Japanese money to whaling, not earthquake recovery

This video says about itself:

Think whaling is essential for Japan? Think again. Most whale meat that is gathered just sits in cold storage. Statistics show that 95% of everyone in Japan either rarely eats or never had whale meat. The only reason Japan continues this brutal practice is for pride. Hundreds of lives are destroyed because the government of Japan, like so many others, put themselves before the Earth.

From the Daily Telegraph in Britain:

Japanese earthquake recovery money going to whaling

Billions of pounds earmarked for the reconstruction of areas of Japan devastated by last year’s earthquake and tsunami have been diverted to projects with [no] connection to the recovery work, such as whaling research

By Julian Ryall, Tokyo

11:49AM BST 25 Sep 2012

An investigation by NHK, Japan’s national broadcaster, has revealed that substantial portions of the Y19 trillion (£150.2 billion) that is being raised by tax increases and government spending cuts between 2011 and 2015 are going to promote the whaling industry, to train prison inmates and even to fund nuclear research.

The report comes as companies in the regions hardest-hit by the Great East Japan Earthquake complain that they have yet to receive more than 60 per cent of the subsidies that were promised by the national and prefectural government to get their businesses up and running again.

The ministry that overseas Japan’s “research whaling” – condemned internationally as thinly disguised commercial whaling – defended the allocation of Y2.28 billion (£18 million) on the grounds that it would help the economies of coastal communities recover from the disaster.

September 2012. The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) is urging Japan to abandon its Antarctic whaling programme and stop wasting public money on a cruel and outdated industry. The Japanese whaling fleet’s ageing factory ship, the Nisshin Maru, needs repairs estimated to run into millions of dollars in order to make the voyage to the Southern Ocean to hunt Minke whales later this year: here.

Japan’s annual whale hunt in the Southern Ocean is in doubt this year because the fleet’s factory ship is in need of repairs: here.

Japan: Whaling Group Suffers Financial Loss: here.

A battle is brewing over whaling in the Southern Ocean between Australia and Japan. Australia’s Environment Minister, Tony Burke, has reiterated his government’s strong opposition to Japan’s “scientific whaling” program, dismissing claims that the expeditions have any scientific research merit: here.

Related articles

• Japanese appetite for whale meat wanes (abc.net.au)
• ‘Nothing Scientific’ About Japanese Whale Hunt, Australia Says (theepochtimes.com)
• Whale meat unattractive for 90% of Japanese – poll (tokyotimes.com)
• Australia won’t monitor Japanese whaling (radionz.co.nz)
• NZ joins Australia in court against Japanese whaling (reuters.com)
• Meet the woman battling Japan’s whaling fleet in Antarctic ocean (guardian.co.uk)
• The Japanese public’s opinion on whaling: two different results from single survey (japandailypress.com)
• Japanese whaling fleet leaves port (abc.net.au)
• NZ legally challenges Japanese whaling (nzherald.co.nz)

Antarctic fossil fish discovery

This video is called Excavating Triassic Fossils in Antarctica — Antarctica Video Report #7.

From Antarctic Science:

Definitive specimens of Merlucciidae (Gadiformes) from the Eocene James Ross Basin of Isla Marambio (Seymour Island), Antarctic Peninsula

Abstract

An isolated partial right dentary (BAS D.515.2) collected by the British Antarctic Survey prompted a re-evaluation of gadiform remains from the La Meseta Formation (conventionally middle Eocene) of Isla Marambio (Seymour Island), Antarctic Peninsula. Modern gadiforms (hakes and cods) range from the Arctic to Antarctic, inhabiting deep sea benthic, shore, estuarine, and freshwater environments. Based on a fossil record primarily composed of otoliths, they are known to extend back to the Eocene and Oligocene.

