Jaguars already carry a reputation as strong swimmers. What nobody expected was just how far one could go. In Brazil’s Serra da Mesa Reservoir, camera traps caught an adult male jaguar making the longest confirmed swim ever recorded for the species.



The journey covered at least 1.27 kilometers (0.79 miles) of open water. If the cat skipped a smaller islet along the way, the distance stretched closer to 2.3 kilometers (1.43 miles). Either option shattered previous records, which had topped out at just 200 meters (656 feet).



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-record-jaguar-swim">Record jaguar swim</h2>



The jaguar first appeared on camera traps along the mainland in 2020. Four years later, the same animal showed up again, this time on a forested island. Its coat pattern left no doubt about its identity.



Leandro Silveira from the <a href="https://www.institutooncapintada.org.br/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jaguar Conservation Fund</a> noted that the team used a conservative estimate, assuming the jaguar paused on a smaller island before continuing. In reality, the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/after-300-years-ruins-of-this-rebellious-city-sak-bahlan-are-emerging-that-spain-tried-to-erase/">animal</a> might have swum the full 2.3-kilometer (1.43-mile) stretch in one go.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-cats-cross-unexpected-gaps">Big cats cross unexpected gaps</h2>



For years, hydropower reservoirs were seen as walls to big carnivores. Islands more than a kilometer (0.62 miles) away were often assumed unreachable, leaving them without top <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/jaguars-offer-a-glimpse-of-survival-in-a-changing-world/">predators</a>. Yet this swim tells a different story.



Reservoirs don’t always act as absolute barriers. Instead, they impose different costs depending on distance and conditions. Warm water, quiet surroundings, and an islet or two can lower those costs enough to let a jaguar cross.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lions-and-cougars-swim-too">Lions and cougars swim too</h2>



This isn’t the first big cat to push across long channels. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mountain-lions-cleverly-change-their-habits-to-avoid-humans/">Lions</a> in Uganda’s Kazinga Channel have crossed distances of more than a kilometer, driven by the calls of females on the opposite bank.



In Washington State, cougars have braved cold, fast-moving waters to reach islands, sometimes swimming more than a kilometer (0.62 miles) in open channels.



These journeys highlight the determination of large carnivores when survival, reproduction, or territory expansion is at stake. Long swims may be rare, but when the incentive is strong enough, even top predators will take the risk.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-jaguars-thrive-in-all-terrains">Jaguars thrive in all terrains</h2>



Jaguars have always adapted to diverse <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/preserving-earths-genetic-future-before-its-too-late/">environments</a>. Some stalk prey in the Amazon floodplains. Others survive in the dry Caatinga with little water at hand. 



Research using GPS collars has shown that jaguars can cover more than 120 kilometers (74 miles) in a month, even in areas shaped by human activity. The reservoir crossing adds to this evidence of resilience and adaptability.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-scale-for-crossings">A scale for crossings</h2>



A new framework ranks aquatic challenges on a simple scale. Short swims under 300 meters (984 feet) with islets fall into the low-cost category. Distances up to 1,000 meters (0.62 miles) with stepping-stones are considered medium cost.



Anything over one kilometer (0.62 miles) without help qualifies as high cost. The Serra da Mesa crossing lands firmly in the high-cost range but proves that jaguars can still manage.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-reservoirs-impact-jaguar-survival">Reservoirs impact jaguar survival</h2>



Hydropower projects have already submerged more than 25,000 square kilometers (9,650 square miles) of jaguar habitat. 



The flooding converted continuous forests into scattered islands. In Venezuela’s Guri Reservoir, islands more than one kilometer (0.62 miles) from the mainland eventually lost their predators, which triggered ecological collapse.



The Brazilian record challenges that bleak picture. If conditions align, jaguars can bridge gaps once assumed permanent. Protecting riparian forests, keeping natural shorelines intact, and safeguarding small islands could all help create corridors that keep populations connected.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-primates-in-the-water">Primates in the water</h2>



The lesson doesn’t stop with jaguars. Primates in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/deforestation-is-drying-the-amazon-more-than-climate-change/">the Amazon</a> have been observed swimming between islands, though only short distances.



Waterways that look like dead ends for land animals may instead be costly, but sometimes usable, filters. By planning for those possibilities, conservationists can keep ecosystems more intact even in reservoir-dominated regions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rethinking-fragmented-habitats">Rethinking fragmented habitats</h2>



A jaguar swimming more than a kilometer (0.62 miles) across a dam reservoir forces a rethink. Water is not always an immovable wall. It can be a demanding path, but one that big predators can take. Recognizing these abilities changes how we view fragmented habitats. 



Understanding when those paths open up, and what makes them possible, could shape how conservationists manage landscapes in a century marked by dams, development, and habitat loss. 



It also raises questions about how often such events occur, how many animals attempt them, and whether these rare crossings can keep isolated populations connected over generations.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.05.674446v1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bioRxiv</a>.



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Jaguar stuns scientists with longest swim ever recorded

Jaguars already carry a reputation as strong swimmers. What nobody expected was just how far one could go. In Brazil’s Serra da Mesa Reservoir, camera traps caught an adult male jaguar making the longest confirmed swim ever recorded for the species. The journey covered at least 1.27 kilometers (0.79 miles) of open water. If the cat skipped a smaller islet along the way, the distance stretched closer to 2.3 kilometers (1.43 miles). Either option shattered previous records, which had topped out at just 200 meters (656 feet)....

The earliest evidence for mammal social behavior dates back to the Age of Dinosaurs, according to a new study led by paleontologists at the <a href="https://www.washington.edu/">University of Washington</a> Burke Museum of Natural History &amp; Culture. This evidence is tied to the discovery of a small mammal that lived during the Late Cretaceous period.

The previously unknown species was part of an <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/plankton-began-hunting-their-own-food-to-survive-a-mass-extinction-event/">extinct</a> group of rodent-like mammals known as multituberculates. The new mammal has been named Filikomys primaevus, which translates to "youthful, friendly mouse." 

The fossils examined for the study are the most complete mammal fossils ever found from the Mesozoic era in North America. The analysis suggests that F. primaevus engaged in group nesting and burrowing behavior, and possibly lived in colonies. 

Dating back about 75 million years, the fossils were recovered from a dinosaur nesting site called Egg Mountain in modern-day western Montana.

The excavation produced skulls and skeletons of at least 22 F. primaevus individuals that were typically clustered together in groups of two to five. About 13 individuals were found in the same rock layer within a 30 square-meter area. 

The researchers noted that the ancient mammal had powerful shoulders and elbows that are similar to those of burrowing animals that exist today. The experts theorize that the ancient animals also lived in burrows and nested together. 

The combination of F. primaevus individuals found clustered together included multiple mature adults and young adults, which indicates that these were truly social groups as opposed to just parents raising their young.

"It was crazy finishing up this paper right as the stay-at-home orders were going into effect - here we all are trying our best to socially distance and isolate, and I'm writing about how mammals were socially interacting way back when dinosaurs were still roaming the Earth!" said study lead author Luke Weaver. 

"It is really powerful, I think, to see just how deeply rooted social interactions are in mammals. Because humans are such social animals, we tend to think that sociality is somehow unique to us, or at least to our close evolutionary relatives, but now we can see that social behavior goes way further back in the mammalian family tree." "Multituberculates are one of the most ancient mammal groups, and they've been extinct for 35 million years, yet in the Late Cretaceous they were apparently interacting in groups similar to what you would see in modern-day ground squirrels."

