Bits of Ecology

GCM study finds no Arctic albedo tipping point

The albedo effect still acts as a positive feedback to warming and melting. In fact the general circulation model study shows Arctic sea ice melting will speed up over recent years. From 2020 to 2030 more than 2.5 million square … Continue reading →

Arctic ocean acidification faster than predictions

Cold water absorbs more CO2, so it is around the Poles that the consequences of ocean acidification are first felt. Pteropods – tiny swimming Arctic sea snails – have difficulty building their shells at CO2 levels very close to the … Continue reading →

Royal Philosophy: biodiversity loss is bad

We may not know the exact sum figures of biodiversity, nor the precise percentages of species decline. It may also be irrelevant. Although ecology is in fact all about counting – we have to become aware that we are loosing … Continue reading →

Today’s paradox: non-GM crops help promote GMO

This week the EU considers decentralising the rules on the production of Genetically Modified Organisms. If they do so, it won’t be Brussels stating GMO risks are unacceptable, but individual member states deciding for themselves – no doubt weighing in … Continue reading →

Unravelling CCD: virus and fungus combinedly killing bees?

The mystery of Colony Collapse Disorder, a sudden die-off of bee populations that spread across the world since 2006, is slowly being solved. CCD may not have one single cause, but rather multiple factors adding up, including pollution and diseases … Continue reading →

Today’s paradox: tropical ectotherms don’t like warming

Ecological damage of climate change is expected to be highest where the changes are most profound. That is, due to albedo feedbacks, at very high latitudes and at very high altitudes. So species loss is expected to be highest in … Continue reading →

Plant life does not escape 6th mass extinction

Twenty percent of the world’s plant species are directly threatened with extinction – mostly due to human activity, says a group of scientists from Britain’s Botanic Gardens at Kew, London’s Natural History Museum and the International Union for the Conservation … Continue reading →