Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Water Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Eyes open and toes out of water: How a giant water bug reached the island of Cyprus      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new visitor was reported on the coast of Cyprus, thanks to the growing power of citizen science. Researchers collected information and specimens through personal communication with amateur naturalists, but also through the internet, in order to compose the mosaic of repeated appearances of a giant water bug on the eastern shoreline of the island.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Self-heating concrete is one step closer to putting snow shovels and salt out of business      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers recently reported on the science behind its special concrete, that can warm itself up when it snows, or as temperatures approach freezing.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Severe Weather
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Meteorology: Weak polar vortex makes weather more predictable      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Events in the stratosphere are making long-range weather in Northern Europe easier to forecast, researchers have discovered.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Energy: Fossil Fuels Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
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The atlas of unburnable oil in the world      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In order to limit the increase in global average temperature to 1.5 C, it is essential to drastically reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere. This would mean not exploiting most of the existing coal, conventional gas and oil energy resources in regions around the world, according to new research. The study presents the atlas of unburnable oil in the world, a world map designed with environmental and social criteria that warns which oil resources should not be exploited to meet the commitments of the Paris Agreement signed in 2015 to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Biology: General Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
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Diverse habitats help salmon weather unpredictable climate changes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Restored salmon habitat should resemble financial portfolios, offering fish diverse options for feeding and survival so that they can weather various conditions as the climate changes, a new study shows.

Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Severe Weather
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Tropical birds could tolerate warming better than expected, study suggests      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

We expect tropical animals to handle a certain degree of heat, but not wild swings in temperature. That seems to be true for tropical ectotherms, or 'cold-blooded' animals such as amphibians, reptiles, and insects. However, in a new study of 'warm-blooded' endotherms, a research team found tropical birds can handle thermal variation just fine.

Geoscience: Severe Weather
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Ready for the storm: Researchers analyze infrastructure, demographics to see where tornadoes are most disruptive      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers examined demographics, infrastructure and more than seven decades of weather data to determine which places in Kentucky are most vulnerable to tornadoes.

Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Severe Weather
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Drought, soil desiccation cracking, and carbon dioxide emissions: an overlooked feedback loop exacerbating climate change      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Soil stores 80 percent of carbon on earth, yet with increasing cycles of drought, that crucial reservoir is cracking and breaking down, releasing even more greenhouse gases creating an amplified feedback loop that could accelerate climate change.

Biology: Botany Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Summer solstice triggers synchronized beech tree reproduction across Europe      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study has found that the summer solstice acts as a 'starting gun' to synchronize beech tree reproduction across vast distances in Europe, affecting ecosystem functions.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

Exploring arctic plants and lichens: An important conservation baseline for Nunavut's newest and largest territorial park      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A comprehensive study of the floristic diversity of Agguttinni Territorial Park, Nunavut's newest and largest Territorial Park, has documented 141 vascular plant, 69 bryophyte, and 93 lichen species from this unique protected area on northern Baffin Island. Through a combination of extensive fieldwork in 2021 and examination of hundreds of existing herbarium specimens, the authors have documented species newly reported for Baffin Island and have crafted a biodiversity baseline important for park management and conservation.

Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Severe Weather
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History repeats as Coral Bay faces mass loss of coral and fish life      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A perfect storm of environmental factors has seen a monumental loss of fish and coral life at a popular area of Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia's Gascoyne region -- however research into the event shows there is hope it will recover. In March 2022, during the annual coral spawning event, calm weather and limited tidal movement combined to trap the coral's eggs within Bills Bay, at the town of Coral Bay. This led to an excess of nutrients in the water which consumed more oxygen than usual -- causing massive numbers of fish and corals to die from asphyxiation.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity Geoscience: Geography
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Rice paddy snake diversification was driven by geological and environmental factors in Thailand, molecular data suggests      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study of rice paddy snakes in Southeast Asia gives key details to their diversification and natural history, adding molecular evidence that the rise of the Khorat Plateau and subsequent environmental shifts in Thailand may have altered the course of the snakes' evolution some 2.5 million years ago.

Biology: Botany Biology: General Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General
Published

Rainforest's next generation of trees threatened 30 years after logging      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Rainforest seedlings are more likely to survive in natural forests than in places where logging has happened -- even if tree restoration projects have taken place, new research shows.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity Geoscience: Geography
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Pronghorn population declining due to human development      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new article looked at 40 years of data collected on 40 pronghorn herds residing in the Wyoming Basin Shrub Steppe. Overall, 80% of the herds saw a decrease in productivity, and nearly 43% saw a significant decrease. After looking at a number of variables that could potentially contribute to the decline, the researchers identified the two most strongly associated: development of oil and gas resources and woody encroachment.

Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
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India's water problems set to get worse as the world warms      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Winter storms known as western disturbances that provide crucial snow and rainfall to northern India are arriving significantly later in the year.

Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Oceanography Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Study explores impacts of Arctic warming on daily weather patterns in the U.S.      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Arctic sea ice is shrinking as the world continues to warm, and a new study may provide a better understanding of how the loss of this ice may impact daily weather in the middle latitudes, like the United States.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Environmental: Biodiversity
Published

Reptile roadkill reveals new threat to endangered lizard species      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The chance sighting of a dead snake beside a sandy track in remote Western Australia, and the investigation of its stomach contents, has led researchers to record the first known instance of a spotted mulga snake consuming a pygmy spiny-tailed skink, raising concerns for a similar-looking, endangered lizard species.