has fueled poaching in the wild as poachers often target species that will yield a high price in the wildlife market. Incentivizing the smuggling of Ploughshare tortoises more is the ease of taking them from the wild. Ploughshare tortoises have a highly limited distribution, allowing poachers to zero in on where they could find the species. Chasing and catching a tortoise is not a difficult task and Ploughshare tortoises have been<a href="https://www.biotaxa.org/hn/article/viewFile/11659/16038"> known</a> to get stuck between trees.

A<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Serene_Chng2/publication/317664475_Rising_internet-based_trade_in_the_Critically_Endangered_ploughshare_tortoise_Astrochelys_yniphora_in_Indonesia_highlights_need_for_improved_enforcement_of_CITES/links/59f92bf"> study</a> which examined the online market for Ploughshare tortoises found 88 advertisements selling 126 Ploughshare tortoises in a five-year period. The tortoises were highly valuable, selling for up to $47,000 USD each. Individuals have also been<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Vincent_Nijman/publication/266388361_Analysis_of_a_decade_of_trade_of_tortoises_and_freshwater_turtles_in_Bangkok_Thailand/links/542faf510cf277d58e91fd86/Analysis-of-a-decade-of-trade-of-tortoises-and-freshwate"> found</a> for sale at marketplaces.                               

Times are desperate for the Ploughshare tortoise. Despite protections by Madagascar law and international treaty, the illegal smuggling and trade persists. In 2016, a group of<a href="https://cites.org/sites/default/files/eng/cop/17/InfDocs/E-CoP17-Inf-36.pdf"> wildlife conservation groups</a> warned that the species could become extinct in the wild in the next two to three years.

In an attempt to curtail the trade, conservation groups have turned to an unlikely solution. The<a href="https://www.turtleconservancy.org/"> Turtle Conservancy</a>, a non-profit aimed at protecting turtles and tortoises, currently runs a program where turtles in the wild are safely marked with serial numbers on their shells. This approach hopes to curtail the demand for Ploughshare tortoises in the pet trade by making the individuals less attractive.

While it certainly is unfortunate to deface what makes the tortoise so iconic, the alternative is the likely extinction of the species. The Ploughshare tortoise faces a similar fate as other species whose beauty and unique attributes make them victim to overexploitation.

<a href="http://www.earth.com/news/northern-white-rhinos-genetics/">Rhinos</a>, who are targeted by poachers for their horns, have been the recipients of a few creative ideas to curtail demand for their parts. Some conservationists have suggested humanely shaving off rhinos’ horns and poisoning the horn itself. These ideas have been met with<a href="https://www.ifaw.org/united-states/news/why-some-creative-poaching-solutions-fail"> hesitancy</a> by some who question the efficacy of the ideas.

Although the shell marking program was controversial when it was first suggested, a similar program was conducted on Burmese star tortoises when they were reintroduced into the wild. The shell markings even helped prosecute two smugglers in Thailand, Turtle Conservancy<a href="https://www.turtleconservancy.org/news/2016/2/wild-ploughshare-tortoises-in-more-danger-than-ever"> notes</a>.

Despite ethical concerns about defacing the tortoises, the logic makes sense. Buyers are unlikely to spend $47,000 on a tortoise whose shell is damaged, especially if the serial number puts the buyer at an increased risk of detection.

Marking the shells of the Ploughshare tortoise is just one of the initiatives taking place to protect the species. The species’ habitat at Baly Bay was been established as a national park, tortoises have been<a href="http://www.chelonian.org/wp-content/uploads/file/CRM%206/26-Kiester&amp;al.pdf"> equipped with radio tags to track their movements and individuals have been bred in captivity</a>. The Ploughshare tortoise also needs increased enforcement around its habitat and internationally.

Without intervention, the only Ploughshare tortoises in the world may be living in the homes of the buyers who fueled their demise.

--

By <a href="mailto:brianna.grant134@gmail.com">Brianna Lynne</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Image Credit: reptiles4all/Shutterstock

Conservationists brand tortoise shells to save species from the pet trade

Conservationists brand tortoise shells to save species from the pet...

Mass coral bleaching events can be devastating to coastal ocean ecosystems and research has shown that these events have become increasingly <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mass-coral-bleaching-common/">frequent and widespread in recent years</a>. 

Climate change is a major driving factor in mass coral bleaching, and coral reef health is important when predicting how a reef will adapt to rising sea levels and temperatures.

Corals need herbivorous fish to graze on algae on the reef, and previously it was assumed that as long as fish populations remained high, coral reefs were healthy.

Now, a new study has found that diversity plays an equally important role as population numbers and biomass in keeping corals healthy and reef systems thriving.  

