Humans often learn by watching two other people interact and then copying what fits the moment. A new study shows blue-throated macaws can do the same thing.



This ability, known as third-party imitation, suggests a more flexible kind of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-and-bees-are-capable-of-complex-social-learning/">learning</a> than simple mimicry. It points to social knowledge that spreads without direct teaching.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-parrots-learn">How parrots learn</h2>



The work was led by Esha Haldar at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence (<a href="https://www.bi.mpg.de/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MPIB</a>) in Germany. She and colleagues tested whether parrots can learn by watching a conspecific, meaning a member of the same species, interact with a person.



Researchers define intransitive actions as movements that are not aimed at an object - for example, lifting a leg or fluffing feathers. This focus is important because it rules out shortcuts, ensuring the birds copy the movement itself rather than just the end goal.



Earlier tests in domestic dogs found no evidence of third-party imitation for such goal-less movements. The contrast helps frame what makes the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ecuadors-rare-red-faced-parrot-gets-a-new-home/">macaw</a> results notable.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-macaws-are-masters-of-imitation">Macaws are masters of imitation </h2>



Two groups of blue-throated macaws took part and none had been trained to imitate on command. In total, the researchers ran 462 sessions of 10 trials each, which equals 4,620 trials.



Birds in the test group watched a trained macaw respond to human hand signals with one of five movements, including fluff, spin, vocalize, lift leg, and flap wings. After a brief pause, the observer bird received the same hand signal for up to 12 seconds.



Birds in the control group received the identical signals but saw no other bird perform the actions. Rewards were given only when the subject produced the correct movement after the signal.



Across the five possible actions, the test group learned more responses than the control group. They also reached the criterion faster and with greater accuracy.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-imitation-in-birds">Imitation in birds</h2>



The test birds learned an average of 4.16 actions, while the control birds averaged 2.20. This difference was statistically significant and was matched by higher response accuracy and quicker learning in the observers that had watched the interaction.



“Our findings show that third-party imitation, even for intransitive actions, exists outside humans, allowing for rapid adaption to group specific behaviors and possibly cultural conventions in parrots,” noted Haldar. 



The control birds never mastered the flap wings movement, and the observers learned it last, indicating how unlikely that action was without demonstrations.



Some observers even copied an action briefly before receiving any signal or reward. Those spontaneous moments appeared for spin, fluff, or vocalize and were not reinforced.



Because the target movements were goal-less, explanations like goal copying or object enhancement fit poorly. The design therefore supports imitation of movement patterns within a social context.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-adapting-to-local-routines">Adapting to local routines</h2>



Parrots are not only vocal mimics. A large <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-24335-x" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">survey</a> shows many species keep learning new vocalizations across their lives, and they use those sounds in rich social settings.



Training research also shows that parrots can learn by observing people interact with each other. The model rival <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8469950/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">technique</a> uses two human trainers to teach labels and concepts to African grey parrots, making observational learning a practical tool in the lab.



Wild parrots <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0049747" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">display</a> flexible social communication too. Orange fronted conures can address specific flock mates by imitating their contact calls, which shows how imitation can serve precise social goals.



The macaw experiment fits that broader picture of social minds. Learning from two others may help newcomers adapt to local routines quickly.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-parrots-must-learn-fast">Parrots must learn fast</h2>



In third-party tests with intransitive actions, household dogs did not copy the model. Those studies suggest dogs may rely more on objects or explicit training in such tasks, which makes intransitive movements harder to match without prior practice.



Parrots face different pressures in the wild, including frequent regrouping and shifting partners. Under those conditions, rapidly matching another bird’s movements could aid coordination and affiliation.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-research-directions">Future research directions </h2>



The sample was small and the action set was limited to five movements. That means follow up studies should scale up both the number of birds and the diversity of actions.



Related work points to another piece of the puzzle. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/saving-parrots-in-the-illegal-wildlife-trade-with-dna-technology/">Macaws</a> also show automatic imitation in a separate experiment, where seeing a movement makes the same movement more likely even when it is not helpful.



Future tests can separate motivation from mechanism by varying the reward schedule or by using two birds as the interacting pair. Researchers can also probe whether observers track the human cue, the demonstrator, or both.



If third-party imitation helps birds synchronize with new partners, it could shape how social traditions form and stick. That is a strong reason to look for similar abilities in other parrots and then in wild settings.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-11665-9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Scientific Reports</a>.



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Parrots that learn like people: Macaws copy without being taught

Humans often learn by watching two other people interact and then copying what fits the moment. A new study shows blue-throated macaws can do the same thing. This ability, known as third-party imitation, suggests a more flexible kind of learning than simple mimicry. It points to social knowledge that spreads without direct teaching. How parrots learn The work was led by Esha Haldar at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence (MPIB) in Germany. She and colleagues tested whether parrots can learn by watching a conspecific, meaning...

A team of researchers led by the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> has found that toxic chemicals in ocean algae may be causing neurodegeneration in dolphins. The toxic algal blooms contain a neurotoxin called BMAA, which has previously been linked to a protein involved in Alzheimer’s among nonhuman primates. 

Evidence of BMAA has also been found in the brains of deceased Alzheimer’s patients and in those who suffered from another neurodegenerative condition called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which is commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

“The findings of protein-bound BMAA in brain tissues from patients with Alzheimer’s disease has advanced the hypothesis that BMAA may be linked to dementia. Since dolphins are apex predators and consume prey containing high amounts of BMAA, we examined necropsy specimens to determine if dietary and environmental exposures may result in the accumulation of BMAA in the brains of dolphins,” wrote the researchers. 