The new specimen was recovered from the fossil penguin locality D.515. It is characterized by a single row of sharp, ankylosed teeth set upon robust bony pedestals. The surface anterior to the mental foramen exhibits ascending and descending ridges with slightly rugose texture. The ascending ridge is fractured, but partially covers the lateral aspect of the tooth row. BAS D.515.2 is unlike the dentary of macrourid gadiforms, also recovered from the Eocene of Antarctica. BAS D.515.2 preserves several features similar to previously published accounts of the gadiform “†Mesetaichthys” from Isla Marambio. These specimens are probably the same taxon and their combined character suite indicates it is a member of Merluccidae. Thus, these are the only non-otolithic skeletal specimens of an Eocene hake known outside of the London Clay’s †Rhinocephalus.

Journey to the Antarctic Ocean: here.

Antarctic mollusc hermaphrodites, new research

From the BBC:

11 September 2012 Last updated at 04:51

Antarctic molluscs ‘switch sex’

By Ella Davies

Reporter, BBC Nature

Antarctic bivalves have surprised scientists who have discovered that the animals switch sex.

The reproduction of Lissarca miliaris was studied in the 1970s and the species was first described in 1845.

But their hermaphrodite nature had remained unknown until they were studied by scientists from the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton.

Researchers suggest the molluscs could switch between the sexes to efficiently reproduce in the extremely cold ocean.

The results are published in the journal Polar Biology.

“The previous reproductive study only looked at the large eggs and broods,” said PhD student and lead author Adam Reed.

This earlier work showed how females brood their young for up to 18 months, from “large yolky eggs” to “fully shelled young”, and found that females can support as many as 70 young inside their hinged shell.

But concentrating on reproduction at a cellular level, Mr Reed and colleagues discovered that the eggs were actually present in males.

“Curiously, we found huge numbers of very small eggs in functional males, which appear to be far higher in number than an individual could brood throughout the life of the animal,” he told BBC Nature.

The team suggested that the bivalves reproduce as males while they are still in the “small” stages of development, switching to female organs once they are large enough to brood a significant number of eggs.

“At present the traits we describe are unusual for Antarctic bivalves, but in 10 years perhaps this will be common too,” said Mr Reed.

“Hermaphroditism is not necessarily uncommon in Antarctic bivalves, and with many species still to study there may be many more to describe.”

Brooding meanwhile is a relatively common reproductive trait in Antarctic invertebrates and has been linked to the extreme conditions.

“Brooding is common for small bivalves and has been discussed for many years in Antarctic biology,” said Mr Reed.

“Large yolky eggs that are brooded have much lower mortality than small planktonic larvae, but fewer are produced.”

He explained that in extremely cold environments, development is slowed down so feeding larvae becomes a more exhaustive task.

“Brooding reduces the need for long periods of feeding”, according to Mr Reed, making it a more efficient strategy for many Antarctic invertebrates including bivalves and echinoids.

Macquarie Island’s sub-Antarctic wildlife

This video is called Macquarie Island.

From Australian Geographic:

Macquarie Island: sub-Antarctic wilderness

By Ewen Bell

September-7-2012

Smack-bang in the midst of the foaming Southern Ocean lies Macquarie Island, a tiny haven of wildlife.

A SMALL BUT MAGNIFICENT refuge in the midst of the Southern Ocean, Macquarie Island is a protected wilderness that undergoes dramatic seasonal change, provides rare habitats for migratory species and offers adventurous travellers an abundance of wildlife that knows no fear of man. It is one of Australia’s truly great wilderness experiences, and just getting there can be an adventure and a unique challenge of its own.

Few people who visit the sub-Antarctic islands understand in advance just how rough the Southern Ocean can be. And while the Antarctic continent enjoys somewhat calm waters far below the roaring trade winds of the Southern Ocean, Macquarie Island, however, is right in the middle of that churning mass of weather and waves, a tiny speck of solid land directly in the path of fierce storms and some of the worst sailing conditions anywhere on the planet.

If you sail directly from Tasmania you need three days at sea to reach Macquarie Island, or you can join a commercial expedition cruise ship and hop your way across the New Zealand sub-Antarctic islands.

