In nature, flashy displays usually scream courtship. Peacocks fan iridescent trains, peacock spiders dance in sequined shorts, and all the glitter serves one end: to impress a mate. So when Panama’s matador bugs - Anisoscelis alipes - waggle bright, banner-like hind legs, the obvious guess has been sexual selection. 



But a new <a href="https://stri.si.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute</a> (STRI) study says the leg-waving isn’t a love signal at all.



“The very nature of discovery is that we can’t anticipate where our questions lead,” said STRI postdoctoral fellow Ummat Somjee, whose work on sexual selection and insect weaponry has been widely covered. 



“By following our curiosity we sometimes arrive at unexpected realities, leading us to reevaluate the very questions we asked in the first place.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-matador-bugs-put-to-the-test">Matador bugs put to the test</h2>



Sexual selection leaves a telltale pattern. In species with showy male ornaments, males tend to carry bigger, brighter structures than females, and they show them off more often - especially at close range to suitors or rivals.



The STRI-led team, with collaborators in the UK, Panama, the United States, Switzerland, and Germany, set out to test whether matador bugs fit that script.



They first gave each wild-caught bug a tiny dot of nontoxic paint so individuals could be tracked. Then, in a screened enclosure, they released the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/insects-are-still-disappearing-and-there-are-hundreds-of-reasons-why/">insects</a> in groups of three, stepped out, and let the cameras roll.



Over repeated trials, they recorded positions every couple of minutes, later combing through full-session video to measure how often and how long the bugs waved and how far apart they were when they did. By the end, they had logged more than 745 flag-waving bouts.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-showy-legs-aren-t-about-mating">Showy legs aren’t about mating</h2>



The pattern was striking for how unsexy it was. Flag size scaled with body size in both sexes, but females - though generally larger - did not carry disproportionately bigger flags than males of the same size. Males and females waved about as often and at similar rates.



Most telling, waving tended to happen when other bugs were farther away, not at close quarters where courtship and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-clues-about-the-feeding-habits-of-grasshoppers/">rivalry</a> typically unfold. Whether the trio was all male, all female, or mixed didn’t change the behavior.



Taken together, the evidence points away from signaling to mates or rivals. For matador bugs, flamboyant feet are probably not about impressing anyone.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bugs-wave-to-stay-alive">Bugs wave to stay alive</h2>



If sex isn’t the driver, another explanation rises to the top: <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/worms-activate-an-ancient-sleep-circuit-when-trapped-by-predators/">predator</a> distraction. In the wild, nearly one in six matador bugs is missing a hind leg. That’s a lot of lost limbs in exactly the spot where those flashy flags are.



The team suspects the bright, mobile banners operate like a bullfighter’s cape - drawing attacks away from vital body parts. Sacrificing a leg is bad, but it’s better than being eaten.



Future experiments will directly test this idea, for instance by observing predator strikes with and without flags or by manipulating color and motion to see what attackers target.



The researchers aren’t ruling out other functions either; flags could startle predators, misdirect their aim, or even act as a general “back off” signal to larger animals without being a specialized sexual signal.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-flashy-bugs-spark-new-solutions">Flashy bugs spark new solutions</h2>



Matador bugs aren’t just jungle curiosities. In Panama and neighboring Costa Rica, they’re common pests on passion fruit (Passiflora edulis) farms. If the flags are indeed decoys for predators, that insight could inform <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pests-are-moving-to-cooler-regions-due-to-climate-change/">pest</a> management.



Encouraging natural enemies - or even designing low-toxicity lures that exploit the bugs’ own signaling - might offer alternatives to broad-spectrum insecticides that harm beneficial insects as well.



Good ideas start with careful natural history. Until now, the matador bug’s signature behavior was famous mostly as a striking photograph on guidebook covers. This study turns the image into data.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fieldwork-beats-the-feed"><a></a>Fieldwork beats the feed</h2>



Much of the project’s grunt work fell to early-career researchers tracking painted bugs under tropical heat. For first author and <a href="https://www.manchester.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Manchester</a> undergraduate intern Cameron Longbottom, the field season was transformational.



“Being in the field in Panama is so different from watching Avatar on the internet," he said. "To see animals in their own habitats - you don’t get that in many places. there is still so much to learn.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-showiness-can-also-mean-survival">Showiness can also mean survival</h2>



Charles Darwin wrestled with the strange logic of ornamentation and ultimately proposed <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/temperature-tolerance-has-co-evolved-with-sexual-selection/">sexual selection</a> to explain it. That theory remains a powerful lens, but it isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer to every bright color or exaggerated appendage.



The matador bug’s neon leg flags remind us that conspicuous traits can evolve for reasons other than romance - especially if they help animals survive long enough to reproduce.



For now, the verdict is clear: the leg-waving that made these insects famous doesn’t help them flirt. It likely helps them live.



The study is&nbsp;published&nbsp;in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/cz/advance-article/doi/10.1093/cz/zoaf047/8220672?login=false" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Current Zoology</a>. 



Image Credit: Steven Paton



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Matador bugs wave their flashy neon legs to distract predators

In nature, flashy displays usually scream courtship. Peacocks fan iridescent trains, peacock spiders dance in sequined shorts, and all the glitter serves one end: to impress a mate. So when Panama’s matador bugs - Anisoscelis alipes - waggle bright, banner-like hind legs, the obvious guess has been sexual selection. But a new Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) study says the leg-waving isn’t a love signal at all. “The very nature of discovery is that we can’t anticipate where our questions lead,” said STRI postdoctoral fellow Ummat Somjee,...

Fish have nervous system receptors that respond to pain in a “strikingly similar” way to other mammals, according to a new review. 

The research, published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rstb.2019.0290">Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B </a>and authored by Dr. Lynne Sneddon, the Director of Bioveterinary Science at the <a href="https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/">University of Liverpool</a>, calls into the question the way people handle and kill fish. 

Nociception describes the ability to detect harmful stimuli. Nociceptors are found throughout the skin, bones, and muscles. While nociception in mammals has been well established, there is considerable debate about the extent to which <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fish-cognition-dory/">fish feel pain</a>. 

Because fish have a single-layered forebrain, researchers have questioned whether or not fish feel pain in the way that humans or other vertebrates with complex brains might. 

According to Dr. Sneddon, studies have shown that aquatic vertebrates will avoid dangerous areas for days even if it means going without food. 

Goldfish given an electric shock in an area of their tank will avoid that area and starve themselves in the process rather than risk another shock. 

Another indicator that fish feel pain is that a perch will cut back on feeding after being caught on a hook because it is too painful to eat.

Dr. Sneddon also cites examples of fish seen hyperventilating or rubbing their bodies against different objects as if to self-soothe. 