The investigation was focused on 14 <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/captive-dolphins-kept-healthy/">dolphins</a> that washed up in Florida and Massachusetts. Using two analytical methods of liquid chromatography, the experts found significant levels of BMAA in all but one of the dolphins. The animals also showed neurodegenerative changes that resembled those seen in patients with Alzheimer's.

The study revealed that the amount of BMAA found in the dolphins’ brains was 1.4 times greater than levels observed in the brains of human patients with Alzheimer’s and ALS. 

The experts noted that the findings do not confirm that BMAA is the direct cause of neurodegeneration in dolphins, but the research indicates that there is a correlation. 

Study lead author David Davis is a neuropathologist at the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Miller School of Medicine. “Not to be too political, but it goes to show the health of marine animals and water quality,” Davis told the <a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/">Miami Herald</a>. “Everything’s directly related.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/">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

Toxic algae may be linked to neurodegenerative disease in dolphins

A team of researchers led by the University of Miami...

They’re not quite zombies. They’re vegetarians. They make babies in the usual way … no unseemly gnawing of flesh necessary to spawn the next generation. Plants though? Well, those are fair game. Any hapless herbs unlucky enough to have eggs deposited upon them are goners. They are, in fact, utterly harmless to most animals, aside from an unpleasant taste if ingested. But homeowners and farmers in the United States might nonetheless be forgiven for making the comparison.

The bumbling incursions of the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/warmer-temps-rise-stink-bugs/">brown marmorated stink bug</a> (Haly­omorpha halys) do almost resemble the mindless march of the undead. With a seemingly endless supply of footsoldiers, the species has trooped its way across the majority of America and made significant inroads in South America and Europe as well. And, as homeowners who have had their fortifications breached during hibernation season can attest, they’re undeterred by the defenses that might be deployed against most insect invaders. Pesticides have limited effect. Even swatting at them and sealing up their available points of ingress doesn’t stop them. They don’t seem to fear death. And they just keep coming.

These intruders have staged perhaps the most successful Asian conquest since Genghis Khan. And unlike the armies of Khan, they’re dormant for half of the year in colder climes. 

They weren’t always botanical pillagers. They once lived in relative harmony with their fellow creatures. In their native Asia, where they range through China, Korea, and Japan, they are kept in check by parasitic wasps. While they are pests there, their depredations are not nearly so severe. It was when they voyaged across the Atlantic and settled in North America that their rapacious tendencies really blossomed. 

They were first recorded in the United States <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257141471_Tracing_the_origin_of_US_brown_marmorated_stink_bugs_Halyomorpha_halys">in 1996</a>, on Adams Island in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where they probably arrived in shipments from China. Further immigrants were noted in the Allentown area in 1998 and 1999. It wasn’t, however, until 2001 that the species was formally identified. That year, entomologist Karen M. Bernhard, who worked for the Lehigh County Cooperative Extension, was sent several specimens by homeowners. She shipped them off to the Cornell Univer­sity Insect Diagnostic Lab. There, it was confirmed that the species that had begun creeping into local homes was in fact the exotic brown marmorated stink bug, or BMSB. First identified by Western science in 1855, they are so named for their “marbled”—marmorated—brown exoskeletons and for the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5027987/">pungent aldehydes</a> that they release when alarmed.

[caption id="attachment_1870137" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/stinkbugs.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870137" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/stinkbugs.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="488" /></a> Image Credit: Mike Lewinski/Flickr[/caption]

From Pennsylvania, the campaign rapidly proceeded to other states on the Eastern Seaboard. Currently, BMSBs are common east of the Mississippi. They spread to Oregon by 2004 and California by 2006, possibly as the result of separate introductions. The species is now <a href="https://www.stopbmsb.org/where-is-bmsb/state-by-state/">established in 44 states and in four Canadian provinces</a>. Genetic analysis has <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257141471_Tracing_the_origin_of_US_brown_marmorated_stink_bugs_Halyomorpha_halys">traced the American populations to Beijing</a>, a major center of international commerce and thus a logical point of dispersal. 

Because they overwinter, human habitations are a perfect respite for BMSBs that might otherwise be forced to crawl under tree bark and wait out the cold. The cracks and crevices afforded by your average home provide superior shelter. And because the insects secrete an <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263476623_Discovery_of_the_Aggregation_Pheromone_of_the_Brown_Marmorated_Stink_Bug_Halyomorpha_halys_through_the_Creation_of_Stereoisomeric_Libraries_of_1-Bisabolen-3-ols">aggregation pheromone</a>, attracting droves of their brethren to appealing habitats, this means that thousands may come pouring into attics and other unsealed areas. (They are <a href="https://bioone.org/journals/florida-entomologist/volume-99/issue-3/024.099.0304/Stink-Bugs-Hemiptera--Pentatomidae-in-Pheromone-Baited-Traps-Near/10.1653/024.099.0304.full">negatively geotactic</a>—they prefer higher areas and thus gravitate towards the upper reaches of a given abode.)

Over this past Thanksgiving, I visited the uninhabited attic room in my childhood home and the floors were carpeted with dead stink bugs that had failed to make their way outdoors after their hibernations in previous years. And a living one took a nosedive into my dinner, presumably attracted to the light fixture above the table. Indeed, the creatures are also positively phototactic—that is, they are drawn to sources of light. This has proven to be a boon to those beset by swarms of the insects. They are not particularly susceptible to indoor pesticide applications, which, in any case, present risks to humans. One of the best ways to combat indoor infestations is to set up a pan of soapy water and put a light over it in a dark room. The creatures will swarm to the light and inadvertently drown themselves in the pan. 