The Snares, Auckland Islands and Campbell Island provide waypoints and occasional calm shelter. The passage from Campbell Island to Macquarie is no less than a day with good conditions, and possibly double that when the Southern Ocean is kicking up a fuss.

Macquarie Island: cruising the Southern Ocean

Very few cruise ships head down to this part of the world; it’s too remote and the journey often regarded too rough for the comfort of passengers. Heritage Expeditions is not in the business of luxury cruising, however, preferring to focus on adventure rather than relaxation.

Their ship is one of the ‘Professor Class’ Russian-built research vessels, now named The Spirit of Enderby but still crewed by a team of Russian sailors. It’s a small ship, with room for 50 passengers onboard, and a fleet of five zodiacs stowed on the stern facilitate shore landings.

Our expedition leader is Nathan Russ, who at the age of just 25 is vastly more experienced than his age would suggest. He’s spent Christmas in the Southern Ocean for 15 of those 25 years, and follows in the adventurous footsteps of his father Rodney Russ who founded the company.

From the very start of the journey Nathan talks about a “successful expedition”, as though this was something we shouldn’t take for granted. He followed this up on the first night at sea by casually declaring, “We’ll get you back alive.” And he meant it. Man does not belong down here, not without extraordinary resources and a large bag of seasickness tablets.

With weather conditions determining landings rather than the itinerary, there is no certainty about which beaches can be accessed with a zodiac landing. In fact there are no guarantees that you will land at all. …

King penguins

I’ve come here for the penguins, and the king penguins in particular. Kings are the second largest of all, and the most streamlined through the water. They are perfectly coloured to blend into the beach scene here, a smooth grey and white suit with hints of yellow and bronze. …

Royal penguins

Penguins always seem to have somewhere to be, and the royal penguins give the impression they are terribly late to be there. In between colonies of king penguins a narrow patch of beach at Sandy Bay has become a multi-lane highway for the royals, and what they lack in physical stature they make up for with personality. …

Royal penguins are part of the crested penguins family that includes rockhoppers and macaronis, and their wild tufts of yellow feathers above the brow give them a comical appearance that adds to their sense of personality. …

Macquarie Island: best times to travel

Late December is a good time of year to be in the sub-Antarctic islands. You still get a chance to see penguin chicks, and lots of them, and this far north of the South Pole they’re well advanced.

Summers on Macquarie Island are relatively ice free compared with the Antarctic landmass further south, and that’s just how the penguins like it. They love a cold climate but too much ice and snow can make life difficult for breeding. King penguins, royals, rockhoppers and gentoos on Macquarie Island take full advantage of the nesting sites on land and the feeding frenzy offshore.

Buckles Bay has a healthy population of gentoo penguins and their chicks have reached an age when they can be truly demanding on their parents. …

They are tolerant of the warmer conditions at Macquarie Island yet also able to survive further south in the colder latitudes where the more specialised Adélie penguins thrive on the abundant Antarctic ice. …

Macquarie Island: pest control

Ironically the history of pest control for introduced species at Macquarie Island is a tale of good intentions with unforeseen effects. Rabbits were reduced in the 1970s which led to feral cats increasing their prey on migratory birds.

Then the cats were eradicated a decade ago only to result in rodent and rabbit populations increasing to devastating proportions.

The problem with the remaining introduced species is their ability to destroy tussocks and other native flora that have evolved on the island. Vegetation that provides vital habitats for seabirds is eaten by rabbits before it can mature while the seeds are harvested by rodents and stored for winter.

The final outcome is exposed slopes and an increasingly denuded ecosystem. Even the tall thick tussock grass that young seals hide among has been visibly effected by the pests.

In the winter of 2010 the impact of introduced species on Macquarie Island will be challenged by the largest pest-eradication project ever undertaken in the world. The Federal Government is funding an initiative to simultaneously remove rabbit, rat and mice populations across the entire island.

