Tag: Human impact

Posted on

Microplastics by Tom Lagasse

The microplastics
Swim in the ocean like fish
Straight to the heart

By Tom Lagasse

According to projections, there will be more microplastics in the ocean than fish by 2050.  And we are what we eat. As research is increasingly showing, microplastics are already being found in our bodies.

Further reading:

‘More plastic than fish’, Plastic Soup Foundation, available: https://www.plasticsoupfoundation.org/en/plastic-problem/plastic-soup/more-plastic-than-fish/

‘With microplastics, scientists are in a race against time’, 2024, Osaka, S., The Washington Post, available: https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/03/11/microplastics-health-impacts-unknown/

Author bio:

Tom’s poetry has appeared in The Silver Birch Poetry Series, Freshwater Literary Journal, The Eunoia Review, and in numerous anthologies. He will be one of the Writers in Residence at the Edwin Way Teale House at Trail Wood this summer. He lives in Bristol, Connecticut, USA. You can follow him on X/Twitter at @tomlagasse.

See more sciku by Tom: Geological Maps.

Posted on

Geologists reject the Anthropocene by Madison Jones

The epoch of mankind
has reached a swift conclusion—
over before it began.

by Madison Jones

For the past 15 years, a panel of scientists, the international Subcommission on Quaternary Stratigraphy (SQS), have deliberated on whether to recognize the Anthropocene as an official epoch in our planet’s geological timeline. In March 2024, the panel voted against officially recognizing the term, with twelve members opposed and four in favor. The term has been widely used by both scientists and humanist scholars, and so it presents an interesting example of how scientific deliberation impacts interdisciplinary areas of research.

Further reading:

‘Geologists reject the Anthropocene as Earth’s new epoch – after 15 years of debate’, 2024, Witze, A., Nature. Available: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-024-00675-8

Author bio:

Madison Jones is an assistant professor in the departments of Professional & Public Writing and Natural Resources Science at the University of Rhode Island. His poetry collections are Losing the Dog (Salmon Poetry, forthcoming) and Reflections on the Dark Water (Solomon & George). His poems appear in Southern Review, Prairie Schooner, Michigan Quarterly, and elsewhere.

You can find out more about Madison’s research, writing and poetry at madisonpjones.com and catch up with him on X/Twitter: @poetrhetor.

Posted on

Bird’s Foot Trefoil by Sarah Das Gupta

Trefoil, bright yellow
a field of eggs and bacon
or granny’s toenails

by Sarah Das Gupta

Bird’s foot trefoil is native to most of Europe. It was taken to North America to enrich the grass for cattle and to prevent erosion at the sides of roads. It has a number of  popular names derived from its yellow flowers, tinged with red or the claw shape of the seed pods. It provides feed for caterpillars, bees and butterflies.

‘Trefoil’ is derived from Old French and refers to the pattern of three leaves. For this reason, it was included in Midsummer wreathes, fixed to front doors, as a symbol of the Trinity. Strangely enough, in the Victorian language of flowers, the plant symbolised jealousy and revenge!

Medicinally it was used to treat mild depression and insomnia. Its anti-inflammatory properties were used to alleviate skin conditions. The seed is sold commercially to enrich grazing and forage for cattle. Recently gardeners have planted it to add to the revival of wild flower meadows.

Botanical name:Lotus corniculatus
Popular names:Bird’s-foot trefoil, eggs and bacon, granny’s toenails, baby’s slippers
Family:Fabaceae
Origin:Native to Europe, parts of Asia (taken to N.America)
Flowering:March to June
Habitat:Meadows, rocky-crevices, roadside (Favours sandy soil)

Further reading:

‘Collins Complete Guide to Wild Flowers’, Paul Sterry, 2006, HarperCollins Publishers.

‘Meadowland: The Private Life of an English Field’, John Lewis-Stempel, 2014, Transworld Publishers Ltd.

Articles from ‘The Woodland Trust‘ and ‘Nature’.

Author bio:

Sarah Das Gupta is a young 81 year old. Loves writing haiku and most forms of poetry. Is learning to walk after an accident. Main outside interests include equine sports. Lives near Cambridge, UK. Read other sciku by Sarah here.

Posted on

Heating by Thomas Klodowsky

blinding hot sun
a t-shirt in February
confused birdsongs

by Thomas Klodowsky

New Jersey, the state I’ve lived in all my life, just experienced the warmest January on record, and any accumulation of snow seems to be a distant hope. NJ is also one of the fastest warming states of the last 50 years. As nice as it’s felt outside (even reaching over 60 F) so far this year, it makes me nervous for what future winters might hold, confusing wildlife, vegetation, and people.

In fact, evidence is already increasing that early and false springs occurring as a result of climate change are detrimentally affecting bird populations in a number of ways, from disrupting migratory cycles to setting them out of sync with key food sources such as caterpillars.

Further reading:

‘NJ experienced a record warm January. What’s the outlook for the rest of winter?’, NorthJersey.com: https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/environment/2023/02/10/nj-had-warmest-january-on-record-what-will-rest-of-winter-bring/69889744007/

‘False Springs: How Earlier Spring With Climate Change Wreaks Havoc on Birds’, Audubon.org: https://www.audubon.org/news/false-springs-how-earlier-spring-climate-change-wreaks-havoc-birds

‘Climate change leaves birds hungry as chicks hatch too late to eat caterpillars’, The Independent: https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/climate-change-hungry-birds-chicks-late-caterpillars-spring-woodland-flycatchers-a8318366.html

‘Migrating birds can’t keep up with an earlier spring in a changing climate’, CarbonBrief.org: https://www.carbonbrief.org/migrating-birds-cant-keep-earlier-spring-changing-climate/

Author bio:

Thomas Klodowsky is a writer, writing instructor, and proud New Jersey native. You can see what he’s up to at www.thomask.space

Posted on

The Burden of Bushfire Smoke in Contemporary Australia by Dr Michael J. Leach

summer wildfires taint
our air…hospital visits
and deaths exceed norms

by Dr Michael J. Leach

In contemporary Australia, the frequency and intensity of bushfire events have increased alongside the rate of global warming. This disastrous consequence of climate change is illustrated by the 2019-20 Australian bushfire season: the so-called ‘Black Summer’. Over the course of that bushfire season, hundreds of wildfires burned across 24 million hectares of land inhabited by diverse flora, fauna, and humans, primarily in the southeast of Australia. Bushfire events peaked during December 2019 and January 2020.

