A new study suggests marine life is increasingly faced with triple-threat events in which extreme water temperature, low oxygen levels, and acidification converge.
animals
Rain Comes to the Arctic, With a Cascade of Troubling Changes
Rain used to be rare in the Arctic, but as the region warms, so-called rain-on-snow events are becoming more common. The rains accelerate ice loss, trigger flooding, landslides, and avalanches, and create problems for wildlife and the Indigenous people who depend on them.
Moonlit Nights Change a Coral Reef’s Tune
Some reef fish get chattier when the Moon is out, while feisty snapping shrimp and other invertebrates pipe down.
Animals Deserve to Be Included in Global Carbon Cycle Models, Too
Because they are far less plentiful than plants and microbes, animals have typically been excluded from examinations of carbon exchange in the atmosphere. But new research shows they may have a considerable influence on carbon cycle dynamics.
Sea Otters’ Appetite for Crab Is Helping Strengthen Estuary Banks
Apex predators can have a powerful impact on coastal erosion rates by keeping grazer populations down, but their influence has been largely overlooked.
Mysterious Seafloor Pits May Be Made on Porpoise
Some shallow seafloor depressions off the coast of Germany that look like those associated with methane might instead be the work of porpoises.
Quartz-Gobbling Worms Are Weathering Earth’s Soils
New research in mineral weathering shows that earthworms may be an important contributor to Earth’s weathering cycle.
Solar Storms May Scramble Signals for Migratory Birds
Birds use Earth’s magnetic field to migrate, but severe space weather may interfere with navigation and reduce the number of birds in the sky.
Future Supercontinent Will Be Inhospitable for Mammals
Pangea returns in 250 million years, and it’s not looking good for us.