More than half a billion years ago, a tiny ancestor of today’s arthropods scuttled along the floor of a shallow sea in what’s now Yunnan, China. It had large grasping arms, stalked eyes, and a surprisingly modern-looking brain tucked into a head barely wider than the tip of a pencil.



Now, a new look at this ancient fossil - Jianfengia multisegmentalis - is reshaping what scientists thought they knew about how these animals first branched into two major evolutionary paths.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-arthropods-rule-the-world">Arthropods rule the world</h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/most-people-think-insects-will-become-a-sustainable-food-source/">Insects</a>, spiders, crabs, centipedes - all of them are arthropods. This massive group includes more than a million known species. 



Arthropods live everywhere: in the ocean, on land, in the air, and even inside of other animals. Their tough exoskeletons, segmented bodies, and jointed legs have helped them survive and thrive for over 500 million years.



But one big puzzle has remained: where exactly did the two main branches of arthropods come from?



On one side, you have mandibulates - creatures like insects, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-invasive-crustacean-species-discovered-in-the-mediterranean/">crustaceans</a>, and millipedes, which have antennae and use jaws (or mandibles) to eat. On the other hand, chelicerates - spiders, scorpions, and horseshoe crabs - have fangs or pincers instead of jaws.



Until now, scientists weren’t sure when or how these two groups split. That’s where Jianfengia comes in.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-fossil-that-tells-a-different-story">A fossil that tells a different story</h2>



At first, Jianfengia was thought to belong to a group called megacheirans, meaning “large hands” in Greek. 



These extinct animals had long, claw-like limbs sticking out from their heads - similar to the claws of modern <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/horseshoe-crabs-view-the-world-through-compound-eyes/">horseshoe crabs</a>. Because of that, scientists had placed them in the chelicerate group.



But when researchers took a closer look at the fossilized brain of Jianfengia, they noticed something didn’t add up.



The research team, led by the <a href="https://www.arizona.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Arizona</a>, reconstructed the nervous system from four well-preserved specimens. 



What they found was unexpected: a brain that looked a lot like that of a modern shrimp or <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bright-coloration-in-crayfish-does-not-serve-an-evolutionary-purpose/">crayfish</a>. It even had features seen in simple freshwater crustaceans, like brine shrimp - the kind sold as “sea monkeys.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-ancestors-of-antennae">The ancestors of antennae </h2>



“These megacheirans didn't have antennules, which are antenna-like appendages that are common to crustaceans, insects and centipedes,” said lead researcher Nicholas Strausfeld, a professor in the U of A Department of Neuroscience. 



“Instead we see these strange, quite sturdy head appendages that were specialized for reaching and clasping things.”



Turns out, those big “claws” weren’t early versions of spider fangs after all. Instead, they were likely the ancestors of antennae - the kind found in today’s insects and crustaceans.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-seeing-with-ancient-eyes">Seeing with ancient eyes</h2>



Jianfengia’s head was only about 0.08 inches wide, but it packed in a lot of sensory power. It had stalked compound eyes, like those of insects and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/do-crabs-and-lobsters-have-emotions-and-feelings/">crabs</a>, plus at least three single-lens eyes - the simple kind also seen in many modern arthropods.



In one fossil, the researchers even looked inside the compound eyes and saw fossilized cone cells that once supported light-sensitive parts of the eye. 



“What we saw was unexpected: the brain looks really modern, comparable to that of a living crustacean,” Strausfeld said.



This level of detail is almost never seen in fossils this old. Soft tissues like brains usually break down long before they can fossilize. But thanks to the fine-grained rock and lucky conditions in this ancient seabed, a few rare specimens kept their delicate neural features.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ancient-cousins-go-separate-ways">Ancient cousins go separate ways</h2>



Another fossil - Alalcomenaeus - also belonged to the megacheiran group and had similar body parts. However, it turned out to be quite different on the inside. Its brain looked more like that of Limulus, the horseshoe crab, which is a chelicerate.



So even though these two creatures looked similar on the outside, their brains revealed that they were actually early members of different arthropod groups. One led to modern crustaceans and insects. The other led to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/giant-species-joro-spiders-has-invaded-the-united-states-heres-what-to-look-for/">spiders</a> and scorpions.



