Gnawing beavers could accelerate thawing of Arctic permafrost


New research suggests beavers are accelerating the thawing of the Arctic's permafrost in Alaska. Photo by Pixabay/CC

June 30 (UPI) -- The Arctic's permafrost could begin to thaw more rapidly as beavers in Alaska continue to proliferate.

According to a new study, published Tuesday in the journal Environmental Research Letters, beaver numbers are up across Alaska's Arctic tundra, and they're building more and more dams, creating new bodies of water.

The big, sharp buck teeth of the beaver help the industrious mammals fell trees and shrubs to construct homes and dams, flooding valleys and creating new ponds and lakes -- transforming landscapes. Few animals can alter their environs with the efficiency of the beaver.

"Their methods are extremely effective," study co-author Ingmar Nitze, scientist at the Alfred Wegener Institute's Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research, said in a news release.

RELATED Large freshwater animal populations see 88 percent drop in 40 years

Nitze and his colleagues have been actively monitoring Arctic tundra to better understand the how climate change is affecting the region's permafrost and its ability to store carbon.

But climate isn't the only variable. As temperatures have warmed in recent decades, the Arctic has become increasingly green. With more shrubs and small trees to eat, beavers have moved farther north into the Arctic Circle.

In 2018, Nitze and other researchers reported beavers living in a 7,000-square-mile section of northwest Alaska had created 56 new lakes in only five years. The latest research, which focused on two different plots of land in Alaska, suggests beavers have continued to spread

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"Of course, we knew that the beavers there had spread substantially over the last few decades," said Nitze. "But we never would have dreamed they would seize the opportunity so intensively."

In a plot measuring 38 square miles, near the town of Kotzebue, satellite images confirmed the creation of an average of five new beaver dams per year between 2002 and 2019 -- a 5,000 percent increase in less than two decades. Scientists documented similar dam construction rates across the entire northern Baldwin Peninsula.

"We're seeing exponential growth there. The number of these structures doubles roughly every four years," Nitze said.

WORLD'S BIGGEST BEAVER DAM
NORTHERN ALBERTA,
 WOOD BUFFALO NATIONAL PARK

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Researchers found beavers prefer to take advantage of drained lake beds.

"The animals have intuitively found that damming the outlet drainage channels at the sites of former lakes is an efficient way to create habitat," said lead study author Benjamin Jones, researcher at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. "So a new lake is formed which degrades ice-rich permafrost in the basin, adding to the effect of increasing the depth of the engineered water body."

Researchers found the water area in the Kotzebue region grew by 8.3 percent between 2002 and 2019. These more expansive and deeper lakes are warmer than the surrounding tundra, and researchers worry the increasing number of beaver-built lakes in the region will accelerate the melting of Arctic permafrost.

RELATED Arctic climate change: Recent carbon emissions worse than ancient methane

Jones, Nitze and their colleagues plan to investigate the spread of beavers across the Canadian Arctic.

"Anyone who wants to predict the future of the permafrost should be sure to keep the beaver in mind," Nitze said.

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Ancient Japanese birds looked a lot like New Zealand's monster penguins


Some species of plotopterids, such as Copepteryx, grew to heights of more than six feet. Photo by Mark Witton


June 29 (UPI) -- New analysis suggests New Zealand's giant penguins and a much younger group of Northern Hemisphere birds, the plotopterids, were physically quite similar.

The research, published Monday in the Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research, could help scientists figure out how birds evolved wings better suited for swimming than flying.

Fossil remains suggest as many as nine different species once swam the tropical seas that washed over most of what's now New Zealand, some 62 million years ago. While some species were the size of modern penguins, others grew to heights of more than five feet.

Plotopterids don't appear in the Northern Hemisphere fossil record until 30 million years later. Their remains have been recovered from several sites in Japan and North America. Like penguins, plotopterids used flipper-like wings to navigate coastal seas. But while the relatives of New Zealand's ancient penguins can still be found today, plotopterids went extinct around 25 million years ago.

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For the new study, scientists compared the fossilized remains of plotopterids recovered from Japan with the fossils of three giant penguin species. In addition to boasting similar wings, the analysis showed both groups of birds possessed long beaks with slit-like nostrils, as well as chest and shoulder bones conducive to swimming. Like the giant penguins, some plotopterid species were oversized, growing to heights of more than six feet.

