Connect with us

International

Satellite images reveal new penguin colonies in Antarctica

 


While the discovery is welcome, previously undiscovered animals will act as “canaries in the coal mine” when it comes to studying global warming.

Satellite imagery has revealed that there are nearly 20% more penguin empire colonies in Antarctica than previously thought.

However, while the discovery is welcome, previously undiscovered animals will act as “canaries in the coal mine” when it comes to studying the impact of global warming, experts said.

Scientists discovered 11 new colonies, which means that there are now 61 colonies across the continent in total.

The study, which used satellite mapping technology, “will provide an important benchmark for monitoring the impact of environmental change on the population of this iconic bird,” the researchers said.

Writing in the journal Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation, the authors clarified that they used images from the European Commission mission Copernicus Sentinel-2 to find the birds. The satellite is part of a program to monitor the earth and any changes in the environment.

It is difficult to study emperor penguins, which need sea ice to grow because they live in remote and often inaccessible areas with temperatures as low as minus 50 degrees Celsius (minus 58 degrees Fahrenheit).

Climate change is a real threat to species as the loss of sea ice will destroy their habitats. According to the report, published Tuesday, the new colonies “are found within the confines of the emperors’ breeding range,” making them vulnerable to the global climate.

Phil Trathan, head of conservation biology at the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), has been studying penguins for the past three decades. He said in a statement: “While it is good news that we have found these new colonies, the breeding grounds are all in places where the latest model predictions suggest that emperors will fall.

“The birds in these places, therefore, are probably the ‘canaries in the coal mine’ – we have to observe these places carefully as climate change will affect this region.”

Three of the new colonies had been previously identified but had not been confirmed so far, the authors said.

For the past 10 years scientists have been searching for new colonies studying guano – penguin feces – ice spots. The researchers studied the images by hand, looking for brown pixels that marked the stained areas.

“This is an exciting discovery,” said Peter Fretwell, a geographer and lead author of the study, in a statement issued by BAS.

Although he welcomed the news, he said the discovered colonies only take the total population by 5-10% to just over 500,000 penguins – about 265,500 to 278,500 breeding pairs.

Subscribe to the WQAD News 8 YouTube page.

Several colonies were found on sea ice formed around glaciers in shallow water, up to 180 kilometers (111 miles) offshore. Scientists described the finding as “surprising”.

Over the past 10 years, scientists have relied on Landset data to detect such penguin colonies, but the Sentinel-2 has a much higher resolution, according to Fretwell, who said they will now place much more concentrated high power satellites to calculate the number of birds.

He told CNN that the population of all the emperor penguins is expected to decline by 80% by the end of the century.

“The only real threat to the emperor penguins is climate change,” he said. “Once the sea ice melts, you can’t get it back. There’s nothing we can do locally in each colony to help the penguins – it’s really a global problem.”

Earlier this year, it turned out that penguin colonies in some parts of Antarctica had declined by more than 75% over the past half century, largely as a result of climate change.

Download the free News 8 app for iOS, click here and for Android, click here.

Download the free StormTrack 8 Weather app for iOS, click here and for Android, click here.

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos



picture credit

ExBUlletin

to request, modification Contact us at Here or [email protected]