It was previously assumed that social behavior first emerged in mammals after the mass extinction that killed off the dinosaurs. 

Social behavior was also thought to have initially appeared in the group Placentalia - mammals that carry the fetus in the mother's uterus until a late stage of development, including humans. However, the new fossils show that an entirely different group of mammals was socializing during the Age of Dinosaurs.

"These fossils are game changers," said study senior author Gregory Wilson Mantilla. "As paleontologists working to reconstruct the biology of mammals from this time period, we're usually stuck staring at individual teeth and maybe a jaw that rolled down a river, but here we have multiple, near complete skulls and skeletons preserved in the exact place where the animals lived. We can now credibly look at how mammals really interacted with dinosaurs and other animals that lived at this time."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/natecolevol">Nature Ecology &amp; Evolution</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Mammal social behavior dates back to the Age of Dinosaurs

The earliest evidence for mammal social behavior dates back to...

Artificial night lighting is causing widespread impacts to wildlife, according to researchers at the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a>. The team analyzed more than 100 relevant studies and found consistent evidence of physical and behavioral changes in animals, particularly related to their hormone levels and sleep-wake cycles.

In every animal species studied, levels of the sleep-regulating hormone melatonin were reduced by exposure to artificial lights.

The researchers said that artificial night lighting has a diverse range of effects across the natural world, and should be limited whenever possible.

"Lots of studies have examined the impacts of artificial night-time lighting on particular species or communities of species," said study co-author Professor Kevin Gaston. "Our research brings those studies together - and we find the effects are very diverse and very pervasive."

"Particularly strong responses are seen in hormone levels, the timing of daily activity in diurnal (daytime) species, and 'life-history' traits such as number of offspring."

"People may imagine this is all about powerful light, but in fact we are seeing a lot of responses at quite low levels of artificial light."

Dr. Dirk Sanders said the differences were found in both animals that are active during the day and those that are active at night. 

"For rodents, which are mostly nocturnal, the duration of activity tended to be reduced by night-time lighting," said Dr. Sanders. "In contrast, for birds - with all of those included strictly diurnal - artificial light led to an extension of the duration of their activity, with singing and foraging starting earlier."

Previous studies have shown that artificial night lighting has a broad scope of impacts, ranging from reducing pollination to tricking trees into budding earlier in spring.

Just like climate change, night-time lighting appears to benefit some species in certain locations, but Professor Gaston said the clear message of the study is to reduce lighting where possible.

"Both climate change and night-time lighting are human-driven and enormously disruptive to the natural world. Historically, we have not really worried about the impact of night-time lighting. Only now are we discovering its wide-ranging effects," said Professor Gaston.

"Our study shows that we should, as a matter of principle, only use night-time lighting where we need it and no further, and at intensities that we need and no more. In effect, we need to view light like any other pollutant."

"Obviously it would be ridiculous to say 'switch the world's lights off' - but we could reduce our use of light immensely with absolutely no impact on ourselves."

Professor Gaston is the scientific advisor on an upcoming natural history series called Earth at Night in Colour, which will be released on Apple TV+ on December 4th.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/natecolevol">Nature Ecology &amp; Evolution</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Artificial night lighting is disrupting the natural world

Artificial night lighting is causing widespread impacts to wildlife, according...

A new study from <a href="https://plos.org/">PLOS</a> has investigated the main stressors that impact koala populations in the Australian state of New South Wales. The iconic species is declining across Australia as a result of bushfires and human development, and has become vulnerable to <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/plankton-began-hunting-their-own-food-to-survive-a-mass-extinction-event/">extinction</a>. 

"In theory, Australia should have relatively few conservation concerns; its national population density is lo by global standards, most of the continent remains sparsely settled and little modified, and the nation is relatively affluent," noted the study authors. 

"However, since European Settlement in 1788, 30 mammal species endemic to Australia have become extinct, with 55 others experiencing a worsened conservation status. This statistic is primarily attributed to the fact that humans alter areas of pristine habitat that is rich with biodiversity, so as to accommodate rapid population growth."

To gain a better understanding of the patterns of decline among koala populations, the scientists analyzed three decades of koala rescue data from three wildlife rescue groups in New South Wales. The data include more than 12,500 koala sightings, as well as cases where a koala was admitted for clinical care, between 1989 and 2018.

The researchers determined that the most common reason that a koala was documented or admitted for clinical care was due to disease, especially chlamydia. Over the course of the study period, the incidents of disease among koalas increased. As a result, they were released less often and euthanized more often. 

According to the experts, the data indicates that increasing human development has the biggest impact on koala populations through a variety of stressors, including habitat disturbance, vehicle collisions, and dog attacks. The prevalence of disease may be linked to the effect of bushfires on the koalas' immune systems. 

The findings could help inform efforts to protect koala populations through actions such as bushfire control, sustainable agricultural practices, environmental planning, and governmental policy.

"Australia's national wildlife icon, the Koala currently faces the brink of extinction crisis due to environmental trauma and diseases," wrote the researchers. "We present decadal periods of evidence of significant stress and mortality risks of wild koala populations across the major hotspots in South-eastern Australia."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Human development has the biggest impact on dwindling koala populations

A new study from PLOS has investigated the main stressors...

Wild animals are flocking to backyards for food and shelter, according to a new study from <a href="https://www.ncsu.edu/">NC State University</a>. The research explains why animals are sometimes more abundant and diverse in the suburbs than they are in the wilderness. 

Study co-author Roland Kays is an associate professor at NC State and the director of the Biodiversity &amp; Earth Observation Lab at the NC Museum of Natural Resources.

"They're using the gardens a little bit, they're using the brush piles a little bit, and they're using the water features, but feeding has the most dramatic influence on animal activity in the backyard," said Professor Kays.

The researchers set out to investigate what is known as the "urban wildlife paradox." Even though human development is generally associated with biodiversity loss, scientists have found that moderately developed areas frequently host a variety of mammals compared with wild areas.

"There's this idea that nature and humans don't coexist well," said Professor Kays. "But what we've been finding is that when it comes to mammals, especially in North America, they actually do pretty well around people. You end up with high abundance. You expect there to be fewer animals, and there's actually more."

To examine whether food and shelter attract animals in suburban areas, the researchers set up cameras in the backyards of 58 homes near Raleigh, Durham, and outside of Chapel Hill. For comparison, the team set cameras up in nearby forests, rural, and urban areas. 

In collaboration with experts at the University of Montana, the researchers analyzed the images. They identified seven species - squirrels, gray and red foxes, Virginia opossums, eastern cottontail rabbits, woodchucks, and eastern chipmunks - that were more frequently seen in yards compared to forests. In addition, animals such as white-tailed deer, squirrels, and raccoons were found to be more common in suburban forests compared to rural ones.

"This basically confirmed the urban-wildlife paradox, showing that some species are more abundant in yards," said Professor Kays. "It's not a big surprise if you live in the suburbs - you see the animals. It's the squirrels, raccoons, deer and opossum."

Feeding animals, particularly with birdfeeders, had the strongest influence on the abundance of animals in a yard. For example, eastern gray squirrels were more common at feeders than in suburban or rural forests. Cottontail rabbits, raccoons, and opossums were also frequently spotted at birdfeeders.

"This supports the idea that direct human subsidies are a big part of the explanation for the urban-wildlife paradox," said Professor Kays. "It shows that individual decisions by homeowners and private property owners can have a big impact on the wildlife in the backyard and living in the area."