Imagine stubbing your toe or getting a paper cut. It’s instinctual to hold or rub the sore area. Now, mounting evidence is showing that fish respond in similar ways to their injuries. 

“When subject to a potentially painful event fishes show adverse changes in behaviour such as suspension of feeding and reduced activity, which are prevented when a pain-relieving drug is provided,” said Dr. Sneddon. “When the fish’s lips are given a painful stimulus they rub the mouth against the side of the tank much like we rub our toe when we stub it.”

The review also found that fish respond to painkillers. Zebrafish, for example, have been shown to resume their normal swimming patterns after being exposed to hot water once a pain reliever was added to their tank. 

It’s not a matter of whether or not fish feel pain as Dr. Sneddon’s review confirms that fish experience pain much in the same way other vertebrates do. However, if fish feel pain, then we need to ensure that our treatment of aquatic vertebrates is ethical and humane. 

“If we accept fish experience pain, then this has important implications for how we treat them,” said Dr. Sneddon. “Care should be taken when handling fish to avoid damaging their sensitive skin and they should be humanely caught and killed.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Rocksweeper

Fish do feel pain, calling into question how humans treat them

Fish have nervous system receptors that respond to pain in...

Wild animals found to experience age-related immunity decline like humans. Researchers led by the <a href="https://www.ed.ac.uk/">University of Edinburgh</a> have produced the first evidence which shows a clear link between <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/drug-cocktail-aging-process/">aging</a> and weaker immune defense in animals other than humans. The experts found that wild Soay sheep on the remote islands of St. Kilda become much more vulnerable to parasitic worms with age.

In a process called immunosenescence, the human immune system deteriorates throughout adulthood. According to the researchers, this age-related decline in immunity is a huge issue for human health, reducing an older person's ability to fight off viruses and bacteria.

The team believes their study findings could offer new insight into whether humans may also lose the capacity to ward off larger parasites like worms.

"Our work provides the first evidence that deterioration in immune function in old age plays an important role in wild animal populations," said Professor Dan Nussey. "It also provides rare clues from outside the laboratory that our ability to fight worm infection might fade as we age. Most studies of worm infections in humans focus on children and young adults in developing countries, with much less attention paid to older individuals."Wild animals found to experience age-related immunity decline like humans

The researchers analyzed more than 2,000 samples taken across the lifetime of almost 800 Soay sheep. The levels of antibodies which protect the sheep from common parasites in their gut were found to decline in old age. Furthermore, the animals that showed faster deterioration in their resistance to the worms were more likely to die during the following winter.

"With the drive for more efficient farming practices, efforts are being made to extend the productive life-span of livestock species, which means the average age of farmed animals is likely to increase in the future," said Dr. Tom McNeilly. "Studies such as these are critical as they provide important information on the likely consequences of farming older animals in terms of their ability to fight infectious diseases."

The research was conducted as part of a long-term study of Soay sheep that began in 1985. The wild animals have lived on the islands of St Kilda for thousands of years.

"For anyone who visits St Kilda, the Soay sheep are a highlight, being living artefacts of the archipelago's past - a relic from the earliest settlers," said Susan Bain. "I therefore find it fascinating that these castaways from a lost culture still have things to teach us today. This new research shows that there is still a lot more to discover about this ancient breed and their environment."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</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: Martin Stoffel

Wild animals found to experience age-related immunity decline like humans

Wild animals found to experience age-related immunity decline like humans....

Animals can feel empathy, new research shows. Having evolved as a social society that relies on strong community and familial bonds, humans have a remarkable ability to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humans-chimpanzees-exhibit-empathy/">empathize with the emotions and pain of others</a>. 

We wince when we see someone else get hurt or feel bad when our loved ones experience a loss. But now, for the first time, the ability to empathize and mirror another’s pain has been observed in animals.

When it comes to why we experience empathy, previous research has come up with a potential explanation. 

It’s theorized that the cingulate cortex, a region of the brain activated when we get hurt or experience pain, contains mirror neurons that are easily triggered when we see someone else get hurt. 

In other words, the same region activated by our own pain is also activated when it registers someone else’s pain. 

This theory has remained untested until now as it is impossible to record the activity of single human brain cells or disrupt brain activity in the cingulate cortex. 

To determine if the cingulate cortex is responsible for empathy, researchers from the <a href="https://nin.nl/">Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience</a> turned to rats. 

For the study, published in the journal Current Biology, the researchers monitored the brain activity of a rat as it watched a fellow rat receive a mild shock. 

Rats freeze in response to fear, and when a rat saw it’s neighbor rat get shocked, it also froze in fear showing that rats, similar to humans, experience empathy. 

What’s more, watching another rat experience something unpleasant activated the same cingulate cortex region of the brain that is theoretically triggered in humans who experience empathy. 

Both the rat receiving the shock and the rat watching had similar brain activity which confirms the theory that the cingulate cortex contains mirror neurons. 

The researchers also tested to see what happens when a rat’s cingulate cortex cells were suppressed. 

After injected a drug into the rat that hindered the activity of the cells in the cingulate cortex, the researchers found that rats no longer felt empathy or mirrored the pain and fear of another rat. 

The study sheds insight into the underlying mechanisms behind empathy and could help future studies working to understand certain disorders like psychopathy, which are characterized by a lack of empathy. 

“What is most amazing, is that this all happens in exactly the same brain region in rats as in humans,” said Christian Keysers, the lead author of the study. “We had already found in humans, that brain activity of the cingulate cortex increases when we observe the pain of others, unless we are talking about psychopathic criminals, who show a remarkable reduction of this activity.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Animals can feel empathy, new research shows

Animals can feel empathy, new research shows. Having evolved as...

An international team of researchers has found that online behavior mimics the natural rhythms of the real world. In particular, the experts discovered that online interest in plants and animals often changes with the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/infectious-diseases-seasonal/">seasons</a>. 

The study was focused on a massive dataset of 2.33 billion views on Wikipedia, which involved 31,715 species over the course of three years. The team identified seasonal trends in the page views of more than 25 percent of the plant and animal species. The timing and extent of this internet activity was found to be an accurate representation of when and where the species were present in the world.

The seasonal interest in Wikipedia pages was found to reflect seasonal patterns in the species themselves. For example, page views of flowering plants had stronger seasonal patterns than those for coniferous trees, which do not have an obvious flowering season. Insects and birds trended more by the season compared to most mammals.

The researchers also identified instances where seasonal patterns responded to cultural events. Wikipedia’s page for the wild turkey showed repeated annual spikes around Thanksgiving and during the dates of the spring hunting season.

“People are becoming increasingly detached from nature and as a result we didn't really expect their activity online to respond to patterns in the natural world,” said study lead author John Mittermeier, who is a PhD student at the <a href="http://www.ox.ac.uk/">University of Oxford</a>. “To see that online activity often correlates strongly with natural phenomena suggests that people are paying attention to the world around them, and from a conservation perspective that is really exciting.”

