A new study has revealed an intriguing phenomenon that could be contributing to the increasing consumption of plastic waste by whales. 



It all starts within the mysterious depths of the ocean where sunlight does not venture. This is where the likes of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-have-the-sperm-whales-gulf-gone-gulf-jumbo-squid-scientists-think-they-know/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sperm whales</a> and goose-beaked whales forage for food, relying on their intricate soundwave-based navigation system to find their next meal.



But there seems to be a hitch - a torn plastic party balloon can sound remarkably similar to a delicious squid in these lightless depths.



A recent study has found a potential reason why whales might mistake plastic for prey – they sound the same underwater.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-acoustic-signatures-in-the-deep-sea">Acoustic signatures in the deep sea</h2>



What exactly are these acoustic signatures? Well, when a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/blue-whales-continue-their-battle-for-survival/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">whale</a> sends out clicks and buzzes from a vocal cord-like structure near their blowholes, the sounds bounce off objects in the water. 



The sounds that return carry information about the size, shape, and nature of those objects. This is how the whales "see" and interpret their surroundings. And to their acoustic perception, their favorite squid sounds eerily similar to a plastic bag.



"There are hundreds of types of plastic, and the various material properties including polymer (chemical) composition, additives, shape, size, age/weathering, and degree of fouling likely play a role in the frequency-specific responses observed," noted the study authors.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-pollution-and-whales">Plastic pollution and whales </h2>



Now, it's crucial to mention that the whales' sound-based navigation system is not a new kid on the evolutionary block. This sophisticated system has been helping whales find food in the pitch-dark ocean depths for the past 25 million years.



However, plastic pollution is a relatively new challenge faced by whales, and according to Merrill's findings, it's messing with their ultrasonic grocery shopping.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-debris-around-whales">Plastic debris around whales</h2>



Merrill and his team collected typical plastic trash items like shopping bags, ropes, bottles, and balloons from beaches in Beaufort and Atlantic Beach, North Carolina.



These items were then suspended underwater and subjected to sonar transponder tests on Duke Marine Lab's ship, the R/V Shearwater. 



The team performed acoustic testing on these items at three varying sonar frequencies that span the range of 'clicks' emitted by different species of deep-diving <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-a-warming-climate-will-change-the-humpback-whales-diet/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">whales</a>.



The sounds of real squid (albeit deceased ones) and pieces of squid beak were also recorded for comparison.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-whales-mistake-plastic-for-prey">Whales mistake plastic for prey</h2>



The results were as alarming as they were surprising. The plastic debris almost always sounded like food, especially plastic films and fragments, which are among the most commonly found items in the stomachs of deceased whales.



Merrill suggests that we could consider re-engineering some plastics to not have an acoustic signature. But he also warns of potential risks. 



For instance, if fishing net and fishing line became "acoustically invisible," that could lead to increased entanglements where whales wouldn't be able to identify and avoid these threats.



For this pioneering study, Merrill collaborated with scientists from neighboring marine labs operated by NOAA, NC State University, and UNC – Chapel Hill.



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



The findings from Merrill's study have profound implications for marine conservation strategies aimed at protecting whales. 



Traditional approaches have largely focused on reducing the amount of plastic that enters the oceans - a task vital to the health of marine ecosystems.



However, understanding that plastic can acoustically resemble prey to whales suggests that addressing the challenge could require innovative solutions within the manufacturing sector as well. 



This could involve developing materials that emit distinct acoustic signatures detectable by marine life without posing any risk of ingestion. 



Such multidisciplinary cooperation between conservationists and material scientists could pave the way for groundbreaking strategies to safeguard these majestic creatures.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-addressing-the-plastic-crisis">Addressing the plastic crisis</h2>



In light of these revelations, there is an urgent need to collectively address the plastic pollution crisis. Reducing our reliance on harmful plastics and advancing research into safer alternatives is paramount.



Moreover, stringent regulations on plastic manufacturing could play a crucial role in mitigating this crisis. By innovating responsibly and enforcing global standards, we can not only protect marine biodiversity but also ensure a healthier planet. 