According to Professor Kays, the findings raise questions about what homeowners should do, and whether attracting wildlife is good or bad.

"You see widespread recommendations: Don't feed the bears. Where do you draw the line from small birds to squirrels, rabbits and raccoons? When does it become bad to feed the animals, even if you're doing it accidentally?" 

"On one hand many people enjoy having wildlife around and they can help support a healthy local ecosystem; however, they could cause conflict with people."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/ecology-and-evolution">Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Wild animals are moving to the suburbs

Wild animals are flocking to backyards for food and shelter,...

Ecology researchers at <a href="https://www.flinders.edu.au/">Flinders University</a> have discovered two Australian bee species that forage in the dark. This is the first time that bees have been found to adapt their <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/exercise-can-reduce-or-prevent-vision-loss/">vision</a> to become active at night and during twilight hours.  

The experts observed night-time foraging by nomiine bees and masked bees. Both species developed enlarged compound eyes and simple eyes that allow more light to be gathered.

The image processing ability of bees can be observed using close-up images with a high resolution. According to the researchers, improved low-light ability may exist in other Australian bee species that are secretly active at night. 

Study lead author James Dorey said the nomiine and masked bees are mostly found in Australia's tropical north, but there could potentially be more in subtropical or even temperate conditions across the continent.

"We have confirmed the existence of at least two crepuscular bee species in Australia and there are likely to be many more that can forage both during the day and into the early morning or evening under low light conditions. It's true that bees aren't generally known to be very capable when it comes to using their eyes at night, but it turns out that low-light foraging is more common than currently thought," said Dorey.

"Before this study, the only way to show that a bee had adapted to low-light was by using difficult-to-obtain behavioural observations, but we have found that you should be able to figure this out by using high-quality images of a specific bee."

Dorey pointed out that bees which forage during dim-light conditions are understudied, so there are no reliable published records for any such Australian species.

"Our study provides a framework to help identify low-light-adapted bees and the data that is needed to determine the behavioural traits of other species. This is important as we need to increase efforts to collect bee species outside of normal hours and publish new observations to better understand the role that they play in maintaining ecosystems."

The researchers emphasized that understanding more about the behavior of bee species will help inform strategies to protect them from the impacts of climate change.

"Global weather patterns are changing and temperatures in many parts of Australia are rising along with the risk of prolonged droughts and fires. So, we have to improve our understanding about insects pollinating at night or in milder parts of the day to avoid potential extinction risks or to mitigate loss of pollination services."

"This also means we have to highlight the species that operate in a narrow window of time and could be sensitive to climatic changes, so conservation becomes an important concern. Because quite frankly, we have ignored these species up until now."

The study is published in the <a href="https://jhr.pensoft.net/">Journal of Hymenoptera Research</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Australian bees adapted their vision to forage at night

Ecology researchers at Flinders University have discovered two Australian bee...

Two groups of Chinook salmon in northern California that have distinctly different migratory patterns are often considered to be separate species. But now, a new study from <a href="https://www.ucsc.edu/">UC Santa Cruz</a> reveals that seemingly complex differences in these salmon can be traced to one simple region of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/frogs-thought-to-be-extinct-have-been-detected-using-environmental-dna/">DNA</a>.

Chinook salmon within a drainage basin like the Klamath River are characterized as separate ecotypes depending on whether they migrate during spring runs or fall runs. Scientists expected that these groups had diverged from one another due to a lack of interbreeding, resulting in complex genetic differences. 

The new study shows that the salmon do not have complex genetic differences after all, and are all part of a single diverse population. The only DNA that they do not share is a small genomic region that was found to be strongly associated with run timing, but not with other traits like development.

"It's like blue and brown eye color in humans - it just depends on what genotype you inherit from your parents," said study co-author Professor John Carlos Garza. He noted that the outcome of the research is very good news. 

The findings provide scientists with a new way to understand salmon ecotypes and will ultimately help in the management and conservation of Chinook salmon, the largest species of salmon. 

For the investigation, the experts sequenced the complete genomes of 160 Chinook salmon from the Klamath River and Sacramento River drainages. The only consistent differences between spring-run and fall-run fish were found within a single region on chromosome 28. Here, they identified a shorter "Region of Strongest Association" (RoSA) that occurs in two versions, "E" for early migration and "L" for late migration.

Next, the researchers sampled 502 Chinook salmon harvested by the Yurok Tribe in the Klamath River Estuary. There was no overlap in the timing of migration for fish with the "homozygous" EE and LL genotypes. EE fish migrate in the spring, and LL fish migrate in the fall. Fish with the "heterozygous" EL genotype had intermediate migration times, overlapping with those of the homozygous genotypes. 

According to Professor Garza, these results show that seasonal differences in migration are completely attributable to the RoSA genetic variants. "That was an extraordinary finding. I know of no other gene region that so completely determines a complex migratory behavior in the wild in a vertebrate."

The discovery is particularly surprising because of the differences among spring-run and fall-run salmon in their fat content and other features. But in fact, said Professor Garza, all those differences are tied to the timing of migration as determined by the RoSA genotype.

"Spring-run and fall-run fish all start maturing at the same time in the ocean, but during that period after the spring run enters freshwater, they experience different environmental conditions, leading to differences in where and when they spawn," said Professor Garza. "Also, people notice differences in fat content and body condition because they are encountering spring-run fish earlier in the maturation process than fall-run fish."

The analysis of carcasses from the Salmon River, a major tributary of the Klamath, revealed that the spring-run and fall-run salmon were freely interbreeding. 

"It's hard to come up with any scenario where you could classify individuals from the same nest as belonging to different populations," said Professor Garza. "For me, one of the underlying messages is that, in our attempt to categorize things, we've overlooked the fact that these are fundamentally the same animal."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

&nbsp;

Distinctly different Chinook salmon are part of the same population

Two groups of Chinook salmon in northern California that have...

Scientists have discovered that ogre-faced spiders can actually hear their <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/top-predators-face-the-most-imminent-threat-from-habitat-loss/">predators</a> and prey, despite the fact that they have no ears. In a study published by <a href="https://www.cell.com/">Cell Press</a>, the experts report that these spiders use hairs and receptors on their legs to detect sounds from at least two meters away. 

Ogre-faced spiders are named after their huge eyes that give them remarkable night vision for seeking out prey. The spiders dangle from Florida palm fronds, waiting to cast silk nets on insects.

The findings suggest that the big-eyed spiders can hear low-frequency sounds from insect prey as well as higher frequency sounds from bird predators.

Study senior author Ron Hoy is a professor of Neurobiology and Behavior at <a href="https://www.cornell.edu/">Cornell University</a>.

"I think many spiders can actually hear, but everybody takes it for granted that spiders have a sticky web to catch prey, so they're only good at detecting close vibrations," said Professor Hoy. "Vibration detection works for sensing shaking of the web or ground, but detecting those airborne disturbances at a distance is the province of hearing, which is what we do and what spiders do too, but they do it with specialized receptors, not eardrums."

After hiding out during the daylight hours, ogre-faced spiders prepare to use their webs as a weapon at night. Instead of passively waiting for prey to get stuck, the spiders dangle out of the trees and throw their web over insects like a net. 

These stealthy spiders use their night vision to catch insects on the ground, but they also catch insects in the air with a skillful backwards strike. 

