Earth ChangesS


Attention

Backyard birders spy something new - unusual bird counts

Snowy Owls
© Ian DaviesSpotted. Amateur birders counted more than four times as many snowy owls in the United States and southern Canada as last year.

The United States and Canada just basked in an unusually mild winter. Temperatures ranked fourth warmest on record, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and many spring flowers are already blooming. But did the birds notice? Definitely, according to the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC), an annual tally of bird sightings collected by amateur birders across the United States and Canada. The numbers reveal that the snowy owl population in particular boomed and that many other birds showed up in more northerly latitudes than usual.

GBBC, now in its 15th year, is a joint effort by the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology in Ithaca, New York, and the National Audubon Society, headquartered in New York City. This year, birders, who were instructed to identify and record whatever birds they happened to see in their yards and neighborhoods between 17 and 20 February, tallied 17.4 million individual sightings. Pat Leonard, GBBC's director of communications, says that it's unclear how many individuals took part because each observer can submit more than one sighting checklist, but he estimates that between 65,000 and 70,000 volunteers participated.

Ornithologists working with GBBC analyzed the data and found a number of unexpected trends. One of the biggest surprises, says Marshall Iliff, an ornithologist at the Cornell lab who co-authored the report and leads a smaller, year-long project similar to GBBC called eBird, was an explosion in sightings of the snowy owl (Bubo scandiacus). In November, reports began trickling in to eBird that the snowy owl, which primarily lives north of the Arctic Circle, was showing up in unexpectedly large numbers in the United States and southern Canada, and GBBC's tally backs that up. Observers reported 428 sightings of the owl, which is four times the number from the same time last year. "This snowy owl thing is pretty surprising," Iliff says.

Sun

Drought in Mexico Expected to Persist for Years, Causing Food and Water Shortages

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© Reuters/Tomas BravoCattle graze on dry land in Chihuahua February 17, 2012.
A severe drought in Mexico that has cost farmers more than a billion dollars in crop losses alone and set back the national cattle herd for years, is just a foretaste of the drier future facing Latin America's second largest economy.

As water tankers race across northern Mexico to reach far-flung towns, and crops wither in the fields, the government has allotted 34 billion pesos ($2.65 billion) in emergency aid to confront the worst drought ever recorded in the country.

The water shortage wiped out millions of acres of farmland this winter, caused 15 billion pesos ($1.18 billion) in lost harvests, killed 60,000 head of cattle and weakened 2 million more livestock, pushing food prices higher in Mexico.

The overall cost to the economy is still being gauged but Mexico's drought-stung winter has been evolving for years and is expected to worsen as the effect of global climate change takes hold, according to the government.

"Droughts are cyclical - we know that - but they are growing more frequent and severe due to climate change," said Elvira Quesada, the Minister for the Environment and Natural Resources.

Evil Rays

Mysterious, unexplained "booms" in Alabama, Georgia, Wisconsin

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© UnknownImage showing small seismic activity in parts of southern Birmingham, Alabama
In separate events, mysterious booms shook residents of Alabama, Georgia, and Wisconsin. So far, government activities, earthquakes, and sonic booms are ruled out.

It is a warm, breezy afternoon with plenty of sunshine. Outside, you can smell the flowers blooming. In the horizon, the sky appears slightly tinted with a green haze as the pollen swarms the air. Birds are chirping, and the bees are flying from flower to flower. Spring has finally arrived. Everything is perfect, and care free. All of a sudden, the serene and peaceful landscape screams....

BOOOOOOOM!

The ground slightly shakes, and it feels like a large tremor is occurring.

Immediately, you tune into your television, open up your facebook and twitter feeds to find out exactly what is going on. You realize you were not the only one who felt the Earth shake from under you. Others, just like yourself, heard a loud explosion, but had no idea where it came from. Was it an earthquake? No, there was no seismic activity in your area that would register high enough to feel the Earth shake from under you. Did a meteor hit the Earth? Did a house explode? Did a plane crash nearby? No signs of a fire or smoke outside your house.

Blackbox

Arkansas bird death mystery solved?