Bushfire smoke has multiple real-world impacts, including adverse effects on public health. In order to gain a preliminary understanding of the public health burden of bushfire smoke generated by the 2019-20 Australian bushfire season, Arriagada et al. (2020) undertook a quantitative analysis of publicly available air quality, demographic, and health data over the period 1/10/2019-10/2/2020. Population-level exposure to particulate matter below a known critical level of 2.5 micrometres in diameter (i.e. PM2.5) was estimated for the four most bushfire-affected jurisdictions of Australia: New South Wales (NSW), the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), Queensland, and Victoria. PM2.5 concentrations were compared with past average values recorded by air quality stations. The authors also determined, for each jurisdiction, the incidence of several relevant health outcomes: hospital admission for respiratory or cardiovascular issues, asthma-related visits to emergency departments (EDs), and excess deaths. The PM2.5 data and incidence rates were used to calculate a measure of exposure-response risk.

The authors’ analysis revealed that, across the four Australian jurisdictions under investigation, bushfire smoke led to an estimated 2,027 hospital admissions for respiratory issues, 1,305 asthma-related visits to EDs, 1,124 hospital admissions for cardiovascular issues, and 417 excess deaths. For each of these health outcomes, the public health burden was greatest for NSW followed by Victoria, Queensland, and then the ACT. It is important to note, however, that there are levels of uncertainty attached to these estimates: they may be underestimates or overestimates of the true values. The authors highlighted the importance of more detailed epidemiological analyses of the public health burden associated with bushfire smoke in Australia. While such studies would build the evidence base in this area, the preliminary statistics reported here are still substantial in magnitude and suggestive of the need for bushfire prevention and preparedness strategies in contemporary Australia.

The original research article described here is available open access online:

Arriagada NB, Palmer AJ, Bowman DMJS, Morgan GG, Jalaludin BB, Johnston FH. (2020). Unprecedented smoke-related health burden associated with the 2019-20 bushfires in eastern Australia. Medical Journal of Australia. 213(6): 282-283. https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2020/213/6/unprecedented-smoke-related-health-burden-associated-2019-20-bushfires-eastern   

Michael J. Leach (@m_jleach) is an Australian epidemiologist, biostatistician, and poet who works at Monash University. His poetry collections include Chronicity (MPU, 2020) and Natural Philosophies (Recent Work Press, forthcoming).

Check out more sciku by Michael, including ‘The Core Correlate of COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance‘, ‘Drug-Induced Hip Fractures‘, ‘The Psychopharmacological Revolution‘, ‘Quality of Life at Seven Years Post-Stroke‘, ‘The Early Impacts of COVID-19 on Australian General Practice‘, and ‘Australian Science Poetry‘ with science communicator Rachel Rayner. Michael also has another Covid-19-related sciku published in Pulse which is well worth checking out: ‘flu shot announcement‘.

Posted on

Urban parakeet by Dr Matt Geary

Urban parakeet
Feeds in small parks and gardens
Missing from forests

By Matt Geary

As with many islands around the world, the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean is home to a number of bird species found only there. Hispaniola is divided between two countries, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Both countries have experienced severe environmental change since European colonisation, including considerable forest loss and agricultural expansion. Hispaniolan parakeet (Psittacara chloropterus) is hard to find across the Dominican Republic but a considerable population lives in the capital city, Santo Domingo. Our work explores how these vulnerable island endemics use the urban environment.

In 2019, our research team spent three months walking through parts of the city where parakeets are found, counting birds as well as measuring the natural environment around them. They covered 60 1 km2 squares of Santo Domingo, visiting each square three times. As well as looking for parakeets, they recorded sightings of another endemic, Hispaniolan woodpecker, a species which makes cavities in trees where parakeets are potentially able to nest. The team were also on the lookout for parakeet nest sites in trees and buildings.

Hispaniolan parakeet (Psittacara chloropterus). Image credit: Martingloor.

The population in the city is certainly large. We counted around 1500 birds at a communal roost site in the city centre and saw lots of birds on our surveys. We found that parakeet distribution within the city was related to the number of different tree species within the square and saw more parakeet groups where there were more small greenspace patches. This suggests Hispaniolan parakeets are using street level green spaces like small parks and gardens for foraging rather than relying on large areas of vegetation. We only found three locations where parakeets were nesting, all of which were previously know – one palm tree and two communal roosts in buildings.

This species certainly needs some support across the island of Hispaniola and we hope that by improving our knowledge about this population, which may be the largest remaining, we can help to improve the outlook for the species as a whole. Our work continues on this species and other Hispaniolan endemics. @AndreaThomen is putting the miles in with survey work across the island for her PhD research so we hope to have much more to report in the near future.

Further reading: Geary, M., Brailsford, C.J., Hough, L.I., Baker, F., Guerrero, S., Leon, Y.M., Collar, N.J. and Marsden, S.J., 2021. Street-level green spaces support a key urban population of the threatened Hispaniolan parakeet Psittacara chloropterus. Urban Ecosystems, pp.1-8. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11252-021-01119-1

Dr Matt Geary (https://mattgeary.github.io/) is a Conservation Ecologist working in the Conservation Biology Research Group at the University of Chester. Twitter: @MattGeary

Posted on

Summarising the IPCC WGI SPM by Dr Andy Reisinger

This is an attempt to summarise some key messages from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group I Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis Summary for Policymakers in haiku format.