Professor Richard Grenyer added, “Really widespread, accurate monitoring of all the world's species is still science fiction, unfortunately. But by using these big data approaches we can begin to shortcut some of the more difficult problems, and cut to the core questions in modern conservation: how is the world changing, for which species is it changing the most, and where are the people who care the most and can do the most to help.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/">PLOS Biology</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Uri Roll

Public interest in plants and animals changes with the seasons

An international team of researchers has found that online behavior...

South American monkeys face extinction risk due to climate change. A new study from the <a href="https://www.stir.ac.uk/">University of Sterling</a> has found that South American monkeys, lemurs, and apes (especially New World monkeys) currently face an “elevated risk of extinction” due to climate change-induced increasing temperatures and habitat changes over the next 30 years. 

"Based on our analysis, it is clear that New World monkeys in particular can be considered highly vulnerable to projected temperature increases, consequently facing an elevated risk of extinction,” said study leader Dr. Joana Carvalho of Stirling's Faculty of Natural Sciences.

The research team looked at 426 species of non-human South American primates and their exposure to <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-armed-conflict-risk/">climate change</a> and forecasted their risk for extinction in the year 2050, considering all scenarios (best case — emissions improve — and worst case — emissions increase unchecked).

They found that 86% of Neotropical primate ranges will be exposed to maximum temperature increases of greater than 3°C. And extreme warming of more than 4°C  will likely affect 41% of their ranges, and many of those areas currently house the largest number of primate species.

"Studies that quantify what magnitudes of warming primates are able to tolerate physiologically are lacking,” Dr. Carvalho said. “However, we have reason to believe that extreme temperature increases - as those predicted based on the low mitigation scenario - would most likely surpass the thermal tolerance of many species." 

"Climate-change mitigation measures have not yet been systematically included into on-site management and strategic development of primate conservation,” added senior author Professor Hjalmar Kuehl, a primatologist at the <a href="https://www.eva.mpg.de/index.html">Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology</a>. “Given the timescale on which climate change and resulting impact on primate populations will occur, efforts for integrating climate change mitigation measures need to be enhanced urgently in order to be able to develop and implement appropriate actions."

The team also suggests that human influence on the land within primates’ habitat will only exasperate the dire conditions. 

Cearly, as the authors note, “urgent action” is required in order to ensure the safety and conservation of primate populations in South America, and worldwide.

The findings are published in <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652486">Global Change Biology</a>.

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Andrew Park

South American monkeys face extinction risk due to climate change

South American monkeys face extinction risk due to climate change....

Puffins are a mystery to humans. There are three species of puffins worldwide and rhinoceros auklets are also anatomically puffins, according to <a href="http://projectpuffin.audubon.org/birds/puffin-faqs">Audubon Project Puffin</a>. All of them spend the vast majority of their lives at sea. 

A life at sea is one that’s difficult for land based Homo sapiens to study. When puffins are on land, it’s to create burrows as deep as five feet in the sea cliffs. The burrows are the center of a puffin’s domestic life After mating, puffins lay eggs and raise their young to fledging age in the moist earth of their burrows. After but a season, returning to land daily with fish for chicks or to keep an egg warm, the puffin returns to a life of sea and sky. 

According to <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/">IUCN Red List</a>, all species of puffins are declining in number but only Atlantic Puffins are listed as ‘<a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22694927/132581443">vulnerable’</a> while the other puffins are listed as ‘<a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22694934/132582357">least concern</a>’. But a lot of the puffin’s conservation status is speculation based on relatively old science. As <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/puffins-comeback/">Earth.com reported recently</a>, Atlantic Puffin populations on Farnes Island, the host of England’s largest puffin colony, are on the rise. The last global population estimate for the Tufted Puffin (Fratercula cirrhata) was 3,500,000 adult individuals, but this was carried out in 1996, a long time ago by the standards of science.

Tufted Puffins range up the western coast of the United States from the middle of California north into and across the entire coast of Alaska. Much of the areas Tufted Puffins breed in are remote islands in Alaska, such as Middleton Island where I spent a summer collecting data on sea birds, including tufted Puffins. Many islands that puffins choose for nests are even smaller than Middleton, little spits of land taken over seasonally by flocks of birds, squawking, flapping, fighting for the best pieces of land to nest. Some like Murres will lay delicate eggs directly on slender slices of cliff face. Even the areas where puffins and other sea birds nest on mainland in Alaska and elsewhere are remote, rugged, far from human habitation and hard to visit for extensive research or even for a census of the birds.            

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-puffins-die-off/">Earth.com</a> also recently reported on a massive die-off of tufted puffins in St. Paul Island, Alaska. Researchers estimated that between 3,150 and 8,500 puffins died. The first alert of the die-off came from tribal and local peoples on St. Paul that collected 350 dead puffins and alerted scientists. The puffins were emancipated from starvation, which researchers suspect was caused by warming oceans. Puffins and other sea birds are important indicators of the health of the oceans they live in. The data I spent a summer collecting was important for understanding sea birds but equally important for understanding Alaska’s fisheries. 

Plankton is near the base of the food chain in Alaska’s marine ecosystem and it can be quite sensitive to changes in environment. <a href="https://www.alaskapublic.org/2016/08/22/plankton-population-and-the-power-of-pink-salmon/">Alaska Public Media</a> reports that plankton in Alaska usually react to environmental changes unambiguously, either flourishing or taking a big hit. Plankton populations are also often directly tied to populations of pink salmon and other fish. 

<a href="https://aoos.org/prince-william-sound-region-page/field-experiment/components/npz/">Alaska Ocean Observing System</a> explains how plankton populations are tied to temperature. As we all know with gases and fluid, the warm rises to the top and the cold stays low, and the same is true with water in the ocean. During the Alaskan winter, the surface of the ocean cools and water from deep in the sea rises upwards, bringing nutrients with it. The nutrient rich water sustain the (photosynthetic) phytoplankton through the dark Alaskan winter until summer when Alaska gets increased sunlight. With enough sunlight, the plankton switch to photosynthesis for food and boom in populations. 

With the boom in plankton, other microorganisms, such as copepods and zooplankton, start a feeding bonanza on the phytoplankton, and in turn grow in numbers. Of course, the burst in numbers of microorganisms has a ripple effect throughout the food chain. Fish eat and multiply, puffins, auklets, kittiwakes, cormorants and other sea birds eat the fish, using the food for their own egg laying and chick rearing. 

