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The LEO Network is a worldwide network of observers and experts that share their observations of environmental change.
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Observations

Haines’ changing alpine permafrost
Alpine permafrost is thawing, according to an article by the National Science Foundation. This is bad news because thawing releases carbon dioxide and methane and because it can cause destabilization of the land, as a couple of northbound drivers found out last week when their car was buried in the slide at 23 miles, as reported in a Chilkat Valley News article.
Haines, Alaska, United States
KHNS Radio | KHNS FM

Under threat of thaw, some North Slope ice cellars will get tech upgrades to stay frozen
Iñupiat communities have been looking for alternatives to traditional ice cellars. Some households switched to using manmade freezers, which can be effective but they affect the taste and the quality of the food, Nelson said. Additionally, power outages, frequent in the villages, can make this storage method unreliable. So the search is on for creative ideas to preserve traditional ice cellars.
Utqiaġvik, Alaska, United States

Southeast Alaska wolves eat over 60 prey species, study finds — including sea otter
A study – now in its eighth year – has found a remarkably diverse diet among the region’s wolf population. Sea otter has become a primary source of food.
Petersburg, Alaska, United States
KTOO

Southeast Alaska wolves eat over 60 prey species, study finds — including sea otter
Southeast Alaska’s wolves tend to favor deer and moose at mealtime, but in a pinch they won’t say no to black bear – or even sea otter.
Petersburg, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

NASA Warns Methane Is Being Belched From Newly Formed Lakes
These lakes form because warm temperatures in the Arctic are melting the permafrost.
Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
Newsweek

As support streams in, one village still accounting for what was lost in Western Alaska storm
Golovin was hurt worse than other places in the Norton Sound region by the remnants of typhoon Merbok as it swirled up through Bering Sea last weekend. Repairing the damage is going to take time — and the clock is ticking on winter’s arrival.
Golovin, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

Wildfire smoke may have amplified arctic phytoplankton bloom
Smoke from a Siberian wildfire may have transported enough nitrogen to parts of the Arctic Ocean to amplify a phytoplankton bloom.
EurekAlert!

Typhoon Merbok pounded Alaska’s vulnerable coastal communities at a critical time
The powerful remnants of Typhoon Merbok pounded Alaska’s western coast on Sept. 17, 2022, pushing homes off their foundations and tearing apart protective berms as water flooded communities. Storms aren’t unusual here, but Merbok built up over unusually warm water. Its waves reached 50 feet over the Bering Sea, and its storm surge sent water levels into communities at near record highs along with near hurricane-force winds.
Bering Sea
ArcticToday

Western Alaska braces for strong storm and possible floods
Kotzebue, Alaska, United States

Kebnekaise's southern peak has not shrunk any further this year
Sweden's highest mountain Kebnekaise's southern peak has not shrunk further over the last year, scientists say. "I think the explanation is that it was quite a cold summer up here in the Kebnekaise Mountains and at the Tarfala research station so it has not melted away so much" says Nina Kirchner, director at Tarfala research center.
Mount Kebnekaise

As Yukon River chinook disappear, so does a way of life
Yukon River chinook salmon runs have been steadily declining, with 2022 the smallest run on record. As the fish disappear, Yukon First Nations fear the cultures and traditions built around the salmon over countless generations will too.
Pelly Crossing, Yukon, Canada
CBC North

With record use, Chugach State Park feels new pressures
Anchorage’s backyard wilderness is experiencing a surge in users that shows no signs of letting up. Driven in part by social media and location tracking apps, more people are recreating in historically less-used parts of the park than before.
Anchorage, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

Store-bought milkweed plants can expose monarch caterpillars to harmful pesticides
Researchers found pesticide-contaminated plants in nurseries in 15 states
United States
University of Nevada, Reno

Saxitoxin detected in regional clam
A six-inch butter clam harvested on August 28 three miles north of Savoonga tested positive for saxitoxins, or paralytic shellfish poison, Norton Sound Health Corporation Environmental Coordinator Emma Pate said.The clam itself showed high levels of saxitoxin present: it had 450 micrograms of toxin per 100 gram of body tissue. The Food and Drug Administration’s safety limit is at 80 micrograms/100 g. Pate, via the SEATOR lab, on Sept. 23 issued a paralytic shellfish toxin advisory to Savoonga and Gambell.
Savoonga, Alaska, United States
The Nome Nugget

Authorities warn subsistence users about potentially harmful algal blooms
Researchers have found a high level of potentially harmful algae in the waters near Teller, Brevig Mission, Wales, Little Diomede and Shishmaref. They are now advising that residents of those areas…
Nome, Alaska, United States
KNOM Radio Mission

Alaska’s snow crabs have disappeared. Where they went is a mystery.
King crab legs for $199 a pound? There’s a reason for that.
Saint Paul, Alaska, United States
Washington Post

Grain Farmer Fights Off Swan Invasion with Falcon-Shaped Kites
A farmer in South Iceland is resorting to a unique method to combat a unique threat to his grain crops. RÚV reports that Björgvín Þór Harðarson, a pig and grain farmer in Laxárdalur, is using falcon-shaped kites to scare away the whooper swans that are consuming and causing significant damage to his crops.
Iceland Review

As Arctic Temperatures Rise, Polar Bears Are Eating More Garbage
A new paper warns that a growing reliance on trash is leading to more human-bear conflict
Churchill, Manitoba, Canada
Smithsonian Magazine

Avian flu outbreak affects wide range of species
A new outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza is spreading among wild birds in North America. While there are only a few confirmed cases in Western Alaska, the scope of the outbreak still has…
Alaska, United States
KNOM Radio Mission

Recent Increase in Seal Deaths in Maine Linked to Avian Flu
NOAA Fisheries working with partners to determine the causes of death, and assess impacts.
Southern Maine Coast
NOAA

Subsistence fishers request a decrease of salmon bycatch
As chum and chinook salmon numbers dwindle in Western Alaska, salmon bycatch in the pollock industry was a main concern addressed by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, or NPFMC, from Jun…
Bethel, Alaska, United States
KNOM Radio Mission

Pollutants from far distances found in Bering Sea animals hunted by Indigenous people
A newly published study shows the presence of chemical pollutants in marine mammals and reindeer hunted by St. Lawrence Island villagers.
Gambell, Alaska, United States
Alaska Beacon

New assessment of mercury levels and health risks in Arctic sea and wading birds
Kvikksølv finnes naturlig i naturen, men store mengder kvikksølv kommer også fra menneskelige utslipp. Metylkvikksølv, den giftige formen av kvikksølv…
Kongsfjorden, Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard
SEAPOP
Vigdis Johnsen, Sarah Yoder, Bailey Richards

Avian influenza cases have doubled statewide, but no reports from the North Slope yet
As of June 16, 48 cases of highly pathogenic avian flu were detected across the state of Alaska, according to the Department of Environmental Conservation. None of these confirmed cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza are in the northernmost regions of Alaska.
Utqiaġvik, Alaska, United States

HPAI confirmed on Yukon Delta NWR
Birds that USFWS sent in from the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) for testing for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) have tested positive. Sabines gulls, glaucous gulls, and black brant all tested positive for HPAI.
Newtok, Alaska, United States
Raphaela Stimmelmayr, Bob Gerlach, Bryan Daniels, Michael Bruce, Angela Matz, Gay Sheffield, Brian Lefferts, Andrew Ramey, Louisa Castrodale, Eric Taylor, Dana Diehl

Management council declines action on Bering Sea bycatch to address Yukon-Kuskokwim salmon subsistence worries
The vast majority of callers at the North Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting last week called for a reduction in bycatch limits, which they said would help reverse a dramatic trend of salmon declines on the Yukon and Kuskokwim Rivers.
Bethel, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

Ancient disks revealed unsettled climate change in Svalbard
The temperature on the delar of Svalbard has risen to twice as fast as the time period known. No can forecast at the Norwegian Meteorological Institute document the greatest warming in the world.
Island of Karl XII, Spitsbergen
NRK

Amid Alaska’s permafrost areas, more soil is staying thawed year-round, UAF scientists find
Warmer winters and thicker layers of insulating snow are spurring creation of more taliks, sections of ground that doesn’t freeze even in winter.
Teller, Alaska, United States
KTOO

Vulnerable residents flown out of St. Mary’s as major tundra fire closes in
The City of St. Mary’s and its two tribes, the Yupiit of Andreakfsiy and the Algaaciq Tribe, held a community meeting on June 9. There, resident Geraldine Beans said that community leaders chose an optional evacuation for elders and people who are considered vulnerable. Other residents will have to wait. The fire is the largest in the history of the Lower Yukon valley. It’s been burning for a week and a half, since May 31, and has grown to about 50,000 acres.
St. Mary's, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

Two Years After Huge Arctic Spill, River Water in Norilsk Is Still Red From Diesel Fuel
While mining giant Nornickel has said the local ecosystem is "satisfactory," environmentalists paint a different picture.
Norilsk, Krasnoyarskiy, Russia
The Moscow Times

Researchers investigate Yukon Delta bird deaths amid avian flu outbreak
By Megan Gannon
Nome, Alaska, United States
The Nome Nugget

Are seagull eggs dangerous to harvest due to bird flu?
It is egg hunting season in many rural Alaska communities, and harvesters want to know if they should be concerned about eating eggs from wild birds. According to guidance from the State of Alaska and USFWS, the risk from avian flu for people is very low.
King's Cove, Alaska, United States
Dana Diehl, Louisa Castrodale, Nadine Kochuten, Michael Bruce, Karen Pletnikoff

Alaska’s bird flu outbreak is taking an especially heavy toll on eagles and other wild birds
Cases are being detected all over the state, from the Aleutians to Mat-Su to Haines and the Interior.“What we’re seeing this year is an unprecedented level of highly pathogenic avian influenza in wild birds,” said Andy Ramey of USGS.
Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

Polar bears in Svalbard are disturbed around the clock by tourists. A police investigation has now begun
Rekordmange båter på fotojakt etter isbjørner. Nå undersøker Sysselmesteren på Svalbard flere mulige brudd på svalbardmiljøloven.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen
NRK

Borough climate change planning effort gears up
A survey is out and an open house is planned on May 14 for the Fairbanks North Star Borough's Climate Action and Adaptation Plan. A public survey is out, and an open house is planned for 4 p.m. May 14 at J.P. Jones Community Center in South Fairbanks.
Utqiaġvik, Alaska, United States
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

N.W.T. health department and hunters prepare for avian flu
The territorial government issued a public service announcement earlier this week, warning people about a highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza. N.W.T. hunters say they are worried about harvesting birds that may have the virus.
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada
CBC

First case of new avian flu detected in Alaska
The advice to hunters, don’t shoot or harvest game that appears sick. If you found an animal injured or dead, just leave it there. When processing, wear rubber gloves and washing the area the game was cleaned on. You should also cook game to an internal temperature of at least 165°F.
Alaska, United States
The Nome Nugget

Expanding beaver pond distribution in Arctic Alaska, 1949 to 2019
Beavers were not previously recognized as an Arctic species, and their engineering in the tundra is considered negligible. Recent findings suggest that beavers have moved into Arctic tundra regions and are controlling surface water dynamics, which strongly influence permafrost and landscape stability. Here we use 70 years of satellite images and aerial photography to show the scale and magnitude of northwestward beaver expansion in Alaska, indicated by the construction of over 10,000 beaver ponds in the Arctic tundra. The number of beaver ponds doubled in most areas between ~ 2003 and ~ 2017. Earlier stages of beaver engineering are evident in ~ 1980 imagery, and there is no evidence of beaver engineering in ~ 1952 imagery, consistent with observations from Indigenous communities describing the influx of beavers over the period. Rapidly expanding beaver engineering has created a tundra disturbance regime that appears to be thawing permafrost and exacerbating the effects of climate change.
Kotzebue, Alaska, United States
Nature

First case of avian flu in Alaska identified in Mat-Su backyard flock
While the risk to human health is low, Gerlach has said that avian influenza could pose a threat to not only the state’s domestic birds but also wild birds, including geese, shore birds, vultures and eagles. There’s no treatment for birds that are infected, and the mortality rate for poultry and raptors like hawks, eagles or owls is especially high. Possible signs of infection includes the “sudden death of multiple birds in the flock, nasal discharge, sneezing, and coughing, or respiratory distress."
Palmer, Alaska, United States

Goose hunting in times of avian influenza
"Our hunters have a vast knowledge on a healthy bird. They know what a healthy bird looks like. If a goose has the symptoms of avian flu … people shouldn't eat it," said George Diamond of Cree Public Health.
Chisasibi, Quebec, Canada
CBC

Migratory birds arriving in Alaska this year may bring avian flu with them
News of avian flu outbreaks in dozens of states in the lower 48 have wildlife managers and bird hunters on edge as the spring migration gets underway in Alaska.
Bethel, Alaska, United States
KYUK

Zoos hiding birds as avian flu spreads in North America
Zoos across North America are moving their birds indoors and away from people and wildlife as they try to protect them from the highly contagious and potentially deadly avian influenza. Penguins may be the only birds visitors to many zoos can see right now, because they already are kept inside and usually protected behind glass in their exhibits, making it harder for the bird flu to reach them.
Omaha, Nebraska, United States
Associated Press

Copper River Seafoods no longer buying Cook Inlet salmon amid declining harvests
Copper River Seafoods is ending its run in the old Snug Harbor Seafood plant, leaving one major salmon processor in the area.
Kenai, Alaska, United States

Sheen continues to spread from tug grounded in Neva Strait
On Thursday, for the first time, the sheen was reported in Krestof Sound, an area where Pacific herring are known to spawn in the spring.
Juneau, Alaska, United States
KTOO

Protecting Grizzly Bears from Trains in the Mountain Parks — State of the Mountains
Ten years ago, Mike Gibeau, then the carnivore biologist for Banff National Park, identified a problem: collisions between grizzly bears and trains were increasingly prevalent. Between 2000 and 2010, ten grizzly bears there were struck and killed by trains and several more unconfirmed strikes were reported.
Alberta, Canada
State of the Mountains

Project looks into causes, effects of 2016-2019 drought
Hotter weather and less rain drove the three-year drought.
Juneau, Alaska, United States
Juneau Empire

Mapping reveals rapid changes to the Arctic seafloor as ancient submerged permafrost thaws
Researchers documented the formation of new, irregularly shaped, steep-sided depressions. The largest was an oval-shaped depression 28 meters (92 feet) deep, 225 meters (738 feet) long, and 95 meters (312 feet) wide. The research team attributes these changes to intermittent seafloor collapse due to the gradual warming of the permafrost sediment frozen beneath the Arctic Shelf since the end of the last ice age.
Beaufort Sea
Monterrey Bay Aquarium Research Institute

High water temperatures measured last year at Chilkat Lake weir
High water temperatures were measured at Chilkat Lake weir in Alaska, raising concerns for the salmon population, although no harm to the fish has been reported so far.
Haines, Alaska, United States
Chilkat Valley News

As permafrost thaws, a Biden-supported drilling plan is on unstable ground
ConocoPhillips' massive Willow project would emit 284 million metric tons of carbon dioxide over its 30-year lifetime.
Nuiqsut, Alaska, United States
Grist

Alaska worries about salmon runs as climate change warms Arctic waters
With marine heat waves helping to wipe out some of Alaska’s storied salmon runs in recent years, officials have resorted to sending emergency food shipments to affected communities while scientists warn that the industry’s days of traditional harvests may be numbered. Salmon all but disappeared from the 2,000-mile (3,200-kilometer) Yukon River run last year.
ArcticToday

Officials believe Hooper Bay's sewage lagoon broke open due to cold followed by rain
Just two days after temperatures dipped below -5 degrees Fahrenheit in Hooper Bay, they shot up above freezing, and it started to rain. That caused the water level in the lagoon to rise, and water started to flow through the crack, eroding the lagoon wall.
Hooper Bay, Alaska, United States

Curious Alaska: Hold my berry — are Bohemian waxwings getting drunk on fermented fruit?
Bohemian waxwings are a wintertime fixture in Anchorage, darting in large flocks from one berry-filled tree to another.
Anchorage, Alaska, United States

West megadrought worsens to driest in at least 1,200 years
By Seth Borenstein | The Associated Press FILE - A kayaker paddles in Lake Oroville as water levels remain low due to continuing drought conditions in
Sacramento, California, United States
The Sacramento Observer

A way of life disappears along the Yukon River with the decline of the salmon
The dam altered the subsistence gathering patterns of the Tagish Kwan, the Daḵká Kwa’an and the Kwanlin Dün people. Residences, cabins and fish camps along the Whitehorse rapids were dismantled, gatherings at M’Clintock stopped, and many people dispersed to Fish Lake and Whitehorse.
Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada
Yukon News

2021 Arctic Report Card presents warming impacts
Warm temperatures, melting sea ice, ocean debris and permafrost degradation dominated discussion of the 2021 NOAA Arctic Report Card.

A new study predicts a huge increase in catastrophic hurricanes for the northeastern U.S.
When hurricanes cause both extreme high tides and heavy rains, devastating floods ensue. Such storms will get much more frequent by the end of the century, according to a new study.
Wilmington, North Carolina, United States
NPR.org

Winter means hibernation for some — but not all — of Kodiak’s bears
By late November and into early December, they head into their dens for hibernation — but not all of them. About 30% of the Kodiak male bear population don’t den at all, according to a state biologist.
Kodiak, Alaska, United States

Fishery disaster declarations for Kuskokwim and Yukon salmon fisheries
Fourteen Alaska fisheries have been declared federal disasters by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce. Gina Raimondo issued the declarations on Jan. 21. The announcement includes Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta salmon fisheries, and could lead to federal funding for fishermen.
Emmonak, Alaska, United States
KYUK

An unusual year for weather, and particularly warm
The ground was completely white in Reykjavík on just 17 days during 2021—the second-lowest number on record. The summer was the warmest on record in many parts of the country and many heat records were broken.
Reykjavík, Capital Region, Iceland
RÚV

As Caucasian Glaciers Melt, Locals Face the Future With Stoicism
Caucasian glaciers have lost a quarter of their surface area to climate change since the millennium. “We don’t have winters here anymore,” said Sergei Nureddinov, a guest house owner in the mountaintop village of Verkhniy Kani, gesturing to the glacier from his front yard. “The climate catastrophe is here.”
Кармадонское, Пригородный район, North Ossetia-Alania, Russia
The Moscow Times

Skagway’s blue mussels were nearly wiped out last year
The Skagway Traditional Council is asking harvesters to avoid blue mussels until the population rebounds.
Haines, Alaska, United States

Russia's grand Arctic plan might get stuck in the ice
The troublesome shipping on the Northern Sea Route continues into the new year. Almost three weeks after the world's most powerful icebreaker arrived in the Chukchi Sea, none of the four vessels stuck in the area have broken out of the ice.
Chukchi Sea
Eye on the Arctic

The High Arctic saw a huge spike in lightning last year
There was almost twice as much lightning north of 80 degrees in 2021 as in the previous nine years combined, a Finnish firm says.
High Arctic
Nunatsiaq News

The Great Siberian Thaw
Permafrost contains microbes, mammoths, and twice as much carbon as Earth’s atmosphere. What happens when it starts to melt?
Yakutsk, Sakha, Russia
The New Yorker

Fish retention at some peninsula lakes restricted in 2022 due to pike impacts
Restrictions exist for East and West Mackey, Sevena, Union, Derks and Stormy lakes in 2022
Nikiski, Alaska, United States
Homer News

I hope people talk about this storm for a long time
If that saying about Jan. 1 setting the tone for the year to come has any truth to it, 2022 is going to be a wild ride.
Cantwell, Alaska, United States

Weather year 2021
In 2021, the average temperature in Norway was normal, while precipitation was 10 percent below normal. The year is nevertheless marked by great contrasts. The summary of the weather in 2021 was presented at the Meteorological Institute's annual event Climate Status on 5 January. Here you can see video footage of Climate Status (Vimeo)
Norway
Meteorologisk institutt

Historic change to Arctic landscape as beavers migrate in masses
The North American beaver has expanded its range in recent years and is now colonising Arctic territory, researchers have found. More than 12,000 beaver ponds have been mapped in western Alaska – double the amount found in the region 20 years ago.
swiftheadline

Retreating glaciers will open up salmon streams in Alaska, study says
Deglaciation could increase salmon habitat by nearly 30% in the Gulf of Alaska by 2100.
Mendenhall Glacier

Scientists, politicians, managers, and Tribes try to find common ground on Western Alaska salmon crash
On Dec. 8 and 9, U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan and Rep. Don Young held a Zoom meeting between salmon researchers, tribes, and managers. Their goal was to unite these groups’ efforts to determine the cause of the ongoing Chinook declines and the sudden chum crash in Western Alaska. After two days of meetings, the groups are still at odds over what’s causing the declines, and what the best way to move forward is.
KYUK

New source of the strong greenhouse gas nitrous oxide found in Siberian permafrost
A previously unknown source of the strong greenhouse gas nitrous oxide has been found in East Siberian Yedoma permafrost. Published in Nature Communications today, the observation was made by an international group of researchers, with the lead of researchers from the University of Eastern Finland.
Phys.Org

Ships complete 'historical passage' on Northern Sea Route
It has been an Arctic odyssey for the ships and crews that in November got stuck in sea-ice on the remote Northern Sea Route. After a month of icy captivity and subsequent icebreaker rescue, a convoy of nine vessels this week made it to safety in the Kara Sea. On December 7, a Russian nuclear icebreaker completed
New Siberian Islands
ArcticToday

Bristol Bay, like Bethel, also just recorded its coldest November in 80 years
Areas across the region broke both daily and monthly records. For King Salmon, it's the coldest November on record. In Dillingham, wind chills dropped to negative 41 degrees. That's the lowest November wind chill in 50 years.
Dillingham, Alaska, United States
KDLG

Sitka Tribe’s shellfish lab honored for safeguarding traditional foods
The lab tests samples from 17 communities in Southeast, as well as from tribes on Kodiak Island.
Sitka, Alaska, United States

After a month stuck in Arctic sea ice, nine vessels make it to Kara Sea
Never before at this time of year have so many vessels been rescued out of the ice, says Russia's nuclear icebreaker operator Rosatom. It has been an Arctic odyssey for the ships and crews that in November got stuck in sea-ice on the remote Northern Sea Route.
Kara Sea
Eye on the Arctic

Pacific halibut stock increases after four years of decline
Fish Factor: The summer setline survey could result in increased catches for most regions in 2022.
Unalaska, Alaska, United States

Miles from the sea, a Portland neighborhood finds itself in a new flood zone
Updated and more accurate federal maps put a cluster of homes near Capisic Brook in a zone that faces once-in-a-century risks.
Portland, Maine, United States
Press Herald

Bering Sea survey finds Yukon River chinook populations are low and staying closer to shore
Salmon abundance is down and population distributions have changed, according to NOAA’s 2021 surface trawl survey.

Confused about the timeline for the Red Hill fuel storage facility and contaminated water? Read this.
This article details the history and environmental concerns surrounding the Red Hill fuel storage facility, including a significant fuel leak and ongoing debates over its operation and oversight.
Pearl City, Hawaii, United States
Hawai'i Public Radio

Climate change is making Glacier Bay unstable. Scientists are mapping the risks to visitors
Landslides and tsunamis aren’t historically common in Glacier Bay, but because more than half a million visitors tour the park each year park managers want to get a clearer picture of the risks of tsunamis and landslides, which have become more common recently due to a changing climate.

NOAA Bottom Trawl Survey finds warmer waters and declining fish populations
Multiple fish populations in the Bering Sea have experienced a slight decline, according to the 2021 Bottom Trawl survey.
Bering Sea

In Iraq's famed marshlands, climate change is upending a way of life
Drought and extreme heat that scientists link to climate change are altering the UNESCO-protected marshlands. Iraq's average annual temperatures are increasing at nearly double the rate of Earth's.
الجبيش, Dhi Qar, Iraq
NPR.org

A father and son's Ice Age plot to slow Siberian thaw
In one of the planet’s coldest places, 130 kilometers south of Russia’s Arctic coast, scientist Sergey Zimov can find no sign of permafrost as global warming permeates Siberia’s soil. As everything from mammoth bones to ancient vegetation frozen inside it for millennia thaws and decomposes, it now threatens to release vast amounts
Черский, Нижнеколымский район, Sakha, Russia
Reuters

Canadian military sets up water purification units for Iqaluit at the Sylvia Grinnell River
The Canadian Armed Forces has begun setting up two water purification units at the Sylvia Grinnell River on Monday morning to help Nunavut’s capital with its ongoing water emergency. The military had been waiting for the City of Iqaluit’s approval before setting up the units. The two parties agreed on the location Sunday night, said
Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada

Strange Bird Call Might Be Owl
Bird call on a November night in Anchorage. Maybe a great horned owl?
Anchorage, Alaska

Scientists report an increase in harmful algal blooms in the northern Bering and Chukchi Seas
Since bottom water temperatures have been warming drastically across the Northern Bering and Chukchi Seas over the last few years, cysts are now growing locally in Arctic waters. The blooms carry toxins, but scientists aren’t yet sure what impact they will have on marine mammals.

