New ancestor of modern sea turtles found
A sea turtle discovered in Alabama is a new species from the Late Cretaceous epoch, according to a study published April 18, 2018 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Drew Gentry from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Alabama, USA, and colleagues.
Modern day sea turtles were previously thought to have had a single ancestor of the of the Peritresius clade during the Late Cretaceous epoch, from about 100 to 66 million years ago. This ancestral species, Peritresius ornatus, lived exclusively in North America, but few Peritresius fossils from this epoch had been found in what is now the southeastern U.S., an area known for producing large numbers of Late Cretaceous marine turtle fossils. In this study, the research team analyzed sea turtle fossils collected from marine sediments in Alabama and Mississippi, dating from about 83 to 66 million years ago.
The researchers identified some of the Alabama fossils as representing a new Peritresius species, which they named Peritresius martini after Mr. George Martin who discovered the fossils. Their identification was based on anatomical features including the shape of the turtle's shell. Comparing P. martini and P. ornatus, the researchers noted that the shell of P. ornatus is unusual amongst Cretaceous sea turtles in having sculptured skin elements which are well-supplied with blood vessels. This unique feature may suggest that P. ornatus was capable of thermoregulation, which could have enabled Peritresius to keep warm and survive during the cooling period of the Cretaceous, unlike many other marine turtles that went extinct.
These findings extend the known evolutionary history for thePeritresius clade to include two anatomically distinct species from the Late Cretaceous epoch, and also reveal that Peritresius was distributed across a wider region than previously thought.
Drew Gentry says: "This discovery not only answers several important questions about the distribution and diversity of sea turtles during this period but also provides further evidence that Alabama is one of the best places in the world to study some of the earliest ancestors of modern sea turtles."
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Journal Reference:
Andrew D. Gentry, James F. Parham, Dana J. Ehret, Jun A. Ebersole. A new species of Peritresius Leidy, 1856 (Testudines: Pan-Cheloniidae) from the Late Cretaceous (Campanian) of Alabama, USA, and the occurrence of the genus within the Mississippi Embayment of North America. PLOS ONE, 2018; 13 (4): e0195651 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0195651 ... See MoreSee Less
1 month ago ·
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UNESCO publishes first status report on ocean sciences around the world
Ocean sciences are led by a small number of industrialized countries although collecting data and taking the measure of the ocean’s health is a global priority considering the economic and environmental stakes involved, according to the Global Ocean Science Report, compiled by UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. The Report advocates increased investment into research and calls for greater international scientific cooperation.
The Global Ocean Science Report: The Current Status of Ocean Science around the World, has been presented at the United Nations in New York on 8 June, World Ocean Day, as part of the United Nations’ Ocean Conference which took place until 9 June.
“The publication marks a turning point in that it is the first such tool developed to help inform countries’ and stakeholders’ decisions and investments in favour of the ocean. It will also play a major role in assessing progress towards meeting Sustainable Development Goal 14, adopted by the United Nations to preserve the key resource that the ocean represents for humanity as a whole,” declared UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova.
Unequal investments
The Report’s first observation is that ocean sciences are expensive since sounding the seas requires costly ships and equipment, satellite imaging, underwater robots or remotely controlled vehicles. The collection and processing of data by thousands of scientists is also costly. Only industrialized countries can afford such investments and the largest ocean research budgets today are to be found in Australia, France, Germany, the Republic of Korea, and the United States of America.
In general, countries’ commitment varies significantly according to their size, the length of their coastline and the economic benefits they draw from their marine resources. According to data in the Report*, the share of national scientific budgets allocated to the ocean varies from 0.1% (Russian Federation) to 21.4% (Argentina). The share of research and development budgets dedicated to ocean sciences also varies a great deal, ranging from 0.04% (Ecuador) to 4.7% (Croatia). The other leaders in this area are Norway, the Republic of Korea, Thailand, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Ocean sciences have relied heavily on national public funding, which on average accounts for more than 70% of financing. This is subject to fluctuations: from 2009 to 2013, countries like Italy, Norway and Turkey increased their funding while Australia and Spain made significant cuts.
The authors of the Report argue that ensuring stable funding is particularly important considering financial revenues obtained from the ocean. In 2010 the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimated the ocean to yield an added value of 1.5 trillion dollars. Hence the need to diversify funding.
The private sector’s contribution to ocean research has indeed grown with a number of merchant ships collecting data for scientific projects. Also, non-governmental organizations such as the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and The David and Lucile Packard Foundation are funding ocean science or preservation programmes.
