For many years, scientists believed that prehistoric kangaroos in Australia had specialized diets, relying specifically on certain types of plants or vegetation for their survival. This idea suggested that they were unable to adapt to changes in their environment, such as shifts in climate or vegetation patterns. 



When the kangaroos' preferred food sources became scarce, it was assumed that their dietary inflexibility contributed to their extinction. This theory placed dietary specialization as a key reason for the disappearance of some kangaroo species during the Pleistocene epoch.



However, recent research challenges these assumptions, suggesting that these marsupials were more resilient than we initially realized.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-diverse-diets-of-prehistoric-kangaroos"> Diverse diets of prehistoric kangaroos</h2>



The study was carried out by experts from <a href="https://www.flinders.edu.au" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Flinders University</a> and the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (<a href="https://www.magnt.net.au" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MAGNT</a>). 



The researchers used cutting-edge techniques to analyze the microscopic patterns of wear on fossilized kangaroo teeth. These patterns revealed the types of food the kangaroos ate.



The results showed that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/giant-kangaroos-of-the-past-didnt-hop-they-walked-on-all-fours/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">prehistoric kangaroos</a> were not limited to specific types of food. Instead, they were generalists, capable of eating a wide variety of plants. This flexibility in diet helped them survive environmental changes over time.



Focusing on fossils from the Victoria Fossil Cave at the Naracoorte Caves World Heritage Area in South Australia, the experts analyzed kangaroo diets across 12 extinct species and compared them with 17 modern species.



The Naracoorte region contains the richest and most diverse fossil deposits of kangaroos from the Pleistocene epoch, making it an ideal location for this research.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-flexible-diets-helped-kangaroos-survive">Flexible diets helped kangaroos survive</h2>



“Our study shows that most prehistoric kangaroos at Naracoorte had broad diets. This dietary flexibility likely played a key role in their resilience during <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/protemnodon-kangaroo-fossils-may-explain-their-extinction/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">past changes</a> in climate,” explained lead researcher Dr. Sam Arman.



Contrary to previous assumptions, the study revealed that most species were mixed feeders, capable of consuming both shrubs and grasses.



“The distinctive short-faced kangaroo anatomy led to a widespread view that sthenurines were unable to adapt their diets when climate change altered vegetation patterns, leading to their extinction,” said study co-author Professor Gavin Prideaux.



However, the findings suggest that their ability to consume a wide range of foods provided a survival advantage during periods of scarcity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-complex-extinction-dynamics">Complex extinction dynamics </h2>



While the ability to adapt their diets likely helped prehistoric kangaroos survive for a time, it wasn’t the only factor influencing their fate. 



The extinction of these megafaunal kangaroos also involved other challenges, such as their large body size, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/not-all-kangaroo-ancestors-hopped-as-a-means-of-locomotion/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">how they moved</a> (locomotion), and their interactions with early humans, who may have hunted them or altered their habitats. 



To better understand these complex extinction dynamics, the researchers plan to study fossils from other Pleistocene sites. They will focus on the critical period between 60,000 and 40,000 years ago - a time when many large animal species disappeared.



This broader investigation could reveal how different factors worked together to drive kangaroo extinctions.



"Identifying what drove the late Pleistocene megafaunal extinctions on the continents remains one of the most contested topics in historical science," noted the study authors. 



"This is especially so in Australia, which lost 90% of its large species by 40,000 years ago, more than half of them kangaroos."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-insights-into-ecosystem-vulnerabilities">Insights into ecosystem vulnerabilities</h2>



The study highlights the ecological roles of prehistoric marsupials, offering valuable insights into the evolution of Australia’s <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ecosystem-attack-predicting-the-success-of-species-invasions/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ecosystems</a>. 



“Understanding the resilience of ancient species helps contextualize why Australia has been so vulnerable to introduced large mammals like pigs, camels, and deer,” noted Professor Prideaux.



Dr. Arman uses a relatable analogy to describe dietary flexibility: “Most of the time, I don’t need to engage four-wheel drive, but this capability becomes crucial when I do need it.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-extinction-of-australia-s-megafauna">Extinction of Australia’s megafauna </h2>



The research, funded by the <a href="https://www.arc.gov.au" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Australian Research Council</a>, reflects a long-standing partnership between Flinders University and MAGNT.



The research also honors the traditional custodians of the Naracoorte region, the Meintangk, Marditjali, and Potaruwutj peoples, and acknowledges the contributions of volunteers and students in collecting and preparing specimens.



The study marks an essential step in understanding the resilience of prehistoric kangaroos, their adaptable diet and the complex interplay of factors that led to the extinction of Australia’s megafauna.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adq4340" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Science</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



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



-----

Prehistoric kangaroos changed their diets to survive climate change

For many years, scientists believed that prehistoric kangaroos in Australia had specialized diets, relying specifically on certain types of plants or vegetation for their survival. This idea suggested that they were unable to adapt to changes in their environment, such as shifts in climate or vegetation patterns. When the kangaroos' preferred food sources became scarce, it was assumed that their dietary inflexibility contributed to their extinction. This theory placed dietary specialization as a key reason for the disappearance of some kangaroo species during the Pleistocene epoch. However,...