Third wettest October in 120 years
Nationwide, precipitation fell 50 per cent more than normal. This month is the 3rd wettest October month dating back to 1900. The wettest was at several stations in Vestland and in Viken, five records were set for the highest amount of precipitation measured in one day in October.
Gullfjellet, Bergen, Norway 60.3828, 5.542
Meteorologisk institutt

A melting glacier could mean a chance for Alaska’s biggest hydroelectric project to expand
The Dixon Glacier, on the other side of Kachemak Bay from Fitz Creek, is rapidly receding. That’s true for glaciers around Alaska, and the world. But what’s special about Dixon is it sits just a few miles from Bradley Lake, a source of hydropower that supplies the railbelt with about 10% of its energy needs.
Fox River, Alaska, United States

In October 1821, Franklin survived the NWT (just). In October 2021, should his name survive here?
Two hundred years ago this month, some Englishmen far from home were struggling for survival in the Northwest Territories’ barrenlands. Now, Yellowknife’s main street is named for the man in charge. Chief Edward Sangris of the Yellowknives Dene community of Dettah, across the bay from Yellowknife, said he and many other community members have no attachment to Franklin and the colonial history he represents.
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada

Caribou populations are dwindling, and we’re in denial about it
Sebastian Jones, Wildlife Analyst
Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada
Yukon News

The Last Ice
In Norway, glaciers are receding faster than ever and potentially will be eliminated by climate change in key tourist destinations.
Norway
NRK

City in Arctic Russia cooling ground to preserve buildings on thawing permafrost
Rising Arctic temperatures are causing permafrost to thaw, putting the world’s largest city built on frozen ground in deep trouble.
Russia
Eye on the Arctic

Climate Change Melts Permafrost, Transforms Landscape in Russia's North
Video | In northern Siberia, the warming climate is leaving people feeling like the ground is "going out from under their feet."
Arctic Russia
The Moscow Times

Bigleaf maple decline tied to hotter, drier summers in Washington
Scientists, concerned hikers and residents have observed more stressed and dying bigleaf maple across urban and suburban neighborhoods as well as in forested areas. While forest pathologists have ruled out several specific diseases, the overall cause of the tree’s decline has stumped experts for years.
Seattle, Washington, United States
UW News

Flood-displaced elder yearns to go home to Jean Marie River
Laura Sanguez had to flee Jean Marie River in May when floodwaters destroyed her home. Now, living in long-term care in Fort Simpson, the 83-year-old says she hasn't heard anything about the status of her home or whether she is getting a replacement home.
Jean Marie River, Northwest Territories, Canada
CBC

Cost to save Tuktoyaktuk from climate change: $42 million and rising
Protecting the coast of Tuktoyaktuk from the onslaught of climate change is estimated to cost at least $42 million and is only guaranteed to last until 2052. Over the project’s 30-year lifespan, over 60,000 cubic metres of sand are expected to be brought to keep the beach intact.
Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, Canada
NNSL Media

Aggressive behaviour leads to Coyote Cull in Stanley Park
Coyotes in Stanley Park are displaying novel aggressive behaviour towards humans. Rates of aggressive encounters prompted park management to call for the cull of up to 35 coyotes and a temporary nighttime closure of the park.
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

In a Tiny Arctic Town, Food Is Getting Harder to Come By
One key species that is being affected by climate change in the tundra is the lemming. Lemmings are small rodents that spend the winter under the snowpack, where it’s warm enough for them to survive and reproduce. The snowpack, in addition to insulating their food, also protects them from predators.
Igloolik, Nunavut, Canada
Wired

Pak farmers protest against water shortage
A large number of farmers on Saturday staged a protest march against the acute shortage of water at Dadu district located in Pakistan Sindh province located in Pakistan's Sindh province.
Islamabad, Islāmābād, Pakistan
Big News Network.com

Storms, high winds projected to be more frequent in Western Alaska
A University of Alaska Fairbanks scientist said that the reason why Western Alaska is getting windier is that it will soon inherit the Aleutian Islands’ storms. In today’s climate, the Aleutian islands are the windiest area in Alaska.
Toksook Bay, Alaska, United States

Indigenous peoples facing evacuation in Alaska and Louisiana say the United States is ignoring climate threats
Approximately 31 Alaska Native communities face imminent climate change due to floods and erosion. This can lead to the disappearance of culture and lifestyle changes. The four tribes are in the process of relocating from a rapidly disappearing village.
Kivalina, Alaska, United States
Autobala

Northern Quebec opens up to electric vehicles with charging station in Chisasibi
In August, the first electric car charger was installed in the Cree community, located some 1,700 kilometers north of Montreal.
Chisasibi, Quebec, Canada

Summer 2021 was Finland's hottest in over 80 years
There were a total of 50 'heatwave' days in Finland this summer, when the temperature rose to above 25 degrees Celsius.
Finland
Yle Uutiset

Russia to Fully Ban Single-Use Plastic Products By 2024
Banned goods would include disposable plastic straws, plates, glasses, lids and appliances; coffee capsules; cotton swabs; opaque and colored PET (thermoplastic polyester) bottles; boxes and packs for tobacco products; blister packaging (except for medicines); egg cartons; and several types of bags.
Russia

Forecast end to north and east’s amazing summer
Yet another weather record has been broken this summer, as this August was the warmest since records began in Akureyri. There are signs that weather patterns will change in the middle of next week.
Akureyri, Northeast, Iceland
RÚV

Photographer Finds Polar Bears That Took Over Abandoned Buildings
In September 2021, photographer Dmitry Kokh visited Kolyuchin Island and found the strange sight of polar bears that had taken over an abandoned settlement.
PetaPixel

August 2021 was the hottest on record for Montreal
It’s official! August 2021 will go down in the record books as being the hottest on record for Montreal. The city recorded a monthly mean temperature of 23.6 degrees Celsius, which is 3.5 degrees warmer than normal.
Montréal, Quebec, Canada
Montreal

Declining sea ice in Kotzebue Sound is shortening subsistence hunt for seals, study finds
Seal meat makes up a good portion of what’s in subsistence hunters’ freezers in Kotzebue. But the sea ice the seals haul out on is diminishing, and new research shows that's shortening the window to hunt seals.
Kotzebue, Alaska, United States

LED streetlights decimating moth numbers in England
The study is the first to examine the impact of LEDs in a real-world setting and the first to show the direct impact of light pollution on caterpillars. The caterpillars are less mobile than adult moths, and therefore show more precisely the local losses caused by light pollution.
England, United Kingdom
the Guardian

Colorado River, Lifeline Of The West, Sees Historic Water Shortage Declaration
The first-ever shortage declaration on the Colorado River forces arid Western states to re-examine their relationship with resources many take for granted, drinking water and cheap hydroelectricity.
Colorado, United States
NPR.org

A midwestern town moved uphill to survive the elements. Can others do the same?
The relatively well-off bedroom community of Valmeyer, Illinois, could afford to relocate – but moving isn’t as easy for less affluent towns
Valmeyer, Illinois, United States
the Guardian

Russia's 2021 Wildfires Now Largest in Its Recorded History
The new record beats the previous record set in 2012 and comes with weeks left to go in a devastating wildfire season.
Russia

US communities say dire predictions in UN climate report already unfolding
For many U.S. communities, the bleak predictions laid out in a new United Nations climate change report are more a reflection of the present and not just what’s to come.
United States
The Hill

California company parachutes packages into rural Alaska communities
When pilots stopped traveling to villages during the COVID-19 pandemic, people had to go without important supplies. Fresh food often spoils before it arrives. Immunizations expire before they can be delivered. Dash Systems describes it as a “land the package, not the plane” approach, and it aims to make next-day delivery available in remote areas.

Climate change is endangering sacred land. For these Native women, it threatens ‘everything we are.’
Wildfires in Western states have razed structures, displaced residents and altered air quality - and fundamentally changed the relationship between Native women and the land they have historically stewarded.
Newell, California, United States

Portland just recorded its rainiest July in more than a century
The city had 9.53 inches of rain last month, surpassed only by the 10.84 inches that fell in July 1915.
Portland, Maine, United States
Press Herald

Water and sanitation deficiencies worsened the COVID pandemic in rural Alaska, a study finds
A lack of adequate water and sewer service and overcrowded housing combined to make the COVID-19 pandemic more severe in rural Alaska, a new study confirms.

Salmon returns set records in Bristol Bay while Southeast runs struggle
For the past 5-6 years, salmon runs all over Bristol Bay have been very strong.“This year’s record-breaking return is the result of this careful stewardship,” said executive director of United Tribes of Bristol Bay. “Our lands and waters must be protected so future generations can continue our way of life and Bristol Bay can remain the salmon stronghold for the planet.”
Koliganek, Alaska, United States
Juneau Empire

B.C. Wildfires 2021: Hundreds of properties on evacuation order or alert as wildfire between Oliver and Osoyoos spreads
As of Tuesday, there were 299 wildfires burning in B.C., with 40 evacuation orders affecting approximately 5,724 people (2,862 properties), in addition to 69 evacuation alerts impacting approximately 32,076 people (16,038 properties).
Osoyoos, British Columbia, Canada
Vancouver Sun

Are non-native mule deer a threat? Fish and Game wants to find out.
Reports of groups of up to 10 mule deer in Southeast Alaska near Skagway have been received by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and there is evidence that fawns are being born here. Studies show that nearby populations harbor a variety of diseases that have biologists concerned.
Skagway, Alaska, United States

Pacific Northwest Heat Wave Killed More Than One Billion Sea Creatures
Scientific American is the essential guide to the most awe-inspiring advances in science and technology, explaining how they change our understanding of the world and shape our lives.
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Scientific American

Dynamic glaciers identified as cause of Southeast Alaska’s summer 'ice quakes'
Within a set of glaciers and mountains near Juneau, there’s seismic activity almost every day in the summer. They’re called ice quakes. They’re not as widely understood as earthquakes, but researchers are monitoring them closely.
Juneau, Alaska, United States

Arctic seabirds are vulnerable to rising temperatures, a new study finds
Thick-billed murres are feeling the heat from climate change — more so than other Arctic species, new research has found. The black-plumed Arctic seabirds nest for hours on exposed cliffs, making them particularly vulnerable to sun and warming temperatures, according to Emily Choy, a McGill University biologist. Choy’s research focused on a colony of murres
Coral Harbour, Nunavut, Canada

Forest Service set to approve Kensington expansion
The U.S. Forest Service said it plans to approve Coeur Alaska’s plan to expand facilities at the Kensington Gold Mine, extending the life of the mine by another 10 years.
Juneau Empire

6 properties demolished along Matanuska River, putting an end to erosion-threatened home buyout
A contractor tore down six structures in the past few weeks, part of a process to remove erosion-threatened places that began almost a decade ago.
Sutton, Alaska, United States

Hundreds who died from heat exposure in B.C. were mostly seniors found alone in unventilated suites, says coroner
B.C. Liberals label Premier John Horgan's "level of personal responsibility" comment as callous, given the grand scale of heat wave deaths reported Wednesday
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
vancouversun

Ravn Alaska signs up to buy hybrid-electric aircraft to improve operations and reduce emissions
Airplane designers say the electric vehicle revolution will soon be coming to commercial aircraft, and Ravn Alaska plans to be on the leading edge.

More than a billion seashore animals may have cooked to death in B.C. heat wave, says UBC researcher
A marine biologist at the University of British Columbia estimates that last week's record-breaking heat wave in B.C. may have killed more than one billion intertidal animals living along the Salish Sea coastline.

How Cows Destroyed an Entire Marine Ecosystem in California
A researcher's quest to understand a mysterious mass extinction leads to cud-chewing culprits.
The Southern California Bight, USA
Atlas Obscura

Freezing Temperatures in Early June Slow Ocean Warming in Bering Sea
Despite seeing snow fall across the Norton Sound and Nome earlier this month, summer weather seems to have arrived in Western Alaska.
Nome, Alaska, United States

Toxic, long-lasting contaminants detected in people living in northern Canada
Researchers have recently found that several long-lasting human-made contaminants have been building up in Arctic lakes, polar bears and ringed seals and other wildlife. These contaminants belong to a family of chemicals called polyfluoroalkyl and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and are used in food packaging, waterproof clothing and firefighting foams.
Canada
Nunatsiaq News

Rockslides in the Arctic: Why do we care?
Global climate warming is most severe in the Arctic. One consequence is a widespread reduction in permafrost. Continuous, stable permafrost can act as a physical glue that helps anchor unstable slopes. Increasingly, scientists are reporting collapse of rock slopes in the High Arctic.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen
The Independent Barents Observer

Melting permafrost is giving much of northern Alaska a sinking feeling
“We’re dropping in elevation because we live on ice cubes,” says a scientist trying to map permafrost.
Fairbanks, Alaska, United States

Alaska research on wildfire smoke's impact on health paints clearer picture
Micah Hahn, an assistant professor of environmental health at the University of Alaska Anchorage, says while it might seem obvious that wildfire smoke causes health impacts, there had actually never been a nuanced, scientific look at those impacts. The biggest impact was for asthma-related emergency department visits. This was really across the board and across age groups and in geographic areas.

Why Wild Turkeys Don't Spread Ticks
It's long been suspected that wild turkeys are to blame for Maine moose tick infestation. A new study proves that theory wrong.
Maine, USA
Field & Stream

Invasive groups control unwelcome plants and animals on the peninsula
While the Kenai Peninsula is relatively lucky that the ecosystems here are fairly intact, there are still a handful of invasive species making their way into the streams, fields and gardens here.
Kenia Peninsula, Alaska, United States
Alaska Nightly News KNBA

Contamination from December rain disaster forces Haines farmers to vacate land
Fearing that runoff from the December rains might have carried contamination to Henderson Farm in Haines, the American Bald Eagle Foundation has told its renters they won't be able to farm their plots this year.

Warming seas endanger puffin stock
Warming seas appear to have led to a large reduction in the number of puffins around Iceland in recent decades.
Vestmannaeyjar, South, Iceland
RÚV

Climate change toll on Canadians' health to cost hundreds of billions of dollars: report
Beyond its environmental threat, climate change is endangering public health in Canada in ways that will have significant human and financial costs, a new report says.
Canada
CTVNews

Western Alaska is experiencing an unprecedented rabies outbreak, officials say
For the first time in more than 20 years, rabies was confirmed in a river otter, officials said.

B.C. fish farms transmit virus to endangered wild Pacific salmon, new study confirms
One common salmon virus introduced to southern B.C. 30 years ago despite assertions from government, industry virus is 'endemic' to province. Further analysis of the PRV genomes in B.C. waters indicate that the number of PRV infections in the region has increased by two orders of magnitude over the last two decades, a pattern that aligns with the regional growth in farms, where nearly all of the fish become infected.
British Columbia, Canada
The Narwhal

Federal government funding repairs to Whitehorse airport
Upgrades are needed on the tarmac
Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada
Yukon News

Farmed salmon virus source, amplifies disease transmission in wild salmon: B.C. study
Evidence shows a debilitating virus found in British Columbia salmon was transferred from Atlantic fish farms, which then spread from Pacific aquaculture operations into wild fish, says a study published Wednesday.
British Columbia

95% of Bull Kelp Forests Have Vanished From 200-Mile Stretch of California Coast
Until recently, giant seaweed called bull kelp formed lush underwater forests in northern California's coastal waters. These kelp forests have long provided critical habitat for many species like salmon, crabs, and jellyfish. But now a few patches of bull kelp remain. Warming waters and hungry urchins make it hard for these kelp forests to survive.
California Coast, United States
EcoWatch

Permafrost degradation affects hydrological factors in source area of Yellow River
Climate warming has accelerated the permafrost degradation, which influences the processes of water supply, runoff and discharge in the Source Area of the Yellow River (SAYR) in the northeast of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, China
Phys.Org

‘He took a small bite and then ... a second bite’: Surveyor survives bear mauling near Glennallen
The mauling left the man with a crushed jaw, a puncture wound in his scalp so deep the doctor told him he could see bone, lacerations and many stitches after a 4 1/2-hour surgery.
Glennallen, Alaska, United States

Trans Mountain tree cutting can continue as stop-work order on pipeline route lifts
A federal regulator has lifted a stop-work order on tree cutting and grass mowing along the route of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project.
Agassiz, British Columbia, Canada
Global News

Lapland ski season ends, but not for lack of snow
Ski resorts in Levi, Pallas and Saariselkä kept their slopes open until Mother’s Day this year.
Levi, Lapland, Finland
Yle Uutiset

Southern resident orca pod in best condition in decade
To a greater degree than in many other animals, including humans, the southern resident orcas put family first. Their society is matriarchal, with the pods led by grandmothers and mothers.
Puget Sound, United States
CTV News

Elders in Líídlįį Kúę reflect on spring breakup, then and now
Líídlįį Kúę, in Dene Zhatie, means the place where two rivers meet. It has been a place for Dene to gather for millennia. It is also an area prone to flooding, sparking concern about how the community will be impacted by spring break-up, during a year of high water levels.
Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories, Canada

‘How Can We Survive When the Land Is Gone?’ In Dagestan, a Proud People Fights the Desert
For 30 years now, climate change has been driving the sands further into the Nogai steppe, gradually transforming the traditional homeland of a the people that once dominated much of southern Russia from green and pleasant pasture to barren desert.
Terekli-Mekteb, Dagestan, Russia

Climate change threatens to spread antibiotic resistance in the Arctic
Three miles uphill from the Bering Sea beach, gulls darting in and out of the Nome landfill. Some of those birds are being exposed to antibiotics and, through that exposure, picking up bacteria with antibiotic resistance.

Canada: hummingbirds succeed in halting controversial pipeline construction
Work will stop until 21 August after the discovery of an Anna’s hummingbird nest during construction of TransMountain pipeline
Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
the Guardian

As endangered beluga whales head up the Kenai River, committed volunteers help ‘unravel the puzzle’
Citizen scientists fill an important gap in helping understand when and how Cook Inlet belugas use the river.
Soldotna, Alaska, United States

New federal program to help 5 remote Alaska communities transition to renewable energy
Concerns around energy independence and high costs have led many places in rural Alaska to look for renewable alternatives to fossil fuels. The Department of Energy recently announced the awardees of a new program; the Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project, or ETIPP, will help five Alaska towns explore projects from hybrid fishing vessels to reducing reliance on diesel.
Dillingham, Alaska, United States

U.S. must urge Japan not to release Fukushima wastewater into the sea
The era of intentionally dumping toxic waste in our one global ocean is, or should be, over.
Fukushima, Fukushima, Japan

Record-breaking ocean temps hurting local sea life
A sobering warning on Earth Day: Scripps researchers say record-breaking ocean temperatures and toxin levels are harming local sea life.
La Jolla, California, United States
FOX 5 San Diego

Climate change is worsening water scarcity in rural Alaska says study
Climate change is worsening water scarcity in rural Alaska and a host of new strategies is needed to help address the issue says a recent study.
Alaska

Probe into beach landslide as officials look at cliff collapse cause
Tons of mud and rock have plunged onto a beach just yards away from homes at Rhodfa Mor on the Gwynedd coast. Another landslide happened in the same area around a month ago, which allegedly caused a tree to crash through a bedroom window.
Wales, United Kingdom
North Wales Live

Australian islanders' homes being ‘eaten away’ by rising sea levels
‘Something has to be done right now ... don’t wait for the time when we’re going to be moved off and be refugees in our own country’
Masig Island, Torres Strait, Australia
The Independent

Ticks — and tick-borne risks — are creeping north to the Arctic as the climate warms
The warming climate in Alaska and across the circumpolar North is creating new health and safety risks for people, animals and ecosystems. This piece is the part of a series that explores zoonotic diseases and other hazards emerging in a warming and thawing Alaska. One warm June day, Joey Ausel found an odd speck
Anchorage, Alaska, United States

St Vincent volcano erupts again, spewing more gas and ash
Experts raise concerns about residents who refuse to evacuate as ‘huge explosion’ reported at La Soufriere volcano. The volcano, which last erupted in 1979, began spewing copious amounts of ash on Friday.
La Soufriere, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Al Jazeera

Lava flows have merged
The volcanic eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula is creating lava flows from three locations in a roughly kilometre-long area. All three locations are part of the same magma dyke and the flow of lava from them into Geldingadalir and Meradalir valleys has now merged into one lava field.
Grindavík, Southern Peninsula, Iceland

From Europe to Alaska, parts of the world are exceptionally cold right now
Switzerland and Slovenia both established new record low temperatures for April on Wednesday, while Alaska could see the mercury fall close to minus-50 on Saturday.
Europe, Alaska, northern Canada
Washington Post

Polar bears forced to eat seabird eggs as Arctic hunting ground shrinks
Polar bears have started scavenging in areas populated by humans, as well as coming ashore at the same time seabirds are nesting and snacking on their eggs. This new behavior is due to shrinking of their hunting grounds, where they usually hunt for smaller porpoises and seals.
Mitivik Island, Nunavut, Canada
The Independent

As halibut decline, Alaska Native fishers square off against industrial fleets
The tiny fishing fleet from St. Paul is losing the fight for halibut, up against factory ships that throw away more of the valuable fish than the Indigenous fishers are allowed to catch.
Saint Paul, Alaska, United States
National Geographic

Climate change driving marine species poleward
Warming waters have driven thousands of ocean species poleward from the equator, threatening marine ecosystems and the livelihoods of people who depend on them.
Tropical Maine Ecosystems
Phys.org

Sea level rise is killing trees along the Atlantic coast, creating 'ghost forests'
As sea levels rise along the Atlantic coast, saltwater is intruding inland, killing trees and turning coastal forests into marshes. Should scientists try to slow the process, or work with it?
Atlantic Coastal Plain, United States
The Conversation

"We're defeated": Climate migrants fleeing storm-stricken Central America struggle to find refuge
More Central Americans have migrated north due to recent storms but haven't been able to enter the U.S. as experts warn climate crises will intensify migration.
Honduras
NBC News

Bering Sea Ice “Resilient” Against Winter Storms, Extent is Below Historical Average
News stories specifically for Western Alaska. Each article or newscast is filled with information about current events, legislation, political races, cultural celebrations, and…
Savoonga, Alaska, United States

Vancouver Island arbutus trees under stress due to fungus, climate change
Vancouver Island’s arbutus trees are looking more brown than green these days. Forest biologist Andy MacKinnon says a fungus is attacking the trees, causing the leaves to die off.
Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
Vancouver Island

Finnair signs intention to purchase 20 battery planes
The Swedish-developed 19-seater ES-19 electric aircraft for short-haul routes could be ready for take-off with passengers by 2026. With zero-emissions, low-noise and possible to operate on 750-meter runways, the first generation electric planes will be perfect for commuter flights between small airports close to city centers, numerous in the Nordic countries.
Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland
The Independent Barents Observer

Thaw-triggered landslides are a growing hazard in the warming North
Midway along the 92-mile road that winds through Denali National Park, at a spot with an elevation of 3,500 feet and spectacular views of the Alaska Range and the braided rivers that flow out of it, an unstable wall of rock, ice, soil and clay rises precariously. The slope into which the road was cut eight decades ago is already collapsing gradually — and there are fears that it could collapse much more suddenly in the future.

New ermine species found on Southeast Alaska island
A never before seen species of Ermine (the Haida Ermine), has been discovered in Southeast Alaska. It is one of three main ermine species in the world. Researchers say the isolation of Prince of Wales Island and Haida Gwaii allowed the species to develop and that there could be more discoveries to be made.
Petersburg, Alaska, United States

As climate change increases Alaska’s wildfire risk, power companies say California-style blackouts could arrive in Alaska
The state’s electric companies are seeking a shield for liability from some wildfires started by broken power lines.

Russia Floats Arctic Shipping Route as ‘Viable’ Suez Canal Alternative
Russia has proposed its strategic Arctic shipping route as an alternative to the Suez Canal after a 400-meter cargo ship got stuck in the canal, blocking one of the world's key shipping routes and sparking fears of a rise in oil prices.