"In a previous study, I actually put dental silicone over their eyes so they couldn't see," said study first author Jay Stafstrom. "And I found that when I put them back out into nature, they couldn't catch prey from off the ground, but they could still catch insects from out of the air. So I was pretty sure these spiders were using a different sensory system to hunt flying insects."

The current study confirmed that ogre-faced spiders have an incredible audible range. The researchers measured the neural response of the spiders as they were exposed to different tones. The experiment revealed that they could detect sounds of up to 10 kHz in frequency, which is far higher than the sounds of a walking or flying insect.

"When I played low tone frequencies, even from a distance, they would strike like they were hunting an insect, which they don't do for higher frequencies," said Stafstrom. "And the fact that we were able to do that from a distance, knowing we're not getting up close and causing them to vibrate. That was key to knowing they can really hear."

Detecting higher frequencies may help the spiders stay alert when hiding out from birds and other predators.

"If you give an animal a threatening stimulus, we all know about the fight or flight response. Invertebrates have that too, but the other 'f' is 'freeze.' That's what these spiders do," said Professor Hoy. "They're in a cryptic posture. Their nervous system is in a sleep state. But as soon as they pick up any kind of salient stimulus, boom, that turns on the neuromuscular system. It's a selective attention system."

Next, the researchers plan to investigate whether ogre-faced spiders can tell which direction sounds are coming from. If they can hear directionally, this could help explain how they pull off their impressive backwards strike.

"What I found really amazing is that to cast their net at flying bugs they have to do a half backflip and spread their web at the same time, so they're essentially playing centerfield," said Professor Hoy. "Directional hearing is a big deal in any animal, but I think there are really going to be some interesting surprises from this spider."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Ogre-faced spiders may not have ears, but they can hear

Scientists have discovered that ogre-faced spiders can actually hear their...

Researchers at <a href="https://www.harvard.edu/">Harvard University</a> are sharing intriguing new details about how octopuses can "taste" by using their tentacles to touch objects along the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/organisms-beneath-the-seafloor-barely-need-energy-for-life/">seafloor</a>. The scientists investigated the nervous system of octopuses on a molecular level to gain a better understanding of how sensors located within their suction-cup covered tentacles actually work. 

The experts have identified a previously unknown family of sensory cells inside the suction cups that have evolved to detect molecules that do not dissolve well in water. The sensors, called chemotactile receptors, rely on the poorly soluble molecules to determine what type of object the suckers are touching and whether or not it is prey.

"We think because the molecules do not solubilize well, they could, for instance, be found on the surface of octopuses' prey and whatever the animals touch," said study senior author Professor Nicholas Bellono. "So, when the octopus touches a rock versus a crab, now its arm knows, 'OK, I'm touching a crab [because] I know there's not only touch but there's also this sort of taste.'"

The researchers also found variation in the types of objects that triggered a response from the receptors, as well as in the signals that were transmitted from the receptors to the nervous system.

"We think that this is important because it could facilitate complexity in what the octopus senses and also how it can process a range of signals using its semi-autonomous arm nervous system to produce complex behaviors," explained Professor Bellono.

Study co-author Peter B. Kilian said that the strategies used by octopuses to solve problems in their environment are unique to them, which inspires a great deal of interest from both scientists and non-scientists. "People are drawn to octopuses and other cephalopods because they are wildly different from most other animals."

The team set out to determine how the receptors are able to sense chemicals and detect signals in what they touch, such as a tentacle around a snail. 

Octopus arms contain about two-thirds of the body's neurons, yet they can partially operate independently from the brain. This is why, if an octopus arm is severed, it can still reach for, identify, and grasp items.

When the experts conducted experiments to pinpoint which cells in the suckers are responsible for detecting objects, they were surprised to find that only the poorly soluble molecules activated the receptors.

In the lab, the researchers confirmed that the only odorants that activated the chemotactile receptors were a non-dissolving class of naturally occurring chemicals known as terpenoid molecules.

"The octopus was highly responsive to only the part of the floor that had the molecule infused," said Professor Bellono. This led the researchers to believe that the receptors they identified pick up on these types of molecules and help the octopus distinguish what it's touching. "With the semi-autonomous nervous system, it can quickly make this decision: 'Do I contract and grab this crab or keep searching?'"

According to the study authors, further research is needed to explore a great number of natural compounds that could also stimulate these receptors to control complex behaviors. "We're now trying to look at other natural molecules that these animals might detect," said Professor Bellono.

The researchers believe the findings can help uncover similar receptor systems in other cephalopods. They hope to determine how these systems work on a molecular level and how they evolved.

"Not much is known about marine chemotactile behavior and with this receptor family as a model system, we can now study which signals are important for the animal and how they can be encoded," said study lead author Lena van Giesen. "These insights into protein evolution and signal coding go far beyond just cephalopods."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/">Cell</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Scientists discover how octopuses can taste with their tentacles

Researchers at Harvard University are sharing intriguing new details about...

Scientists have made the unexpected discovery that <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/male-baboons-live-longer-when-they-have-female-friends/">male</a> fin whales exchange songs. The findings are surprising considering that prior to this research, it was believed that fin whales stick to just one song pattern that is unique to the males of each group.

The study, which is published by <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/">Frontiers</a>, suggests that the whales sing multiple songs that are spread throughout the ocean by migrating individuals. 

The fin whale, the world's second largest mammal, is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Up until several decades ago, their numbers were greatly depleted by commercial whaling. Today, the biggest threat to fin whales comes from vessel strikes. 

By studying their complex singing behavior, scientists gain new insight into how fin whale populations move and evolve over time, which can help efforts to protect them.

"There is still a lot of uncertainty around the fin whale population size and structure in the North Pacific, and so learning about the song could help us understand population dynamics in this region much better," said Dr. Tyler Helble of the <a href="https://www.public.navy.mil/navwar/NIWC-Pacific">Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific</a>. 

"Male fin whales in the Pacific sing just two very low notes, which are produced in different rhythms to create song. Previously, some marine mammal scientists thought that fin whales each sang a single pattern of notes, which was found only within their specific group and region. Our research indicates that fin whale song is more complex than this."

Over six years, the team used underwater microphones, or hydrophones, to record the songs and locations of 115 whale encounters near Kauai, Hawaii.

"The sound is recorded on multiple hydrophones, allowing us to triangulate on the signal and formulate a position for the animal," said Dr. Regina Guazzo. "By showing that different song patterns were coming from the same location, we demonstrated that these were likely made by the same individual."

The recordings captured five main song patterns. Some of the songs were found to be unique to this region, but others shared similarities with song patterns recorded several years earlier in populations off the northwest coast of the United States. 

"When a new whale song is recorded in a region, researchers often read it as a signal that a new group or individual has arrived from a different part of the world," said Dr. Guazzo. "However, this study suggests that these new song patterns may have been picked up by a local whale on his migratory travels, in a process of cultural transmission between groups from different regions".

The scientists could use additional methods of monitoring to confirm whether the fin whales recorded in Hawaii are from a single group or multiple converging groups.

"Visual identification, genetic analyses, or long-duration tags could be used to determine where these whales go when they are not singing off Kauai," said Dr. Helble.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/marine-science">Frontiers in Marine Science</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Fin whales pick up on new songs as they migrate

Scientists have made the unexpected discovery that male fin whales...

In a new study from the <a href="https://www.coralcoe.org.au/">ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies</a>, scientists report that by leaving more big <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/fish-swim-in-schools-to-save-energy/">fish</a> in the ocean, the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) released into Earth's atmosphere can be reduced. 