While technological innovations and alternatives to plastic are critical in addressing this issue of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/worlds-rarest-whale-found-on-new-zealand-beach/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">whales</a>, perhaps the more immediate and straightforward action we can all take is responsible disposal of our waste.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X24010464?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Marine Pollution Bulletin</a>.



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Plastic trash sounds just like food to deep-diving whales

A new study has revealed an intriguing phenomenon that could be contributing to the increasing consumption of plastic waste by whales. It all starts within the mysterious depths of the ocean where sunlight does not venture. This is where the likes of sperm whales and goose-beaked whales forage for food, relying on their intricate soundwave-based navigation system to find their next meal. But there seems to be a hitch - a torn plastic party balloon can sound remarkably similar to a delicious squid in these lightless depths....

Hit BBC series <a href="http://www.bbcchannels.com/earth/planetearth2">Planet Earth II</a> has broken its own rule to never interfere with nature after a particularly emotional scene involving lost baby turtles. 

Sir David Attenborough, creator of the <a href="http://www.bbcamerica.com/all-shows">Planet Earth</a> series, had been quoted just last year remarking on the importance of nature documentaries staying on the sidelines while filming wildlife. “If you’re a film cameraman you are trained, as it were, to be the observer, a non-participant. That’s very important.” 

Wildlife cameraman Doug Allen echoed this sentiment, saying, “For me, at least, my job is to look and not interfere. If I feel my presence is tilting the balance of the predator or the prey, then I’m doing something wrong.”

The policy has resulted in viewers getting a very candid look at the brutality of nature and the animal experience. Said Attenborough, “Of course you see really tough things, but there’s nothing you can do about them.”

This time, however, it was a man-made occurrence disturbing the natural flow of nature.

After hatching from their eggs, natural instinct guides baby turtles to make their way into the ocean. In this instance, however, bright city lights along the beachfront caused the baby turtles to migrate in the opposite direction and became stranded far from the water. 

According to the show, 4 out of every 5 baby hawksbill turtles failed to make it through the night. Without water, the baby turtles became disoriented and fell down drains or were run over by cars. The scenes generated a loud emotional response from viewers on Twitter. 

In response, the BBC Earth tweeted on Sunday: “Every turtle that was seen or filmed by the Planet Earth 2 crew was collected and put back into the sea.”

The network also released a short film about the <a href="http://www.barbadosseaturtles.org/">Barbados Sea Turtle Project</a>, an initiative focused on gathering lost baby turtles and bringing them back into the water.

Planet Earth II premiered on The BBC on November 6th and has been met with record-breaking ratings.

Planet Earth II intervenes to save baby turtles

Hit BBC series Planet Earth II has broken its own...

It’s a story reminiscent of the first Jurassic Park movie. A piece of amber purchased at a market in Myanmar has been found to contain an actual dinosaur tail. The amber was in the city of Myitkyina by Lida Xing of the <a href="http://en.cug.edu.cn/">China University of Geosciences in Beijing</a>. 

The vendor assumed the tail was some type of plant, but Xing believed it could be something far more significant. The amber was then sent to the<a href="https://www.royalsaskmuseum.ca/"> Royal Saskatchewan Museum in Canada</a> for further analysis. Scientists used CT scans to determine that the fossilized object in question was actually the feathered tail of a theropod dinosaur. The team believes the dinosaur tail most likely belonged to a coelurosaur from about 99 million years ago. 

Their findings were published in <a href="http://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>. According to Dr. Ryan McKellar, "The new material preserves a tail consisting of eight vertebrae from a juvenile. These are surrounded by feathers that are preserved in 3D and with microscopic detail. We can be sure of the source because the vertebrae are not fused into a rod or pygostyle as in modern birds and their closest relatives. Instead, the tail is long and flexible, with keels of feathers running down each side."

The vertebrae alignment indicate that the tail belonged to a dinosaur, as opposed to an early relative of modern birds. The team also discovered traces of ferrous iron in the soft tissue layer surrounding the bones, a common mineral found in dinosaur blood.

"Amber pieces preserve tiny snapshots of ancient ecosystems, but they record microscopic details, three-dimensional arrangements, and labile tissues that are difficult to study in other settings," said Dr. McKellar. “This is a new source of information that is worth researching with intensity and protecting as a fossil resource."

