Minnesota moose experts generally agree that global warming is forcing the southern edge of the distribution of the moose northward into Canada, threatening this important US population of this ginormous deer species. Global warming denialists insist that this is the moose’s fault, and has nothing to do with global warming. This is the first of a two part look at this question.
The scientific evidence is overwhelming and unequivocal, climate change is a stark reality. It is largely caused by human activities and it presents very serious global risks for people and biodiversity around the world and it demands an urgent global response. Human activities, especially the burning of fossil fuels, are releasing rapidly increasing levels of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide. This is causing the atmosphere to heat up. We do not have the luxury of standing by for years before the world gets round to making a serious attempt to cut its emissions. The next few years will be critical….
We have had a cool summer here in Minnesota, and this has brought out the miscreants who for their own reasons do not want to get on board with the simple, well demonstrated scientific fact that global temperatures have risen, that we humans are the primary cause, and that this climate change has negative consequences.
Continue reading Global Warming, The Decline of the Moose, and “Minnesota Nice”
Female monarchs in the eastern part of North America have declined in number over the last three decades, according to recent research.
Continue reading Female Monarch Butterflies on 30-year decline in eastern North America
Don’t forget to make use of the Nature Blog Network’s blog, which recently posted a list of new nature blogs, and a community bulletin board. Also on NBN you’ll find a list of upcoming carnivals and an interview/highlight of a featured blog (currently, Southern Fried Science).
New Wildlife Blog
There is a new blog that looks pretty darn good called “All About Wildlife” and focusing on threatened habitat and endangered species. It is called “All About Wildlife” and it is located here. I’d say this is one for the RSS feed.
Musings on Nature Blogging … in Nature Blog Networking: The Halls of Academia N8 (that’s, like “nate” fyi) talks about the new Nature Blog Networks categories, and discusses what a nature blog really is and is not. In which my blog is nicely defended. Thanks, Nate.
For this final installation of How the Loon Terns, I’d like to very briefly address four different items of “common knowledge.”
This has come up a couple of times recently, so I thought I’d summarize the information here.
The distribution of water on Earth in cubic kilometers
| Salt water: | 1,318,062,462 | Glaciers: | 28,005,430 |
| Groundwater: | 12,270,210 |
| Lakes: | 106,396 |
| Swamps: | 13,452 |
| Rivers: | 2,446 |
| Vapor: | 13,000 |
| Biological: | 1,120 |
(Biological means like your spit and guts and all the juicy parts of worms and tree saps and water in bacteria and stuff.)
Wikipedia
Continue reading Distribution of Water on the Earth
And now, for another installment in our series: How The Loon Terns, an exercise in skeptical thinking using Loons as a waterbird touchstone. (In case you missed it, the previous installment was here.)
Continue reading The Lone Loon Fallacy
This is the continuation of a discussion of loons, skeptically viewed. I am not skeptical about loons themselves. I know they exist. In fact, I just spent the last half hour watching Mom and Dad loon (whom I cannot tell apart, by the way) feeding Junior I and Junior II (whom I also cannot tell apart) what I have determined to be mostly crayfish, but also the occasional minnow.
In this installment of How the Loon Terns we will look at breeding success.
Continue reading Lead Poisoning and Loons: A skeptical look
I’ve been thinking about loons lately. This is not hard do do because every time I turn around there is a loon either watching me fish, yodeling off in the distance, flying overhead, or feeding its babies just off to my right as I sit here writing stuff. This year, the pair of loons that lives in front of the cabin seems to be producing two offspring … the young ones grew quickly to near adult size and seem fit and healthy as far as one can tell. Last year, the pair living here produced zero offspring.
Continue reading Thinking skeptically about loons
We’re screwed.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
And, a bonus shark story:
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Professional snipers have been brought in to guard a vulnerable colony of penguins in Australia.
Potograph source
Continue reading Snipers To Kill Penguin Killers in Oz
Dear Reader. The following letter was written by Randy Repass and Sally-Christine Rodgers and it concerns you and the planet earth. The publication of this letter is happening in numerous blogs at the same time, coordinated by Sheril Kirshenbaum.
Continue reading A letter to you about saving the ocean
_-Adelaide_Zoo.jpg){kind=link}