Every dog owner is familiar with the cute, inquisitive head tilt commonly used by our <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-secrets-revealed-about-the-evolution-of-mammal-tusks/">canine</a> friends. Generally, this form of body language is associated with interest or confusion, but a new study has associated the behavior with a meaningful stimulus such as learning the name of a toy.



Researchers at the <a href="https://www.elte.hu/en/">Eötvös Loránd University</a> in Budapest have been collecting data during the Genius Dog Challenge, a series of experiments that were broadcasted live across social media, in addition to a previous study investigating the talent of dogs.



The researchers found that when dogs learn the names of their favorite toys, they often tilt their heads when their owner requests it from them. The data also shows consistency on which side a dog will tilt its head toward.



Humans and other animals often present asymmetry in the way that they perceive and move through an environment with their senses. For example, humans are generally right-handed, or prefer one eye or ear to another. In dogs, this is often found in tail wagging, paw preference, or sniffing through a favorable nostril. The asymmetrical head tilt is a further example of this phenomenon.



“Tilting the head is yet another asymmetrical movement in dogs, but it had never been studied. We investigated the frequency and direction of this behavior in response to a specific human verbal vocalization: when the owner asks the dog to bring a toy by saying its name. We did so after realizing that it often happened when the dogs were listening to their owners,” explained Dr. Andrea Sommese, lead researcher for the study.



Data from a previous study showed that not every dog was able to learn the names of its toys over three months of intensive training. However, some were able to learn multiple names without much effort, receiving the label of "Gifted Word Learner" dogs. Out of the 40 dogs studied, 33 were deemed as "typical" and the remaining seven as Gifted Word Learners.



The gifted dogs regularly tilted their heads upon hearing the name of a toy, and the side of the tilt was consistent across experiments taking place over two years. As a result, the researchers have hypothesized that there is an association between head-tilting and the processing of meaningful stimuli.



“It is important to notice that this study only investigated head tilts during a very specific dog-owner communicative interaction: when the owner asks the dog to fetch a named toy. Hence, it is important to refrain from thinking that only Gifted Word Learner dogs tilt their heads in other situations not tested in this study,” said study co-author Andrea Temesi.



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.springer.com/journal/10071">Animal Cognition</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:calumvaughan05@gmail.com">Calum Vaughan</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Dogs tilt their heads while processing meaningful stimuli

Every dog owner is familiar with the cute, inquisitive head...

Brucellosis is an infectious bacterial disease that causes female bison, elk, and cattle to abort their calves. In the Yellowstone region, both wild animals and livestock can contract this highly contagious <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-infectious-disease-discovered-in-japan/">disease</a> by coming into contact with the fetal remains, which can stay infectious for weeks or even months.&nbsp;



A new study led by the <a href="https://www.usgs.gov/centers/norock">Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center</a> has found that scavengers such as coyotes, foxes, eagles, or vultures are unwittingly helping both wildlife and cattle by rapidly consuming abortion materials and thus keeping brucellosis epidemics at bay.&nbsp;



“Terrestrial and avian scavengers provide an important yet understudied ecosystem function by removing carcasses from the landscape,” wrote the study authors. “In the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem scavengers are likely to reduce the transmission and subsequent spread of brucellosis within and between livestock and elk by consuming infectious abortion materials, thereby removing the infectious agent from the landscape.”



The researchers used remote cameras to monitor the time to removal of simulated abortion materials by scavengers at 264 sites in the Yellowstone region from February to June in 2017 and 2018. The scientists have found that there was a 90 percent probability that abortion materials will be removed within 16 days across all sites by scavengers such as coyotes, red foxes, golden and bald eagles, and turkey vultures.



The findings also suggested that the time to removal of fetal materials decreased in grassland habitats in contrast to sagebrush or forest habitats, and that there was an 88 percent probability that time to removal of abortion materials was slower at sites where scavengers were actively reduced compared to sites with no scavenger reduction.



This study shows the importance of scavengers in the mitigation of infectious diseases and points towards the need for increased conservation efforts to protect them from extinction. “Actions to maintain the breadth and diversity of scavengers on the landscape are potential management options that could reduce disease transmission risk to livestock in a system where the wildlife reservoir is difficult to address,” the authors concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ecs2.3783">Ecosphere</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Scavengers protect livestock from infectious disease

Brucellosis is an infectious bacterial disease that causes female bison,...

A new study published in the journal <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/fee.2418">Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment</a> has found that individual organisms have different personalities which shape their ecological roles and thus their contributions to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/invasive-fish-can-cause-ecosystem-collapse/">ecosystem</a> services.&nbsp;



Understanding how animals' personalities affect processes like pollination, seed dispersal, the regulation of pest species, or ecotourism can provide ecologists management advice to maximize desired ecosystem services.



“Conservationists rarely consider the roles individuals, with their own unique behavior, physiology, and genome, play in shaping ecosystem processes and consequently ecosystem services, but this is changing,” wrote the study authors.&nbsp;



"An ongoing surge in research on animal personalities (that is, behavioral differences among individuals that are consistent over time and across contexts) is exposing the ecological roles of individuals to scientific scrutiny."



