Protecting large animals such as elephants and whales, and large plants like the sequoias, has a disproportionate positive impact on the health of the planet and resilience to climate change. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/why-to-conserve-large-animals-trees…
Tag: extinctions
AI suggests Earth has had fewer mass extinctions than we thought
The late Devonian mass extinction around 375 million years ago may not have really happened, according to an analysis using machine learning Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2230345-ai-suggests-earth-has-had-fewer-mass-extinctions-than-we-thought/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Conservationists are ignoring climate change, risking mass extinctions
Efforts to save many endangered animals from extinction are doomed to fail as conservationists are not taking climate change into account Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24532633-100-conservationists-are-ignoring-climate-change-risking-mass-extinctions/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Extinction is a fact of life. Could we stop it – or even reverse it?
The fossil record tells us extinctions happen all the time. The question is what part we play – and whether we could ever bring back creatures like the dinosaurs Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24432601-500-extinction-is-a-fact-of-life-could-we-stop-it-or-even-reverse-it/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Did asteroid collision trigger Earth’s abrupt cooling 12,800 years ago?
Why did Earth’s climate rapidly cool 12,800 years ago? New evidence suggests that a comet or asteroid collision is to blame, with support coming from the bottom of a South Carolina lake. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/asteroid-comet-younger-dryas-abrupt-cooling…
Ocean Acidification Can Cause Mass Extinctions, Fossils Reveal
After analyzing fossil records from 66 million years ago, researchers determined that ocean acidification can cause the mass extinction of marine life. The Guardian reports: The researchers analysed small seashells in sediment laid down shortly after a giant meteorite hit the Earth, wiping out the dinosaurs and three-quarters of marine species. Chemical analysis of the shells showed a sharp drop in…
When did humans start altering Earth?
The ArchaeoGlobe Project assessed knowledge on human land use over the past 10,000 years, through the contributions of more than 200 archaeologists. It concluded that, by 3,000 years ago, most of Earth was already transformed by hunter-gatherers, farmers and pastoralists. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/when-humans-start-altering-planet-earth-anthropocene…
The secrets of how sharks survived so many of Earth’s mass extinctions
Vegetarianism and liking underwater volcanoes have helped sharks survive for half a billion years. But can they use their skills to cope with climate change? Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24232360-900-the-secrets-of-how-sharks-survived-so-many-of-earths-mass-extinctions/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
World’s Largest Plant Survey Reveals Alarming Extinction Rate
The world’s seed-bearing plants have been disappearing at a rate of nearly 3 species a year since 1900 — which is up to 500 times higher than would be expected as a result of natural forces alone, according to the largest survey yet of plant extinctions. From a report: The project looked at more than 330,000 species and found that plants…
Why super-sized beavers went extinct
Super-sized beavers were as big as black bears. They suddenly became extinct 10,000 years ago, while small modern beavers survived. Now scientists know why. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/why-giant-beavers-went-extinct…