News in brief
Mystery solved?
Fairy circles are circular gaps in grassland that form a distinctive pattern – but what causes them? The University of Göttingen has shown that, after rainfall, grasses within the fairy circles in the Namib Desert, Southern Africa, died immediately. Soil-moisture data revealed that the grasses around the circles depleted the water within the circles, likely inducing the death of the grasses inside the circles.
Delayed journey
PNAS reports that narwhals are adapting to the climate crisis by delaying their seasonal migration, matching sea ice trends. By analysing data spanning 21 years, scientists found that these Arctic whales were remaining longer in their summer areas at a rate of 10 days per decade.
Aussie rule
Australia is to set aside at least 30 per cent of its land mass for conservation in an ambitious bid to protect plants and animals found nowhere else in the world, such as the iconic koala. Australia’s mammals are facing an extinction crisis and the country has one of the worst rates of species decline among the world’s richest countries.
Shear audacity
Some seabirds would rather fly into the eye of a tropical cyclone than be pushed onto land. PNAS reports that streaked shearwaters in the Sea of Japan are most likely to expose themselves to a cyclone if they find themselves sandwiched between the storm and the mainland.
FACT.
The broad black stripe on a male great tit’s chest is a sign of its status. The larger the stripe, the more attractive the bird is to females looking for a mate.