Researchers from the at <a href="https://www.bigelow.org/">Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences</a> recorded underwater footage of fish grazing along reefs in the Dominican Republic to assess how fish diversity impacted reef health.

The study was published in the journal Science Advances.

“Scientists have long known that reefs are healthier when a large number, or a ‘high biomass,’ of plant-eating fish graze their surfaces," said Doug Rasher, the senior author of the study. “However, this study revealed that having a diverse portfolio of those fish species on the reef is equally important to keeping reefs well grazed and hospitable to baby corals.”

When fish graze in coral reefs, they also double as the coral cleaning crew, scraping off seaweed and algae from the corals with their bodies.

Without fish to graze on them, seaweed and algae can overtake the reef and, in the Caribbean, this has become an increasingly common problem.

[caption id="attachment_1869250" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/parrotfish1.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1869250" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/parrotfish1.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="430" /></a> A large stoplight parrotfish scrapes algae from the reef surface. Image Credit: José Alejandro Alvarez[/caption]

Each fish has their own preference when it comes the kind of algae they prefer, so it would make sense that a reef that houses a diverse number of fish species has a decreased risk of being overcome by seaweed.

The researchers wanted to see if diversity impacted reef health across a wide range of coral reefs or if it was a localized phenomenon that only benefitted certain reefs.

The team used underwater cameras to record fish activity at ten reefs spread across 1,000 kilometers of coastline in the Dominican Republic.

“Looking at reefs in isolation is like studying individual pieces of the puzzle,” said Rasher. “It is only by studying multiple reefs across an entire region that we could see the much larger role that biodiversity plays in supporting the process of grazing.”

Along with recording the fish, the researchers also measured algae abundance both before and after the fish fed on the corals and the number of baby corals.

Next, the researchers analyzed the video footage and took note of the diversity and sizes of the grazing fish.

A model was designed to process the data and compare the effectiveness of fish diversity to fish biomass on grazing.  

The model confirmed the importance of fish diversity on reef health, and the researchers say the study has important implications for managing tropical fisheries as conservation and management has typically focused on population size and not the number of species present.

“Our research helps bring coral reefs in line with what we know from many other ecosystems - from seagrass beds to forests and grasslands,” said Jon Lefcheck, the lead author of the study. “It appears more and more likely that biodiversity is the lynchpin that holds nature together.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Main Image Credit: José Alejandro Alvarez

Both diversity and abundance are key to coral reef health

Mass coral bleaching events can be devastating to coastal ocean...

Dinosaurs were flourishing just before they were killed off. Most scientists agree that <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/asteroid-dinosaurs-global-tsunami/">dinosaurs</a> were killed off at the end of the Late Cretaceous period by a large asteroid impact, which was likely combined with intense volcanic activity. On the other hand, many experts disagree on the overall state of the dinosaurs just before they were wiped out. 

A new study led by <a href="https://www.imperial.ac.uk/">Imperial College London</a> has found that dinosaurs had survived millions of years of long-term climate changes and were flourishing at the time of the devastating asteroid strike. This discovery contradicts the findings of previous studies which concluded that the dinosaurs were in a state of decline when they were killed. 

Study lead author Alessandro Chiarenza is a PhD student in the Department of Earth Science and Engineering at Imperial.

“Dinosaurs were likely not doomed to extinction until the end of the Cretaceous, when the asteroid hit, declaring the end of their reign and leaving the planet to animals like mammals, lizards and a minor group of surviving dinosaurs: birds,” said Chiarenza.

“The results of our study suggest that dinosaurs as a whole were adaptable animals, capable of coping with the environmental changes and climatic fluctuations that happened during the last few million years of the Late Cretaceous. Climate change over prolonged time scales did not cause a long-term decline of dinosaurs through the last stages of this period.”

North America, where many Late Cretaceous dinosaurs are preserved, was split in half by a body of water during this time period. A steady supply of sediment from the newly forming Rocky Mountains created the perfect conditions for fossilization in the west, but the conditions in the eastern half of the continent were not nearly as suitable for fossilization. For this reason, far more dinosaur fossils are found in the western half of North America and this fossil record has been used for most research.

“Most of what we know about Late Cretaceous North American dinosaurs comes from an area smaller than one-third of the present-day continent, and yet we know that dinosaurs roamed all across North America, from Alaska to New Jersey and down to Mexico,” said study co-author Dr. Philip Mannion from the <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/">University College London</a>.

The research team used a technique known as “ecological niche modeling,” which accounts for the environmental conditions that a particular species needs to survive.  This made it possible for the experts to gain new insight into where dinosaur species would have survived, rather than simply basing their existence on where fossils had been recovered. 