Hardware holds the key
Specialized institutions and laboratories play a leading role in the study of subjects such as marine biodiversity and ecosystems, water acidification or the impact of human activity on coastal environments. Most of these institutions are situated in Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the United Kingdom and the U.S.
These research centres tend to specialize in their respective countries’ priority areas. Thus, Finland, India and Norway have many institutions that specialize in fishing, while Argentina, France, Italy, Kuwait and the Russian Federation tend to focus on ocean observation.
Research ships are an important element in marine research in as far as they give scientists access both to coastal areas and to the high seas. A total of 371 such ships plough the world’s seas. Fifty-one of them fly the U.S. flag, 29 are Japanese, 28 German, 27 Turkish, 26 Korean (Republic of Korea), 20 Canada, 20 Italian and 18 French.
Many female researchers
Disparities are also considerable when it comes to human resources. China has the largest contingent of people employed in marine sciences totalling 38,000 scientists and technicians. It is followed by the United States of America (4,000 researchers), Germany (3,300), France (3,000), Republic of Korea (2,400) and Italy (2,100). It is worth noting that Norway has the highest number of researchers per million inhabitants (364), followed by Belgium (74).
Women researchers are more numerous in the marine sciences than in the sciences as a whole. In 2013, women accounted for 38% of ocean scientists, 10% more than in other areas of scientific research. In Angola, Argentina, Croatia, Ecuador and Suriname, more than half the marine researchers are women.
The Report also includes information about the number of scientific publications dedicated to the ocean, as a gauge of this sector’s importance. Between 2010 and 2014, 372,852 such works were published. With 33% of publications, Europe leads the pack, followed by Asia, 28%, and North America 26%. The single country with the most publications is the U.S. It is followed by Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, and the United Kingdom. China, however, registers the greatest growth in the number of publications and significant progress is also noted in Brazil, India, Iran and the Republic of Korea.
The report also contains a series of recommendations to the attention of policy-makers. It advocates reinforced cooperation among countries and different ocean-centred institutions to enable as many countries as possible to carry out research and maximize its impact. It also recommends boosting the collection and treatment of data, as well as the development of alternative financing models.
While taking stock of the status of ocean science in the world, the Report is designed to help identify the strengths and weaknesses of this science, which has a direct impact both on the economy and on the environment. To be published every five years, the inaugural Report also serves as an instrument to assess progress in the accomplishment of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal No.14 (link is external) for 2030: “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources.”
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*Country data comes from replies to a questionnaire sent out by the authors of the Report.
More on the Report
Media contacts: Vinicius Lindoso, UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, v.lindoso@unesco.org (link sends e-mail), +33 (0)7 89 63 01 31
Agnès Bardon, UNESCO Media Services, +33 (0)145681764, a.bardon@unesco.org ... See MoreSee Less
11 months ago ·
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Bird flu spread mutations among humans identified
An international team of scientists has identified several genetic mutations that, should they arise, could potentially allow the avian influenza strain H7N9 to spread between humans. The findings are published in PLOS Pathogens.
H7N9 is a strain of flu virus that normally infects birds but has spread to at least 779 humans in a number of outbreaks related to poultry markets. The virus is not currently capable of spreading sustainably from human to human, but scientists are concerned that it could potentially mutate into a form that can.
To investigate this possibility, James Paulson of The Scripps Research Institute, California, and colleagues analyzed mutations that could occur in H7N9's genome. They focused on a gene that codes for the H7 hemagglutanin, a protein found on the surface of flu viruses. This protein allows flu viruses to latch onto host cells.
Flu strains that circulate in avian viruses have different subtypes of hemagglutanin, called H1-H16. So far only three subtypes have been found in human flu viruses (H1, H2 and H3). Like other avian flu viruses, H7N9 has is specific for receptors on bird cells, but not receptors on human cells. However, a transition to human specificity could enable H7N9 to circulate among humans, just like other human flu strains that have caused pandemics in the past.
The research team used molecular modeling and knowledge of hemagglutanin's structure to identify mutations that would change the protein's amino acid sequence and cause a switch to human specificity. Then, they produced the hemagglutanin with different combinations of these mutations in an experimental cell line (testing the mutations in H7N9 viruses themselves could be dangerous).
The scientists harvested the mutant hemagglutanin proteins from the cells and tested how strongly they bound to human-type and bird-type receptors. Several forms with mutations in three amino acids bound far more strongly to human receptors; they had switched specificity from bird to human. These triple-mutant H7 hemagglutinins also successfully latched onto cells in samples of human trachea tissue.