“Many repeats of these comparisons revealed that in the arthropod tree of life, Jianfengia sat at or near the root of all mandibulates, whereas its putative cousin, Alalcomenaeus, has the same status, but within the chelicerate branch of the tree of life,” said co-author David Andrew of Lycoming College.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-same-tools-different-outcomes">Same tools, different outcomes</h2>



The key body part in all of this are the large claws sticking out of the head. Over hundreds of millions of years, evolution shaped them into very different things.



“In chelicerates, these ‘great appendages’ shrunk, so they eventually became the spider fangs,” said Strausfeld. “In mandibulates, evolution modified them into segmented antennules.”



Some tiny marine crustaceans alive today - called ostracods - still have antennules tipped with claspers, offering living proof of this evolutionary transition.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-arthropods-from-the-inside-out">Arthropods from the inside out</h2>



Looking at a creature’s shell or limbs can tell scientists part of the story. But to really understand where an animal fits in the family tree, the brain may offer better clues.



“Our results demonstrate that close examination of fossilized neural remains can provide powerful data indicating evolutionary relationships impossible to obtain just from features of the exoskeleton,” Strausfeld said. 



“One needs to know what to look for in the fossil brain because it tells us a lot about a fossil’s identity.”



Frank Hirth, a co-author from King’s College London, noted that the organization of their fossilized brains perfectly aligns with that of living arthropods, suggesting that their ancient constituents are extraordinarily robust, yet diverse.



This may explain why arthropods are the most successful inhabitants of this planet, said Hirth.



Ultimately, the tiny brain of a long-dead sea creature has helped scientists solve one of the oldest mysteries in animal evolution - where the arthropod family tree began to branch.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-62849-w">Nature Communications</a>.



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Tiny fossil rewrites the giant arthropod family tree

More than half a billion years ago, a tiny ancestor of today’s arthropods scuttled along the floor of a shallow sea in what’s now Yunnan, China. It had large grasping arms, stalked eyes, and a surprisingly modern-looking brain tucked into a head barely wider than the tip of a pencil. Now, a new look at this ancient fossil - Jianfengia multisegmentalis - is reshaping what scientists thought they knew about how these animals first branched into two major evolutionary paths. Arthropods rule the world Insects, spiders, crabs,...

You may think you’ve been feeding puss perfectly with gourmet cat food twice a day – but scientists beg to differ and have outlined a new cat feeding schedule. The proper feeding schedule for your furry friend is actually closer to five bite-size meals a day, which more closely replicates how kitty dines in the wild.

Large meal sizes mean that our favorite pets are getting overweight and sluggish, and suffering from diseases like diabetes in their older years.

The new report suggests that:
<ul>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">Cats should be fed five times a day, which includes a night feed.</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">Dining on many small meals throughout the day stops cats from overeating.</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">Eating “little and often” replicates the way that cats naturally eat in the wild.</li>
</ul>
Chomping down on large-portioned meals means a cat overrides its inclination to stop eating when it feels full. As our feline companions are active after dark, scientists also suggest using timed feeders to assure cats get their energy after we go to bed. 

In addition to adopting the new cat feeding schedule the experts also suggested gamifying meal times to give the impression of a hunt. In the wild, cats can hunt for up to 12 hours a day. Without the stimulation of the hunt, cats become bored and frustrated, and engage in attention-seeking behaviours.

The scientists suggested creating “puzzle feeders” for the pets to help stimulate them mentally.

Puzzle feeders were the subject of a recent <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/loi/jfm">Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery</a> review. These nifty tools helped reduce feline stress, curbed weight loss, reduced aggressive behavior, and eliminated attention seeking. The same journal also advised to keep water bowls separate from food, as in the wild cats prefer to drink water far away from a food source. It is presumed that water near food is considered contaminated by the cats.