The study revealed that habitats which could support a range of dinosaurs were more widespread at the end of the Cretaceous than what was thought. The previously unknown territories were located in regions that were less likely to preserve fossils. This means that the number, as well as the diversity, of dinosaurs that were alive in the Late Cretaceous has been largely underestimated. 

The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</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: Davide Bonadonna

Dinosaurs were flourishing just before they were killed off

Dinosaurs were flourishing just before they were killed off. Most...

By now, everyone’s heard of the threats facing <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/fungicide-honey-bees-death/">honey bees</a> these days in the United States, from pesticides to the steady invasive creep of urbanization.  But few people think about the native bee species and how these interact with the non-native European honey bee or the ‘Africanized’ hybrid that so many people fear.  Native bees are victims to human activity just as the loyal pollinating honey bees we so love.

According to the <a href="https://www.usda.gov/oce/forum/past_speeches/2015_Speeches/SDroege.pdf">USDA</a>, there are 20,000 named species of bees worldwide.  There are estimated to be another 20,000 species of bees left to describe.  In the US, there are approximately 4,000 species of described bees and an estimated 400 species left to describe.  The highest diversity of bees here is in the Southwest. With overlapping populations, there are 100+ species at any given location in the US.  Only about 1% of the bees in the US are non-native. Of the native bees in the US, most are incapable of stinging. Mexico also has a large amount of bee diversity.

According to <a href="https://ourworld.unu.edu/en/protecting-native-bee-populations-in-mexico">UN University</a>, there are 2,000 species of bees native to Mexico.  Beekeeping in Mexico is a big business, with 41,000 honey producers raising 2 million hives with a profit in exports of about US $56 million per year.  Honey production includes both European Honey bees (Apis mellifera) and native species.  The honey produced by each species of bee differs in its flavor as well as the amount produced.  Colony sizes in European and native bees also differ greatly. European honeybee colonies range in size from 30,000 to 50,000, while native colonies are usually much smaller from 1,000 to 5,000 worker bees.  Interestingly, native apiculture still remains in Mexico.

Native American communities in Mexico sometimes use pre-Columbian techniques in raising bees, such as using clay pots instead of more modern containers.  Sometimes native bees are used as well, contributing to the natural biodiversity of bees in Mexico. There is also one big advantage to raising native bees, unlike their European relatives, native bees don’t sting.  Being stingless, native bees are much easier to handle than the European Honeybee. There is also an ecological advantage – native bee species pollinate higher up in the colony of native tropical forests than do the introduced European bees.  Despite the benefit of not being attacked by a bee and the benefit to tropical forests, native bees are usually less profitable because they produce smaller volumes of honey per colony. 

When Native Americans encountered European Honey bees in North America, they often called them the ‘white man’s fly’.  Seeing large numbers of honey bees meant European settlers were nearby, while Native Americans had already been collecting honey from native bee colonies they found in the wild.  In Mexico, the Maya had long been practicing bee husbandry when Europeans first arrived in their land.

In 2005, the <a href="https://stri.si.edu/">Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute</a> reported that the main native species propagated by the Maya was Melipona beecheii, one of about 500 species of stingless bees found in the tropics.  16 species of stingless bees are native to the Yucatan region. The bee’s name in Yucatec Mayan is ‘Xunan-Kab’ which translates into, ‘royal lady bee’.  Traditionally colonies of these stingless bees were reared by a Mayan priest and honey was harvested only twice a year, to avoid damage from over harvesting.  

Researchers from the Smithsonian Institute of Tropical Research then decried the decline of native bee husbandry among the Mayan people of Mexico.  The decline is connected to a loss of cultural knowledge – the majority of Mayan bee keepers in Mexico are old men who aren’t passing there knowledge on.  Decline of bees as with the decline of all native species is also connected to a decline in habitat. Melipona beecheii depends on tropical forests for their survival and production of honey.  Given the threats to native honey bees, despite the 3,000 year history of beekeeping in Mexico, many Mayans are turning to European bees for beekeeping.  

By 2005, there had already been a 93% decline in native bee keeping.  1,000 native bee colonies were known in 1981 but only 90 remained in 2004.  At the time, biologist Rogel Villanueva Gutiérrez predicted that native bee production would be completely gone by 2008.  <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2019/01/house-of-the-royal-lady-bee-maya-revive-native-bees-and-ancient-beekeeping/">Mongabay</a> reported in 2018 that these predictions didn’t turn out to be entirely accurate.  

Villanueva himself brought together 50 local people in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo and taught them native bee husbandry in an attempt to save the tradition, the bee itself and contribute to forest health.  From these modest beginnings, native bee keeping has grown and the state government has taken on financing some beekeepers. One family in the agricultural community of La Pantera has 98 bee colonies, more than all the native bee colonies being kept in Quintana Roo in 2004.  