The Babushka of Baikal, the granny in her 80th year who has popularised the world’s deepest lake
Lyubov Morekhodova glides over the ice on skates made by her father not long after World War II. She has lived on the shores of Lake Baikal all her life, where winter temperatures plummet to minus 50C.
Khuzhir, Irkutsk, Russia
Siberian Times

Kalamazoo River Oil Spill: Facts and Environmental Impact
Learn about the Kalamazoo River oil spill, its environmental impact, and what made it one of the worst inland oil spills in US history.
Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States
Treehugger

Plastic pollution threatens the Mekong, a wildlife wonderland
Plastic pollution is threatening the wildlife in the Mekong River Basin.
Mekong River
UNEP

Garbage in the water: How old landfills are harming Inuit communities; marine food chains
The landfill in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut, is overfull, but the hamlet can’t open a new landfill until it can pay to decommission the old one, says hamlet Mayor Harry Towtongie. A new environmental report says bad dumps are a problem in all of Canada's Inuit regions.
Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada

Conditions At Eruption Site Can Change Quickly, Authorities Warn
While the eruption site in Geldingadalur is closed today due to adverse weather conditions and high levels of toxic gases, authorities are aware of people’s interest in seeing the eruption and are working on securing the area and providing safe access. When visiting an active volcanic eruption, there are several things that must be taken […]
Grindavík, Southern Peninsula, Iceland
Iceland Review

Russian scientists find microplastics in Siberian snow and rainwater
Scientists have discovered microplastics in rainwater and snow, in remote parts of Russia. The researchers first started looking into the pollution in 2020, and they have determined that the small fibers were carried to the remote wilderness by air currents.
Siberia, Russia
CGTN

Study finds wildfire caused massive bird die-off
There was a strong correlation between the observations of dead birds and wildfires and the toxic gases they produced, but not with the early winter storms.
Colorado, United States
High Country Kids

Here is how the B.C. government plans to eradicate murder hornets
Also dubbed the murder hornet, the invasive wasps threaten pollinators and have been found in communities along both sides of the Canada-U.S. border and on Vancouver Island. B.C. officials will focus on the Fraser Valley in their efforts to track and eradicate Asian giant hornets this year.
Fraser Valley G, British Columbia, Canada
Vancouver Is Awesome

Baby boom: More Right whale babies spotted off East Coast this season
An endangered species of whale that lives off the East Coast is having its best season for new babies in several years.
Portland, Maine, United States
WMUR

Heavy Winter Snowfalls May Become More Common In Y-K Delta
Recent storms have battered the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta coast and dumped multiple feet of snow in some places. Some are saying that this is more snow than
KYUK Bethel

Narwhal tusks reveal impact of climate change on Arctic sea ice
Enlarged tooth projecting from upper jaw of males offers window onto life in frozen seas as far back as 1960s. From 1990 until 2000, ice in northwest Greenland began to decline and the diet of the narwhals shifted to open-ocean prey such as capelin and polar cod. Narwhals accumulated small quantities of mercury as the new items of prey sat lower in the food chain.
Northwest, Greenland
The Independent

Across China: Chinese researchers release new permafrost stability map on Qinghai-Tibet Plateau
Tibet Autonomous Region, China
Xinhua

Butterflies in the West are disappearing
The climate crisis has caused a steep decline in butterfly sightings in the Rocky Mountain range. This decline is also consistent among other insect populations around the world. If this die-off continues, a great percentage of natural pollinators will cease to exist.
Rocky Mountains, Wyoming
High Country News

Manatees are dying at an unusually high rate across Florida in 2021
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, at least 358 manatees have died in Florida since Jan. 1. This is a staggering number compared to just 122 deaths by this time last year.
Titusville, Florida, United States
WPLG

Kelp forest off Northern California almost gone
The study shows the destruction of the kelp forest was related to an explosion in the population of purple sea urchin, which eats it, and two warm water events that lasted from 2014 to 2016.
Northern California Coast, United States
SFGATE

If cruise ships aren't behind Ketchikan’s beach bacteria problem, what is?
For the fourth year in a row, weekly summer water quality tests show that most Ketchikan beaches have elevated levels of bacteria that could make people sick. That happened this year even without dozens of cruise ships sailing through the Inside Passage and discharging wastewater.
Ketchikan, Alaska, United States

Atlantic Ocean circulation at weakest in a millennium
Decline in system underpinning Gulf Stream could lead to more extreme weather in Europe and higher sea levels on US east coast.
North Atlantic Ocean

B.C. permafrost warming comes with climate warning
Landscape in far-northeastern corner of B.C., a broad swath of muskeg and boreal forest shaped by sporadic islands of permafrost, is warming
Fort Nelson, British Columbia, Canada
vancouversun

More than 60,000 reindeer died in the Yamal tundra. Locals blame oil workers and icebreakers
In the village of Seyakha on the Yamal Peninsula, from last November from 60 to 80 thousand reindeer have died. The animals, on which the survival of the indigenous people depends, cannot get food - the lichen is covered with an ice crust. What is the reason and why the locals are dissatisfied with the support of the authorities?
Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Russia
NEFT

Alaska could see more dangerous thunderstorms as Arctic sea ice melts and evaporation increases
Researchers predict a tripling of thunderstorms by the end of the century, which could lead to heavier rainfall and flash flooding, landslides and more lightning-sparked wildfires.

Loss of sockeye diversity threatens Skeena salmon, study finds
Researchers observe declines in sockeye salmon diversity of the Skeena River, British Columbia. Populations that have returned to their spawning grounds for years are at risk of dying out.
Skeena River
The Tyee

‘Breaking ice to move gas’: As Russian tanker-icebreaker duo complete milestone Arctic voyage, climate activists side with ice
Following a nuclear-powered icebreaker, a Russian tanker has sailed through the frigid Northern Sea Route for the first time ever in February. “Won’t somebody think of the poor ice?”, climate-conscious commenters shouted.
RT International

Arctic and tropical Pacific synergistic effects cause extremely cold winter in China
China is just one of many countries in the Northern Hemisphere experiencing an extremely cold winter due in part to both the tropical Pacific and the Arctic, according to an analysis of temperatures from Dec. 1, 2020 to mid-January of 2021.
China
Phys.org

Russian scientists probe prehistoric viruses dug from permafrost
Yakutsk, Sakha, Russia
CGTN.com

Salmon may have been too tired to navigate Whitehorse fish ladder, research suggests
William Twardek, a Carleton University PhD student who's been studying Yukon River chinook salmon, says his four-year research project has found that some fish simply can't make it past the fish ladder to reach their spawning grounds.
CBC News

Bird flu detected in Estonia
The particularly dangerous strain of avian influenza virus H5N8 has been detected in a mute swan found on the Kopli peninsula in Tallinn.
Tallinn, Harjumaa, Estonia
ERR

Study links Alaska seals' waning health to warming Arctic
A new study has found evidence connecting the rapid warming of the region with a physical decline in three species of Alaska seals.

Group accidentally encountered a brown bear den before one of them was mauled near Haines
The man pretended to play dead during the attack and the bear ran away, a wildlife biologist said. He sustained injuries to his head and arms but troopers said he was in stable condition Monday.

B.C.’s old-growth forest nearly eliminated
As old-growth logging in B.C. continues, conservation organization creates detailed map showing original forests in B.C. have all but disappeared.
British Columbia, Canada
The Narwhal

Uttarakhand glacier avalanche raises alarm for similar devastation for Nepal sooner or later
On Sunday torrents of water, rock and dust hurtled down a mountain valley in the Uttarakhand state of Northern India. A Himalayan glacier broke below 7,816-metre Nanda Devi, India’s second-highest peak, sweeping away a small hydroelectric project and damaging a bigger one further downstream. One hundred to 150 people were feared dead.
Nanda Devi
Katmandu Post

Hungry Alaskan Bears Find a New Prey
There is a unexplained trend with sea otter carcasses on the beaches in Katmai National Park and Preserve. Many of the dead animals appeared to be in their prime.
Katmai National Park and Preserve, Alaska
Hakai Magazine

Nome Port Plans Approved As Navy Announces Arctic Focus
The port is expected to strengthen national security in the Arctic, given its strategic location on the Pacific Rim. The port is also expected to reduce shipping costs and make access to cargo and fuel cheaper for Western Alaska communities.

Scientists puzzled by 30,000 chinook that seem to be missing from Yukon River
A meeting of the Yukon River Panel focused on a surprising discrepancy between measurements at two different sonar stations. This could mean fish are dying or being miscounted, or that harvesting is going unreported.
Eagle, Alaska, United States

Scientists Identify New Whale Species In Gulf Of Mexico
Researchers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration believe they have identified a new species of whale in the Gulf of Mexico. The Rice's whale is a filter feeder that can grow to 42 feet. It's also critically endangered. There are believed to be fewer than 100 of them left.
Boise State

Sweden to build reindeer bridges over roads and railways
Sweden is to build up to a dozen bridges so reindeer can safely cross railway lines and major roads in the north of the country as global heating forces them to roam further afield in search of food.
Sweden

How the loss of Bering Sea ice is triggering cascading effects for the ecosystem — and the people and wildlife that depend on it -
The Bering Sea region, the Pacific gateway to the Arctic Ocean, is home to ecosystems on land and in the ocean that are both abundant and fragile. It’s also changing very quickly — and those changes offer a preview of the changes in store for other parts of the Arctic.

Tuluksak desperate for a source of drinking water almost 2 weeks after fire destroyed water plant
Residents of the Southwest Alaska village are hauling water from the Kuskokwim River, collecting rainwater and drinking donated bottled water as officials seek a viable option.
Tuluksak, Alaska, United States

Deep water temperatures hit 'scary' highs
A decade-long warming trend in the Gulf of St. Lawrence continued in 2020. Water temperatures at depths of 200, 250 and 300 metres were higher than any measured in the Gulf since records started in 1915, hitting highs of 5.7 C, 6.6 C and 6.8 C. All were well above the normal variations.
Gulf of St Lawrence

Assembly makes plan to address Haines' bear problem
The Haines Borough Assembly’s Commerce Committee began chipping away at a plan to address the borough’s bear problem at a meeting Tuesday. Proposals ranged from stronger enforcement of bear-attractant laws, to the development of education and grant programs to help people secure their attractants, to a complete overhaul of the community’s solid waste management system.
Chilkat Valley News

Evacuations In Siglufjörður Due to Risk of Avalanche
The Department of Civil Protection has raised the level of alert from Uncertain to Dangerous, due to a risk of avalanches. This morning it was found that an avalanche had fallen on the Skarðsdalur Ski area. Nine houses in Siglufjörður will be evacuated.
Siglufjörður, Northeast, Iceland
Iceland Review

State Report Says Salmon and Steelhead Are Near the Brink of Extinction
A new report from the Governor's Salmon Recovery Office shows salmon and steelhead populations in Washington state teetering on the brink of extinction. Five or the populations of salmon and steelhead listed a threatened or endangered, are in crisis.
Washington, United States
The Chronicle

Nation's sole heavy icebreaker arrives in Unalaska
Sitting in the Port of Dutch Harbor, the Polar Star is nearly 400 feet long and can break ice up to 21 feet thick. On Tuesday, the ship arrived for a pit stop with 136 crew members, 30 days into a months-long deployment to the Arctic. Their goal is to assert maritime sovereignty and security in the far north.
Unalaska, Alaska, United States

No danger to fish from summer's Great Slave Lake plume: ENR
January 15, 2021 - Following a summer and fall of cloudy waters in Great Slave Lake and the Hay and Slave Rivers, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (ENR)...
NNSL Media

Skaters Perform on Kazakhstan’s Lakes
See Kazakh figure skater Elizabet Tursynbayeva skating to “Znai (Know)” by Dimash Kudaibergen on the frozen lakes of Kazakhstan.
Qusmuryn, Qostanay, Kazakhstan
The Astana Times

Record Cold Winter in Asia Sends Russian LNG Via Arctic to Japan
Cold temperatures and traffic congestion at the Panama Canal has resulted in a shortage of natural gas and exploding prices in parts of Asia. Now, Novatek aims to send LNG from the Arctic to Japan during the middle of winter in an untested high-risk, high-reward strategy.
Uelen, Chukotskiy Avtonomnyy Okrug, Russia
High North News

Feeding barge “not leaking oil”
It will become clearer in the coming days how the sunken barge owned by Laxa aquaculture in Reyðarfjörður, East Iceland, will be re-floated after this weekend’s storm. Divers are working on the vessel again today and, so far, it appears no diesel or other oil has leaked into the sea.
Reyðarfjörður, East, Iceland

Russian Swimmer Claims New World Record With Baikal Under-Ice Swim
See video of Yekaterina Nekrasova 40, swim an 85-meter distance beneath the ice of Lake Baikal. Nekrasova beat the current under-ice swim record of 70 meters set by South African Amber Fillary in Norway last year.

Perisoreus canadensis Make Increasing Winter Appearances in the Sooke Hills
Sooke, British Columbia, Canada
Cody Thomas, David Oswald, Jessica Boquist

Rare blizzard in Spain leaves 4 dead and brings country to standstill
The national weather agency reported that as of 7 a.m., the snowfall in Madrid reached a level unseen in half a century.
Nombela, Castille-La Mancha, Spain
CBS NEWS

Bocaccio rockfish recruitment event
Bocaccio rockfish have made a huge comeback in B.C. since being deemed endangered in 2013, but the success story is being met with some trepidation as trawler fishermen can’t seem to avoid netting them now.
Canada's Pacific marine ecosystems

Yukon permafrost thaw reaching 'critical point' in some areas, says researcher
Permafrost in Canada's northwest is thawing much faster than researchers predicted 20 years ago, according to the president of the International Permafrost Association.

– Me er ein kommune i kneståande som har ein lang veg opp
Barnehage, sjukeheim, rådhus, legesenter, barneskule, vass- og avløpssystem, eit bustadfelt og ei av hovudfartsårene inn til Gjerdrum er sett ut av spel.
Ask, Akershus, Norway

How the climate affects mountain passes – 33 times closed in December 2019, zero in December 2020
Mildvær har holdt de mest utsatt fjellovergangene i Finnmark åpne for trafikk hele desember. – Man må bare nyte det, sier trafikkoperatør.
Sennalandet, Hammerfest, Finnmark Fylke, Norway

Are you waiting for the snow? Then the meteorologist has bad news
It doesn't look like Tromsø will get snow for a while.
Tromsø, Troms, Norway

Scientists say 2020 was exceptionally warm in Finland
Climate change and ice-free Arctic seas are contributing to milder temperatures in Finland.
Finland
Yle Uutiset

Western Arctic Caribou Population and Migration Patterns Continue to Change
The number of animals in the Western Arctic Caribou Herd (WACH) is down by 20 percent. The calving parturition average was also significantly lower than recent years, with 2020 at 67%.

Southwest Bird Die-Off Caused by Long-Term Starvation
A new report based on necropsies conducted by the USGS's National Wildlife Health Center in Wisconsin suggests that the die-off was caused by long-term starvation and was likely exacerbated by a spate of freakishly cold weather.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Smithsonian Magazine

Russia’s Environmental Disasters in 2020
Video | From forest fires larger than some European countries to historic oil spills, Russia's ecosystems faced unprecedented impacts this year.

Clean-up underway in devastated Seyðisfjörður
Residents of Seyðisfjörður in East Iceland have been returning home this weekend, and it will become clear today whether people from the part of the town that was first evacuated will also be allowed to return home now that the intense rain that caused devastating mudslides in the town, destroying or damaging a dozen houses and completely changing the appearance of the town and the fjord, has passed.
Seyðisfjörður, East, Iceland

Deadly skin disease in dolphins linked to climate change
A closeup view of a bottlenose dolphin shows signs of skin lesions associated with a deadly skin disease known as ulcerative dermatitis. The increasing frequency and severity of storm systems drastically decrease the salinity of coastal waters, causing fatal skin disease in dolphins worldwide.
Gulf of Mexico
CTVNews

Parts of Eskifjörður Also To Be Evacuated Due To Risk of Mudslides
The National Police Commissioner has raised the level of alert for the town. After a week of extreme rainfall, devastating landslides have hit the town of Seyðisfjörður in east Iceland.
Seyðisfjörður, East, Iceland

City of Iqaluit approves $64M plan to build new reservoir
Newspaper of record for Nunavut, and the Nunavik territory of Quebec
Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada
Nunatsiaq News

Steindal glacier have retreated 391 meter over the last 20 years
In Troms and Finnmark, two glacier fronts have retreated, while one glacier front has progressed slightly. In the last 20 years, the glacier fronts have retreated between 340 and 593 meters.
Steindalsbreen, Tromsø, Norway

Governor declares a disaster for storm-damaged Southeast
Gov. Mike Dunleavy on Saturday signed a disaster declaration.

Dozens of Haines residents evacuated from their homes as rain and landslides continue
Dozens more homes in Haines were evacuated Thursday night as rain continued to saturate the mountainsides near residential neighborhoods.
KHNS Haines

Climate change is increasing winter drownings: study
As winters get warmer, the number of drowning deaths is going up. "I just don't think we have appreciated that is one of the costs," said one scientist.
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada
Cabin Radio

Changing climate means more landslides in future, scientists say in wake of Haines disaster
The region is prime landslide territory and a changing climate - trending toward warmer, rainier winters - is likely to increase the frequency of slides in the future.
Chilkat Valley News

Kivalina emergency access road now open for use
The new road allows villagers to access higher ground as global warming causes their village site to erode.
Kivalina, Alaska, United States

Blame Climate Change for Historically Warm Fall in Russia’s Biggest Cities, Experts Say
Russia's two biggest cities will see warmer seasons over the next 10 years compared with the prior decade.
Moscow, Moscow, Russia

Pebble Mine Denied Permit in Victory for Tribes, Waterways and Planet
Environmental campaigners stressed the need for the incoming Biden White House to put in place permanent protections for Alaska's Bristol Bay after the Trump administration on Wednesday denied a permit for the proposed Pebble Mine that threatened "lasting harm to this phenomenally productive ecosystem" and death to the area's Indigenous culture.
EcoWatch

How Hardanger melted at a record pace from the last ice age
11,500 years ago, Norway experienced one of the fastest meltdowns the world has seen. Now scientists fear the same thing is happening elsewhere.
Folgefonna Hardangerfjorden glacier, Etne, Norway

Some of Nunavut's polar bears are getting fatter thanks to melting sea ice | Nunatsiaq News
It turns out that a bit of melting helps support larger populations of seals, which are the bears’ main food supply. But this benefit will likely dwindle as sea ice continues to melt due to climate change, said Brandon Laforest, senior specialist of Arctic species and ecosystems with WWF-Canada.
Gulf of Boothia

The neverending wildfire season in Colorado 2020
Meteorologist Alex O'Brien dives into what has led to an extended fire season this year.
Colorado, United States
KOAA

Russian Government Body Links Norilsk Arctic Fuel Spill To Shoddy Construction, Not Permafrost Melt
A spill that dumped thousands of tons of diesel fuel into the Russian Arctic earlier this year was caused by violations during construction and operation of a storage tank, not permafrost melt, according to a preliminary investigation.
Норильск, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty

Coronavirus: Denmark shaken by cull of millions of mink
Why the "Cluster 5" coronavirus mutation in fur farms has led to a nationwide cull and a political outcry.
Denmark
BBC News

People started coronavirus back-and-forth on mink farms, Dutch study shows
People carried the coronavirus onto mink farms in the Netherlands, starting a viral back-and-forth that ended up with 68% of fur farm workers and their close associates infected, researchers reported Tuesday.
Denmark
CNN

Surfers ask Vladimir Putin to take closer look at rocket fuel version of Kamchatka eco disaster
The appeal was sent to president Putin on 30 October on behalf of Moscow and St Petersburg surfing federations, pointing his attention to the fact that traces of rocket fuel were found in samples from the polluted area. It means that the anthropogenic version of the recent environmental catastrophe mustn’t be brushed aside, the surfers say.
Siberian Times

Drone footage captures swimmers close encounter with sharks and salmon at Bondi Beach
People swimming at Sydney's world famous Bondi Beach had a close shave with several sharks. Drone footage showed dozens of people taking a morning dip and swimming past a large school of salmon, unaware that up to two sharks, believed to be Grey Nurses, were feeding on the fish nearby.
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
SBS News

Death of Sea Life Off Russia Peninsula 'Caused By Algae'
The event caused a die off of up to 95% of marine life along the seabed. The Russia's Academy of Sciences announced that the mass death was due to the effects of toxins from single-cell algae. Environmentalists are conducting their own inquiries and were not yet able to confirm the official probe's findings.
Environmental campaigners said they were conducting their own inquiries and were not yet able to confirm the official probe's findings.
Петропавловск-Камчатский, Kamchatka Krai, Russia

Massive marine die-off in Russia could threaten endangered sea otters, other vulnerable species
Now believed to be caused by an unprecedented algae bloom, the decimation of bottom-dwelling sea life may have devastating ripple effects.
Петропавловск-Камчатский, Kamchatka Krai, Russia
National Geographic

Could a Lethal Algae Bloom Have Killed Kamchatka’s Sea Creatures? Some Marine Biologists Think So
A broad area of yellow foam is prompting some marine biologists to blame the catastrophe on a harmful algae. However, Governor Vladimir Solodov believes the most likely explanation is a spill. Tests have shown petroleum levels four times higher and phenol levels 2.5 times above normal.
Петропавловск-Камчатский, Kamchatka Krai, Russia

Russian rocket fuel leak likely cause of marine animal deaths
Injured surfers and large number of dead sea creatures reported in Kamchatka region. Some experts have suggested highly toxic rocket fuel could have leaked into the sea. The first test site, Radygino, is about six miles (10km) from the sea.

How Shaktoolik, Alaska is Addressing Flooding and Erosion
Eugene Asicksik, the mayor at the time, had watched Shaktoolik’s shoreline erode for years. After the September 2013 storm threw tree-sized driftwood dangerously close to the homes, Eugene knew something had to be done to protect the community. He turned to beavers for inspiration, designing Shaktoolik’s first storm surge berm based on the impressive beaver dams upriver.
Shaktoolik, Alaska, United States
ANTHC Center for Environmentally Threatened Communities

Fins aren’t where they used to be, dolphin study shows
Bottlenose dolphins on Scotland’s east coast are expanding their range and swimming further south, according to one of the world’s longest-running studies of the species.
The Times

Yukon River Communities Ask Governor To Declare Fishery Disaster
Organizations representing Yukon River communities are drafting a letter to Gov. Mike Dunleavy seeking a fishery disaster declaration for this summer’s
Nunam Iqua, Alaska, United States
KUAC

Rising water temperatures pose risks to Arctic char: new research
When Arctic fish are too hot, they can get lethargic, slow down, and possibly turn back during their migration to seek cooler water. When the water gets really warm they can even lose their ability to stay upright.
Kugluktuk, Nunavut, Canada

Mystery of hundreds of elephant deaths in Botswana solved
The sudden deaths of some 330 elephants in northwestern Botswana earlier this year may have occurred because they drank water contaminated by toxic blue-green algae, the government announced Monday.
Okavango Delta

Western Hemlock Looper Outbreak

Task force recommends seasonal hire to address town's bear problem
This year has seen a dramatic increase in bear activity with bear-related calls up by 600%, according to police chief Heath Scott. As many as 22 bears have been shot in defense of property this year.

Invasive shrimp-sucking parasite continues northward Pacific expansion
Researchers have identified an invasive blood-sucking parasite on mud shrimp in the waters of British Columbia's Calvert Island. The discovery represents the northern-most record of the parasite on the West Coast and is likely an indication of its ability to spread without human transport.
Calvert Island, British Columbia, Canada
Phys.org

Mercury released by permafrost thaw puts Yukon River fish at risk: study
If carbon emissions continue at current rates, so much mercury will leach from thawing permafrost that fish in the Yukon River could become dangerous to eat within a few decades.
Yukon River
Reuters

Jasper National Park says one caribou herd gone, two others on the brink of local extinction
Parks Canada's website says that early park management practices resulted in too many wolves, while trails used for skiing and snowshoeing also made easy access for wolves to prey on the caribou herds. Habitat loss as a result of increased wildfires, insect outbreaks and human activity have also contributed to the population decline.
Jasper Park Lodge, Alberta, Canada

Newtok Power Outage Lasts Three Weeks, Spoiling Subsistence Food In Freezers
People in Newtok have been without power for almost three weeks. Families without personal generators have seen their freezers thaw out, and watched a summer’s worth of subsistence harvest go to waste.
Newtok, Alaska, United States

Red Dog Mine starts water purification project
The Red Dog Mine announced last week that it was able to start the use of a new waste water treatment system to purify water after record-breaking warm weather in 2019 caused the sediment levels to rise in the Ikalukrok and Wulik Rivers.
Red Dog Mine, Alaska, United States
The Arctic Sounder

Svalbard experienced hottest summer on record
Glaciers are melting, permafrost thaws and buildings are sagging. What scares the scientists most is studies of decomposing carbon from beneath the ground being emitted to the atmosphere as CO2 or methane.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen
The Independent Barents Observer

Arctic permafrost mounds: More than 400 sealed ‘craters’ are ticking time bombs
The mounds are believed to be caused by the build up of methane gas in pockets of thawing permafrost under the surface  Dissecting them like surgical abscesses to release the gas is seen as one solution to avoid future eruptions.
Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, Canada
High North News

Pink salmon could prosper in warmer Arctic, new study finds
The findings bolster reports by Alaska subsistence fishermen that the species’ numbers have been increasing as the Arctic warms at more than double the rate of the rest of the globe.

