Special Protection of Emperor Penguins

One of the most iconic species in the Antarctic is the emperor penguin. A study that was recently published in the journal entitled Biological Conservation called for additional protection and conservation for the species. The researchers from this study looked at over 150 studies on the iconic species. More specifically, they focused on the emperor penguin’s environment and how they behave in terms of their breeding biology. It was found that one of the major negative impacts on the species is climate change and its projections. The breeding sites of emperor penguins will be negatively affected by rising temperatures and changes in wind patterns. It is projected that emperor penguin populations will decrease by more than 50% over the century.  

One of the main factors in this article that relates to the course is climate change. We’ve seen an increasing number of negative impacts that climate change has directly on ecosystems, one of which being the emperor penguin. Humans are a key contributor to climate change and yet, most are barely aware of the impacts they have on the environment. Our inability to seek cleaner resources and reduce our carbon footprint is causing the extinction of many species and putting others at risk of extinction.

Emperor penguins are endemic to Antarctica, meaning this species is particularly

vulnerable to changes in the environment since they require specific factors for the survival of their species. Their ability to breed in the most inhospitable region on earth speaks volumes of its incredible adaptation skills. Currently, the emperor penguins are dealing with periods of irregular weather patterns, with periods of cooling and warming that are unprecedented. It’s a shame that humans have put so many species at risk, and I hate to think about the irreversibility of this problem. Colonies of emperor penguins may be lost because of their inability to survive these changes in warming. I agree in moving up the emperor penguin’s status from ‘near threatened’ to ‘vulnerable’ in hopes of bringing more attention to this situation, but it’s difficult to think about how conservation efforts might not be enough or efforts might be too late.

Article link: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/10/191008212132.htm

Image link: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Aptenodytes_forsteri_-Snow_Hill_Island%2C_Antarctica_-adults_and_juvenile-8.jpg

The Majority of Birds In North America Face Extinction

This article is basically about how because of climate change, birds are facing extinction in North America. Climate change disrupts the places for birds to survive and thrive. There has been a change in the growth of plants, and this leads to the change in insects and animals as a whole. This turns into the fact that birds could not have enough places and food to eat for each and every bird in the world. Because of the extreme changes in weather, this could eventually kill all of the nests and flocks. For example, the gray owl thrive for part of their life in the winter time because they can see better for hunting in the cold weathers. With all of this warm weather and less winter seasons, owls will not have anywhere to go and live. Another issue with this is all of the carbon emissions that are in the air, when birds fly it is hard for them to fly with all of the carbon emissions. This relates to the class because we have touched on climate change and how it can impact a lot of different species. We have also touched on extinction and how because of this reason, these species could go extinct. This is an issue that is big in the idea of ecology because everyday there could be a different reason why a specific species could potentially go extinct. I truly believe that climate change is a big issue in today's world and there are a lot of things I would do change our environment and the world as a whole. Not just birds but a lot of species are at risk of getting extinct and I truly believe that no one wants to see any animal just die off. Some people do not believe in climate change and believe that the reason for the climate change issues are due because of other issues. A few things that I would do to try and stop the risk of birds becoming extinct are trying to lower the temperature because some species of birds can not survive in this rising warm temperatures. I would also try to stop the carbon emissions from factories, transportation, etc. This is true because birds have a hard time flying in the air when the carbon emissions are in the air. Some different things need to change in order for birds to not go extinct in the near future. 

https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/26/opinions/audubon-birds-danger-of-extinction-climate-change-yarnold/index.html

(My photo came from my source that I used)

Source:

https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/26/opinions/audubon-birds-danger-of-extinction-climate-change-yarnold/index.html

Giovanni Malpezzi

Ecology Blog Post

    A topic that I feel is very important to discuss is the deforestation of the Amazon that is occuring right now. Many different species of animals and plants are being eradicated from the fires directly or habitat destruction. The Amazon is the largest rainforest in the world and more species of living things live there than anywhere else in the world. As of today, 20% of the Amazon ecosystem has been lost already and it is growing exponentially. Brazil is responsible for over 50% of the habitat destruction and as chiefly due to cattle ranching and soybean production. People are also being affected by this too, an estimated 34 million people live within the Amazon and rely on its vast quantities of resources to survive. 

This relates to our course because it represents a massive loss in biodiversity on the planet and also majorly reduces the amount of carbon dioxide that gets processed and released into the atmosphere as oxygen. There are so many species of animals and plants that rely on the unique ecosystem the Amazon provides. If we were to lose all of the Amazon there would be so many types of animals and plants that would go extinct and many international organizations are working to try and prevent the further destruction of the habitat. 

I believe it is everyone’s duty to try and help the Amazon rainforest. There are so many benefits as humans that we derive from the Amazon that losing it would be a massive detriment to all of mankind. It provides us with clean air to breathe. It provides us with unique biodiversity for scholars to study. It even produces many types of medications which are often based on biological mechanisms found in animals and plants. I think everyone should at least try to do something, even if it’s something small like creating awareness. When the Amazon was burning a couple months ago there was a massive social media movement that worked to spread awareness and to put pressure on the South American governments to do something to protect the habitat. If we as people do not do something to help end deforestation in the Amazon, there may come a time where future generations won’t have the Amazon to learn about and see all the documentaries, it will only be a thing of the past.