Despite their physical similarities, plotopterids and penguins aren't particularly close relatives. Plotopterids are more closely related to other seaworthy birds like boobies, gannets and cormorants.

"What's remarkable about all this is that plotopterids and ancient penguins evolved these shared features independently," study co-author Vanesa De Pietri, curator at the Canterbury Museum in New Zealand, said in a news release. "This is an example of what we call convergent evolution, when distantly related organisms develop similar morphological traits under similar environmental conditions."

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Though plotopterids and giant penguins were separated by several thousand miles and nearly 30 million years, had they lived side-by-side, they would have been hard to distinguish.

"Plotopterids looked like penguins, they swam like penguins, they probably ate like penguins -- but they weren't penguins," said Paul Scofield, study co-author and Canterbury curator.

The newly published comparison of the two ancient bird groups has helped scientists begin to develop an explanation for why some birds developed wings for swimming.

"Wing-propelled diving is quite rare among birds; most swimming birds use their feet," said study co-author Gerald Mayr, scientist at the Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum in Germany.

"We think both penguins and plotodopterids had flying ancestors that would plunge from the air into the water in search of food," Mayr said. "Over time these ancestor species got better at swimming and worse at flying."

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TURNING JAPANESE 

Gold mining stunts Amazon rainforest recovery

ILLEGAL ARTISANAL MINING
Illegal mining severely hinders the recovery abilities of the Amazon rainforest. 

Photo by Planet Labs/Wikimedia Commons

June 29 (UPI) -- The effects of gold mining on forest health are long lasting. According to new research, gold mining stunts the regrowth of Amazon forests, limiting their ability to store carbon.

"Historically gold mining was often overlooked in deforestation analysis as it occupies relatively small areas when compared to pastures or large-scale agriculture," lead study author Michelle Kalamandeen told UPI in an email.

Kalamandeen started the research as a postgraduate researcher at the University of Leeds but is now a postdoctoral researcher at Cambridge University.

"Yet, given recent proliferation in mining activities since 2007-2008 and again in 2012, the potential areas may be underestimated and the impact on biodiversity and forest recovery unquantified," she said.

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For the study, Kalamandeen and her colleagues sampled soil and measured trees at 18 test plots in two main gold mining areas in Guyana. Researchers also established two control sites in old-growth forests.

"We measured trees/saplings/seedlings within each plot and took soil samples from abandoned gold mining sites, active sites and control 'old-growth' sites," Kalamandeen said.

The data -- published Monday in the Journal of Applied Ecology -- showed trees in forests damaged by gold mining activity struggled to reestablish themselves. Where as forest harmed by other kinds of activities, such as logging and agriculture, were able to rebound, the negative effects of mining on growth and carbon storage persisted.

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"Our analysis showed that the lack of nitrogen was the primary driving force for the lack of recovery occurring on the tailing ponds and mining pits," Kalamandeen said. "On the overburden, where there was an abundance of nitrogen, regrowth of trees were similar to other Neotropical secondary, recovery forests."

Researchers were surprised to find that a lack of nitrogen, instead of an excess of mercury, was to blame for the stunted regrowth.

"Our research showed that active mines had on average 250 times more mercury than abandoned mining sites, suggesting that this mercury leaches into neighboring forests and rivers," Kalamandeen said.

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Researchers found that in the few mining sites where topsoil was replaced and fertilized with nitrogen -- an often mandated, but rarely enforced, restoration step -- regrowth was comparable to plots where trees were cleared for other types of activity.

Scientists hope their findings will inspire politicians and policy makers in the Amazon to strengthen environmental regulations for gold mining.

"It's important the current environmental policies are enforced. Most Amazonian countries have reasonable monitoring and enforcement policies but weakening of such policies or reduced funding to regulatory agencies as we've seen in Brazil and Venezuela, means that enforcement isn't occurring," Kalamandeen said.

RELATED Abandoned mines in the West pose safety, environmental hazards

"Addressing corruption in mining agencies is also another issue that needs addressing at the national scale," Kalamandeen said. "For restoration, many Amazonian countries don't have a forest restoration policy when it comes to gold mining and this needs to be tested and developed for tropical forests at the landscape-scale."

Gold prices often rise in the wake of economic crises, and when they do, small-scale gold mining activity ramps up in the Amazon.

Though under new leadership, Brazil has recently been weakening environmental regulations. But in the years that followed the financial crisis, strong rainforest protections forced miners to pursue gold in neighboring countries, especially the dense forests of Guyana and the French Guiana.