Permafrost thaw results in $20 million in water management expenses for Alaska zinc mine
Permafrost thaw surrounding the massive Red Dog Mine is releasing higher natural levels of dissolved minerals and other particles into streams, Teck Resources Ltd. says
Red Dog Mine, Alaska, United States

Fish runs and berries are down, bear break-ins in Southeast Alaska are way up
Some biologists think the trend is related to the reduced hunting pressure from Outside hunters this year.

Dramatic growth in glacial lakes globally
In the largest study of glacial lakes ever conducted, researchers using satellite data from NASA and Google Earth have found the volume of water in glacial lakes has increased by 50 per cent since 1990 as glaciers melt due to climate change.
Nepal
CTV News, Calgary

Expedition to North Pole paints picture of Arctic climate change
The expedition's easy journey from Greenland to the North Pole is another indicator of how the Arctic is impacted by climate change more than anywhere else on Earth, writes CBC's northern meteorologist.
North Pole

Study shows Alaska salmon are shrinking
The shrinking of chinook, sockeye, coho and chum salmon has a negative impact on the number of eggs fish lay, but smaller body sizes also mean fewer meals, fewer commercial fishing dollars and fewer nutrients transported into rivers every year.

Alaska's salmon are getting smaller, affecting people and ecosystems
The size of salmon returning to rivers in Alaska has declined dramatically over the past 60 years because they are spending fewer years at sea, according to a new study led by researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Phys.Org

One of the sources of toxic emissions was closed down in Omsk.
In Omsk, court enforcement officers suspended the operation of an asphalt mixing plant, which emits harmful substances into the air.
Omsk, Omsk, Russia
Russian newspaper

400 million rubles will be allocated for waste elimination in Usolie-Sibirskoye.
The Interdepartmental Working Group approved a list of priority measures to eliminate environmental damage in the town of Usolie-Sibirskoye, Irkutsk Region. This was reported by the press service of Deputy Prime Minister Victoria Abramchenko.
Усолье-Сибирское, Irkutsk, Russia
Russian newspaper

A large waste depository is being reclaimed in the Russian Arctic
In the Murmansk region, the reclamation of a large waste storage facility for the former Snezhnaya poultry farm, which ceased to exist about 15 years ago, has begun. The total cost of the project is over 461 million rubles.
Murmansk, Murmansk, Russia
Russian newspaper

Troops set to work decontaminating ‘Siberian Chernobyl’ amid fears of ecological catastrophe
Radiation, chemical and biological forces tackle two million tonnes of toxic chemical waste with huge mercury stockpile and oil poisons.
Usol'ye-Sibirskoye, Irkutsk, Russia
Siberia Times

'Quite dire': Fraser River sockeye salmon run expected to be worst ever recorded
This year is shaping up to be the worst for sockeye salmon in the Fraser River since tracking began in 1893, according to the Pacific Salmon Commission.
Richmond, British Columbia, Canada

In Colorado’s climate change hot spot, the West’s water is evaporating
The largest part of the continental United States to warm more than 2 degrees Celsius since 1895 feeds the Colorado River.
Grand Valley, Colorado, United States

For first time in 8 years, 100% of Colorado is under drought or abnormally dry conditions
A combination in Colorado of paltry spring snow, warmer temperatures that triggered earlier melting of winter mountain snowpack, feeble rain through summer, and parched soil from previous dry years led to this formal label.
The Denver Post

What you need to know about B.C.'s so-called murder hornets
Asian giant hornets are the largest of all hornet species. This specimen was 1½ inches (four centimetres) long but they can be up to a centimeter longer and have a wingspan the size of a small hummingbird.

Rivers are threatened by both shallowing and flooding
The Russian region is threatened by water- both its excess and its absence. This was announced on Monday at a weekly conference at the National Anti-Crisis Center of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia
Черкесск, Karachayevo-Cherkesiya, Russia
Российская газета

Two Canadian ice caps have completely vanished from the Arctic
New NASA imagery shows that the St. Patrick bay ice caps have vanished from Arctic Canada, two years sooner than scientists predicted
St. Patrick's Bay Ice Caps
livescience.com

‘What choice do we have?’ As the Arctic warms, Alaska Inupiat adapt.
“People assume that we’re entering this new Arctic, when in reality we have faced adversity for thousands of years. We’ve always been able to adapt and be resilient.

Wildlife shows signs its thriving amid the COVID-19 pandemic
South Africa
CGTN

Lack of bees, pollination limiting crop yields across U.S., B.C.
A lack of wild bees and managed honeybees is limiting pollination and yields for certain crops on farms in British Columbia and across the United States, a collective of researchers has found.
North America

The number of people infected with coronavirus in Russia has reached 800,000
The number of deaths was more than 13,000
Moscow, Moscow, Russia
The Moscow Times in Russian

Anoxic events in P.E.I. waterways: 9 already this year
Nine waterways on P.E.I. have experienced anoxic events so far this year, something experts say is unusual.
Estuaries of P.E.I., Canada

Who pours fuel into Baikal? We're going to ask an expert
Maksim Tokarev, the head of the Save Baikal project, told Sputnik radio about new initiatives aimed at maintaining the cleanliness of the lake.
Байкал, Irkutsk, Russia
Радио Sputnik

Newly-discovered seaweed species threatens protected coral reefs in Pacific
Scientists have said the algae is spreading faster than anything they have seen in the remote Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.
Pearl & Hermes Atoll, Midway, US Minor Outlying Islands
Sky News

Century-old photos show effects of climate change in Rocky Mountain forests
Towering crags and peaks of the Canadian Rocky Mountains have been getting steadily greener over the past century, according to a new study.
Canadian Rocky Mountains
Vancouver Sun

Swine flu strain with human pandemic potential increasingly found in pigs in China
New study spotlights influenza virus that could wreak havoc if it adapts to humans.
China
Science | AAAS

Sea lice outbreak in juvenile salmon prompts First Nations leaders to call for fish farm closures
Wild salmon have higher rates of the parasites when ocean fish farms are near, research shows
Discovery Islands
Victoria News
Zoe Ducklow, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Historic low numbers of large wild Atlantic salmon
A group advocating for the conservation of wild Atlantic salmon says the number of adult salmon returning to North America rivers fell to near historic lows last year.
Rivers of Eastern Canada

Mass vaccination is underway on Yamal tundra
The world’s biggest reindeer population is up for big vaccination as regional authorities in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug act to stave off outbreaks of anthrax.
Salekhard, Yamalo-Nenetskiy Avtonomnyy Okrug, Russia

Climate change leading to Arctic spider baby boom
Scientists discover Arctic wolf spiders are doubling their egg production due to warmer weather. At the Zackenberg Research Station in Greenland, the scientists observed wolf spider populations in the area between 1996 and 2014 and noticed the arachnids were laying many more eggs as the Arctic experienced warmer weather.
Zackenberg Research Station
CNET

Hottest May on record with Russian Arctic hardest hit
May 2020 was the hottest May on record, reported the Copernicus Climate Change Service on June 5. Their data shows that globally, last month was 0.63 C warmer than the average May from 1981-2010.
RCI | English

Here goes the landslide in Alta: – I ran for my life
Jan Egil Bakkeby had to flee for his life when he suddenly heard it start to crack in the cabin. Soon after, he witnessed the entire building being washed up on water.
Vuorašnjárga
VG

The Blob is Warming BC’s Fjords
Scientists thought it was dead. But it’s heating water faster than the global average.
Fjords of British Columbia
The Tyee

Red alert for northern Siberia as heat shocks threaten life on tundra
New temperature maps for the endless stretches of Russian Arctic lands bear witness of unprecedented warming.
Noyabrsk, Yamalo-Nenetskiy Avtonomnyy Okrug, Russia

"People Need to Know What is Happening to Us Here”: Two Alaska Villages Face a Climate Emergency
Melting permafrost, land erosion, and heavy rains are causing these villages to flood and sink
Nunapitchuk, Alaska, United States
Unitarian Universalist Service Committee

Unusual warmth pours over North Pole, potentially jump-starting melt season for Arctic ice
It was a remarkably cold winter across the high Arctic, at least compared to the abnormally mild winters in many recent years, but the weather pattern has reversed this spring.

Seasons are changing length, new comparison shows
Winters are getting shorter and summers are getting longer, a new comparison shows. In most regions of the U.S. and Canada, summer is about 6-10% longer and winter is about 7-11% shorter. In Alaska, winters are about 30% shorter than they were just a lifetime ago.
Arctic Sounder

Pandemic strains management of Yukon River salmon
Biologists have to figure out how to monitor salmon populations in rural communities without the danger of bringing the coronavirus into those communities.
Emmonak, Alaska, United States

Permafrost thawing puts the frozen carbon at risk over the Tibetan Plateau
Soil organic carbon (SOC) stored in permafrost across the high-latitude/altitude Northern Hemisphere represents an important potential carbon source under future warming. Here, we provide a comprehensive investigation on the spatiotemporal dynamics of SOC over the high-altitude Tibetan Plateau (TP), which has received less attention compared with the circum-Arctic region. The permafrost region covers ~42% of the entire TP and contains ~37.21 Pg perennially frozen SOC at the baseline period (2006–2015). With continuous warming, the active layer is projected to further deepen, resulting in ~1.86 ± 0.49 Pg and ~3.80 ± 0.76 Pg permafrost carbon thawing by 2100 under moderate and high representative concentration pathways (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5), respectively. This could largely offset the regional carbon sink and even potentially turn the region into a net carbon source. Our findings also highlight the importance of deep permafrost thawing that is generally ignored in current Earth system models.
Tibet, China
Science Advances

Heat Wave Brings Higher Ozone Levels To Riverside County
Unhealthful air quality is plaguing the region.
Anaheim, California, United States
Patch

Global warming fuels algal bloom disrupting fisheries in Arabian Sea
A new scientific study published Monday found that global warming is fueling a destructive algal bloom that is disrupting fisheries in the Arabian sea.
UPI

Explosion of beavers on the Baldwin Peninsula is part of their march north of the Arctic Circle
How the beavers got to the Baldwin Peninsula, which is surrounded by salt water and extends north of the Arctic Circle, is anyone’s guess.
Selawik, Alaska, United States

‘Murder Hornets’ in the U.S.: The Rush to Stop the Asian Giant Hornet
Sightings of the Asian giant hornet have prompted fears that the vicious insect could establish itself in the United States and devastate bee populations.
Blaine, Washington, United States
New York Times

Salmon are getting sick too
Feather, fur or fin, all creatures contend with viruses.
Even those athletes of our rivers, Atlantic salmon, usually aren’t as healthy as they look.
A study of tissue samples taken from 150 Atlantic salmon found 14 separate infectious
Western North Atlantic Ocean
The Chronicle Herald

Researchers say climate change is impacting diet of whales
An Oregon State University researcher is using whale poop to ultimately help protect them.
KGW

Russia losing Arctic land from erosion on par with area of Liechtenstein, scientists say
Scientists found out that amid climate change in the summer, drifting ice goes further north, and the coastal area is freed from ice for a longer period.
TASS

First federal assessment of Arctic Ocean finds drastic change
Changes are coming to the Arctic so fast that scientists haven't even had a chance to understand what's there

Scientists, forecasters ask Alaskans for river breakup information
Alaskans can help the National Weather Service monitor rivers during a potentially dangerous breakup this year through a University of Alaska Fairbanks citizen science project.
College, Alaska, United States
UAF news and information

Beaver invasion on the Baldwin Peninsula
Scientists have documented a recent population explosion of beavers on the Baldwin Peninsula near Kotzebue.
UAF Geophysical Institute

Releasing herds of animals into the Arctic could help fight climate change, study finds
With enough animals, 80% of all permafrost could be preserved through the end of this century, researchers believe.
Черский, Нижнеколымский район, Sakha, Russia

Grazing crisis became the main topic in meeting with the President of the Sami Parliament
The grazing crisis in reindeer herding, the corona situation and the work on the Norwegian-Swedish Reindeer Grazing Convention was the theme of the meeting between Minister of Agriculture and Food Olaug Vervik Bollestad (KrF) and Sami Parliament President Aili Keskitalo.
Sápmi, Norway
Regjeringen.no

Anchorage isn’t a ghost town yet. But it’s not the same.
In big and small ways, a pandemic has altered what Anchorage feels like to live in, from coffee to court to riding the bus.

First payment from the emergency preparedness fund for reindeer feeding - Directorate of Agriculture
On Friday 13 March, the Directorate of Agriculture paid out NOK 2 million from the emergency preparedness fund. The funds go to the Middle and Eastern Zone in Western Finnmark reindeer grazing area. 160 000 animals within the Sami reindeer grazing area have now been affected by the grazing crisis.
Nesoddtangen, Akershus, Norway
The Norwegian Government

Roundup of COVID-19 responses around the Arctic
With the number of COVID-19 cases outside of China increasing 13-fold, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a global pandemic on Thursday, urging governments “to take urgent and aggressive action” to stop its spread.
Eye on the Arctic • Special Reports

Climate change is putting N.W.T. cemeteries in crisis and communities are worried
Many communities in the Northwest Territories are worried about the impacts climate change is having on their cemeteries.
Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, Canada

With heavy snow, moose are top of mind for Iditarod mushers
Many mushers have seen high numbers of moose while training, spurring them to pack guns during this year’s 1,000-mile race to Nome.
Emmonak, Alaska, United States

Mild and Wet February
The monthly temperature for the entire country in February was 4.0 degrees above normal, and the month became the 7th wettest in the series dating back to 1900.
Kvitsøy, Rogaland
Meteorologisk institutt

Why Are Swarms Of Locusts Wreaking Havoc In East Africa?
Clouds of the insects can stretch for miles, devouring vegetation and destroying crops. Locust experts say time is running out to get the swarms under control because they multiply so quickly.
Otuke, Uganda

'The Blob’ fizzles - at least for now - as storms churn and chill the North Pacific
The Northeast Pacific Marine Heatwave of 2019 was the second longest-lasting and second-largest such event recorded over the past 39 years, according to NOAA.

Finland nearly 1 degree warmer than usual in 2019
It was warmer and wetter last year than national averages, the Finnish Meteorological Institute reports.
Finland

Survey shows continuing population decline for Cook Inlet belugas
A biennial NOAA survey in 2018 estimated the population of the white whales at 250 to 317.
Cook Inlet

In Juneau snow and rain, temperature swings are formula for higher avalanche risk
Looking at each snow layer tells a story about the winter.

Anglers in Scotland to be banned from taking their catch home as salmon stocks reach 'crisis point'
Anglers will be banned from taking their catch home on more than 100 rivers in Scotland this year - as wild salmon stocks reach 'crisis point'.
Scotland, United Kingdom
Scotsman

Marine Heat Wave Linked to Sharp Increase in Whale Entanglements
An ocean heat wave off the U.S. West Coast from 2014 to 2016 drove humpback whales into a narrow band of cooler water, leading to a dramatic increase in whale entanglements with crab-fishing gear, according to a new study.
Yale E360

Cold snap in Northern B.C. will kill bark beetles, but won't erase threat, says B.C. entomologist
Bark beetle experts say a recent cold snap has likely killed some spruce beetle infestations in northern B.C.
British Columbia, Canada

Haines Borough convenes task force to deal with roaming, dumpster-flipping bears
According to Haines Borough Police Chief Heath Scott, the department received 182 bear-related calls in 2019. That is more than double the number of bear-related calls they received the previous year. Said Fish and Game bear biologist Anthony Crupi, “With really low returns of pink salmon and coho salmon this year, bears are really searching out any opportunities they can find” .

Previously Unknown Viruses Discovered in Melting Glacier | The Weather Channel
Scientists sampling ice cores from a glacier in China discovered 28 viruses that had been frozen in time for as long as 15,000 years, and were not previously known to mankind.
Tibet, China
The Weather Channel

Massive die-off of Pacific seabirds linked to a warm-water ‘blob’
New research shows the marine heat wave that spread from California to Alaska starting in 2014 caused common murres to starve to death.
Bering Sea

It’s official: Alaska just had its warmest year on record
The average statewide temperature for the year was 32.2 degrees Fahrenheit, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported Wednesday. That breaks the previous record for the warmest year statewide, set in 2016 at 31.9 degrees.

The Russian military cargo ship that violated Arctic shipping code breaks free from ice lockup
Three weeks after it got stuck in Arctic sea-ice, the Sparta-3 makes it into open waters. The situation on board had been strained as reserves of fuel and water shrunk to low levels and the crew had to fight hard with icing. The military transport vessel did not have permission for sailing in the area.

Record number of salmon eggs found in Maine river
Atlantic salmon laid a record number of eggs in a Maine river last year, according to a conservation group that tracks the animal's status in the wild.
East Machias, Maine, United States
Houston Chronicle

Invasive seaweed makes its move along Rhode Island coast
University of Rhode Island student stumbled upon the first appearance in Rhode Island of what has come to be called sea potatoes (Colpomenia peregrina), an invasive seaweed native to the coast of Korea and Japan that grows on top of other seaweeds.
Narragansett Pier, Rhode Island, United States
Westerly Sun

Clamming on the Kenai Peninsula is a no-go for 2020
This marks the sixth straight year of the personal-use razor clam shutdown.
Clam Gulch, Alaska, United States

Yukon reopens hunt as Fortymile caribou population booms
Reduced to just 6,500 animals in 1995, the Fortymile caribou herd in Yukon has seen a remarkable comeback, now numbering around 84,000.
Dawson City, Yukon, Canada

Fall chum salmon run failed to hit escapement goal on Porcupine River
Numbers from Fishing Branch, a tributary of the Porcupine River, fell below management and treaty goals, experts from Alaska and the Yukon said at the Yukon River Panel’s meeting in Whitehorse earlier this month.

The Amazingly Cool Anna's Hummingbird Scoffs at Winter
Vancouver’s official bird is a sex-crazed, smart, supercharged recent arrival.
The Tyee

As Anchorage warms, wintertime is defined by ice as much as snow
For many in Anchorage, winter and its accompanying outdoor opportunities are something to relish rather than escape. But residents of the state’s largest city are being forced to renegotiate their relationship with winters.

The wildlife visitors warning of climate disaster
Britain’s milder weather is attracting exotic guests. While we may celebrate their arrival now it should also alert us to what’s ahead
Southern England, United Kingdom

No snow? No problem: 8 activities for snowless days
Who needs a pricey gym when you can use the forest or even your backyard for a fun workout?
Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland

On land, Australia's rising heat is 'apocalyptic'; in the ocean, it's even worse
BRUNY ISLAND, TASMANIA (WASHINGTON POST) - Even before the ocean caught fever and reached temperatures no one had ever seen, Australia's ancient giant kelp was cooked.. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Australia
The Straits Times

214 grey whales washed up dead in 2019
214 grey whales stranded in the Pacific in 2019, and scientists are preparing for more deaths in 2020 because whales are emaciated and skinny.
Northeast Pacific coast
CBC News

A Washington Post correspondent talks about reporting on climate change on Alaska's North Slope
The Washington Post made the Alaska North Slope village of Nuiqsut front page news earlier this month, under a provocative headline: "Alaska's warming, but can't quit big oil." We talked with the reporter who wrote the story.
Nuiqsut, Alaska, United States

Rare woodpeckers turn out in large numbers
Birdwatchers in 2019 spotted the second-largest number of rare woodpeckers recorded so far in Finland. White-backed and three-toed woodpeckers rarely appear in the hundreds.

Camera Traps Show Invasive Coyotes Heading Toward South America
North American coyotes don’t live in South America, but new research suggests that could change, should deforestation in Central America continue.
Darién, Panama
Gizmodo

As Alaska permafrost melts, roads sink, bridges tilt and greenhouse gases escape
Alaska’s Arctic landscape is under assault from a warming climate, and it’s happening a lot faster than anticipated.

Nova Scotia town sinking as sea levels rising
Liverpool, N.S., is trying to ward off flood waters from rising sea levels while the community is also starting to sink.
Liverpool, Nova Scotia, Canada
CBC News

Beekeeping in Southeast Alaska ain't easy
Specially adapted bees and overwintering procedures help mitigate the cold.

Tiny shells reveal waters off California are acidifying twice as fast as the global ocean
In first-of-its-kind research, NOAA scientists and academic partners used 100 years of microscopic shells to show that the coastal waters off California are acidifying twice as fast as the global ocean average—with the seafood supply in the crosshairs.
Santa Barbara Basin, California, USA

Salmon frenzy in western Arctic reaches historic high
The Arctic Salmon Project collected 2,400 samples from the western Arctic this year — more than the past 20 years combined.
Norman Wells, Northwest Territories, Canada

Grizzly bears move north in High Arctic as climate change expands range
Hunters say grizzly bears are showing up in growing numbers on islands of the Beaufort Sea.
Sachs Harbour, Northwest Territories, Canada
National Post

Facing catastrophic climate change, they still can’t quit Big Oil
In Alaska, a new oil boom is on the horizon even as climate change arrives and greenhouse gas emissions climb.
Nuiqsut, Alaska, United States
Washington Post

Looking for climate change’s big picture, rural Alaska communities gather to compare notes
SPONSORED: Extreme weather events, subsistence changes and water shortages are becoming increasingly common across Alaska, but no two communities experience the same impacts.

2019 salmon season fell short in some areas
As nearly every commercial salmon fisherman in Upper Cook Inlet can tell you, the 2019 season fell far short in every department.
Homer, Alaska, United States
Homer News

Napakiak Erosion Accelerating
For as long as anyone remembers, Napakiak has been retreating from the Kuskokwim. The village of about 400 people sits on a bend in the river, and every
Napakiak, Alaska, United States

Lives adrift in a rapidly warming world: A photographic portrait
Climate change may seem like a distant danger to many, but around the globe, people are seeing its full, transformative impact. From Alaska to Angola, Qatar to Colorado and more, Post photographers share their stories of a growing crisis.
Newtok, Alaska, United States

Whitehorse failing on icy sidewalks, councillor says
According to city staff, complaints about sidewalks have been coming to the bylaw department about once every other day — there have been 15 since Nov. 1,

Maine lobster catch headed for decline but not crash, scientists say
The decline will mean tens of millions fewer pounds of lobster each year, but still enough lobsters to support a robust business and supply hungry seafood lovers.. Maine news, sports, politics, election results, and obituaries from the Bangor Daily News.
Maine, United States
Bangor Daily News

Witnessing climate change in Gambell
As I write, we have yet to see sea ice reach the Utqiagvik shores.
Gambell, Alaska, United States

Yellowknife students urge government to declare climate emergency
Students and residents gathered in front of the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly Friday to compel the government to declare a climate change emergency.

New Map Aims to Improve Safety of Travellers in Iceland
Safetravel.is, which aims to reduce the risk of travel-related accidents in Iceland, has introduced a new map. Minister of Tourism, Industry and Innovation Þórdís Kolbrún R. Gylfadóttir formally introduced the map at the What’s On Tourist Information Centre in downtown Reykjavík this week. The new map combines what once were three maps – vedur.is, vegagerdin.is, …
Iceland

Monitoring water quality after wildfires
The first storm of the season not only tamped down the fire, it also began the process of flushing an unknown mixture of metals, toxic organic compounds, and other chemicals from the air, ash, and debris into the region’s creeks and rivers.
Paradise, California, United States
Chemical & Engineering News

Alaska Town Fleeing to Higher Ground
Rising sea levels will threaten three times more people in the next 30 years than previously thought, according to the latest scientific estimates. Among the hundreds of millions of people worldwide facing the threat are the 400 residents of Newtok, Alaska. Rising river and eroding land is pushing the entire community to relocate, despite emotional and logistical hurdles.
PBS News

Russian birch trees are ‘climbing mountains’ due to climate change
The tree line is moving up mountains at a rate of half a meter a year, say researchers from Krasnoyarsk Science Centre, part of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Krasnoyarsk, Krasnoyarskiy, Russia
Siberia Times

Failing permafrost cellars signal change in Alaska whaling towns
A growing number of Arctic underground cellars are being rendered unreliable as global warming and other modern factors force changes to an ancient way of life.

Extraordinarily warm fall a big problem in Canadian Arctic
Temperatures across the Arctic have been warmer than usual this fall, with one community in the Northwest Territories recording above-average temperatures for 72 days in a row.
Canadian Arctic
CTVNews

Anchorage conference helps Alaska Native tribes adapt to a changing climate
Alaskans came from all corners of the state to learn how to adapt to a changing climate at a conference in Anchorage this week.

