Protected areas are too few and growth too slow to prevent biodiversity loss

The current global network of protected areas is quite extensive, covering 17 million square kilometers of land and 2 million square kilometers of oceans. But the more than 100,000 areas appear to be insufficient to halt global biodiversity loss, according … Continue reading

The wildfire climate feedback, tundra´s case: megatonnes of extra CO2

Globally 2007 was one of the hottest years on record. In the Arctic it led to the thus far smallest sea ice extent. But that’s not the only thing unprecedented that happened in the far north. For the first time … Continue reading

Melting Arctic ice releases persistent organic pollutants

Global temperatures are rising and as a result icecaps are melting. But as a study in Nature Climate Change shows icecaps don’t just discharge water when they melt. They also release a gift from generations past in the form of … Continue reading

The forest fire feedback, Yellowstone’s case: ecosystem shift by 2050

Climate change could cause the forests of the world’s oldest national park, Yellowstone, in the Eastern Rocky Mountains, to shift to a gras and shrub ecosystem, US scientists warn. It could happen in four decades, and will likely not be … Continue reading

In case of CCD the pest could be worse than the pesticide: P450 enzymes help bees survive chemicals that kill parasite

Usually when we want to get rid of an insect or other arthropod we spray it with something nasty. And that is indeed what beekeepers do to kill varroa destructor, a mite that infects beehives and contributes to Colony Collapse … Continue reading

Trees in cities contain carbon – like anywhere else

Urbanisation increases the need to include city surfaces in assessments of the world’s carbon cycle. Already 4 percent of our planet’s land surface is urbanised and that percentage is likely to increase over decades to come. But although new research … Continue reading

Soils don´t need warming to add another positive climate feedback

We recently reported on a possible negative carbon feedback of forest soils in higher latitudes: when such soils warm, nutrient availability may increase, as would (therefore) biomass production and CO2 uptake. But not all climate feedbacks operate through temperature. It … Continue reading