Farmers, however, are not so lucky. They usually must resort to more draconian measures, a distressing turn of events in an age where pesticide use is increasingly linked to all sorts of ecological problems, from the decline of beneficial insects to the poisoning of waterways. The generalist BMSBs feed on all sorts of crops and particularly afflict stone fruits, apples, corn, soybeans, and nightshades such as tomatoes. These insects caused $37 million in damaged to apple crops in the mid-Atlantic region <a href="https://www.growingproduce.com/fruits/apples-pears/brown-marmorated-stink-bug-causes-37-million-in-losses-to-mid-atlantic-apple-growers/">in 2010 alone</a> and other growers have also seen significant losses. The BMSB, which preferentially feeds on fruits, penetrates them with its sucking mouthparts, known as a rostrum, leaving wounds that affect the quality of the fruits. Some fail to develop around the area of penetration, leaving indentations known as “cat face.” Others form mushy or corky areas that make the fruits unsaleable. The creatures will also feed on other areas of plants and can even pierce the bark of some trees. Because the bugs are less susceptible to pesticides than other insects, applications must be heavier. Luckily, a number of solutions have gotten around that. 

BMSBs appear to congregate on the perimeters of crop fields and orchards adjacent to forests. Thus, it may be more effective to treat those areas rather than the entire growing area. This effect can be amplified by the use of aggregation pheromone baits. The BSMB is drawn to pheromones released by its conspecifics. It loves a crowd and when it finds one, it excretes a substance that signals its satisfaction and attracts more. The application of artificial formulations of this pheromone can concentrate the invaders in specific areas, which can then be treated with localized applications of pesticides. 

More effective, however, may be its natural predators, namely the parasitoid Trissolcus japonicus, colloquially known as the samurai wasp. This tiny winged assassin deposits its eggs inside stink bug eggs, where its larvae devour the developing embryos. Up to 90% of stink bug eggs are parasitized where the wasp’s range overlaps with that of the stink bug in their native habitat. Agricultural Research (ARS) scientists discovered the miniature wasp, hardly bigger than a period, in the stink bug’s native Asian range. They began conducting lab trials to see if the wasp would have deleterious effects on native stink bugs and other insects in introduced in the United States. (Given the disastrous effects of other introductions intended to control agricultural pests, such as the cane toad in Australia, such trials are essential in assessing risk.) 

However, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/274639916_Trissolcus_japonicus_Ashmead_Hymenoptera_Scelionidae_emerges_in_North_America_Trissolcus_japonicus_Ashmead_Hymenoptera_Scelionidae_emerges_in_North_America">in 2014</a>, it was discovered that the wasp had already <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/08/scientists-spent-years-plan-import-wasp-kill-stinkbugs-then-it-showed-its-own">colonized the United States on its own</a>. They had been found in Maryland and soon turned up elsewhere, including British Columbia, Virginia, and New York, as well as Oregon and Washington. <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10340-018-1061-2">By 2017</a>, they had popped up in Switzerland too, giving hope to afflicted farmers and gardeners in Europe. That year and the next, experimental populations of the wasp were released to determine their effects on the stink bugs. More wide-scale introductions await USDA approval.

[caption id="attachment_1870138" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/female-parasitoid-wasp.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870138" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/female-parasitoid-wasp.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="427" /></a> Female parasitoid wasp (Trissolcus mitsukurii), Image Credit: US Department of Agriculture[/caption]

Predaceous insects native to or already well-established in North America may be having an effect as well. <a href="http://bugoftheweek.com/blog/2013/9/20/death-of-a-stink-bug-part-1-a-curious-reunion-between-the-brown-marmorated-stink-bug-ihaylomorpha-halysi-and-the-chinese-praying-mantis-itenodera-sinensisi?rq=stink%20bug">Praying mantises</a>—originally from the BSMB’s native China—have been observed eating them and so have some spiders. Some birds, too, have been seen gobbling up them up. This may explain the fact that populations are declining in some of their East Coast strongholds. Cold winters, too, may have taken out some of the insect mercenaries. The polar vortex this year, which saw sub-zero temperatures, will likely prove to have been particularly devastating, at least to bugs that remained outdoors. 

For now, though, the BMSB is still shambling its way across our fruited plains—and sucking the life out of them.

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By <a href="mailto:rtpallardy@gmail.com">Richard Pallardy</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Where did all of these stink bugs come from?

They’re not quite zombies. They’re vegetarians. They make babies in...

Experts at the <a href="https://www.uea.ac.uk/">University of East Anglia</a> have discovered that when female birds have help raising their offspring, they live longer and healthier lives. The research may help to explain why <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/people-unconsciously-recreate-ancient-africa/">humans</a> and other social species that live together in groups tend to live longer.

The study was focused on the relationship between offspring rearing patterns and aging among Seychelles warblers.

“There is huge variation in lifespan between different species, and also between individuals within a species. But we know very little about what causes one individual to live a long healthy life, and another to die young. Or indeed, why individuals in one species live much longer than individuals in another similar species,” said Professor David S. Richardson.

“Finding out more about what causes biological ageing is really important. And, until now, there has been very little known about the relationship between sociality and ageing within species.”

There are many species that use cooperative breeding systems in which offspring are cared for by their parents and also by other adult members of the group known as “helpers.” To investigate how this cooperation may affect the process of aging, the research team analyzed more than 15 years of data on the breeding patterns of Seychelles warblers living on the small island of Cousin.