The model for such an ambitious project was set by the New Zealand Government in 2001 when they used helicopters and poison baits to clear the rats from Campbell Island. Some of the same team members from the Campbell Island project will be working on Macquarie Island this winter.

Pete Tyree was a ranger and logistics officer for New Zealand’s Department of Conservation during the Campbell Island eradication, and was present on my cruise to Macquarie Island as a crew member for Heritage Expeditions.

Pete has seen firsthand just how dramatically the habitats on Campbell Island have improved since the rodents were removed. Vast mountain sides are once again covered with dense tussock grass and the sub-Antarctic megaherbs, providing the ideal environment for nesting albatross pairs.

Macquarie Island also has a rich variety of albatross species, although expedition cruise passengers are more likely to see the birds while making passage at sea than standing on a beach. Albatross prefer to nest high up on cliffs and exposed knolls where strong winds give them an easy take-off.

The habitat decline on Macquarie Island is evident to the experts but so is the wild beauty that abounds on this desolate outpost.

Pete explains the island magic best. “Macquarie Island is just an amazing place. From a photographer and conservationist’s point of view it’s a paradise,” he says. “The depth of interaction with the penguins down here was life altering for me.”

Penguin poop feeds Antarctic moss

This is a video by Professor Sharon Robinson from Australia about Antarctic mosses.

By Becky Oskin, OurAmazingPlanet:

Antarctic Moss Lives Off Penguin Poop

Curiosity about how Antarctic moss survives in such harsh conditions leads to an interesting discovery.

Thu Aug 16, 2012 12:25 PM ET

THE GIST

The moss grows in the Antarctic summer and can be an indicator of climate change.

Using nitrogen analysis of the soil, scientists found nutrients from seabirds’ waste entering the plants.

Verdant green carpets of moss that emerge during the brief Antarctic summer have an unusual food source, a new study reports: The mosses eat nitrogen from fossilized penguin poop.

Plant biologist Sharon Robinson, who has studied the mosses for 16 years, sought to find their nutrient source; Antarctic soil generally lacks nourishment for plants. “Most of the soil is very, very poorly developed; it’s mostly just gravel,” said Robinson, a professor at the University of Wollongong in New South Wales, Australia. …

The researchers confirmed the nitrogen came from penguin poop because the moss beds grow on abandoned Adélie penguin colonies. The sites, on the Windmill Islands, are 3,000 to 8,000 years old, and increase in age with distance from the ocean. The colonies are now too high in elevation for nesting (the Earth’s crust in Antarctica has been rising since the end of the last ice age).

ScienceDaily (Aug. 29, 2012) — In a paper published this week in the journal Polar Biology, researchers from the Antarctic Site Inventory confirm significant declines in the breeding population of chinstrap penguins in the vastly warming Antarctic Peninsula, where it’s warming faster than, or as fast as, any other place on Earth: here.

Good black-browed albatross news

This video, recorded on South Georgia, is called Black-browed albatross chicks.

From BirdLife:

Black-browed Albatross shows population increase

Tue, July 24, 2012

A new report indicates a healthy increase in the numbers of Black-browed Albatrosses breeding in the Falkland Islands (Las Malvinas). The report, submitted to the Environment Committee of the Falkland Islands Government, indicated that recent and historical survey results show an increase in this threatened species.

Black-browed Albatross is currently classified as Endangered by BirdLife on behalf of the IUCN Red List. Over two-thirds of the global population breed in the Falkland Islands, so the status of the Falklands population has significant bearing on the global conservation status of the species.

Within the Falkland Islands (Las Malvinas) different methods have been used independently to census the Black-browed Albatross population. Ian, and more recently, Georgina Strange have conducted aerial photographic surveys of colonies in the Falkland Islands since 1964, with archipelago-wide surveys in 1986, 2005 and 2010. Members of Falklands Conservation have carried out ground and boat-based surveys of the Falklands population in 2000, 2005 and 2010. Up until and including the 2005 census results, these initiatives reported contrasting population trends. The aerial based surveys indicated an increase in the population between the mid 1980s and 2005 and the ground based surveys a decline between 1995 and 2005.