But a warmer ocean in the winter is a problem. When the ocean surface is warmer in the summer, the warm layer of water blocks the now cooler waters from deep in the ocean from welling up. In the summer of course this isn’t a problem because phytoplankton can photosynthesize. The winters in Alaska though are very dark and photosynthesis isn’t an option. When it’s too warm for the nutrients from deeper in the ocean to rise to the surface, this leads to a lack of plankton come spring and summer in Alaska. Less plankton means less birds, including puffins as well as lower numbers of many other animals such as seals that all depend on the plankton. 

Other sea birds have seen recent massive die-offs. <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/in-alaska-starving-seabirds-and-empty-colonies-signal-broken-ecosystem">Audubon</a> reported in 2018 that many thick-billed and common murres failed to breed at all, leaving colonies usually filled with a cacophony of birds eerily empty of eggs. Some murres nested but a month late. Hundreds of birds from a few different species were found washed up on the shores of the Bering Sea, all dead from starvation. Since the start of monitoring in the 1970s, Murres had never failed to breed until four years ago and it’s an indication of bigger problems. 

Sea bird die-offs are becoming more common. <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2016/09/warm-water-pacific-coast-algae-nino/">National Geographic</a> reports that other marine animals in Alaska are being found dead in increasing numbers as well. On average years in the western Gulf of Alaska, eight dead whales are found, but in 2015, twelve where found in June by itself. Large numbers of sea lions have starved recently on the west coast. 79 otters were found dead in a single month in Homer Alaska. All this death coincides with record heat temperatures in the ocean even though the temperatures are being pushed up just a fraction of a degree so far. The ocean can absorb a lot before changing temperature but it is unquestionably warming now and puffins are simply canaries in a coal mine no one wants to be in anymore.

--

By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer                                          

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Suwipat Lorsiripaiboon

Even slight increases in ocean temperatures cause massive sea bird die-offs

Puffins are a mystery to humans. There are three species...

Climate change could drive painted turtles to extinction due to temperature-dependent sex determination, according to a new study. 

Several <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-sea-turtles/">species of turtles,</a> lizards, and even crocodiles are sensitive to temperature changes while developing in the egg, and the sex of the offspring depends on how hot or cold it is during this period. 

With painted turtles, warmer temperatures tend to produce more female offspring and can lead to entire nests being female. 

A biologist from <a href="https://www.iastate.edu/">Iowa State University</a> conducted a study to see how drastic temperature fluctuations would impact future hatchlings, and if climate change was a major threat to painted turtle populations by decreasing the number of males in the species. 

The study was published in the journal Scientific Reports. 

The researchers first exposed painted turtle eggs to temperatures that were recorded in Iowa, Nebraska, and Canada, all of which house native populations of painted turtles. The researchers were able to compare the eggs exposed to the different temperatures in the lab to the offspring produced in the areas where the temperatures were recorded. 

Response to temperature varies depending on the population, the researchers found. 

The team then exposed eggs to temperature fluctuations to get a better understanding of how real-world climate change and temperature variations will impact painted turtle populations. 

Cooler temperatures that would normally lead to more male offspring still produced a disproportionate number of females with temperature fluctuations. When the lab temperatures were warmer and varied, the embryos died or continued to produce female offspring. 

The results of the study are concerning as climate change studies project that temperatures will continue to rise and temperature fluctuations will get more severe. 

“If what we found is generalizable to other species with temperature-dependent sex determination, this is bad news,” said Nicole Valenzuela, the leader of the study. “If an average increase in temperature is accompanied by greater variance, we'll see populations becoming unisexual faster than anticipated. The greater oscillations add to the effect of just higher average temperature.”

--

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>

Image Credit: Nicole Valenzuela

Warming temperatures may mean fewer and fewer male painted turtles

Climate change could drive painted turtles to extinction due to...

Endangered Species Act helped recover marine animal populations. A study led by Abel Valdivia of the <a href="http://cbc.berkeley.edu/">Center for Biological Diversity in California</a> has revealed that more than 75 percent of marine mammal and sea turtle populations have showed significant signs of recovery after being protected by the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/endangered-species-act-support/">U.S. Endangered Species Act</a> (ESA). 

The study findings suggest that conservation measures such as fishery regulations have been largely successful in promoting species recovery.


As extinction risks and threats across the ocean increase, the number of marine species protected by the ESA is growing. Prior to this study, however, there was very little research conducted to follow up on the recovery trends for marine mammals and sea turtles after they were listed. 

To investigate, the research team gathered the annual estimates for populations of all 62 marine mammal species and sea turtle species listed under the ESA. The researchers examined the extent of population change and recovery status for multiple populations of 14 marine mammal species and five sea turtle species.

The results of the study showed that 78 percent of marine mammal populations and 75 percent of sea turtle populations had increased significantly after being listed. On the other hand, nine percent of marine mammal populations had declined after ESA protection. 

At the same time, 13 percent of marine mammal populations and 25 percent of sea turtle populations showed no significant changes. Overall, the populations that became more abundant were species that had been listed for at least 20 years, such as large whales, manatees, and sea turtles. 

According to the study authors, the results highlight the potential for marine mammals and sea turtles to bounce back from major population declines when effective conservation efforts are deployed in time. 

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0210164">PLOS ONE</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Endangered Species Act helped recover marine animal populations

Endangered Species Act helped recover marine animal populations. A study...

A new study from the <a href="https://www.ku.dk/english/">University of Copenhagen</a> shows that, in the region that is now northeast Jordan, people began to live alongside <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/dogs-diagnose-malaria/">dogs</a> as far back as 11,500 years ago. The evidence also suggests that dogs were used for hunting, which would explain the drastic increase of hares and other small prey found at the archaeological dig site at this time.

Although dogs were domesticated by humans as early as 14,000 years ago in the Near East, it has remained unclear whether this happened intentionally. The research indicates that humans valued the tracking and hunting abilities of dogs much earlier than previously realized.

“The study of the large assemblage of animal bones from Shubayqa 6 revealed a large proportion of bones with unmistakable signs of having passed through the digestive tract of another animal; these bones are so large that they cannot have been swallowed by humans, but must have been digested by dogs,” explained study lead author and zooarchaeologist Lisa Yeomans.

The year-round accumulation of bones at the site showed that the dogs were living together with the humans rather than simply visiting the area when it was uninhabited.

“The dogs were not kept at the fringes of the settlement, but must have been closely integrated into all aspects of day-to-day life and allowed to freely roam around the settlement, feeding on discarded bones and defecating in and around the site,” explained Yeomans.

The team noticed a major increase in the number of hares at the same time that dogs appeared at Shubayqa 6.

“The use of dogs for hunting smaller, fast prey such as hares and foxes, perhaps driving them into enclosures, could provide an explanation that is in line with the evidence we have gathered,” said Yeomans. “The long history of dog use, to hunt both small as well as larger prey, in the region is well known, and it would be strange not to consider hunting aided by dogs as a likely explanation for the sudden abundance of smaller prey in the archaeological record."