[caption id="attachment_1870120" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/warbler-family-group.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870120" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/warbler-family-group.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="488" /></a> Seychelles Warbler family, Image Credit: Janske Van De Crommenacker[/caption]

“In the Seychelles warbler the majority of helpers are female - and they assist with incubating the eggs and providing food for the chicks. This means that the parents don't need to do as much work when they have help,” said Professor Richardson. 

“We found that older dominant females really benefit from having female helpers - they lose less of their telomeres and are less likely to die in the near future. This shows they are aging slower than females without helpers. Interestingly, these older female mothers were also more likely to have female helpers.”

“Meanwhile the survival of elderly birds who were not assisted by helpers declined rapidly with age. The birds only need one female helper to show the effect of delayed ageing, and indeed most only have either one or no helpers. Very few may have two or three helpers, but there were not enough of those to determine whether there would be a greater benefit in having more helpers.”

Dr. Martijn Hammers explained that, for the older mothers, there are real benefits to cooperative breeding. 

“Biologically speaking they stay 'younger' for longer, and they are more likely to live longer,” said Dr. Hammers. “What we don't know yet is why some older individuals have helpers, which enable them to live longer, and some don't despite the obvious benefits. Further research is needed to confirm the causality of the associations we have found."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Janske Van De Crommenacker

Female birds live longer lives when they have help raising the kids

Experts at the University of East Anglia have discovered that...

Orcas are certainly among the most recognizable marine mammals.  From their place in Sea World, to appearances in movies like <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106965/">Free Willy</a>, orcas are well known and even beloved by the public.  Also known as <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/male-killer-whales-hunt-eat/">killer whales</a>, these animals are also important culturally and spiritually to many native peoples of the coastal northwest and polar regions.  But despite the orca’s cultural presence, we don’t know as much as we think we do about the large porpoise.

Nature documentaries have shown the skill and cunning orcas can use when hunting or even playing.  It’s obvious from the most basic observations that orcas are social animals, living in pods and working together to secure food.  

There are an estimated 50,000 orcas in the wild today.  According to the <a href="https://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/news/features/killer_whale_report/pdfs/bigreport62514.pdf">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)</a>, orcas live in every ocean in the world, and even the killer whales found in the ocean off the northwestern US coast show a lot of variability.  There are at least three different types of orca known to science in the Pacific Northwest. 

Resident orcas include northern and southern west coast populations that remain relatively close to a particular location, without much migration or long distance wandering.  Residents live in large pods and eat fish primarily. 

Transient killer whales, also known as Bigg’s killer whales, live in smaller groups of ten or fewer individual orcas.  These orcas wander extensively up and down the west coast of North America and feed exclusively marine mammals, which require more complex hunting skills. 

Offshore orcas are thought to feed on fish, squid and sharks.  These orcas have been found in groups as large as 200 individual killer whales.  This is the least studied group of orcas in the Pacific Northwest.

According to the <a href="https://us.whales.org/meet-the-different-types-of-orcas/">Whale and Dolphin Conservation</a>, there are even more specific types of orca in other parts of the world.  In the North Atlantic region, there are two orca ecotypes. The first type feeds mainly on herring and mackerel near Norway and occasionally on seals.  The other North Atlantic orca group feeds on other cetaceans, mainly minke whales. 

In the Southern Hemisphere as in the Northern, there are five distinct orca ecotypes with separate but related hunting techniques, vocalizations and social groups.

One group like their northern counterparts mainly hunts minke whales.  Another group often appears brown from the growth of diatoms on their skins.  These brown orcas are famous for hunting by washing seals and other prey off safe pieces of ice by creating waves.  

Another group is smaller and also colored with diatoms but less is known about their diet.  These orcas have been seen eating penguins and are often found near penguin colonies. 

The last two orca ecotypes are the smallest, and there is relatively little known about them. The most recently discovered orca with shorter dorsal fins, a rounded head and the smallest eye patch, has only been seen a few times since first sighted in the 1950s.  This last orca type, officially named type D, has been in the news recently. 

With so many distinct populations spread over such wide expanses of ocean, orcas are difficult animals to study.  Even harder is determining how deep the differences between populations go. <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/killer-whale">NOAA</a> reports that there may be different species or subspecies but so far there’s officially only one identified – Orcinus orca.  But scientists are now saying that might soon change.  

Previously, type D orcas were known to science only by amateur photographs and descriptions as well as one mass stranding in New Zealand.  Live type D orcas have never been studied by professional marine biologists... until now. <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2019/03/new-killer-whale-species-discovered/">National Geographic</a> reports that for the first time, scientists have observed live type D orcas in the wild.  The orcas were found off the coast of Chile, a place famous for rough waters and some of the worst weather in the world. 

Robert Pitman, a scientist with NOAA, was one of the team members that observed the orcas and told National Geographic that he suspects that they are a separate species of orca from Orcinus orca.

The researchers were tipped off by fishermen who had recently seen a pod of orcas in the area.  Following up on the sighting, the scientists set sail in the research vessel Australis, dropped anchor and waited.  After more than a week, a pod of about 25 orcas finally approached the scientist’s ship. 

The scientists were ready for the large marine mammals.  A hydrophone set in the water to record vocalizations was inspected by the curious orcas but they didn’t cooperate by making any noises.  The team also filmed the killer whales from above and below the water. Most importantly for the research, a small tissue sample of skin and blubber was collected for DNA analysis, a common procedure.  