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Dinosaur tail found in chunk of amber

It’s a story reminiscent of the first Jurassic Park movie....

During the Age of Dinosaurs, ancient mammals hid in the shadows and ate the terrible lizards’ leftovers, right? Well, not always. The fossil remains of marsupial relative Didelphodon vorax are crushing that misconception.

The little mammal was about the size of a modern badger, based on the size of four fossils found in 66 to 69 million-year-old Hell Creek Formation deposits, in North Dakota and Montana, according to <a href="http://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms13734">a new study</a>.

Each of the four fossils included at least a partial set of chompers: nearly a full skull, a partial snout, and two upper jaw bones. Like most metatherians – Cretaceous Period ancestors and relatives of modern marsupials – many of the main remains of D. vorax are dental.

In D. vorax’s case, though, those strong, strong teeth didn’t just survive more than 60 million years. They provided the Cretaceous critter with one heck of a powerful bite.

To determine just how powerful, researchers scanned the fossils and compared them to skulls and jaws from modern mammals with known bite forces. Even the researchers were surprised by the results: pound for pound, D. vorax has the most powerful bite of any mammal that has ever lived.

The power of the marsupial relative's bite and the shape of its teeth would have allowed it to bite through bone and shell with ease, the study found. That would have let it fit equally well into roles as a predator or a scavenger. D. vorax might even have been able to hunt prey roughly equal to its own size, including small dinosaurs.

The carnivorous mammal didn’t just compete for meat with its reptile rivals, however. By studying the microwear patterns on the teeth, the research team discovered that D. vorax was an omnivore that ate vertebrates, bugs, shellfish, and plants. 

Beyond just learning about D. vorax, the researchers also gained new clues to the evolution of modern marsupials. They found five lines of marsupial ancestors, and that marsupial relatives in North America began getting larger along with other mammals more than 80 million years ago.

The researchers believe the modern pouched mammals primarily evolved in South America after the mass extinction approximately 66 million years ago.

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/">Nature</a>.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Marsupial relative in Age of Dinosaurs packed powerful bite

During the Age of Dinosaurs, ancient mammals hid in the...

Mexico’s endangered vaquita porpoises are now on the edge of extinction, according to a pair of new papers. The researchers blame the marine mammals’ declining population on an increase in illegal fishing in the vaquitas’ range.

One study, published in the journal <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cobi.12789/abstract">Conservation Biology</a>, used a sophisticated network of acoustic detectors to record the decline of Mexico’s vaquitas. The acoustic array shows a 34 percent decline each year in the population of endangered porpoises.

That decline means only about 60 of the rare vaquita porpoises remain in the world, according to a paper by the same team of researchers, published in the journal <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/conl.12331/full">Conservation Letters</a>.

The illegal fishing that is cutting down their numbers isn’t even targeting the marine mammals, according to the researchers. Instead, their deaths are collateral damage from totoaba fishing, called “bycatch.” 

Totoaba fishing took off in the 1940s and continues today, even though the large fish was declared endangered in 1986 and critically endangered ten years later.

The fish are prized for their bladders, which can net as much as $100,000 on the Chinese black market, according to the <a href="https://eia-international.org/time-short-to-save-vaquita-by-tackling-illegal-fish-trade">Environmental Investigations Agency</a>.

Although the Mexican government banned gill net fishing in waters inhabited by the vaquita for two years, the acoustic study found that gill net fishing is still happening. 

It wasn’t the first sign that people had been violating the ban, which was instituted in April 2015. Surveillance activities and collection of discarded gill nets in the vaquitas’ waters have also washed up evidence of illegal fishing of the totoaba fish and, by extension, the vaquitas, despite patrols by the Mexican Navy, law enforcement, and environmental groups. 

Unless more action is taken to stop illegal fishing in the vaquitas’ home waters, their extinction is imminent, said Armando Jaramillo-Legorreta of the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources in Mexico, who led the research.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Vaquita porpoises fall victim to illegal fishing in Mexico

Mexico’s endangered vaquita porpoises are now on the edge of...

