From beaver dams to termite mounds, research uncovers the extraordinary role of animals in shaping our planet Animals are not just inhabitants of the natural world—they are its architects. A new study led by Professor Gemma Harvey from Queen Mary University of London has revealed how hundreds of species shape the landscapes we depend on, from vast termite mounds visible from space to hippos carving drainage systems and beavers creating entire wetlands. Published in Proceedings of the National Academy of…
Phytoplankton use sunlight to make energy and nearly half the oxygen we breathe, a new tool improves our ability to measure how individual phytoplankton cells are using energy Phytoplankton, tiny plant-like organisms in the ocean, are incredibly important for life on Earth. They’re a major food source for many sea creatures and produce almost half the oxygen we breathe. They also help control the climate by soaking up a lot of carbon dioxide, a gas that contributes to global warming….
A new Nature publication shows how soil invertebrates influence the world beneath our feet and thus also ecosystem services worldwide. Based on a press release from Sun Yat-senUniversity Since the Industrial Revolution, global changes have led to a decline in biodiversity. To address these changes, it is crucial to understand what constitutes healthy ecosystems – and how to protect and build them. A new meta-analysis by an international research team, including Prof. Nico Eisenhauer from the German Centre for Integrative…
DURHAM, N.C. — The world’s largest known lithium deposit exists within a vast salt pan called the Salar de Uyuni, which stretches for thousands of square miles atop a high, dry Andean plateau in Bolivia. For most of the year, salt crystals encrust the terrain, white as confectioner’s sugar. During the wet season, pooling rainwater mirrors surrounding mountains and sky. “The Salar is a magical place for travelers from all over the world who come to see the colors, the…
Niigata, Japan – The amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) released by microbial decomposition of soil organic carbon on a global scale is approximately five times greater than the amount of anthropogenic CO2 emissions. Thus, it is essential to clarify the impact of climate change on soil CO2 release dynamics. A collaborative research group consisting of Dr. Hirohiko Nagano and Ms. Yuri Suzuki of Niigata University with researchers of Kyushu University and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency conducted incubation experiments on…
UCalgary scientist says it’s important to determine what happened and what can be learned Experts from the global Earth science community – including a scientist from the University of Calgary – have pieced together what happened during the massive Sikkim flood to try to help others prepare for similar disasters. On Oct. 3, 2023, a multi-hazard cascade in the Sikkim Himalaya, India, was triggered by a permanently frozen (permafrost) lateral moraine – debris from erosion along a glacier – collapsing…
As grasslands get abandoned, controlled burning is discussed as a labor-saving method of keeping forests at bay. A Kobe University research team found that this method results in higher biodiversity and a higher prevalence of endangered plant species in some grasslands compared to others, depending on what soils they grow on. Humans have been keeping grasslands since millennia by grazing, mowing and controlled burning, all of these are means to keep forests from overgrowing the grasslands. Grazing and mowing are,…
The UK’s peatlands face an uncertain future amid the escalating impacts of climate change Peatlands are critical ecosystems for carbon storage and biodiversity, containing more carbon than all the world’s forests despite covering just 3% of the global land surface. But new research reveals that vast areas of the UK’s peatlands, including the Flow Country UNESCO World Heritage Site, are likely to be unsuitable for peat accumulation by 2061–80 due to climate change. The researchers urge for a shift in…
Research team investigates influence of Zagros Mountains on bending Earth’s surface An international research team led by the University of Göttingen has investigated the influence of the forces exerted by the Zagros Mountains in the Kurdistan region of Iraq on how much the surface of the Earth has bent over the last 20 million years. Their research revealed that in the present day, deep below the Earth’s surface, the Neotethys oceanic plate – the ocean floor that used to be…
University of Otago – Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka scientists have successfully analysed more than 30 years of vital data on the thickness of landfast sea ice in Antarctica’s McMurdo Sound, which will prove useful to measure future impacts of climate change. The study, published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, set out to discover what key influences determine the thickness of landfast sea-ice, known as fast ice, using data from 1986 to 2022. Fast ice is frozen ocean water that…
A major study of botanic gardens around the world has revealed their struggles with one fundamental aim: to safeguard the world’s most threatened plants from extinction. Researchers analysed a century’s worth of records – from 1921 to 2021 – from fifty botanic gardens and arboreta currently growing half a million plants, to see how the world’s living plant collections have changed over time. The results suggest that the world’s living collections have collectively reached peak capacity, and that restrictions on…
A study led by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL shows that there has been a worrying increase in the number of long droughts over the last 40 years. These affect agriculture, energy production and ecosystems, the research team warns in the scientific journal Science. For fourteen years, northern Chile has been suffering from extreme drought. The southwest of the USA recently experienced eight bone-dry years, and southern Australia three. This accumulation is no coincidence:…
So-called foraminifera are found in all the world’s oceans. Now an international study led by the University of Hamburg has shown that the microorganisms, most of which bear shells, absorb phosphate from the water that pollutes the oceans to an unprecedented extent. The work has been published in the scientific journal “Nature”. Phosphate Use in Agriculture and Its Environmental Impact Phosphate is one of the main components of many fertilizers. It stimulates the growth of many crops – but is…
Groundwater and multilevel cooperation in recovery efforts mitigated water crisis after flooding. Converting Disasters into Opportunities Society is often vulnerable to disasters, but how humans manage during and after can turn devastation into opportunities for improved resilience. An Alternative Water Source: Private Wells For instance, private wells are attracting attention as an alternative resource for securing water for daily use and consumption in the event the water supply is cut off after a disaster. However, there are few records on…
Microorganisms are everywhere and have been influencing the Earth’s environment for over 3.5 billion years. Researchers from Germany, Austria and Taiwan have now deciphered the role they play in the formation of lime – for the first time in the deep sea rather than in the laboratory. The basis was a five-meter-long lime core obtained during an expedition. The team of authors has now published their results in the journal Communications Earth & Environment. Correlation between Microorganisms and Mineral Formation…
Analysis of three decades of aerial survey data reveals major changes In the Arctic, the old, multiyear ice is increasingly melting, dramatically reducing the frequency and size of pressure ridges. These ridges are created when ice floes press against each other and become stacked, and are a characteristic feature of Arctic sea ice, an obstacle for shipping, but also an essential component of the ecosystem. In a recently released study in the journal Nature Climate Change, experts from the Alfred Wegener…
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