With the COVID-19 pandemic putting a significant dent in global economic growth, researchers worry gold mining activity will once again proliferate across a large stretch of forest known as the Guiana Shield. In the future, scientists hope to test new technologies designed to curb the threat of gold mining.

"We hope to use remote sensing to help detect gold mining especially illegal mining within the Amazon," Kalamandeen said.

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Soft coral garden found in Greenland's deep sea 

WELL THAT WAS UNEXPECTED

Researchers found an abundance of sea anemones in the deep sea coral garden off the western coast of Greenland. Photo by ZSL/GINR
June 29 (UPI) -- Scientists have discovered a soft coral garden off the coast of western Greenland, some 1,600 feet below the ocean surface.

The ecosystem -- described Monday in the journal Frontiers in Marine Biology -- was discovered using a novel, low-cost underwater video system developed by researchers at University College London, the Zoological Society of London and the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources.he discovery could have implications for the management of nearby deep-sea trawl fisheries.

"The deep sea is often over-looked in terms of exploration. In fact we have better maps of the surface of Mars, than we do of the deep sea," Stephen Long, first author on the new study, said in a news release.

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"The development of a low-cost tool that can withstand deep-sea environments opens up new possibilities for our understanding and management of marine ecosystems," said Long, a postdoctoral researcher in the geography department at UCL. "We'll be working with the Greenland government and fishing industry to ensure this fragile, complex and beautiful habitat is protected."

The soft coral garden features an abundance of cauliflower corals, as well as feather stars, sponges, anemones, brittle stars and hydrozoans bryozoans.

"Coral gardens are characterized by collections of one or more species -- typically of non-reef forming coral -- that sit on a wide range of hard and soft bottom habitats, from rock to sand, and support a diversity of fauna," said Chris Yesson, study co-author and ZSL researcher. "There is considerable diversity among coral garden communities, which have previously been observed in areas such as northwest and southeast Iceland."

RELATED Global warming is undoing decades of progress in marine reserves

In addition to being pitch black, deep sea environments host extreme ocean pressures. The pressure at 500 meters, or 1,600 feet, underwater is 50 times greater than at sea-level.

Most deep sea observations require expensive remote-controlled submersibles, but for the latest survey, researchers developed a low-cost alternative using a GoPro video camera, outfitted with lights and lasers, and housed in a pressure-proof container. Scientists situated the protected camera system in a large steel frame and lowered it into the ocean off the coast of Greenland.

The researcher team deposited their video sled on the ocean bottom and started recording. Scientists captured 15 minutes at a time across 18 different locations.

RELATED Study shows changes in Great Barrier Reef fish during heat wave

"A towed video sled is not unique. However, our research is certainly the first example of a low-cost DIY video sled led being used to explore deep-sea habitats in Greenland's 2.2 million square kilometers of sea," Long said. "So far, the team has managed to reach an impressive depth of 1,500 meters. It has worked remarkably well and led to interest from researchers in other parts of the world."

The deep sea is one the planet's least understood environs, but researchers hope their new video sled will make deep sea research more accessible to scientists across the globe.

"Greenland's seafloor is virtually unexplored, although we know is it inhabited by more than 2000 different species together contributing to complex and diverse habitats, and to the functioning of the marine ecosystem," said Martin Blicher, researcher at the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources.

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"Despite knowing so little about these seafloor habitats, the Greenlandic economy depends on a small number of fisheries which trawl the seabed. We hope that studies like this will increase our understanding of ecological relationships, and contribute to sustainable fisheries management," Blicher said.

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TRUMP LOSES ANOTHER ONE
Federal judge overturns Trump admin's 'third-country' asylum rule

Migrants wait in line for food in front of the makeshift migrant shelter at Unidad Deportiva Benito Juarez Stadium Tijuana, Mexico, on November 26, 2018. File Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo

July 1 (UPI) -- A federal judge has invalidated a Trump administration rule requiring that refugees seeking asylum at the southern U.S. border must first apply in a "safe" third country.

In a 52-page ruling late Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly of Washington, D.C., agreed with migrants and rights groups that the administration's "third-country asylum rule" violated U.S. law.

The rule was implemented after a number of Central American migrants from Honduras and Guatemala sought asylum in the United States, due to gang violence in their native countries. The caravans traveled through Mexico to reach the U.S. border.

