As a result of the changing environment, bee populations have been declining. This has had an effect on farming, as many crops rely on bees as their main pollinator, leading to a decrease in the amount of crops farms can produce.
A technology company in Israel has created technology that can pollinate certain plants by imitating the vibrations bees make when pollinating plants. This technology not only helps farmers when bee populations are low to produce the same yield of crops but may help to limit the pressure and impact of humans on the populations of bees.
link to article: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-66939022
Posted on 27th of September 2023
The populations of seabirds in Scotland have declined by about ‘49% between the years 1986 and 2019 across 11 seabird species.’ it has stated that it is ‘one of the most nature depleted counties in the world.’ The causation may have been linked to ‘agriculture, forestry and fishing as well as climate change and pollution’.
Scotland used to be quite renowned for the variety of bird species so this decline is quite worrisome for the biodiversity of the area.
This would link to the topic of biodiversity and management of food sources.
Have we found the solution we’ve been searching for?
The discovery of a microbe found consuming plastic within a rubbish dump earlier this month, has sparked hope within activists, for the commencing of a potential “recycling revolution”. Currently, scientists are working strenuously to attempt to replicate and fast-track the effects of these microbes with hopes of turning the tides of our waste-crisis.
Discovered in 2001, the above image (left), shows the Ideonella Sakaiensis bacteria, which was discovered by a group of Japanese scientist within a rubbish dump. Our very hope lies within their impeccable ability to break down the majority of a plastic substance (right) within 4 weeks, a staggering difference to their natural rate of decomposition, lasting on average for 20-500 years. The bacteria in the paper released shortly following the initial discovery, was described as a specialised enzyme that the bacteria produced that allowed it to break down polyethylene terephthalate, otherwise known as PET.
Overall, the microbe provides hope for the near future, however whether scientists can pull through with the replication, distribution and management is something only time can tell.
A survey of nesting sites revealed a sharp increase in the amount of green sea turtle nests this year with volunteers counting more then 74,000 nests, a staggering 40% increase from 2017s record. The increase is most likely due to the conservation measures put in place after green sea turtles were listed under the endangered species act in 1978.
The catch is though, the sex of a baby sea turtle is not determined by its DNA but by the temperature of the sand in which its egg develops. cooler temperatures mean males and warmer means females. This is means that due to global warming most of the hatchlings are female. This will be a boom for the sea turtles as females can lay between 2 and 9 clutches of a 110 eggs each in a season but research suggests that climate change will outstrip the adaptive advantage of feminization.
In this space I am asking all ESS students to add at least one Environmental news article per week. In your post you will need to link the article to at least one of the ESS topics. These will be discussed across both year groups on Friday morning
