The study doesn’t rule out the asteroid collision theory, but it does put a slight twist to it, which might explain what really happened to the dinosaurs. #dinosaurs #asteroid #massextinction - http://clapway.com/2015/10/01/what-killed-the-dinosaurs123/

The asteroid collision theory is well-known model that attributes the demise of the dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous period to a bolide impact, believed to have occurred roughly 66 million years ago. Evidence suggests that the 5-15 kilometer (3.1 to 9.3 mile) rock hit the vicinity of what is the Yucatán Peninsula today, and triggered a mass extinction event, either directly due to its impact, or indirectly due to the resulting changes in Earth’s atmosphere. The theory, although widely supported, is now being revisited due to new research that points to the occurrence of a double catastrophe. The findings are now published in the journal Science.

SO WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO THE DINOSAURS?

The study, conducted by Berkeley geologists, doesn’t rule out the asteroid collision theory, but it does put a slight twist to it. For years, scientists have been aware of the volcanism that was occurring in India during the same time period, which spread lava across a region known as the Deccan Traps. However, debate has been focused around the role of the eruptions in the mass extinction: were they irrelevant or did they cause a chain of reactions that ultimately lead to the long-term die-off of the dinosaurs?

Initial dating of the Deccan Traps formations indicated the former, as the flood of lava seemed to have occurred long before the impact. New evidence, however, has revealed the most accurate dates yet, giving rise to the theory that the asteroid impact could have changed the volcano’s plumbing system, accelerating the eruptions for hundreds of thousands of years to come.The culmination of these events is thought to have covered the planet with dust and fumes, ultimately causing a huge change in the climate. Long-term eruptions would also result in the delayed recovery of life for 500,000 years after end of the Cretaceous and the beginning of the Tertiary period (K-T boundary), during which many organisms seemed to have disappeared from the fossil record.

But while this does give a clearer picture of what really happened, it doesn’t necessarily ascribe the extinction of the dinosaurs to one initial cause. Scientists are fairly certain that the impact and volcanism occurred roughly 50,000 years of the extinction, but “both phenomena were clearly at work at the same time.”

“…it becomes somewhat artificial to distinguish between them as killing mechanisms: said lead researcher Paul Renne, the director of the Berkeley Geochronology Center. “It is going to be basically impossible to ascribe actual atmospheric effects to one or the other.

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New Twist To The Theory Of What Killed Dinosaurs

#Amphibians have real, tactile places in our ecosystem. Listen up and save the wee #tadpoles. - http://clapway.com/2015/08/12/new-parasite-threatens-to-wipe-out-tadpole-population-567/

The tadpole population worldwide is vulnerable to extinction due to a deadly parasitic infection, lending further credence to the sixth mass extinction event. Frogs from six countries spanning three continents were tested in a study led by the University of Exeter and The National History Museum, UK. Tadpole were from both temperate and tropical regions, including oceanic islands, were found to have this infection. The newly discovered parasite is a type of protist — a mostly unicellular organism with its own nucleus and a distant relative of the Perkinsea. Protists are responsible for mass mortality of shellfish populations. Evidently, protists are largely found in aquatic environments.

THE SCARCITY OF AMPHIBIANS

Amphibians are one of the most threatened animal groups in the world. “In 2008, 32% were listed as threatened or extinct, and 42% were listed as in decline.” Amphibians, and frogs in particular, are known to be extremely sensitive to infectious diseases; these have often been linked to mass decline and extinctions seen in their population.

POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION

In the study, a total of 182 tadpoles representative of different families of frogs over the geographical area were examined. The infectious parasite detected in this study was found to be present primarily in the livers of tadpoles. The DNA obtained from tadpole livers was amplified and analyzed using a common laboratory technique called the polymerase chain reaction. This molecular method allows sequencing of the parasitic DNA. The sequences obtained from all the samples of tadpoles were aligned to find any repetitive patterns and were then mapped to known DNA databases to trace the ancestral origin of this unknown parasite. This exercise revealed the similarity of the protists infecting the tadpoles to the Perkinsea species. These also had very few differences from another type of protist that was recently linked to mass mortality events in tadpoles in the United States. Another notable fact in that this parasitic infection is rampant in various stages of tadpole development, not just concentrated to a single one.

Do We Want To Live in A World Without Frogs?

It is imperative that future studies address the mechanism of how the new parasite inflicts its damage, which might give a clue to curbing the outbreak. Frogs do seem to have a thumb on what could be tipping the balance of our ecosystem. We should pay more attention to what they’re trying to say.

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New Parasite Threatens to Wipe Out Tadpole Population

Welcome Sasha, The Baby Woolly Rhino! - http://clapway.com/2015/06/21/welcome-sasha-the-baby-woolly-rhino876/

Not long ago, actually quite recently, a chance discovery was made in permafrost. First mistaken for a deer carcass, half submerged, was the small and fragile body of a 10,000 year old baby woolly rhino. It was estimated that it was about 18 months old when it passed away, and then spent the next 9,998 years (and some change) frozen in the Sakha Republic.

Sasha, the name of the baby woolly rhino, is actually the first baby of the kind found!

Does this call for a birthday celebration? Absolutely!

Baby woolly rhino was around during mammoth era

The woolly rhino walked at the same time as the impressive mammoth, but not always on the same ground. The mammoth reigned over northern Asia, most of Europe, and North America. The woolly rhino has only been found throughout Europe and Asia. But, like its mammoth cousins, it never managed to travel to North America (as far as we know).

Sasha’s species died out due to climate change and hunting by early humans.

The woolly rhino species was wiped out with climate change and hunting by early humans.

When Sasha was found, half exposed, half submerged in the ice, some lucky scavengers got to nibble on meat that was 100 centuries old.

Like with mammoth discoveries, babies are not common paleontology finds. A few adult woolly rhinos have been found, but surprisingly, we generally tend to see them more in cave drawings. And finds are so very rare, to the degree that this latest find is the first in almost 8 years.

Sasha’s modern-day descendants are in trouble

We need to understand the finding a little more. 10,000 years is a long time to be in the ice. What has happened for animals during those years shows a huge amount of evolution and resilience. This includes the evolution of the rhinoceros. The baby woolly rhino has come back to life just in time to see the end of that evolution. In fact, according to the International Rhino Foundation, in 2013, there were an estimated 44 Javan Rhinos individuals in the wild. The Sumatran Rhino is cited as having no more than 100 individuals remaining.

That was two years ago. In fact, in the wake of the baby woolly rhino, Science Advances has released a study that declares we are coming upon Earth’s sixth mass extinction. That means waving goodbye to many endangered species, including what is left of the rhinos.

This find of the baby woolly is a huge step towards DNA analysis, and understanding the Pleistocene epoch. Maybe the discovery can even help us know what to expect during the sixth mass extinction. So, welcome home, Sasha! I hope you show us how to help your modern day relatives.

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Welcome Sasha, The Baby Woolly Rhino!