Safety regulations prohibit introducing these mutations to actual H7N9 viruses, limiting scientists' ability to test their effects in animals. Nonetheless, the research team suggests that keeping an eye out for the development of these mutations in humans infected with H7N9 could help trigger a timely response to prevent potential spread.
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Journal Reference:
de Vries RP, Peng W, Grant OC, Thompson AJ, Zhu X, Bouwman KM, et al. Three mutations switch H7N9 influenza to human-type receptor specificity. PLoS Pathog, 2017 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006390 ... See MoreSee Less
11 months ago ·
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It’s time! Once again UN Environment seeks to make the biggest global call and mobilization for action on 5 June, 2017 in arranging World Environment Day (WED).
World Environment Day is the biggest annual event for positive environmental action and takes place every 5 June. This year’s host country Canada got to choose the theme and will be at the centre of celebrations around the planet.
World Environment Day is a day for everyone, everywhere. Since it began in 1972, global citizens have organized many thousands of events, from neighbourhood clean-ups, to action against wildlife crime, to replanting forests.
"Connecting People to Nature", the theme for World Environment Day 2017, implores us to get outdoors and into nature, to appreciate its beauty and its importance, and to take forward the call to protect the Earth that we share. This year’s theme invites you to think about how we are part of nature and how intimately we depend on it. It challenges us to find fun and exciting ways to experience and cherish this vital relationship.
Background
The year 1972 marked a turning point in the development of international environmental politics: the first major conference on environmental issues, convened under the auspices of the United Nations, was held from June 5-16 in Stockholm (Sweden). Known as the Conference on the Human Environment, or the Stockholm Conference, its goal was to forge a basic common outlook on how to address the challenge of preserving and enhancing the human environment.
Later that year, on 15 December, the General Assembly adopted a resolution (A/RES/2994 (XXVII)) designating June 5 as World Environment Day and urging “Governments and the organizations in the United Nations system to undertake on that day every year world-wide activities reaffirming their concern for the preservation and enhancement of the environment, with a view to deepening environmental awareness and to pursuing the determination expressed at the Conference.” The date coincides with the first day of the landmark Conference.
Also on 15 December, the General Assembly adopted another resolution (A/RES/3000 (XXVII)) that led to the creation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the specialized agency on environmental issues.
Since the first celebration in 1974, the World Environment Day has helped UNEP to raise awareness and generate political momentum around growing concerns such as the depletion of the ozone layer, toxic chemicals, desertification and global warming. The Day has developed into a global platform for taking action on urgent environmental issues. Millions of people have taken part over the years, helping drive change in our consumption habits, as well as in national and international environmental policy.
Green Living Association is arranging special activities to raise the significance of the day in motivating people to save our Environment. ... See MoreSee Less
12 months ago ·
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West Antarctic Glaciers are Melting at a High Pace
Researchers with the University of California (UC), Irvine, and NASA have completed a pair of studies documenting the pace of glacier melt in West Antarctica. Their findings show that the melting there is occurring at a rate never before observed.
The studies examined three neighboring glaciers that are melting and retreating at different rates. The Smith, Pope and Kohler glaciers flow into the Dotson and Crosson ice shelves in the Amundsen Sea embayment in West Antarctica, the part of the continent with the largest decline in ice.
One, led by a UC Irvine researcher, looked at satellite records in its approach. Scientists compared radar measurements from the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-1 mission and data from the earlier ERS-1 and ERS-2 satellites to identify changes in each glacier’s grounding line. That is the boundary where it loses contact with bedrock and begins to float on the ocean.
The analysis revealed that the Smith Glacier’s grounding line had retreated 1.24 miles each year since 1996. The Pope Glacier’s grounding line receded more slowly, at 0.31 miles annually since 1996. And the Kohler Glacier’s grounding line, which had gradually retreated over time, re-advanced 1.24 miles since 2011.
The second study, led by NASA scientists, relied on data from the space agency’s Operation IceBridge and other airborne campaigns. These include measurements radar and laser altimetry instruments.
Data from the sensors showed stunning rates of ice loss from the glaciers’ undersides on the ocean sides of their grounding lines. The fastest-melting glacier, Smith, lost between 984 and 1,607 feet in thickness between 2002 and 2009 near its grounding line, or up to 230 feet per year.
Results of both studies will likely aid in ongoing efforts to predict the future loss of West Antarctica ice. One is published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The one led by NASA can be found in Nature Communications.
(Credit: NASA Jet Propulsion Lab / Public Domain) ... See MoreSee Less
1 years ago ·
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