Feline behavior specialist Sarah Ellis said: “The way we feed our cats generally does not match the lifestyle they were designed for. Cats have undergone little in the way of selective breeding during the domestication process and therefore have an instinctive need to hunt. This modern lifestyle could be dangerous to pets, but by making a few simple changes to the way we feed them, we can help our cats to live longer, healthier and happier lives. The plan, based on scientific evidence, helps every cat owner mimic the conditions cats would usually contend with to get their food.”

This research and the subsequent cat feed plan was authored by Dr. Sarah Ellis and Dr. Lizzie Rowe for the charity <a href="http://www.icatcare.org/">International Cat Care</a>. You can read all their excellent tips for taking care of your nearest and dearest furry friend on their website. Follow this new cat feeding schedule and see your pussy prosper!

By Frances Levine/ Earth.com Editor-in-Chief

What's new pussycat? Science suggests new cat feeding schedule

You may think you’ve been feeding puss perfectly with gourmet...

The Asian shot hole borer has a name longer than it is. This tiny bug has a big appetite, though, and a new favorite food: avocado trees.

The little beetles are native to southeast Asia, but traveled to Los Angeles in 2003. More than a dozen years later, they’re expanding into other areas of Southern California.

Among those areas are the avocado tree orchards of Ventura County.

“Shot hole borers will bore into almost everything, including avocado trees, which is why they are getting a lot of attention,” graduate student Shelley Bennett said in a <a href="http://www.news.ucsb.edu/2017/017516/holy-guacamole">press release</a>. “But these beetles also affect many native tree species.”

Bennett works in the <a href="http://rivrlab.msi.ucsb.edu/">Riparian InVasion Research Laboratory</a> at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The lab studies invasive insect species, among other topics. One team has been tracking Asian shot hole borers in California.

The two species of shot hole borer seen in the state are tiny – usually less than a tenth of an inch. They have a big appetite, though.

Worse, both species of beetle carry a pathogenic fungus that causes a disease called Fusarium dieback.

For the beetles, the fungus is vital. It’s carried by pregnant females, who plant it beneath a tree’s bark before laying their eggs. The eggs hatch into larvae, which eat the fungus as they grow to adulthood.

Once they’re adults, each females collects some fungus of her own before heading out into the world.

But for trees that are susceptible to Fusarium dieback, the fungus that causes it is devastating. The disease affects the vascular systems of more than 130 tree species, cutting off the flow of nutrients that keep them alive.

Aside from the avocado trees, the beetle has been spotted in oak and sycamore trees in Santa Barbara County, and along the Santa Clara River which runs through parts of Southern California.

The spread of the invasive insects could lay waste to Southern California’s avocado groves, valued at more than $400 million.

Worse, they could cause damage to the state’s riparian habitats – natural areas along rivers that offer habitat for native animal and plant species.

The <a href="http://www.ucsb.edu/">UC Santa Barbara</a> researchers are working with scientists from the <a href="http://ucanr.edu/">UC Cooperative Extension</a>, the <a href="https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/">California Department of Food and Agriculture</a>, and other agencies to come up with a solution.

—

By Kyla Cathey / Earth.com staff writer

Tiny shot hole borers want our guacamole!

The Asian shot hole borer has a name longer than...

Chimps enjoy their casual flings, but when it’s time to settle down, they don’t want just any mate. Opposites attract, scientists said.

Researchers at <a href="http://www.tanzaniaparks.go.tz/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=28&amp;Itemid=186">Gombe National Park</a> in Tanzania have found that when it comes time to have babies, chimps want a mate who is as genetically different from themselves as possible.

The researchers ran DNA tests of feces from 150 chimpanzees to see how similar each male-female pair was. Not that similar, they found out.

While most wild animals appear to avoid breeding with close relatives, chimps take it a step farther.

They avoid not only their siblings and close cousins, but also strangers who are genetically similar, the researchers said.

The scientists aren’t sure yet how the chimps can tell. They think the primates may base their choices on appearance, smell, and the sounds they make, and how different they are from each other.

“Our results suggest that, as expected for a slowly reproducing species in which females invest heavily in each offspring and sometimes reside with close relatives, several mechanisms promote inbreeding avoidance and mate choice in chimpanzees,” they wrote in their study.

In other words, it’s quite literally a case of opposites attract.