By measuring a large variety of traits, including boldness, aggressiveness, docility, curiosity, or playfulness, a team of scientists led by the <a href="https://umaine.edu/">University of Maine</a> shed more light on how animal personalities help them perform a diversity of ecosystem services.&nbsp;



In pollination systems, for example, “fast and inaccurate” or “slow and precise” foragers may succeed in different foraging situations. Thus, fast and impulsive bees likely forage on flowers of simple design, while slower, more reflective bees are generally attracted to complex flowers. In processes such as seed dispersal, bolder, more active animals tend to disperse the seeds they consume farther afield than the more timid ones.



According to the researchers, personality traits also impact the effect of control methods on pest species, by influencing an individual’s trappability, and its relation to predators or humans.&nbsp;



For instance, the severity of plague pandemics appeared to diminish once the highly friendly rat species Rattus rattus, which transmitted the plague bacillus to humans through its fleas, was superseded by the more distant and fearful Rattus norvegicus, which preferred to stay further away from human settlements.



Finally, much ecotourism, such as the whale-watching industry, is dependent on friendly, curious, or playful individual creatures. “Some cetaceans are recognizably individual and repeatedly approach boats for close encounters that are far more exciting than viewing from a legally mandated distance,” the authors reported.



“These examples demonstrate that there is a vast potential to explore ways in which the personality composition of a population may affect the ecosystem services that the population provides,” the researchers concluded.



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Animal personalities can shape ecosystems

A new study published in the journal Frontiers in Ecology...

New research published in the journal <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/forest-ecology-and-management">Forest Ecology and Management</a> is the result of painstaking work which involved catching, radio tagging and tracking endangered Indiana bats and threatened northern long-eared bats.&nbsp;



In an attempt to find the most compatible <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/secrets-of-forest-mortality-can-be-found-underground/">forest</a> management and logging techniques, the scientists tracked the bats and looked closely at their foraging behaviors.



“There’s a perceived conflict between forest management and endangered bats," said study co-author Joy O’Keefe of the <a href="https://illinois.edu/">University of Illinois</a>.



"Folks would like to harvest without any restrictions, but because these bats are there, they have to pay attention to when they're present and what kind of habitat they're using, and then potentially change the timing or the nature of harvests or prescribed fires to accommodate for the bats."



“We know a lot about where these bats like to roost, but no one has studied the foraging behaviors in detail when both species share the same forest," explained study lead author Tim Divoll. "That’s going to tell us a lot more about how they use these forests and how we might accommodate the variety of behaviors.”



The study was especially important because the bats are in a precarious position. Like many North American species, they are threatened by the devastating fungal disease - White Nose Syndrome. It would be unfortunate if human activity placed additional strain on these endangered animals.&nbsp;



“White-nose syndrome has really devastated northern long-eared bats in this forest," said O’Keefe. "It turns out we did this study just in the nick of time, because right after we finished the study in 2017, we could no longer catch them out there. Their populations just tanked. Thankfully, my students caught four individuals this year.”&nbsp;



Interestingly the study found that the logging methods already used in the forest were either neutral to bats or possibly somewhat positive.



“The results of this study will help forest managers to make decisions that boost bat populations recovering from this disease.”



---



By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Tracking endangered bats across Indiana forests

New research published in the journal Forest Ecology and Management...

When human infants learn a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/computer-models-can-mimic-human-language-processing/">language</a>, they look for regularities in the patterns of syllable use within a continuous stream of speech. This technique enables them to identify probable word boundaries; syllables that usually occur together are probably words, and those that do not probably aren’t.&nbsp;Keeping track of patterns in this manner, and learning from the regularities, is known as statistical learning, and it involves the use of complex computations.



A new study by Hungarian researchers has found the first instance of statistical learning of linguistic stimuli in dogs. After only a short exposure (8.5 mins) to continuous speech sounds (made up of meaningless words), the dogs in this study had already succeeded in segmenting the sounds into probable words, using neural and computational mechanisms similar to those used by human infants.&nbsp;&nbsp;



In order to identify and learn probable words from continuous speech, dogs have to keep track of the probability that two different syllables will occur together. This requires complex computation and is the same mechanism by which infants learn to recognize individual words, even before they know the meanings of these words.&nbsp;



“This is exactly how humans, even 8-month-old infants, solve the seemingly difficult task of word segmentation: they calculate complex statistics about the probability of one syllable following the other,” explained&nbsp;Marianna Boros, one of the lead authors of the study, and a postdoctoral researcher at the Neuroethology of Communication Lab, Department of Ethology, <a href="https://www.elte.hu/en/">Eötvös Loránd University</a>.



“Until now we did not know if any other mammal can also use such complex computations to extract words from speech. We decided to test family dogs’ brain capacities for statistical learning from speech. Dogs are the earliest domesticated animal species and probably the one we speak most often to. Still, we know very little about the neural processes underlying their word learning capacities.”



Study co-lead author Lilla Magyari is a postdoctoral researcher in the same research group, who had laid the methodological foundations for performing non-invasive electrophysiology on awake, untrained, cooperating dogs.&nbsp;



"To find out what kind of statistics dogs calculate when they listen to speech, first we measured their electric brain activity using EEG," said&nbsp;Magyari.



"Interestingly, we saw differences in dogs' brain waves for frequent compared to rare words. But even more surprisingly, we also saw brain wave differences for syllables that always occurred together compared to syllables that only occasionally did, even if total frequencies were the same."