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© National Geographic
Remember New Year's Eve 2010 when thousands of birds mysteriously dropped from the sky over Beebe, Arkansas? Well, the mystery has been solved.

Last May, a crew from the National Geographic Channel dropped by the NewsChannel5 Weather Office. They wanted to see what important information we had found regarding the bird deaths over Beebe. Indeed, my research indicated a unique radar signature several thousand feet above the birds just as the mass deaths were occurring. With the help of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a unique weather phenomenon was blamed for startling the birds and causing the mayhem that resulted in the demise of thousands of birds that night.

On Thursday, an all-new National Geographic Special will debut explaining the Beebe event as well as several other mass animal deaths that occurred last winter. The show, "Omens of the Apocalypse," airs on the National Geographic Channel at 10 p.m.

Here's the original story from last January: Something weird happened in Beebe, Arkansas just before midnight on January 1st, 2010. Thousands of red-winged blackbirds literally fell from the sky throughout the town. Most of the birds were dead. A few were alive, but lthough barely. Results from preliminary testing released today by the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission Veterinary Diagnostic Lab show that red-winged blackbirds died from massive body trauma.

Sun

Solar storm dumps gigawatts into Earth's upper atmosphere - enough to power New York for 2 years

"This was the biggest dose of heat we've received from a solar storm since 2005," says Martin Mlynczak of NASA Langley Research Center. "It was a big event, and shows how solar activity can directly affect our planet."

Mlynczak is the associate principal investigator for the SABER instrument onboard NASA's TIMED satellite. SABER monitors infrared emissions from Earth's upper atmosphere, in particular from carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitric oxide (NO), two substances that play a key role in the energy balance of air hundreds of km above our planet's surface.

"Carbon dioxide and nitric oxide are natural thermostats," explains James Russell of Hampton University, SABER's principal investigator. "When the upper atmosphere (or 'thermosphere') heats up, these molecules try as hard as they can to shed that heat back into space."


Bizarro Earth

6.1-strong earthquake considered the biggest in Australia in 15 years


Comment: The headline has been updated to account for the Herald Sun's correction.


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© USGS
The earthquake's epicentre was recorded at shallow depth near Ernabella, 415km north west of Coober Pedy and about 320km south west of Alice Springs, just before 8pm yesterday.

Geoscience Australia reported the quake could have been felt by people up to 500km away and damage experienced within a 40km radius of the epicentre.

Geoscience Australia seismologist David Jepsen said the quake was the biggest in Australia in 15 years.

''There are a number of Aboriginal communities near the epicentre and they would have felt the earthquake strongly,'' he said.

''It is possible there could be some minor damage up there. One of these in a major city would be a different story.

''People as far north as Alice Springs and as far south as Coober Pedy and Oodnadatta could have felt this.''

Blackbox

Micro-quake near Wisconsin city bothered by booms

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© AP Photo/Carrie AntlfingerSharon Binger points to a crack on Wednesday, March 21, 2012 in the basement of her home in Clintonville, Wis. Binger said it was caused by vibrations and booms that city officials are unable to explain.
Federal geologists say a minor earthquake occurred this week near the Wisconsin city where researchers have been investigating a series of unexplained booming sounds. The U.S. Geological Survey said Thursday the 1.5 magnitude earthquake struck Tuesday just after midnight in the eastern Wisconsin city of Clintonville.

Geophysicist Paul Caruso says loud booming noises have been known to accompany earthquakes. He says it's possible the mysterious sounds are linked to the quake.

City officials have been seeking answers related to the late-night booms, which started Sunday night and have as yet defied explanation.

Blackbox

Strange noise in Clintonville: Engineering firm hired to try to find epicenter of loud, booming shakes

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© Ron Page/The Post-CrescentShawn MacDonald (foreground) and Tammy Strey-Hirt of Clintonville listen during a question-and-answer session Wednesday night regarding the unexplained booming noises being heard in the city as citizens and members of the media gather at Clintonville High School to ask questions of officials.
Officials have tried to record a series of mysterious booming sounds that have roused residents from their beds in the past few days, but their attempts have come up empty.