The drive behind their choices may be a phenomenon called “inbreeding depression,” the scientists said.

In the rare cases where a chimpanzee does mate with a parent, sibling, or other close relative, the babies are less likely to survive to adulthood, the scientists said. That’s because inbreeding can allow recessive genes to be expressed, leading to health problems.

“Inbreeding can adversely affect fitness through numerous pathways, notably via early death or reproductive disadvantage,” the scientists wrote.

Usually, this is avoided by female chimps moving out of their family group once they reach their teen years.

But even among a new group of chimps she hasn’t met before, a female chimp is more likely to choose a genetically different mate, the scientists said. When tested, female chimpanzees who had migrated to a new group often had more genetic differences with their chosen mate than with other males in the group, they said.

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://rsos.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/4/1/160422">Royal Society Open Science</a>.

—

By Kyla Cathey / Earth.com staff writer

When chimps want to start a family, opposites attract

Chimps enjoy their casual flings, but when it’s time to...

Usually it’s safe to talk about your career at the dinner table. If you’re a researcher in the field of fart science, though, maybe save it for after dessert.

Dr. David Steen of <a href="http://www.auburn.edu/">Auburn University</a> and a number of other scientists are investigating the subject of which animals pass gas.

The project was inspired by a <a href="https://twitter.com/DaniRabaiotti/status/818208792269717510">tweet</a> from Dani Rabaiotti, a <a href="http://www.ucl.ac.uk/">University College London</a> researcher and doctoral student. It was directed at Steen’s Twitter account: “[A] family member asked me the other day if snakes fart and [I] did not know the answer to their question. So do they?”

The question sparked a hashtag: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/doesitfart">#DoesItFart</a>.

It also led the science side of Twitter to live up to its reputation. Doctoral student Nick Caruso created a <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/19gMMn4Wmw3BNLWMojEy7kgrjnjVB2JlMSwd1s-nYyUc/edit?usp=sharing">spreadsheet</a> with Steed and Rabaiotti titled “Does it fart?” The spreadsheet lists dozens of animal species, whether or not they pass gas, and research to support the claim.

The foray into fart science expanded, as a “Does it puke?” tab was added to the spreadsheet.

Most of the “research notes” are tongue in cheek. For example, among the farters:
<ul>
 	<li>Snow leopards: “Their floofy bottoms help to muffle the sound.”</li>
 	<li>African wild dogs: “Any self-respecting canine does.”</li>
 	<li>Burmese pythons: “Often silent but deadly. Thick, and … meaty? If it were a color it would be brownish-yellow.”</li>
</ul>
Dogs do fart, but are more often blamed for human farts than their own. Birds don’t fart, but could if they wanted to. Mastodons don’t fart – anymore.

Science Twitter was quick to jump aboard.

“For the record, spotted #hyenas fart, burp and puke. A real treat to work with them!” <a href="https://hyena-project.com/">The Hyena Project</a> tweeted out on the organization’s account.

Geologists pointed out that volcanoes fart, and it’s extremely dangerous. Even astronomers got in on the fart science game, describing the gas-passing habits of black holes, moons, and comets.

As the hashtag caught on, Rabaiotti was quick to pin a caveat to her account: “To my new followers: I [don’t] normally tweet about farts.”

She has, however, posted a few contenders for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/bestcarcass">#BestCarcass</a>.

— 

By Kyla Cathey / Earth.com staff writer

Researchers dive into the wind-breaking field of fart science

Usually it’s safe to talk about your career at the...

It sounds like a science fiction plot. Using lasers, scientists brainwash an unwitting subject to stalk and kill its prey. But for these hapless zombie killer mice, it’s all too real.

A team of scientists from <a href="http://www.yale.edu/">Yale University</a> and the <a href="http://www5.usp.br/english/?lang=en">University of São Paulo</a> have been studying which parts of the brain control hunting behavior in vertebrates. Their goal was to figure out if the amygdala played a role in hunting behaviors.

To test their theory, they created aggressive zombie mice with a virus and some lasers.