However, the aerial and ground based surveys conducted in 2010 both reveal an increase in the population between 2005 and 2010 of at least 4% per annum. The positive trends from both of these surveys is further supported by favourable survival and breeding data from an ongoing study carried out by scientists at New Island (one of the twelve breeding sites in the Falkland Islands (Las Malvinas)), and an additional aerial photographic survey carried out later in the 2010 breeding season. The breeding population estimate obtained from the 2010 ground-based survey was larger than the estimate for 2000. Furthermore, the 2010 ground-based estimates for the two largest colonies in the Falklands (at Steeple Jason and Beauchêne islands) were similar to those derived from surveys carried out in the 1980s.
Dr Cleo Small from RSPB/BirdLife’s Global Seabird Programme said: “When 17 out of the world’s 22 species of albatross are listed as threatened with extinction, it is hugely encouraging that Black-browed Albatross colonies in the Falkland Islands are now known to be increasing. There is still some way to go – with the UK Overseas Territories other major population on South Georgia continuing to decline. But this result gives us great hope for turning around the fortunes of other albatrosses. Bycatch in fisheries is their main threat, and efforts are underway in many longline and trawl fleets worldwide to reduce the numbers killed. If we can keep this up, there is real hope that the black-browed albatross will set a trend for the future.”

Dr Anton Wolfaardt, ACAP (Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels) officer for the UK South Atlantic Overseas Territories and author of the report said: “The exact reasons for the increase are not entirely clear, but efforts to reduce seabird bycatch, and beneficial feeding conditions, are likely to have contributed.” On the basis of the reported results, and the fact that the Falklands population comprises approximately 70% of the global total, the report recommends that consideration should be given to downlisting the species from Endangered. The report has been submitted to BirdLife International for use in the Red List assessment process. The report also recommends that efforts to further improve seabird bycatch mitigation should continue, both to buffer the local population against possible future changes, and to improve the conservation status of other populations and species.

Emperor penguins threatened by global warming

This video from Antarctica is called Shrinking Sea Ice Stresses Emperor Penguins.

From Wildlife Extra:

Antarctic sea ice loss could lead to loss of 80% Emperor penguins

Emperor penguins threatened by Antarctic sea ice loss

June 2012. A decline in the population of emperor penguins appears likely this century as climate change reduces the extent of Antarctic sea ice, according to a detailed projection.

The study, led by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), with co-authors from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and other organizations, focuses on a much-observed colony of emperor penguins in Terre Adélie, Antarctica. The authors conclude that the number of breeding pairs may fall by about 80 percent by 2100.

“The projected decreases in sea ice may fundamentally alter the Antarctic environment in ways that threaten this population of penguins,” says NCAR scientist Marika Holland, a co-author of the study.

The study uses a set of sophisticated computer simulations of climate as well as a statistical model of penguin demographics. Building on previous work, it examines how the sea ice may vary at key times during the year such as during egg laying, incubation, rearing chicks, and non-breeding season, as well as the potential influence of sea ice concentrations on males and females.

50 years of observations

The authors stress that their projections contain large uncertainties, because of the difficulties in projecting both climate change and the response of penguins. However, almost all of their computer simulations pointed to a significant decline in the colony at Terre Adélie, a coastal region of Antarctica where French scientists have conducted penguin observations for more than 50 years.

“Our best projections show roughly 500 to 600 breeding pairs remaining by the year 2100,” says lead author Stephanie Jenouvrier, a WHOI biologist. “Today, the population size is around 3,000 breeding pairs.”

Another colony has already disappeared

She noted that another penguin population, the Dion Islets penguin colony close to the West Antarctic Peninsula, has disappeared, possibly because of a decline in Antarctic sea ice.

