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Soot Particles on Birds’ Feathers Reveals the Evolution of Pollution in the 20th Century

Oct 10, 2017 By Jose Buttner Leave a Comment

Horned lark sitting on a fence

Birds used to collect soot particles in their plumage.

A team of researchers gathered at the Field Museum, Chicago, and took an entire collection of Horned larks to study. By looking at their wings and the dirt and soot trapped on them, they could find out which was the evolution of pollution since the beginning of the 20th century.

Birds kept soot particles on their feathers

The collection gathers specimens of all ages, some of them being even 100 years old. They are special, since their feathers usually gather traces of all pollutants present in the atmosphere, offering a better insight on pollution during the era of the big factories than any models scientists could build. Therefore, thanks to the traces of pollutants present on their wings, they measured the levels of soot present in the atmosphere back then.

The discovery occurred in the 1930s when researchers noticed some birds of the same species had darker feathers than others. They quickly established the darker shade came from tiny particles of soot trapped within the feathers. However, the first time when the discovery was used was almost 80 years ago, while two scientists were analyzing museum collections.

The soot on the feathers built a comprehensive pollution model

They quickly realized they could find out more about the environment of the time by looking at how it interacted with the birds. Since the bird collection was truly vast, containing thoroughly dated specimens from different periods, the scientists could map a comprehensive distribution of soot and other pollutants over a broader area.

They noticed the highest levels of pollutants at the beginning of the 20th century, and a big decline during the Great Depression when the factory activity suffered a massive drop. Then, the pollutant emissions rose again, as World War II started. They matched the observations with well-known historical events and discovered this model is more accurate than anything we had previously designed.

Therefore, they managed to build a better analysis of the soot levels in the atmosphere since 1880 and after World War II, which was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Image Source: Wikimedia

Filed Under: Nature

Where Does the Name of the Harvest Moon Come From?

Oct 6, 2017 By Jose Buttner Leave a Comment

Harvest Moon shining over some hills

The Harvest Moon occupies a special place in history and is shrouded in mysticism.

Last night, we could enjoy the view of October’s full moon, nicknamed the Harvest Moon. All the twelve full moons of the year have their own name, but this one holds a unique symbolism. Since it falls close to the equinox, it is known as a moment of change, marking the transition between seasons and the passage to cold and darkness.

The Harvest Moon is closest to the autumn equinox

It’s not obligatory for the Harvest Moon to fall in October. This name is given to all such events which fall closest to the autumn equinox, which occurs near the end of September. However, this year, October’s full moon was closer to the event than September’s. Traditionally, this month’s moon is known as The Hunter’s Moon, but a change marked this year.

The name dates back several centuries ago, when people didn’t have the technology we had today, and the full moon was of great help for them during harvests. As the autumn equinox approached, days got shorter and shorter, and darkness reigned over the fields. This means farmers had less time to gather their crops.

What’s the history of the Harvest Moon’s name?

However, when the Harvest Moon came, the fields were again showered in light, and they gained time to pick up all their crops right before the harsh weather came. Also, near this astronomical event, the skies grew less dark between sunset and moonrise. Therefore, farmers decided to honor this full moon and thank it for its precious help by giving it a special place in history.

Now, these myths no longer apply, but mystery and symbolism still surround the Harvest Moon. Given its position, it is easier to spot shortly after sunset. Sometimes, people find it bigger or tinted with a shade of orange but, in fact, it’s no different than other full moons. This appearance is given by its position closer to the horizon, but this mysticism revolves around it makes it look more magical.

Image Source: Pixabay 

Filed Under: Nature

Tooth Fossil of Giant Australian Marsupial Exhibits Its Migration Route

Sep 27, 2017 By Lori Martinez Leave a Comment

The ancient giant marsupial Diprotodon

The giant Diprotodon was the only marsupial to migrate

The largest marsupial in the world lived 1.6 million years ago in Australia. Researchers found a fossilized tooth belonging to this giant creature, called a Diprotodon, which revealed an interesting thing about the animal. Even though it was so big, it seems it used to migrate.

The animal’s tooth showed the migration pattern it followed

The huge marsupial, Diprotodon optatum, weighed around 3,000 kilograms, and reached 1.8 meters in height. This was an unusual appearance for a creature which bore many resemblances to a wombat, and which was also a marsupial. However, this was not the only unusual thing about it.

A team of paleontologists from the University of Queensland stumbled upon a Diprotodon fossilized incisor near Darling Downs, a region in Queensland. They estimated the fossil to be around 300,000 years old. After analyzing it, they established the animal wasn’t sedentary, but walked about 200 kilometers in a year. They published their analysis in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

This was an unexpected find. Until now, scientists thought marsupials didn’t migrate, and were quite lazy animals in general. The Diprotodon, however, is different, and exhibits a whole new behavior, different from the typical one.

The marsupial was part of the Australian megafauna

This giant marsupial lived during the Pleistocene period, when Australia was populated by the megafauna. This included many other giant animals and plenty of huge marsupials, such as marsupial lions or giant kangaroos. Knowing one species in the megafauna could migrate might offer us some valuable answers, such as the reason for the extinction of these creatures.

Teeth keep track of everything an animal has eaten. Therefore, looking at the chemical composition of the fossil showed the huge marsupial followed a varied diet, originating from different regions of the continent. Researchers observed how the animal was traveling around, and following a pattern from northwest to southeast.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons

Filed Under: Nature

Blue Dinosaur Eggs Offer New Clues To The Evolution Of Birds

Sep 19, 2017 By Jose Buttner Leave a Comment

two blue dinosaur eggs in a nest

A study confirms the existence of natural blue dinosaur eggs, ones not affected by fossilization.

A new study confirms that at least one species of dinosaurs used to lay eggs that were blue-green colored. In turn, this suggests and also confirms that at least some of these animals had features still common in some of their present-day descendants – birds.

The blue dinosaur eggs were discovered after taking a closer look and testing a fossilized dinosaur nest.

Blue Dinosaur Eggs Prove a Further Tie to Modern Day Bird Species

This new research analyzed the fossils discovered in the nest of late species of oviraptor that lived during the Late Cretaceous. The Heyuannia huangi, which lived in China some 66 million years ago, was a beaked, ostrich-like dinosaur.

All reptile species and most bird ones lay white, uncolored eggs. For a long time, it was assumed that dinosaur did so as well. Fossilized dinosaur eggs are usually brown or black colored. This happens because of the iron, iron oxide, or other such minerals that stain them during the fossilization process.

Still, the Heyuannia huangi eggs had a bluish tint, found only in them. So the study team used mass spectrometry to analyze their fossilized nest. In doing so, they found traces of biliverdin and protoporphyrin.

The former is known to be the reason behind the modern birds’ blue and green eggs. At the same time, the latter is known to produce red and brown speckles and coloring.

The team notes that its discovery and confirmation of blue dinosaur eggs further strengthens their ties to modern birds. It also helped offer new clues as to the behavior of the Heyuannia huangi.

Ostrich, emu, and cassowary and known for laying stunning green and blue-hued eggs. These help them camouflage their open ground nests from predators. Such structures are also known for being watched over by the species’ fathers.

The discovery of the blue dinosaur eggs suggests that this ancient species had a similar nesting structure, possibly even the same guarding fathers system.

“According to the sexual signaling hypothesis, the reconstructed blue-green eggs support the origin of previously hypothesized avian paternal care in oviraptorid dinosaurs,” states the research team in its study paper.

This is available in the open journal PeerJ.

Image Source: FreeGreatPicture 

Filed Under: Nature

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