Koalas ‘Functionally Extinct’ After Australia Bushfires Destroy 80% of Their Habitat
As Australia experiences record-breaking drought and bushfires, koala populations have dwindled along with their habitat, leaving them “functionally extinct.”
New South Wales and Queensland, Australia
Forbes

Some like it hot, but Arctic cod do not
Arctic cod are a cornerstone of the Arctic food chain as a staple food of seals and beluga whales, upon which subsistence food gatherers rely in the region’s coastal communities.

New report sheds more light on climate change impacts to Alaska Native villages
A recent report compiled by the Army Corps of Engineers and researchers at the University of Alaska Fairbanks documents erosion and other environmental threats facing communities in rural Alaska.

Metlakatla, which depends on water, has moved quickly to accommodate the realities of drought
Following a season of drought, the Southeast Alaska community of Metlakatla is navigating a different relationship with water, like a number of other places in the region.
Metlakatla, Alaska, United States

No one is sure why the Mulchatna caribou are disappearing in Southwest Alaska
The Mulchatna herd was not at the peak numbers it once had decades ago. Over-hunting, migration changes and wolf predation could be leading causes of decline in herd.
Bristol Bay Region

Microplastics found in the stomach and intestines of Arctic belugas harvested for food
In the North, where food prices are notoriously high, beluga whales are a staple community resource
The Narwhal

Vigilance advised after saxitoxin found in clams
Scientists have detected toxic algae in clams from the Bering Strait and Chukchi Sea regions of northern and western Alaska, according to a new bulletin. This set of clams was taken on August 22, 2019 about 50 miles north of Cape Lisburne.
Cape Lisburne
Alaska Sea Grant

Open water replaces sea ice as the autumn norm in Western Arctic
Open water has become the November norm in the Chukchi Sea northwest of Alaska. Instead of thick, years-old ice, researchers are studying waves and how they may pummel the northern Alaska coastline.
Chukchi Sea

Ask a Climatologist: Where's winter?
There has been little snowfall, temperatures are above normal and there is little to no sea ice on Alaska's northern coasts.

Northern Bering Sea trawl survey shows fisheries in flux
NOAA Fisheries' summer trawl survey shows Norton Sound red king crab are moving, Arctic cod numbers have dropped significantly, and Pacific cod are continuing to increase as the Northern Bering Sea ecosystem undergoes drastic change.
Northern Bering Sea

Japan’s ‘national butterfly’ sees alarming decline in population
Japan's magnificent great purple emperor butterfly is at risk of dying out, a nationwide research pr
Japan
The Asahi Shimbun

Study finds marine mammal viruses are traveling between oceans as sea ice recedes
As sea ice in the Arctic decreases due to climate change, it’s opening the way for more than cruise ship travel. Scientists have found evidence that links the decline of sea ice to the emergence of a virus in Arctic marine mammals that has killed thousands of seals in European waters.
KOTZ Radio 720 AM

A seal-killing virus probably spread from the North Atlantic to North Pacific because of sea-ice retreat
When scientists found that Alaska sea otters were exposed to a sometimes-deadly virus that plagues seals in the North Atlantic, they were puzzled. Phocine distemper virus had not been previously found in Alaska waters.

How climate change is triggering a chain reaction that threatens the heart of the Pacific
The fast-warming Sea of Okhotsk, wedged between Russia and Japan, is a cautionary tale of the far-reaching consequences when climate dominoes begin to fall.
Shiretoko Peninsula

One of the world's thickest mountain glaciers is melting because of global warming
For half a century, Taku had been the one known Alaskan glacier to withstand the effects of climate change – until now.
Taku Glacier, Alaska USA
USA TODAY

Toxin levels in Baltic herring drop significantly, spurring export hopes
Thanks to stricter pollution laws, toxin levels have been dropping steadily in the Baltic. Concentrations of environmental toxins have dropped by as much as 80 percent.
Baltic Sea

Australia's lost shellfish reefs are roaring back to life
In just a few years, 8 million native angasi oyster hatchlings have been placed in the waters off Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and Western Australia, on the recycled mollusc shells collected from restaurants. They've turned empty, sandy seabeds into thriving ecosystems.
Port Philip Bay, Victoria, Australia
ABC News

Deadly virus spreads among marine mammals as Arctic ice melts
When sea otters in Alaska were diagnosed with phocine distemper virus (PDV) in 2004, scientists were confused. The pathogen in the Morbillivirus genus that contains viruses like measles had then only been found in Europe and on the eastern coast of North America.
National Geographic

Climate change and overfishing are boosting toxic mercury levels in fish
Regulations have lowered mercury emissions globally, but the risks to ocean ecosystems and human health may be getting worse.
Canada's Pacific marine ecosystems
The Conversation

Seal population on the rise in Baltic Sea
The grey seal population has grown by an average of five percent annually since the turn of the millennium.
Kökar, Ålands skärgård, Aland Islands

Why are birds and seals starving in a Bering Sea full of fish?
The animal die-offs offer the world a stark example of the perils of rising ocean temperatures, which already are upending parts of the Bering Sea ecosystem.
The Seattle Times

Dwindling catches and soaring prices spell trouble for Hokkaido’s squid town
As wholesale prices skyrocket for Pacific flying squid amid a record low catch in Japan, processing companies in the "squid town" of Hakodate, Hokkaido, ar
Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan
The Japan Times

Large Decline in Pacific Herring Stock
Conservation groups are calling for the immediate closure of the herring fishery in the Strait of Georgia following the release of new federal government data showing a four-year population biomass decline of almost 60 per cent. “We’ve been systematically overfishing these stocks and the Gulf of Georgia fishery is the last one left,” Pacific Wild...
Strait of Georgia, British Columbia, Canada

Anchorage considers shortening studded tire season by 2 weeks
By better aligning the tire season with average snowfall, the city hopes to limit road deterioration.

Sea urchin explosion decimates kelp forests off Pacific coast
Similar to what has happened in B.C., tens of millions of voracious purple sea urchins have chomped their way through towering underwater kelp forests in California.
Coastal Oregon and California

Melting glaciers have uncovered five new islands, and animals are populating them
The islands were first noticed by a student engineer who had observed the unidentified land masses in satellite images
Franz Josef Land Archipelago
National Post

The warming climate is making baby sea turtles almost all girls
Around the world, rising temperatures pose a threat to the species.
Boa Vista, Cape Verde

Pushed by young people, AFN declares a climate emergency
The convention's final day saw a lot of attention on climate change, as well as shortcomings in public safety, and remarks by both U.S. senators.

A Western Alaska village, long threatened by erosion and flooding, begins to relocate
Moving Newtok residents to the new village of Mertarvik has been planned for decades. This month, several families moved into new homes.

Newtok Moves First Families Into New Homes In Mertarvik
It was 20 years coming, but it finaly began this weekend: the first residents of Mertarvik moved into their new homes.
Mertarvik, Alaska, United States

The Disappearing Islands
For decades, efforts have been underway to tame the effects of erosion on the Magdalen Islands, an archipelago in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. But the effects of climate change left these tiny islands vulnerable when it came to facing two powerful and unpredictable storms in less than a year.
Magdalen Islands

What to do if your pup gets quilled by a porcupine
More porcupine sightings have been reported in Yellowknife this year compared to previous years. What should you do if your furry friend meets a porcupine?

Groups say seismic blasts are hurting belugas in Cook Inlet
Cook Inlet Keeper and the Center for Biological Diversity have sued the Federal Government over issuing permits to Hilcorp .
Tyonek, Alaska, United States
KTVA News

The Gulf Of Maine Is Warming, And Its Whales Are Disappearing
Waters off the coast of Maine are warming faster than 99 percent of the world's oceans. That's forcing whales northward in pursuit of prey, threatening some of their already dwindling populations.
Gulf of Maine
NPR

Crabbing in 2019? Fish & Game Says "A Year to Forget"
According to a recently released recap from the Department of Fish & Game, crabbing in the Norton Sound this year was underwhelming in many ways. At the beginning of 2019, ADF&G set the reg…

Surprise: Alaska has ticks, and more are on the way
Alaska’s warming winters and the broader habitat for ticks in the Lower 48 and Canada may provide a channel for rarer types to get to Alaska and survive there.

Northern reindeer that roamed Taymyr peninsula are at the brink of extinction
Drastic measures are needed to restore wild reindeer populations in all of Taymyr, northern Evenkia and western Yakutia. Poaching, climate change and excessive hunting caused colossal population drop.
Lake Taymyr, Russia
Siberia Times

Temperature patterns and mechanisms influencing coral bleaching during the 2016 El Niño
Under extreme heat stress, corals expel their symbiotic algae and colour (that is, ‘bleaching’), which often leads to widespread mortality. Predicting the large-scale environmental conditions that reinforce or mitigate coral bleaching remains unresolved and limits strategic conservation actions1,2. Here we assessed coral bleaching at 226 sites and 26 environmental variables that represent different mechanisms of stress responses from East Africa to Fiji through a coordinated effort to evaluate the coral response to the 2014–2016 El Niño/Southern Oscillation thermal anomaly. We applied common time-series methods to study the temporal patterning of acute thermal stress and evaluated the effectiveness of conventional and new sea surface temperature metrics and mechanisms in predicting bleaching severity. The best models indicated the importance of peak hot temperatures, the duration of cool temperatures and temperature bimodality, which explained ~50% of the variance, compared to the common degree-heating week temperature index that explained only 9%. Our findings suggest that the threshold concept as a mechanism to explain bleaching alone was not as powerful as the multidimensional interactions of stresses, which include the duration and temporal patterning of hot and cold temperature extremes relative to average local conditions.
Indian Ocean Coral Reefs
Nature Climate Change
McClanahan, Tim R., Emily S. Darling, Joseph M. Maina, Nyawira A. Muthiga, Stéphanie D ’agata, Stacy D. Jupiter, Rohan Arthur, Shaun K. Wilson, Sangeeta Mangubhai, Yashika Nand, Ali M. Ussi, Austin T.

Short-tailed shearwaters die by the thousands in Alaska
"What was unusual was the sheer number of them," Kuletz said. "Including the Bristol Bay area and the Pribilofs, it's up around 6,000 birds down on the beach. That's probably a small fraction of the number affected. This year stands out because of the huge shearwater die-off."
Arctic Sounder
Alaska Media, LLC., Steve Keller designer and application developer

Iqaluit water reservoir is almost full, just in time for winter
An emergency project to pump water from Unnamed Lake started in mid-August, and has been successful. The city's reservoir at Lake Geraldine is projected to be filled ten days ahead of schedule.

Alaska residents to see increased jellyfish sightings
The number of moon jellyfish in Alaska waters has increased. Warm ocean temperatures and plentiful food in the form of zooplankton have contributed to the increased sightings
AP NEWS

Homer's first EV station is now open
The Destination Charger was donated by Tesla Corporation and installed by Mark Haller and his crew from Midnight Sun Solar, along with Tyson Belle from Diamond Ridge Electric.
Homer, Alaska, United States
Homer Tribune
Alaska Media, LLC., Steve Keller designer and application developer

As Arctic ice melts, will the Navy return to Adak?
For the first time in more than 30 years, the Navy staged a joint training exercise on the far-western Aleutian island. Some are hoping it portends a permanent future in the region.
Adak, Alaska, United States

California Sinking
For more than a century farmers in California's Central Valley have been pumping water out of the ground — so much so that the land is slowly sinking, a process known as subsidence. In fewer than 100 years, it's dropped 8½ metres.
Corcoran, California, United States

Marine heat wave dubbed ‘Blob’ resurges in Pacific; mass deaths of sea life feared
It already has caused coral bleaching in Hawaii and may be tied to strandings of marine mammals along the California coast.

Scientists suspect retreating sea ice is changing the color of Alaska's tundra
Biologists say early retreating sea ice is potentially causing vegetation productivity changes on the tundra across Alaska and the Arctic. Uma Bot, a climate variability expert with the University of Alaska–Fairbanks, says the land warms up more quickly when sea ice recedes earlier than usual. “‘Cause the tundra is temperature limited and if it has more …

Too many caribou: Nelchina hunt extended 10 days
Caribou hunters in Game Management Unit 13 will have an additional 10 days of hunting this month.
Eureka Roadhouse, Alaska, United States
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Napakiak School Fuel Tanks Transported To Bethel Between Fall Storms
The Coast Guard ordered the Lower Kuskokwim School District to empty the tanks to prevent an environmental disaster as the eroding Kuskokwim riverbank advanced towards the fuel site.

Salmon farms losing battle with sea lice as wild fish pay the price
The aquaculture industry has failed to bring epidemic of sea lice under control in B.C.’s Clayoquot Sound.
Tofino, British Columbia, Canada

NOAA sees dramatic increase of ice seal deaths in Bering and Chukchi seas
Since June 1 2018, NOAA has received reports of 282 dead ice seals in the Bering and Chukchi seas. NOAA said they typically receive reports of about 29 ice seal strandings a year.

Extreme weather has already displaced 7 million people this year
Following Hurricane Dorian, large parts of the Bahamas have been left in a state of ruin, made unlivable to the hundreds of thousands of people who have called the islands their home.
Mic

New viruses discovered in declining B.C. salmon populations
Scientists have made a new discovery they hope will provide more insight into declining salmon populations in our province.
Coastal British Columbia
NEWS 1130

Utqiagvik logs more than 60 days above freezing
From unseasonal rainfall to early flooding and record heat, this summer has seen a lot of strange and concerning weather events across the Northwest Arctic and North Slope. That's not changing as summer comes to an end.
Utqiagvik, Alaska, United States

Crews hail start of fall whaling
Nuiqsut's Napageak crew, captained by Thomas Napageak, landed the very first bowhead of the season on Aug. 29. It was a 29.5 foot whale.
Arctic Sounder

It was the warmest ever Arctic summer
The top of the world saw record-beating average temperatures flashing through all three summer months.

August brought heat to Nunavut's High Arctic
Newspaper of record for Nunavut, and the Nunavik territory of Quebec
Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada

Warm August with record-late tropical heat
The monthly temperature for the entire country was 1.7 degrees above normal.
Åndalsnes, Møre og Romsdal, Norway

Fight for survival in Norway's Arctic as climate warms
Climate change is making life difficult for the indigenous people - and wildlife - of the Sami region.
Finnmark, Norway
BBC News, Norway

Anchorage spruce trees are dying. We need to talk about what happens next.
At some point even commercial tree removers will need help with disposal. And what should be planted in their place?

Europe Is Warming Much Faster Than Science Predicted
This summer saw two unbearable heat waves blanket Europe. The second set new records for high temperature when the mercury hit 114.8 degrees Fahrenheit in Southern France. As the climate crisis worsens, Europe can expect extreme heat more frequently and with increased intensity, the researchers said in a press release put out by the American Geophysical Union.
Europe
Ecowatch

Canada's Pollution Problem Is So Bad That It's Currently Raining Plastic
Microplastics from the breakdown of plastics and from microbeads used in toothpaste and exfoliants, are so small, they are able to travel in the atmosphere.
Canada

Wildfire smoke drifts back into Anchorage area
The intensity of the smoke this week will be “hit or miss” depending on winds and fire behavior.

More batty visitors in the N.W.T? Northerners on social media think so
Out of the eight species of bats in the Northwest Territories, residents are most likely to see the little brown bats.

This summer is on track to be the driest on record for Southcentral Alaska
The region has seen less than an inch of rainfall since June 1 and no measurable rain at all during August, putting it on track to beat a 50-year record.

Land Rising Due to Melting Glaciers
The land around Höfn in Hornafjörður is rising rapidly due to the melting of the glaciers in the surrounding area. There, the land is rising one centimetre per year,
Höfn, East, Iceland

'They're flat broke': Salmon fishermen demand disaster relief for failed season
With some of this year's salmon runs projected to be the lowest on record, West Coast salmon fishermen are demanding disaster relief from the federal and provincial governments.
Fraser River, British Columbia, Canada

Genetic study of sockeye salmon in B.C. river suggests 75% decline since 1913
A new study that suggests sockeye returns have dropped by three-quarters in the Skeena River over the last century should serve as a "wake-up call" for B.C., the lead researcher says.
Skeena River, British Columbia, Canada

This August is extremely abnormal, and fire likes it
Usually by August, peak fire season has passed. But fire and climate experts say conditions in Southcentral Alaska were nearly perfect for fire this weekend, from the sky to the dry forest floor.

As crews fight destructive Susitna Valley wildfire, evacuees prepare for recovery
A fire management official said more concrete information about the structures damaged by the fire will be available after emergency managers go in to survey the area on Tuesday.
Willow, Alaska, United States

Seismic Airgun Assault to Start in Lower Cook Inlet this Fall
“Whenever a seismic boat goes past and we drop our gear, the fish aren’t there. Any fisherman, or fisherman worth their salt, will tell you there’s an impact. They’ve seen it first-hand.”
Cook Inlet Keeper

Pink Salmon smash June record
One theory is the pinks were traveling somewhere else to spawn, and taking a longer than usual route to avoid warming water.
Cold Bay, Alaska, United States
Bristol Bay Times
Alaska Media, LLC., Steve Keller designer and application developer

Tropical fish riding warm waters to the Nova Scotia coast
Halifax-based scuba diver Lloyd Bond says in the last three years he's seen increasing numbers of butterfly fish, seahorses, cornet fish, trigger fish, puffer fish, and many other species not native to Canadian waters.
Coastal Nova Scotia

Warm waters across Alaska cause salmon die-offs
From the Koyukuk River, to the Kuskokwim, to Norton Sound, to Bristol Bay’s Igushik River, unusually warm temperatures across Alaska this summer led to die-offs of unspawned chum, sockeye and pink salmon. Warm waters also sometimes this summer acted as a “thermal block” — essentially a wall of heat salmon don’t swim past, delaying upriver migration.
Dillingham, Alaska, United States

'Ecological grief': Greenland residents traumatised by climate emergency
Islanders are struggling to reconcile impact of global warming with traditional way of life.
Nuuk, Sermersooq, Greenland

Newfoundland turrs: canaries in the climate crisis
What caused roughly 60,000 dead murres to wash ashore in Alaska? The answer to this could be very important to the murre (or turr) populations in the Atlantic.
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
The Telegram

Swamp rats have invaded California
Somewhere between the size of a sewer rat and a beaver, with a tail resembling that of an opossum and protruding, nacho cheese-colored teeth, the nutria is both impressively unattractive and highly destructive.
Central Valley, California, United States
Los Angeles Times

Alaska records warmest month ever in July with coastline barren of sea ice
Average temperature for month amid Arctic heatwave was 58.1F (14.5C), nearly 1F above previous high set in July 2004

The trouble with thrips: They’re as annoying to gardeners as is possible
These tiny, black, thread-like pests dig into plants and like to hang about in gangs, which is why you see so many of them. It is as if they want to be as annoying as possible.

An atmospheric river is drenching Alaska
More than a month’s worth of rain has soaked parts of the state in just a few days, setting records.

Insect 'apocalypse' in U.S. driven by 50x increase in toxic pesticides
Bees, butterflies, and other insects are under attack by the very plants they feed on as U.S. agriculture continues to use chemicals known to kill.
United States

Russian Land of Permafrost and Mammoths Is Thawing
Global warming is shrinking the permanently frozen ground across Siberia, disrupting everyday life in one of the coldest inhabited places on earth.
Yakutsk, Sakha, Russia
New York Times

Bering Sea is feeling the effects of warm winters
These changes seem to be heralding population spikes and downturns for a number of species like walleye pollock and Pacific cod, and even more pronounced in small, fatty forage species.

More than 150 great white sharks sightings logged off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, since June
A total of 161 great white sharks have been spotted off the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, since June. Experts say attacks on people are unlikely as the sharks are looking for seals.
Provincetown, Massachusetts, United States
NBC News

Summer Chum Salmon Die-Off Likely Caused By Heat Stress, Say Scientists
Salmon have been found dead in rivers across Western Alaska this summer. The largest die-off reported comes from the Koyukuk River, a tributary of the Yukon.
Huslia, Alaska, United States

Warmest ever July in Reykjavík
This July was the warmest ever recorded in Reykjavík. In some other parts of the country, July was among the top three or four ever recorded.
Reykjavík, Capital Region, Iceland

Salal’s Worrisome Die-Off
This ubiquitous shrub of the Pacific Northwest is dying. Some scientists theorize that a disease or fungus could be the culprit, while others point to this past winter’s unusually dry weather.
Coastal British Columbia to Oregon
Hakai Magazine

Chignik Bay 'hanging by a thread' in second year of scant fishing
While some parts of Bristol Bay have had record-breaking years, one South Peninsula village hasn't been as lucky. After a year and a half of bad runs, Chignik Bay is worried about the survival of the community.
Chignik, Alaska, United States

European heat wave is turning Greenland’s ice sheet to slush
The huge northern ice sheet is in the middle of its second major melt event this year, a warning sign for the planet.
Nuuk, Sermersooq, Greenland

Lethal Encephalitis in Seals with Japanese Encephalitis Virus Infection, China, 2017
We isolated Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) from brain samples of 2 seals with lethal encephalitis at Weihai Aquarium, Weihai, China, in 2017. We confirmed our findings by immunohistochemical staining and electron microscopy. Phylogenetic analysis showed this virus was genotype I. Our findings suggest that JEV might disseminate though infected zoo animals.
Weihai, Shandong Sheng, China
Emerging Infectious Diseases Journal
Xiangdong Li, Mingming Qiao, Xiaoyu Deng, Xi Chen, Shengyong Sun, Qian Zhang, Wenjie Zhang, Feifei Tan, Zhe Sun, Xizhao Chen, Ming Sun, and Kegong Tian

The heatwave accelerates the melting: - An eye opener
Record-breaking temperatures are nothing new for Norwegian glaciers. If temperatures become warmer, more glaciers may disappear.
Stryn, Sogn og Fjordane, Norway

Biologists advise to use caution in shellfish consumption
On July 16, Alaska Ocean Observing System, UAF Fairbanks and Alaska Sea Grant sponsored a community workshop on Harmful Algal Blooms—certain poisons coming from certain blooms of algae produced by

What’s Killing Russia’s Honey Bees?
Authorities say some 300,000 bee colonies died in June and July. Experts blame pesticides — specifically neonicotinoids — but also varroa mites, the loss of natural habitat and flowers, and, more recently, climate change.
Moscow, Moscow, Russia

Napakiak moves buildings threatened by erosion along Kuskokwim River
A city council member estimated the Western Alaska village has lost about 20 feet of riverbank since May.
Napakiak, Alaska, United States

UAF project seeks to provide air quality data for rural, remote Alaska areas
A graduate student with the University of Alaska Fairbanks is installing air-quality sensors in rural and remote areas around the state to monitor wildfire smoke and other types of air pollution.
Fairbanks, Alaska, United States

Forced from Paradise: Leaving home after one of America’s deadliest wildfires
One of America’s deadliest wildfires destroyed Paradise. Now, residents accept they may never go home.
Paradise, California, United States

The Legacy of the Blob
From California to Alaska, animals born during the infamous Blob are coming of age.
Northern California Current Ecosystem
Hakai Magazine

Heat and humidity grip East Coast as Midwest gets reprieve
The East Coast on Sunday sweated through another day of extreme heat and humidity.
New York City, New York, United States
CNBC

Toxic Blue-Green Algae Is Taking Over Canada This Summer
Cities around Canada are urging swimmers to take caution as toxic blue-green algae warnings are in effect throughout the nation. This algae, if in contact with humans and pets, can be extremely harmful.
narcity.com

The dragonfly, Alaska’s state insect, is a nimble flying machine
The article discusses the unique dragonfly species in Alaska, including the lake darner and the treeline emerald, which thrive in cold climates and have a high prey capture success rate.

Hunting season opens for new species in Alaska
Alaska hunters will discover a new page in the 2019-2020 hunting regulations which describes mule deer and white-tailed deer, two historically non-native species that are now moving into Alaska.
Eagle, Alaska, United States
Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Wildlife News

Low Levels of Algal Toxins in Northern Bering Sea of Interest to Scientists and Residents
During a workshop in Nome this week, scientists and residents discussed algal toxins’ role in the changing Bering Sea ecosystem.

Bat flew into hand of B.C. man who died of rabies infection
Nick Major, a martial arts instructor, died Saturday after he had a random brush with a bat on Vancouver Island in May.
Vancouver Sun

Blackberries, shade gardening, snakes? Imagining a warmer climate for Alaska gardens
Change is coming to Alaska’s plants, animals, insects and microbes, and gardening practices will need to change too.

