Bay Area Ecosystems Climate Change Consortium (BAECCC)

ScienceDaily: Earth & Climate News

02/22/2012 11:29 AM
Birds sing louder amidst the noise and structures of the urban jungle
Sparrows, blackbirds and the great tit are all birds known to sing at a higher pitch in urban environments. It was previously believed that these birds sang at higher frequencies in order to escape the lower frequencies noises of the urban environment. Now, researchers have discovered that besides noise, the physical structure of cities also plays a role in altering the birds' songs.

02/22/2012 09:43 AM
Earth's clouds are getting lower, NASA satellite finds
Earth's clouds got a little lower -- about one percent on average -- during the first decade of this century, finds a new NASA-funded university study based on NASA satellite data. The results have potential implications for future global climate.

02/22/2012 07:42 AM
From Bass Strait to the Indian Ocean: Tracking a current
Deep-diving ocean "gliders" have revealed the journey of Bass Strait water from the Tasman Sea to the Indian Ocean.

02/21/2012 07:26 PM
Stratospheric superbugs offer new source of power
Bacteria normally found 30 kilometers above Earth have been identified as highly efficient generators of electricity. Bacillus stratosphericus -- a microbe commonly found in high concentrations in the stratosphere -- is a key component of a new 'super' biofilm that has been engineered by a team of scientists from Newcastle University.

02/21/2012 07:25 PM
Caught in the act: Scientists discover microbes speciating
Not that long ago in a hot spring in Kamchatka, Russia, two groups of genetically indistinguishable microbes decided to part ways. They began evolving into different species – despite the fact that they still encountered one another in their acidic, boiling habitat and even exchanged some genes from time to time, researchers report. This is the first example of what the researchers call sympatric speciation in a microorganism.

02/21/2012 01:15 PM
Rare fungus kills endangered rattlesnakes in southern Illinois
A small population of rattlesnakes that already is in decline in southern Illinois faces a new and unexpected threat in the form of a fungus rarely seen in the wild, researchers report. The finding matches reports of rattlesnake deaths in the northeast United States.

02/21/2012 10:54 AM
Origin of photosynthesis revealed: Genome analysis of 'living fossil' sheds light on the evolution of plants
Evolutionary biologists have shed light on the early events leading to photosynthesis, the result of the sequencing of 70 million base pair nuclear genome of the one-celled alga Cyanophora. They consider this study the final piece of the puzzle to understand the origin of photosynthesis in eukaryotes.

02/21/2012 10:54 AM
Tohoku grim reminder of potential for Pacific Northwest North American megaquake
The March 11, 2011 Tohoku earthquake is a grim reminder of the potential for another strong-motion mega-earthquake along the Pacific Northwest coast, geophysicists say.

02/21/2012 10:52 AM
Plant toughness: Key to cracking biofuels?
Along with photosynthesis, the plant cell wall is one of the features that most set plants apart from animals. A structural molecule called cellulose is necessary for the manufacture of these walls. Cellulose is synthesized in a semi-crystalline state that is essential for its function in the cell wall function, but the mechanisms controlling its crystallinity are poorly understood. New research reveals key information about this process.

02/21/2012 10:48 AM
Irish mammals under serious threat from 'invasional meltdown'
Some of Ireland's oldest inhabitants are facing serious threat and possible extinction because of foreign species, according to researchers.

02/21/2012 10:48 AM
Ant colonies remember rivals' odor and compete like sports fans
A new study has shown that weaver ants share a collective memory for the odor of ants in rival nests, and use the information to identify them and compete, similar to how sports fans know each other instantly by their unique colors.

02/21/2012 10:48 AM
Gases drawn into smog particles stay there
Airborne gases get sucked into stubborn smog particles from which they cannot escape, according to new findings. These finding could explain why air pollution models underestimate organic aerosols.

02/21/2012 10:47 AM
Tadpoles adjust buoyancy to adapt to different environments
Survival and reproduction of many aquatic and semi-aquatic animals can depend upon how well they float. Tadpoles use various strategies to attain buoyancy, depending upon their stage of development and location in still or turbulent waters. Researchers have taken a closer look at the developing frog's strategies to achieve buoyancy.

02/21/2012 08:41 AM
Iconic marine mammals are 'swimming in sick seas' of terrestrial pathogens
Parasites and pathogens infecting humans, pets and farm animals are increasingly being detected in marine mammals such as sea otters, porpoises, harbor seals and killer whales along the Pacific coast of the US and Canada, and better surveillance is required to monitor public health implications, according to a panel of scientific experts from Canada and the United States.

02/21/2012 08:37 AM
Environmental pollutant level during pregnancy linked with grown daughters who are overweight
The levels of the environmental pollutant perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) that mothers had in their blood during pregnancy increased the risk of obesity in their daughters at 20 years of age.

02/21/2012 07:02 AM
Eat and let die: Insect feeds on toxic plants for protection from predators
Certain insects, such as the African variegated grasshopper or the cinnabar moth, native in Europe and Asia, feed on toxic plants in order to protect themselves from predators.

02/20/2012 02:13 PM
300-million-year-old forest discovered preserved in volanic ash
Pompeii-like, a 300-million-year-old tropical forest was preserved in ash when a volcano erupted in what is today northern China. Paleobotanists have reconstructed this fossilized forest, lending insight into the ecology and climate of its time.

02/20/2012 12:26 PM
Taking Earth's pulse: Scientists unveil a new economic and environmental index
A growing world population, mixed with the threat of climate change and mounting financial problems, has prompted researchers to measure the overall "health" of 152 countries around the world.

02/20/2012 12:26 PM
High definition polarization vision discovered in cuttlefish
Cuttlefish have the most acute polarization vision yet found in any animal, researchers have discovered by showing them movies on a modified LCD computer screen to test their eyesight.

02/20/2012 12:26 PM
Conservation risk highest off coasts of Canada, Mexico, Peru and New Zealand
Researchers have identified conservation "hot spots" around the world where the temptation to profit from overfishing outweighs the appetite for conservation.