Earth to politics:
Here’s what the science tells us.
Can we act now – please?

Relevant SPM headline, bullet(s), figure(s): Introduction

Earth is heating up,
The whole climate system:
Air, ocean, land, ice.

SPM A.1, Figure SPM.1a

We’ve passed 1 degree,
Which is warmer than we thought.
And rising further.

SPM A.1.2, Footnote 10, SPM B.1

Heat waves, heavy rain,
Droughts, cyclones: not abstract change,
But painfully real.

Figure SPM.3

State, scale, rate of change
In aspects and whole system:
“unprecedented”.

SPM A.2, A.2.1-A.2.4

Do we know why? Yes.
We’re the driving force behind
Climate system change.

SPM A.1, A.1.1, A.1.3-A.1.8, Figure SPM.1b, Figure SPM.2, SPM A.3

Human influence
on the climate system is
“unequivocal”.

SPM A.1, A1.1, A.1.3-A.1.8, Figure SPM.1b, Figure SPM.2, SPM A.3

Where are we headed?
Scenarios can show us
Alternate futures.

Box SPM.1, Figure SPM.4

We’ll reach 1.5
In roughly the mid-thirties.
Beyond that: our choice.

Table SPM.1, Figure SPM.8

Rapid and sustained
Emission cuts halt warming
Within three decades.

Box SPM.1, Table SPM.1, Figure SPM.8

Our best case reaches
1.5 degrees; exceeds;
Then drops down again.

SPM B.1.1, B.1.3, Footnotes 25, 27, Figure SPM.8

More than 1.5:
More heat than Homo Sapiens
Has ever lived through.

SPM A2.2

Air, land, and ocean.
A force-fed carbon cycle
May spew back at us.

SPM B.4, B.4.1-B.4.4, Figure SPM.7

Ice loss, rising seas:
1 metre is a given. But
When? That’s up to us.

SPM B.5, B.5.3, B.5.4, Figure SPM.8

We’re not prescriptive:
We’re just saying, the future
Still lies in our hands.

SPM Box.1

More heat, more extremes,
Driving climate impacts:
Half degrees matter.

SPM B.2, SPM B.3, SPM C.2, Figure SPM.5, Figure SPM.6

Don’t pin your planning
On means and likely ranges:
It’s the tail that stings.

SPM C.3, C.3.1-C.3.3

Covid lockdowns cut
Emissions, air pollution.
Warming? Not really.

SPM D.2.1

A stable climate
Needs net-zero CO2:
That’s simple physics.

SPM D.1, D.1.1, Figure SPM.10

Removing carbon
Helps net-zero, but beware:
Side-effects abound.

SPM D.1.4, D.1.5

To limit warming,
Stick to a carbon budget,
Cut other gases.

SPM D.1, D.1.1, D.1.2, Table SPM.2

1.5 degrees
Needs strong, sustained methane cuts,
Not just CO2.

SPM D.1, D.1.2, Table SPM.2, Figure SPM.4

Lower methane helps
Climate and air quality.
That’s called a win-win.

SPM D.2, D.2.2

We may not see it
For a decade, but climate
Will respond to us.

SPM D.2, D.2.3, D.2.4

Approved by Zoom, signed
Sealed, delivered: 9 August
2021.

The SPM was approved, and the underlying report accepted by all member governments. Global press conference held at 10am CEST, 9 August 2021.

Note: these haiku/sciku represent my own personal selection and perspective on the key findings presented in the SPM of the IPCC WGI, which was released on 9 August 2021. The haiku do not represent the full balance or carefully crafted wording of the original document, let alone underlying report. All credit for scientific substance is due to the authors of the report, led by co-chairs Valérie Masson-Delmotte and Panmao Zhai and head of the Technical Support Unit Anna Pirani. Any blame for scientific inaccuracies, misinterpretations and undue poetic license rests with me. Thanks for reading!

Andy is currently a vice-chair of Working Group III of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). He also served as coordinating lead author in two major IPCC climate change reports released in 2014. For more details on the IPCC and its reports, see https://ipcc.ch.

He has summarised two previous reports by the IPCC in haiku format, on Limiting Global Warming to 1.5°C and on Climate Change and Land. He was motivated to do so by New Zealand-based think tank Motu (https://motu.nz) that decided to provide a single haiku summary for each of its technical reports. He emphasizes that his haiku represent his personal interpretation of the IPCC reports and are not done as part of his official role.

During the day, Andy works as Principal Scientist, Climate Change, at the Ministry for the Environment in New Zealand, where his job is to provide a science-based perspective on the Ministry’s work. You can find him on Twitter here: @ReisingerAndy.

Andy’s scientific research interests focus on the role of agriculture in domestic and international climate change policy, and climate change impacts and adaptation, uncertainty and its implications for decision-making.

This haiku summary of the IPCC WGI SPM was originally published on the 14th August 2021 on Andy Reisinger’s Twitter account here, and is republished on The Sciku Project with the author’s kind permission. Copyright @ReisingerAndy, shared under a Global Commons Attribution-NonCommercial license.

Posted on

Owls of the Eastern Ice by Jonathan Slaght – Book Review

a fish owl
on an icy river bank
grabs more than fish

by Jon Hare.

Jonathan Slaght’s book “Owls of the Eastern Ice” is part natural history and part adventure story. The natural history focuses on Blakiston’s fish owl, the largest living species of owl. The adventure focuses on Dr. Slaght’s research on the Blakiston’s fish owl in the Primorye territory of Russia – a rugged region in the Far East bordering the Sea of Japan, North Korea, and China. The region is home to Amur tigers, Asiatic bears, masu salmon, and Blakiston’s fish owls. The region is also home to villages, logging companies, and loners – all living off of the land.