The DNA analysis when completed, should be complete proof of whether type d orcas are indeed a different species.  For now, the scientists are still waiting for a permit to export the tissue sample they collected from Chile.

The type D orcas are also especially hard to study, living in the open ocean, an environment foreign to humans.  Their large range too makes it hard to consistently find the same group of orcas again and again. These factors combined with the remote and dangerous nature of the ocean waters between Chile and Antarctica help explain why so little is known about Orcas and why only now researchers may be collecting proof of another species of Orca.  

Some scientists suspect there may be even more than two species of orca, but without solid evidence, it’s just speculation.  So far, all that can be said with certainty is that there are several ecotypes of orca, each exhibiting to some degree unique behavior and diets.  Whether two or more species of orca will be found to exist is a question that will only be answered with time. 

For now, we should be thrilled with this vivid example of how large and how wild the seas are.  Even orcas, animals we feel we know, are mysterious to us. 

--

By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Orcas spotted off the coast of Chile could be a new species

Orcas are certainly among the most recognizable marine mammals.  From...

The sighting of a pregnant <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/manta-rays-filtration-system/#.XJQNLihKhPY">manta ray</a> off the Cocos Island in Costa Rica in the eastern Pacific Ocean is making waves among marine scientists. 

It’s the first time that a manta ray has been spotted so far away from the coastal waters it usually inhabits, and researchers from <a href="https://finsattached.org/">Fins Attached Marine Research and Conservation</a> say that the female traveled further than any other known reef manta ray. 

Cocos Island is located around 300 miles from any suitable habitat for the species, and the ray was spotted 3,000 miles away from the nearest confirmed manta ray sighting, according to research published in the journal <a href="https://mbr.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s41200-019-0162-9">Marine Biodiversity Records. </a>

How the manta ray ended up near Cocos is uncertain, but it’s possible that stress or some other factor forced the manta away from familiar territory and the animal swam in a straight line into the open ocean. 

“Reef mantas may travel several hundred kilometres, although they tend not to travel too far offshore,” said Randall Arauz, the first author of the study. “It is unclear how this individual could have steered so far off course, leading us to assume it was not intentional.”

Typically reef manta rays stay near coastal reefs, and female mantas give birth to just one pup every two to five years. Researchers have yet to witness a live manta ray birth in the wild. 

Manta rays can grow up to 16 feet and this particularly manta ray is about 11 feet long. An acoustic tag has been attached to the manta ray to help keep track of its movements. 

“This extraordinary sighting challenges everything we currently know about the migratory behavior of this species and its ability to undertake long-distance movements across open ocean environments,” said Dr. Andrea Marshall, a co-author of the study. “It will be interesting to monitor her over the coming months and see how she uses this new, unfamiliar habitat.” 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Mauricio Hoyos

Pregnant reef manta ray spotted thousands of miles from its habitat

The sighting of a pregnant manta ray off the Cocos Island...

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/marine-jellies-first-animals/#.XJO0AihKhPY">Comb jellies</a> are iridescent swimming carnivores that are covered in hairy like protrusions called cilia. These densely packed hairs help the comb jellies maneuver through the ocean. Comb jellies given new spot on the evolutionary tree of life 

The comb jelly’s cilia have also helped researchers create a clearer picture of the species’ evolution after it was discovered that comb jellies closely resemble a 520 million-year-old fossil found in the Yunnan Province in South China. 

In a new study conducted by paleontologists from the <a href="http://www.bristol.ac.uk/">University of Bristol</a>, <a href="http://english.ynu.edu.cn/">Yunnan University</a>, and the <a href="http://www.nhm.ac.uk/">Natural History Museum in London</a>, researchers compared comb jellies to an ancient fossil that has 18 tentacles surrounding its mouth and on the tentacles are feathery branches with well-preserved cilia hairs. 

The research was published in the journal Current Biology, and the results show that comb jellies are related to seafloor dwelling ancestors that had polyp tentacles.Comb jellies given new spot on the evolutionary tree of life 

The discovery has led to the comb jellies being given a new spot on the evolutionary tree of life, as the researchers say that comb jellies should be placed next to sea anemones and corals. 

“When I first saw the fossil, I immediately noticed some features I had seen in comb jellies,” said Dr. Jakob Vinther, a member of the research team. “You could see these repeated dark stains along each tentacle that resembles how comb jelly combs fossilise. The fossil also preserves rows of cilia, which can be seen because they are huge. Across the Tree of Life, such large ciliary structures are only found in comb jellies.”

[caption id="attachment_1870095" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/comb-specimen.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870095" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/comb-specimen.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="861" /></a> Holotype specimen of Daihua sanqiong. Image Credit: Yang Zhao[/caption]

The researchers were able to track the evolution of the 520-million-year-old floor dwelling fossil to comb jellies that roam the oceans today. The combs of comb jellies evolved from polyp-like tentacles, and their mouths expanded into balloon-like spheres. 

“It was probably one of the most exhilarating moments of my life,” said Vinther. “We pulled out a zoology textbook and tried to wrap our head around the various differences and similarities, and then, bam!--here is another fossil that fills this gap.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

Comb jellies given new spot on the evolutionary tree of life

Comb jellies are iridescent swimming carnivores that are covered in...

A new study from the <a href="https://www.usda.gov/">U.S. Department of Agriculture</a> (USDA) has found that honey bee colonies become more healthy and productive with a cover of clover species and alfalfa. The colonies were found to be three times as successful in these non-crop fields compared to their performance next to crop fields of canola or sunflowers.