Giraffes wander the wild in a few parts of the African savannah – but that may not be the case for much longer. Scientists have put the stately creature on the extinction watchlist.

Over the past three decades, the number of giraffes in the wild has shrunk by almost 40 percent, according to the <a href="https://www.iucn.org/">International Union for the Conservation of Nature</a>, which maintains the extinction watchlist. They reported the giraffe population, which is made up of nine subspecies, at 151,000 to 163,000 members in 1985. By 2015, that number had dropped to just over 97,000. 

There are now fewer giraffes in the world than there are elephants, the IUCN said. In fact, elephant numbers are almost four times higher.

The population drop has led biologists with the IUCN to designate giraffes as “vulnerable,” two steps closer to extinction than their previous designation of “species of least concern,” and add it to the group’s Red List of species in danger of disappearing.

Habitat loss is the likely cause for giraffes’ dwindling numbers, the organization said.

The giraffe population is shrinking in central and eastern Africa, where more people are moving into areas that were previously wild savannah. Giraffes have disappeared from several countries, including Nigeria, Malawi, Eritrea, and Senegal, according to the IUCN.

At a biodiversity meeting in Mexico this week, the IUCN added 35 species total to the Red List, including giraffes. The group also received bad news about two other species. The Lacepede’s ground snake of Martinique and the trondo mainty fish of Madagascar are both believed to be extinct. The agency is awaiting confirmation from biologists.

About 860 species of plants and animals have gone extinct in the past 500 years, and another 68 are extinct in the wild, according to the IUCN. About 13,000 species have landed on the endangered or critically endangered lists. Giraffes and other vulnerable species are in the next tier.

There was some good news from the meeting, too, however. First, the threat level for seven species was lowered. Second, two species that were believed to be extinct have been rediscovered: the Acmadenia candida plant, and the freshwater fish Ptychochromoides itasy.

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By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Giraffes step onto extinction watchlist as numbers dwindle

Giraffes wander the wild in a few parts of the...

One of the first things birdwatchers tend to do is to install a bird feeder in their yard. It seems like a wonderful, mutually beneficial arrangement. The birds get access to food and the bird fans get to observe the beautiful creatures from the comfort of their home. But according to a new study published in <a href="http://www.aoucospubs.org/loi/cond?code=coop-site">The Condor: Ornithological Applications</a>, bird feeders may actually introduce a new threat of danger for birds by inviting predators that eat bird eggs and baby birds. 

The study was performed by researchers from <a href="https://www.osu.edu/">Ohio State University</a>, led by Jennifer Malpass. The team set out to this complex dynamic where bird feeders attract predators, but perhaps the food in the feeder and tide the predator over without harm to the nest. Specifically, they analyzed Northern Cardinal and American Robin nests and the presence of predators such as cats, squirrels, and other birds, along with whether or not a bird feeder existed nearby. The team found that areas with more bird feeders saw more cowbirds and crows, which typically prey on songbird nests.

Said Malpass, “One key message of our work is that there may be species-specific responses to anthropogenic foods.” The American Robin nests did undergo increased predation in areas with both a large amount of bird feeders and a large number of crows.

Malpass and her team tracked songbird nests in seven different neighborhoods of suburban Columbus, Ohio for four years. 

“One of the challenges of conducting research in the suburban matrix is gaining access to private property,” said Malpass. “In our experience, most of the residents in our focal neighborhoods were willing to allow access to their yards and had a positive experience being part of the project.”

Bird expert David Horn from Millikin University weighed in, adding, “Even with over 50 million Americans feeding wild birds and other wildlife around their homes, our scientific understanding of the practice continues to lag. The study by Malpass, Rodewald, and Matthews increases our understanding of how the provision of supplemental food may influence predator abundance and nest survival of two common songbird species.”

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Bird feeders may actually be dangerous for birds

One of the first things birdwatchers tend to do is...

California biologists have been working out the solution to a slippery problem: why can salmon embryos raised in laboratories survive higher temperatures than their river-born cousins?

The team of scientists from the <a href="http://www.noaa.gov/">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a> and the <a href="https://www.ucsc.edu/">University of California, Santa Cruz</a> hoped to work out the answer to that dilemma so scientists could ensure better survival rates for the fish. 

