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These striking images, captured by photographer Bence Maté, show leaf cutter ants, scientifically known as Atta ants, collecting leaves and twigs in Costa Rica. Atta ants (of which there are at least 17 species), although small, have a massive effect on ecosystems, with ecologists estimating that Atta colonies may in fact cut 12-17% of the total leaf production of tropical rain forests.
shuttermonkeys
From our time in the Falkland / Malvinas Islands a few years ago...
Follow us @shuttermonkeys
eatsleeptravelrepeat83
The incredible #goldharbour in #southgeorgia such an amazing vista and well worth the 5:30 wake up
davidmerron
suefloodphotography
On Tuesday 25 September, I’ll be on @GoodMorningWales on @BBCRadioWales talking about my new book “Emperor -the Perfect Penguin”, and also the importance of protecting the penguins’ Antarctic home with a special Marine Protected Area. Please tune in at around 08 45! Thanks for listening.
Fossil Bryozoans These flat layers with a “netting” like fabric are fossil organisms called bryozoans. They are the remnants of encrusting organisms that form colonies. Individual organisms called zooids live in this structure as a colony, with different organisms performing different roles including reproduction and feeding. The feeding organisms extend tiny appendages called cilia that they use to drive passing food into their mouths. These are extremely common fossils in the geologic record, and they are often found as flat layers on top of or encrusting other shells. -JBB Image credit: https://flic.kr/p/iRJg1c Reference: http://www.kgs.ku.edu/Extension/fossils/bryozoan.html
natgeo Video by @stephenwilkes. On assignment for the next 2 weeks photographing bird migration for @natgeo . Today we scouted Bass Rock, an island just off the east coast of Scotland. The island was formed over 320 million years ago, and is the remains of an active volcanic area. Here over 150,000 Gannet's reside, the largest northern gannet colony in the world. As we approached the island by boat... it was an almost biblical experience. Follow me @ stephenwilkes for more behind the scenes visuals of this extraordinary place.
The terrain and wildlife of Antarctica explored while on a trip through Ushuaia, the Falkland Islands / Islas Malvinas, South Georgia and the Antarctic Peninsula.
Male and female banded horned treefrogs at El Valle Amphibian Conservation Center. These very rare banded horned treefrogs have a unique habit, they prey on other frogs. It is possible that this frog-eating habit brings them into frequent contact with other frogs and makes them much more likely to contract the amphibian chytrid fungus that is wiping out frogs in Latin America. These two individuals are part of a conservation breeding colony maintained by the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project @amphibianrescue in Panama.
A large colony of garden eels sway and feed in the gentle currents off Dumaguete Philippines. Garden eels are extremely shy and harmless members of the conger eel family. They live in burrows on the sea floor and are very social creatures that form large colonies. The currents deliver a a continuous passing supply of plankton allowing the eels to feed in the comfort and safety of their sandy home. As our team approached this giant colony they quickly vanished into their burrows as if they never existed. I find these colonies to be hypnotic living gardens in the sea. Thank you to Leandro Blanco for video support. On assignment for @natgeo Philippines, Inside the Coral Triangle. #DiscoverOcean
The deception of Amsterdam
When looking at this image of the Island of Amsterdam with its lush green slopes and blue shores it actually looks quite hospitable. Looks can be deceiving though. Amsterdam is considered to be one of the most isolated islands in the world since it lies halfway between South Africa and Australia or halfway between Antarctica and India. The nearest inhabited settlement is 2430km away. The Island is only accessible under certain sea conditions as there is no natural harbor. It is not extremely cold on the island , temperatures only varies six degrees from winter (13°) to summer (19°). However, freezing stiff winds and a constant blanket of rain form a blanket along the steep cliffs. Only 30 people live in the only settlement, Martin-de-Viviès permanently (annually, no one is allowed to stay longer due to its isolation). These are mostly scientists or volunteers at the weather station, the laboratory of Physiochemistry of the atmosphere and the geophysical laboratory where the earth's magnetic field is measured.