Dr. Slaght’s task is to understand the owl and then develop a conservation plan that the logging companies and local communities can support. This is a well written narrative that is as much a story of the human condition as it is a description of the work necessary to better understand and conserve the fish owl.

Slaght, J.C. 2020. Owls of the Eastern ice: A quest to find and save the world’s largest owl. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 368 pp. ISBN: 9781250798718

Dr. Jon Hare is a scientist who works in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. His research background is fisheries oceanography and climate change impacts on marine fisheries. Check out Jon’s previous sciku ‘Varves’, ‘Cobwebs to Foodwebs’, ‘Signs of Spring’ and ‘Glacier Mice‘.

Posted on

Plastic, Pollution, Policy

Accumulating.
Reject virgin, manage waste
before it’s too late.

Global annual emissions of plastic pollution are estimated to be between 22 and 48 million metric tons. If current trends continue then these 2016 estimates will double by 2025, and even current proposals for plastic management still predict emissions increasing annually.

Plastic can take anywhere between decades and centuries for it to be removed from the environment naturally through decomposition. When pollution exceeds removal plastic accumulates in the environment. Active removal of plastic from the environment is often very difficult, meaning that plastic is a “poorly reversible pollutant”.

Yet the damage that plastic can cause to the environment and to humans is vast, from plastics accumulating in food chains to the impact plastic pollution can have on the carbon cycle, and a whole range of other negative effects.

All of this is known. Much has been known for decades.

Yet our reliance on virgin plastic materials and our poor waste management strategies are doing little to stem the problem. Indeed, rich countries frequently send their plastic waste to poorer countries that have worse facilities for recycling plastics.

In a review of research into plastic pollution MacLeod et al. (2021) suggest that it may soon be too late to stop or reverse some of the catastrophic damage that plastic pollution causes. The researchers identify areas that are particularly threatened and demonstrate the complex process that plastic goes through as it degrades and just how far reaching and impactful plastic pollution can be.

Their analysis of the research concludes that plastic pollution is a “planetary boundary threat” and that the only “rational policy response” is to take rapid action to curb plastic emissions and improve global and national waste management.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.abg5433

Posted on

Hadal Mercury

Quicksilver sinking.
Sediments sequestering
in the cold, dark deep.

Mercury pollution can cause huge environmental damage, accumulating in the food chain and causing harm to wildlife and humans. Reducing mercury pollution is vitally important and monitoring mercury levels in the environment is crucial for understanding how mercury travels through ecosystems. Yet measuring mercury levels isn’t always easy.

Recent research by Sanei et al. (2021) examined some of the most challenging areas to access on the planet – the deep-ocean trenches. The researchers collected sediment core samples from areas of the Kermadec and Atacama Trench Systems in the Pacific Ocean, over 6km below the surface in the hadal zone.

The researchers found that some areas were mercury hotspots, with levels 6–56 times higher than the previously inferred deep-ocean average. Whilst the hadal zone comprises only around 1% of the deep-ocean area, the findings suggest that it may account for 12–30% of the mercury estimate for the entire deep-ocean.

The findings raise serious questions about levels of mercury pollution in the oceans, highlighting the need for further research into deep-ocean mercury pollution. There is one bright spark in this worrying cold, dark news – mercury in trench sediments is effectively locked away, buried for millions of years as plate tectonics shifts it deep into the earth’s upper mantle.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-90459-1

Posted on

The Masterplan by Dr Lisa Holmes

Zoo science prevails

Conservation cannot wait

“Prevent extinction”

By Lisa Holmes

Celebrating its 90th year, Chester Zoo is one of the world’s leading zoo’s, housing more than 500 species and dedicated to their mission of “Preventing extinction”.

This week marks the release of their new 10 year Conservation Masterplan; a bold vision with the aim to tackle the global extinction crisis using six key targets:

  • Preserve options for future conservation for an additional 150 species through conservation breeding and propagation.
  • Halt or reverse the decline of 200 highly threatened populations of plants and animal species in the wild.
  • Improve landscapes for wildlife totalling 250,000 hectares.
  • Train 5,000 conservationists to deliver positive change for wildlife.
  • Empower 10 million people to live more sustainably.
  • Influence change in five major policy areas for wildlife.

Chester Zoo has an integrated approach to conservation using the skills and expertise of their staff, conservation partners, students, academics and supporters.

Dr Lisa Holmes is the Lead Conservation Scientist for Behaviour and Welfare at the zoo. She works closely with the animal curators and teams to provide an evidence-base for management decisions. With her team of staff and students, she conducts research to monitor the wellbeing of all species and is developing tailored welfare assessments for use within the zoo. She is also Vice-Chair of the Animal Welfare Working Group for the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA).

Check out Lisa’s previous sciku ‘A Zoo Without Bars’.

You can read Chester Zoo’s Conservation Masterplan by clicking on the image below:

Posted on

Rigs to Reefs

Oh puffing pig fish –
torn between disturbance and
piscine temptations.

Noise pollution from oil and gas drilling platforms can have huge negative impacts upon marine life. However, such rigs can also act as artificial reefs, providing shelter and a hard substrate for predators and prey alike. Moreover trawling isn’t permitted close to rigs, meaning that the seabeds around them are mostly untouched.

Harbour porpoises, Phocoena phocoena, have previously been shown to change their behaviour or avoid areas as a result of unnatural noise levels. Yet a recent study by Tubbert Clausen et al. (2021) has revealed that the temptations of high prey availability can overcome such affects. The team use 21 acoustic loggers, placed on the seabed for up to 2 years to monitor noise levels and harbour porpoise activity.