The investigation was focused on managed <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/pesticide-honey-bee-deaths/">honey bee</a> colonies placed next to land in the U.S. Department of Agriculture Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in North Dakota. 

The colonies were found to have higher numbers of bees and demonstrated the improved ability to produce vitellogenin, which has many important roles. Vitellogenin serves as the base for royal jelly and provides a critical food storage reservoir for honey bee colonies. In the spring, a colony's success depends on total vitellogenin reserves carried by specialized bees over the winter. 

After six months of foraging on CRP land, over 78 percent of the colonies were graded A, the highest possible level. On the other hand, only 20 percent of colonies placed near crop fields could be rated with a grade of A and 55 percent of these colonies were either struggling or dead.

Kirk E. Anderson is a microbiologist at the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Carl Hayden Bee Research Center in Tucson, Arizona.

“With California almond growers having paid an average of $190 per Grade A colony in the 2018 almond pollination season, the need for beekeepers to have access to land that has diverse and substantial nectar and pollen sources is obvious,” explained Anderson.

[caption id="attachment_1870087" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/field.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870087" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/field.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="351" /></a> Image Credit: ARS-USDA[/caption]

“We've also shown that the benefits of high quality forage such as that provided by CRP land carries right through the overwintering period and leaves bees in the best shape to build up their numbers before being needed to pollinate almonds in February and early March,” added ARS molecular biologist Vincent Ricigliano.

Anderson said that the findings provide land managers and scientists with methods to evaluate the relationship between bees and the landscape. “For beekeepers, it provides a basis for making decisions about where to put their apiaries for the summer and fall after crop pollination ends so that the colonies will be in a position to build up robust healthy numbers in time for the migration to California for almond pollination.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/scientificreports">Scientific Reports</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Main Image Credit: ARS-USDA

Honey bee colonies are healthier and more productive in non-crop fields

A new study from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)...

New research from the <a href="https://www.port.ac.uk/">University of Portsmouth</a> shows that the endangered sun bear, the world’s smallest bear species, is able to mimic the facial expressions of its fellow bears. Researchers now wonder if primates and humans are really the superior species when it comes to this subtle form of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-communicate-human-language/">communication</a>. 

"Mimicking the facial expressions of others in exact ways is one of the pillars of human communication,” said Dr. Marina Davila-Ross in the team’s paper, published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep/">Scientific Reports</a>. “Other primates and dogs are known to mimic each other, but only great apes and humans, and now sun bears, were previously known to show such complexity in their facial mimicry.”

"Because sun bears appear to have facial communication of such complexity and because they have no special evolutionary link to humans like monkeys are apes, nor are they domesticated animals like dogs, we are confident that this more advanced form of mimicry is present in various other species,” she continued. “This, however, needs to be further investigated.”

Dr. Davila-Ross, who studied sun bears for over two years alongside her colleague PhD candidate Derry Taylor at the Sun Bear Conservation Centre in Malaysia, believes that because sun bears use facial mimicry, they may be more socially sensitive in comparison to other mammals. However, as Davila-Ross and Taylor observed, wild sun bears are more solitary than community-oriented. Therefore, it’s likely that facial mimicry could simply be used to navigate within their society.

Taylor was able to code facial expressions of 22 sun bears while in social play situations. He noted two distinct expressions — one that displayed the upper incisor teeth, and one without. These expressions were most often shown and exchanged during gentle play, and therefore Taylor believes they were used as a signal to show their partner they are ready for more playtime.

"It is widely believed that we only find complex forms of communication in species with complex social systems,” Taylor said. “As sun bears are a largely solitary species, our study of their facial communication questions this belief, because it shows a complex form of facial communication that until now was known only in more social species.”

"Sun bears are an elusive species in the wild and so very little is known about them. We know they live in tropical rainforests, eat almost everything, and that outside of the mating season adults have little to do with one another,” Taylor continued. “That's what makes these results so fascinating — they are a non-social species who, when face to face, can communicate subtly and precisely.”

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Copyright: Daniela Hartmann

Like humans, bears communicate by copying each other’s facial expressions

New research from the University of Portsmouth shows that the...

An ecosystem is like a game of Jenga, where the more pieces you change or take out, the less stable and sustainable it becomes. The far-reaching impacts of <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia-articles/invasive-species-plants-animals/">nonnative lake trout</a> in Yellowstone Lake is the perfect example of how one species can upset an entire ecosystem. 

Researchers from the <a href="http://www.uwyo.edu/">University of Wyoming</a>, <a href="https://www.nps.gov/index.htm">National Park Services</a> and <a href="http://www.montana.edu/">Montana State University</a> analyzed more than four decades of data on species abundance, diet, and behavior collected from around Yellowstone Lake from 1972 to 2017. 

The data showed troubling declines in native cutthroat trout populations directly linked to the illegal introduction of invasive lake trout in the 1980s. From zooplankton to bald eagles, many of the species native to the area have been impacted by the lake trout. 

The new research was published in the journal Science Advances. 

“Our study illustrates the potential impact of a single, invasive predatory species on otherwise pristine ecosystems," the researchers wrote, providing further support for Yellowstone National Park's efforts to suppress the lake trout population in Yellowstone Lake.

Lake trout prey on cutthroat trout and declines in cutthroat trout populations has caused an increase in zooplankton in the lake. Osprey populations have sharply declined due to the lack of cutthroat trout, which are an essential food source for both osprey and bald eagles.

