ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Ancient plants reawaken: Plants exposed by retreating glaciers regrowing after centuries entombed under ice
• Historic sea-level change along New Jersey coastline mapped
• Rare species perform unique roles, even in diverse ecosystems
• Novel disease in songbirds demonstrates evolution in the blink of an eye
• Guatemala's jaguars: Capturing phantoms in photos
• Scientists develop CO2 sequestration technique
• Disappearance of stromatolites, earliest visible manifestation of life: Ancient enigma solved?
• Fast-sinking jellyfish could boost the oceans' uptake of carbon dioxide
• Striking green-eyed butterfly discovered in the United States
• Ugly plants worse for allergy patients
• 'Ultraselective' process to make valuable chemical from biomass
• How do plants grow toward the light? Scientists explain mechanism behind phototropism
• New insights into protein disposal
• Century-old ocean data provides further confirmation of global warming
• New 1-step process for designer bacteria
• Models from big molecules captured in a flash
• Scientists narrow global warming range
• White Mountains hikers often underprepared
• Researcher builds replica human colon to improve water quality
• Bees tell birds to buzz off: How bumblebees steal birds' nests
• Decoding the genome of the camel
• Salmonella uses protective switch during infection
• Antarctic polar icecap is 33.6 million years old, researchers show

Ancient plants reawaken: Plants exposed by retreating glaciers regrowing after centuries entombed under ice Posted: 28 May 2013 05:25 PM PDT When Catherine La Farge threads her way through the recently exposed terrain left behind by retreating glaciers, she looks at the ancient plant remains a lot closer than most. Now, her careful scrutiny has revealed a startling reawakening of long-dormant plants known as bryophytes.

Historic sea-level change along New Jersey coastline mapped Posted: 28 May 2013 03:10 PM PDT A new study relied upon fossil records of marshland to reconstruct the changes in sea level along the New Jersey coast going back 10,000 years.

Rare species perform unique roles, even in diverse ecosystems Posted: 28 May 2013 03:10 PM PDT A new study reveals the potential importance of rare species in the functioning of highly diverse ecosystems. Using data from three different ecosystems -- coral reefs, tropical forests and alpine meadows -- a team of researchers has shown that it's primarily the rare species, rather than more common ones, that have distinct traits involved in unique ecological functions. As biodiversity declines, these unique features are particularly vulnerable to extinction because rare species are likely to disappear first.

Novel disease in songbirds demonstrates evolution in the blink of an eye Posted: 28 May 2013 03:08 PM PDT A novel disease in songbirds has rapidly evolved to become more harmful to its host on at least two separate occasions in just two decades, according to a new study. The research provides a real-life model to help understand how diseases that threaten humans can be expected to change in virulence as they emerge.

Guatemala's jaguars: Capturing phantoms in photos Posted: 28 May 2013 01:09 PM PDT The Wildlife Conservation Society has released a photograph of a male jaguar taken by a remote camera trap in Guatemala's Maya Biosphere Reserve. Activated by motion or heat differentials, camera traps "capture" pictures of secretive and elusive animals in the wild. Because each jaguar's pattern of spots is unique, the photographs can be used to identify individuals and estimate abundance.

Scientists develop CO2 sequestration technique Posted: 28 May 2013 11:37 AM PDT Scientists have discovered and demonstrated a new technique to remove and store atmospheric carbon dioxide while generating carbon-negative hydrogen and producing alkalinity, which can be used to offset ocean acidification.

Disappearance of stromatolites, earliest visible manifestation of life: Ancient enigma solved? Posted: 28 May 2013 11:37 AM PDT The widespread disappearance of stromatolites, the earliest visible manifestation of life on Earth, may have been driven by single-celled organisms called foraminifera, a new study finds.

Fast-sinking jellyfish could boost the oceans' uptake of carbon dioxide Posted: 28 May 2013 09:25 AM PDT Increasing numbers of gelatinous plankton might help in mitigating the carbon dioxide problem. In field and laboratory experiments scientists have shown that dead jellyfish and pelagic tunicates sink much faster than phytoplankton and marine snow remains. Jellies are especially important because they rapidly consume plankton and particles and quickly export biomass and carbon to the ocean interior.

Striking green-eyed butterfly discovered in the United States Posted: 28 May 2013 09:25 AM PDT Striking olive-green eye colour allows scientists to distinguish a new butterfly species, which was confirmed using Smithsonian entomology collections. Previously unrecognized because of its similarity with the common Gray Ministreak, the newly described Vicroy's Ministreak was named after the wife of Jeffrey Glassberg, who discovered it. It may turn out to be the last distinctive butterfly species from the United States.