They found that despite the high noise levels from the largest rig in the Danish North Sea, the porpoises were still found close to the rig, emitting echolocation noises that indicate they were hunting for fish. The platform’s artificial reef effect appeared to increase fish numbers which drew the porpoises closer.

The findings suggest that as platforms come to the end of their lifespans, they could be partially left in place to continue acting as artificial reefs – the rigs-to-reefs concept.

The first line of the sciku refers to two names for the harbour porpoise:

– The ‘pig fish’ from the Medieval Latin porcopiscus, a compound of porcus (pig) and piscus (fish).

– The ‘puffing pig’ which comes from the noise the porpoises makes when surfacing to breathe.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.12055

Posted on

Mapping Seagrass Loss

Quantifying our
marine meadows – past, present.
A threadbare carpet.

Everyone knows their own science interests, the areas of research that they find thought-provoking. Sometimes I think that there are also subjects that we don’t realise we find fascinating. I never knew I was interested in seagrasses but this is the third sciku I’ve published about them, the second that I’ve written myself. It’s curious that I wouldn’t have known this about myself before today when this research paper caught my eye.

Seagrasses are hugely important ecosystems. In the sciku ‘Forgotten value’ I wrote about how seagrass meadows provide a nursery habitat for over a fifth of the world’s largest 25 fisheries. And as Dr Phil Colarusso showed with his sciku ‘Blue Carbon’, seagrass meadows collect and sequester large amounts of carbon, removing it from the global carbon cycle. As a result seagrass meadows are referred to as blue carbon habitats, along with salt marshes and mangroves.

Today’s sciku is based on a study by Green et al (2021), which examines the historical loss of seagrasses from the waters around the United Kingdom. By scrutinising multiple accounts from as early as 1831 and using data collected from 1900 onwards the researchers were able to estimate the UK’s seagrass losses. It makes for sobering reading:

“At least 44% of United Kingdom’s seagrasses have been lost since 1936, 39% since the 1980’s. However, losses over longer time spans may be as high as 92%.”

The research shows that the UK currently has only 8,493 hectares of seagrass meadows remaining. That’s approximated 0.9 Mt (million tonnes) of carbon, equivalent to around £22 million in the current carbon market. Whilst that may seem a lot, it’s worth considering that historic seagrass meadows could have stored 11.5 Mt of carbon, supporting around 400 million fish.

These losses are catastrophic but the information from this study can be used to inform future monitoring and restoration efforts. What’s more, by quantifying the benefits we gain from seagrass meadows as well as what we’ve lost from their disappearance, the findings also provide an impetus for improved conservation efforts, beyond ‘softer’ arguments such improving biodiversity.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2021.629962  

Posted on

Sawfish Decline

Shout from the rostrum:
‘Poor Carpenters in the soup!’
Such dentistry snared.

Tracking declining animal populations can be tricky enough on land, but in the ocean it’s an even harder proposition. Yet without knowledge of marine animal populations, conservation efforts can’t be directed effectively. One way to solve this issue is to examine drivers of site occupancy – what causes some populations to thrive or decline in an area. Understanding these drivers can allow researchers to predict population declines and gain insight into the probability of local population extinctions.

Sawfish are a family of rays with distinctive long, flat snouts which have horizontal teeth running along the length to resemble saws. Known as rostrums (an alternative definition to the more common meaning of a raised platform for speaking or performing from) they are packed with electroreceptors that allow them to detect prey, whilst the teeth are thought to be used in a swiping motion to incapacitate fish.

Sadly, three of the five sawfish species are Critically Endangered and the other two are Endangered. Since sawfish aren’t commonly sighted keeping track of their populations is hard and there’s little systematic monitoring. To address this Yan et al. (2021) combined data from occurrence surveys with indices of ecological carrying capacity, fishing pressure and management capacity to predict local population extinctions and identify regions where conservation efforts might be most effective.

Overfishing of sawfish is a particular threat: their fins are prized for shark fin soup (whilst sawfish are known as Carpenter sharks, they aren’t actually sharks), their teeth are used as spurs for cockfighting, their rostrum are frequently sold as novelties or trophies, and parts of them are used in traditional medicines in countries including China, Mexico, Brazil, India, Kenya and Iran.

Accidental overfishing is an issue too: their iconic rostrum and teeth are easily tangled in fishing nets and lines. What’s more, untangling sawfish from nets can be difficult and dangerous so some fishermen will kill them before bringing them aboard.

By understanding issues like overfishing and habitat loss Yan et al. were able to show that sawfish are likely to be extinct off the coasts of 55 of the 90 countries where they previously existed. Their findings also suggest that if eight nations prioritise sawfish conservation (Cube, Tanzania, Colombia, Madagascar, Panama, Brazil, Mexico and Sri Lanka), then up to 71.5% of the sawfish family’s historical global distribution would be protected.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abb6026

Posted on

Hedgerow Snuffling by Roy McGhie

Hedgerow snuffling and
intensive farming practices.
A prickly issue.

By Roy McGhie

Hedgehog numbers are declining. Although hedgehogs are often thought of as a countryside animal, recent studies have shown that they are now most likely to be found in urban habitats in the UK.

A recent paper by Yarnell and Pettett (2020) has reviewed the difficulties they face in the rural environment (namely lack of food availability, habitat connectivity and shelter) and highlighted some of the agri-environment options from which they could benefit. However, there is a lack of empirical evidence around the precise benefits such options (like establishment of field margins and boosting hedgerow cover) would bring. More studies are urgently required before hedgehogs and other insectivores are driven out of the countryside entirely.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10091566

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 Fluttering by at Dusk.