“The shift may also be associated with a change in hunting technique from a method, such as netting, that saw an unselective portion of the hare population captured, to a selective method of hunting in which individual animals were targeted. This could have been achieved by dogs.”

The study is published in the <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-anthropological-archaeology">Journal of Anthropological Archaeology</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Dogs and humans may have hunted together more than 11,000 years ago

A new study from the University of Copenhagen shows that,...

Male humpback whales make some of the most complex and unique <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/whales-quiet-shipping-noise/">whale songs</a> compared to any other whale species. Not only do humpbacks possess an impressive repertoire, but studies have also shown that humpback whales change up their tunes <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-46289589">every few years</a>. 

Researchers are still working to unravel the mystery of whale calls and why certain whales sing the songs that they do. But now, a new study conducted by researchers from the <a href="https://english.hi.is/university_of_iceland">University of Iceland</a> has examined the songs of overwintering male humpback whales who skipped their annual migration. 

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0210057">PLOS ONE</a> and results provide insight into male humpback whale songs 

Every year, humpbacks migrate from their summer subarctic feeding areas to winter breeding grounds where male humpbacks sing to attract potential mates.  

However, not all humpbacks make this trip, and research has shown that some pods end up overwintering in their feeding areas. 

What is surprising is male humpbacks that overwinter still sing their characteristic mating songs even when the males are not pursuing a mate. 

To find out if overwintering male humpbacks still sang, the researchers placed acoustic recorders in the water near overwintering humpback pods in Iceland in 2011. The team was able to record whale songs for 42 days and had around 70 ten minutes song files of whale calls. 

After analyzing the different song files, the researchers identified 15 unique phrases and discovered that the songs were remarkably similar to male humpback mating songs heard in breeding areas. The themes of the songs also changed and evolved over time among the males. 

The results of the study indicate that there is a more complex explanation for male humpback whale songs beyond simply mating.  

“New findings show that humpback whales sing their elaborate breeding songs on subarctic feeding grounds throughout the dark winter, an atypical behavior for this giant migrator which primarily sings and breeds in tropical waters during winter,” the researchers explained. “We are likely witnessing a strategic response of these humpback whales to the rapidly changing Arctic environment by extending their feeding period into the breeding period based on food availability.”

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By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Mating is not the only reason why humpback whales sing

Male humpback whales make some of the most complex and...

Pesticides affect bees on a molecular level. An unprecedented study led by <a href="https://www.qmul.ac.uk/">Queen Mary University of London</a> has revealed that the chemicals in pesticides affect bees on a molecular level. The researchers are calling for improved regulations on <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/pesticides-bees-productive-efficient/">pesticides</a> after discovering that they alter the gene activity among bumblebees.

The researchers used a new approach to analyze potential changes in the 12,000 genes of bumblebees after pesticide exposure. According to the study authors, the genes that were noticeably affected are most likely involved in a range of biological processes. 

“Governments had approved what they thought were ‘safe’ levels but pesticides intoxicate many pollinators, reducing their dexterity and cognition and ultimately survival,” said study lead author Dr. Yannick Wurm. “This is a major risk because pollinators are declining worldwide yet are essential for maintaining the stability of the ecosystem and for pollinating crops.”

“While newer pesticide evaluation aims to consider the impact on behavior, our work demonstrates a highly sensitive approach that can dramatically improve how we evaluate the effects of pesticides.”

For their investigation, the team exposed colonies of bumblebees to either clothianidin or imidacloprid at realistic concentrations. The experts found clothianidin had much stronger effects than imidacloprid. Both of these pesticides are still used worldwide, but were banned for outdoor use by the European Union in 2018.

Among worker bumblebees, the activity levels of 55 genes were changed by exposure to clothianidin, with 31 genes showing higher levels of activity and the rest showing lower activity levels. Among queen bumblebees, 17 genes were affected, with all but one showing higher levels of activity. The researchers suspect that some of the genes are trying to detoxify, while others are in the intermediate stages of intoxication.

“This shows that worker and queen bumblebees are differently wired and that the pesticides do not affect them in the same way,” said study first author Dr. Joe Colgan. “As workers and queens perform different but complementary activities essential for colony function, improving our understanding of how both types of colony member are affected by pesticides is vital for assessing the risks these chemicals pose.”

“We examined the effects of two pesticides on one species of bumblebee. But hundreds of pesticides are authorized, and their effects are likely to substantially differ across the 200,000 pollinating insect species which also include other bees, wasps, flies, moths, and butterflies.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/1365294x">Molecular Ecology</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: TJ Colgan

Pesticides affect bees on a molecular level

Pesticides affect bees on a molecular level. An unprecedented study...

Declining <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-bees-extinction/">bee populations</a> may not be the only reason plant pollination has been suffering in some regions. 

A new study has found that in New York, increased in agricultural activity has stunted the evolution of pollinators and as a result, millions of years of evolutionary history and diversity are in the process of being lost. 


Researchers from <a href="https://www.cornell.edu/">Cornell University</a> led a study examining phylogenetic diversity among bee communities that pollinated apple orchards in New York. 

Phylogenetics is the study of evolutionary relationships, and phylogenetic diversity shows the evolution and diversification of different species. Studying phylogenetic diversity within a community of pollinators can also help illustrate different environmental stresses that prompted evolutionary changes. 

However, most conservation research uses biodiversity and species population numbers to gauge how well a species is doing in an ecosystem. 

The researchers analyzed a decade of data documenting bee activity, species richness, and biodiversity in 27 apple orchards as well as bee evolutionary history. The team found that declines in bee populations alone were not enough to explain the decreases in pollination services in the orchards. 

Instead, the researchers were able to link increases in agricultural activity in the orchards to losses in phylogenetic diversity which suggests millions of years of evolution has been lost for bee communities in the area. The study compares the losses in diversity to a “pruning” of the bee tree of life. 

Without phylogenetic diversity, bee species in the orchards were more closely related and this negatively impacted pollination. In turn, apple yields and quality suffered. 

The study, published in the journal Science, shows that phylogenetic diversity should also be used to help measure species’ adaptability and resilience going forward. 