"Contrary to most terrestrial organisms, which release their carbon into the atmosphere after death, carcasses of large marine fish sink and sequester carbon in the deep ocean. Yet, fisheries have extracted a massive amount of this 'blue carbon,' contributing to additional atmospheric CO2 emissions," explained the study authors.

"Here, we focus on a previously underrecognized pathway of carbon sequestration by fish: their capacity to sequester carbon in the deep sea after their natural death. More precisely, we estimate how catching large fish from the ocean may have affected this carbon sequestration potential through the sinking of dead fish carcasses."

When a fish dies in the ocean, it sinks to the seafloor along with all of the carbon it contains, where it is absorbed by oceanic sediments and stored as blue carbon.

"But when a fish is caught, the carbon it contains is partly emitted into the atmosphere as CO2 a few days or weeks after," said study lead author Gaël Mariani.

The unprecedented research shows that ocean fisheries have released at least 730 million metric tons of CO2 into the atmosphere since 1950. "Like any other food production sector, fishing also emits CO2 by consuming and burning fuel. In the fishing sector, fuel consumption represents the majority of its carbon footprint," wrote the researchers.

Study co-author Professor David Mouillot said the carbon footprint of fisheries is 25 percent higher than previous industry estimates.

"Fishing boats produce greenhouse gases by consuming fuel," said Professor Mouillot. "And now we know that extracting fish releases additional CO2 that would otherwise remain captive in the ocean."

Large fish like tuna, sharks, mackerel, and swordfish are made up of about 10 to 15 percent carbon.

"When these fish die, they sink rapidly," explained Professor Mouillot. "As a result, most of the carbon they contain is sequestered at the bottom of the sea for thousands or even millions of years. They are therefore carbon sinks - the size of which has never been estimated before."

Professor Mouillot said this natural phenomenon, a blue carbon pump, has been increasingly and greatly disrupted by industrial fishing.

According to the researchers, the disruptions are mainly taking place in areas where fishing is not economically profitable - in the Central Pacific, South Atlantic, and North Indian Oceans.

"Fishing boats sometimes go to very remote areas - with enormous fuel consumption - even though the fish caught in these areas are not profitable and fishing is only viable thanks to subsidies," said Mariani.

The study authors noted that the findings strongly support the need for more reasonable fishing. "We need to fish better," said Professor Mouillot.

 "The annihilation of the blue carbon pump represented by large fish suggests new protection and management measures must be put in place, so that more large fish can remain a carbon sink and no longer become an additional CO2 source," said Mariani. "And in doing so we further reduce CO2 emissions by burning less fuel."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://advances.sciencemag.org/">Science Advances</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Leaving big fish in the ocean greatly reduces CO2 emissions

In a new study from the ARC Centre of Excellence...

Scientists have discovered an ancient marine reptile that used a flat tail and a buoyant build to float motionless in the water, where it could sneak attack unsuspecting prey with fang-like teeth. The reptile species, which is now known as Brevicaudosaurus jiyangshanensis, lived about 240 million years ago during the Triassic period when reptiles dominated the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/changes-in-ocean-circulation-linked-to-drastic-rise-in-co2-levels/">ocean</a>.

A team of paleontologists led by the <a href="http://english.cas.cn/">Chinese Academy of Sciences</a> examined two skeletons recovered from a thin layer of limestone in southwest China. The specimens were identified as nothosaurs - marine reptiles with a small head, long neck, and flipper-like limbs. These reptiles typically had long tails, but B. jiyangshanensis stood out as an exception. 

"Our analysis of two well-preserved skeletons reveals a reptile with a broad, pachyostotic body (denser boned) and a very short, flattened tail. A long tail can be used to flick through the water, generating thrust, but the new species we've identified was probably better suited to hanging out near the bottom in shallow sea, using its short, flattened tail for balance, like an underwater float, allowing it to preserve energy while searching for prey," said Dr. Qing-Hua Shang.

The most complete skeleton, which was found in Jiyangshan quarry, is just under 60 centimeters long. The forelimbs were found to be better developed than the hind limbs, indicating that they played a role in helping the reptile swim. However, the bones in the animal's front feet were rather short compared to other marine reptiles, which would have limited the power that B. jiyangshanensis had to pull through the water. 

According to the researchers, what this reptile lacked in speed was gained in balance. B. jiyangshanensis had thick bones that would have provided stability. 

In addition, greater bone density may have made the animals neutrally buoyant in shallow water. Combined with a flat tail, this buoyancy would have helped the lizard-like predator to float motionless underwater while using up very little energy.

There is also evidence that B. jiyangshanensis had large lungs, which would have increased the time it could spend underwater.

"Perhaps this small, slow-swimming marine reptile had to be vigilante for large predators as it floated in the shallows, as well as being a predator itself," said study co-author Dr. Xiao-Chun Wu.

The study is published in the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ujvp20">Journal of Vertebrate Palaeontology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Ancient marine predator could float motionless in the water

Scientists have discovered an ancient marine reptile that used a...

Habitat loss will have the most immediate impact on the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/animals-who-have-suffered-from-hunger-will-take-more-risks/">animals</a> at the top of the food chain, according to new research from <a href="https://liu.se/en">Linköping University</a>. The scientists used computer simulations to predict the effect of habitat loss on various ecosystems and found that the top predators will be wiped out first. 

Humans are transforming natural landscapes for agriculture, development, and industry at an unsustainable rate. These land use changes pose major threats to animals through habitat loss. Climate change adds even more pressure, as habitats that were historically suitable for certain species are now becoming uninhabitable. 

"We can reach two important conclusions from our study. The first is that initiatives to preserve biological diversity must preserve habitat and not only focus on a particular species. It is very important to consider the interactions between the ecosystem's species by looking at the food web - which animals and plants are eaten by which other animals. The second conclusion is that the order in which habitats disappear has a profound significance," explained study co-author Anna Eklöf.

The researchers used computer simulations to study ecological networks, which represent how the various species in an ecosystem interact with each other. The model was designed to distinguish between suitable and unsuitable habitats.

Within the suitable habitat patches, plant and animal species are connected to each other in a food web. The survival of any given animal depends on the availability of their prey in the same vicinity.

Habitats are often fragmented by barriers such as busy roads with heavy traffic that do not allow the animals to move freely. The more difficult that dispersal becomes across a habitat, the more likely it is that a species will vanish from the ecological network, which threatens the survival of other species. 

The Linköping researchers used their model to analyze a large number of simulated networks involving hundreds of species. To investigate how ecosystems are affected by habitat loss, they ranked the habitat patches in order of how important they are for species at the bottom of the food chain. 

Next, the team simulated three different scenarios to represent how habitat loss can occur, with either the least important habitat patches lost first, the most important patches lost first, or with the patches removed in a random order. When humans construct roads or buildings without considering how valuable the region is for different species, the habitat loss usually occurs in a random order. 

"In our model, the species at the upper levels of the food chain die out first when habitat patches are lost. What surprised us was that the damage to the ecosystem was almost the same when patches were lost in a random order as when the most valuable patches were lost first," said study co-author György Barabás.

