In science news this week: Back-to-back low snow years will become more common; New mapping reveals lost West Coast estuary habitat; Voracious Flowers of the Tidepool; Ocean Acidification Alters Salmon’s Sense of Smell; Fear of Human Voices Can Shape an Ecosystem; Do Salmon Make Decisions as a Group?; Airborne Plastic Is Blowing All the Way to the Arctic; and more …
Back-to-back low snow years will become more common: “Consecutive low snow years may become six times more common across the Western United States over the latter half of this century, leading to ecological and economic challenges such as expanded fire seasons and poor snow conditions at ski resorts, according to a study. “Across the West, we’re generally losing a lot of our snowpack — in many places, low snow conditions will be increasingly consistent from year to year,” said Adrienne Marshall, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Idaho College of Natural Resources and lead author of the new study in AGU’s journal Geophysical Research Letters. … ” Read more from Science Daily here: Back-to-back low snow years will become more common
New mapping reveals lost West Coast estuary habitat: “An unprecedented survey has revealed the loss of about 85 percent of historical tidal wetlands in California, Oregon, and Washington. The report, published today in PLOS ONE, also highlights forgotten estuary acreage that might now be targeted for restoration. Where West Coast rivers reach the sea, estuaries serve as critical nurseries for juvenile salmon and steelhead as they make the transition from freshwater to the ocean. They are among the most dynamic and productive habitats known, also supporting migratory birds and a variety of other fish, shellfish, and terrestrial wildlife. … ” Read more from PhysOrg here: New mapping reveals lost West Coast estuary habitat
Voracious Flowers of the Tidepool: “Some of the most conspicuous animals in Northern California tidepools don’t look like animals at all. They resemble flowers more than any animal you’re probably familiar with. Sea anemones are members of the Anthozoa (from the Greek: antho = flower and zoa = animal). These “flower animals” are found throughout the world’s oceans. They live sedentary lives on the seafloor, but they’re technically not rooted there, as they can and do walk around, and some can even detach entirely to swim away from predators. ... ” Read more from Bay Nature here: Voracious Flowers of the Tidepool
Fear of Human Voices Can Shape an Ecosystem: “In the mountains near Santa Cruz, there’s an area where nature’s rules don’t seem to apply. Everything looks normal — there’s a stream, oak trees, redwoods, bobcats, skunks and the occasional opossum. Pacific tree frogs croak all day and into the night. Only those who listen carefully would notice that something in this remote spot sounds unusual. Human voices have joined the mix — and they’re reading, sometimes a short story written by Paul Bowles, at other times, poetry by Gwendolyn Brooks. These voices, and only these, have dramatically affected the way life moves through the area. Mountain lions avoid their old paths, and bobcats emerge almost exclusively at night. Rodents, meanwhile, have gotten bolder. The creatures are responding to virtual voices — recordings that UC Santa Cruz researchers are playing through loudspeakers they’ve placed in the forest. ... ” Read more from KQED here: Fear of Human Voices Can Shape an Ecosystem
Ocean Acidification Alters Salmon’s Sense of Smell: “Melting glaciers, drought-stricken deserts, and catastrophic wildfires may have become the face of climate change, but one significant consequence of a changing climate has remained more invisible: ocean acidification. Oceans absorb nearly a third of the carbon dioxide that is released into the atmosphere, which has begun to make seawater more acidic – like carbonation does to soda. Since the industrial revolution began some 200 years ago, the increased burning of fossil fuels has contributed to a 30% increase in the acidity of water in our oceans. This acidification has a suite of negative effects on important marine life, from interfering with the development of organisms that grow shells or external skeletons (such as corals, mollusks, and plankton), to affecting the hearing, vision, and brain function of various fish species. ... ” Read more from FishBio here: Ocean Acidification Alters Salmon’s Sense of Smell
Do Salmon Make Decisions as a Group? “A baby salmon is, often, the product of its parents’ final burst of life. The two adult fish, having fought their way upriver—skirting predators and navigating sometimes thousands of kilometers inland—end up hovering together, spewing eggs and sperm over the same rocky streambed where they were born. Likewise, their offspring will migrate out to sea, spending several years gobbling up plankton and fish before returning to that stream to start the cycle anew. Except, occasionally, they don’t. Sometimes, salmon stray on their way home, venturing into unknown waters. Each year, some percentage of migrating salmon always stray, but scientists don’t know why that percentage can vary so much—some years there are many strays and other years there are only a few. Now, some researchers have an idea why, and their work has helped foster a new scientific discipline. ... ” Read more from Hakai Magazine here: Do Salmon Make Decisions as a Group?
2018 Recovery Champions: Klamath Basin sucker program team receives 2018 Pacific Southwest Region conservation award: “On Endangered Species Day in May, 10 members of the Klamath Basin sucker recovery team, eight former and current U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees and two external partners were selected as the Pacific Southwest Region Recovery Champions for 2018. … The team was recognized for their effective collaboration to research, fund, design and implement a successful rearing program to increase survival of juvenile endangered Lost River and shortnose suckers – found only within the Klamath Basin of Oregon and California – to spawning maturity. … ” Read more from the US FWS here: 2018 Recovery Champions: Klamath Basin sucker program team receives 2018 Pacific Southwest Region conservation award
When invasive plants take root, native animals pay the price: “Imagine a new breed of pirate not only able to sail the high seas, but to exploit nearly any mode of transportation without detection. And these raiders’ ambitions have little to do with amassing treasure and everything to do with hijacking ecosystems. Today’s invasive species are as tenacious and resilient as the pirates of yesteryear, and when these plunderers set foot in new locations around the world, they know how to make themselves at home. As a result, home will never be the same for many native residents. … ” Read more from Science Daily here: When invasive plants take root, native animals pay the price
Airborne Plastic Is Blowing All the Way to the Arctic: “A few years ago, marine ecologist Melanie Bergmann was on the remote Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, studying the effects of climate change on Arctic marine ecosystems. She kept noticing how much plastic litter was turning up in samples and images of the nearby ocean floor. After doing several analyses, she and her team found tiny pieces of plastic permeating seafloor sediment and ocean waters and frozen into layers of sea ice. Because the Arctic has a relatively light human presence, the big question was: How was all this microplastic getting there? … ” Read more from E&E News here: Airborne Plastic Is Blowing All the Way to the Arctic
Maven’s XKCD Comic Pick of the Week …
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About Science News and Reports: This weekly feature, posted every Thursday, is a collection of the latest scientific research and reports with a focus on relevant issues to the Delta and to California water, although other issues such as climate change are sometimes included. Do you have an item to be included here? Submissions of relevant research and other materials is welcome. Email Maven