Biodiversity alone cannot be counted on as an accurate measurement of a healthy ecosystem. Evolution also needs to factor into the mix to gain a better understanding of how a species reacts to environmental changes. 
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By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Bee losses are not enough to explain pollination problems

Declining bee populations may not be the only reason plant...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that scientists never expected.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hidden-waters-beneath-ancient-craters">Hidden waters beneath ancient craters</h2>



Scientists have made a startling discovery that challenges everything we thought we knew about <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/saturn-moon-mimas-has-remarkably-young-ocean/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Saturn's moon Mimas</a>. Beneath the heavily cratered surface that earned it the nickname "Death Star" lies a global ocean that formed just 5 to 15 million years ago—a remarkably young age by cosmic standards.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cassini-data-reveals-orbital-secrets">Cassini data reveals orbital secrets</h2>



The discovery, led by Dr. Valéry Lainey of the <a href="https://observatoiredeparis.psl.eu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Observatoire de Paris</a>, emerged from careful analysis of <a href="https://www.nasa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NASA</a>'s Cassini spacecraft data. By studying subtle irregularities in Mimas's orbit around Saturn, researchers detected the gravitational signature of liquid water hidden 20 to 30 kilometers beneath the moon's icy shell.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-an-unlikely-ocean-world">An unlikely ocean world</h2>



At only 400 kilometers in diameter, Mimas seemed like the least likely candidate to harbor a subsurface ocean. Unlike other ocean moons such as Europa and Enceladus, which show clear surface signs of internal activity, Mimas displays no obvious hints of the liquid water beneath its ancient, crater-scarred exterior.



"Mimas is a small moon, and its heavily cratered surface gave no hint of the hidden ocean beneath," explained Dr. Nick Cooper from <a href="https://www.qmul.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Queen Mary University of London</a>, a study co-author.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-implications-for-astrobiology">Implications for astrobiology</h2>



The ocean's recent formation makes Mimas a prime target for studying how oceans develop and potentially support life. This discovery adds another member to the exclusive club of ocean worlds in our solar system, each offering unique insights into the conditions necessary for habitability.



The research, published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a> journal, demonstrates how advanced orbital analysis can reveal hidden features of celestial bodies, opening new possibilities for understanding ocean formation throughout the cosmos.



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Scientists discover unexpected young ocean on Saturn's cratered moon Mimas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ 'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y4eLFNYrKE
</div></figure>



On the unforgiving landscape of North Greenland, temperatures drop and sunlight barely penetrates through the polar winter. It was here, however, that an international team of scientists found <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/predatory-worms-were-terror-beasts-half-a-billion-years-ago/#google_vignette" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">evidence of sea monsters</a> that would change our understanding of ocean life in the past.



This video captures the discovery of Timorebestia fossils that had been hidden for more than 500 million years in the Sirius Passet formation. The "terror beasts," as they are called, are a hidden chapter in the evolutionary history of <a href="https://www.earth.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Earth</a>, showing that sophisticated predator-prey interactions occurred much earlier than previously envisioned.



Dr. Jakob Vinther and his research team at the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Bristol</a>, in collaboration with researchers at the <a href="https://eng.kopri.re.kr/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Korean Polar Research Institute</a>, braved extreme weather conditions at 82.5 north latitude to locate these giant creatures. Using sophisticated electron microprobe analysis, they revealed the detailed anatomy of the animals, including their muscle and nerve tissues.



The find upsets the traditional timeline of sea predators. Although we've long appreciated that Cambrian oceans were at one time ruled by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWI3-UgA3_o&amp;list=PL1QLQMW9MWDwpkFOnvgAmu7wT6rZmYqdJ&amp;index=19" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">arthropods</a>, these discoveries indicate that relatives of arrow worms were first to dominate the seas. These worms were building sophisticated food webs several million years before other predator groups arose.



Each fossil is a story of ancient hunger, with fossil stomach contents revealing these meter-long beasts dined on heavily armored arthropods regularly, cementing their place as the ocean's first apex predators.



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Worms dominated seas before dinosaurs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y4eLFNYrKE On the unforgiving landscape of North Greenland, temperatures drop...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow3JH03PqEQ
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">New York is the site of the world's oldest forest.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-385-million-year-old-trees-discovered">385-million-year-old trees discovered</h2>



Scientists have uncovered something extraordinary just two hours north of New York City. The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/worlds-oldest-forest-discovered-close-to-new-york-city/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">world's oldest forest</a>, dating back 385 million years, offers a window into how Earth's first complex forests shaped our planet's atmosphere.



Located near <a href="https://townofcairo.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cairo, New York</a>, in Greene County, these weren't merely primitive plants struggling to survive. These were sophisticated trees with root systems remarkably similar to modern forests. This ancient woodland predates dinosaurs by 140 million years.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-cairo-forest-discovery">The Cairo forest discovery</h2>



385 million years ago, upstate New York was a tropical paradise near the equator. Thanks to continental drift, this ancient forest has traveled thousands of miles to its current location.



The fossil forest sits in an abandoned quarry, roughly half the size of a football field. This represents just a slice of what was likely a massive forest system stretching from New York into Pennsylvania.



Charles Ver Straeten, curator of sedimentary rocks at the <a href="https://www.nysm.nysed.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">New York State Museum</a>, made the discovery in 2009. While scouting the former highway department property, his trained eye spotted wandering patterns in the stone that looked like marine features.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-revolutionary-age-and-preservation">Revolutionary age and preservation</h2>



The site contains 385-million-year-old rocks with fossilized woody roots forming horizontal patterns up to 18 feet (5.5 meters) wide. As Christopher Berry, a paleobotanist at Cardiff University, explains: "You are walking through the roots of ancient trees."



This discovery pushes back advanced tree evolution by millions of years. The research, published in <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Current Biology</a> in December 2019, fundamentally changes our understanding of when complex forests first emerged.



Researchers believe a massive flood buried the forest floor, creating perfect fossilization conditions. Over millions of years, sediment hardened into rock, preserving these root patterns like nature's time capsule.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meet-archaeopteris-the-first-modern-tree">Meet Archaeopteris: the first modern tree</h2>



The star of this ancient forest is Archaeopteris – not to be confused with the feathered dinosaur Archaeopteryx. This tree was far older and more revolutionary.



William Stein from <a href="https://www.binghamton.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Binghamton University</a> describes the roots as "strikingly modern, essentially what you'd see outside in my yard right now." These weren't simple root systems you'd expect from ancient plants.



Some fossilized roots are six inches (15 centimeters) in diameter, forming 36-foot-wide (11-meter) patterns. These giants grew up to 65 feet (20 meters) tall with five-foot-diameter (1.5-meter) trunks.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-climate-changing-impact">Climate-changing impact</h2>



These trees fundamentally changed Earth's environment. Kevin Boyce, a Stanford University geoscientist, explains how their deep roots triggered "weathering," chemical reactions that pulled carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.



This process dropped atmospheric CO2 levels from 10-15 times higher than today to roughly modern concentrations. These ancient trees helped create atmospheric conditions that made complex life possible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ancient-forest-ecosystem">Ancient forest ecosystem</h2>



The forest was remarkably diverse. Scientists identified Eospermatopteris, palm tree-like plants with short roots that reached 30 feet (9 meters) tall but lacked woody structure. The forest also housed cladoxylopsids and a mysterious third species still being studied.