They injected each mouse’s brain with a light-sensitive virus. Then, they watched until the virus spread that light-sensitivity to the amygdala. Using a thin optic fiber and a blue laser, they were able to turn hunting-focused neurons on and off at will.

This turned the mice into hunting machines.

Using the laser, the scientists could “program” the mouse to chase down prey like grasshoppers and to attack. In other words, they could turn timid mice that were normally the targets of predators into bold hunters themselves, the researchers said.

When the laser was turned off, the mice behaved normally. When it was turned on, they ran around looking for targets, attacking everything from grasshoppers to bottle caps.

However, the scientists’ brain control was not complete. Unlike fictional human zombies, the zombie mice did not attack or eat their own kind. They also were much less aggressive if they weren’t hungry, the scientists said.

That speaks to hunting behaviors being food-driven and not violence-focused, at least in mice.

The researchers also found that if they created lesions on the neurons in the amygdala associated with the biting and killing reflexes, mice would still chase their prey, but they would not kill it.

The research is still in its infancy, but isolating the neurons that control hunting and food-driven behaviors in mice could offer clues to how hunting behaviors evolved in other mammals. It could even offer clues into why some humans struggle with overeating, the researchers said.

However, that would require a lot more study, they said.

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://www.cell.com/cell/abstract/S0092-8674(16)31743-3">Cell</a>. 

By Kyla Cathey / Earth.com staff writer

Image credit: Ivan de Araujo

Scientists create food-driven killer mice

It sounds like a science fiction plot. Using lasers, scientists...

Everyone can relax. We finally know where the Hyolith sea creature belongs on the tree of life.  
The first fossil of the ocean floor dwelling creature was discovered 175 years ago.  The mysterious animal, with its cone-shaped shell, tentacles, and appendages for walking, has eluded scientific classification until now.
Scientists say the Hyolith belongs to an invertebrate group that includes the horseshoe worm.
“Hyoliths are small cone-shaped sea dwelling animals. They are known from all around the world, mostly from fossils of their shells, “ Joseph Moysiuk of<a href="https://www.utoronto.ca/"> University of Toronto</a> told<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news"> BBC News</a>.
Moysiuk analyzed more than 1,500 specimens excavated from rocks found in Canada and the U.S. to reach this conclusion about the animal’s classification.
“They appear in the fossil record about 530 million years ago and survived until about 250 million years ago.”
“But the question of where Hyoliths actually fit into the tree of life has been somewhat of a mystery for the last 175 years, since they were first described.”
Hyoliths had long been assumed to be related to today’s common mollusks – like squid, octopus, clams, and snails. However, the new research published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/nature/index.html">Nature</a> suggests that they are more closely related to another group of organisms known as lophophorata, which also include lamp shells (brachipods).
Researchers involved in the study analyzed soft tissue preserved in fossils from a site called Burgess Shale in Canada.
“Being able to place them on the tree of life, it solves this long paleontological mystery about what these creatures are,” said Moysiuk.
He adds, “We have been able to discover some new features of a very old group of fossil animals, and it’s allowed us to reveal the evolutionary history of this group of animals and where exactly they sit on the tree of life.”
Dr. Martin Smith of the <a href="https://www.dur.ac.uk/">University of Durham, UK</a>, also analyzed the fossils. He believes that understanding how the ancient creatures lived can offer insight into the impact of mass extinction events.
The Hyolith, which lived during the Cambrian period nearly 540 million years ago, was wiped out (along with most animal life) during the Permian-Triassic mass extinction, 252 million years ago.
“Understanding the effects of such mass extinctions on ecology and diversity is particularly important as we seek to appraise and mitigate the implications of the current mass extinction event brought about by human activity,” said Dr. Smith.

Ancient Hyolith sea creature joins the tree of life

Everyone can relax. We finally know where the Hyolith sea...

While fossils can help shed light on the physicality of ancient humans, it is a much trickier task to figure out what our ancestors may have sounded like. But according to a new study by a collaborative team of researchers, the sounds of baboons may offer clues about the origins of ancient human speech.

