Geoscience Archives - Page 2 of 2

August 31, 2018January 29, 2021

Fluttering by at dusk by Roy McGhie

Fluttering by at dusk,

dawn, and in between.

Crop diversity!

Recent research by Olimpi & Philpott (2018) concludes that crop diversity as a management practice drives bat activity, and that crop diversity and less frequent pesticide use increase bats’ insect prey populations. The study notes that this could be a useful management tool where other options, such as hedgerow or tree management, are not available.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2018.06.008

Roy McGhie works for Natural England as an Uplands Advisor. You can connect with him on LinkedIn here. If you enjoyed his sciku, check out his previous poems Ghost Ponds, A Heady Mixture and Hedgerow Snuffling.

June 8, 2018June 7, 2020

Forgotten value

of seagrass meadows. Crucial

for world’s fisheries.

Life in the ocean is under threat from a variety of manmade issues, including climate change, mining and over-fishing. Yet our understanding of marine ecosystems still remains far from complete.

New research by Unsworth et al (2018) has revealed just how important seagrass meadows are for fish populations and as a result for humanity’s fisheries. Seagrass meadows are found in the shallow seas around all the continents (aside from Antarctica) between the intertidal zone and 60 meters deep.

The researchers found that seagrass meadows provide a nursery habitat for over a fifth of the world’s largest 25 fisheries and provide support to a large number of other small-scale fisheries around the world. The study indicates that these seagrass meadows should be maintained in order to maximise their role in global fisheries production.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12566

Interested in seagrass meadows? They also play a hugely important role in sequestering carbon. Find out more with this sciku here.

June 6, 2018June 6, 2018

Giant becomes five

endangered salamanders.

Hidden extinction?

The Chinese Giant salamander is the world’s largest amphibian, adults can be 2 meters long and weigh up to 50 kg. It’s critically endangered in the wild due to habitat destruction, fungal infection and because the species is used as a luxury food source in China. It is kept in far greater numbers in captivity as a result of it being farmed for food. Two studies published in Current Biology add additional concerns for the future of this species in the wild.

In what is thought to be the largest wildlife survey conducted in China, Turvey et al (2018) found that giant salamander populations were either critically depleted or had been eradicated, as well as finding plenty of evidence for illegal poaching. The researchers were unable to confirm the survival of wild Chinese giant salamanders at any of their survey sites, raising the question of whether this species is all but extinct in the wild.

In a companion piece of research, Yan et al (2018) performed a genetic analysis on Chinese giant salamanders and found that the species actually consists of at least five species-level lineages, potentially up to eight. This suggests that some of these distinct lineages (effectively separate species) may well have already gone extinct in the wild – a phenomenon known as cryptic or hidden extinction. This has crucial importance for conservation efforts, particularly with regards to re-releases from captive populations where the five lineages have been mixed and the resulting offspring are effectively hybrids.

Original research:

Turvey et al (2018): https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2018.04.005

Yan et al (2018): https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2018.04.004

February 27, 2018July 4, 2019

Rivers cut corners by John Norwood

Rivers cut corners

Reducing the meander

Over centuries

This poem is one of several that were inspired looking out of an airplane window. I was looking at an oxbow lake and thinking about how the river took a short cut. It is a simple reflection on what may seem static is decidedly not so with a shift of time frame. Incidentally, someone called me on this, claiming that rivers actually meander more over time. Turns out both cases can be true, but the meaning of the poem is the same either way.

Oxbow lakes are formed from curves in rivers as the water erodes the banks of bends, pinching off a loop of river that becomes an oxbow lake as it’s isolated from the main body of the river. Many rivers were channelized during the 19th century to be used as water ways, forming artificial oxbow lakes which may since have silted up or dried out. A study by Seidel et al (2017) suggests that reconnecting such oxbow lakes to the main channels might be an important measure for native species conservation and river restoration.

The name oxbow comes from the U-shaped collar that used to be used as a harness around the neck of oxen as they pulled ploughs. Other terms for oxbow lakes are loop lakes, cutoff lakes and horseshoe lakes.

Original Research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/clen.201600211

John Norwood is a Mechanical Engineer working with Carbon, Inc. to revolutionize how things are made. His interests include old houses, yoga, baking, cryptography, and bluegrass music. You can follow him on Twitter under the handle @pryoga

Enjoyed this sciku? Check out some of John’s other work: Universal truth, The answer is none, God may be defined, With enough data, and Squeamish ossifrage.

February 16, 2018February 16, 2018

Foibles of research

Manipulation?

Coercion? Unwanted guests?

Foibles of research.

Academia prides itself on being fair, rational-minded and logical. Yet the practice behind these noble aims is sometimes far from that. A study by Fong & Wilhite (2017) reveals the various manipulations that can take place: from scholars gaining guest authorships on research papers despite contributing nothing to unnecessary reference list padding in an effort to boost citation rate. These instances of misconduct are likely a response to the pressures of an academic career – the demand for high numbers of publications and citation rates.