Он гарсаар 89 удаагийн ой, хээрийн түймэр гараад байна
Улсын хэмжээнд 2019 оны 07 дугаар сарын 16-ны байдлаар нийслэл Улаанбаатар хот, Булган, Баян-Өлгий, Дорнод, Дорноговь, Дархан-Уул, Сэлэнгэ, Сүхбаатар, Төв, Увс, Хөвсгөл, Хэнтий аймгийн 43 суманд нийт 89 удаагийн ой, хээрийн гал түймэр гарч урьдчилсан байдлаар 49593.8 га ой, 250839.2 га хээрийн талбай, нийт 300433 га талбай түймэрт өртөж, 13 байшин, гурван гэр шатсан. Дээрх … 43 soums of Ulaanbaatar, Bulgan, Bayan-Ulgii, Dornod, Dornogovi, Darkhan-Uul, Selenge, Sukhbaatar, Tuv, Uvs, Khuvsgul and Khentii aimags.
Mongolia
News.MN - Мэдээллийн эх сурвалж

Unusual amount of grizzly bear sightings on Vancouver Island
Grizzly bears sightings are on the rise on Vancouver Island, and experts have a few theories as to why this is happening.
Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada
The Weather Network

Water shortage on Salt Spring Island
The North Salt Spring Island Waterworks District and the Capital Regional District have partnered to request $50,000 from the B.C. government for a "Water Service Optimization" study.
Saltspring Island, British Columbia, Canada

As polar bears encroach on this Alaska village, feds charge whaling captain with illegally shooting one
As Arctic sea ice melts, polar bears are spending more time near the Alaska North Slope village of Kaktovik. Now, federal prosecutors have charging a whaling captain there with killing one in violation of the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Kaktovik, Alaska, United States

NTSB: Smoke limited visibility in area of Kenai Peninsula plane crash that killed 3
An Anchorage couple and a Virginia woman died in the crash above Tern Lake. Another woman survived.
Seward, Alaska, United States

Arctic waters are actually warmer than Great Lakes right now
Heading north this summer for a refreshing swim? If you're looking for the warm water, you might want to give the Great Lakes a pass and head straight to the Arctic.
Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, United States
The Weather Network

Sharks on Cape Cod: Just how scared should we be?
The odds of an attack are low, experts say, yet their advice today is not to go into the ocean above your waist. Are our carefree swimming days over?
Truro, Massachusetts, United States
BostonGlobe.com

Anchorage usually loves warm weather, but this heat wave is something else
With ice shortages and hardly a fan to be found, the high temperatures this week have pushed some Alaskans to their limit.

It’s hot in Southcentral Alaska. Here’s what experts say is happening.
Forecasters expect temperatures in Anchorage to fall back down into the high 70s and low 80s by next Friday — though that’s still about 10 degrees warmer than the average for this time of year.

California forest die-off caused by depletion of deep-soil water: Study warns of threats from future concurrent drought and heat events
The inability of long-rooted trees to reach their subsurface water supply in the Sierra Nevada mountain range led to widespread forest die-offs following the drought of 2012-2015. A new study provides a better understanding of the climatic and biological mechanisms in play.
Sierra Nevada Mountains, California, United States
ScienceDaily

Fox Stuns Scientists With Trek From Norway To Canada
A researcher says her team couldn't believe the distance travelled.
Arctic
HuffPost Canada

Mexico struggles to understand, solve, seaweed invasion
Mexico has spent US$17 million to remove over a half-million tons of sargassum seaweed from its Caribbean beaches, and the problem doesn't seem likely to end any time soon.
Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico

With 12 gray whale deaths in Alaska waters, biologists race to find the cause
Biologists in Southeast Alaska are racing to examine a wave of whale carcasses to try and find what’s killing gray whales up and down the Pacific Coast. Nearly 170 have been reported triggering NOAA Fisheries to launch an investigation.
Wrangell, Alaska, United States

Swan Lake Fire spreads smoky haze to much of Southcentral
The state Division of Air Quality is warning of the smoke's potential health effects, with advisories in effect until Friday evening, pending any extensions.
Sterling, Alaska, United States

Canada probes spate of endangered whale deaths
Five of the highly endangered whales have been found dead in Canadian waters over the last month. Measures have been put in place to prevent more deaths by reducing the potential for ship strikes and fishing gear entanglement.
Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada
BBC News

An Arctic fox surprises researchers with an epic run across polar ice from Svalbard to Canada
A satellite-tracked Arctic fox stunned researchers by making a 3,500-kilometer trek across Arctic sea ice and glacier to travel from the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard to Canada’s Ellesmere Island in about two and a half months.
“We first did not believe it was true,” rone of the researchers, Eva Fuglei, said about the amazing run

‘Crazy’ and ‘scary’: Dramatic ocean warming off Alaska raises concerns for hunters and wildlife
Sea surface temperatures are 9 degrees higher than normal in some areas off Western Alaska.
Kivalina, Alaska, United States

Homes near Akiak's eroded riverbank need to move, but some people choose to stay
Akiak lost a mile-long stretch of riverbank to erosion last month. Six houses are now within 100 feet of the riverbank and need to be moved as soon as possible, but some people don’t want to move.
Akiak, Alaska, United States

Vardø may lose its Arctic climate
Spring has become warmer in Norway's easternmost city. Now Vardø may lose its Arctic climate.
Vardø, Finnmark, Norway
NRK Norsk Rikskringkasting

Dramatic and hot days
In recent decades, Norway has seen a clear increase in the number of days that are warmer than normal. Here you can check the development 42 locations in the country.
Tromsø, Troms, Norway
NRK Norsk Rikskringkasting

Warm, windy weather stokes Kenai Peninsula wildfire, leading to traffic delays and campground closures
The latest update put the Swan Lake fire’s size at 23,530 acres.
Ridgeway, Alaska, United States

Oslo summer has been 12 days longer
So far, this year's summer may not give associations to climate change, but for the past 30 years, summer has actually been a full 12 days longer in Oslo.
Oslo, Norway

2019 Gray Whale Unusual Mortality Event Along the West Coast
Since January 1, 2019, elevated gray whale strandings have occurred along the west coast of North America from Mexico through Alaska. This event has been declared an Unusual Mortality Event (UME).
Pacific Coast of North America
NOAA Fisheries

Meet the Narluga
A rare whale skull discovered by an Inuit hunter in Greenland has been confirmed by a Canadian scientist to be the hybrid calf of a beluga father and a narwhal mother — otherwise known as a narluga.
Disko Bay, West Greenland

"Flesh Eating" Bacteria May Be Spreading to Beaches Once Thought Off-Limits
Scientific American is the essential guide to the most awe-inspiring advances in science and technology, explaining how they change our understanding of the world and shape our lives.
Delaware Bay
Scientific American

For Quinhagak, climate change means they may have to move
In Western Alaska, accelerating erosion is forcing several villages to consider moving. In Quinhagak, a village on the Bering Sea, erosion is threatening the sewer lagoon and the building that houses its washeteria and health clinic.
Quinhagak, Alaska, United States

Western red cedars are dying of drought and scientists say it’s one more portent of climate change
The ‘persistent and widespread decline’ of the province’s official tree is due to drier, California-like summer droughts of two to three months.
Southwestern British Columbia, Canada
The Star

Haines spared from Southeast drought
Haines is experiencing one of its warmest, driest springs on record. Conditions in northern Southeast have not yet reached drought level, but low

Point Woronzof bluff is eroding an average of 2 feet a year, UAA researchers find
As government officials look for money for a study, university professors working with students say there’s plenty of data available — and little time to lose.

Scores of dead ice seals found along Alaska’s northwest coasts
NOAA is investigating what it’s calling “unusually large numbers” of seal deaths.
Kotlik, Alaska, United States

Glowing 'Blue Tears' in China's Seas are Incredibly Toxic and Growing
The glowing algae is suffocating sea life.
Matsu Islands, Taiwan, East China Sea
Live Science

City of Homer works with state and Army Corps to battle erosion on the spit
The Homer Spit’s future as an iconic tourist attraction is in danger of washing away. Erosion along the spit’s sea walls is not a new problem. City officials are working with state and federal agencies to find a lasting solution.
Homer, Alaska, United States

Sea Lice Plagues Return and Threat to Wild Salmon Increases
DFO documents reveal treatment failures and inability to protect migrating salmon.
Clayoquot Sound, British Columbia, Canada

Tularemia side-effect: Hare population cycle makes pets more susceptible to predators
Fish and Game says tularemia is showing up early this year in snowshoe hares around the Interior and areas south of the Alaska Range. Tularemia is a bacteria that can pass to pets and people, causing serious illness.

Alberta wildfires linked to climate change, scientist says
The Fort McMurray fire and record-breaking wildfire season in B.C. in 2017 have been connected to climate change in two separate research papers published by scientists with Environment and Climate Change Canada.
Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada

Tromsø Scientists Make Scary Findings in Norway’s Arctic Population: "Saturated" with Environmental Toxins
Much goes to indicate that such toxins may cause damages to children’s central nervous system. Scientists in Tromsø, Norway have long worked to map the extent of environmental toxins in the Arctic populations, and the result is frightening.
Tromsø, Troms, Norway
High North News

Southeast's rare drought could threaten plants, animals, your power bill
The entirety of Southeast Alaska is in some state of drought.

Guatemala migrants: Climate change driving exodus
Average daytime temperatures in Guatemala have risen over the past decade, while crop-damaging frosts are more common.
Guatemala
Al Jazeera

Spring temps smash records
The Kotzebue area saw average temperatures as high as 11.4 degrees F above normal in May, with similar conditions in nearby villages. Utqiaġvik saw a 6.6-degree jump, while Prudhoe Bay experienced temperatures more than 8 degrees higher than normal.

Iceland’s Second Warmest Spring
In Reykjavík, Akureyri, and Stykkishólmur, this was the second warmest since record-keeping began. After last year’s unusually cold and rainy spring and summer, locals are enjoying pleasant weather.
Reykjavík, Capital Region, Iceland

Summer is tularemia season for snowshoe hares in Interior Alaska
"Tularemia outbreaks in hares are reported every May and June in the Fairbanks North Star Borough," said Kimberlee Beckmen, an Alaska Department of Fish and Game veterinarian.
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Bullhead City, Arizona Was a Retiree Paradise. Then Came a Biblical Plague of Flies.
Environmentalists often decry the loss of species diversity in rivers that have been dammed. But while some species lose when we meddle with rivers, others win, sometimes in dramatic and ways.
Bullhead City, Arizona, United States
OneZero

California sees biggest June snowpack in nearly a decade thanks to spring storms
A series of spring storms has kept the snowpack — a key source of the state’s water supply — at its highest level for early June since 2011.
Sierra Nevada Mountains, California, United States
latimes.com

Vanishing ice: Alaska’s shrinking glaciers drive a new brand of tourism
One operator flies clients to a “glamping” site on Spencer Glacier. Another visits a giant new Lake George iceberg. Their clients say they want to see the glaciers before they shrink further.
Talkeetna, Alaska, United States

Spike in gray whale deaths, including several in Alaska, triggers federal investigation into ‘unusual mortality event’
About 70 gray whales have been spotted dead so far this year along the West Coast from California to Alaska, the most in almost 20 years. Many of them appeared malnourished, according to NOAA officials.
Crown Point, Alaska, United States

Nigerian fishers hit by criminals, imports and climate change
From African waters to China and back again, over half the fish on Nigerian tables is imported
Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria
chinadialogue ocean

The Wettest Part of Alaska Is Experiencing Extreme Drought. Is Climate Change to Blame?
The drought has had damaging economic and ecological impacts.
Ketchikan, Alaska, United States
Pacific Standard

As sea ice melts, fish are showing up farther north off Alaska. A federal fishing trip will investigate if they're sticking around
Two summers ago, federal scientists discovered something shocking: The Northern Bering Sea was teeming with cod and pollock. Those two commercially valuable species had never been found in such large huge numbers that far north.

300-Mile Swim Through The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Will Collect Data On Plastic Pollution
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch covers an area twice the size of Texas or three times the size of France.
Forbes

Thousands of seabirds starved to death in the Bering Sea — and scientists see evidence of climate change
In a paper published Wednesday, researchers theorize the die-off is at least partially attributable to the changing climate.
Saint Paul, Alaska, United States

Extreme weather has made half of America look like Tornado Alley
A melting Arctic may be confounding the jet stream and making trouble for everyone.
Dayton, Ohio, United States

Climate change looks different in Southeast Alaska. Here’s how tribes are planning for that
The Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska has a climate change adaptation plan. It wants the region to be included in the climate change discussion.

In the High Arctic, researchers find permafrost thaws are changing the landscape
In the Eureka Sound Lowlands on Ellesmere and Axel Heiberg islands, the permafrost is more than half a kilometre deep, and the average air temperature is –19.7 C. But higher summer temperatures have caused the earth to collapse.
Eureka Sound Lowlands, Ellesmere and Axel Heiberg Islands

As gray whales die along the West Coast, Alaska scientists look for answers beneath blubber
Researchers are trying to determine the cause of a gray whale die-off along the West Coast, including Alaska. And they're looking at whether recent warming trends in the Arctic, and reduced sea ice, has affected their prey.

Why seaweed is strangling Mexican tourism, and how science could help
Sargassum is infesting Mexico’s coastline. Researchers are scrambling to stop an ecological crisis, and maybe even make something good of it.
Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo, Mexico
MIT Technology Review

The end of Wrangell’s king salmon derby leaves locals longing
King salmon fishing in Alaska is political — but for those who can’t do it this summer, it’s also personal.
Wrangell, Alaska, United States

Prime growing areas for B.C. oysters contain alarmingly high concentrations of plastic microbeads
Baynes Sound, British Columbia
SFU News

Old Crow declares climate change state of emergency
Officials in the Yukon's most northern community have declared a state of emergency, saying the traditional way of life in Old Crow is under threat.
Old Crow, Yukon, Canada

Western Finland revels in unexpected spring highs
A high of nearly 27 degrees Celsius in Ylivieska on the west coast was said to be unusual at this time of year.
Ylivieska, Northern Ostrobothnia, Finland

The Anchorage Assembly is set to vote on the city’s Climate Action Plan. Here’s what it would do.
The plan is a broad vision for what the municipality wants Anchorage to look like in 2050, with a focus on dramatically reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Photos show adult killer whale and her calf found in poor health
A female adult Southern resident killer whale and her three-and-a-half-year-old calf are rapidly declining in health in what appears to be a troubling situation for the creatures.

Surge in dead gray whales concerns scientists
Ocean scientists are concerned about dead gray whales that have washed up on the US West Coast this year at the highest rate in almost two decades.
West Coast of the USA
CNN

Cedar die off impacts many on Vancouver Island
The die off of Western Red Cedar trees on East Vancouver Island due to drought and severe weather has First Nations extremely worried. Cedar is a critical part of first nations culture and as Skye Ryan reports, there is growing concern the dying trees will have a ripple down effect.
Port Alberni, British Columbia, Canada
CHEK

Wild pigs are a big problem. Here’s how they kill ’em in Texas
'There's nothing good about them.' They carry disease and cause billions in damage
National Post

414 million pieces of plastic found on remote island group
Debris on Cocos (Keeling) Islands was mostly bottles, cutlery, bags and straws, but also included 977,000 shoes, study says
Cocos Islands

Western red cedars die off as extended dry spells continue
Some Western red cedars are struggling after repeated bouts of drought conditions and experts say expect the tree to vanish for good in spots with shallow, dry, rocky soil.
Coastal British Columbia, Canada

Their Islands Are Being Eroded. So Are Their Human Rights, They Say.
Indigenous Australians from low-lying islands in the Torres Strait argue that the government, by failing to act on climate change, has violated their fundamental right to maintain their culture.
Masig Island, Torres Strait, Australia
New York Times

Warming oceans linked to rise in tropical species
Scientists have identified a spike in ‘vagrant’ species of fish including damselfish, wrasse and triggerfish
New Zealand

Lethal Virus Confirmed in Canadian Turtle for 1st Time
The Ranavirus virus has been found in a turtle in Hamilton's Cootes Paradise wetland. It generally leads to organ failure and death within four weeks.
Cootes Paradise, Ontario, Canada

New Anchorage climate plan calls for 80 percent cut to emissions by 2050
On Tuesday, the city’s Assembly is receiving the 106-page document, which outlines everything from transportation recommendations to emission reduction targets.

Uruguay´s soybean crop forecasted to drop 43% because of devastating drought
Due to the recent devastating drought, soybean production in Uruguay is forecast to drop to 1.7 million tons in 2017-18, according to an April 30 Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Uruguay
MercoPress

Record-breaking April in Iceland
There was plenty of sunshine around Iceland on the last day of April, and the temperature hit 19°C at Þingvellir, Skagafjörður, and Bíldudalur.
Bíldudalur, Westfjords, Iceland

Permafrost is thawing in the Arctic so fast that scientists are losing their equipment
Permafrost in some areas of the Canadian Arctic is thawing so fast that it's gulping up the equipment left there to study it.
Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada

Melting snow may have caused earthquakes in California, research shows
Earthquake activity near a California volcano has been linked to snowmelt. Researchers at U.S. Geological Survey studied data from 1984 to 2017.
Mesa, California, United States
latimes.com

Snæfellsjökull glacier “gone in 30 years”
If climate change continues at its current pace, the famous Snæfellsjökull glacier in West Iceland will be all-but completely gone by 2050.
Arnarstapi, West, Iceland

Climate change forces reindeer to resort to eating seaweed
Researchers have determined that, when ground ice is thicker, reindeer make for the coast. They don't eat kelp when they don't have to.
Svalbard
News Atlas

Climate change threatens water supply
Warming trend means Arkansas River won't meet demand.
Pueblo, Colorado, United States
The Pueblo Chieftain

Greenland Is Falling Apart
Since 1972, the giant island’s ice sheet has lost 11 quadrillion pounds of water.
Greenland Ice Sheet
The Atlantic

Snow geese are everywhere, and we need to do something about it
As their population grows worldwide, the birds are destroying the habitat of other waterfowl.

Canadian researchers warn of 'cascading impacts' as bumblebee species decline
A team of researchers at York University has warned that the American bumblebee is facing imminent extinction from Canada, and this could lead to “cascading impacts” throughout the country.

Lost sea creatures wash up on California shores as climate shifts
The Pacific Ocean off the California coast is mixed up, and so are many of the animals that live there.
Bodega Bay, California, United States

One of Alaska’s warmest springs on record is causing a dangerous thaw
“Climate change is happening faster than it’s ever happened before in our record,” Utquiagvik-based NOAA scientist Bryan Thomas said. “We’re right in the middle of it.”

Wild bee species critical to pollination on the decline
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — More than a dozen wild bee species critical to pollinating everything from blueberries to apples in New England are on the decline, according to a new study. Researchers...
Concord, New Hampshire, United States
AP NEWS

Melting ice is disrupting daily life in the Y-K Delta in the worst possible way
This spring has seen record-breaking warm temperatures across Alaska. In the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, the Kuskokwim River is melting early — with devastating consequences.

Old Crow to declare climate change state of emergency
The people in Yukon's northernmost community are watching the effects of climate change unfold firsthand. Now the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation is going to do something about it.
Old Crow, Yukon, Canada

Tiny Monsters in the Sea
Warming ocean waters are an invitation to all sorts of pathogens with the potential to remake ocean life.
Santa Cruz Island, California, USA

Polar bears in some northern regions are ingesting a lot of plastic
"We've all known with climate change, the bears are coming ashore earlier, they're spending more time onshore, and they're becoming habituated," said Rockwell, a research associate with the American Museum of Natural History.
Arviat, Nunavut, Canada

Polar Bears’ Plastic Diets Are a Growing Problem
Dumps are often chock-full of plastic and, as a new survey shows, polar bears are ingesting a lot of it. In an analysis of the stomach contents of 51 polar bears in the southern Beaufort Sea, researchers led by Raphaela Stimmelmayr, a wildlife veterinarian with Alaska’s North Slope Borough Department of Wildlife Management, found that 25 percent of the bears had plastic in their stomachs.
Churchill, Manitoba, Canada

Melting glaciers on Alaska’s Denali will unleash tons of human poop
Watch where you step.
Mt.Denali, Akaska, USA
Fox News

Thawing permafrost is triggering thousands of landslides across the Arctic
Climate change has caused a 60-fold increase in active landslides on one Canadian Arctic island.
The Conversation

A slippery slope: How climate change is reshaping the Arctic landscape
Increasing ground temperatures in the Arctic are indicators of global climate change, but until recently, areas of cold permafrost were thought to be relatively immune to severe impacts. A new study by Antoni Lewkowicz, a professor in the Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics at the University of Ottawa and published in the journal Nature Communications, however, shows that areas of cold permafrost can be vulnerable to rising summer temperatures.
Aulavik National Park, Banks Island, Northwest Territories

Prague Experienced One Of Its Warmest Winters Ever
The Czech Hydro-meteorological Office says this winter has been one the warmest ever in this country.
Prague, Praha, Czech Republic
Prague Morning

One year of temperature above normal in Norway
The average temperature for the entire country was 1.2 degrees above normal in March. It is thus the twelfth month in a row that the temperature in Norway has been above normal.
Norway

Will Alaska endorse climate science education?
Alaska could be joining dozens of other states by adopting the framework of Next Generation Science Standards. On Friday, the State Board of Education unanimously approved a draft slated for public comment.

DEC says rabies found in eastern Adirondacks
Rabies reported in three towns in eastern Essex County
Champlain Valley, New York, United States
The Daily Gazette

Low levels of Fukushima-related radiation found in Bering Sea samples
I knew that those Japanese currents would come to our waters, and so that’s why I volunteered to do the testing,” Eddie Ungott, a resident of Gambell.
Gambell, Alaska, United States

Virus might be killing freshwater turtles in St. Johns River watershed
The mysterious die-off of freshwater turtles throughout the massive St. Johns River watershed continues despite an ongoing year-long investigation by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and its partners to determine the cause and prevent damage to the ecosystem with the loss of the species.  The commission and its conservation partners currently are asking the public for help by providing information about any sick, dead or dying turtles they find in Northeast Florida.
Deland, Florida, United States
The Florida Times-Union

State to close site of popular water pipe on Seward Highway
Officials cited rockfall danger and traffic hazards created by people stopping to fill containers.
Knik, Alaska, United States

100 months of temperature above normal in Svalbard
March becomes the hundredth month in a row with temperatures above normal. "It is unique and shows how fast climate change is happening in the Arctic," says climate scientist Ketil Isaksen at the Meteorological Institute (MET).
Svalbard and Jan Mayen

The Arctic influences weather around the globe
The record early departure of the sea ice offshore Nome (March 12), and ice gone missing from Norton Sound astounded weather experts.

Shrinking Seasonal Ice in the Bering Sea Threatens Local Livelihoods
Recent storms have destroyed the progress made in ice formation endangering coastal habitats and fishing practices.
Pacific Standard

River ice and white hares: Signs of climate change in Finnish nature
The latest statistics on the mountain hare (or blue hare) population of Finland, for instance, show that the species' numbers are plummeting while the European (or brown) hare is thriving, especially in southern parts of the country.
Kuopio, Northern Savo, Finland

Colorado avalanche expert: 'Perfect storm' creating historic avalanche season
Colorado has seen more 2,500 avalanches this season, some larger than any on record.
Ouray, Colorado, United States
Coloradoan

Slight uptick in cesium-137 heralds arrival of Fukushima plume in Northern Bering Sea
Since 2014 St. Lawrence Islanders have been collecting sea water samples, knowing that the radiation would eventually show up. Now the signature of Fukushima has finally been identified, the northern most sample evidence of the plume. Fortunately the levels are low.

Climate Change Bethel Pays the Price
The Kuskokwim River in Southwest Alaska is taking longer to freeze. Mark Leary, a volunteer for Bethel Search and Rescue, talks about what that means for winter transportation in the region.

South Korea plans artificial rain to reduce Seoul air pollution
President Moon hopes collaboration with China will improve air quality in the country.
Yellow Sea and Korean Peninsula
AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES

Climate change forces Arctic animals to shift feeding habits: study
Seals and whales in the Arctic are shifting their feeding patterns as climate change alters their habitats, and the way they do so may determine whether they survive, a new study has found.
Svalbard, Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen

Huerfano County prepares for potentially major flooding
Huerfano County says it's preparing for the worst when it comes to this year's flood season and it wants residents to be prepared.
Walsenburg, Colorado, United States
KOAA.com

Birds arriving earlier with climate change
The golden plover and other species are moving their arrival time up by an average of half a day per year, and have been doing so for the last 20 years.

This map worries Norwegian rescue workers
Warmer seas have led the fishery to move 300 kilometers further northeast - towards the North Pole. At the same time, cruising traffic in the outlying sea areas is increasing.
Bjørnøya, Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen
NRK - Norsk Rikskringkasting

Grass crops in Eastern Norway halved in 2018
Last year's drought summer resulted in halved grass crops in Eastern Norway compared to the previous year, according to recent figures from Statistics Norway. - The consequences of the drought continue to affect the daily lives of many farmers, says Lars Petter Bartnes, leader of the Norwegian Farmers' Union.
Akershus, Norway
Norges Bondelag

Arctic terns at Mendenhall seem to be decreasing in numbers
The number of Arctic terns spending summers by the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center seems to be dwindling.