They suspected the answer to their question might rely on oxygen and water flow. 

The <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ele.12705/abstract">new research</a> focused on the endangered Chinook salmon in the Sacramento River to determine which temperature conditions are best for their eggs and young. The team began by reviewing laboratories, working with the hypothesis that Sacramento River conditions have never been warm enough to cause high mortality rates among salmon embryos.

They were in for a splash of cold water on their hypothesis, though. Data from the field showed that temperature-related mortality among the young salmon exceeded 75 percent in some years, even in temperatures that lab-raised salmon survived.

So they dove into the problem, determined to find out what caused the difference. What they discovered was that the laboratory studies didn’t take into account a major factor in salmon egg health: water flow. 

In the laboratory temperature studies, water in the tanks often flowed two to three times faster than it does in the Sacramento River and its tributaries, where salmon spawn in the wild. The faster water flows meant more oxygen for the lab-raised salmon embryos than their wild counterparts, which meant they could withstand warmer waters.

By studying laboratory and field studies, the NOAA and UC Santa Cruz team was able to work out that the Sacramento River’s slower flow meant embryos began dying at temperatures about 3 degrees Celsius lower than the lab embryos.

The new study also offered an answer to why salmon eggs laid in cold weather are often larger than those laid in warmer seasons. Larger eggs need more oxygen than smaller ones, the researchers found, and colder water holds more oxygen than warmer. 

It wasn’t just salmon that showed this egg size trend, either; the researchers looked at 180 different species of fish and found that fish consistently lay larger eggs in high-flow water conditions, even if temperatures are warmer. They also found that some fish have adapted to warmer temperatures by staying at their nests to fan the eggs with their tails. 

The Chinook salmon in the Sacramento River are winter-run salmon, but spawn in the summer months – the only salmon on the Pacific Coast to spawn in summer. Because of this schedule and their preference for cold water spawning sites, the fish are dependent on California’s snowmelt-fed rivers and creeks, <a href="http://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/stories/2015/09/spotlight_chinook_salmon.html">according to NOAA</a>.

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1461-0248">Ecology Letters</a>.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Biologists seek out best water temperature for salmon embryos' survival

California biologists have been working out the solution to a...

Climate change could significantly reduce freshwater species populations.

Among the unknown variables of climate change is the question of exactly how freshwater species will be affected. Saltwater organisms have much less to worry about if warming continues, as their habitat will increase in size as polar ice caps melt and sea levels rise. But many of the water bodies that freshwater species inhabit will begin to dry up, as we already see in the southwestern United States.

According to a study by a team of researchers published in <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1365-2427">Freshwater Biology</a>, at least one third of freshwater species are likely to lose more than 50% of their range due to climate change.

The team analyzed the ability of freshwater species to alter their distributions and/or relocate in response to climate change. They studied 527 freshwater species in New South Wales, Australia using a projection model.

"Early action is often viewed as critical to preventing species loss under climate change but relies on models predicting into the future that are surrounded by uncertainty,” said coauthor Dr. Alex Bush. “Whilst predictions for a specific species may be considered unreliable, we can identify where the impact of climate change on freshwater biodiversity in New South Wales is most consistent, as well as where different sources of uncertainty are influential.”

The predictive findings aim to better equip scientists and environmental conservationists in preserving freshwater species through the drastic landscape alterations brought on by climate change.

"We hope that by better communicating the distribution of modeling uncertainty, more strategic approaches can be employed to improve adaptive management and balance risks," expressed Bush.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Freshwater species could reduce habitat from climate change

Climate change could significantly reduce freshwater species populations. Among the...

It’s been 70 years since the rare Pacific fisher, a member of the weasel family, has been seen in the wild near Mount Rainier, Washington.

Last week, that all changed. 

Ten of the small, dark-brown mammals were carried out to <a href="https://www.nps.gov/mora/">Mount Rainier National Park</a> in wooden crates, where they scurried out into the forest. Onlookers cheered them on as they sniffed out their new home, and First Nations and Native American tribal representatives sang and drummed to welcome them.