The survey of approximately 12,000 scholars across 18 disciplines revealed that over 35% of scholars have added an author to a manuscript despite little contribution (with female researchers more likely to add honorary authors than male researchers). 20% of scholars felt someone had been added to one of their grant proposal for no reason. 14% of academics reported being coerced into adding citations to their papers by journals, whilst 40% said they’d padded their reference list to pre-empt any coercion. Whilst changes to aspects of the academic system might help alleviate these issues, it’s likely to be a slow process.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0187394

February 6, 2018February 6, 2018

On a knife edge

Life on a knife edge:

The metabolic demands

facing polar bears.

Polar bears rely on marine mammals such as seals which are high-fat prey. Despite the richness of their diet however, new research suggests that a reduction in the prey availability can have severe consequences on polar bear survival.

Pagano et al (2018) monitored nine free-ranging female polar bears over 2 years, measuring their metabolic rates, daily activity patterns, body condition and foraging success. They found that more than half of the bears had an energy deficit resulting from a high metabolic rate (1.6 times higher than previously assumed) and a low intake of the high-fat prey. As fragmentation of sea ice continues and seals become harder to catch the high metabolic requirements of polar bears is likely to become increasingly catastrophic for the species.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aan8677

November 15, 2017March 25, 2021

A zoo without bars by Dr Lisa Holmes

A zoo without bars –

Building thoughtful habitats

for all to explore.

Chester Zoo (www.chesterzoo.org) is a registered conservation and education charity that supports projects around the world and closer to home in Cheshire. Welcoming 1.9 million visitors a year, it is the most visited zoo in the UK; home to over 15,000 animals and more than 500 different species, many of which are endangered in the wild.

Chester Zoo has continued with the ‘always building’ philosophy of our founder, George Mottershead, who created the UK’s first zoo without bars and focused on animal wellbeing and conservation. In 2015 Chester Zoo opened Islands which was the largest zoological development in the UK to date. The Islands expedition is an immersive experience, taking visitors through six South East Asian islands to discover the incredible wildlife native to those areas and highlight the conservation issues that the zoo staff are working hard to address.

Modern day zoo research encompasses many aspects of biological and social sciences with the overall aim to address challenges faced in the natural world. Chester Zoo not only supports conservation research both in- and ex-situ but leads on important projects both in the UK and across the globe to improve the management of animals and plants, influence sustainability of wild populations and inspire others to Act for Wildlife.

Lisa Holmes is the Behaviour and Welfare Scientist within the Applied Science team at Chester Zoo. Her role involves working closely with the animal curators and keepers to provide evidence-based recommendations to enhance animal wellbeing and help to inform enclosure design. Lisa supervises postgraduate and sandwich placement students who help to gather key data for a wide range of species. Lisa’s research team are currently working on a long-term project assessing the response of species which have moved into the new Islands habitats.

Check out Lisa’s latest sciku ‘The Masterplan’ here.

November 13, 2017November 13, 2017

An orphan crop

Yam: an orphan crop,

vital yet disregarded.

Gene map may assist.

Yams are a stable tuber crop in tropical Africa yet their cultivation has been constrained due to little interest from the rest of the world, their susceptibility to pests and diseases, and their awkward propagation. As such they can be referred to as an “orphan crop that would benefit from crop improvement efforts”.

To help the humble yam’s lot, researchers have sequenced the genome of the white Guinea yam (Tamiru et al, 2017). The research has revealed that yams belong to a unique genus (Dioscorea) that is distinct from rice, palm and banana groups. Yams have separate male and female plants (a limiting factor for yam breeding efforts) but the research has now revealed that yams use female heterogametic sex determination – unlike our XX females and XY males, yams have ZZ males and ZW females meaning that it’s the female gamete that determines the sex of individual offspring. The research hopes to assist yam breeding and cultivation efforts as well as improve food security and sustainability.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-017-0419-x

November 10, 2017November 10, 2017

What lurks beneath?

What lurks beneath the

‘Mountains of Madness’? Maybe

it’s a mantle plume?

Antarctica has numerous subsurface lakes and rivers under its glaciers. Over 30 years ago it was hypothesised that there might be a mantle plume under West Antarctica which might be in part responsible for these subglacial water bodies.

Now there is increased evidence that such a mantle plume might actually exist: Seroussi et al (2017) wrote a three-dimensional ice flow model to understand how much geothermal heat would be needed to create the conditions observed at Marie Byrd Land in West Antarctica. They then compared this model with observations collected by a Nasa satellite. Their results lend support to the theory that there may indeed be a mantle plume under Antarctica.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JB014423

October 30, 2017October 30, 2017

Declining monarchs

Declining monarchs:

Habitat not climate is

your Achilles’ heel.

Understanding why a species is declining is a large part of establishing a suitable conservation approach. In North America the monarch butterfly population has sharply declined in recent decades, yet the reasons for this were unclear until now.