City administrator Lisa Kuss, addressing a crowd of about 400 people Wednesday night at a public hearing to talk about the phenomenon, said the city will spend $7,000 to hire Waukesha-based engineering firm Ruekert & Mielke, which will place four seismometers around the city to try to locate the epicenter of the strange sounds.

If the firm finds the epicenter, the next step will be to pinpoint the depth and what is causing it. The cause is likely only a couple hundred feet under the earth's surface, Kuss said.

"It's possible we'll never have a definitive answer," Kuss told the audience at the Clintonville High School auditorium.

The big shakes have elicited big attention and the room was lined with media, including reporters from CNN, NBC and a photographer taking photos for the New York Times.

See an interactive map of where the reported "booms" have occured in Clintonville

Bizarro Earth

Corn insecticide linked to great die-off of beneficial honeybees

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© Unknown
New research has linked springtime die-offs of honeybees critical for pollinating food crops - part of the mysterious malady called colony collapse disorder - with technology for planting corn coated with insecticides.

The study, published in ACS' journal Environmental Science and Technology, appears on the eve of spring planting seasons in some parts of Europe where farmers use the technology and widespread deaths of honeybees have occurred in the past.

In the study, Andrea Tapparo and colleagues explain that seeds coated with so-called neonicotinoid insecticides went into wide use in Europe in the late 1990s. The insecticides are among the most widely used in the world, popular because they kill insects by paralyzing nerves but have lower toxicity for other animals.

Almost immediately, beekeepers observed large die-offs of bees that seemed to coincide with mid-March to May corn planting. Scientists thought this might be due to particles of insecticide made airborne by the pneumatic drilling machines used for planting.

Comment: Or, could the bee die-off be related to this: Study Says Insecticide Used with GM Corn Highly Toxic to Bees

For a more in depth look at What is killing the bees? read the following articles carried on SOTT.NET:

Wik-Bee Leaks: EPA Document Shows It Knowingly Allowed Pesticide That Kills Honey Bees

Beekeepers Suggest Pesticide is Destroying Insect Colonies

Bayer in the Dock Over Pesticide Linked to Colony Collapse Disorder

Germany Suspends Pesticide Approvals After Mass Death Of Bees

Have Bees Become Canaries In the Coal Mine? Why Massive Bee Dieoffs May Be a Warning About Our Own Health
The decline of bees has been in the headlines for several years, and theories to explain their deaths abound. But perhaps there is not just one single cause. University of California San Diego professor of biology James Nieh studies foraging, communication and health of bees. "I would say it's a combination of four factors; pesticides, disease, parasites, and human mismanagement," says Nieh. Bees might be weakened by having a very low level of exposure to insecticides or fungicides, making them more susceptible if they are attacked by viruses or parasites. "It's kind of like taking a patient who is not doing so well - very weak, poor diet, exposing them to pathogens, and then throwing more things at them. It's not surprising that honeybees are not very healthy."

One class of pesticides, neonicotinoids in particular has received a lot of attention for harming bees. In late 2010, the EPA came under fire from beekeepers and pesticide watchdog organizations. This happened when Colorado beekeeper Tom Theobald spoke out about how the EPA allowed clothianidin to be used without any proof it was safe and despite the fact that the EPA's own scientists believed it "has the potential for toxic risk to honey bees, as well as other pollinators."



Bizarro Earth

Papua New Guinea - Earthquake Magnitude 6.6.

PNG Quake_210312
© USGSEarthquake Location
Date-Time
Wednesday, March 21, 2012 at 22:15:05 UTC

Thursday, March 22, 2012 at 08:15:05 AM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location
6.244°S, 145.959°E

Depth
105.9 km (65.8 miles)

Region
NEW GUINEA, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Distances
66 km (41 miles) ESE of Goroka, New Guinea, PNG

114 km (70 miles) S of Madang, New Guinea, PNG

382 km (237 miles) NNW of PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea

2469 km (1534 miles) NNW of BRISBANE, Queensland, Australia