Some of the fishers were captured on First Nations land in Canada, and First Nations members traveled with them to Mount Rainier, where they were released on land designated for the local Nisqually people’s use. 

The little weasels had been captured in British Columbia, Canada and brought down to Washington in an attempt to reintroduce the species that was once native to the area. Wildlife biologists in the national park see it as part of an effort to correct past mistakes.

The Pacific fisher was found throughout much of the Pacific Northwest and forested areas of the West Coast generally until the fur trade became popular. Between trapping and deforestation of their home habitats, the Pacific fisher shrunk in numbers. 

Washington had no more Pacific fishers to call its own by the mid-1900s. However, they’ve been making a recent comeback, thanks to the <a href="http://wdfw.wa.gov/">Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife</a>, <a href="http://www.conservationnw.org/">Conservation Northwest</a>, the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/">National Park Service</a>, and other organizations.

In 2008, a group of 90 Pacific fishers was reintroduced to <a href="https://www.nps.gov/olym/">Olympic National Park</a>. That first wave has made themselves right at home, reproducing, growing in numbers, and expanding their range. 

The second surge – which this group of fishers has volunteered for – involved relocating furry immigrants from Canada to the Cascades in Washington. Organizers hope to release 80 fishers each to the North Cascades and southern Cascade Mountain regions.

So far, the program appears to be a success, though it’s too early to tell if the little visitors will become a permanent, self-sustaining population.

But environmental groups and conservationists are concerned that the Washington weasels will simply be wiped out again, because the state has declined to give them endangered status. 

While the Pacific fishers no longer lived in historic ranges in Washington, Oregon, and California, the <a href="https://www.fws.gov/">U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service</a> said the decision was a sound one, since the wee weasels are plentiful elsewhere and in no danger of going extinct. 

The furry little weasels hunt porcupines – one of the only species that does – along with snowshoe hares and rodents.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Pacific fishers weasel their way back into Washington state's hearts

It’s been 70 years since the rare Pacific fisher, a...

Not all shorebird parents handle their family responsibilities the same way, a <a href="http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v540/n7631/full/nature20563.html">new study</a> of the feathered families revealed.

The study found that bonded shorebird parents tackle their parenting schedules very differently across species – and also within the same species, scientists said.

An international team of biologists found what they called “unexpected diversity” among shorebirds’ synchronized biorhythms, the pattern of when and how often parents switch incubation duties at their nests. 

Some flighty birds switched every hour or two, the study found. Others went nearly 48 hours before trading places. The average time most birds spent on the nest was between two and 24 hours.

The team was led by Dr. Brett Sandercock of <a href="https://www.k-state.edu/">Kansas State University</a> and Dr. Eunbi Kwon, postdoctoral researcher at <a href="https://www.vt.edu/">Virginia Tech University</a>. The pair are part of the <a href="https://www.manomet.org/program/shorebird-recovery/arctic-shorebird-demographics-network-asdn">Arctic Shorebirds Demographic Network</a>, and their portion of the team’s data came from birds nesting within the Arctic Circle. 

The study used data from 729 nests in 91 shorebird populations worldwide. 32 shorebird species were studied and most of them laid three to four eggs in a ground nest.

To monitor the birds, the scientists used light-sensitive geolocator tags. The tags normally track location, but in this case, the scientists used them to track when birds were on the nest – signaled by long periods of darkness – and when they had a chance to briefly fly the coop – signaled by light, which is plentiful in Arctic summers.

The researchers hoped to find out how, when, and why birds determine the length of time each half of a mating pair will stay on the nest. While more research needs to be done, Sandercock said, initial data points to predation risk and nest location, as well as each species’ evolutionary history.

For example, if birds switch frequently, it will be easier for predators to spot their nest than if they switch only once every 24 hours or more, he explained. The day-night schedule of the Arctic could also play a role; very long days and only a couple of hours of night in the summer would discourage the birds from following a day-night pattern, Sandercock said.

The study was published in the December 1st issue of the journal <a href="http://nature.com/">Nature</a>.

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By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Shorebird parents show not all families look alike

Not all shorebird parents handle their family responsibilities the same...

Archaeologists have uncovered a surprisingly modern find in the excavation of an ancient Egyptian town: a pet cemetery.

