Earth ChangesS


Cloud Precipitation

Death toll from north Afghanistan flash flooding rises to 20


Press TV
Thu, 25 Apr 2013 15:56 UTC
Afghanistan flood
© Unknown
The death toll from the latest devastating floods in northern Afghan following heavy rains in the area has climbed to 20 people, local officials say.

Zabihullah Akhtari, an official at Balkh governor's office, said on Thursday that nearly 2,000 households have been affected in the provincial capital Mazar-i-Sharif - located over 300 kilometers (186 miles) northwest of Kabul - and three nearby towns.

He added that eight people were killed in Sholgara district, seven in Kishindih, four in Charkint and one in Mazar-i-Sharif.
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Cloud Precipitation

Worst of U.S. Midwest flooding may not be over

Doyle Rice
USA Today
Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:40 UTC
Major river flooding this week

Many tributaries of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers are forecast to reach, surpass or remain at major flood stage over the next several days. As of late Monday afternoon, more than 150 gauges were in flood stage across the USA, almost all of them in the upper Midwest.
Midwest flood map
© NOAA
As of Tuesday morning, more than 150 gauges were in flood stage across the USA, almost all of them in the upper Midwest.
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Question

Minnesota man watches as waxwings began 'dropping out of the sky'

Sam Cook
Duluth News Tribune
Wed, 24 Apr 2013 11:39 UTC
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Two off-course flights into downtown buildings this week resulted in the deaths of almost 30 Bohemian waxwings and the injury of several others.Wildwoods, a wildlife rehabilitation center in Duluth, is caring for three Bohemian waxwings that were injured downtown in the past two days, said Peggy Farr, a Wildwoods rehabilitator and board member. Five other Bohemian waxwings died in that incident, Farr said.

"We're on a major migration route," said Farr. "This is a good time of year to close the blinds so the birds don't get faked out by the windows."

Separately, about 25 Bohemian waxwings were found dead Monday, April 22, in the plaza area adjacent to the Minnesota Power building in downtown Duluth, said Amy Rutledge, manager of corporate communications for Minnesota Power. The birds apparently had flown into tinted glass partitions adjacent to the building as the birds were flying up to trees.

Rutledge said Minnesota Power plans to put stickers on the glass panels that the waxwings hit so birds will be more likely to see the panels.

"Something like this has never happened before," Rutledge said. "It seems to be an anomaly."
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Snow Globe

UK: Hedgehogs emerging from hibernation very late in 2013


wildlifeextra.com
Thu, 25 Apr 2013 05:11 UTC
Hedgehogs emerging a month later than usual

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Hedgehog emergence is a month behind where it was in 2011 and 2012, suggesting that it is likely to have been a particularly difficult winter for this declining species.
April 2013. Latest results from the BTO Garden BirdWatch survey have revealed that British Hedgehogs are emerging from hibernation very late this spring. This weekly survey, which covers mammals as well as birds, shows that Hedgehog emergence is roughly a month behind what was seen in 2011 and 2012. The long winter may also have led to increased levels of overwinter mortality.

Difficult winter

The latest results from the British Trust for Ornithology's (BTO) Garden BirdWatch show that Hedgehog emergence is a month behind where it was in 2011 and 2012, suggesting that it is likely to have been a particularly difficult winter for this declining species. The weekly 'reporting rate' graph (below) shows how the cold weather of February and March held emergence back, underlining that Hedgehogs are only now emerging from hibernation.
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Fish

Hawaii: Kaua'i coral disease worsening, says doctor

Chris D'Angelo
thegardenisland.com
Fri, 19 Apr 2013 12:48 UTC
USGS specialist: 'The reefs are dying'

Lihu'e - The outbreak of deadly coral disease along Kaua'i's North Shore may be targeting more than one species of Montipora coral

The spread of the disease was described as an "epidemic" in a November 2012 report by the U.S. Geological Survey

Until recently, the cyanobacterial disease was thought to be exclusive to the common rice coral. But after returning to Kaua'i this week, Dr. Thierry Work, head of infectious disease for USGS, said the blue rice coral species is also in trouble.

"The blue rice coral definitely has lesions on it," he said. "Of course, we'll have to do the analysis to see if it's the same (disease)."

He said the lesions look similar to what he saw at 'Anini and Tunnels beaches.

Work spent Monday and Tuesday diving at several locations along Kauai's North Shore, including reefs near Ha'ena, Wainiha and Waipa. He collected 30 coral tissue samples, which he took back to the lab in Honolulu for DNA testing.
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© Terry Lilley/Contributed photo Dr. Thierry Work, a wildlife disease specialist at the U.S. Geological Survey, collects tissue samples Monday from a diseased blue rice coral at Wainiha on Kaua‘i’s North Shore.
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Question

Bizarre whirlpool appears in Latvian river sucking everything in its path into watery vortex

Leon Watson
The Daily Mail UK
Wed, 24 Apr 2013 04:27 UTC
Seven-minute clip apparently captured after a river burst its banks

It captures huge blocks of ice and mud heading towards whirlpool

A monstrous whirlpool has appeared in the Baltic state of Latvia swallowing everything dragged towards it.