"So, it turns out that dogs keep track not only of simple statistics (the number of times a word occurs) but also of complex statistics (the probability that a word's syllables occur together). This has never been seen in other non-human mammals before. It is exactly the kind of complex statistics human infants use to extract words from continuous speech."



To explore whether dogs use the same brain regions as human infants when computing the statistical patterns in continuous speech, the researchers tested the dogs using functional MRI. This technique measures brain activity by detecting changes in blood flow to different regions of the brain.&nbsp;



The dogs were trained to lie motionless for the time the measurements were taken. All of the dogs were awake, cooperative and unrestrained during the testing.&nbsp;



"We know that in humans both general learning-related and language-related brain regions participate in this process. And we found the same duality in dogs," explained&nbsp;Boros. "Both a generalist and a specialist brain region seemed to be involved in statistical learning from speech, but the activation patterns were different in the two.”



“The generalist brain region, the so-called basal ganglia, responded stronger to a random speech stream (where no words could be spotted using syllable statistics) than to a structured speech stream (where words were easy to spot just by computing syllable statistics). The specialist brain region, the so-called auditory cortex, that in humans plays a key role in statistical learning from speech, showed a different pattern: here we saw brain activity increase over time for the structured but not for the random speech stream. We believe that this activity increase is the trace word learning leaves on the auditory cortex," said Boros.



“We now begin to understand that some computational and neural processes that are known to be instrumental for human language acquisition may not be unique to humans after all,” said&nbsp;Attila Andics, principal investigator of the Neuroethology of Communication Lab.&nbsp;



“But we still don't know how these human-analogue brain mechanisms for word learning emerged in dogs. Do they reflect skills that developed by living in a language-rich environment, or during the thousands of years of domestication, or do they represent an ancient mammalian capacity?”



The researchers conclude that by studying speech processing in different breeds of dogs, or even other species that live in close contact with humans, it may be possible to trace the origins of human specializations for speech perception.&nbsp;



The results of the study are published today in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Dogs and infants recognize words using similar brain regions

When human infants learn a language, they look for regularities...

A new study led by the <a href="https://www.utah.edu/">University of Utah</a> and the <a href="https://wildlife.utah.gov/">Utah Division of Wildlife Resources</a> (UDWR) has found that in dry years, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/more-than-half-of-the-worlds-rivers-run-dry-each-year/">rivers</a> and streams in the American West become a lifesaving yet limited resource for a large number of bird species. The riparian (adjacent to rivers) environments witness an increased diversity that is accompanied by overcrowding, which may cause increased competition for habitat and resources, and an overall decrease in native populations of birds.



This study is based on data collected by UDWR since the early 1990s, when bird populations in riparian areas in Utah began to be monitored in order to estimate the size and health of the population.&nbsp;



“These are some of the most beautiful places in an already beautiful state,” said study co-author Russell Norvell, the coordinator of the Avian Conservation Program at UDWR. 



“The bird life is tremendous. It can be a cacophonous sound and a little daunting if you’re trying to count them all. First you’re trying to identify individual species, then how many individuals of each species and finally their position – all while these birds are flying around. You’ve gotta be on your game, for sure, to collect these data.”



By analyzing UDWR’s bird monitoring dataset, Norvell and his colleagues documented over 31,000 birds from 148 species during a period of 15 years. 



Riparian birds comprised 58 of these species and 90 were non-riparian, with the numbers and diversity being higher in the northern mountains of Utah than in the southern deserts. This proves the fundamental importance of the rivers as a stop-over, even for non-riparian species.



This multi-year data showed that in hotter and drier years there were more birds close to the rivers than usual. “This suggests that the wider landscape is unable to support migrants and so they are forced to use greener areas,” said study lead author Monte Neate-Clegg, a postdoctoral fellow at the <a href="https://www.ucla.edu/">University of California, Los Angeles</a>.



However, the influx of non-riparian birds in Utah’s river environments can be damaging to native populations: in warmer years, population growth rates slowed for 47 percent of riparian bird species.&nbsp;



“If you’re a bird watcher in Utah, the prospect of more diverse birds in riparian areas might sound exciting! But it’s a sign of general stress across the landscape, and you may start seeing fewer local&nbsp;species,” Neate-Clegg concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/acv.12755">Animal Conservation</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Rivers in the American West are a lifesaving resource for birds

A new study led by the University of Utah and...

New research published in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/journal/sciadv">Science Advances</a> shows that honey bees increase their distance from each other when under threat from <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/if-primates-go-extinct-so-will-their-parasites/">parasites</a>. 



“Here we have provided the first evidence that honey bees modify their social interactions and how they move around their hive in response to a common parasite," said study co-author Dr. Alessandro Cini.



"Honey bees are a social animal, as they benefit from dividing up responsibilities and interactions such as mutual grooming, but when those social activities can increase the risk of infection, the bees appear to have evolved to balance the risks and benefits by adopting social distancing.”



