Earth Changes

More than 1 million acres of U.S. cropland ravaged by floods

P.J. Huffstutter, Humeyra Pamuk
Reuters
Fri, 29 Mar 2019 12:53 UTC

© Humeyra Pamuk
Paddocks at Washington County Fairgrounds are shown underwater due to flooding in Arlington, Nebraska, U.S., March 21, 2019.

At least 1 million acres (405,000 hectares) of U.S. farmland were flooded after the "bomb cyclone" storm left wide swaths of nine major grain producing states under water this month, satellite data analyzed by Gro Intelligence for Reuters showed.

Farms from the Dakotas to Missouri and beyond have been under water for a week or more, possibly impeding planting and damaging soil. The floods, which came just weeks before planting season starts in the Midwest, will likely reduce corn, wheat and soy production this year.

"There's thousands of acres that won't be able to be planted," Ryan Sonderup, 36, of Fullerton, Nebraska, who has been farming for 18 years, said in a recent interview.

"If we had straight sunshine now until May and June, maybe it can be done, but I don't see how that soil gets back with expected rainfall."

6.4-magnitude earthquake hits New Britain island, Papua New Guinea

NDTV
Sat, 30 Mar 2019 12:20 UTC

A magnitude 6.4 earthquake hit Papua New Guinea's New Britain island, 300km east of Kandrian, on Saturday, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

The quake struck at 1130 GMT at a depth of 33 km, the Center added.

Source: Reuters

Whales swimming in Long Beach Harbor, California for over 1 month is unusual behavior, experts say

Sid Garcia
abc7.com
Sat, 30 Mar 2019 11:51 UTC

Up to five whales were spotted swimming in the Long Beach Harbor Friday. Though it was a spectacular sight, the pod's behavior is making experts concerned.

Capt. Dan Salas with Harbor Breeze Cruises said during this phase of the migration, whales usually stay around the area for a couple days and head up north.

But this year, Salas said he's noticed that the gray whales are sticking around the area for well over a month. They've been actively feeding near the Port of Los Angeles. Salas clarified that during migration, the whales typically do not feed at all.

Comment: Whale's carcass spotted off Torrey Pines' coast - 2nd off Southern California recently

Whale's carcass spotted off Torrey Pines' coast - 2nd off Southern California recently

Alexander Nguyen
nbclosangeles.com
Fri, 29 Mar 2019 10:31 UTC

The carcass of a whale, presumably a gray whale, was found off the coast of Torrey Pines on Thursday.

Black's Beach lifeguards spotted the cetacean floating in the water about 2 to 3 miles off Sumner Canyon, San Diego Fire-Rescue spokeswoman Monica Munoz said.

The 30-foot whale, possibly a gray whale, was in the early stages of decomposition and bloating, she said.

Lifeguards are working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to secure carcass samples to figure out a way to dispose of the whale.

Comment: Dead gray whale washed ashore on Malibu Beach, California

1100 dead and mutilated dolphins have washed up on France's Atlantic coast so far in 2019 - UPDATE

Emilie King
The Local (France)
Mon, 18 Feb 2019 14:32 UTC

Since the beginning of the year alone, a record number of up to 600 dolphins have washed up on France's Atlantic coast. So what's going on?

What's the story?

Since the start of 2019, up to 600 dolphins have washed up on beaches along France's Atlantic coast.

According to two different surveys, the numbers of carcasses found this year is between 400 and 600 - but even the lower estimate is higher than any previous year at the same period.

While dead dolphins wash up on beaches in France each year scientists say the situation is alarming.

Comment: UPDATE 30th March

The number of dead and mutilated dolphins has risen by 500 in just over a month and the cause for this spike remains a mystery to investigators, RT reports that:

A record-breaking 1,100 dead dolphins have been discovered with their fins cut off along France's Atlantic coast since the beginning of the year, sparking alarm among animal protection groups.

Just three months into 2019, the astonishing number of mutilated dolphins is already greater than last year's record, which was the highest for decades. Furthermore, autopsies carried out on this year's discoveries found they'd undergone an extreme level of mutilation.

The mass deaths are generally a result of aggressive industrial fishing, with 90 percent of the mortalities believed to have been caused by accidental capture. Animal welfare groups say fisherman will often cut body parts off the trapped dolphins to save their nets.

However, this year's spike in fatalities is a mystery and France's Ecology Minister Francois de Rugy has launched a national plan to protect the animals. He has ordered an investigation into the use of acoustic dolphin deterrent devices by trawlers in the Bay of Biscay, an industrial fishing hub in the Atlantic Ocean.

Animal rights group Sea Shepherd have lambasted Rugy's efforts as "useless,"claiming many trawlers that they observe don't activate the repellent device for fear of scaring off other valuable fish like hake and sea bass, and say more is needed to protect dolphins.

South America - Thousands affected by floods and landslides in Paraguay, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia and Colombia

Floodlist
Fri, 29 Mar 2019 20:28 UTC

Heavy rain has triggered flooding and landslides in parts of South America over the last few days.

