Earth ChangesS


Fish

Hundreds of bait fish washed ashore at South Durras, NSW, Australia

Sarabjit Heera
topnews.us
Tue, 25 Jun 2013 08:46 UTC
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As harsh weather continues, hundreds of bait fish were seen washed ashore at South Durras. With many of them still alive, a question that arose was what caused the incident. The reasons behind the same still remained mysterious.

The event was something that was never seen before at the place. Hundreds of fishes were seen lying on shore. John Perkins, a Friends of Durras spokesman who snapped the pictures of the fishes, said that the waves came and washed them back.

It emerged that Durras Lake's entrance to the sea has been closed recently. Mr. Perkins said that it may be the reason behind unusual event. Stan Gorton, the Editor at Narooma News, said that he had never seen yellowtail scad and slimy mackerel piled up like that earlier.

The pictures of the fishes have been sent to NSW Fisheries to find out the reason behind the same. The residents of the Batemans Bay have been asked to stay away from the waterfront as the tides are still hitting the town.

"The tide wasn't as big as the same time last year. Climate scientists say this will be 'normal' high tide in couple of decades. It's a bit of a benchmark", said Narooma local Greg Watts.
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Comet

Noctilucent clouds are everywhere


Spaceweather.com
Thu, 27 Jun 2013 07:26 UTC
Every day, NASA's AIM spacecraft maps the distribution of noctilucent clouds (NLCs) around Earth's north pole. The results are displayed on spaceweather.com in the form of the "daily daisy." On June 20th, pilot Brian Whittaker flew past a vivid display of NLCs over the North Atlantic Ocean and he decided to compare his own view to that of AIM. Here are the results:
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© NASA
"Once again, AIM's daily daisy-wheel allowed me to see where the northern horizon noctilucent clouds truly were!" says Whittaker. "This display reached a maximum height of about 10 degrees as seen from 37,000 feet at 50N latitude. It was my 4th and best sighting of 2013 so far."
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Question

Mystery odor fouling life in Beacon Woods, Bayonet Point, Florida

Clare Lennon
Tampa Bay Times
Fri, 21 Jun 2013 15:08 UTC
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© Douglas R Clifford/Tampa Bay TimesEd Baker of Spring Hill drives over a bridge Wednesday while playing the 17th at Beacon Woods, where residents say there’s a stench
Bayonet Point - In the golf course community of Beacon Woods, a few residents are being driven indoors by a stubborn stench. A stretch of road near the 17th hole reeks of something like manure and rotting food, and nobody knows why.

Residents started complaining the day after Tropical Storm Andrea blew through two weeks ago, said Beacon Woods Civic Association president Ron Meiczinger.

Meiczinger said the smell is concentrated in the creek area right behind three houses on Charter Oak Way.

He could still get a whiff on the other side of the canal, he said, although the smell wasn't as strong there. Residents at two houses across part of the golf course reported the stench, too, he said.

The smell reminds him of pig manure - worse than horse manure, he said. But the suburban neighborhood doesn't include any farms.

No one knows what's causing the smell, but the residents of Charter Oak Way are making their guesses.

Carol Hendrickson thinks the weeds that clog Bear Creek are creating the odor. Her neighbor Dee Macartney thinks it's the water itself.
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Fish

Thousands of dead fish wash ashore in Sarasota County Lake, Florida

Lyn Leahz
vineoflife.net
Sat, 22 Jun 2013 14:14 UTC

Sarasota County - County workers are blaming a combination of factors for the deaths of thousands of fish in a pond off Clark Road this week. Heat, heavy rain, stormwater runoff and bird droppings depleted the oxygen level in Mirror Lake, near the southeast corner of Clark and Beneva roads, according to the county. Workers at nearby offices began to notice the dead fish Monday, but the majority turned up dead Tuesday, according to SNN Local News, Herald Tribune and World Chaos
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Bizarro Earth

Two-headed turtle hatches at San Antonio zoo


myfoxny.com
Wed, 26 Jun 2013 13:08 UTC
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© AP Photo/San Antonio ZooThelma and Louise, a two-headed Texas cooter turtle, is seen in an undated photo provided by the San Antonio Zoo.
San Antonio - A two-headed turtle has hatched at the San Antonio Zoo and officials have named her Thelma and Louise.

The female Texas cooter arrived June 18 and will go on display Thursday at the zoo's Friedrich Aquarium.

Zoo spokeswoman Debbie Rios-Vanskike (van SKYKE') said Wednesday that the two-headed turtle appears healthy and is able to swim and walk. She says experts at the zoo don't foresee any health issues for Thelma and Louise, named for the female duo in the 1991 Oscar-winning road movie of the same name.

The San Antonio Zoo is no stranger to two-headed reptiles. The facility was home to a two-headed Texas rat snake named Janus from 1978 until the creature's death to 1995.