Posted on

Invasive Species by Dr Phil Colarusso

Misplaced visitors
Cryptic hitchhikers on boats
Food webs are altered

By Phil Colarusso

While doing eelgrass restoration work in Gloucester, I became aware of a bluish-gray growth appearing on a large number of shoots. Shortly thereafter, I read in the Woods Hole journal Oceanus about a researcher who was seeing a new species of invasive tunicates (Diplosoma listeria) appearing on scallops, boat hulls, mooring lines and eelgrass on Martha’s Vineyard. The photo was of exactly the same thing I was seeing in Gloucester.

Tunicates are filter feeding organisms that can grow as small zooids in extensive colonies or as large solitary individuals. The colonial forms tend to be prolific breeders and filter enormous quantities of water. They can grow quickly and will cover just about any surface that is bare, including pilings, clam shells, algae and eelgrass. Recent research has shown that literally miles of the seafloor can be covered by one of these colonial species, smothering other sessile life and altering the availability of the habitat.

Photo credit: Phil Colarusso

My team decided to conduct a study in a salt pond on Martha’s Vineyard, where these organisms had appeared to be particularly abundant. We initially had focused on the impact of these animals to the eelgrass in the pond, but quickly realized their prolific filter feeding may pose an additional risk to the food web of this small coastal pond.

Using stable isotopes, we determined the tunicates were feeding on the same resources as several commercially important shellfish species. Based on their high abundance, their prolific feeding rates and the small volume of the pond, our modelling suggested the tunicates could potentially filter a volume of water equivalent to the entire pond in somewhere between 1 and 17 hours. This represents a significant challenge for commercial shellfish stocks in these waters. You can see a video on this project here.

Photo credit: Phil Colarusso

It is not always clear where and how these invaders arrive, but shipping is believed to be a major vector. Planktonic life forms and small creatures are carried in ballast water and along the hulls or larger vessels. Globalization has significantly increased shipping all over the planet and as a result the unintentional transportation of organisms as well. Early detection may allow for some level of control, but often once a new species is detected in the ocean, control options are untenable. Persistent monitoring is the most prudent tool in identifying and controlling the spread of non-native species.

Original research:

Colarusso, P. et al. (2016) Quantifying the ecological impact of invasive tunicates to shallow coastal water systems. http://dx.doi.org/10.3391/mbi.2016.7.1.05

Valentine, P.C. et al. (2007) The occurrence of the colonial ascidian Didemnum sp. on Georges Bank gravel habitat – Ecological observations and potential effects on groundfish and scallop fisheries. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jembe.2006.10.038

Dr. Phil Colarusso is a marine biologist with US EPA Region I.  He has been working on eelgrass restoration, conservation and research for 31 years.  He and his team just recently had a paper on carbon sequestration rates in eelgrass in New England accepted for publication.

Enjoyed Phil’s sciku? Check out his other of his sciku Blue Carbon and Diving for Science.

Posted on

Signs of Spring by Dr. Jon Hare

silvery white
shadbush blossoms
swim upstream

By Jon Hare

Shadbush (Amelanchier arborea) blooms in the spring. Clusters of small white flowers appear in March through May before leaves grow. The bloom time coincides with the upstream migration of American shad (Alosa sapidissima). Millions of shad used to return to east coast rivers, but these runs are now greatly reduced because of historical overfishing, dams, and loss of habitat.

Much like salmon, shad return to rivers to reproduce after several years at sea. Unlike salmon that reproduce and die, shad go back to sea after reproducing to return to rivers in following years to reproduce again. Thus salmon are termed semelparous from the Latin semel – once, a single time. Shad are termed iteroparous from the Latin itero – to repeat.

Photo credit: NOAA Fisheries Northeast Fisheries Center.

Shadbush is also iteroparous – blooming year after year in the spring to mark the return of the shad. Recent research by Nack et al. (2019) indicates shad migration will be earlier in the season; whether shadbush will bloom earlier remains to be seen.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1002/mcf2.10076

Dr. Jon Hare is a scientist who works Woods Hole, Massachusetts. His research background is in fisheries oceanography and climate change impacts on marine fisheries. Check out Jon’s other sciku ‘Owls of the Eastern Ice’, ‘Varves’, ‘Cobwebs to Foodwebs’ and ‘Glacier Mice‘.

Posted on

Whale shark

Sir Fish of the Stars.
Legacy of violence
reveals your true age.

The whale shark is the largest known fish species on the planet, with the longest specimen recorded at 18.8 meters. These gentle giants swim slowly through tropical waters, filter feeding on plankton and small fishes. No one is clear on how long-lived they are – like all sharks they lack the bony structures (otoliths) that are normally used to assess age in other fish species. Yet researchers now think they have the answer, and it lies in the legacy of the cold war.

Whale shark vertebrate have growth bands that increase as they age, rather like tree rings. The trouble is that without knowing how rapidly these bands form it is hard to use them to work out the age of a whale shark. Yet researchers have worked out a useful method of providing a scale for the growth bands by using the effects of nuclear weapons testing.

In the 1950s and 1960s nuclear bomb tests were carried out by countries on both sides of the Cold War, including in the atmosphere. The result of these tests is that the levels of the naturally occurring radioactive element carbon-14 temporarily increased, entering the food web – including whale shark vertebrate.

Ong et al. (2020) used radiocarbon assays of the growth bands of vertebrate from 20 whale sharks caught by the Taiwanese fishery before it was closed in 2007. They found the sampled whale sharks ranged in age from 15 to 50, and that growth bands appear to form annually. The importance of this is key to conservation efforts as understanding population structure is fundamental to understanding threats to the populations.

A note about ‘Whale shark’: Their size and nature mean that whale sharks are widely respected around the world, even featuring on the 100-peso note in the Philippines. Whale sharks are called ‘marokintana’ in Madagascar, meaning ‘many stars’ in reference to the white markings on their dark backs, whilst in Vietnam they are known as ‘ca ong’ – literally translated as ‘sir fish’.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2020.00188

Posted on

Holdfast

Marine forests sway,
sheltering, pristine, unchanged.
For how much longer?