Around 70,000 people are currently affected by floods in several departments of Paraguay. Flooding and landslides in Peru have damaged or destroyed dozens of homes and prompted evacuations in the regions of Ancash, Amazonas and Cusco.

In Ecuador, flooding in Los Ríos Province has prompted authorities to declare a state of emergency in several cantons, while in Bolivia, over 2,000 hectares of crops and 109 homes have been destroyed by flooding from the overflowing Parapetí River in Santa Cruz Department.

Comment: Paraguay - Thousands affected by flooding in Presidente Hayes, Concepción and Guairá

Netherlands lost 84% of its butterflies in just over a century

DutchNews.nl
Fri, 29 Mar 2019 20:06 UTC

The Dutch butterfly population shrunk by at least 84% between 1890 and 2017, national statistics agency CBS and the Vlinderstichting report.

The new figures are based on an analysis of long-term data resulting from a national measuring programme developed by the two organisations.

Three years ago scientists recorded a growth in some types of butterfly for the first time since monitoring began in the early 1990s, especially among rare species such as the dark green fritillary. However, the latest figures show that their number is declining again.

Bunyangabu in Uganda faces hunger as severe hailstorms destroys 5,000 gardens

Alex Ashaba
The Monitor (Uganda)
Fri, 29 Mar 2019 11:39 UTC

Destroyed. Ms Flora Kugonza in her banana plantation that was destroyed by a hailstorm in Kyatwa village Bunyangabu district on Wednesday.

A downpour accompanied by hailstorms has ravaged several parts of Bunyangabu District destroying more than 5,000 gardens.

Among the crop gardens that were destroyed include; beans, maize, cassava, coffee, Irish potatoes, potatoes, tomatoes, sorghum and onions that were ready for harvesting. Goats, too, were not spared by the rain.

Ms Jackline Chance, a mother of seven children in Kyatwa Village, Kibiito Town Council, said Bunyangabu residents depend on agriculture for a living.

Ms Chance on Monday survived death after part of her house was destroyed by wind.

(NB Video report starts at the 6.50 minute mark)

Nearly 100 species of frogs, toads and salamanders wiped out by fungus

Adam Vaughan
New Scientist
Thu, 28 Mar 2019 12:00 UTC

The extinction of 90 species of amphibians can be pinned on a deadly fungal disease, according to the most comprehensive exercise yet to map its impact.

In total, chytridiomycosis contributed to the decline of more than 500 species of frogs, toads and salamanders, or nearly 7 per cent of all amphibian species, since the disease first emerged in the 1980s.

The toll means the disease has wrought the greatest loss of biodiversity by any pathogen, on an order of magnitude greater than other wildlife diseases, such as the bat-killing white-nose syndrome.

"It's crazy what this pathogen does," says Trenton Garner from the Zoological Society of London, one of the paper's authors.

Previous work has been undertaken on the spread of the disease, and regional efforts have been made to gauge its impact on frogs and other species. But the team behind the new study say it is the best effort yet to aggregate its effects globally. "It's a smoking gun that wasn't there before," says Garner.

Comment: Outbreaks of various kinds appear to be on the rise in both humans and the animal kingdom:

Wildfires blaze across unseasonably hot, dry Portugal

Catarina Demony, Rafael Marchante
Reuters
Wed, 27 Mar 2019 15:35 UTC

© REUTERS
Flames of an approaching forest fire are seen near the small village of Gondomil, near Valenca, Portugal, Wednesday.

Hundreds of Portuguese firefighters struggled on Wednesday to contain wildfires which erupted far earlier in the season than usual because of unexpectedly hot and windy weather.

Ten fires were burning across the country, most in the north, several months before the late spring season when fire crews are normally in place. Meteorologists said global warming had made it difficult to predict where blazes would erupt.

"We are having significant fire outbreaks in areas where we didn't know the risk was high," Miguel Miranda, president of the Portuguese Institute of Meteorology (IPMA), told Portuguese radio station TSF. "We are in unexplored territory, we have never been through this."

Helicopters dropped water on flaming woodlands near the tiny village of Gondomil on Portugal's northern edge near the Spanish frontier. A firefighter there told Reuters the force was waiting at a wooded area until the weather conditions made it possible to fight the blaze.

Comment: Europe's record breaking warm winter leads to unprecedented wildfires

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Earth Changes

More than 1 million acres of U.S. cropland ravaged by floods

6.4-magnitude earthquake hits New Britain island, Papua New Guinea

Whales swimming in Long Beach Harbor, California for over 1 month is unusual behavior, experts say

Whale's carcass spotted off Torrey Pines' coast - 2nd off Southern California recently

1100 dead and mutilated dolphins have washed up on France's Atlantic coast so far in 2019 - UPDATE

South America - Thousands affected by floods and landslides in Paraguay, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia and Colombia

Netherlands lost 84% of its butterflies in just over a century

Bunyangabu in Uganda faces hunger as severe hailstorms destroys 5,000 gardens

Nearly 100 species of frogs, toads and salamanders wiped out by fungus

Wildfires blaze across unseasonably hot, dry Portugal

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