Source: Associated Press
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Bizarro Earth

Intensified eruptions reported at Alaska's Pavlof and Veniaminof volcanoes


The Extinction Protocol
Wed, 26 Jun 2013 11:53 UTC
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Two Alaskan volcanoes that began minor eruptions weeks ago are showing their strongest seismic activity yet, emitting small amounts of lava and ash along with smoke plumes, the Alaska Volcano Observatory said Tuesday. The observatory warned of more vigorous activity with the Pavlof and Veniaminof volcanoes, both on the Alaskan Peninsula - though that will likely just mean more ash. Pavlof, a snow-covered, cone-shaped mountain, has been erupting since early May.

While its activity since then has waxed and waned, seismic activity increased since Tuesday morning and the volcano has started continuously shaking, said David Schneider, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey. Some lava is flowing, and the volcano is spewing a cloud of steam and ash that has risen as high as 28,000 feet, said Schneider, at the observatory in Anchorage. "It's a pretty good size, but not high enough to affect overflying aircraft between America and Asia," he said. "It's more of a problem for local aviation." Pavlof is near the town of Cold Bay, a regional transportation hub whose long World War II-era runway serves flights to area villages, Schneider said.
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Attention

Alaska volcano erupts with new intensity, disrupts local flights

Yereth Rosen
Reuters via Yahoo News
Wed, 26 Jun 2013 06:27 UTC
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© NASAThe Pavlof Volcano in Alaska is pictured in this May 18, 2013 NASA handout photo taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Situated in the Aleutian Arc about 625 miles (1,000 km) southwest of Anchorage, Pavlof began erupting on May 13, 2013.
An Alaska volcano spewing ash and lava for the past six weeks erupted with new intensity early on Tuesday, belching a plume of cinders 5 miles into sky and onto a nearby town and disrupting local flights, officials said.

The eruptions from Pavlof Volcano, on the Alaska Peninsula 590 miles southwest of Anchorage, were its most powerful since its current eruptive phase began with low-level rumblings in mid-May, according to scientists at the federal-state Alaska Volcano Observatory.

The latest series of more powerful ash-producing blasts from the crater of the 8,261-foot (2,518-meter) volcano started late on Monday and continued overnight into Tuesday, scientists said.

"For some reason we can't explain, it picked up in intensity and vigor," said Tina Neal, an observatory geologist.
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Alarm Clock

Buzz off, Monsanto

Paul Towers
Pesticide Action Network
Mon, 17 Jun 2013 17:11 UTC
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Last week, the term "bee-washing" emerged in public conversation. It doesn't refer to some new bee cleaning service, but to the insidious efforts of Monsanto and other pesticide corporations to discredit science about the impacts of pesticides on bees - especially neonicotinoids - by creating public relations tours, new research centers and new marketing strategies.

This week, pesticide makers are showcasing these tactics during National Pollinator Week with offers of free seed packets to people who take their poorly named "pollinator pledge." The "bee-washing" term has gained traction as scientists and groups like PAN continue to cut through the misinformation and point to the emerging body of science that points to pesticides as a critical factor in bee declines.

Monsanto hosted their first so-called Honey Bee Health Summit last week, a gathering at the company's headquarters in Missouri. Without question, some truly smart, dedicated scientists attended Monsanto's bee summit and are participating in these efforts.

Comment: Pesticides are playing a key role in bee deaths!

Crop pesticides are 'killing our bees' - says MEP
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Co-op bans eight pesticides after worldwide beehive collapse
U.S. Beekeepers expect 2013 to be "worst year for bees"
Harvard Study Links Pesticides to Colony Collapse Disorder in Bees
More Evidence Rises Of Role Pesticides Play In Bee Colony Collapse
Have Bees Become Canaries In the Coal Mine? Why Massive Bee Dieoffs May Be a Warning About Our Own Health
Plight of Bees Worsens This Winter and Scientists Spot Stew of Pesticides in Pollen, Hives

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Cloud Precipitation

Floodwaters force hundreds to evacuate northeast Iowa town

David Pitt
Source
Tue, 25 Jun 2013 16:43 UTC
The northeast Iowa town of New Hartford was mostly deserted Tuesday after authorities went door-to-door before dawn, warning residents a flooded stream would inundate most of the small community.

"Everybody was notified and told to evacuate," said Butler County emergency management coordinator Mitch Nordmeyer as he surveyed the town, about 90 miles northeast of Des Moines. "If they stayed they were staying at their own risk."
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© Associated Press/Charlie Neibergall Jim Johnson rows his boat down Main Street, Tuesday, June 25, 2013, in New Hartford, Iowa
Although most of New Hartford's 500-plus residents heeded warnings and left town, some stayed behind and there was no sense of panic.

Residents had seen the normally placid Beaver Creek flood before. And after some areas upstream received more than 7 inches of rain on Monday, few seemed surprised the stream was surging out of its banks again.
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Cloud Lightning

Worst storm in decades hits Wellington, New Zealand


Herald Sun
Fri, 21 Jun 2013 16:32 UTC
Residents of New Zealand's capital are cleaning up after a storm rated the worst in over four decades subsided.

Winds of up to 140km/h - gusting to 200km/h in exposed areas - lashed Wellington, felling trees, lifting roofs, smashing windows, closing roads and schools and cutting power to homes and businesses.

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