According to the researchers, the significance of various habitats patches must be given more consideration if humans want to protect ecosystems and prevent species from becoming extinct, especially those at the top of the food chain. They noted that the impacts of habitat loss could be minimized by simply strengthening connections between patches.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/14610248">Ecology Letters</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy</a>

Top predators face the most imminent threat from habitat loss

Habitat loss will have the most immediate impact on the...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that scientists never expected.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hidden-waters-beneath-ancient-craters">Hidden waters beneath ancient craters</h2>



Scientists have made a startling discovery that challenges everything we thought we knew about <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/saturn-moon-mimas-has-remarkably-young-ocean/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Saturn's moon Mimas</a>. Beneath the heavily cratered surface that earned it the nickname "Death Star" lies a global ocean that formed just 5 to 15 million years ago—a remarkably young age by cosmic standards.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cassini-data-reveals-orbital-secrets">Cassini data reveals orbital secrets</h2>



The discovery, led by Dr. Valéry Lainey of the <a href="https://observatoiredeparis.psl.eu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Observatoire de Paris</a>, emerged from careful analysis of <a href="https://www.nasa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NASA</a>'s Cassini spacecraft data. By studying subtle irregularities in Mimas's orbit around Saturn, researchers detected the gravitational signature of liquid water hidden 20 to 30 kilometers beneath the moon's icy shell.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-an-unlikely-ocean-world">An unlikely ocean world</h2>



At only 400 kilometers in diameter, Mimas seemed like the least likely candidate to harbor a subsurface ocean. Unlike other ocean moons such as Europa and Enceladus, which show clear surface signs of internal activity, Mimas displays no obvious hints of the liquid water beneath its ancient, crater-scarred exterior.



"Mimas is a small moon, and its heavily cratered surface gave no hint of the hidden ocean beneath," explained Dr. Nick Cooper from <a href="https://www.qmul.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Queen Mary University of London</a>, a study co-author.



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



The ocean's recent formation makes Mimas a prime target for studying how oceans develop and potentially support life. This discovery adds another member to the exclusive club of ocean worlds in our solar system, each offering unique insights into the conditions necessary for habitability.



The research, published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a> journal, demonstrates how advanced orbital analysis can reveal hidden features of celestial bodies, opening new possibilities for understanding ocean formation throughout the cosmos.



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Scientists discover unexpected young ocean on Saturn's cratered moon Mimas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ 'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y4eLFNYrKE
</div></figure>



On the unforgiving landscape of North Greenland, temperatures drop and sunlight barely penetrates through the polar winter. It was here, however, that an international team of scientists found <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/predatory-worms-were-terror-beasts-half-a-billion-years-ago/#google_vignette" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">evidence of sea monsters</a> that would change our understanding of ocean life in the past.



This video captures the discovery of Timorebestia fossils that had been hidden for more than 500 million years in the Sirius Passet formation. The "terror beasts," as they are called, are a hidden chapter in the evolutionary history of <a href="https://www.earth.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Earth</a>, showing that sophisticated predator-prey interactions occurred much earlier than previously envisioned.



Dr. Jakob Vinther and his research team at the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Bristol</a>, in collaboration with researchers at the <a href="https://eng.kopri.re.kr/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Korean Polar Research Institute</a>, braved extreme weather conditions at 82.5 north latitude to locate these giant creatures. Using sophisticated electron microprobe analysis, they revealed the detailed anatomy of the animals, including their muscle and nerve tissues.



The find upsets the traditional timeline of sea predators. Although we've long appreciated that Cambrian oceans were at one time ruled by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWI3-UgA3_o&amp;list=PL1QLQMW9MWDwpkFOnvgAmu7wT6rZmYqdJ&amp;index=19" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">arthropods</a>, these discoveries indicate that relatives of arrow worms were first to dominate the seas. These worms were building sophisticated food webs several million years before other predator groups arose.



Each fossil is a story of ancient hunger, with fossil stomach contents revealing these meter-long beasts dined on heavily armored arthropods regularly, cementing their place as the ocean's first apex predators.



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Worms dominated seas before dinosaurs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y4eLFNYrKE On the unforgiving landscape of North Greenland, temperatures drop...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow3JH03PqEQ
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">New York is the site of the world's oldest forest.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-385-million-year-old-trees-discovered">385-million-year-old trees discovered</h2>



Scientists have uncovered something extraordinary just two hours north of New York City. The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/worlds-oldest-forest-discovered-close-to-new-york-city/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">world's oldest forest</a>, dating back 385 million years, offers a window into how Earth's first complex forests shaped our planet's atmosphere.



Located near <a href="https://townofcairo.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cairo, New York</a>, in Greene County, these weren't merely primitive plants struggling to survive. These were sophisticated trees with root systems remarkably similar to modern forests. This ancient woodland predates dinosaurs by 140 million years.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-cairo-forest-discovery">The Cairo forest discovery</h2>



385 million years ago, upstate New York was a tropical paradise near the equator. Thanks to continental drift, this ancient forest has traveled thousands of miles to its current location.



The fossil forest sits in an abandoned quarry, roughly half the size of a football field. This represents just a slice of what was likely a massive forest system stretching from New York into Pennsylvania.



Charles Ver Straeten, curator of sedimentary rocks at the <a href="https://www.nysm.nysed.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">New York State Museum</a>, made the discovery in 2009. While scouting the former highway department property, his trained eye spotted wandering patterns in the stone that looked like marine features.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-revolutionary-age-and-preservation">Revolutionary age and preservation</h2>



The site contains 385-million-year-old rocks with fossilized woody roots forming horizontal patterns up to 18 feet (5.5 meters) wide. As Christopher Berry, a paleobotanist at Cardiff University, explains: "You are walking through the roots of ancient trees."



This discovery pushes back advanced tree evolution by millions of years. The research, published in <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Current Biology</a> in December 2019, fundamentally changes our understanding of when complex forests first emerged.



Researchers believe a massive flood buried the forest floor, creating perfect fossilization conditions. Over millions of years, sediment hardened into rock, preserving these root patterns like nature's time capsule.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meet-archaeopteris-the-first-modern-tree">Meet Archaeopteris: the first modern tree</h2>



The star of this ancient forest is Archaeopteris – not to be confused with the feathered dinosaur Archaeopteryx. This tree was far older and more revolutionary.



William Stein from <a href="https://www.binghamton.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Binghamton University</a> describes the roots as "strikingly modern, essentially what you'd see outside in my yard right now." These weren't simple root systems you'd expect from ancient plants.



Some fossilized roots are six inches (15 centimeters) in diameter, forming 36-foot-wide (11-meter) patterns. These giants grew up to 65 feet (20 meters) tall with five-foot-diameter (1.5-meter) trunks.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-climate-changing-impact">Climate-changing impact</h2>



These trees fundamentally changed Earth's environment. Kevin Boyce, a Stanford University geoscientist, explains how their deep roots triggered "weathering," chemical reactions that pulled carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.



This process dropped atmospheric CO2 levels from 10-15 times higher than today to roughly modern concentrations. These ancient trees helped create atmospheric conditions that made complex life possible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ancient-forest-ecosystem">Ancient forest ecosystem</h2>



The forest was remarkably diverse. Scientists identified Eospermatopteris, palm tree-like plants with short roots that reached 30 feet (9 meters) tall but lacked woody structure. The forest also housed cladoxylopsids and a mysterious third species still being studied.



All reproduced through spores rather than seeds – millions of years before seeds evolved. This tropical environment had no grass, flowers, or flying insects, just towering trees creating Earth's first complex forest canopy.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scientific-significance">Scientific significance</h2>



Before this finding, the Gilboa forest, located 25 miles (40 kilometers) away, held the "oldest forest" title. Cairo's trees are 2-3 million years older, showing that complex forest ecosystems developed much faster than scientists believed possible.