Giant kelp forests are some of the most diverse, productive and dynamic ecosystems on the planet. A marine algae (not a plant), giant kelp anchors itself to the seabed and grows up towards the surface, with some species growing up to 30-60 centimetres vertically a day to reach heights of 45 meters. Whilst typically found in temperate and polar coastal oceans, deep water kelp forests have been discovered in clear tropical waters where the sunlight can penetrate far enough below the water surface for the kelp to grow, potentially as far down as 200 meters.

Kelp forests are home to a vast number of species, from those living in the surface canopy to those on the seafloor. This makes them key areas to protect for species richness, much like rainforests and coral reefs. Yet many kelp forests are under threat due to marine pollution, water quality, kelp harvesting, overfishing, invasive species and climate change.

This makes the recent survey of kelp forests in southern South America heartening. Friedlander et al. (2020) re-surveyed 11 locations at the easternmost extent of Tierra del Fuego and compared their findings to surveys originally conducted in 1973. They found no differences in kelp densities or anchor diameter. Sea urchins, if not kept in check, can decimate kelp forests but the researchers also found no difference in sea urchin numbers. Additionally, comparisons of satellite imagery showed no long-term trends over the past 20 years.

It’s thought that the remoteness of the location has meant these kelp forests have been relatively unaffected by human disturbance, although increases in sea temperature as a result of climate change are likely to have an impact in the future.

A note about ‘Holdfast’ – The title refers to both the wish that kelp forests such as the one surveyed in this study persist and survive, and to the root-like mass that anchors kelp to the seafloor which is known as the kelp’s holdfast.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0229259

Posted on

Amid fields of rubble

Seamounts amid fields
of rubble, scars and lost gear.
A glimmer of hope.

Seamounts are underwater mountains that rise at least 1,000 meters above the seafloor with their peaks hundreds or even thousands of meters underwater. Seamounts are often thriving areas of marine life, based around high levels of plankton and deep-sea corals.

However the fishing practice of trawling can decimate these areas, destroying corals and causing huge population crashes in the species that depend on them. Deep-sea coral growth rates can be as little as micrometres a year meaning that recovery, if possible, could be very slow. As a result it’s unknown whether protecting areas damaged by trawling is worthwhile or whether once lost these deep-sea communities are unlikely to recover.

New research by Baco et al. (2019) sheds comforting light on this dimly known area. Whilst little evidence supports seamount recovery over 10 years, their study examined recovery following 30-40 years protection from trawling. Encouragingly many of the sites surveyed showed multiple signs of recovery, including coral regrowth and higher levels of animal life compared to areas still being trawled. The research is clear and much needed evidence to support continued seamount protection efforts.

Author’s note: I thought that the research study’s title was too poetic to improve upon so used part of it in this sciku. The full title is ‘Amid fields of rubble, scars, and lost gear, signs of recovery observed on seamounts on 30- to 40-year time scales’ by Amy R. Baco, E. Brendan Roark and Nicole B. Morgan.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aaw4513

Posted on

A corrupted source

Viewers, be aware!
YouTube: a corrupted source
for climate info.

How do you find out about scientific advances? The news? Internet sites? Social media? YouTube? Where you gather information from can have a huge impact on your opinions and the way you act.

Whilst there’s a broad scientific consensus around anthropogenic climate change and the need to address this global challenge, public opinion remains divided. Yet politicians and companies will only act in response to climate change if public consensus makes it in their best interests. And, of course, public opinion depends on what information is available…

Published research in scientific journals is rarely accessible and comes couched in technical language – a barrier to anyone without specific training in the relevant field. Instead most people rely on the news media and, increasingly, on the internet. Yet where traditional news media outlets have checks in place to ensure that the information they present is accurate, online it’s a whole other story.

Which makes research by Joachim Allgaier (2019) at Aachen University in Germany especially worrying. Using key climate search terms he analysed 200 videos about climate and climate modification. Only 89 of the videos supported the scientific consensus, whilst 4 were videos of climate scientists discussing climate topics with deniers. The remaining 107 videos contained views that opposed scientific consensus: 16 denying anthropogenic climate change and 91 videos propagating climate conspiracy theories.

More worryingly still, many of these videos use genuine scientific terms (such as geoengineering) to bolster the credibility of their output, whilst twisting the meaning and usage of those terms to meet the arguments being made. It’s a strategy to help the output avoid being considered as conspiracy theories but it further confuses the issue and can hoodwink the unwary. Viewers beware!

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2019.00036

Posted on

Whale strike

To avoid striking
whales, great creatures of the sea,
use the app. Impact!

Blue whales can be injured or killed in collisions with ships, particularly in regions where migration routes cross shipping lanes. Yet because they travel huge distances, predicting where whales will be at any given time is difficult. However, now research by Abrahms et al (2019) suggests that statistical modelling techniques may be able to help.

The researchers used satellite tracking data from 104 blue whales across 14 years along with daily information on three-dimensional oceanic habitats to model the whales’ daily distribution. By using an ensemble modelling approach they were able to produce daily, year-round predictions of blue whale habitat suitability in the Californian Current Ecosystem.

The statistical approach allows the researchers to quantify the spatial and temporal distribution of exposure to ship strike risk within shipping lanes in the Southern California Bight. The researchers plan on converting this approach into a downloadable app which would alert ships to the risks of whale collision and could recommend alternative shipping lanes or vessel slow-downs.

It’s a truly fascinating piece of research that seems likely to have a huge impact upon a real-world problem – research at its best.