Thogmartin et al (2017) investigated monarch butterfly populations and found that the decline is largely down to habitat loss from herbicide use and the loss of overwinter forest, as well as insecticides. Whilst climate impacts on yearly population size, this is not enough to explain the decreases in monarch butterfly population recorded over recent decades.

Original Research : https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170760

October 16, 2017August 9, 2019

Flocks of new markers

Little white sponges,

filtering in mining zones:

Flocks of new markers.

New species are being discovered all the time and even the most innocuous can be important. A new species of sponge has been discovered and recorded by Lim et al (2017) at a depth of 4000m on the abyssal seafloor of the central Pacific Ocean. Morphologic and genetic analysis of the sponges (Plenaster craigi) has revealed they are a new genus, currently placed within the family Stelligeridae.

The region where the sponges are found is rich in polymetallic (metal-rich) nodules and may well be subjected to deep-sea mining. The sponges could be useful indicators of the impacts of such mining efforts – they are abundant on the nodules, are easily identified and are filter-feeders so sensitive to changing conditions.

The Latin name Plenaster is due to the abundance of star-shaped microscleres within their bodies, whilst the species name of craigi is in honour of the Chief Scientist on the expeditions that sampled the species Professor Craig R. Smith of the University of Hawaii.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14772000.2017.1358218

October 9, 2017October 9, 2017

Black and white cat-foot

Black and white cat-foot.

Your numbers are rising but

your home shrinks and splits.

The giant panda (whose Latin binomial name literally means black and white cat-foot) is a poster species for animal conservation yet recently the IUCN Red List downgraded the species from endangered to vulnerable based on an increase in adult population since 1988.

Despite this population increase there remains concern for the future of the species. A study by Xu et al (2017) using remote sensing data suggests that both the total amount of available giant panda habitat and the average size of habitat patches (an indication of habitat fragmentation) have decreased substantially. Whilst total area and habitat patch size have shown signs of an recovery since 2001, they still remain below 1988 levels (1.7% and 13.3% lower respectively).

August 18, 2017January 29, 2021

Ghost ponds by Roy McGhie

After many moons,

even when buried alive –

Zombies in ghost ponds!

A study in Norfolk has shown that historic ponds infilled by agricultural activity, even after over 100 years have passed, maintain viable aquatic plant propagules. These ghost ponds can have the potential to restore locally extinct species assemblages. Alderton et al, 2017.

Roy McGhie works for the North Yorkshire Moors National Park as a Countryside Manager. He has a strong background in environmental conservation and education, and plays a mean game of tennis. You can connect with him on LinkedIn here. If you enjoyed his sciku, check out his other poems A Heady Mixture, Fluttering By At Dusk and Hedgerow Snuffling.

August 16, 2017August 30, 2017

Can herbivores relax?

My how big you are!

and yet your range contracts. Can

herbivores relax?

As the human population around the world expands, the impact we have on wildlife increases due in part to more land being used for habitation or agricultural purposes. Large carnivores are particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic threats such as loss of prey base and human-wildlife conflict (often to do with livestock).

Wolf & Ripple (2017) created and analysed large carnivore range maps from present and historical (~AD1500) data. They found that large predators historically occupied 96% of the world’s land area whereas now they occupy 34%. A number of species have suffered an decline in range of over 90%, including the red wolf (99.7%), Ethiopian wolf (99.3%) and the tiger (95.3%). Overall the greatest range contractions occurred in South-eastern Asia and Africa.

July 27, 2017July 27, 2017

Bumblebees bumble

Towards one third extinction

One bee, Two bee, Oh!

There are 260 known species of bumblebees globally many of which are important pollinators, particularly in agriculture. A phylogenetic study of ~43% of these species has revealed that approximately one third of the species are declining. The Thoracobombus subgenus which accounts for 64% of species tested is particularly vulnerable, as are species of bumblebee with small geographic ranges. Arbetman et al, 2017.

Interested in bumblebees? Check out this sciku on bumblebee cognition: Bumblebee football.

July 7, 2017August 30, 2017

How small the harvest

for sustainability,

this cream-coloured gold.

Illegal poaching and the ivory trade have decimated African elephant populations, but could ivory be harvested sustainably at a level to both maintain the species and satisfy the trade?

By modelling a reference population of African elephants, Lusseau & Lee (2016) show that only a very small amount of ivory can be harvested sustainably without endangering the species and that this amount is well below the current demand. They comment that ‘any overexploitation very quickly runs the risk of driving elephants to extinction’.

June 9, 2017June 14, 2017

No saturation

Aliens spreading,

their invasion continues.

No saturation.

Increased globalisation over the past 200 years has helped to spread flora and fauna species around the world, with some non-native species disrupting local habitats to a devastating degree. Despite efforts to mitigate such invasions, the rate of alien species establishment appears to be increasing and no saturation point has been observed. Seebens et al, 2017.