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Categories: Ecology: General, Environmental: Wildfires

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Ecology: General Ecology: Research
Published

Climate 'presses' and 'pulses' impact Magellanic penguins -- a marine predator -- with guidance for conservationists      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Climate change will reshape ecosystems through two types of events: short-term, extreme events -- or 'pulses' -- and long-term changes, or 'presses.' Understanding the effects of presses and pulses is essential as conservationists and policymakers try to preserve ecosystems and safeguard biodiversity. Researchers have discovered how different presses and pulses impacted Magellanic penguins -- a migratory marine predator -- over nearly four decades and found that, though individual presses and pulses impacted penguins in a variety of ways, both were equally important for the future survival of the penguin population. They also found that these types of climate changes, taken together, are leading to an overall population decline at their historically largest breeding site.

Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Research
Published

Warming oceans have decimated marine parasites -- but that's not a good thing      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Save the ... parasites? Analyzing 140 years of parasite abundance in fish shows dramatic declines, especially in parasites that rely on three or more host species. The decline is linked to warming ocean temperatures. Parasitic species might be in real danger, researchers warn -- and that means not just fewer worms, but losses for the entire ecosystem.

Ecology: General Ecology: Research
Published

Marine plankton tell the long story of ocean health, and maybe human too      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers suggest that rising levels of humanmade chemicals, accumulating in marine plankton, might be used to monitor the impact of human activity on ecosystem health and perhaps study links between ocean pollution and land-based rates of childhood and adult chronic illnesses.

Ecology: General Ecology: Research Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Study details impact of prairie dog plague die-off on other species      (via sciencedaily.com) 

This study, conducted from 2015-19 in the Thunder Basin National Grassland, may be the first to specifically examine the multispecies impacts of a wide-scale plague outbreak, which reduced the area covered by prairie dog colonies from nearly 25,000 acres to only about 125 acres in the study area. The 2017 outbreak was followed by abnormally high precipitation in 2018, which caused vegetation to grow quickly and taller without the presence of prairie dogs. The researchers found that the mountain plover, birds that thrive when vegetation is kept shorter by prairie dogs, almost disappeared from the study area, while migrant songbirds such as the lark bunting, which prefer taller vegetation, increased in number. Meanwhile, species including ferruginous hawks, badgers and swift foxes declined dramatically as their prey base crashed.

Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Research Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Invasive rats transform reef fish behavior      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have discovered for the first time that invasive rats on tropical islands are affecting the territorial behavior of fish on surrounding coral reefs. The new study shows that the presence of invasive black rats on tropical islands is causing changes in the territorial behavior of the jewel damselfish -- a herbivorous species of tropical reef fish that 'farm' algae in the branches of corals.

Ecology: General Ecology: Research
Published

Effects of highly pathogenic avian influenza on canids investigated      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have revealed the effects of high pathogenicity avian influenza virus infection on an Ezo red fox and a Japanese raccoon dog, linking their infection to a recorded die-off of crows.

Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: General Ecology: Research
Published

Current Antarctic conservation efforts are insufficient to avoid biodiversity declines, study shows      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Existing conservation efforts are insufficient to protect Antarctic ecosystems, and population declines are likely for 65% of the continent's plants and wildlife by the year 2100, according to a new study.

Ecology: General Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Wildfires
Published

Bird diversity increased in severely burned forests of Southern Appalachian mountains      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A new study found bird diversity increased in North Carolina mountain forest areas severely burned by wildfire in 2016, reinforcing that while wildfire can pose risks to safety and property, it can be beneficial to wildlife. The study results could help forest managers better predict bird responses to wildfire, and manage forests to benefit birds.

Environmental: Wildfires
Published

Wildfire threats not commonly disclosed by US firms despite risk to economy      (via sciencedaily.com) 

U.S. firms rarely report their wildfire risks in required federal filings and instead bury such risks in nonspecific risk disclosures, according to new research.