The sciku also includes a line from Mr Scruff’s truly excellent track ‘Shanty Town’ from his ‘Keep It Unreal’ album released in 1999. The full line is ‘Whales! Great creatures of the sea! Please listen to me!’ It’s well worth checking out!

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ddi.12940

Posted on

Armyworms

Armyworms. Crop pests.

Inflict losses with our help.

Where will you strike next?

Crop pests cause vast economic losses worldwide, having a huge impact on the livelihoods of some of the most vulnerable populations. Originally from the Americas, the fall armyworm recently spread to sub-Saharan Africa, resulting in estimates of 20 to 50% maize yield losses. The armyworm appears to have arrived in sub-Saharan Africa as a result of passenger flights from America and has spread widely across the continent in only a couple of years.

Research by Early et al (2018) has considered where the pest might spread to next. By considering the armyworm’s life-history, current trade and transportation routes and the climates of countries that currently have populations of armyworms, the researchers were able to forecast the most likely next steps for this spreading species. In particular, the researchers highlight that the climactic conditions of South and Southeast Asia and Australia make these regions susceptible to invasion, with Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand the most vulnerable.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.40.28165

Posted on

Small and spherical

Small and spherical,

the eggs of forest blue tits.

Urban differences.

 

Populations of many species live in different environments that provide varied resources and have differing selection pressures. Research by Bańbura et al (2018) investigated the eggs of blue tits living in a forest environment compared to a nearby urban park.

The researchers found that urban-dwelling blue tits produced eggs that were on average 5% larger than their forest-dwelling counterparts, and the urban eggs were less spherical as well. These differences are potentially the result of blue tit diets in each environment – the forest is caterpillar-rich but calcium-poor whilst the urban park is the opposite, with 5-6 times the density of snails which have calcium-rich shells. The smaller, rounder forest egg shape requires less calcium compared to the less spherical urban egg shape.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12983-018-0279-4

Posted on

Wild, rural, urban

Mammal density

wild, rural, urban – the same.

Rocking the suburbs.

 

Urban development encroaches on natural spaces, reducing and altering animal habitats. A consequence of this is that many species have evolved to live around humans, although developed areas are thought to have low species diversity and abundance.

Yet research by Parsons et al (2018) in coordination with citizen scientist volunteers suggests this might not be the case. Using camera traps placed in areas of varying development (from wild to urban) and scale (from forests to yards) the researchers found that mammals were found in similar or higher levels of abundancy and species richness in developed areas compared to wild areas. The research highlights the need to conserve wild areas and preserve green spaces within cities.

The keen eyed may spot that the final line of this sciku is a reference to Ben Folds’ first solo album ‘Rockin’ the Suburbs’, released in 2001.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.38012.001

Posted on

Winter driving

Safe winter driving.

Does the bad outweigh the good?

Costs of studded tyres.

 

Studded tyres are commonly used in many countries in winter to increase road safety when driving in icy and snowy conditions. Yet there are increasing concerns over the costs of using studded tyres.

Research by Furberg et al (2018) examined the impacts of studded tyres, across their whole lifecycle, from production to usage. Impacts of studded tyres measured were the number of lives saved, particulate emissions during use, emissions whilst the tyres are being produced, accidents during the mining of cobalt used in the studs, as well as casualties as a result of conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo where the cobalt mining occurs and which the revenues of mining effects.

When taken together the researchers found that using studded tyres cost far more lives than they saved: in Sweden it’s estimated that studded tyres save between 60 and 770 life-years, whilst the costs are between 570 and 2200 life-years. In particular, whilst the benefits of studded tyres are primarily found in the countries that use them, 23-33% of the costs are found outside of those countries.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15081774

Posted on

Lingering threat

PCB. Lingering threat.

Slinking up food chains, silent.

Killing the killers.

 

PCBs – polychlorinated biphenyls – were widely used in a variety of manufacturing techniques until they were linked to health problems such as increasing the risk of cancer, disrupting the immune system and impairing reproduction. Despite a ban on their use, the compounds remain an environmental contamination and can accumulate in the tissues of animals, passing up the food chain to accumulate in dangerous levels in apex predators.

Whilst killer whales are one of the most populous mammal species on the planet, research by Desforges et al (2018) suggests that PCB pollution could result in a collapse in over 50% of the world’s killer whale populations. The researchers amalgamated data on PCB concentrations in killer whale tissues from across the world and modelled the predicted impacts of PCB pollution over the next 100 years. The results highlight how important it is to be aware of potential environmental issues, even with species that appear to be thriving.

Original research: http://science.sciencemag.org/content/361/6409/1373

Posted on

Hidden benefactor

Your water footprint.

Hidden benefactor of

a healthy diet.

 

Dietary changes can lead to big health benefits, but there are global benefits to a change in diet too. Vanham et al (2018) have found that a healthy diet results in a decrease in the water footprint required to produce the food. Whilst healthy vegetarian or pescetarian diets have the lowest water footprint, even a change to a healthy diet containing meat results in a decrease in water footprint of between 11% and 35%.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41893-018-0133-x

Posted on

No catch-22

Does the protected

lion eat conserved zebra?

Phew! No catch-22!

 

Recovering predator populations as a result of conservation work can result in impacts on their prey species populations, causing issues if those prey species are themselves endangered. One case in particular is whether lions exert top-down pressure on Grevy’s zebra in Kenya – does the recovery plan of one species negatively affect the conservation of another?

A study by O’Brien et al (2018) suggests we need not worry in this case – working in Laikipia County in Kenya the researchers found that lions were less likely to prey on Grevy’s zebra than expected. In fact, population trends suggest that the Grevy’s zebra population in Kenya may be stabilising. The researchers conclude that the most likely threat to Grevy’s zebra are competition for grass with Plain’s zebra and the impact of livestock.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0201983

Posted on

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.