An agroecological School in Yucatán state, founded in 1992 by a Catholic priest is also part of the renewal in native bee keeping.  The school has trained 300 Mayan students in native bee keeping and even more in agroecology. This training is spreading the renewal in native bee keeping to  Yucatán as well as Quintana Roo. Some are concerned with possible bad actors in native bee keeping.

Wild bee hives are sometimes raided to create a new colony of native bees for a quick profit, hurting wild populations.  Older people also sometimes sell their bee colonies for a profit without passing down their deep, traditional knowledge to younger generations.  There are also concerns about those who start in the business without a good grounding in apiculture training and end up killing or hurting colonies by their ineptitude.  Still, a revival in traditional knowledge and connection to native wildlife is a good thing. 

Beekeeping in the Yucatán peninsula of Mexico shows a way that agriculture and wild ecology can coexist, a way humans have discovered of being comfortable as part of a greater environmental whole.  Yucatán state has a history of colonial violence and oppression of Mayans, greater than in Quintana Roo. Revival of native beekeeping can be seen as a small revival of a culture long persecuted by colonists.           

--

By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Mexican beekeepers help native bees come back from the brink

By now, everyone’s heard of the threats facing honey bees...

Can FIV positive and negative cats live together? Working at a free-roaming cat rescue had many perks but perhaps my favorite was watching the adoptable cats interact and play with each other. These <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/cats-friendly-cues-humans/">cats</a> were varied in their backgrounds, some were rescued outdoors while some were owner-surrendered, some were seniors while others were kittens, and some were diagnosed with feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) while others were not.

FIV is a virus, similar to HIV, that impacts a cat’s immune system making them increasingly vulnerable to other illnesses. Years ago, FIV meant euthanasia for many cats brought to shelters and rescues. But as veterinarians and researchers learned more about the virus, opinions began to change about how to treat FIV positive cats.

Although the symptoms of FIV can be severe, FIV positive cats can live healthy lives for years after their diagnosis. The <a href="https://www.vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/cornell-feline-health-center">Cornell Feline Health Center</a> estimates that the median survival time for a cat diagnosed with FIV is<a href="https://www.vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/cornell-feline-health-center/health-information/feline-health-topics/feline-immunodeficiency-virus"> five years</a>. Additionally, a<a href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.1034.1044&amp;rep=rep1&amp;type=pdf"> study</a> published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery found that the median survival time of FIV positive cats was not significantly different than FIV negative cats. In light of this, adopters can now find FIV positive cats readily available for adoption.

Cat rescues vary on how to house FIV positive cats in their care. FIV positive cats may be isolated or they may cohabitate with the other cats, such as at the rescue I had worked for.

Shelters and rescues may be hesitant to implement cohabitation policies between FIV positive and negative cats because FIV can be transmitted from cat to cat (it can not be transmitted to other animals or humans). The<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3439265/"> primary mode of the transmission</a> of FIV is through bite wounds which can occur through fighting or mating. Less common, is the transmission of FIV from mother to kittens and from mating itself. Can FIV positive and negative cats live together?

Cats who are not sterilized are at an increased risk of fighting and mating with other cats, which is why<a href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.1034.1044&amp;rep=rep1&amp;type=pdf"> free-roaming, aggressive male cats</a> are the most frequently infected. Shelters and rescues regularly mandate that all cats in their care have to be sterilized, which greatly reduces the risk of transmission by controlling testosterone and desires to fight over territory and mates.

This does not mean there is no chance of transmission between FIV positive and negative cats. Sterilized cats may still fight each other but rarely do these interactions result in forceful biting and open wounds.

A 2014<a href="http://maddieslifesavingacademy.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Litster-2014-TVJ-Tmission-FIV-cohabiting-cats-2-rescue-shelters.pdf"> study</a> published in The Veterinary Journal examined the transmission of FIV between 138 cohabitating cats and found no evidence of transmission despite years of close contact. The cats living together engaged in grooming and sporadic fighting and shared food bowls, litter boxes and bedding. This study is in line with three previous studies which also found no transmission of FIV between positive and negative cats.

However, a 2000<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10811262"> study</a> published in The Veterinary Record found that six FIV negative cats became infected while living with FIV positive cats over a ten-year period.

Allowing FIV positive and negative cats to live together is not universally accepted in the animal welfare field. Some professionals still advise against the practice. Those who are in favor of the practice emphasize that the risk of transmission is low and that animal owners can monitor their cat’s behavior to ensure aggressive fighting is not occurring.

--

By <a href="mailto:brianna.grant134@gmail.com">Brianna Lynne</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Can FIV positive and negative cats live together?

Can FIV positive and negative cats live together? Working at...

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;



---



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



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

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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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?

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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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



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



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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



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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