The changing world of Mongolia's boreal forests
Insects that eat leaves and needles are causing increasing damage in Mongolian forests. The Siberian silk moth and the gypsy moth are the most destructive.
Mongolia
MONTSAME News Agency

El Niño Triggered Disease Outbreaks Across Globe
The 2015 to 2016 El Niño event brought weather conditions that triggered regional disease outbreaks throughout the world.
Tropical Pacific Ocean
Laboratory Equipment

Warmest February since 2006 in Mackenzie Delta communities
While most of Canada has been experiencing a colder winter, Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk have had their warmest February since 2006.
Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada

Changing southern Gulf of St. Lawrence ecosystem
The survey started in 1971 as a review of commercially important fish like cod and halibut, but has grown into an annual scientific assessment of all sea life hauled up from the deep.
Southern Gulf of Saint Lawrence
Global News

Did you know Mauna Kea has permafrost? ... Well, it might not have it for much longer
“Nobody knows how old it is. We do know that it’s disappearing.”
Mauna Kea, Hawaii, United States

‘A Harbinger of Things to Come’: Farmers in Australia Struggle With Its Hottest Drought Ever
As Australia faces historic drought conditions, the impacts of climate change are increasingly difficult to ignore.
Pilliga, New South Wales, Australia
Time

State of Crabbing in Norton Sound: Less Sea Ice, Fewer Crabs — and Fewer Crabbers
The winter commercial crabbing season in the Norton Sound will begin February 25 with a quota less than half of its 2018 figure and a third of the 2017 quota.

Ecosystem changes following loss of great white sharks
A new study has documented unexpected consequences following the decline of great white sharks from an area off South Africa. The study found that the disappearance of great whites has led to the emergence of sevengill sharks, a top predator from a different habitat. A living fossil, sevengill sharks closely resemble relatives from the Jurassic period, unique for having seven gills instead of the typical five in most other sharks.
Seal Island, False Bay, South Africa

Record number of overwintering bird species
Over 90 species of birds have been counted in this year’s winter bird census—which is the most diverse range ever recorded. Kristinn Haukur Skarphéðinsson, animal ecologist with the Natural History Institute of Iceland, says, however, that numbers of some common winter species are shrinking fast, due to climate change.

Warmer seas in the north are bad news for the common Eider
Troms, Norway
The Fram Centre

Earthquake damage to Alaska health lab is hindering testing for potentially fatal diseases
Biological samples to be tested for tuberculosis and botulism have been sent to California and Washington since the Nov. 30 quake damaged the Anchorage facility.

No more shinny? Thousands of lakes are losing their winter ice
If the trend of reduced ice on the world's lakes continues at its current pace, the Canadian tradition of shinny could become a thing of the past, according to new research.

Gustavus wolves set sights on new quarry
While most wolves prefer ungulates like moose, deer and mountain goats, the Gustavus pack has displayed a preference for sea otter.
Gustavus, Alaska, United States
Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Wildlife News

Greenhouse gas emissions provide extreme warming in Svalbard
Greenhouse gas emissions provide extreme warming on Svalbard.
Miljodirektoratet

Thawing of Earth 3rd pole; could affect 1.9 billion people, study says
At least a third of the ice in the Himalayas and the Hindu Kush will thaw this century as temperatures rise, disrupting river flows vital for growing crops from China to India, scientists say.
Hindu Kush Himalaya

Yukon gov't gives up on attempt to build ice bridge in Dawson City
An official says time and money was running out. No decisions have been made yet on what to do next winter.
Dawson City, Yukon, Canada

Confronting the Challenge: Tackling Climate Change in Anchorage
Find out more about the Anchorage Climate Action Plan: http://www.muni.org/climateactionplan
Vimeo

Yukon Arctic Ultra competitors wary of cold-weather risks heading into Sunday's race
The temperature in Whitehorse has dipped just as competitors are doing final preparations for the Yukon Arctic Ultra. The 82 participants in this year's race should be well aware of the dangers posed by the frigid weather, after last year's serious injuries.

Inuvik infrastructure may not be ready for climate change
The Arctic is expected to get warmer and wetter by the end of this century and new research says that could mean trouble for infrastructure in Inuvik.

Glacial melts in the Canadian Arctic reveal land that hasn't been seen in more than 40,000 years
Scientists found dozens of plants and quartz samples underneath the melting ice, which could've been hidden for many years.
Business Insider

Drought turns part of Iran into a new dust bowl
In this corner of the Middle East, a changing climate and debilitating dust storms have brought life to a standstill.
Southeastern Iran

Decade of heavy storms has helped Northwest glaciers, but don’t expect that to last, studies show
Glaciers in western North America over the past 18 years have lost some 117 gigatons of ice — enough that if it was melted and spread across the state of Washington it would come up our knees, said David Shean, co-author of a recent study cataloging glacial loss.
My Rainier

Expect more extreme hurricanes on the East Coast due to faster ice melts in Greenland, study says
A new study suggests Greenland ice has hit a new tipping point with unprecedented melting since the early 2000s — and this will have consequences for East Coast cities.
East Coast of Canada

Saugeen Ojibway Nation confronts effects of climate change on whitefish fishery
The fishing communities of Saugeen First Nation and Chippewas of Nawash are finding higher winds and warmer temperatures are affecting populations of lake whitefish in Lake Huron and Georgian Bay, which many rely on for their livelihoods.
Lake Huron / Georgian Bay

Fortified Arctic infrastructure needed in face of climate change, says study
Research suggests climate change is going to cause more damage to roads and other infrastructure in Canada's North than previously feared. The study has major implications for construction in the North.

Under the surface of Russia’s Arctic super-region is a looming disaster
Underneath the ground is a thick layer of permafrost and trillions of cubic meters of natural gas. Development is the main source of concern for the reindeer herders who increasingly are hindered by new pipelines, roads and railway lines.
Labytnangi, Yamalo-Nenetskiy Avtonomnyy Okrug, Russia

2018 Was Fourth-Warmest Year In Nome History
2018 was “the fourth-warmest year in Nome’s weather history,” says climate specialist Rick Thoman. In fact, for most places in Western Alaska, 2018 ranked among the top five warmest years on record…

Teenage Diver Finds Tons of Golf Balls Rotting Off California
Alex Weber discovered more than 50,000 balls in the ocean near coastal California golf courses. When golf balls degrade, as these were doing, they release plastic particles and toxic chemicals.
Pebble Beach, California, United States

World's permafrost warming, with Siberia rising the most
Scientists say the world's permafrost is getting warmer, with temperatures increasing by an average of 0.3 C over a decade.
Siberia

PG&E, utility tied to wildfires, will file for bankruptcy
The company, California's largest utility, is facing at least $7 billion in claims from the deadly Camp Fire.
Sacramento, California, United States
CNN

Antarctic ice melting 6 times faster than it did in 80s
As the Antarctic ice sheet continues to melt away, we expect multi-meter sea level rise from Antarctica in the coming centuries. In this century alone, a ten-foot rise is possible.
McMurdo Station, , Antarctica
USA Today

Insect collapse: ‘We are destroying our life support systems’
Scientist Brad Lister returned to Puerto Rican rainforest after 35 years to find 98% of ground insects had vanished
Luquillo Rainforest, Puerto Rico

The pursuit of climate change
Slik har Norge forandret seg. Sakte, nesten umerkelig.
Sør-Odal, Hedmark, Norway
NRK, Norsk Rikskringkasting

Detah ice road opening later and later
If the ice road between Detah and Yellowknife doesn’t open on Friday, it will break a decades-old record.
Detah, Northwest Territories, Canada

Fairbanks’ famously severe cold snaps are getting less cold and more rare
Over the last 80-some years, there’s been a noticeable change in Fairbanks: The more recent cold snaps haven’t been as cold, and they’re occurring less frequently than they used to.

ANTHC partners to integrate a holistic community health approach in Oscarville
On the north bank of the Kuskokwim River, 401 miles from Anchorage, lies the community of Oscarville, Alaska. In December 2014, the Oscarville Traditional Council volunteered the village to serve as the pilot community for the implementation of a holistic approach project, with the goal of creating healthy, thriving and sustainable communities by bringing together important communal pieces, including culture, housing, energy, infrastructure, water/sewer, community health and economic development. Oscarville’s candidacy for the pilot project stemmed from the sanitation, environmental ...
Oscarville, Alaska, United States

Thousands of penguins stranded on South American coast
Thousands of female penguins are being stranded along the coast of South America because of water pollution and fishing, research shows. A new study of Megellanic penguins, which breed in Patagonia in southern Argentina, explains for the first time why so many become stuck on beaches hundreds of miles further north.  Researchers found the man-made threats encountered as the
Coastal Uruguay

Yukon's fire season was one of most complex and challenging in years
The director of Yukon Wildland Fire Management says firefighters had quite a summer, as conditions seem to be changing in the territory.

Methane beneath Greenland’s ice sheet is being released
Glacial melt is a source of atmospheric methane.
Greenland

In 2018, Alaska's Bering Sea was all out of whack
In some regions, this was the first time in 37 years of water surveys that there was no cold pool.
Popular Science

Spread of invasive species in Canada costs billions, changes environment
A 2008 report by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency said there were at least 486 invasive alien plant species alone in Canada.
Creston, British Columbia, Canada
The Star

Building blocks of ocean food web in rapid decline as plankton productivity plunges
Basic ocean food critical for the whole ecosystem is in dramatic decline and scientists don't know exactly why.
Western North Atlantic

Climate Change Drives Fish Into New Waters, Remaking an Industry
The catch is shifting northward as water temperatures rise, forcing crews to retool their boats and rework their businesses. Pollock is retreating from Alaska while black sea bass throng around Rhode Island.
WSJ

Dene national chief calls for emergency meeting, fears fatal disease affect caribou
Norman Yakeleya is calling for an emergency meeting with the federal and territorial governments to discuss the threat of chronic wasting disease (CWD) with the potential to decimate northern caribou herds.

Relocating bears won't fix growing conflicts with humans, say environment officials
2018 was the busiest season on record for human/bear conflicts in Yukon. Officials say relocating bears isn't a solution, and people have to do more to avoid attracting bears.

As Seas Warm, Galápagos Islands Face a Giant Evolutionary Test
Climate change is ravaging the natural laboratory that inspired Darwin. The creatures here are on the brink of crisis.
Galápagos Islands, Ecuador

New fish species are moving into the Canadian Arctic as its waters warm
In 2016 and 2017 commercial fishers near Cambridge Bay in Nunavut were surprised when they pulled in sockeye salmon — because they were expecting to see only Arctic char.
While these are just two fish, found far from their usual home waters, the two salmon are likely an indication that Pacific salmon will continue to
Arctic Today

Lilacs (Syringa spp.) Blooming Earlier
Agriculture, a huge industry in upstate New York, will clearly benefit from a longer growing season. However, the increase in intensity and frequency of rainfall will impede farmers. Higher nighttime temperatures could affect flowering
Highland Park, Rochester, New York, United States
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

As climate change bites in America’s midwest, farmers are desperate to ring the alarm
‘The changes have become more radical’: farmers are spending more time and money trying to grow crops in new climates
Langdon, Missouri, United States

Satellite imagery illuminates ice conditions around 3 Nunavut communities
Inuit in Cambridge Bay, Kugluktuk and Gjoa Haven are getting a clearer picture of sea-ice conditions near their communities thanks to a partnership with University of Victoria research group Ocean Networks Canada.
Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada

700 more deaths than usual after summer heatwave
The record temperatures this summer led to an estimated 700 more deaths then average, suggests new figures from the Public Health Agency.
Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden
Radio Sweden

British Columbia chinook salmon populations in decline
Only one, located in British Columbia's Thompson River, is considered stable.
Southern British Columbia, Canada
Global News

Pulses of Sinking Carbon Have Increased at Station M
December 3, 2018 – A new study by MBARI scientists shows that pulses of sinking debris carry large amounts of carbon to the deep seafloor, but are poorly represented in global climate models.
Station M, near Santa Barbara, California, United States
MBARI

Critically Low Monarch Population in California
The California overwintering population has been reduced to less than 0.5% of its historical size, and has declined by 86% compared to 2017.
California, United States
The Xerces Society

Walker releases funds to advance Ambler Road project
While public comment has been mixed, the issue of potential risk to subsistence lifestyles in many of Alaska Native villages along the proposed road have played a large part in testimony from Fairbanks community members, specifically at a public comment hearing in November of last year.
Ambler, Alaska, United States

Climate Change Is Fueling Wildfires Nationwide
Global warming has already resulted in more forest fires out West, according to the latest National Climate Assessment. The future could see more of the country burn.
Western United States

Drying Canadian Wetland Drives Muskrat Decline
A new study shows loss of habitat in Canada’s Peace-Athabasca Delta is likely responsible for the decline of semi-aquatic muskrat, and could have larger implications.
Peace-Athabaska Delta
Stanford Earth

The Arctic is turning brown because of weird weather
Extreme climatic events are harming plant communities in the Arctic. The resulting colour change is bad news for the region's carbon storage.
Lofoten Islands, Norway

In a Transylvania Town, Bears and Humans Collide at the Dumpster
With their habitat shrinking, brown bears in Baile Tusnad, Romania, have turned to scavenging. Residents sit and gawk, environmentalists want to protect the animals, but hunters just want to hunt.
Băile Tușnad, Harghita, Romania
NY Times

Mother had 'no other choice' but to sell her 6-year-old daughter
An unprecedented drought in Afghanistan has led to families selling their children just to be able to feed their households.
هرات, Hirat, Afghanistan
Nick Paton Walsh and Masoud Popalzai, CNN

Lake Erie algal blooms 'seeded' internally by overwintering cells in lake-bottom sediments
Western Lake Erie's annual summer algal blooms are triggered, at least in part, by cyanobacteria cells that survive the winter in lake-bottom sediments, then emerge in the spring to "seed" the next year's bloom, according to a research team led by University of Michigan scientists.
Western Lake Erie, United States

Something Living At The Bottom Of The Sea Is Absorbing Large Amounts Of The CO2 In Oceans
Bacteria living more than 4,000 meters (2 miles) below the surface of the Pacific Ocean are absorbing an estimated 10 percent of the carbon dioxide that oc
Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone (CCFZ)
IFLScience

Grizzlies, black and polar bears found together for 1st time
Polar bears, black bears, and grizzlies have been found together for the first time during a University of Saskatchewan research project in northern Manitoba.
Wapusk National Park, Canada

A Record-Breaking Dive by a Hungry Killer Whale
Killer whales go to extraordinary depths to pilfer a meal.
South Sandwich Islands

Storms increasing & violent
A new report points to harsher more severe weather incidents happening in our province.
British Columbia
Castanet

Alaska’s commercial salmon harvest came in below forecast in 2018, largely due to pink salmon
"Sockeye salmon harvest has been pretty constant for the last four years or so, but pink salmon has been oscillating," he said. "We were forecasting almost 70 million pink salmon harvest, and we had 40 million.
Chignik, Alaska, United States

Only 411 North Atlantic right whales left
On Friday, the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium released its 2018 report card for the endangered species. There are just 411 left.
North Atlantic Ocean

Warming hurting shellfish, aiding predators, ruining habitat
PORTLAND, Maine -- Valuable species of shellfish have become harder to find on the East Coast because of degraded habitat caused by a warming environment, according to a pair of scientists that sought to find out whether environmental factors or overfishing was the source of the decline. The scientists reached ...
TribLIVE.com

Orcas thrive in a land to the north. Why are Puget Sound's dying?
Southern resident orcas are on the brink of extinction, while killer whales to the north are growing in numbers. The contrast exposes what’s killing Puget Sound’s orcas.
Seattle, Washington, United States
The Seattle Times

Drug-resistant sea lice out of control on B.C. Coast
Fisheries and Oceans Canada confirms the findings of independent research that says sea lice on salmon farms are becoming resistant to SLICE, a pesticide used to kill sea lice.
Fortune Channel, Clayoquot Sound, British Columbia, Canada
Digital Journal

One third of ticks in Finland carry at least one disease pathogen
Thanks to a growing tick database at the University of Turku, researchers have new insights into the disease pathogens that the tiny, blood-sucking arachnids carry.
Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland

With rain in the forecast, Ketchikan switches back to hydroelectric power
Following an extremely dry summer, October started off equally dry. But, the second half of the month has brought enough rain that Ketchikan’s electric utility is finally switching off its diesel generators.
Ketchikan, Alaska, United States

Sea stars still wasting away in B.C. waters
Reports that the sea star population was rebounding appear to have been overly optimistic, says the Coastal Ocean Research Institute.
Canada's Pacific Marine Ecosystems

UK climate getting warmer and wetter, says Met Office
Our hottest and coldest days are both getting warmer and tropical nights are becoming more common, a report says.
United Kingdom
Sky News

Few animals slaughtered early due to dry summer
Fewer than expected animals have been slaughtered early due to the unusually dry weather, reports a business association for Swedish slaughterhouses.
Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden
Radio Sweden

Icelandic lobsters in trouble
The Icelandic lobster stock is at an historic low and last fishing season was the worst catch ever known in Iceland.
Hofn, East, Iceland

Suspects in salmon mystery: Pinks and 'the blob'
Sockeye salmon runs across Alaska were dismal this year. But no one is certain why.
Gulf of Alaska
E&E News

Alaska’s weird, warm fall: a boon for farmers, but ‘really scary’ for people who depend on Arctic ice
Record-breaking October weather in much of Alaska has meant ice-free Arctic communities and fresh fruit and foliage in Southcentral.

Melting glacier in China draws tourists, climate worries
On the edge of the Third Pole, a retreating glacier draws tourists and worries over climate change.
Lijiang, Yunnan, China

Ticks Are Killing an Alarming Number of Moose Thanks to Climate Change
Researchers examined 179 radio-marked young moose over the course of a four-month period. Of those calves they screened, 125—or nearly 70 percent—of the moose calves died. The researchers suspect this is primarily because of the winter tick.
New Hampshire, United States
Earther

Spotted Seals Critically Endangered in Iceland
If spotted seal numbers continue to decrease at the same rate, they will decrease by 84% over the next 45 years, a time period of three generations for the animals.
Reykjavík, Reykjavík, Iceland

UNH study: More than two-thirds of baby moose are killed by winter ticks
The news isn’t getting any better for New Hampshire’s moose, as the population explosion of winter ticks driven by warmer winters continues to take a toll.
New Hampshire, United States
Concord Monitor

Video Describes Sanitation Adaptation with Arctic Box Repair
Arctic boxes connect water and sewer service to rural homes in Alaska. These boxes experience a lot of stress from differential ground movement caused by permafrost thaw. This video demonstrates how to repair a damaged Arctic box. Functional arctic boxes are an important part of water and wastewater services in Alaska.
Holy Cross, Alaska, United States
Vimeo

LEO Network at Sámi Youth Ecological Forum
On October 9, participants of the Youth Ecological Forum (IEF) attended a lecture by Mike Brook of the LEO Network. Participants who presented reports on northern biodiversity were particularly interested in the lecture. The delegation from Abyisky ulus prepared a report on “Cranes in the North-East of Yakutia and shared with the participants their observations of rare birds.
Rovaniemi, Lappi, Finland
The Northern Forum

Alaska's 2018 early fall extremes
Drought, warmth, and a towering ridge of high pressure make an unusual start to fall in Alaska.
Chukchi Sea
NOAA Climate.gov

Saimaa seal population climbs to nearly 400
Fifty percent of Saimaa ringed seal pups born between the years of 2014-2017 entered the world in a snowdrift constructed by volunteers.
Ristiina, Southern Savonia, Finland

Climate change threatens the kittiwake – extreme weather and altered prey availability reduce recruitment
Bad weather is bad news, also for the red-listed kittiwake. New research reveals that wind conditions combined with the availability of different prey species are determinants of chick production in this seabird.
Myre, Nordland, Norway
SEAPOP, Norwegian institute for nature research

Yukon considers ice boom to help form Dawson ice bridge this winter
Researchers from the National Research Council Canada investigated why the Yukon River didnt freeze at the George Black ferry crossing, where the ice bridge is usually built, for the last two winters.
Dawson, Yukon, Canada

72 million to three counties worst afffected by summer wildfires - Radio Sweden
Three hundred large forest fires scorching 21,000 hectares of land but this summer's intense heatwave triggered fewer fires than expected, said a report ...
Gävleborgs län, Sweden
Radio Sweden

High Arctic fishing ban a win for future generations, says member of Alaska tribe | CBC News
Some Indigenous people are applauding the “precautionary” approach several nations are taking to protect the environment through a new moratorium on commercial fishing in the High Arctic.
Ilulissat, Qaasuitsup Kommunia, Greenland

First supplies arrive in Kivalina for access route
The Arctic Sounder - Serving the Northwest Arctic and the North Slope
The Arctic Sounder

Insanity-Inducing Jellyfish are Heading South, Courtesy of Climate Change
This cute little guy makes you trip so hard you'll want to die, and could soon start popping up on the Gold Coast.
off Fraser Island
Vice

State hopes to kill off final Kenai Peninsula pike population
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game is planning to apply the fish-killing chemical rotenone to eight lakes in the Tote Road area south of Soldotna next week.
Kenai, Alaska, United States

This Stretch of Water Is Losing Oxygen Faster Than Almost Anywhere Else in The Ocean
A new study links rapid deoxygenation in the Gulf of St. Lawrence to two powerful currents: the Gulf Stream and the Labrador Current.
Gulf of St. Lawrence
ScienceAlert

Warmth made for tough hunting
While calm winds and sunny skies over the past few weeks were excellent for many outdoor activities, they were not ideal for hunting. The fall moose hunt in game management units 17B and 17C ended Sept. 15. Harvest reports are still trickling in, and, so far, the numbers are low.
Bristol Bay Times

Disasters declared for salmon fisheries along West Coast
Commercial salmon fisheries in Washington, Oregon, and California are eligible for a portion of $20 million in disaster assistance after federal officials determined fishery failures occurred.
Pacific Northwest, United States
KING

Blue Gold - Climate Change in Mongolia
Ulan Bator, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Moose are back in New York -- in a big way
Five aerial photos of moose in the Adirondacks
Adirondack Park, New York, USA
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

Gulf of St. Lawrence shows a dramatic oxygen decline
The Gulf of St. Lawrence has warmed and lost oxygen faster than almost anywhere else in the global oceans due to large-scale climate change, raising the possibility the Gulf could soon be unable to support marine life, according to a new study.
Gulf of St. Lawrence
Digital Journal

Gulf of St. Lawrence may soon be unable to support marine life
The Gulf of St. Lawrence has warmed and lost oxygen more rapidly than almost anywhere else in the Earth's oceanic waters due in part to climate change, raising the possibility that it could soon be unable to fully support marine life, according to a new study.
Gulf of St. Lawrence

Mysterious Microbes Turning Polar Ice Pink, Speeding Up Melt
Thriving communities of red algae are doing something nefarious to the world's ice sheets: melting them more quickly.
Port Charcot

Mysterious Microbes Turning Polar Ice Pink, Speeding Up Melt
Thriving communities of red algae are doing something nefarious to the world's ice sheets: melting them more quickly.
Greenland

Loads of seaweed are threatening the Caribbean’s sea life and tourism. Experts say we may be to blame
Scientists say the threat from sargassum is as serious as rising sea levels and hurricanes.
Quintana Roo, Mexico

Leptospirosis strains identified in Uruguay cattle
Leptospirosis infections, caused by Leptospira bacteria, occur in people and animals around the world, but different strains of the bacteria may vary in their ability to cause disease and to jump between species. Now, researchers have for the first time described the characteristics of the Leptospira variants that infect cattle in Uruguay.
Zarantonelli et al. 2018. Isolation of pathogenic Leptospira strains from naturally infected cattle in Uruguay reveals high serovar diversity, and uncovers a relevant risk for human leptospirosis. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases 12 (9): e0006694 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0006694
Uruguay
ScienceDaily

Switzerland is rapidly losing its snow (and climate change is probably to blame)
A new study based on analysis of satellite images shows how much snow cover Switzerland has lost in the last 20 years. Losing all the glaciers in Switzerland is not that far away.
Switzerland
The Local Switzerland

As Greenland Warms, Nature’s Seasonal Clock Is Thrown Off-Kilter
For millennia, ecosystems in Greenland and throughout the Arctic have been regulated by seasonal changes that govern the greening of vegetation and the migration and reproduction of animals. But a rapidly warming climate and disappearing sea ice are upending that finely tuned balance.
Kangerlussuaq, Qeqqata, Greenland
Yale E360

In Alaska, Starving Seabirds and Empty Colonies Signal a Broken Ecosystem
Mass die-offs and breeding failures, now ongoing for years, have marine biologists worried that this is a new normal caused by climate change.
Audubon

Survived the landslide accident in Svalbard. Now comes the twins' story of living with climate change.
From Longyearbyen to Kiribati, Bangladesh and California. Author Teresa Grøtan has collected young people's everyday life with climate change in the book "Before the Island Sink."
Aftenposten

Clues to combating Red Tide are found in mounting manatee carcasses
The toxic algae bloom has already been named as the killer or suspected killer of more than 100 manatees since the spring.
Saint Petersburg, Florida, United States
Tampa Bay Times

As Climate Warms, Algae Blooms In Drinking Water Supplies
Algae isn't just causing swimmers' itch anymore; it's threatening water supplies. State regulations are starting to address it.
Salem, Oregon, United States

'Shocking' decline of Arctic skua revealed in study
'Shocking' decline of Arctic skua revealed in study. Conservation scientists say a lack of food is behind the drop in the UK population.
STV News

Death Knell For Ash Trees
The Western New York landscape is now strewn with dead and dying Ash trees. The evidence of the Ash Borer's destruction is crystal clear, and our environment may never be the same.
Angola, New York, United States
WGRZ

Are invasive Kodiak crawdads eating their salmon neighbors’ babies?
Crayfish were first observed on Kodiak around 2015. Now, a local tribal organization is studying their movement, distribution and diet.
Kodiak, Alaska, United States

Hot, dry weather shrivels cereal harvest by a third
An unusually dry, hot summer means Sweden will see smaller yields of crops like wheat, barley and oats, according to the Swedish Board of Agriculture.
Sweden
Sveriges Radio

How smoky skies from wildfires is affecting mental health
Extreme smoke seems to be a new feature of summers in British Columbia with back-to-back years of heavy wildfires in the province and, for some, the overcast skies are taking a toll on mental health.