The international team of scientists looked at how honey bee hives react to the presence of one of an ectoparasitic threat - the Varro mite (Varroa destructor). The mite is dangerous to individual bees as well as entire colonies.&nbsp;



The scientists compared healthy colonies with those infected with the mite and found a number of differences. Foraging dances that can cause mite transmission were less frequent within the central part of the hive in infected colonies. Grooming behaviors were also less common. Overall, the foraging bees moved to the outsides of the colony while nurse and groomer bees spent more time concentrated in the center of the colony.&nbsp;



Bee colonies are already compartmentalized to keep a distance between these two areas of the colony. This seems to keep the different groups of bees separate and slow the spread of parasites.&nbsp;



“The observed increase in social distancing between the two groups of bees within the same parasite-infested colony represents a new and, in some ways, surprising aspect of how honey bees have evolved to combat pathogens and parasites," explained study lead author Dr. Michelina Pusceddu.



"Their ability to adapt their social structure and reduce contact between individuals in response to a disease threat allows them to maximize the benefits of social interactions where possible, and to minimise the risk of infectious disease when needed.”



The researchers believe that honey bees could be model organisms for understanding social distancing behavior in other animals as well.&nbsp;



“Honey bee colonies provide an ideal model for studying social distancing and for fully understanding the value and effectiveness of this behavior," said Dr. Pusceddu.



---



By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Honey bees are experts at social distancing

New research published in the journal Science Advances shows that...

It has long been known that, when it comes to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-pinpoint-the-location-of-biodiversity-threats/">biodiversity</a>, the tropics reign supreme. However, until now, scientists did not have an exact estimate of how many of the world’ s species resided there. 



An international team of researchers led by the <a href="https://www.unbc.ca/">University of Northern British Columbia</a> (UNBC) has recently quantified the number of terrestrial vertebrates that live at the tropics, and found that the tropical forests are home to 62 percent of the world’s vertebrate species.



Tropical forests play a fundamental role in biodiversity conservation and climate regulation, since they are powerful carbon sinks and oxygen sources for the entire planet. Sadly, human activities have an increasingly negative impact on these environments, causing the forests to shrink and many animal species to go extinct. Thus, it is all the more important to determine how many animals live in these rapidly vanishing ecosystems.



“We have estimated roughly 200 billion galaxies in the observable universe, but no one knows exactly how many species inhabit the most biodiverse terrestrial ecosystem on planet Earth,” said study lead author Rajeev Pillay, a postdoctoral researcher at UNBC.&nbsp;



“Our finding that tropical forests are home to an astounding 62 percent of terrestrial vertebrate species not only helps satiate an aspect of innate human curiosity about nature but also strongly suggests that the continued destruction of these imperiled ecosystems will likely lead to significant, imminent biodiversity losses.”&nbsp;



By examining the range maps of over 33,000 species and comparing them to data on the ecosystems of tropical forests across South America, Africa, Asia, and Australasia, Pillay and his colleagues found that the tropics are home to 63 percent of all mammals, 72 percent of birds, 76 percent of amphibians, and 42 percent of reptiles.



According to Pillay, knowledge of many species live in the tropical forests can help with estimating extinction rates. “Given increasing evidence that much of human wellbeing is connected to nature and depends on the diversity of life, our work urgently reinforces calls for environmental policies aimed at the core priority of safeguarding the last remaining tropical forests that harbor much of this biodiversity.”&nbsp;



Further research is needed to fully understand the richness of tropical flora and fauna, which, besides vertebrates, also includes plants, insects, fungi, and microorganisms that make up the greatest share of tropical biodiversity.



The study is published by the <a href="https://www.esa.org/">Ecological Society of America</a> in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment.



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Over half of the world’s vertebrates reside in the tropics

It has long been known that, when it comes to...

Retired people who choose to spend the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/winter-swimming-helps-increase-the-bodys-metabolism/">winter</a> months in warmer climates are often referred to as “snowbirds.” However, if your vacation home was only a bit warmer than your regular home, would you make the effort to move for half of the year? Some migratory birds are apparently deciding that they’d rather stick just around at home, according to a new study from <a href="https://www.durham.ac.uk/">Durham University</a>. 



The researchers looked at data ranging from 1964 to 2019, examining a variety of different migratory bird species. These observations showed that over time, some species were spending up to sixty more days in northern latitudes each year.&nbsp;



"If the trends we have seen in this study continue we may see that, in time, some birds will spend no time at all in sub-Saharan Africa, and instead spend the full year within Europe," said study lead author Kieran Lawrence.



"The changes in migratory habits we are already seeing could lead to longer breeding seasons for these species, as well as knock-on effects on other species, both here in the UK and in the traditional winter migration destinations."



More than simply giving Europeans that much longer to birdwatch, this change in behavior could lead to some serious environmental consequences. If more species crowd the skies during the winter months, competition for resources could increase.&nbsp;



Furthermore, ecosystem services that the birds provide on the other side of the equator would be absent. This means less insects are eaten and less pollination occurs - bad news for habitats that are already vulnerable to fluctuations in climate.&nbsp;



Animals must adapt to the changing conditions or face extinction. As global warming continues, behavioral changes like this will likely become all too common.&nbsp;



"Next, we aim to apply a new model, which we are developing at Durham, to simulate these complex migrations, and which we can then apply to future scenarios to understand how the patterns we have identified in trans-Saharan birds over recent decades may continue or change," said Professor Stephen Willis, who led the project.