References: https://wwf.panda.org/our_work/forests/deforestation_fronts2/deforestation_in_the_amazon/

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/amazon-deforestation-rising-under-brazil-bolsonaro/4947317.html

Planting Trees to Take On Climate Change Isn’t as Easy as Youtubers Might Think

Ryan Famiglietti

After a project by the Youtube community was started to plant 20 million trees by the end of 2019, many people are questioning how beneficial this will actually be. The main issue they are trying to combat is climate change, and by reaching their goal of 20 million, that could help a great deal. The Youtubers have joined forces by creating a group called team trees, and they each have their own methods of trying to achieve this goal. The main idea for this project is to have the Youtube community band together and combat climate change. It is through climate change and the reasons to study ecology that this topic relates to the course. This can also relate to ecological tipping points, because the amount of carbon in the atmosphere is very close to levels that would be unsuitable for life, and by planting these trees, we would be lowering atmospheric carbon from the tipping point back towards safe areas. While the article likes to talk poorly about the Youtubers’ efforts, I firmly believe that they are doing the right thing. One smart decision they made was to find help from the community. This will allow them to get the proper funding for a large scale project like this. I also like that they decided to fund a nonprofit organization, Arbor Day Foundation, who specialize in planting trees with a high rate of survivability. The effort is something that this generation of human beings has never seen before, and in the first few days alone team trees has already gotten to over a quarter of their original goal. I believe due to the large percentage of caring people in the audience who care about Earth, and the low price of a donation, they will achieve and even succeed their goal. And while this is a great first step, I believe the Youtube community needs to capitalize on this movement and try to also lower carbon emissions in the near future. Since they do have a large amount of influence due to their platform, they can bring about a much larger change then most people could imagine. And since Youtubers of many different genres and backgrounds are getting involved, millions of people will be involved and will be looking to get behind this cause. And while this is a great start, there are more steps that must be taken to truly save the Earth. I believe that ultimately this will help us in the future.

Article Credits
 https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2019/10/25/20932700/youtubers-climate-change-team-trees

Image Credits
https://images.app.goo.gl/dXjkV9coGK8arkZQ9

Offshore Wind is The Future of Energy Production

(Image of Wind Turbines off the coast of New York state.)

Recent studies have shown researchers the new benefits that wind power can give to our increasingly technological society. The focus of the newest research is on offshore wind farms. Researchers from the International Energy Agency (IEA), said in a new study that we could see an incredible increase in power output from offshore wind production within the next few years. According to the story, “The report estimates that based on current policy targets and plummeting technology costs, offshore wind could increase 15-fold by 2040, becoming a $1 trillion industry and eliminating 5 to 7 billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually from the power sector.” (Environmental News Network). While offshore wind energy only produces around 0.3 percent of global electricity today, most researchers believe that the future potential for that number to grow are astronomical.

Offshore wind power is being attempted across the globe, with many countries and companies looking to improve their use of renewable energy in the twenty-first century. New York state is looking to add new wind turbines off the shores of Long Island, for instance. While there has been some pushback from local residents, the state says that the implementation of this technology will help with electricity efficiency and costs in the long term. According to the study, “The cost of offshore wind is expected to be cut in half in the next five years, dropping to $60 per megawatt-hour — on par with solar and onshore wind and cheaper than new natural gas-fired capacity in Europe.” (Yale Environment 360). This is definitely exciting news for environmental activists and climate scientists, who have been pushing an increased effort to diversify the energy industry for decades now.

How we fuel our society is one of the biggest questions we are going to need to face as we look to combat the changes being seen in our climate every single year. Our class is focused around the idea of understanding our natural world, and how we as humans fit into that equation. Finding new ways to be efficient with our natural world fits nicely in with the goals and studies of the class itself.

This is great news for the world. Wind power is going to be one of the driving energy producers in the coming decades as the technology hopefully gets cheaper and more efficient. Human innovation has always allowed us to tackle problems head-on, and hopefully, that same human innovation will allow us to address the many facets of climate change. This is definitely a good start, but there is obviously still so much for us to do. There are many ways to move away from fossil fuels and become more energy-efficient, using wind power, solar power, or nuclear energy. We should be open to every new idea, and we should never be afraid to try something new or untested. That is exactly how we became the society we are today, and we shouldn’t look to stop that human progress now.

References:
Leslie, Jacques, et al. “Offshore Wind Has the Potential to Fulfill Global Electricity Demand 18 Times Over.” Yale E360, 25 Oct. 2019, https://e360.yale.edu/digest/offshore-wind-has-the-potential-to-fulfill-global-electricity-demand-18-times-over.

Yale Environment. “Yale Environment 360.” ENN, 25 Oct. 2019, https://www.enn.com/articles/60458-offshore-wind-has-the-potential-to-fulfill-global-electricity-demand-18-times-over.