All reproduced through spores rather than seeds – millions of years before seeds evolved. This tropical environment had no grass, flowers, or flying insects, just towering trees creating Earth's first complex forest canopy.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scientific-significance">Scientific significance</h2>



Before this finding, the Gilboa forest, located 25 miles (40 kilometers) away, held the "oldest forest" title. Cairo's trees are 2-3 million years older, showing that complex forest ecosystems developed much faster than scientists believed possible.



Patricia Gensel, a <a href="https://www.unc.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of North Carolina</a> paleobotanist, notes: "The size of those root systems is really changing the picture. Even 20 years ago, researchers assumed trees with such complex root systems didn't evolve so early."



The Cairo site presents three unique root systems, suggesting Devonian period forests were diverse ecosystems with different trees occupying different environmental niches, much like today's forests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-modern-preservation-efforts">Modern preservation efforts</h2>



In 2022, New York State Senator Michelle Hinchey secured a $170,000 grant for the town of Cairo to construct specialized fencing around the fossil forest site. The town plans to conduct a feasibility study exploring the possibility of creating an educational center and working lab on-site.



Joe Hasenkopf, chair of the Cairo Planning Board, hopes to partner with educational institutions to create a research facility serving scientists, students, and the public.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lessons-for-today-s-climate">Lessons for today's climate</h2>



Why does a 385-million-year-old forest matter today? It shows how dramatically forests can change Earth's climate. These ancient woodlands created the atmospheric conditions supporting complex life.



Understanding how prehistoric forests transformed the planet helps us appreciate modern forests' critical role in addressing climate change. Forests remain Earth's most effective carbon capture systems.



These prehistoric trees changed Earth's atmosphere by pulling massive amounts of carbon dioxide from the air. As we face modern climate challenges, this ancient forest reminds us of trees' incredible power to transform our planet's environment.



The next time you walk through a forest, remember you're experiencing an ecosystem whose blueprint was established 385 million years ago in upstate New York. These ancient pioneers didn't just survive – they thrived and changed the world forever.



The full study was published in the journal Current Biology.



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Earth's oldest forest found in the United States

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow3JH03PqEQ New York is the site of the world's oldest...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Acid rain and a crisis solved.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-don-t-we-ever-hear-about-acid-rain-anymore-the-environmental-crisis-that-was-solved">Why don't we ever hear about "acid rain" anymore? The environmental crisis that was solved</h2>



Remember the 1980s when acid rain dominated headlines? Dire warnings about rain eating buildings, killing fish, and destroying forests filled every news cycle. Then, almost like magic, acid rain vanished from public discourse. What happened? Did we actually solve one of the late 20th century's most pressing environmental challenges?



The answer might surprise you. Unlike many environmental issues that drag on indefinitely, acid rain represents one of modern history's most successful ecological recovery stories. It's a tale of science, politics, and technology working together to tackle what seemed impossible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What was acid rain?</h2>



Acid rain isn't regular rain having a bad day – it's precipitation that became significantly more acidic due to air pollution. When power plants, factories, and vehicles burn fossil fuels, they release sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) into the atmosphere.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The science behind it</h2>



Think of acid rain as nature's chemistry experiment gone wrong. These compounds react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form sulfuric and nitric acids. When mixed with water vapor in clouds, they create precipitation with dangerously low pH levels.



While clean rain has a pH of about 5.6, acid rain could drop as low as 4.2 to 4.4 – roughly as acidic as tomato juice or coffee. According to US Geological Survey documentation, Scottish chemist Angus Smith first coined "acid rain" in 1872, but it didn't become a household phrase until the 1960s and 1970s when Swedish scientist Svante Odén documented its devastating effects on Scandinavian lakes and European forests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The crisis at its peak</h2>



During the height of public concern, environmental damage was both widespread and visible. This wasn't some abstract future threat – people could see destruction happening in real-time.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Environmental devastation</h2>



The most dramatic impacts were impossible to ignore. Research documented by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation shows that in the Adirondack Mountains, more than 200 lakes became so acidic they couldn't support fish life. The Adirondack Council reports that 409 lakes once supported brook trout, but many lost their fish populations due to acid rain.



By 1976, when scientists cataloged all acidified lakes in the Adirondack Park, researchers found that half of the lakes over 2,000 feet above sea level had no fish, according to studies published in environmental journals. The acidification process worked like a slow-motion disaster. As acid rain fell into watersheds, it gradually lowered pH levels. Fish couldn't survive in acidic water, and their food sources died off too.



Trees at high elevations showed stress directly linked to acid rain. It weakened them by leaching nutrients and making them susceptible to disease. Historical records show Germany's Black Forest saw nearly half its trees damaged by the mid-1980s.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Economic impact</h2>



Acid rain wasn't just environmental – it was expensive. Acidic precipitation corroded infrastructure, buildings, and monuments. Historic stone structures deteriorated at accelerated rates. Tourism suffered as lakes became fishless and forests declined. EPA economic analyses from the period documented repair costs mounting into billions annually.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The solution: government action and technology</h2>



Transformation from crisis to success required unprecedented cooperation between governments, industries, and environmental groups.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Clean Air Act of 1990</h2>



The turning point came with the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, signed by President George H.W. Bush. This represented a fundamentally new approach to environmental regulation, as documented in EPA historical records.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cap-and-trade success</h2>



Instead of mandating specific technologies, the 1990 amendments introduced something revolutionary: a cap-and-trade system for sulfur dioxide emissions. EPA program documentation shows this market-based approach set overall limits but allowed companies to trade emission allowances.



The genius was harnessing market forces to find cost-effective pollution reduction. Companies reducing emissions cheaply could sell excess allowances to those facing higher costs. Research published in environmental economics journals and EPA progress reports shows this resulted in dramatic SO2 reduction at a fraction of projected costs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Technology advances</h2>



Policy provided the framework, but technology made reductions possible. Studies in atmospheric science journals document the widespread adoption of flue gas desulfurization systems ("scrubbers") that removed sulfur dioxide before it reached the atmosphere. By the 2000s, new installations could remove over 95% of SO2 emissions, according to EPA technical reports.



