Algal Blooms

Article Title: Algae Blooms' Sudden Spread Stumps Scientists

Link: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/11/26/BAMF1LVJJI.DTL

Picture: This picture shows a goose attempting to swim in the abundance of algae. Not only is this aglae an annoyance and eyesore, but it is also a toxic threat to the wildlife and people that live around it.

Summary: Suddenly and rapidly, algae had begun to grow along the coasts of California, becoming a threat to the ecosystem. The toxic algae would actually kill wildlife and make humans ill that lived around the blooms. Scientists are at a loss as to how this algae had grown so rapidly, but are going to do their best to find out. The UC Santa Cruz and its team of marine scientists have begun a study to determine what had caused the algae growth. Raphael Kudela, lead scientist of the group, says that what they need to focus on is what change in the environment has led to this occurrence. What had made the scientists aware that they needed a solution to the algae was when a deadly red tide killed tens of thousands of abalone, sea urchins, and other mollusks along the coast of Sonoma and Mendocino. The UC Santa Cruz was able to get a start with an $800,000 grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; they will continue their studies for a 5 year period, spending 4.3 million dollars. The equipment they are using consists of robotic gliders and a network of underwater sensors and satellites. At the moment, the scientist's primary focus is a single-celled diatom called Pseudo-nitzschia, which Kudela says has become the single biggest biological threat along the California coast.

Reflection:

I could not believe that algae could actually do that much damage! Actually, I didn't even know that algae would have toxins in it; I figured it was just another producer helpng out our ecosystem. Apparently, though, that's not the case in California. One time when I was at the beach a hurricane brought up a bunch of dead sea creatures and seaweed...but I couldn't imagine seeing ten thousand shellfish washing up at the shore! I honestly hope that the UC Santa Cruz scientists find a way to help the animals surrounding the algae blooms, because it would be really upsetting if the entire ecosystem in that area falls to the algae.

Questions:

1) Is the algae affecting the productivity of beaches and other coastal areas?

2) What is a diatom, and how did it become so popular in the California coasts?

3) Is the public able to help in any way with the algae problem?

Water Conservation Funding Swells Along Mississippi River

Picture: This picture shows the Mississippi River in Memphis Tennessee. The Mississippi River is spread from the Gulf of Mexico, all the way up to Minnesota. The area surrounding the river is called the Mississippi River Basin. 

Article:http://www.waterconservationusa.org/articles/279-water-conservation-funding-swells-along-mississippi-river.html 

Summary: The USDA made a decision as part of the Mississippi River Basin Healthy Watersheds initiative, the department is going to fund existing water conservation projects. The goal is to improve the water quality of of different watersheds. The farmers and landowners are the ones who have volunteered to help with the water conservation. The methods of water conservation are based off of the area that they live in. Some of the things they would take care of during their conservation efforts would be management of nutrients on land, crop rotation for the purpose of conservation, and planting trees along streams to filter nutrients and manage water draining off the farm. During the announcement, the USDA pointed out that the Mississippi River collects water from 4/10 of the continental United States. The USDA will be providing $43,000,000 for this project. That money will be divided between the 12 participating states, with Minnesota receiving the most money.  

Reaction:  This is really good! The Mississippi River is one of the most important bodies of water in the United States and should be taken care of to the best of our abilities. If I lived in near the Mississippi River, I think it would be cool to help out with like planting trees near the river and stuff like that. 

Questions:  

1. Why do you think they gave Minnesota the most money?

2. Do you know of any other ways they could help conserve the water?

3. What do you think you could do to help?

All about the Everglades--The Amazing Swamp!

Picture:
This is a picture is of one of the air boat tours, this is just one of the many activities that you can do when you visit the everglades. As you can see the boat kind of hovers above the water.Also, in the background it may look like a forest, but it is all water surrounding the trees and grass.






Article:
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2012/mar/20/travel-ambling-everglades-florida/
Summary:
The Everglades is a beautiful swamp full of many birds, fish, plants, and gators. Sadly, 90% of the Everglades birds have been lost because of the plum hunters. The article explains, that there are many trails and path ways and things to do when you are in the Everglades. For instance you could go on an air boat ride and practically glide across the 50miles wide and 100 miles long swamp of the Everglades. You can also see some manatees. The Burmese pythons is an invasive species in the Everglades and is ruining the ecosystem. One python was found with a whole white tailed deer in it’s stomach. The Everglades try to also save species like the Florida Panther. They have about 12 panthers protected in the park. With many species the whole entire park has a very high biodiversity. The Everglades are very susceptible to natural disasters, such as wild fires and climate changes as well as hurricanes and sea level rises. A restoration plan for the Everglades is in the process of beginning the of healthy sustainable ecosystems. The Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan or the CERP, was signed by President Clinton in 2000, is possibly the most determined wilderness restoration plan. The Everglade’s forest is one of the most beautiful national parks and should be restored and protected.
Expansion:
I can relate to this article because this past winter break I went to Florida to visit family and we went to the Everglades. We took an air boat ride, which was very fun! We saw three alligators on the trip, one was an 8- foot male and the other was a 5-foot female. They came really close to out boat! Next time I go visit the Everglades are defiantly on my list of things to do.
Question:
1.) The Everglades have a high biodiversity, why is this a good thing?
2.) How does the Everglades benefit or effect the people living in and around it?
3.)Do you think that global warming will have any effects on the everglades.