The team of scientists from six different academic institutions, led by Dr. Louis-Jean Boe of <a href="http://www.univ-grenoble-alpes.fr/en/main-missions/international/international-2060.kjsp">Grenoble Alpes University</a>, published their findings in the journal <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/">Plos One</a>. According to their research, the mating calls and grunts of Guinea baboons contain distinct, human-like vowel sounds.

Previous theories suggested that ancient human speech developed only after our humans developed a low larynx. But the new research suggests that the human vocal system evolved from abilities already present in our primate ancestors like the Guinea baboon.  

The researchers studied the acoustics of 1,335 baboon sounds and the physicality of their tongues. They found that baboon tongues and human tongues both shared the ability to make vowel sounds.

"Language is a key difference between humans and the rest of the natural world, but the origin of our speech remains one of the greatest mysteries of science," said the team. 

"The evidence developed in this study does not support the hypothesis of the recent, sudden, and simultaneous appearance of language and speech in modern Homo sapiens. It suggests that spoken languages evolved from ancient articulatory skills already present in our last common ancestor ... about 25 million years ago." 

Last year, a similar study involving monkeys identified five different vowel sounds, indicating a possible link to the origin of ancient human speech.  

Professor Scott Moisik from the <a href="http://www.mpi.nl/">Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics</a> told the <a href="https://www.apnews.com/658e37e1f9da45dcab1955c2685fe066/Scientists-hear-voice-of-ancient-humans-in-baboon-calls">AP</a> that these new findings fit with previous research, as well as his own experience listening to primates.  

"When I hear a cat on YouTube produce a vocalization that very much sounds like 'oh long Johnson,' or the 'no no no' cat, or a dog that gets pretty-darned close in imitating 'I love you' ... I am led to believe that, to use the words of Boe and company, 'speech precursors' (however rudimentary or limited) go back further than 25 million years ago," he said.

--

By Rory Arnold / Earth.com staff writer

Baboon mating calls hold clues about ancient human speech

While fossils can help shed light on the physicality of...

Philadelphia Zoo has been the home of AJ, the oldest aardvark in the U.S., for years.

On Thursday, however, that was no longer true. AJ passed away due to age-related heart failure, the zoo announced on its <a href="https://www.facebook.com/philadelphiazoo/">Facebook page</a>.

“AJ will be remembered for his love of back rubs and his selective palate – although aardvarks are insect eaters, AJ preferred ants and termites over crickets and meal worms,” the zoo wrote.

Aardvarks eat as many as 50,000 insects in a single day, according to the zoo.

AJ was the oldest aardvark in captivity in the United States.

He was born on November 4, 1988 at the <a href="http://cincinnatizoo.org/">Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden</a>. The aardvark moved to Philadelphia on November 15, 1989.

AJ shared his Philly digs with Sunshine, a transplant from the <a href="http://www.montgomeryzoo.com/">Montgomery Zoo</a> in Alabama. Aardvarks in the wild tend to be loners, but the zoo said AJ and Sunshine got along well.

Aardvarks are short, stocky creatures with spade-like nails ideal for digging into ant and termite nests, according to the <a href="http://www.philadelphiazoo.org/Animals/Mammals/Other-Mammals/Aardvark.aspx">Philadelphia Zoo</a>. They can fold their large ears back to prevent dirt from getting into them. They have a flexible snout and a long tongue for chasing down fleeing bugs.

They’re nocturnal, the zoo added, and sleep in deep burrows. They’re found throughout sub-Saharan Africa, except for in rainforests.

“In African folklore, the aardvark is much admired because of its diligent quest for food and its fearless response to soldier ants,” the zoo’s website notes.

Philadelphia Zoo has been home to a number of animals that outlived expectations.

In November, the zoo announced that Kesho the okapi had passed away after an illness. The 24-year-old okapi was the fourth oldest in the world, and had outlived the species’ typical lifespan of 17 years. Kesho had been at the zoo for 16 years, after stints in San Diego and the Bronx.

In December, the zoo was forced to euthanize the 25-year-old lioness Zenda after her health began to fail badly. The standard life expectancy of a lion is also 17 years. She was the oldest lion in a U.S. zoo.