The push coincided with cleaner energy development. Natural gas produces fewer sulfur compounds than coal. Wind and solar, emerging in the 1990s, captured growing market share, reducing reliance on high-sulfur coal.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-we-don-t-hear-about-it-today">Why we don't hear about it today</h2>



Why did acid rain disappear from headlines? Simple: the problem was largely solved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Success doesn't make news</h2>



There's an old journalism saying: "If it bleeds, it leads." Environmental success stories don't generate urgency like crisis reporting. Media attention shifted to other challenges: climate change, plastic pollution, and biodiversity loss. There's only so much environmental anxiety the public can absorb, and newer concerns replaced acid rain.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mission accomplished</h2>



The primary reason is beautifully simple: interventions worked. EPA monitoring data shows sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990. Academic research published in environmental science journals confirms pH levels in formerly affected areas returned closer to normal. This represents one of history's most dramatic environmental recoveries. Studies by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation show fishless lakes now support healthy populations. Forests recovered, and building damage slowed dramatically.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-is-it-really-gone">Is it really gone?</h2>



The crisis is largely resolved, but monitoring data shows the problem isn't completely eliminated – it's managed to acceptable levels. Some areas still experience occasional events during high pollution periods. International environmental research indicates that rapidly industrializing Asian countries face similar problems to what we experienced decades ago, though they're implementing successful strategies.



EPA research shows nitrogen oxide emissions proved more challenging than sulfur dioxide, coming from vehicles and mobile sources. Climate science studies suggest changing weather patterns add complexity to how acid rain forms and falls.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What this teaches us</h2>



The acid rain experience proves that seemingly intractable environmental problems can be solved with scientific understanding, political will, and technological innovation. Environmental monitoring data shows recovery speed was remarkable – within a decade, measurable improvements appeared in air quality and ecosystem health.



Success came from bipartisan support across party lines. Policy analysis studies show the market-based approach appealed to those preferring economic incentives while achieving environmental goals. This support created lasting policy surviving political changes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Conclusion</h2>



Acid rain's disappearance from public consciousness represents environmental science's greatest success stories. Through effective regulation, technological innovation, and international cooperation, we transformed an overwhelming crisis into a manageable challenge.



Today's silence isn't because we forgot – it's because we solved it. The 1990 Clean Air Act, combined with technology and energy market changes, reduced acid rain emissions over 90%, according to comprehensive EPA data analysis.



This success offers hope for current challenges. It proves complex problems can be solved when science, policy, and technology work together. As we face climate change and plastic pollution, acid rain reminds us that dramatic positive change is possible.



Next time someone asks whether environmental regulations work, remember acid rain. It's proof that sometimes, we get it right.



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Sources: This article draws from EPA official documentation and progress reports, peer-reviewed research published in environmental and atmospheric science journals, historical data from the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation records, US Geological Survey publications, policy analysis studies, and environmental monitoring data collected over three decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Frequently Asked Questions</h2>



1. Is acid rain completely gone? No, but EPA monitoring shows it's reduced to manageable levels. US sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990, making acid rain much less severe than the 1980s crisis.



2. How long did solving take? Environmental monitoring data shows significant improvements began within 5-10 years of 1990s emission controls. Full ecosystem recovery took longer – some areas need 20-30 years for complete recovery.



3. What made the solution successful? Clear scientific understanding, visible damage motivating action, bipartisan support, available technology, and innovative market-based policies like cap-and-trade.



4. Do other countries have acid rain problems? Yes, particularly rapidly industrializing Asian countries. However, international environmental research shows many implement similar successful control strategies.



5. Could acid rain return? Potentially, if regulations weaken or we return to high-sulfur coal without controls, though effects would take years to become severe according to environmental projections.



6. Can you recommend any teaching tools on the subject of "acid rain"? The United States Environmental Protection Agency produced a wonderful teacher's guide for ages 14 and under that you can find on the EPA website here: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf</a>



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The environmental problem we actually solved

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk Acid rain and a crisis solved. Why don't we...

Fresh,Radish,Harvest,On,Soil,In,Garden.

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Mid-July is an opportune time to kick-start a thriving fall garden, and this guide lays out the best vegetables and herbs to plant now for a fruitful autumn harvest. 



Fast-growing leafy greens such as spinach, lettuce, kale, and arugula perform especially well in the waning summer heat, with harvests beginning as soon as 30 days. 



These cool-season crops relish the transition into fall, offering repeated yields with cut-and-come-again methods.



Root vegetables like radishes, carrots, and beets also excel during this period. Radishes deliver satisfaction in under a month, while carrots and beets mature in about two months. Employing succession planting ensures a continuous stream of produce deep into the cooler months. 



For a boost of fresh flavor, herbs like cilantro, basil, dill, and chervil are excellent picks. These heat-loving varieties flourish in July’s warmth and are harvest-ready in about 30 days, especially when sown continuously.



Gardeners in zones 6 through 9 can benefit from planting bush beans and snap peas, which don’t require trellising and are ideal for compact plots. 



Maturing in 50–60 days, they’re a smart choice for quick, protein-rich harvests. For those in hotter regions, heat-tolerant crops such as okra and southern peas provide reliable yields and thrive in scorching conditions.



This guide emphasizes more than crop selection—it highlights the importance of timing, soil preparation, and ongoing sowing techniques. 



With thoughtful planning and attention to regional climate needs, even late-summer gardeners can enjoy fresh salads, hearty stews, and the satisfaction of a robust, homegrown harvest well into fall.



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What to plant in your garden in mid-July

https://youtu.be/Fi2OeEwuzRM?si=vTyd2m9FMmtyWkex Mid-July is an opportune time to kick-start a thriving...

Green,Ecoduct,Over,An,Empty,Highway,During,Sunset.

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A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that wildlife tunnels significantly reduce amphibian road mortality during seasonal migrations. 



Frogs and salamanders often cross roads to reach breeding ponds each spring, but many are killed by vehicles. 



Researchers from the <a href="https://www.uvm.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Vermont</a>, in collaboration with local citizens and the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, installed two underpass tunnels in 2015. 



Over a 12-year monitoring period, they observed an 80.2% reduction in amphibian deaths, and up to 94% for non-climbing species like salamanders. 



The study used a before-after-control-impact design and documented more than 5,200 amphibians, highlighting the tunnels’ effectiveness even in nearby buffer zones.



Funded at $342,397 - far cheaper than wildlife crossings for large mammals - the project showcased the power of community-led conservation.



Local groups initiated the effort after observing mass amphibian deaths. Wildlife cameras later captured over 2,200 amphibians using a tunnel in just one spring, along with other species like raccoons and bobcats, indicating wider ecosystem benefits.



This marks the first peer-reviewed, long-term data set in the northeastern U.S. confirming amphibian-specific underpasses work. 



The study urges transportation departments to incorporate these designs into road planning and highlights how community action, thoughtful infrastructure, and persistence can make a real difference for biodiversity.



The full study was published in the <a href="https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1617138125000780" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal for Nature Conservation</a>.



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Wildlife tunnels save millions of amphibians

https://youtu.be/XYgiPzmNBTU?si=eFYY7gPHU1JznLvU A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that...

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

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

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (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

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

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

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

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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

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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

[sendtonews key="qjvhBOBnY8-2426650-12187" 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 the province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain. The image was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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

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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

[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



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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