Patricia Gensel, a <a href="https://www.unc.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of North Carolina</a> paleobotanist, notes: "The size of those root systems is really changing the picture. Even 20 years ago, researchers assumed trees with such complex root systems didn't evolve so early."



The Cairo site presents three unique root systems, suggesting Devonian period forests were diverse ecosystems with different trees occupying different environmental niches, much like today's forests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-modern-preservation-efforts">Modern preservation efforts</h2>



In 2022, New York State Senator Michelle Hinchey secured a $170,000 grant for the town of Cairo to construct specialized fencing around the fossil forest site. The town plans to conduct a feasibility study exploring the possibility of creating an educational center and working lab on-site.



Joe Hasenkopf, chair of the Cairo Planning Board, hopes to partner with educational institutions to create a research facility serving scientists, students, and the public.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lessons-for-today-s-climate">Lessons for today's climate</h2>



Why does a 385-million-year-old forest matter today? It shows how dramatically forests can change Earth's climate. These ancient woodlands created the atmospheric conditions supporting complex life.



Understanding how prehistoric forests transformed the planet helps us appreciate modern forests' critical role in addressing climate change. Forests remain Earth's most effective carbon capture systems.



These prehistoric trees changed Earth's atmosphere by pulling massive amounts of carbon dioxide from the air. As we face modern climate challenges, this ancient forest reminds us of trees' incredible power to transform our planet's environment.



The next time you walk through a forest, remember you're experiencing an ecosystem whose blueprint was established 385 million years ago in upstate New York. These ancient pioneers didn't just survive – they thrived and changed the world forever.



The full study was published in the journal Current Biology.



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Earth's oldest forest found in the United States

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow3JH03PqEQ New York is the site of the world's oldest...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Acid rain and a crisis solved.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-don-t-we-ever-hear-about-acid-rain-anymore-the-environmental-crisis-that-was-solved">Why don't we ever hear about "acid rain" anymore? The environmental crisis that was solved</h2>



Remember the 1980s when acid rain dominated headlines? Dire warnings about rain eating buildings, killing fish, and destroying forests filled every news cycle. Then, almost like magic, acid rain vanished from public discourse. What happened? Did we actually solve one of the late 20th century's most pressing environmental challenges?



The answer might surprise you. Unlike many environmental issues that drag on indefinitely, acid rain represents one of modern history's most successful ecological recovery stories. It's a tale of science, politics, and technology working together to tackle what seemed impossible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What was acid rain?</h2>



Acid rain isn't regular rain having a bad day – it's precipitation that became significantly more acidic due to air pollution. When power plants, factories, and vehicles burn fossil fuels, they release sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) into the atmosphere.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The science behind it</h2>



Think of acid rain as nature's chemistry experiment gone wrong. These compounds react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form sulfuric and nitric acids. When mixed with water vapor in clouds, they create precipitation with dangerously low pH levels.



While clean rain has a pH of about 5.6, acid rain could drop as low as 4.2 to 4.4 – roughly as acidic as tomato juice or coffee. According to US Geological Survey documentation, Scottish chemist Angus Smith first coined "acid rain" in 1872, but it didn't become a household phrase until the 1960s and 1970s when Swedish scientist Svante Odén documented its devastating effects on Scandinavian lakes and European forests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The crisis at its peak</h2>



During the height of public concern, environmental damage was both widespread and visible. This wasn't some abstract future threat – people could see destruction happening in real-time.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Environmental devastation</h2>



The most dramatic impacts were impossible to ignore. Research documented by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation shows that in the Adirondack Mountains, more than 200 lakes became so acidic they couldn't support fish life. The Adirondack Council reports that 409 lakes once supported brook trout, but many lost their fish populations due to acid rain.



By 1976, when scientists cataloged all acidified lakes in the Adirondack Park, researchers found that half of the lakes over 2,000 feet above sea level had no fish, according to studies published in environmental journals. The acidification process worked like a slow-motion disaster. As acid rain fell into watersheds, it gradually lowered pH levels. Fish couldn't survive in acidic water, and their food sources died off too.



Trees at high elevations showed stress directly linked to acid rain. It weakened them by leaching nutrients and making them susceptible to disease. Historical records show Germany's Black Forest saw nearly half its trees damaged by the mid-1980s.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Economic impact</h2>



Acid rain wasn't just environmental – it was expensive. Acidic precipitation corroded infrastructure, buildings, and monuments. Historic stone structures deteriorated at accelerated rates. Tourism suffered as lakes became fishless and forests declined. EPA economic analyses from the period documented repair costs mounting into billions annually.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The solution: government action and technology</h2>



Transformation from crisis to success required unprecedented cooperation between governments, industries, and environmental groups.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Clean Air Act of 1990</h2>



The turning point came with the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, signed by President George H.W. Bush. This represented a fundamentally new approach to environmental regulation, as documented in EPA historical records.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cap-and-trade success</h2>



Instead of mandating specific technologies, the 1990 amendments introduced something revolutionary: a cap-and-trade system for sulfur dioxide emissions. EPA program documentation shows this market-based approach set overall limits but allowed companies to trade emission allowances.



The genius was harnessing market forces to find cost-effective pollution reduction. Companies reducing emissions cheaply could sell excess allowances to those facing higher costs. Research published in environmental economics journals and EPA progress reports shows this resulted in dramatic SO2 reduction at a fraction of projected costs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Technology advances</h2>



Policy provided the framework, but technology made reductions possible. Studies in atmospheric science journals document the widespread adoption of flue gas desulfurization systems ("scrubbers") that removed sulfur dioxide before it reached the atmosphere. By the 2000s, new installations could remove over 95% of SO2 emissions, according to EPA technical reports.



The push coincided with cleaner energy development. Natural gas produces fewer sulfur compounds than coal. Wind and solar, emerging in the 1990s, captured growing market share, reducing reliance on high-sulfur coal.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-we-don-t-hear-about-it-today">Why we don't hear about it today</h2>



Why did acid rain disappear from headlines? Simple: the problem was largely solved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Success doesn't make news</h2>



There's an old journalism saying: "If it bleeds, it leads." Environmental success stories don't generate urgency like crisis reporting. Media attention shifted to other challenges: climate change, plastic pollution, and biodiversity loss. There's only so much environmental anxiety the public can absorb, and newer concerns replaced acid rain.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mission accomplished</h2>



The primary reason is beautifully simple: interventions worked. EPA monitoring data shows sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990. Academic research published in environmental science journals confirms pH levels in formerly affected areas returned closer to normal. This represents one of history's most dramatic environmental recoveries. Studies by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation show fishless lakes now support healthy populations. Forests recovered, and building damage slowed dramatically.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-is-it-really-gone">Is it really gone?</h2>



The crisis is largely resolved, but monitoring data shows the problem isn't completely eliminated – it's managed to acceptable levels. Some areas still experience occasional events during high pollution periods. International environmental research indicates that rapidly industrializing Asian countries face similar problems to what we experienced decades ago, though they're implementing successful strategies.



EPA research shows nitrogen oxide emissions proved more challenging than sulfur dioxide, coming from vehicles and mobile sources. Climate science studies suggest changing weather patterns add complexity to how acid rain forms and falls.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What this teaches us</h2>



The acid rain experience proves that seemingly intractable environmental problems can be solved with scientific understanding, political will, and technological innovation. Environmental monitoring data shows recovery speed was remarkable – within a decade, measurable improvements appeared in air quality and ecosystem health.