In addition to being one of the most isolated islands in the world, Amsterdam Island is also a volcano. Volcanism is due to its location on the edges of the Antarctic tectonic plate and near the East Indian Ocean ridge. Cone growth most likely occurred during two episodes of major volcanic activity with formation of calderas of which one contained a lava lake. Although no records exist for historical eruptions the fresh morphology of the island indicates an eruption no more than a century ago. A central high plateau in the middle of the island contains 10 separate craters. The highest point is Mont de la Dives at 881m, the highest of three summits. On the western side of the island steep basaltic cliffs drop approximately 700m down.
Amsterdam Island is part of TAAF (Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises), an overseas department of France. This might strike you as odd since well, the name is pretty Dutch. It was first sighted in 1522 by Basque explorer Juan Sebastián Elcano. In 1633 Dutch captain Anthonie van Diemen named the island after the ship he was sailing, the New Amsterdam. It was not until 1696 that the first person (Willem de Vlamingh) set foot on the island. The island was claimed by the French in 1843 and became a French colony in 1924 together with the nearby island of St Paul, a caldera which lies 88km away. In the 18th and 19th centuries Amsterdam was densely forested, the arrival of cattle as well as bush fires reduced the forest to only a few hectares. The native fauna that live on or near the island are the nearly extinct Amsterdam albatross (of which Amsterdam is the only breeding ground), the eastern rockhopper penguin and fur seals. There are no native mammals on the island, but cats, mice and rats were introduced.
--BO
Image: Copyright Institute Polaire France. An aerial view of Amsterdam Island. The high cliffs on the western side are well visible. Also note the craters and cones in the middle.
References:
http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/islands/indian/amstrdam.htm
http://www.volcano.si.edu/volcanom?vn=234001
http://basementgeographer.com/ile-amsterdam-isolated-in-the-indian-ocean/
Plymouth Rock
Sometimes it’s not just geologists who celebrate a wondrous rock!
Plymouth Rock is the traditional landing site for the pilgrims of the Mayflower. Many visitors are underwhelmed at the stone celebrated as America’s birthstone. It is, after all, just a boulder, and originally it weighed in at about 10 tons (~3 cubic meters in size).
Is this even the real Plymouth Rock? Maybe – only the oral history of an old man in 1741 claimed that it was. However, whether real history or legend, the story “took.” And in 1774, it took 20 teams of oxen to drag the thing from the shore to the town square, or half of it anyway, since it broke into two pieces in the attempt. The rock again broke into two pieces in 1834 while being moved to the front lawn of the town museum. The rock has suffered so much touristic vandalism that small chunks of it can be found in suspicious museums (like the Smithsonian) all over the country.
Geologically speaking (hey, this IS the Earth Story), it’s a glacial erratic: that means, it was carried to this site by a glacier of the distant past (estimated to be ~20,000 years ago in this case) and dumped onto the shoreline when the glacier melted away. Petrologically, it is granodiorite (a medium- to large-grained plutonic rock that is just a bit less rich in quartz than a more normal granite) interpreted to be part of the Dedham Granite.
Dedham granite crops out in several plutons around Boston Harbor, and has been zircon dated to ~607 – 630 million years in age (latest Proterozoic). It is interpreted as originating from the partial melting of even older sedimentary protoliths. As plate tectonics go, at the time of its formation, this granite (including what would someday be Plymouth Rock) was part of the supercontinent Pangea; when Pangea split apart ~250 million years ago, the Dedham granite was also split apart, much of it remaining in Africa. Thus, Plymouth Rock can also be considered a geologic pilgrim contributing to the foundation of America.
Today, about half of the boulder that’s supposed to be the original Plymouth Rock is set within an enclosure at Plymouth Rock State Park, and the other half can still be found on Plymouth Harbor in Plymouth Massachusetts.
Annie R. -- Happy Thanksgiving from TES!
http://www.history.com/news/the-real-story-behind-plymouth-rock http://mrdata.usgs.gov/geology/state/sgmc-unit.php?unit=MAZdgr%3B0 http://www.newenglandtravelplanner.com/go/ma/southshore/plymouth/sights/plymouth_rock.html
