Glow-in-the-dark Frog found in Argentina
- The scientists discovered the world’s first fluorescent frog in Argentina that sports a muted palette of greens, yellows and reds under normal light, but gives-off a bright blue and green glow in the dark on March 13, 2017.
- The South American polka dot tree frog (Hypsiboas punctatus) uses fluorescent molecules totally unlike those found in other animals. Many ocean creatures exhibit fluorescence, including corals, fish, sharks and one species of sea turtle. On land, fluorescence was previously known in only parrots and some scorpions.
- The ability to absorb light at short wavelengths and re-emit it at longer wavelengths is called fluorescence, and is rare in terrestrial animals. Until now, it was unheard of in amphibians. It is unclear why animals have this ability, although explanations include communication, camouflage and mate attraction.
Ganga and Yamuna Rivers Recognised as ‘Living Entities’
- The Uttarakhand High Court recognised the Ganga and the Yamuna as so-called living entitles, giving the rivers that have seen years of damage at the hands of humans, a legal voice on March 20, 2017.
- The Court also directed the central government to constitute the Ganga Management Board within eight weeks to look into the issue of cleaning and maintaining the river.
- Recognising the rivers as a living entity grants them new found legal identity and all rights laid out in the Constitution of India.
- Over 1.500 million litres of raw sewage is discharged into the Ganga every day. This joins 500 million litres of industrial waste dumped by more than 700 highly polluting industries located along it.
Natural Swings Partly Responsible for Arctic Sea Ice Loss
- Rapid loss of Arctic sea ice in recent decades is partly driven by natural swings, not just global warming triggered by human activities, says a study on March 13, 2017.
- A shift in wind patterns is responsible for about 60% of sea ice loss in the Arctic Ocean since 1979. Anthropogenic forcing is still dominant—it’s still the key player.
- Some of this shift is related to climate change, but the study showed that 30-50% of the observed sea ice loss since 1979 is due to natural variations in this large-scale atmospheric pattern.
NIO Found a New Canyon System Close to Kowada Coast
- The scientists of CSIR-National Institute of 5 Oceanography (NIO) found three new canyons forming a major canyon system in the depths of Bay of Bengal close to Kowada in Srikakulam district in Andhra Pradesh ori March 10, 2017.
- Canyon systems are generally formed by flow of river water into the sea and they could be as old as the river system, which is dose to 23 million years.
- Canyon system is very huge and probably formed by the river Kandivalasa. The depth of the canyon varies from about 90 m from the starting point to about 2500 m at the deepest point, and it extends to about 50 to 70 km deep into the sea and the width varies from 50 m to 2 km.
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