Monarch Migration Disrupted

Roseline Bello

October 2, 2019

There are plenty of species essential to our ecosystems globally. One of these species is the Monarch Butterfly, who because of human influence, now undergoes a change in their migration pattern due to climate change and habitat loss. Specifically, Monarch's were amongst the many insects who were recovering from a decline of about 80% prior to their comeback. This is, in part, due to humans adopting commercial Monarch Butterflies while taking care and nurturing them up until they are born and ready to flourish and explore the wild!

Despite this, however, humans are still unaware of the potentials dangers to this well-intentioned act. As a result, a University of Chicago graduate decided to look further into this. To do so, he gathered commercially bought butterflies and wild butterflies and raised their offspring for two generations, which ultimately resulted in a summer and fall group (Dudas, 2019). Additionally, for each group, flight behavior in a common insect flight simulation were tested for. 

From the spring commercial and wild butterfly population, it was discovered that the butterflies had a random flight pattern and flew in random directions, resulting in no real difference in flight behavior. However, both butterflies were composed of a very different genetic makeup, after running further tests. Additionally, the fall wild Monarch butterflies flew south, as expected, however the commercial butterflies continued to fly in random directions. 

The overall results from the study lead one to believe that the captured commercial butterflies have lost their sense of flight behavior. As a result, this can lead to turbulence in the flight behavior and overall migration of the Butterfly as a whole. 

Human influence on the environment plays a huge role on the detriment of species and their habitats as well as loss of biodiversity, a topic prevalent to both our ecology class and the study of ecology as a whole. I believe that although in this instance humans used their resources for good with respect to saving the Monarch Butterfly population from further decline, the capturing of commercial Monarch butterflies, who are later released into the wild, ultimately results in a disruption in the migration pattern for most, if not all, wild Monarch Butterflies, due to the random flight behavior of commercial Monarch's, which ultimately puts a dent, or hinders, the progressive evolution and upward momentum of positive changes in the environment overall. 

References:

Dudas, A. (2019, October 10). Monarch Migration Disrupted. Retrieved from https://sciworthy.com/monarch-migration-disrupted/.

(n.d.). Retrieved from https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/6c3108f3-67a2-4d40-a584-b13e65df5b51.

Sunscreen killing the Coral Reefs

On top of the many things trying to kill ocean coral, we can add sunscreen to the list. One modern issue with sunscreen is the ingredients within it. And while you’re probably thinking it’s just a little what’s the issue? It’s actually a big issue because an estimated 14,000 tons of sunscreen is believed to be introduced into the ocean yearly. This causes severe damage to coral reefs in places like Hawaii and the Caribbean. There are two types of sunscreen the mineral kind and the chemical kind,  these chemical screens contain things like oxybenzone, a synthetic chemical known to be toxic to corals, algae, sea urchins, fish and mammals.  A single drop of this in more than 4 million gallons of water is enough to endanger organisms. Another chemical that is harmful to coral is Parabens such as methyl paraben and butyl paraben. These are fungicides and anti-bacterial agents that extend the shelf life of a product. 

This relates to the course because coral is a keystone species, this means it is needed within the ecosystem to keep a balance. Coral protects coastlines from the damaging effects of waves and tropical storms. They also protect the shoreline from erosion, as well as protecting coastal housing. It also provides habitats and shelter for many marine organisms. These habitats are home to hundreds of species within the ocean.

 This is a very pressing and important issue, one that could be fixed easily by the general public by just looking for a coral safe logo on the sunscreen. Another option that is suggested is to plan around the sun by doing activities in the morning or afternoon. Or to even put on extra clothes on like hats or use an umbrella. These are all options that can have a major effect on the environment. With just one change we can help out the coral reefs greatly.

https://phys.org/news/2019-03-beaches-sunscreens-coral-reefs.html
https://oceanfdn.org/is-your-sunscreen-killing-coral-reefs/

(Qin 1)

The New York Times reported on a study published in the Nature Sustainability journal, in their article “Air Pollution Is Linked to Miscarriages in China, Study Finds” by Amy Qin. The study assessed the exposure to air pollution at work and home that 255,668 pregnant women endured (Qin 1). Of that sample, 6.8% of the women experienced a silent miscarraige, that the researchers linked to the increased risk of this event to air pollution (Qin 1). In the article they articulate that this is only a link, and correlation doesn’t mean causation (Qin 1).   

This news article relates to two issue areas that we have discussed in class, air pollution and population. The ecological footprint activity quantified our individual effects on the environment, effects including air pollution. Some specific individual actions that increase air pollution is our consumerism, use of cars, trips on planes, and waste. In the article they used these sorts of factors to evaluate the amount of air pollution pregnant women are exposed to. Additionally the article addresses how miscarriages are leading to a population decrease in China. In contrast, other countries population is increasing exponentially and having a very negative impact on the environment. 

This is a new issue and link that has been discovered, and hope they continue to research this issue concerning maternal health because it a sort of environmental sexism. Talking about this issue will also allow for the topic of miscarriages increase, which is very important as maternal health is not discussed enough.

Qin, Amy. “Air Pollution Is Linked to Miscarriages in China, Study Finds.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 14 Oct. 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/14/world/asia/china-air-pollution-miscarriages-study.html.