Bald eagles have changed their diet somewhat to compensate for the loss of cutthroat trout, but there are still fewer eagles now compared to before the lake trout were introduced. 

Otters have also had to adapt and make changes to their diets and river otter populations appear to be lower than ever before. 

Black bears and grizzly bears have also lost an important food source due to cutthroat trout declines, but luckily, bear populations in the area have remained stable. 

“Grizzly and black bear frequency of occurrence on spawning tributaries and use of cutthroat trout as a food resource were greatly reduced following the lake trout invasion,” the researchers wrote. “However, this was localized displacement, and their populations were not otherwise affected, because only bears with home ranges neighboring Yellowstone Lake lost spawning cutthroat trout as a food resource. Since bears are omnivore generalists, they could make use of other foods.”

The team also considered other environmental factors that might explain the rippling effects of cutthroat trout declines, such as a major wildfire that tore through Yellowstone in 1988 or the reintroduction of wolves in 1995. 

However, neither of these could have caused the same dramatic, long-reaching impacts that Yellowstone Lake is currently experiencing. 

Gill-netting lake trout is helping cutthroat trout slowly recover, according to the researchers, which is hopeful news for the many species that depend on lake trout for food. 

“After being absent for many years, spawning adult cutthroat trout are returning to some of the smaller tributaries, and bear use of these streams has increased as a result,” the researchers wrote. “Ospreys, however, have not yet responded to the recent increases in cutthroat trout prey. The outcome of restoration efforts to trophic levels with and across ecosystems in the Yellowstone Lake watershed remains uncertain.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Invasive lake trout are impacting an entire Yellowstone lake ecosystem

An ecosystem is like a game of Jenga, where the...

A new study from <a href="https://www.qmul.ac.uk/">Queen Mary University of London</a> has uncovered a previously unknown behavior among queen bumblebees. The researchers found that after hibernating in the winter, queen bumblebees spend most of their time resting under dead leaves and grass.

The findings suggest that the queen <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/bumblebees-thrive-living-cities/">bumblebees</a> combine long rests with short flights directly after hibernation, which explains how they end up far away from their nest.

“We wanted to see what queens actually do right after they emerge. By combining state-of-the-art tracking technology with wild bee observations, we were able to uncover a never before seen behavior of queen bumblebees,” explained co-lead author Dr. James Makinson.

The researchers monitored queen bees that had just emerged from artificially-induced hibernation. They placed small antenna on their backs and used radar to track them across an outdoor site. 

The study revealed that the queen bumblebees were spending most of their time resting. They would generally spend 10 to 20 minutes on the ground before making short, random flights that lasted only 10 to 20 seconds.

“Our study suggests that a few weeks of this type of behavior would carry queen bees several kilometers away from their hibernation site and might explain how queens disperse from the nest in which they were born to the place they choose to found a new colony,” said co-lead author Dr. Joe Woodgate.


“Better understanding the behavior of queens during this crucial period of their lives can suggest practices to improve their chances of successfully founding new colonies and help their survival,” added Dr. Makinson.

“Our findings suggest that creating pollinator friendly corridors between conserved landscape patches would be helpful. It would also be beneficial to plant pollinator friendly flowers and trees all year round, giving bumblebee queens ample access to food during their early spring emergence. And leaving vegetation, such as leaf litter and long grass, undisturbed until late in the spring would give queen bumblebees safe places to rest.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/scientificreports">Scientific Reports</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Joe Woodgate

Queen bumblebees spend most of their time resting after hibernation

A new study from Queen Mary University of London has...

A team of experts led by the <a href="http://english.cas.cn/">Chinese Academy of Sciences</a> has described the first fossil bird ever found with an egg preserved inside of its body. The specimen also represents a new species, Avimaia schweitzerae. 

The fossil was discovered in northwestern China in deposits that date back 110 million years. The bird belongs to the group Enantiornithes, which was the most abundant and diverse group of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/alligators-birds-hearing-dinosaur/">birds</a> known during the Mesozoic era. 

The new fossil is incredibly well preserved, and the remains of an egg are still contained  inside of its abdomen. The experts noticed an unusual tissue in the flat specimen and removed a small fragment to determine that it was actually an egg.

A detailed analysis of the egg shell consists of two layers instead of one, which indicates that the egg was retained too long inside of the abdomen. This condition has also been documented in sauropod dinosaurs and turtles, and is known to occur in modern birds as a result of stress.

[caption id="attachment_1870008" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/bird.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870008" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/bird.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="937" /></a> Holotype of Avimaia schweitzerae. Image Credit: Barbara Marrs[/caption]

The egg shell was also found to be extremely paper thin and did not show the correct proportions of healthy eggs. These abnormalities suggest that the preserved egg may have caused the death of the bird. An egg that gets stuck inside of the body becomes lethal, and small birds under stress commonly encounter this problem. 

When female birds are about to lay eggs, they deposit a unique bone tissue that can be found inside the empty spaces of their skeleton to provide calcium for the developing egg shell. The experts analyzed a fragment of leg bone from Avimaia and discovered the presence of medullary bone. 

According to the researchers, this the only Mesozoic fossil in which there is additional evidence to support the identification of medullary bone. The new specimen has provided scientists with more reproductive information than any other fossil bird from the Mesozoic era.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Main Image Credit: Michael Rothman

Fossilized bird is providing insight into avian reproduction

A team of experts led by the Chinese Academy of...