—

By Kyla Cathey / Earth.com staff writer

Philadelphia Zoo mourns loss of oldest aardvark in U.S.

Philadelphia Zoo has been the home of AJ, the oldest...

Some of the most adorable and lovable animals from your favorite movies may suffering in abhorrent living conditions. A former employee of leading Hollywood animal supplier <a href="http://www.birdsandanimals.com/screen-credits/feature-credits/">Birds &amp; Animals Unlimited</a> has reported the organization to <a href="http://www.peta.org/">PETA</a> with shocking allegations of animal abuse.

Birds &amp; Animals Unlimited (BAU) has rented out animals to such high profile films as Marley &amp; Me, The Hangover, and Pirates of the Caribbean. But according to an eyewitness who worked at the organization between August and November 2016, many of the animals were denied food, clean shelter, and veterinary care.

In a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=17&amp;v=trL-n1h_Ah4">YouTube</a> video released by PETA, an owl named Crash, who appeared in several of the Harry Potter films, is seen kept in a cage that is covered in six weeks worth of feces. 

According to PETA, three pigs from the film College Road Trip were found emaciated, one with bloody sores running down the side of her body.

Two cats from the upcoming film Benji were starved for days on end after being considered “too fat.” In five days, they lost 5% of their body weight.

BAU employees also allegedly showed up to shelters posing as families looking to adopt a pet dog. But instead of taking them home, they would take the dogs to work on film sets. In the evenings, the dogs were left outside in freezing conditions without any bedding.

The BAU also reported to the <a href="https://www.usda.gov/">U.S. Department of Agriculture</a> that a kangaroo in their care had been relocated to Texas. But a manager later admitted that the kangaroo had broken its jaw and couldn’t eat, and then died under BAU’s watch. 

The former employee reported that this was no isolated incident. Allegedly, many animals died at the facility having been denied access to veterinary care, sometimes for an entire month.

PETA has filed an official complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture regarding the alleged animal abuse at Birds &amp; Animals Unlimited. 

“Animals used for film and television have been neglected, left hungry, and treated like disposable props,” said Lisa Lang, senior vice president at PETA. “The only way to ensure that a production is humane is to keep it animal-free.”

--

By Rory Arnold / Earth.com staff writer

Photo: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=17&amp;v=trL-n1h_Ah4">PETA/YouTube</a>

Animal abuse allegations at leading Hollywood animal supplier

Some of the most adorable and lovable animals from your...

It’s easy to spot someone who loves puppies. Just listen for the puppy talk. When you hear coos of “Who’s a good boy?” you know you’ve found a dog lover.

But puppy talk isn’t just for people. It turns out dogs love to hear it, at least when they’re young.

An international team of researchers set out to discover why we use “dog-directed speech,” and whether dogs pay attention to it.

Our use of puppy talk may be similar to how we speak to babies or other pets, the scientists found.

“Pet-directed speech is strikingly similar to infant-directed speech, a peculiar speaking pattern with higher pitch and slower tempo known to engage infants' attention and promote language learning,” they wrote.

Humans tend to use puppy talk with dogs of all ages, but may change the pitch or other acoustic traits based on whether they’re speaking to a puppy or an adult dog.

As for whether dogs pay attention – well, that depended on their age.

The researchers found that puppies react positively when humans speak slowly and in high-pitched voices. Adult dogs, on the other hand, tend to ignore it.

They tested the human speech habit by recording people as they spoke to images of puppies and adult dogs, and normal human conversation. Then, they played these recordings for dogs of all ages, to see how they reacted to speech patterns alone.

The puppies reacted and changed their behavior based on the recording being played. Adult dogs, however, reacted the same way to puppy talk and normal human speech.

The puppies’ reactions showed that dog-directed speech could have a functional value for young dogs, the scientists said.

However, that function may not be the reason humans use puppy talk to begin with.

“The fact that speakers continue to use dog-directed with older dogs ... suggests that this speech pattern may mainly be a spontaneous attempt to [interact] with non-verbal listeners,” they wrote.

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/284/1846/20162429">Proceedings of the Royal Society B</a>.

—

By Kyla Cathey / Earth.com staff writer

Scientists ask: what is the deal with puppy talk?