Largest penguin

At nearly four feet tall, emperors are the largest species of penguin. They are vulnerable to changes in sea ice, where they breed and raise their young almost exclusively. If that ice breaks up and disappears early in the breeding season, massive breeding failure may occur, Jenouvrier says.

Disappearing sea ice may also affect the penguins’ food sources. They feed primarily on fish, squid, and krill, a shrimplike animal that feeds on zooplankton and phytoplankton that grow on the underside of ice. If the ice goes, Jenouvrier says, so too will the plankton, causing a ripple effect through the food web that may starve the various species that penguins rely on as prey.

To project how the extent of sea ice in the region will change this century, Holland and another co-author, Julienne Stroeve, a sea ice specialist from the National Snow and Ice Data Center, evaluated 20 of the world’s leading computer-based climate models. They selected the five models that most closely reproduced changes in actual Antarctic sea ice cover during the 20th century.

“When a computer simulation performs well in reproducing past climate conditions, it implies that its projections of future climate conditions are more reliable,” Holland says.

Moderate growth in greenhouse gas emissions

The team evaluated simulations from each of the 20 climate models. The simulations were based on a scenario of moderate growth in greenhouse gas emissions during this century. The moderate growth scenario portrays future reliance by society on a combination of greenhouse-gas emitting fossil fuels as well as renewable energy sources.

The simulations showed a decline in sea ice coverage across a large region by Terre Adélie at key times in the penguin breeding cycle, although they differed in the details.

Jenouvrier used the output from the climate models to determine how changes in temperature and sea ice might affect the emperor penguin population at Terre Adélie, studying such details as how the sea ice was likely to vary during breeding season and how it could affect chicks, breeding pairs, and non-breeding adults. She found that if global temperatures continue to rise at their current rate-causing sea ice in the region to shrink-penguin population numbers most likely will diminish slowly until about 2040, after which they would decline at a much steeper rate as sea ice coverage drops below a usable threshold.

The authors say that more research is needed to determine whether emperor penguins may be able to adapt to changing conditions or disperse to regions where the sea ice is more habitable.

Rising temperature in the Antarctic isn’t just a penguin problem, according to Hal Caswell, a senior mathematical biologist at WHOI and collaborator on the study. As sea ice coverage continues to shrink, the resulting changes in the Antarctic marine environment will affect other species, and may affect humans as well.

“We rely on the functioning of those ecosystems,” he says. “We eat fish that come from the Antarctic. We rely on nutrient cycles that involve species in the oceans all over the world. Understanding the effects of climate change on predators at the top of marine food chains-like emperor penguins-is in our best interest, because it helps us understand ecosystems that provide important services to us.”

Also co-authoring the study were Christophe Barbraud and Henri Weimerskirch of the Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, in France, and Mark Serreze of the National Snow and Ice Data Center in the United States.

The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research manages the National Center for Atmospheric Research under sponsorship by the National Science Foundation. Any opinions, findings and conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

The new research represents a major collaboration between biologists and climate scientists to assess the potential impacts of climate change on a much-studied species.

Published in the journal Global Change Biology, the study was funded in part by the National Science Foundation, NCAR’s sponsor. Other funders include WHOI; the French National Agency for Research (ANR) program on biodiversity; the ANR REMIGE program (Behavioral and Demographic Responses of Indian Ocean Marine Top Predators to Global Environmental Changes); the Zone Research Workshop for the Antarctic and Subantarctic Environment (ZATA); the Paul Emilie Victor Institute (IPEV); Alexander von Humboldt Foundation; Marie-Curie European Fellowship; and the U.S. Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences visiting fellowship.

See also here. And here.

Scientists Trek to Collapsing Glaciers to Assess Antarctica’s Meltdown and Sea-Level Rise: here.

Antarctic warming damages Adélie, chinstrap penguins

This video is called Adelie penguin and chick on Torgersen Island.