The cemetery is estimated to be about 2,000 years old, and holds the remains of scores of cats, along with dogs and monkeys. 

Most of the pets were carefully buried, the <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antiquity/article/div-classtitlepet-cats-at-the-early-roman-red-sea-port-of-berenike-egyptdiv/3E9F9F08ABB32E00E56595C8D1187B0B">archaeologists found</a> – some still wearing their collars, with mats, vases, and in the case of two cats, ostrich-shell beads – indicating that the burials were deliberate and the animals were not thrown away.

The care that was taken with the animals’ burials shows a deep emotional connection between faithful Fluffy and Fido and their owners in ancient Egypt, said Dr. Marta Osypinska, who reported the researchers’ findings in the journal <a href="https://antiquity.ac.uk/">Antiquity</a>.

The animals also seem to be pets rather than animals used in magical rituals like many of the animal burials in the Nile Valley, the researchers said.

While pet burials are not unusual in ancient Egypt, most previous finds have been pets buried alongside or near their owners. In the pet cemetery at Berenike, only two human burials were discovered, Osypinska said. The rest of the cemetery went to the dogs (and cats).

The archaeologists stumbled on the cemetery while they were excavating a trash site outside the Red Sea port town of Berenike. The pet cemetery dates to sometime in the first or second century C.E., when the town was under Roman control.

The town was always animal-focused, the researchers said, and originally served as a waystation for elephants headed between battlefields.

While Egyptians were known for their love of cats, Romans adored their dogs, and both are found in the pet cemetery.

One of the biggest surprises, the researchers said, is that Berenike is a remote town that would have relied on food imports. Even with the need to import food, one of the dogs found in the cemetery – a mastiff-type dog, probably imported from Greece or Rome, with advanced bone cancer – had a belly full of meat.

The pet cemetery is an unusual find, but animal cemeteries are found throughout ancient Egypt, often containing scores of mummified cats or dogs that were used in ritual purposes.

The pets in the Berenike cemetery show no signs of having their necks broken, a common find in the ritual animals’ cemeteries, Osypinska said. And though it was found near a trash site, the graves all show signs of deliberate burial and many have grave goods, she said.

Archaeologists uncover ancient Egyptian pet cemetery

Archaeologists have uncovered a surprisingly modern find in the excavation...

Chimpanzees appear to recognize rear ends with as much ease as faces, according to <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0165357">a new study</a> on face processing among the primates.

Face processing is a brain shortcut that allows humans to recognize and process faces more quickly than other objects – as long as they are upright. 

This varies from other objects, which humans recognize in about the same amount of time regardless of their orientation.

Chimps also place some importance on faces, but scientists were aware that buttocks also played a role in how they recognize each other, as well as attraction between males and females. 

So Dr. Mariska Kent of <a href="https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en">Leiden University</a> set out to see if chimpanzees have the same processing “shortcut” for butts that humans do for faces. 

They conducted a series of matching tests with both humans and chimpanzees. In the experiments, humans and chimps were asked to match faces, buttocks and feet (as a control) of both species. Some of the images were in colors, and some were in grayscale. Several of the images were inverted, or upside down, to test whether recognition was more efficient right side up.

The study found that humans recognize and are able to match upright faces faster than other body parts, both with and without color.

Chimps showed some interesting results, however. In color, they were able to process upright images of chimpanzee buttocks faster than faces or feet. However, when the color was removed, their facial processing skills improved. 

According to Kret, this indicates that buttocks play a large role in chimpanzee socialization, but especially in sexual attraction. When female chimps are in the fertile part of their menstrual cycle, areas of their buttocks turn dark pink, which may explain why, in color images, chimps are better at recognizing individual pairs of buttocks.

This could be why chimpanzees evolved to have bare behinds, with little hair growing on them, as well as why primate eyes in general are good at spotting the color red, Kret said. 

The study was published in the November 30 issue of the journal <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a>.

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By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Chimpanzees help us get to the bottom of face processing

Chimpanzees appear to recognize rear ends with as much ease...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

[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

[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



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



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

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA



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



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

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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



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

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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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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;



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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

Satellites have become essential to our survival

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