Machine learning is most often associated with big business and military projects. Headlines regularly describe how these techniques are used for self-driving cars, surveillance, and advertising. However, <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/algorithm-locate-solar-panel/">machine learning</a> is proving useful in more places than you might imagine, and many conservation biologists are taking advantage of these powerful tools.
<h2>The explosion of machine learning</h2>
Machine learning refers to a group of techniques that allow computers to learn from data. These techniques have been around since the 1980s, but they were still being developed and were also limited by the availability of powerful computers and large datasets. 

But over the last decade, machine learning has become widespread. This has been enabled by the availability of relatively cheap, powerful computers and big data. These are both needed for effective machine learning. 
<h3>Why machine learning is used in conservation.</h3>
Machine learning allows researchers to automate tasks that would otherwise be done by hand. This saves massive amounts of time and money, and in the underfunded world of conservation biology, this is essential. 

Machine learning can decrease the time it takes to answer key questions. Faster answers help save species before they disappear.

Machine learning also helps to discover hidden trends. These techniques can be used to help determine what species or areas are at the greatest risk. This helps researchers decide how to allocate limited resources.

A number of factors are contributing to the increase of machine learning in conservation. 
<ul>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">The internet has enabled the exchange of data. </li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">Massive publicly available databases are becoming more common. </li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">More data can be collected due to cheaper remote sensors.</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">Computing power is becoming more cost-effective.</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">The availability of open source tools.</li>
</ul>
<h2>Real-World Projects</h2>
There are many conservation biologists who are applying machine learning to their research. These tools continue to be applied to more projects every day. Below are a few examples of how machine learning is being applied to conservation today.
<h3>Counting Species and Individuals</h3>
<h4>In Images</h4>
Remote cameras are often used for detection and counting of animal species. These camera traps detect movement to snap pictures of animals. Once these images are collected, the number and species of animal must be identified. 

This can be tedious work requiring a human to annotate images. There are already large online databases of camera trap images such as <a href="https://emammal.si.edu/">eMammal</a>. <a href="https://www.amnh.org/our-research/center-for-biodiversity-conservation/research-and-conservation/machine-learning-for-conservation">Various</a> <a href="https://www.wildlabs.net">researchers</a> <a href="https://www.zsl.org/conservation/conservation-initiatives/conservation-technology/machine-learning">are working</a> to develop tools for automated identification of these images. Other researchers are working to help <a href="http://biodiversityinformatics.amnh.org/ml4conservation/animal-detection-network/species-identification-localization/">these projects compare results</a>.
<h4>And Audio</h4>
Another type of remote sensor is called an <a href="https://www.wwf.org.uk/conservationtechnology/acoustic.html">acoustic monitor</a>. These are microphones that can be used to record bird calls, bees wings and more. Traditionally researchers had to sift through hundreds of hours of audio. Machine learning can help greatly expedite this process.

Conservation biologist Marc Travers of the <a href="https://www.hawaii.edu/">University of Hawaii</a> is using these sensors in an interesting way. He realized that a unique noise is produced when birds collide with power lines. 

Travers is using acoustic monitors to measure just how frequently this happens. He is analyzing <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-00746-1">75,000 hours of audio a year to track this problem</a>. Machine learning allows this massive amount of audio to be processed.
<h3>Finding at-risk species</h3>
Another important task in conservation is knowing which species are at risk. The <a href="https://www.iucn.org/">International Union for Conservation of Nature</a> (IUCN) classifies species based on their risk of extinction. Many plant species have not been evaluated yet. Researchers at the University of Maryland and Radford University wanted to estimate the risks for these species. They <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/machine-learning-threatened-species/">used machine learning to identify which species have a high risk of extinction</a>. 
<h3>Summarizing our knowledge</h3>
It is important to understand and analyze what we already about conservation. Most topics have many articles written about them, but <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/cobi.13117">researchers are using machine learning</a> to find relevant articles and summarize data.
<h3>Data mining social media</h3>
Another exciting application of machine learning finds data in an unexpected place. The images and text on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are full of information. Researchers can collect data from <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/detect-illegal-wildlife-trade/">social media to identify illegal wildlife trading</a>, while others are using <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/40585495/the-worlds-animals-are-getting-their-very-own-facebook">data from social media to track individual animals</a>.
<h3>Modeling climate change</h3>
The climate is extremely complex. This makes it difficult to study and prepare for the effects of climate change. Machine learning is being used to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ai-tool-cloud-responses-climate/">predict the response of clouds to climate change</a>. This is an important part of creating more accurate climate change models.
<h2>Limitations</h2>
Though machine learning can save massive amounts of time, humans are still essential. The results of these models still need to be validated by humans.
<h2>The future of machine learning in conservation</h2>
The trends that have caused machine learning to grow are continuing. As the amount of available data grows, so will the applications of machine learning. 

Open source data and tools are essential. Researchers are starting to share more raw data, which provides training data for new models and also allows researchers to compare their results and find the best model.

--

By <a href="mailto:casey.hofford@gmail.com">Casey Hofford</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Machine learning can play an important role in conservation

Machine learning is most often associated with big business and...

<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.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



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.

<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://youtu.be/Fi2OeEwuzRM?si=vTyd2m9FMmtyWkex
</div></figure>







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.

<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://youtu.be/XYgiPzmNBTU?si=eFYY7gPHU1JznLvU
</div></figure>



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.



<figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter 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://youtu.be/Ug657J67iEo?si=w96YjGMsg939LD_3
</div></figure>



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="0ynNMYkMKa-2340414-12187" type="single"]</div>



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="3upvlAaHgO-2256633-12187" type="single"]</div>



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"]</div>



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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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"

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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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