Bleached corals

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/21/science/earth/21coral.html?_r=2

Picture: This is a bleached coral in the Taxas-Louisiana border as the global warming threat is becoming more serious. In the immense heat wave, many of the coral reefs became like this in the 1998, we do not know if the coral reefs will survive a second wave.
Summary:As global warming hits all parts of the world, sea is another place that is greatly affected. All over the world, coral reefs are greatly damaged due to the severe heat stress in the sea as the world average tempreture is going up. Such bleaching of the coral is not a good sign as it's a sign that the tiny little animals called pylyps that makes up the coral are in a recoil mode. This is due to the algae that are in a symbiotic relationship with the pylyps are spewing out toxins instead as the high heat and sunlight causes the metabolism of the algaes to be out of control. As the pylyps are in recoil mode they get no nutrients so unless the water tempreture becomes normal and algaes are in control again, the corals will die. Though dead corals can be recover back to life by a new pylyps but without a drop in sea tempreture, the coral ecosystem will collapse. With the collapse of coral reef ecosystem, people that rely on fishery will be heavily impacted as the fishery cannot function without the coral reef ecosystem.
Opinion/Reflection: I was very disheartened by this new because this is a disaster that could really hurt the ecosystem and ruin the lives of animals, people and the nature. Whenever I hear stories of human impact that deals negatively to earth, I feel rather sad that I really can't do too much to stop it. I don't throw away trash on the floor and always tries to do whatever I can that would impact the nature the less. I noticed that this article is from 2010 and it's little less than 2 years from that point. I very well do wonder how the coral reefs are doing now. I think it would be for the best of me, my family and everyone/thing in the world for the pollution on Earth to stop.
Question:
1)What can we do to stop such serious problem to be stopped?
2)How will the collapse of coral reef affect our life?
3)What action have you taken so far that is affecting the enviornment postively?
4)Could the animals adapt in to the new enviornmental challange? Why or why not?

Report: World bee decline signals ‘sixth major extinction’:
http://digitaljournal.com/article/304525

Picture: This picture shows graphs about bee population and bee statistics. Click HERE to see a better photo of this image. In this image it gives how information about colony losses, some of the causes, the decline in losses, the effects on us, the crops its effecting, and how many billions we are loosing annualy.

Summary: Honey bees are decreasing in population due to Colony Collapse Disorder(CCD) , disease, deforestation, climate change, and pollution. 90% of the wild bee population in the United States has died out. Beekeepers have been losing 25% of their hives each winter. This could leave Beekeepers without a job. Also scientists believe that this could lead to worse things for humans because bees pollinate most of the U.S.’s crops. In 2000, the value of crops pollinated by bees was estimated at $14.6 billion in the USA alone. 

Opinion/Reflection: This is a very big issue for us and I believe we need to act fast. 90% is a huge number of loss. We need to find out what is causing all the CCD. If we can’t reverse this issue we may need to find alternative ways to pollinate all the crops.

Questions:

1.) Why is this such a big issue for us?

2.) What do you think is causing the CCD?

3.) Do you have any ideas how we can reverse this?

4.) What should we do now to help?

Invasive Species

General Information About Invasive Species http://nationalatlas.gov/articles/biology/a_invasive.html

Picture:
The image on the left shows an invasive species--a plant called kudzu--that has infested an entire forest. Invasive species like these can ruin entire ecosystems that have been living comfortably for generations.
Summary:
Invasive species are species that have come into an ecosystem that it has never been introduced to before. As a result, these organisms may cause environmental or economical problems, as well as harming human health. Ironically, humans are normally the cause of these invasive species' entrances. When an invasive species arrives at a new habitat, many things can occur, but normally not good things. For example, the species may be able to prey on the other organisms that have not adapted to protect themselves from the organism. The invasive species population would rise dramatically, and those other organisms will be in danger of becoming endangered or extinct; thus causing an imbalance in the ecosystem. Plants could get wiped out, which could harm agriculturalists. The damage caused by invasive species may cost us millions of dollars each year to attempt a solution. Federal agencies are currently working to prevent invasive species from being introduced to environments, as well as educate the public about what those species are doing to the world around us.
Opinion/Reflection:
It upsets me to know that accidents like this scan cause so much trouble for an entire ecosystem. I wish the article was able to give more specific examples on how to fix the problem, or how the federal agencies are attempting to fix it. Also, i was very surprised that about the costs to pay for the invasive species' damages each year. Hopefully we can find a way to prevent any more ecosystems being ruined by invasive species, because there are a lot of problems we are causing the environment right now.
Questions:
1) What can we do as a public to help stop invasive species from occurring?
2) What work are the federal agencies doing to help stop this? Can we be included?
3) What human activities are causing invasive species?
4)How many invasive species are there?
5)Are there any invasive species that are big in the US? What ones?