Study co-author Clive Barlow, a resident of the west African country The Gambia, is an expert on the birds of this region.&nbsp;



"It is very satisfying to see the constructive way the Gambian migrant bird records, collected by dedicated ornithologists over many decades, are now being used to highlight the changing migratory patterns of these species," said Barlow.



“Until the current research, no-one had realized the extent to which migrant birds are spending less of the year in sub-Saharan Africa.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652486">Global Change Biology</a>.



---



By <a href="http://mailto:rugerpaleo@gmail.com">Alex Ruger</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Global warming may cause birds to cancel their migrations

Retired people who choose to spend the winter months in...

Shark,And,Small,Fishes,In,Ocean,-,Nature,Background

Although great white sharks are often portrayed as ruthless human killers, a new study suggests that shark attack victims might simply be the subject of mistaken identity. Because they are color blind or at best have only very limited color perception, sharks can confuse humans for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/northern-elephant-seals-are-surprisingly-resilient/">seals</a>, their natural prey, because they look the same when viewed from below. 



Fatal shark attacks are very rare (with approximately ten such events per year), but can still result in severe shark mitigation measures that significantly reduce population numbers and endanger many shark species.



“Shark bites on humans are rare but are sufficiently frequent to generate substantial public concern, which typically leads to measures to reduce their frequency,” wrote the study authors. “Bites also have negative consequences for sharks as they often result in the implementation or continued use of lethal shark mitigation measures, including the deployment of gill nets and drum lines to reduce shark populations.”



Until recently, the reasons why sharks attacked humans were poorly understood. By analyzing the visual perspectives of young white sharks, a research team led by <a href="https://www.mq.edu.au/">Macquarie University</a> in Sidney, Australia, has found that, due to poor vision, sharks might confuse humans with seals, an animal that they frequently prey upon.



“We looked specifically at juvenile sharks and that's because they are responsible for the majority of fatal bites on humans,” explained study lead author Laura Ryan, a postdoctoral researcher in Biology at&nbsp;Macquarie University.



“Until now, the potential similarity between humans and seals has been assessed based on human vision.&nbsp;However, white sharks have much lower visual acuity than us, meaning they cannot see fine details, and lack color vision.”



In order to test this hypothesis, the researchers used footage of two sea lions and one fur seal swimming in a pool at the Taronga Zoo in Sidney, as well as of humans paddling on surfboards. By filtering this footage through a virtual visual system mimicking shark vision, they discovered that motion cues of humans swimming or paddling on surfboards and of swimming seals did not differ significantly. Thus, when viewed from below, humans and seals may appear indistinguishable to a shark that is preparing to attack.



“Our results indicate that the poor spatial resolving power of the shark retina may result in bites on humans as a result of mistaken identity or ambiguous visual cues,” the study authors concluded.&nbsp;



The research is published in the <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsif.2021.0533">Journal of the Royal Society Interface</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Shark attacks may be a simple case of mistaken identity

Although great white sharks are often portrayed as ruthless human...

In the recent past, California has seen some of the worst wildfires in history. With more than a century of fire suppression, and the effects of climate change, the wildfires in the area have become bigger and more devastating. Although many species of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-do-animals-interact-within-social-groups/">animals</a> are adapted to surviving the effects of smaller, more frequent wildfires, scientists do not know how animal populations will cope with the consequences of these more severe fires.&nbsp;&nbsp;



In a rare case of serendipity, researchers from the University of Washington, the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of California, Santa Barbara,&nbsp;were involved in a study at the University of California’s&nbsp;<a href="https://hrec.ucanr.edu/">Hopland Research and Extension Center</a>, where the movements of black-tailed deer were being monitored. The team had placed tracking collars on 18 deer and positioned several dozen motion-activated cameras across the area. And then came California’s third-largest wildfire, the 2018&nbsp;<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendocino_Complex_Fire">Mendocino Complex Fire</a>.&nbsp;



The megafire, that burned more than 450,000 acres in northern California, swept through half of the research center’s land and destroyed much of the scientists’ established study site. Instead of giving up on their study, the researchers decided instead to use the wildlife tracking technology and cameras already in place to investigate how deer change their use of space as a consequence of large disturbances like wildfires. They also monitored how this event affected the body condition and survival of the deer.&nbsp;



“We don't have much information on what animals do while the flames are burning, or in the immediate days that follow after wildfires,” said co-lead author&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kaitlyngaynor.com/about-me.html">Kaitlyn Gaynor</a>, a postdoctoral researcher at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis at UC Santa Barbara. “It was kind of a happy accident that we were able to see what these animals were doing during the wildfire and right after, when it was still just a desolate landscape.”



“There are very few studies that aim to understand the short-term, immediate responses of animals to wildfires. When a fire sweeps through and dramatically changes the landscape, its impact in those initial days is undervalued and absent in the published literature,” said co-lead author&nbsp;<a href="https://samanthakreling.wixsite.com/ecology/about">Samantha Kreling</a>, a doctoral student at the UW School of Environmental and Forest Sciences.



The researchers found that all 18 deer survived. Initially, the animals had to flee the flames but they soon returned to their home ranges, despite the fact that some areas of the landscape were completely burned and devoid of vegetation to eat. Most of the deer returned home within hours of the fire, while trees were still smoldering.