From Wildlife Extra:

Antarctic warming changing penguin breeding cycles, and success

Gentoo happier than Adelie & Chinstrap

March 2012. Three penguin species that share the Western Antarctic Peninsula for breeding grounds have been affected in different ways by the higher temperatures brought on by global warming, according to Stony Brook University Ecology and Evolution Assistant Professor Heather Lynch and colleagues.

Lynch and her colleagues used a combination of field work and, increasingly, satellite imagery to track colonies of three penguin species – Adélie, chinstrap and gentoo. The Adélie and chinstrap migrate to the peninsula to breed, while the gentoo are year-round residents.

Rapid warming

The Antarctic is considered one of the world’s most rapidly warming regions. Warmer temperatures move up the breeding cycle, causing the penguins to lay their eggs earlier. The resident gentoo population is able to adapt more quickly and advance their “clutch initiation” by almost twice as much as the other species. Lynch believes this may allow them to better compete for the best nesting space. The Adélie and chinstrap are unaware of the local conditions until they arrive to breed and have not been able to advance their breeding cycles as rapidly.

Gentoo numbers booming, Chinstrap and Adelie declining

In addition, the gentoo prefer areas with less sea ice, and have been able to migrate further south into the Antarctic as the sea ice shrinks. The chinstrap and Adélie species rely more heavily on the abundance of Antarctic krill, which require sea ice for their lifecycle.

The result – the gentoo numbers are increasing while the other two species have noticeably dwindling populations on the Antarctic Peninsula.

The work by Lynch and her team is contained in three papers that have been published online in Polar Biology, Ecology and Marine Ecology Progress Series (MEPS).

See also here. And here.

I had the privilege of seeing all those three penguin species in the Antarctic decades ago. It is heartbreaking that Big Oil and their accomplices ruin the Antarctic this way now.

Global Warming Brings More Lyme Disease, Ticks: here.

Now You Sea It, Now You Don’t: Watch Arctic Sea Ice Melt: here.

Antarctica’s invasive plants

This video is called Eyewitness – Arctic & Antarctic.

From National Geographic:

Alien Species Invading Antarctica via Tourists, Scientists

Seeds hitchhiking on cold-weather clothing, gear.

Charles Q. Choi

for National Geographic News

Published March 5, 2012

Antarctic tourists and scientists may be inadvertently seeding the icy continent with invasive species, a new study says.

Foreign plants such as annual bluegrass are establishing themselves on Antarctica, whose status as the coldest and driest continent had long made it one of the most pristine environments on Earth.

But a boom in tourism and research activities to the Antarctic Peninsula may be threatening the continent’s unique ecosystems, scientists say. (See a high-res Antarctica map.)

For the study, ecologist Steven Chown at the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa and colleagues vacuumed the clothes, footwear, bags, and gear of approximately 2 percent of people who visited during the Antarctic summer from late 2007 to early 2008. That amounted to 853 scientists, tourists, and accompanying support workers and ships’ crew members. (Read more about the gear required for Antarctic travel.) …

The results revealed more than 2,600 seeds and other detachable plant structures, or propagules, had hitched a ride to Antarctica on these visitors.

On average, tourists each carried two to three seeds, while scientists each carried six. However, the annual number of tourists now far outnumbers that of scientists—about 33,000 tourists to about 7,000 scientists in the 2007-2008 Antarctic summer. As a result, tourists and scientists likely pose similar risks overall to Antarctica, Chown said. …

Antarctic Invaders Used to the Cold

Disturbingly, the scientists said, 49 to 61 percent of the foreign plant material that reaches Antarctica are cold-adapted species that can withstand and colonize in extreme conditions.

The plants likely get stuck to cold-weather gear that travelers had used in other frigid climes prior to arriving to Antarctica.

For instance, Arctic species such as chickweed and yellow bog sedge have been found in Antarctica, according to the study, published March 5 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Based on the nature of these foreign species and the present climate of Antarctica, the areas at highest risk are the Antarctic Peninsula coast and surrounding islands, the study said.