It’s easy to spot someone who loves puppies. Just listen...

Scientists in the exciting field of rhino dung research found white rhinos may communicate important personal information to each other using their poop.

Chemicals in the species' dung can give other rhinos information about an individual’s sex, age, general health, and territory, researchers from the <a href="http://www.ukzn.ac.za/">University of KwaZulu-Natal</a> said. If the dung is from a female, the chemical signature may even show whether she’s in heat.

White rhinos have terrible eyesight, so they depend on their sense of smell to acquire information about their environment, the scientists said. The researchers wanted to find out how much of a role dung played in acquiring that information and spreading it around.

"Mammals commonly communicate olfactorily via urine. However, the extent to which they communicate via dung, another waste product, is unknown," they wrote.

White rhinos have communal defecation grounds, called middens. These appear to play play an important role as a social and communication hub, the scientists said. Imagine it as an offline Facebook or Twitter, but with rhino poop.

In South Africa’s <a href="https://hluhluwegamereserve.com/">Hluhluew-Imfolozi Park</a>, researchers collected 150 rhino dung samples from free-ranging white rhinos. These samples were collected from both males and females. They all varied in age, territorial state, and breeding state.

The researchers then isolated chemicals in the dung samples, known as volatile organic compounds or VOCs, that seemed to provide messages to noses that could decode them.

In order to test the effects of specific chemicals, the researchers created three artificial dung odors. One represented a territorial male, another represented a female in heat, and the third was a neutral smell. They exposed male rhinos to the fake rhino dung and observed the individuals for three days following exposure.

"In response, males elicited behaviors associated with the specific odors," they wrote.

Communication via dung odors within the white rhino community seems to be widespread, the scientists said.

The research was published in the journal <a href="http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/284/1846/20162376">Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences</a>.

— 

By Connor Ertz / Earth.com staff writer

Rhino dung serves as species' social media

Scientists in the exciting field of rhino dung research found...

They’re adorable, they’re furry, they’re: gibbon! And this week, it was announced that a new species of gibbon has been discovered living in the rainforests of southwestern China.

The new species has been officially named the Skywalker hoolock gibbon. As it happens, the discoverers are major Star Wars fans. But the name is also a reference to the Chinese characters of its scientific name, Hooklock tianxing, which means “Heaven’s movement.” 

The discovery was a collaborative effort made by a team of scientists from both the <a href="https://www.zsl.org/">Zoological Society of London</a> and <a href="http://www.sysu.edu.cn/">Sun Yat-sen University</a> in China.

“In this area, so many species have declined or gone extinct because of habitat loss, hunting, and general human overpopulation,” Dr. Sam Turvey from the Zoological Society of London told <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news">BBC News</a>. “So it’s an absolute privilege to see something as special and as rare as a gibbon in a canopy in a Chinese rainforest, and especially when it turns out that the gibbons are actually a new species previously unrecognizable by science.”

The team was led by Fan Peng-Fei from Sun Yat-sen University, who was the first to detect that the gibbons they were studying in a Gaoligongshan nature reserve were different. Peng-Fei noted that these gibbons had unusual facial features, such as white beards and eyebrows, and their voices sounded different.

The team ran a full set of genetic testing to confirm that the group they observed were indeed, a new species. They estimate that roughly 200 Skywalker gibbons are currently alive in southwest China.

But the researchers warn that the new species of gibbon should be classified as endangered due to ongoing habitat loss and fragmentation.

--

Photo: Fan Peng-Fei/ZSL

New species of gibbon found in Chinese rainforest

They’re adorable, they’re furry, they’re: gibbon! And this week, it...

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y4eLFNYrKE
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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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https://youtu.be/Fi2OeEwuzRM?si=vTyd2m9FMmtyWkex
</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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https://youtu.be/XYgiPzmNBTU?si=eFYY7gPHU1JznLvU
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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.



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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

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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



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Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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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

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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



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Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" 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> 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?

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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

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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

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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"

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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

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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

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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



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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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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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"

[sendtonews key="QIoVYJqRBi-2434608-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&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.

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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