The bizarre phenomenon looks as if a plug has been pulled from the ground beneath as it sucks water down.

A seven-minute clip of what looks like a vortex in action was apparently captured after a river burst its banks in the south-east of the country.
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Bizarre phenomenon: The monstrous whirlpool that has appeared in the Baltic state of Latvia

It captures huge blocks of ice and mud heading towards the whirlpool before disappearing underneath the water's surface.

More than 220,000 people have already watched the video in less than 48 hours on YouTube.
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Windsock

Scotland: Believe it or not, this is no beautiful sandy beach - it's a farmer's field! Crop of barley ruined by tons of sand blown across land

Harriet Arkell and Francesca Infante
The Daily Mail UK
Wed, 24 Apr 2013 03:10 UTC
Scotland battered again by second round of sandstorms devastating crops

Farmer Cameron MacIver in Moray says the sand is so high 'the only thing showing is top of fences'

Scotland was hit by a second bout of freak sandstorms today, causing an estimated £50,000 damage to crops.

Farmers in Elgin, Moray, had just spent a week clearing up after freak winds created 4ft high sand drifts on Tuesday when more gales swept in, whipping up further sandstorms and devastating crops.

Barley farmer Cameron MacIver said: 'There's parts around my farm where the only thing showing above the sand is the top bit of the fence.'
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Freak weather: Farmer Cameron MacIver, from Forres in Moray, walking on one of his sand covered barley fields
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Snow Globe

Colorado avalanche: Deadliest in 50 years

Courtney Spamer
Accuweather.com
Mon, 22 Apr 2013 02:57 UTC
On Saturday afternoon, the wet snow piled in the mountains of the Loveland Pass gave way, creating a fatal avalanche.

Adding to the already 19 deaths by avalanches during the 2012-13 winter season, five people were trapped and killed on Saturday.

A sixth snowboarder managed to escape the snow and go to get help.

Despite now being in the latter half of April, the slopes definitely don't look like it out in Colorado.
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© Colorado Avalanche Information CenterThe eastern flank of an avalanche in Colorado that killed several people in April 2013.
Colorado Avalanche Information Center executive director Ethan Greene said "We are very much in a winter snowpack right now. The calendar may say it's April, but the snowpack looks more like February..."

That is due to the heavy snow that Colorado has seen for the start of spring, making it still feel like winter.

Gusting winds following the heavy, wet snow of these storms has risen the avalanche danger in the central Rockies, which is typically uncommon for this time of the year.

The last avalanche to cause this many deaths was back in 1962, when seven people were killed at Twin Lakes in January.
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Bizarro Earth

USGS: Earthquake Magnitude 6.5 - N of Rabaul, Papua New Guinea


US Geological Survey
Tue, 23 Apr 2013 19:14 UTC
PNG Quake_230413
© USGS
Event Time
2013-04-23 23:14:42 UTC
2013-04-24 09:14:42 UTC+10:00 at epicenter

Location
3.920°S 152.127°E depth=17.8km (11.0mi)

Nearby Cities
31km (19mi) N of Rabaul, Papua New Guinea
50km (31mi) NNW of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea
209km (130mi) SE of Kavieng, Papua New Guinea
284km (176mi) NE of Kimbe, Papua New Guinea
819km (509mi) NE of Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

Technical Details
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Question

100 dolphins wash up on Italian coast after being hit by killer strain of measles

Sam Adams
The Daily Mail UK
Mon, 22 Apr 2013 03:26 UTC
Dozens of dolphin carcasses counted on west coast of Italy

Dolphins thought to have died from virus that causes measles in humans

Found on beaches from Tuscany to Sicily since turn of the year

Scientists believe that more than 100 dolphins washed up dead along the Italian coast were struck down by a killer strain of measles.

A total of 101 dolphin carcasses have been counted on the west coast of Italy since the beginning of the year.

All are the same species - striped dolphins which have a distinctive blue and white pattern and grow to about eight feet long. They usually live for 50 or 60 years.
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Concerns: More than 100 striped dolphins have washed up on the west coast of Italy during the last three months
The bodies have appeared on beaches spanning more than half the western coastline of Italy, from Tuscany to Calabria, as well as the island of Sicily - which suggests that the problem is not caused by humans pollutants such as oil.

Instead the deaths are being attributed to a possible outbreak of Morbillivirus, the virus that causes measles in humans, which scientists believe created a gateway for other illnesses among the animals.

Thirty-five per cent of the corpses tested positive for dolphin measles, Italy's Ministry for the Environment said.
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