Ugly plants worse for allergy patients Posted: 28 May 2013 09:22 AM PDT As allergy season continues for Middle Tennessee and much of the U.S., a largely unknown adage rings true: the uglier a flower or weed, the more allergy-inducing its pollen tends to be. Ragweed, mugwort, plantain and pigweed have more than just their unappealing appearance in common—they're some of the worst offenders to allergy sufferers.

'Ultraselective' process to make valuable chemical from biomass Posted: 28 May 2013 09:22 AM PDT Chemical engineers have discovered a new chemical process to make p-xylene, an important ingredient of plastics for products such as soda bottles and packaging, at 90 percent yield from lignocellulosic biomass, the highest yield achieved to date.

How do plants grow toward the light? Scientists explain mechanism behind phototropism Posted: 28 May 2013 07:59 AM PDT Plants have developed a number of strategies to capture the maximum amount of sunlight through their leaves. As we know from looking at plants on a windowsill, they grow toward the sunlight to be able to generate energy by photosynthesis. Now scientists have provided definitive insights into the driving force behind this movement -- the plant hormone auxin.

New insights into protein disposal Posted: 28 May 2013 07:59 AM PDT Cells have a sophisticated system to control and dispose of defective, superfluous proteins and thus to prevent damage to the body. Researchers have discovered a new function of an enzyme that is involved in this vital process.

Century-old ocean data provides further confirmation of global warming Posted: 28 May 2013 07:45 AM PDT A new NASA and university analysis of ocean data collected more than 135 years ago by the crew of the HMS Challenger oceanographic expedition provides further confirmation that human activities have warmed our planet over the past century.

New 1-step process for designer bacteria Posted: 28 May 2013 07:02 AM PDT A simpler and faster way of producing designer bacteria used in biotechnology processes has been developed.

Models from big molecules captured in a flash Posted: 28 May 2013 07:02 AM PDT The structures of most of the two million proteins in the human body are still unknown, even at low resolution. A new algorithm solves the convoluted shapes of large molecules by using images of numerous individual samples, all caught simultaneously in a split-second flash of x-rays from a free-electron laser. The technique promises efficient information about the shapes of many more large biological molecules in their native, fluid state.

Scientists narrow global warming range Posted: 28 May 2013 07:01 AM PDT Australian scientists have narrowed the predicted range of global warming through groundbreaking new research.

White Mountains hikers often underprepared Posted: 28 May 2013 07:01 AM PDT In a new study based on surveys of hikers in New Hampshire's White Mountain National Forest, researchers find that many people hit the trails without essential equipment, often because they don't think it's needed for short hikes. Young, inexperienced hikers were most likely to lack essential gear.

Researcher builds replica human colon to improve water quality Posted: 28 May 2013 07:01 AM PDT To better understand how bacteria impact the environment researchers spent nearly a year building a system that replicates a human colon, septic tank and groundwater and "fed" the colon three times a day during weeklong experiments to simulate human eating.

Bees tell birds to buzz off: How bumblebees steal birds' nests Posted: 28 May 2013 06:21 AM PDT A new study reveals how bumblebees steal birds' nests. The study highlights the 'parasitism by theft' of bumblebees that invade birds' nests and claim them as their own. Their warning buzz helps bumblebees to "scare" the bird away from the nest.

Decoding the genome of the camel Posted: 28 May 2013 06:16 AM PDT By sequencing the genome of a Bactrian camel, researchers have made a significant contribution to population genetic research on camels. The study has laid the foundation for future scientific work on these enigmatic desert animals. A blood sample from a single Bactrian camel with the evocative name of "Mozart" provided the genetic raw material for the work.

Salmonella uses protective switch during infection Posted: 27 May 2013 12:36 PM PDT For the first time, researchers have found a particular kind of molecular switch in the food poisoning bacteria Salmonella Typhimurium under infection-like conditions. This switch, using a process called S-thiolation, appears to be used by the bacteria to respond to changes in the environment during infection and might protect it from harm, researchers report.

Antarctic polar icecap is 33.6 million years old, researchers show Posted: 27 May 2013 07:05 AM PDT Seasonal primary productivity of plankton communities appeared with the first ice. This phenomenon, still active today, influences global food webs. These findings are based on fossil records in sediment cores at different depths.

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