The Departments of Justice and Homeland Security rolled out the rule after President Donald Trump vowed to stop the migrant caravans headed toward the United States.

Administration officials said the measure was aimed at reducing pressure on the immigration system "by more efficiently identifying aliens who are misusing the asylum system to enter and remain in the United States."

In his ruling Tuesday, Kelly vacated the rule and said it had been quickly imposed without the "notice-and-comment" procedures required under the Administrative Procedure Act, which requires a public commentary period for rule changes.

Kelly also denied the government's plea to stay the ruling pending an appeal.

Tuesday's was the administration's second legal setback on immigration in less than a month. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program on June 18. The administration, however, has already begun to prepare a new challenge.

TEAR GAS CS GAS CANISTER USED AT THE BORDER AGAINST FAMILIES AND CHILDREN SAME AS WHAT BARR USED AGAINST PROTESTERS IN WASHINGTON DC\

CS GAS IS CONSIDERED A CHEMICAL WEAPON OF WAR BY THE GENEVA CONVENTION AND IS OUTLAWED FOR USE AGAINST CIVILIAN POPULATIONS

Children of the Central American migrant caravan

ALL PHOTOS HERE https://tinyurl.com/y86pevmm

Albert Yared stands near the Greyhound Bus Station in downtown San Diego on Saturday. Albert traveled with his parents in the migrant caravan from Honduras hoping to seek asylum in the U.S., crossing from Tijuana to San Diego on December 21. They spent their first night in CBP custody, but are now wearing ankle bracelets and headed to Mississippi where they hope to begin their new lives. Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo

A family from Honduras traveling with the migrant caravan gets ready to climb the fence in Tijuana, Mexico. Frustration has been growing in the last few weeks at the length of the asylum process so instead of continuing to wait some migrants are trying to climb the border fence. Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo


A child from the caravan looks at the border fence from Playas de Tijuana, Mexico, on Sunday. His face is lit by lights from the U.S. side so border agents can monitor illegal crossings at night. Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo


Yeison (L), Johana, their 3-year-old son, Albert Yared, and Yeison's cousin Milson (R) traveled from Honduras with the migrant caravan. They were staying at the El Batteral shelter for families in Tijuana, Mexico, on Sunday. Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo


Johana hugs her 3-year-old son, Albert Yared. Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo


Children entertain themselves by watching a show on a cellphone at the El Barretal shelter. The shelter is an abandoned concert hall that has the capacity to house 7,500 people. It was about half full on Sunday. Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo


Children who crossed illegally into San Ysidro, Calif., wait under detention from U.S. Border Patrol on December 2. With growing frustration at the length of the asylum process, a dozen migrants decided to jump the border fence that divides the U.S. and Mexico. Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo

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Mississippi Gov. Reeves signs bill stripping Confederate emblem from flag

June 30 (UPI) -- Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves on Tuesday signed a bill mandating the removal of the state flag and banning future use of the Confederate emblem.

Reeves said in a speech the state would begin the process of selecting a new flag that will be emblazoned with the words "In God We Trust" after lawmakers voted to remove the Confederate emblem from the flag over the weekend.

"This is not a political moment, it is a solemn occasion to come together as a Mississipi family, reconcile and move forward together. Now, more than ever, we must lean on our faith, put our divisions behind us and unite for a greater good," he said.

The flag with blue, white and red stripes and the Confederate emblem in its corner was adopted in 1894 and both the state House and Senate voted to alter the design on Sunday.

Reeves acknowledged the need to "commit the 1894 flag to history and find a banner that is a better emblem for all Mississippians but condemned protesters throughout the country who have torn down monuments to Confederate figures."

"There is a difference between monuments and flags, a monument acknowledges and honors our past, a flag is a symbol of our present, of our people and of our future," he said. "For those reasons, we need a new symbol."

The presence of the Confederate emblem on the flag has long been a source of tension in the state, but has come under increased scrutiny following worldwide protests in response to the police-involved killing of George Floyd, a black man in Minnesota.

In Memoriam: Moments from Carl Reiner's career 
(12 images)

The legendary comedian, actor, writer and producer, Carl Reiner, died on June 30, 2020 at the age of 98. Here's a look back at his career through the years.

Slide show  Thumbnails View all

Left to right, Carl Reiner, Sid Caesar and Howard Morris perform as “The Haircuts” on Sid Caesar’s TV hour on September 7, 1955. Caesar died in 2014 at the age of 91. UPI File Photo | License Photo