Ecology: General Ecology: Research Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Palau's Rock Islands harbor heat-resistant corals      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Ocean warming is driving an increase in the frequency and severity of marine heatwaves, causing untold damage to coral reefs. Tropical corals, which live in symbiosis with tiny single celled algae, are sensitive to high temperatures, and exhibit a stress response called bleaching when the ocean gets too hot. In the last 4 decades, marine heatwaves have caused widespread bleaching, and killed millions of corals. Because of this, a global search is underway for reefs that can withstand the heat stress, survive future warming, and act as sources of heat-tolerant coral larvae to replenish affected areas both naturally and through restoration.

Ecology: General
Published

Ecology: More than the sum of its parts      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The number of simultaneously acting global change factors has a negative impact on the diversity of plant communities -- regardless of the nature of the factors.

Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Wildfires Paleontology: Climate
Published

Climate whiplash increased wildfires on California's west coast about 8,000 years ago      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have been studying the effects of the sudden decrease in global temperatures that occurred about 8,200 years ago, the so-called 8.2-kiloyear event, with the help of mineral deposits present in White Moon Cave in Northern California. New indications show that oscillations between extreme wetness and aridity in California were closely linked with the occurrence of wildfires. The researchers have concluded that such events are likely to become more common in the face of human-induced climate change.

Environmental: Wildfires
Published

Americans flocking to fire: National migration study      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Americans are leaving many of the U.S. counties hit hardest by hurricanes and heatwaves -- and moving towards dangerous wildfires and warmer temperatures, says one of the largest studies of U.S. migration and natural disasters. These results are concerning, as wildfire and rising temperatures are projected to worsen with climate change. The study was inspired by the increasing number of headlines of record-breaking natural disasters.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Wildfires Paleontology: General
Published

For 400 years, Indigenous tribes buffered climate's impact on wildfires in the American Southwest      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Devastating megafires are becoming more common, in part, because the planet is warming. But a new study suggests bringing 'good fire' back to the U.S. and other wildfire fire-prone areas, as Native Americans once did, could potentially blunt the role of climate in triggering today's wildfires.

Environmental: Wildfires
Published

'Digital footprints' central to new approach for studying post-disturbance recreation changes      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A new social media-based study of recreation visitation in the Gorge following the Eagle Creek Fire expands on research launched in 2016 -- and holds promise for other large, multi-ownership landscapes. The study shows how using new approaches that draw from social media data can help us better understand the complex relationships between wildfire, natural resource management, and people.

Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Wildfires Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Major fires an increasing risk as the air gets thirstier, research shows      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Greater atmospheric demand for water means a dramatic increase in the risk of major fires in global forests unless we take urgent and effective climate action, new research finds. Researchers have examined global climate and fire records in all of the world's forests over the last 20 years.

Environmental: Wildfires
Published

When cyclones and fires collide...      (via sciencedaily.com) 

As strong winds and torrential rains inundate Australia's south-eastern coast, new research suggests that high intensity bushfires might not be too far behind, with their dual effects extending damage zones and encroaching on previously low-risk residential areas.

Environmental: Wildfires
Published

Researchers design model that predicts which buildings will survive wildfire      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Wildfires may seem unpredictable, leaving random ruin in their wake. Engineers have now developed a model that can predict how wildfire will impact a community down to which buildings will burn. They say predicting damage to the built environment is essential to developing fire mitigation strategies and steps for recovery.

Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Wildfires
Published

Prescribed fire could reduce tick populations and pathogen transmission      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Prescribed fire -- a tool increasingly used by forest managers and landowners to combat invasive species, improve wildlife habitat and restore ecosystem health -- also could play a role in reducing the abundance of ticks and the transmission of disease pathogens they carry, according to a team of scientists.

Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Wildfires
Published

Forest recovery after Montana's 2017 fire season      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers found thousands of seedlings growing after recent fires in Montana, especially at sites with cooler, damper conditions -- often found in the shade of the dead trees and upper canopy, as well as on the north side of mountains with higher elevations and more undergrowth. Researchers found fewer seedlings at sites with less shade and drier, hotter conditions.