“Seeing the drastic changes on the landscape got me wondering what it’s like for animals on the land to actually deal with the repercussions of having an event like this sweep through,” Kreling said. “Having the infrastructure in place was very useful to see what happened before, compared to what happened after.”



Deer returning to home ranges that had been burned had very little to eat. They had to work harder and travel further in order to find green vegetation, and their body condition soon declined. The researchers propose that this strategy of returning to home range, even though the vegetation is burned, is probably a tactic that has helped individuals to survive wildfires in the past.&nbsp;



However, this loyalty-to-home strategy may prove harmful in the future, as wildfires become more severe. Smaller fires encourage new vegetation growth, which provides good food for deer, but massive wildfires can actually destroy seed banks, which reduces the availability of forage plants.&nbsp;



“These deer have evolved this behavioral strategy that has clearly worked for them, but the big question mark is, as fires get more intense and frequent, will this behavior actually trap animals in these habitats that are seeing massive disturbances on the scale of nothing that has happened before in their evolutionary history,” said Gaynor.



The authors acknowledge that the response patterns observed for the deer will probably be different from those exhibited by other large mammals responding to unpredictable or extreme events. However, this study does give insight into what extreme disturbances, such as large wildfires, might mean for animals. <a href="https://nature.berkeley.edu/BrasharesGroup/lab-members/kendall-calhoun/">Kendall Calhoun</a>, co-author of the study and doctoral student at UC Berkeley, will continue to investigate the long-term effects of the fire on the health and reproductive capacity of this population of deer.



The results of the study are published today in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/20457758">Ecology and Evolution</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Deer return to fire-ravaged territories while trees are "still smoldering"

In the recent past, California has seen some of the...

Truffles are normally thought of as a rare and expensive delicacy for humans, while also providing part of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/brazilian-jaguars-have-an-unexpected-diet-and-social-life/">diet</a> of some mammals. New research from the <a href="https://www.ufl.edu/">University of Florida</a> has revealed the some birds are also partial to seeking out and dispersing these forms of fungi.



“Previously, it was assumed that only mammals consumed and dispersed truffle spores, so our study is the first to document birds doing this as well,” said study first author Marcos Caiafa.



The researchers have discovered that two ground-dwelling bird species found in Patagonia, chucao tapaculos and black-throated huet-huets, seek out and regularly consume truffles, spreading the spores through their feces. It was previously assumed that the birds exclusively fed on invertebrates, seeds and fruit.



“Truffles are essentially mushrooms that grow underground. Unlike aboveground mushrooms, which release their spores into the air, truffles depend on animals consuming them to spread their spores,” explained study senior author Matthew E. Smith.



Contrary to the belief that all truffles are desirable for high-end cuisine, only a few of the hundreds of species of underground fungi appeal to humans, with the majority evolving to attract different types of animals to promote dispersal. The spread of the fungi encourages a healthy forest ecosystem, helping to colonize the roots of trees and contribute to a symbiotic relationship.



“These fungi form mycorrhizas, a relationship whereby the fungus helps the plant take up nutrients in exchange for sugars from the plant,” explained Caiafa.



To confirm the researchers’ hypothesis that the birds actively seek out truffles, the team collected the bird droppings to analyze them for truffle DNA. The results showed truffle DNA in 42 percent of chucao tupaculo and 38 percent of huet-huet feces. By using a microscopic analysis technique called fluorescent microscopy, the team was also able to confirm that the spores were viable, suggesting that the truffles were not only being eaten but also spread.



“DNA-based diet analysis is exciting because it provides new insights into interactions between organisms that would otherwise be difficult to directly observe,” said study co-author Michelle Jusino. “And, because sampling feces does not negatively impact the target species, I think these methods are invaluable for studying and protecting both common and rare species in the future."



The study authors believe that some of the Patagonian truffles may have evolved specifically to attract birds. “Some of truffles that the birds eat are brightly colored and resemble local berries. Our future research may look to see if there is an evolutionary adaptation there - that the truffles have evolved to look more like the berries that the birds also eat,” explained Smith.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:calumvaughan05@gmail.com">Calum Vaughan</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Study reveals that birds hunt for truffles

Truffles are normally thought of as a rare and expensive...

<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



---



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" type="single"]</div>



Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



---



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



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

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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

<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;



---



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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



---



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;



---



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="uV9Lh2fQbV-1760058-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="qjvhBOBnY8-2426650-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

[sendtonews key="qjvhBOBnY8-2426650-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="oL4FnPTGCV-2384527-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="0879czfG3k-1785905-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



---



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="QIoVYJqRBi-2434608-12187" type="single"]</div>



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)



---



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"]</div>



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;



---



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

[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"] Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected...

Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science explores how changes in water temperatures have affected tiger shark habitats and movements in the North Atlantic Ocean. The study reveals that rising temperatures have caused the sharks to shift toward the poles over the past 40 years.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag. “These results have consequences for tiger shark conservation, since shifts in their movements outside of marine protected areas may leave them more vulnerable to commercial fishing.”



The researchers analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, combined with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.