According to climate projections for 2100 from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), invaders may also take root in the coastal, ice-free areas to the west of the Amery Ice Shelf and, to a lesser extent, in the Ross Sea region.

What’s more, rising temperatures along the Antarctic coast will likely aid these intruders’ survival. (See an interactive map of global warming’s effects.)

Even so, “it should not be imagined that Antarctica will suddenly be covered in flowering plants and weeds,” Chown said.

“Much of it is still a very harsh place, and plants do not grow on ice, which still dominates the continent.”

Cleaning Gear May Reduce Risks

Polar ecologist Peter Convey said the study “provided objective assessment that both governmental and tourism operations in the region pose significant risks.”

But knowing the risks also means knowing how to manage them, said Convey, of the British Antarctic Survey, who was not part of the study.

For instance, cleaning outer gear and bags is very effective at reducing the number of seeds that can reach Antarctica. “In essence, take it new or take it clean,” study leader Chown said.

Chown and team also plan to present their work to the Committee for Environmental Protection of the Antarctic Treaty.

“We hope they will use the information further” to develop ways to lessen the impact, Chown said.

See also here.

An international team of scientists have published the first continent-wide assessment of the Antarctic’s biogeography, and propose that the landmass should be divided into 15 distinct conservation regions to protect the continent from invasive alien species. The team’s findings are published in Diversity and Distributions, while the authors’ proposals were outlined today at a lecture to the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM) in Hobart, Tasmania: here.

Plants of Antarctica: here.

March 2012: A third US retailer has announced it will not stock seafood from Antartica’s Ross Sea for environmental reasons, reports Greenpeace: here.

Antarctica was warmer than now during Mioocene: here.

Sauropod dinosaur discovery in Antarctica

From Springer publishers:

Plant-eating dinosaur discovered in Antarctica

First record of a sauropod dinosaur in Antarctica suggests more widespread distribution of this species than previously thought

For the first time, the presence of large bodied herbivorous dinosaurs in Antarctica has been recorded. Until now, remains of sauropoda – one of the most diverse and geographically widespread species of herbivorous dinosaurs – had been recovered from all continental landmasses, except Antarctica. Dr. Ignacio Alejandro Cerda, from CONICET in Argentina, and his team’s identification of the remains of the sauropod dinosaur suggests that advanced titanosaurs (plant-eating, sauropod dinosaurs) achieved a global distribution at least by the Late Cretaceous.

Their work has just been published online in Springer’s journal, Naturwissenschaften – The Science of Nature.

Sauropoda is the second most diverse group of dinosaurs, with more than 150 recognized species. It includes the largest terrestrial vertebrates that ever existed. Although many sauropod remains have been discovered in North and South America, Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe, there is no previous record of sauropoda in Antarctica. Other important dinosaur discoveries have been made in Antarctica in the last two decades – principally in the James Ross Basin.

Dr. Cerda and colleagues report the first finding of a sauropod dinosaur from this continent and provide a detailed description of an incomplete middle-tail vertebra, recovered from James Ross Island. The specific size and morphology of the specimen, including its distinctive ball and socket articulations, lead the authors to identify it as an advanced titanosaur.

These titanosaurs originated during the Early Cretaceous and were the predominant group of sauropod dinosaurs until the extinction of all non-bird dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous. Although they were one of the most widespread and successful species of sauropod dinosaurs, their origin and dispersion are not completely understood.

The authors conclude: “Our discovery, and subsequent report, of these sauropod dinosaur remains from Antarctica improves our current knowledge of the dinosaurian faunas during the Late Cretaceous on this continent.”

See also here.

Oldest Dinosaur Nursery Found: Photos: here.

For the longest time, most scientists believed it wasn’t possible to accurately measure the body temperature of dinosaurs. They could only make educated guesses by, for example, calculating how fast the creatures ran based on the spacing of their tracks, or from measuring the growth rates of their bones. How warm (or cold) these long extinct creatures were remained an enduring mystery — until now: here.

Tracking Antarctica’s sea ice: here.