Earth ChangesS


Arrow Up

One-Fifth Of World's Invertebrate Species Face Extinction

Twenty percent of the invertebrate species across the globe - spineless creatures ranging from earthworms to bees to butterflies to lobsters and beyond - are facing the possible risk of extinction unless more is done to protect them, say researchers from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL).

Red Damselfly
© tomatito / ShutterstockClose-up of a large red damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula).
As part of their 87-page study, ZSL scientists joined forces with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to review more than 12,000 invertebrate species listed on the organization's Red List of Threatened Species.

They discovered that an estimated one-fifth of those species are threatened to the point that they could eventually die out, with freshwater creatures most at risk of extinction, followed by terrestrial invertebrates and marine creatures without backbones, the organization said in an August 31 online report.

"The highest risk of extinction tends to be associated with species that are less mobile and are only found in small geographical areas," the ZSL said. "For example, vertebrate amphibians and invertebrate freshwater mollusks both face high levels of threat - around one third of species. In contrast, invertebrate species which are more mobile like dragonflies and butterflies face a similar threat to that of birds, and around one tenth of species are at risk."

The scientists report that the creatures face a vast array of different threats, with mollusks suffering from pollution originating from agricultural sources and construction and crayfish facing threats from invasive species and illness. Furthermore, they told Alister Doyle of Reuters that the creatures, which lack internal skeletons, have also been threatened by global warming, habitat loss, and over-exploitation.

Arrow Up

US drought drives soyabean futures to record

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Soyabean futures rallied to a new record high on strong US exports and the danger of further deterioration of this year's drought-damaged crop.

CBOT September soyabeans rose as high as $17.80¾ per bushel, up 1 per cent on the day and beating a previous record reached on July 20.

The worst drought since the 1950s has lowered expectations for this year's US soyabean and corn crops, sending prices of agricultural commodities soaring. The government estimated that 38 per cent of soyabean fields were in poor to very-poor condition this week.

Analysts say that prices need to stay high to slow consumption. Soyabeans are usually crushed into meal fed to animals and into vegetable oil.

Attention

Apple harvests across Europe ravaged by extreme weather

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Huge hail storms pounded the UK this summer
This year's extreme weather conditions, which have devastated US cereal crops and Guatemalan maize, have claimed a fresh victim: the Cox's Orange Pippin.

Production of the quintessentially English apple, which has been around since the 19th century, is believed to be down by about a quarter this year after unseasonal weather battered blossom and stopped insects ferrying pollen around England's orchards.

Arrow Up

Best to get used to high food and energy prices - they're here to stay

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The Egyptian revolutionary movement will spread as food becomes scarcer
"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity," Winston Churchill famously remarked, but "the optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."

It is worth bearing this observation in mind when analysing the apparent catastrophe of a further spike in food and oil prices. I say apparent, because there are more positive ways of looking at this phenomenon which don't entirely fit with the present mood of declinism that has come to instruct all aspects of debate around the global economy.

On the face of it, rising oil and food prices are something very much to worry about. With many Western economies still flat on their backs and emerging markets slowing fast, the present surge could hardly have come at a worse time. Rising energy and food costs provide a further dampener at a time when the headwinds are already severe.

It seems that every time Western economies show some sign of climbing out of the mire, along comes another oil price shock to push them back in.

Comment: "Plentiful" is a thing of the past, for most. But what the author doesn't realise is the extent to which the scarcity of resources is going to radically and rapidly change this world... forever.


Bizarro Earth

Reclus Volcano in Chile Appears to be Reawakening as Earthquakes Felt in Nearby Towns

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© WikipediaAmalia Glacier with Reclus behind
Some unrest is going on at Reclus volcano in southern Chile, located between Aguilera and Monte Burney in Patagonia, the Eruptions Blog writes:
"Over the summer, earthquakes began to be felt in towns in the region of the volcano and a potential for new activity from the Reclus has prompted geologists to visit the volcano later this spring (southern hemisphere). Interestingly, one article mentions that an overflight of the volcano in 2008 spotted cracks on the glaciers that cover the volcano along with traces of ash. However, the direct connection between the seismicity in Patagonia and Reclus is still tenuous, so further observations of the remote volcano will need to be done."

Bug

West Nile Virus Spraying to Take Place in Manhattan this Week

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© longislandpress.com
One of New York's most expensive neighborhoods will be sprayed this week with pesticide to combat the West Nile virus, officials said Tuesday.

The city regularly sprays against the mosquito-borne disease, which has seen a surge in outbreaks in the United States this year. Friday's spraying is notable because it will target Manhattan's prestigious Upper West Side neighborhood and parts of the famed Central Park.

"These neighborhoods are being treated due to rising West Nile virus activity with high and/or increasing mosquito populations," the Department of Health said in a statement.

Snowflake

Ice Age: Record low temperature of -2C ends Britain's miserable, wettest summer ever

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    © Jonathan Pow
    On same day Met Office reveal it's been the wettest summer ever, temperatures plunged to almost record summer lows overnight
  • Braemar is Scotland was the coldest spot as it dropped to -2.1C
  • There has only been one August night colder, August 21 1973, when Lagganlia in the Highlands suffered -4.5C
  • It tops off a miserable summer, which has been the wettest in a century, causing flash floods only yesterday
  • Traffic congestion as parents return from family holidays ahead of children going back to school next week with M25 delayed in both directions
Britain's rotten summer hit a new low last night as it suffered its coldest August evening in 40 years - but that didn't stop children making the most of their last few days off from school.

Better Earth

Quake off Philippines spurs small tsunami; 1 dead

A 7.6-magnitude quake struck off the eastern coast of the Philippines late Friday, killing at least one person in a house collapse, knocking out power in several towns and generating negligible tsunami surges.

A tsunami alert originally was issued for several countries in the region including Indonesia and Japan and for Pacific islands as far away as the Northern Marianas, but they all were later lifted, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

The center said that very small tsunami waves of 3 centimeters meters (just over an inch) were recorded along the eastern Philippine coast near Legazpi city and another nearby location.

Benito Ramos, a retired general who heads the country's disaster-response agency, said in an advisory broadcast nationwide that residents should be on the alert for aftershocks.

Bizarro Earth

USGS: Earthquake Magnitude 7.6 - East of Sulangan, Philippines

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© USGS
Event Time

2012-08-31 12:47:34 UTC
2012-08-31 20:47:34 UTC+08:00 at epicenter
2012-08-31 05:47:34 UTC-07:00 system time

Nearby Cities

96km (60mi) E of Sulangan, Philippines
109km (68mi) ESE of Guiuan, Philippines
162km (101mi) ESE of Borongan, Philippines
176km (109mi) NE of Surigao, Philippines
747km (464mi) ESE of Manila, Philippines

Cow Skull

Worst drought in half a century skyrockets food prices in the Balkans

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A long and severe drought, the worst in the past 50 years, is causing serious damage in the Balkans. Most of the crops were destroyed and this has made vegetables and other product prices sky-rocket, while several localities, like Srebrenica, were left without drinking water.

This summer's drought, with unusually high temperatures, is a blow to the region, that is already greatly weakened by the economic crisis.

Farmers complain that in some parts the damages to their crops amount to 100%, while governments admit that they can not afford to compensate those who need it.

The drought also creates perfect conditions for wild fires, which have destroyed thousands of hectares of forests and plantations, while also emptying the accumulation of water in hydroelectric plants from rivers and wells that farmers need for cattle.

In Bosnia and Herzegovina a state of emergency has been proclaimed.