The experts found that during the last decade of record heat, for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. They also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



“Given their role as apex predators, these changes to tiger shark movements may alter predator-prey interactions, leading to ecological imbalances, and more frequent encounters with humans,” concluded Professor Hammerschlag.



Video Credit: University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science



---



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



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

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

Today’s Video of the Day from the University of Miami...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="qARzJPSabQ-2270617-12187" type="single"]</div>



Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> is focused on the melt ponds that emerge during the spring and summer on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which is the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere.



"Melt ponds are vast pools of open water that form on both sea ice and ice sheets and are visible as turquoise-blue pools of water in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image," says ESA.



"When snow and ice melts atop glaciers, water flows in channels and streams and collects in depressions on the surface. These melt ponds can speed up the melting of the surrounding ice since they greatly reduce the ice’s ability to reflect sunlight."



"This can create a positive feedback where an increasing number of melt ponds absorb more heat which causes ice cover to melt even faster."



According to ESA, Greenland has been hit with a late-season heatwave that began in early September. This caused the type of melt event that usually occurs in the middle of summer.



"In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, scientists found that major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now ‘inevitable’ even if the burning of fossil fuels were to halt overnight," says ESA. "Using satellite observations of Greenland ice loss and ice cap from 2000 to 2019, the team found the losses will lead to a minimum rise of 27 cm regardless of climate change."



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



---



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



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

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

[sendtonews key="qARzJPSabQ-2270617-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="qas3EhyI0Y-2220951-12187" type="single"]</div>



Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes a new map of Mars that is providing insight into the planet’s watery past. The map also reveals where future missions could safely land on Mars.&nbsp;



The map has been created over the last decade using observations of water-rich rocks and mineral deposits. The images were captured by ESA’s Mars Express and NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.



"A big surprise is the prevalence of these minerals, with the map revealing hundreds of thousands of water-affected locations in the oldest parts of the planet," says ESA. "The new data will help answer exciting questions about Mars’ climate history, whether water was globally persistent or confined to short, intense episodes, and whether the conditions were ever suitable for life."



"Specifically, the map shows the locations and abundances of aqueous minerals. These are from rocks that have been chemically altered by the action of water in the past, and have typically been transformed into clays and salts."



According to John Carter of the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS), our collective understanding of Mars has been oversimplified. He explained that planetary scientists have tended to think that only a few types of clay minerals on Mars were created during its wet period, then as the water gradually dried up, salts were produced across the planet.



The new map shows that the composition of Mars is much more complicated than what we thought. For example, while many salts formed after Martian clays, there are some salts that are presumed to be older than some of the clays.&nbsp;



“The evolution from lots of water to no water is not as clear cut as we thought, the water didn’t just stop overnight. We see a huge diversity of geological contexts, so that no one process or simple timeline can explain the evolution of the mineralogy of Mars. That’s the first result of our study. The second is that if you exclude life processes on Earth, Mars exhibits a diversity of mineralogy in geological settings just as Earth does,” said Carter.



Video Credit: ESA



---



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



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

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

[sendtonews key="qas3EhyI0Y-2220951-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="vpljfR2VBX-2560867-12187" type="single"]</div>



Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes how cavefish adapted to a sedentary lifestyle over tens of thousands of years. 



The experts found that the muscle metabolism of cavefish has been genetically reprogrammed over time. As a result, the animals have experienced major changes in their morphology and behavior. Despite these changes, however, the cavefish remain healthy and fit.



The research may provide new clues about the evolutionary consequences of prolonged physical inactivity in humans.&nbsp;



“It’s no surprise that people are moving less and less as technology has advanced,” said Rohner. “With cavefish, we have a unique system where we can study what might happen if people remained couch potatoes over very, very long periods of time.”



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



---



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



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

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

[sendtonews key="vpljfR2VBX-2560867-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="MHyhtebibJ-2200368-12187" type="single"]</div>



Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> some of the most incredible waves in the world, as seen by Landsat satellites.



"With more than 370,000 miles of coastline on Earth, there are plenty of places where epic waves build up, curl over, and hurtle toward the shore.- much to the thrill of surfers," says NASA. "There are some places where these waves are so magnificent that they can be seen from space."



"With the broad perspective of satellites, we can see how these iconic waves develop into the world’s tallest, longest, fastest, and heaviest."



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



---



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



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

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

[sendtonews key="MHyhtebibJ-2200368-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from NASA...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="761m2QQvR1-2035772-12187" type="single"]</div>



Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes why satellite images and measurements of our planet have become "essential to our survival, offering a new outlook of our world."&nbsp;



Rising sea levels pose one of the biggest societal threats associated with climate change. According to ESA, satellite altimeter missions such as Copernicus Sentinel-6 are essential in monitoring global and regional changes in sea level.



"Unbeknown to many, the island of Crete, Greece, plays an important role in the Copernicus satellite altimetry constellation and on an international stage," reports ESA.



"Satellite altimetry data have to be continuously monitored at the ESA’s Permanent Facility for Altimetry Calibration where different techniques have pioneered the use of transponders to provide the best measurements to validate satellite altimeters in space soon after launch."



Dr. Craig Donlon explains that, by understanding planet Earth through satellite measurements, we are able to find evidence of change.&nbsp;



Video Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



---



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

Satellites have become essential to our survival

[sendtonews key="761m2QQvR1-2035772-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...