Success came from bipartisan support across party lines. Policy analysis studies show the market-based approach appealed to those preferring economic incentives while achieving environmental goals. This support created lasting policy surviving political changes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Conclusion</h2>



Acid rain's disappearance from public consciousness represents environmental science's greatest success stories. Through effective regulation, technological innovation, and international cooperation, we transformed an overwhelming crisis into a manageable challenge.



Today's silence isn't because we forgot – it's because we solved it. The 1990 Clean Air Act, combined with technology and energy market changes, reduced acid rain emissions over 90%, according to comprehensive EPA data analysis.



This success offers hope for current challenges. It proves complex problems can be solved when science, policy, and technology work together. As we face climate change and plastic pollution, acid rain reminds us that dramatic positive change is possible.



Next time someone asks whether environmental regulations work, remember acid rain. It's proof that sometimes, we get it right.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Sources: This article draws from EPA official documentation and progress reports, peer-reviewed research published in environmental and atmospheric science journals, historical data from the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation records, US Geological Survey publications, policy analysis studies, and environmental monitoring data collected over three decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Frequently Asked Questions</h2>



1. Is acid rain completely gone? No, but EPA monitoring shows it's reduced to manageable levels. US sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990, making acid rain much less severe than the 1980s crisis.



2. How long did solving take? Environmental monitoring data shows significant improvements began within 5-10 years of 1990s emission controls. Full ecosystem recovery took longer – some areas need 20-30 years for complete recovery.



3. What made the solution successful? Clear scientific understanding, visible damage motivating action, bipartisan support, available technology, and innovative market-based policies like cap-and-trade.



4. Do other countries have acid rain problems? Yes, particularly rapidly industrializing Asian countries. However, international environmental research shows many implement similar successful control strategies.



5. Could acid rain return? Potentially, if regulations weaken or we return to high-sulfur coal without controls, though effects would take years to become severe according to environmental projections.



6. Can you recommend any teaching tools on the subject of "acid rain"? The United States Environmental Protection Agency produced a wonderful teacher's guide for ages 14 and under that you can find on the EPA website here: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf</a>



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The environmental problem we actually solved

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk Acid rain and a crisis solved. Why don't we...

Fresh,Radish,Harvest,On,Soil,In,Garden.

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</div></figure>







Mid-July is an opportune time to kick-start a thriving fall garden, and this guide lays out the best vegetables and herbs to plant now for a fruitful autumn harvest. 



Fast-growing leafy greens such as spinach, lettuce, kale, and arugula perform especially well in the waning summer heat, with harvests beginning as soon as 30 days. 



These cool-season crops relish the transition into fall, offering repeated yields with cut-and-come-again methods.



Root vegetables like radishes, carrots, and beets also excel during this period. Radishes deliver satisfaction in under a month, while carrots and beets mature in about two months. Employing succession planting ensures a continuous stream of produce deep into the cooler months. 



For a boost of fresh flavor, herbs like cilantro, basil, dill, and chervil are excellent picks. These heat-loving varieties flourish in July’s warmth and are harvest-ready in about 30 days, especially when sown continuously.



Gardeners in zones 6 through 9 can benefit from planting bush beans and snap peas, which don’t require trellising and are ideal for compact plots. 



Maturing in 50–60 days, they’re a smart choice for quick, protein-rich harvests. For those in hotter regions, heat-tolerant crops such as okra and southern peas provide reliable yields and thrive in scorching conditions.



This guide emphasizes more than crop selection—it highlights the importance of timing, soil preparation, and ongoing sowing techniques. 



With thoughtful planning and attention to regional climate needs, even late-summer gardeners can enjoy fresh salads, hearty stews, and the satisfaction of a robust, homegrown harvest well into fall.



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What to plant in your garden in mid-July

https://youtu.be/Fi2OeEwuzRM?si=vTyd2m9FMmtyWkex Mid-July is an opportune time to kick-start a thriving...

Green,Ecoduct,Over,An,Empty,Highway,During,Sunset.

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</div></figure>



A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that wildlife tunnels significantly reduce amphibian road mortality during seasonal migrations. 



Frogs and salamanders often cross roads to reach breeding ponds each spring, but many are killed by vehicles. 



Researchers from the <a href="https://www.uvm.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Vermont</a>, in collaboration with local citizens and the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, installed two underpass tunnels in 2015. 



Over a 12-year monitoring period, they observed an 80.2% reduction in amphibian deaths, and up to 94% for non-climbing species like salamanders. 



The study used a before-after-control-impact design and documented more than 5,200 amphibians, highlighting the tunnels’ effectiveness even in nearby buffer zones.



Funded at $342,397 - far cheaper than wildlife crossings for large mammals - the project showcased the power of community-led conservation.



Local groups initiated the effort after observing mass amphibian deaths. Wildlife cameras later captured over 2,200 amphibians using a tunnel in just one spring, along with other species like raccoons and bobcats, indicating wider ecosystem benefits.



This marks the first peer-reviewed, long-term data set in the northeastern U.S. confirming amphibian-specific underpasses work. 



The study urges transportation departments to incorporate these designs into road planning and highlights how community action, thoughtful infrastructure, and persistence can make a real difference for biodiversity.



The full study was published in the <a href="https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1617138125000780" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal for Nature Conservation</a>.



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-----

Wildlife tunnels save millions of amphibians

https://youtu.be/XYgiPzmNBTU?si=eFYY7gPHU1JznLvU A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that...

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing it with probiotics and prebiotics, aiming to create a treat that satisfies cravings while supporting gut health. 



The challenge lies in maintaining chocolate's beloved texture and flavor while adding health benefits.



<figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://youtu.be/Ug657J67iEo?si=w96YjGMsg939LD_3
</div></figure>



Probiotics - beneficial microbes that balance gut bacteria and aid digestion - are typically fragile and can be destroyed by stomach acid or processing. 



Prebiotics act as food for these microbes, helping them thrive. Together, they form "synbiotics," a powerful health combination.



Researchers Smriti Gaur and Shubhi Singh from India's Jaypee Institute of Information Technology took an innovative approach, using natural prebiotics like corn and honey instead of complex processing methods. 



They created five chocolate varieties: a control and four synbiotic versions containing different combinations of prebiotics, probiotics (Lactobacillus strains), and flavor enhancers (cinnamon or orange).



Laboratory simulations of human digestion showed the probiotics remained viable for over five hours, suggesting they could survive long enough to benefit gut health.



Taste tests were positive, with researchers particularly enjoying the orange-flavored variety, describing it as having "vibrant citrus notes" complementing the "rich cocoa" with a "luxurious" texture.



This research represents just the beginning. With further refinement of strains, textures, and flavors, chocolate could evolve beyond mere indulgence to become a functional food that nourishes while it delights.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.4c00741" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ACS Food Science &amp; Technology</a>.

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing...

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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

[sendtonews key="0ynNMYkMKa-2340414-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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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



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.

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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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

[sendtonews key="3upvlAaHgO-2256633-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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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



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.

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"]</div>



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?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"]</div>



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

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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"

[sendtonews key="uV9Lh2fQbV-1760058-12187" type="single"] Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s...

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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

[sendtonews key="qjvhBOBnY8-2426650-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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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

[sendtonews key="oL4FnPTGCV-2384527-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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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



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 rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

[sendtonews key="0879czfG3k-1785905-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from NASA...

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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

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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"

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