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Categories: Ecology: Trees, Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published The rotation of Earth's inner core has slowed, new study confirms
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The new study provides unambiguous evidence that the inner core began to decrease its speed around 2010, moving slower than the Earth's surface.
Published Paleontology: New fossil fish genus discovered
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Paleontologists have identified a new genus of fossil goby, revealing evolutionary secrets of a lineage that stretches back millions of years.
Published New way to spot beetle-killed spruce can help forest, wildfire managers
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new machine-learning system can automatically produce detailed maps from satellite data to show locations of likely beetle-killed spruce trees in Alaska, even in forests of low and moderate infestation where identification is otherwise difficult. The automated process can help forestry and wildfire managers in their decisions. That's critical as the beetle infestation spreads.
Published A mountainous mystery uncovered in Australia's pink sands
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Deposits of deep-pink sand washing up on South Australian shores shed new light on when the Australian tectonic plate began to subduct beneath the Pacific plate, as well as the presence of previously unknown ancient Antarctic mountains.
Published No bones about it: 100-million-year-old bones reveal new species of pterosaur
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research has identified 100-million-year-old fossilized bones discovered in western Queensland as belonging to a newly identified species of pterosaur, which was a formidable flying reptile that lived among the dinosaurs.
Published Ritual sacrifice at Chichén Itzá
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Rising to power in the wake of the Classic Maya collapse, Chichen Itz was among the largest and most influential cities of the ancient Maya, but much about its political connections and ritual life remain poorly understood. Close kin relationships, including two pairs of identical twins, suggests a connection to the Maya origin myths of the Popol Vuh.
Published Scientists unlock secrets of how archaea, the third domain of life, makes energy
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source An international scientific team has redefined our understanding of archaea, a microbial ancestor to humans from two billion years ago, by showing how they use hydrogen gas. The findings explain how these tiny lifeforms make energy by consuming and producing hydrogen. This simple but dependable strategy has allowed them to thrive in some of Earth's most hostile environments for billions of years.
Published Early life exposure to weed pollen could increase childhood asthma risk
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A study has found children who are exposed to tree and weed pollen in urban environments are at increased risk of respiratory health problems, including asthma. While green areas in urban settings decrease exposure to air pollution, allow kids to be active, and offer positive contact to a diverse microbiota -- which in turn may help the positive development of a child's immune system -- they can also lead to the development of childhood asthma. Thankfully, trees can help mitigate this effect to some degree, thanks to their canopy.
Published The solar system may have passed through dense interstellar clouds 2 million years ago, altering Earth's climate
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Astrophysicists calculate the likelihood that Earth was exposed to cold, harsh interstellar clouds, a phenomenon not previously considered in geologic climate models.
Published Novel Genetic Clock discovers oldest known marine plant
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source An international research team has discovered the oldest known marine plant using a novel genetic clock. This 1400-year-old seagrass clone from the Baltic Sea dates back to the Migration Period. The research project is a significant step towards better understanding and protecting marine ecosystems.
Published Tiny new species of great ape lived in Germany 11 million years ago
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Ancient apes in Germany co-existed by partitioning resources in their environment, according to a new study.
Published Tropical forests adjust strategies to thrive even when soils are nutrient poor
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Tropical forests store a third of the world's carbon in their wood and soils. However, their future as a carbon sink has been uncertain. Scientists have long wondered whether nutrient-poor tropical soils would limit the ability of mature and recovering forests to thrive. A study offers a hopeful response, suggesting that forests have flexible strategies that help them overcome the challenge of scarce nutrients.
Published Researchers solve 2,000-year-old mystery of the shipworm
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source They bedeviled ancient Greek navies, helped shipwreck Christopher Columbus, aided in the sinking of the Spanish Armada and caused the wharves in San Francisco Bay to collapse into the sea, but until now, scientists have been unable to pinpoint exactly how shipworms -- a family of mollusks -- are able to cause such damage. A team of researchers has discovered that a population of symbiotic microbes, living in an overlooked sub-organ of the gut called the 'typhlosole,' have the ability to secrete the enzymes needed to digest lignin -- the toughest part of wood.
Published Fishy mystery of marine reptile solved
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The identity of a prehistoric marine reptile has finally been revealed after experts discovered that some of its remains actually belonged to fish.
Published Blood sausages and yak milk: Bronze Age cuisine of Mongolian nomads unveiled
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Bronze cauldrons were used by the inhabitants of the Mongolian steppe around 2,700 years ago to process animal blood and milk. This is shown by a protein analysis of archaeological finds from this period.
Published 'Missing' early sea sponges discovered
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Geobiologists reported a 550 million-year-old sea sponge that had been missing from the fossil record. The discovery sheds new light on a conundrum that has stumped zoologists and paleontologists for years.
Published Gigantic Jurassic pterosaur fossil unearthed in Oxfordshire, UK
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A team of palaeontologists has discovered a fossil of a gigantic flying reptile from the Jurassic period with an estimated wingspan of more than three metres -- making it one of the largest pterosaurs ever found from that era.
Published Food drove the evolution of giraffes' long neck
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A study explores body proportions of Masai giraffes, lending insight into why giraffes have such long necks and how this trait might have evolved.
Published How sharks survived a major spike in Earth's temperature
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The sharks we know today as the open ocean's top predators evolved from stubby bottom dwellers during a dramatic episode of global warming millions of years ago.
Published An unlikely hero in evolution: Worms
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source One of Earth's most consequential bursts of biodiversity -- a 30-million-year period of explosive evolutionary changes spawning innumerable new species -- may have the most modest of creatures to thank for the vital stage in life's history: worms.