Lingering B.C. wildfire smoke puts children, elderly at risk
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control recommends children and elderly stay indoors during lingering smoke from forest fires.
The Star

Changements climatiques: la forêt boréale va fructifier, puis décliner
Climate change: the boreal forest will grow, then decline: The acceleration of growth will be fueled by warming in the north of the boreal forest, while the south (Abitibi, Lac-Saint-Jean, Gaspésie) will suffer from a lack of water.
Quebec, Canada
Le Devoir

Wildfire smoke blanketing much of B.C. causing health concerns, traffic warnings
The smoke has pushed pollution in Calgary and other cities to dangerous levels, and cast an unsettling, spooky haze over almost every part of B.C.
The Globe and Mail

Scientist warns of "seagrass crisis" in Caribbean
Scientist warns of "seagrass crisis" in Caribbeans MEXICO CITY (Rahnuma): Massive quantities of Sargassum seaweed are invading Caribbean beaches mostly thanks to global warming and countries should work closely with scientists for a sustainable solution, said a researcher at a leading Mexican university on
Ecuador
The Rahnuma Daily

Alaska village gets funding for erosion and other effects of climate change
A storm had destroyed Napakiak's boat and hovercraft landing, which residents relied on for food and supply deliveries, KYUK-AM reported.
Napakiak, Alaska, United States

N.W.T. had lower than average wildfire season this year, says government | CBC News
The Northwest Territories experienced a lower than average fire season this year. Fire crews and resources from the territory helped respond to wildfires in B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, the Yukon and Ontario.

Point Woronzof Erosion Protection Project Completed
Anchorage Water & Wastewater Utility (AWWU) addressed beach erosion and bluff recession that was affecting its Beach Tower, which is part of AWWU’s Asplund Wastewater Treatment Facility (AWWTF) at Point Woronzof in West Anchorage.
Anchorage Water and Wastewater News

Wisconsin Reservation Offers A Climate Success Story And A Warning
Climate change is causing more severe flooding around the country, and a disproportionate number of Native American communities are on the front lines.
Odanah, Wisconsin, United States

Biologists survey invasive crawfish in Kodiak Island lake
A team of biologists is surveying a lake on Kodiak Island for crawfish, an invasive species in Alaska that has been observed in higher frequency over past several years.
Kodiak, Alaska, United States

Toxic algae bloom a threat to drinking water
High levels of toxic blue-green algae, which has thrived in this summer's extreme hot weather, is making it more difficult to secure clean drinking water. ...
Uppsala, Uppsala län, Sweden

Relocated beavers help restore Mongolia river habitat
In Gachuurt Village in Bayanzurkh district, beavers are being introduced to restore the headwaters of the Tuul River, the main drinking water source of the capital city, Ulaanbaatar.
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
MONTSAME News Agency

Increasing opportunity for kingfish in Tasmanian waters
Redmap, a new and interactive website, invites the Australian community to spot, log and map marine species that are uncommon in Australia, or along particular parts of our coast.
Tasman Sea
Redmap

Toxic algae blooms spike in Upstate NY this week
Sixteen water bodies were added to this week's list.
Upstate New York, United States
syracuse.com

'Virtually unprecedented': Banff bison roaming free for first time in 140 years
Wild and free. That’s the new life for a herd of 31 plains bison which have finally been fully reintroduced to the backcountry of Banff National Park for the first time in 140 years.“These are not a captive display herd.
Banff, Alberta, Canada
Calgary Herald

90 percent of Lake Okeechobee smothered in blue-green algae bloom
EUMETSAT satellite shows blue-green algae bloom covering Lake Okeechobee.
Lake Okeechobee, Florida, United States
TCPalm

102 fires burning in B.C.’s southeast region
More than 100 fires are burning in B.C.'s Southeast Fire Region, with half of them caused from a lightning storm earlier in the week.
Southeast British Columbia, Canada

Persistent algae bloom in the Gulf of Mexico is killing Sea Turtles
A persistent algae bloom in the Gulf of Mexico has become a huge threat to sea turtles, a species which is already endangered.
Gulf of Mexico near Southwest Florida, United States
earth.com

Many parts of Southern California broke heat records for July
Many places across Southern California saw one of the warmest Julys ever recorded in 2018, including downtown Los Angeles and Death Valley
Long Beach, California, United States
latimes.com

Death Valley Records Planet’s Hottest Month, Scientists Warn it May Become Uninhabitable
The "business-as-usual warming of the planet" could make areas too warm for human habitation if heat trends continue, climate researchers say.
Death Valley, California, United States
HuffPost Canada

Heat causing Hydro bills to soar, some too much so
If you've gotten an unexpectedly large electric bill in the mail, don't worry Manitoba Hydro knows they have a billing issue and are working to correct it.Hydro says the soaring summer heat is causing the issue.
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Winnipeg Sun

Harmful algae blooms found across Central Montana
Harmful algae blooms are something Montana has to worry about every summer, and now there have been a couple places in central and western Montana confirmed to have the harmful blue green algae. T...
Central and Western Montana, United States
Fox Montana

Trade-offs between foraging efficiency and pup feeding rate of lactating northern fur seals in a declining population
Foraging strategies and their resulting efficiency (energy gain to cost
ratio) affect animals' survival and reproductive success and can be
linked to population dynamics. However, they have rarely been studied
quantitatively in free-ranging animals. We investigated foraging
strategies and efficiencies of wild northern fur seals Callorhinus
ursinus during their breeding season to understand potential links to
the observed population decline in the Bering Sea. We equipped 20
lactating females with biologgers to determine at-sea foraging
behaviours. We measured energy expenditure while foraging using the
doubly-labelled water method, and energy gained using (1) the types and
energy densities of prey consumed, and (2) the number of prey capture
attempts (from acceleration data). Our results show that seals employed
2 foraging strategies: one group (40\%) fed mostly in oceanic waters on
small, high energy-density prey, while the other (60\%) stayed over the
shallow continental shelf feeding mostly on larger, lower quality fish.
Females foraging in oceanic waters captured 3 times more prey, and had
double the foraging efficiencies of females that foraged on-shelf in
neritic waters. However, neritic seals made comparatively shorter trips,
and likely fed their pups similar to 20 to 25\% more frequently. The
presence of these strategies which either favor foraging efficiency
(energy) or frequency of nursing (time) might be maintained in the
population because they have similar net fitness outcomes. However,
neither strategy appears to simultaneously maximize time and energy
allocated to nursing, with potential impacts on the survival of pups
during their first year at sea.
Reef Rookery, Saint Paul, Alaska, United States
MARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES
Tiphaine Jeanniard du Dot, Andrew W. Trites, John P. Y. Arnould, John R. Speakman, Christophe Guinet

Filmmaker documents a disappearing caribou herd
Ten caribou herds in Canada's West are on the verge of dying out. For one amateur filmmaker who spent a decade documenting what he thought would be a conservation success story, the recent decline is like a 'huge kick in the gut.'
Kootenay Pass, British Columbia, Canada

Mysterious algae vortex the size of Manhattan can be seen from space
Scientists aren't sure what is causing this whirlpool of algae but believe it's likely to cause a marine dead zone.
Baltic Sea
MNN - Mother Nature Network

Worms frozen in permafrost for up to 42,000 years come back to life
Nematodes moving and eating again for the first time since the Pleistocene age in major scientific breakthrough, say experts.
Магадан, Магаданская область, Russia
Siberian Times

Photos: How climate change is transforming Canada
From floods to fires, drought to coastal erosion, climate change is already having an impact on Canada's communities, landscapes and wildlife
Canadian Geographic

How to Stop Toxic Algae From Overwhelming Florida's Largest Lake
Blue-green algae has bloomed again in Lake Okeechobee, filling waterways with putrid sludge that can contaminate local water and marine animals.
Lake Okeechobee, Florida, United States
Pacific Standard

State drops invasive insect defense zone for ash trees
ALBANY - After years of trying to slow a voracious Chinese beetle that is decimating ash trees, state environmental officials are waving the white flag: The Department of Environmental Conservation dropped a logging quarantine, and said it might be time to cut healthy trees still uninfested.
In a brief notice posted online Wednesday, the DEC repealed logging restrictions that had failed to contain the spread of the emerald ash borer (EAB) by limiting shipments of ash.
The state created the quarantine in 2015 to slow the insect, which is a shiny green beetle about the size of a penny. The borer likely will ultimately bring about the end of the state's 700 million ash trees - down from earlier estimates of 900 million ash trees before the beetles' arrival - and forever change an industry that uses ash to produce bats for major league baseball.
Dolgeville, New York, United States
Times Union

The Decline of Yellow Cedar in Alaska’s Temperate Rainforest
Culturally vital, ecologically unique, and economically valuable, the yellow cedar’s fate is closely tied to snow
Poison Cove, Alaska, United States
Earth Island Journal

Ukraine wheat harvest, exports to fall on drought: analyst
UkrAgroConsult on Tuesday cut its forecast for Ukraine's 2018/19 crop year wheat harvest and exports due to a severe drought across the country during spring and the first half of summer.
Київ, Київська, Ukraine
U.S.

Glaciers in the Canadian High Arctic are melting at an unprecedented rate
A study of more than 1,700 glaciers on northern Ellesmere Island found six per cent of ice coverage disappeared between 1999 and 2015
Northern Ellesmere Island, Canada
Canadian Geographic

This aquatic grass could help shellfish threatened by ocean acidification
An increase in carbon emissions are showing up not only in the air, but also in water. Now researchers and shellfish farmers are teaming up to see how marine plants can help stave off the effects of ocean acidification. Special correspondent Jes Burns of Oregon Public Broadcasting reports.
Thornedyke Bay, Washington, United States
PBS NewsHour

Ticks are an increasing problem
Several serious diseases are in and around the Czech Republic, If you're planning on staying in Prague for any length of time, it makes sense to familiarize yourself with the healthcare options available in the city. Nothing is more important than your health!
Prague, Praha, Czech Republic
Prague TV

With climate change, numbers of black sea bass increase
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – It may be time for local eateries to explore black sea bass recipes. Warmer waters off Rhode Island have caused a spike for this species, and loosened regulations are reeli…
New England Coastal Waters, United States
Republican-American

Salmon are showing up in the Arctic in record numbers
Salmon used to be infrequent visitors to the Mackenzie River and communities of the Arctic, but more species have begun to show up in the North more often and in greater numbers than ever before.
MacKenzie River Delta

Feel like a swim? Here’s the lowdown on Anchorage lakes
Water quality in Anchorage's lakes is generally good, but swimmer's itch is a risk.

Aequorea (hydrozoan) bloom in the Northern California Current
Dataset from Dr. Brian Burke (NOAA; brian.burke@noaa.gov); derived from surface trawls taken during NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center Juvenile Salmon & Ocean Ecosystem Survey (JSOES).
Northern California Current
NOAA NWFSC CCIEA Custom Plotting

A huge stretch of the Arctic Ocean is turning into the Atlantic
The divide between Atlantic and Arctic isn’t just geographical, it’s physical. And the physics are changing.
North Barents Sea

Warmer waters cut Alaska's prized salmon harvest
Warming waters have reduced the harvest of Alaska's prized Copper River salmon to just a fraction of last year's harvest, Alaska biologists say.
Copper River, Alaska, United States
Reuters

Miami-Dade Home Values Influenced by Rising Seas
Single-family homes near sea level in Miami-Dade County are increasing in value at a slower rate than ones at elevation, according to a new research study
Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
CleanTechnica

Rare Harry Potter owl spotted for only the fourth time in history
Bird Notes columnist Julian Hughes of RSPB Conwy reveals how the Snowy Owl got twitchers in a flap, and outlines 11 birding events in the coming days
Amlwch, Sir Ynys Mon, Wales, United Kingdom
Daily Post

Global warming cooks up 'a different world' over 3 decades
Over 30 years the world’s annual temperature has warmed nearly 1 degree according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Salida, Colorado, United States
Lake Cowichan Gazette

As the Arctic warms, a changing landscape on the Chukchi Sea
It’s well established that Arctic ice is changing in dramatic ways. As the climate warms, ice coverage is decreasing, the amount of multiyear ice has gone down significantly and in
Barrow, Alaska, United States

‘Blob’ is blamed: Alaska’s Copper River sees low commercial-salmon harvest
ANCHORAGE — The commercial salmon harvest in Alaska's Copper River is so far the second lowest in 50 years, state officials said. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game's fish...
Copper River, Alaska, United States
The Seattle Times

Ocean warming, ‘junk-food’ prey cause of massive seabird die-off, study finds
In the fall of 2014, West Coast residents witnessed a strange, unprecedented ecological event. Tens of thousands of small seabird carcasses washed ashore on beaches from California to British Columbia, in what would become one of the largest bird die-offs ever recorded.
A network of more than
Pacific Coast, US and Canada
Technology Org

U.S. Coastal Flooding Breaks Records as Sea Level Rises, NOAA Report Shows
The frequency of high-tide flooding has doubled in 30 years. Some cities faced more than 20 days of it in the past year, and not just during hurricanes.
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
InsideClimate News

Fairbanks airfields convert to alternative firefighting foam over contamination concerns
Fairbanks International Airport and Eielson Air Force Base no longer use a type of firefighting foam containing a chemical compound that’s contaminated groundwater around the city, and that poses a potential threat to human health.

The catastrophic thermokarst lake drainage events of 2018 in northwestern Alaska: fast-forward into the future
The combination of abundant rain and snowfall and extremely warm mean annual air temperatures may have led to the destabilization of permafrost around lake margins. Rapid snow melt and high amounts of excess meltwater further promoted rapid lateral breaching at lake shores and consequently sudden drainage of some of the largest lakes of the study region.
Kotzebue, Alaska
The Cryosphere

Changing environment - Stories above the Arctic Circle
Malmberget, Norrbotten, Sweden
YouTube

Norway’s New Invaders: The Spanish Slug – Visions from nature
Considered the most destructive pest slug in Europe, the Spanish slug, or Arion lusitanicus, or Arion vulgaris, or sometimes Geoff (there’s some controversy over the name, thanks to the fact that the Arion genus contains up to 50 species and they all look a lot like one another) is between 7-15cm long and can weigh up to 15kilos if it’s sitting on a dog.
NTNU

Winds of Change on the Mongolian Steppe
For centuries, nomads have herded livestock on the Mongolian steppe. Today, Mongolians are proud of their nomadic heritage, but globalisation and climate change are transforming the steppes and nomadic traditions. How Mongolia adapts to these new forces sweeping the steppes will determine the country’s future.
Harhorin, Övörhangay, Mongolia
Maptia

Endangered plant thrives after Sidney Spit restoration
Coastal sand ecosystem returning to health after 1.5 years of work
Sidney Spit National Marine Park, Canada
Saanich News

Climate Change draws invasive species to the Arctic
Warmer temperatures and declining sea ice pulls foreign animals and plants to the Arctic, with drastic consequences for these sensitive ecosystems.
Nuuk, Kommuneqarfik Sermersooq, Greenland
ScienceNordic

Climate change in the Rockies could make this Colorado wildflower vanish forever
Creamy jasmine wildflowers once common in the Colorado high country may be vanishing as climate change brings warmer and drier conditions.
Crested Butte, Colorado, United States
The Denver Post

Beluga whales dive deeper, longer to find food in Arctic
Reductions in sea ice in the Arctic have a clear impact on animals such as polar bears that rely on frozen surfaces for feeding, mating and migrating. But sea ice loss is changing Arctic habitat and affecting other species in more indirect ways, new research finds.
Chukchi Sea, Arctic Ocean
Science News

To get good credit, Alaska’s fishing towns may have to factor in climate change
Late last year one of the world’s largest credit rating agencies announced that climate change would have an economic impact on the U.S.
Unalaska, Alaska, United States
By Rashah McChesney, Alaska's Energy Desk - Juneau

Researchers see 'very reassuring' early results in N.W.T. contaminants study
The initial results represent 330 participants from six communities. Around 98 per cent of participants had mercury levels below the health guidance value - a baseline to assess health risks.
Kakisa, Northwest Territories, Canada

Climate change threatens hairy survivor of multiple ice ages
A scientific paper published recently hints at how increasing winter rainfall will affect the Arctic muskox. An N.W.T. biologist says winter rain isn't good for the mammal, but it's actually warmer summers that could prove detrimental.
Northwest Territories, Canada

Insurers say Canadian weather getting hotter, wetter and weirder
Average number of days with heavy rain or snow across Canada has been outside norm since spring 2013
Lake Cowichan Gazette

Cold winters: what they mean for the bug population in Middle Georgia
The winter season of 2016-2017 proved to be the fifth warmest on record for Georgia, sparking an unusually large number of insects during the following warm months.
Macon, Georgia, United States
WGXA

Erosion may force this Southwest Alaska village to move — again
This is not the first time the village of Chefornak has faced the threat of erosion and flooding, but relocating won’t be as easy as it was last time.
Chefornak, Alaska, United States

Beavers Emerge as Agents of Arctic Destruction
Climate change may be enabling beavers to move deeper into the Arctic. And as they move, they magnify climate change’s effects.
Noatak, Alaska, United States

Scientists ‘shocked’ by massive snowfall increases among Alaska’s highest peaks
A team of scientists presented data on Tuesday suggesting that even as the state of Alaska has warmed up extremely rapidly in recent years, snowfall in the iconic Denali National Park has increased dramatically during the era of human-driven global warming.
Denali National Park, Alaska, United States

The High Latitude Marine Heat Wave of 2016 and its Impacts on Alaska
The warmth of the Bering Sea in 2016
was unprecedented in the historical record, and
the warmth of the GOA nearly so. The FAR values
Fig. 8.2. Normalized anomalies of (a) heat content and (b) SSTs for the present (black) and preindustrial (blue)
climate of the GOA (circle and plus) and Bering Sea (triangle and x) regions from the five model ensembles.
Anomalies exceeding 2016 value are in red (shapes as indicated), and the ensemble/region means are shown by
the solid lines. Mean probability distributions (%) of (c) heat content and (d) SSTs from the model ensembles;
solid (open) circles indicate present (preindustrial) climate for the GOA (blue) and Bering Sea (red). Spread
of individual models is shown by the smaller, corresponding open/closed circles. Dashed vertical lines show the
2016 anomalies: GOA (blue), Bering Sea (red).
AMERICAN METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY JANUARY 2018 | S43
based on an ensemble of five global climate models
indicate that the 2016 warm ocean anomalies cannot
be explained without anthropogenic climate warming,
although the region’s large internal variability
was also a contributing factor (Fig. 8.1 and online
supplement material). A strong El Niño with a positive
PDO (warm) phase, together with preconditioning
of the waters during 2014/15 and the anomalous
atmospheric circulation of early 2016, made for a
“perfect storm” of marine heating around Alaska.
Both anthropogenic forcing and internal variability
were necessary for the extreme warmth of the subarctic
seas. Our conclusions are consistent with and
extend previous findings concerning the 2014 warm
SST anomalies in the northeast Pacific (Weller et al.
2015). Additionally, the trajectory of the present climate
with RCP8.5 indicates that SST and HC extreme
anomalies like 2016 will become common in the
coming decades. Given the many impacts of the 2016
anomaly, the future climate projected here will result
in a profound shift for people, systems, and species
when such warm ocean temperatures become common
and not extreme in the GOA and Bering regions.
Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society
John E. Walsh, Richard L. Thoman, Uma S. Bhatt, Peter A. Bieniek, Brian Brettschneider, Michael Brubaker, Seth Danielson, Rick Lader, Florence Fetterer, Kris Holderied, Katrin Iken, Andy Mahoney, Moll

Can These Seabirds Adapt Fast Enough to Survive a Melting Arctic?
On a remote Alaskan sandbar, under the watchful eye of a devoted scientist for more than four decades, climate change is forcing a colony of seabirds into a real-time race: evolve or go extinct.
Audubon

How debris from rockets launched far away is a risk to Inuit food security - ArcticToday
When the European Space Agency (ESA) launched a satellite into orbit on Oct. 13, it did so despite opposition from Inuit leaders in Canada and Greenland over its potential to contaminate an important Arctic area.
Greenland

Environmental and behavioral changes may influence the exposure of an Arctic apex predator to pathogens and contaminants
Recent decline of sea ice habitat has coincided with increased use of land by polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from the southern Beaufort Sea (SB), which may alter the risks of exposure to pathogens and contaminants. We assayed blood samples from SB polar bears to assess prior exposure to the pathogens Brucella spp., Toxoplasma gondii, Coxiella burnetii, Francisella tularensis, and Neospora caninum, estimate concentrations of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), and evaluate risk factors associated with exposure to pathogens and POPs. We found that seroprevalence of Brucella spp. and T. gondii antibodies likely increased through time, and provide the first evidence of exposure of polar bears to C. burnetii, N. caninum, and F. tularensis. Additionally, the odds of exposure to T. gondii were greater for bears that used land than for bears that remained on the sea ice during summer and fall, while mean concentrations of the POP chlordane (ΣCHL) were lower for land-based bears. Changes in polar bear behavior brought about by climate-induced modifications to the Arctic marine ecosystem may increase exposure risk to certain pathogens and alter contaminant exposure pathways.
Todd C. Atwood, Colleen Duncan, Kelly A. Patyk, Pauline Nol, Jack Rhyan, Matthew McCollum, Melissa A. McKinney, Andrew M. Ramey, Camila K. Cerqueira-Cézar, Oliver C. H. Kwok, Jitender P. Dubey & Steve

As ice thaws, rock avalanches on Southeast Alaska mountains are getting bigger
A study of rock avalanches in the western part of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve found that the likelihood of large slides covering about 2 square miles has at least doubled in the last five years.
Lamplugh Glacier, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska, United States
Alaska Dispatch News

Study: ‘Unprecedented’ rain, warmth for Alaska by end of century
Climate warming is likely to bring more episodes of heavy rain, above-freezing winter thaws and scorching hot summer days in the coming decades, says a study by scientists at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Alaska Dispatch News

Only 1,123 adult winter Chinook salmon returned to Sacramento River in 2017
Only 1,123 adult winter Chinook salmon, once one of the biggest salmon runs on the Sacramento River and its tributaries, returned to the Sacramento Valley in 2017, according to a report sent to the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) by the...
Livingston Stone Fish Hatchery
Daily Kos

New Study Finds 8 Islands Swallowed By Rising Sea Level
Need a reason to be concerned about rising sea level? I've got eight.
Nahlap Island, Micronesia
Forbes

Kenow Wildfire 2017
Alberta consistently sees an average of 1400 wildfires each year however, the increased economic costs due to firefighting, equipment, damaged properties, evacuations, insurance, remote housing and food can be a challenge.
Waterton Lakes, Alberta, Canada
Jason Giacchetta, David Oswald, Mike Brook

Brown bears are choosing a vegetarian diet because of climate change
Brown bears on Alaska’s Kodiak Island are switching to a vegetarian diet of elderberries in preference to salmon because the warmer temperatures are ripening the fruit earlier in the year. Normally the bears would eat up to 75 per cent of the salmon that swim up the rivers to spawn up until about late August. And, when this plentiful supply of protein started to dry up, the bears would switch to the elderberries that usually come into fruit in late August or early September.

Once-lush McHugh Creek trails were transformed by July's wildfire
Chugach State Park hikers survey the damage from hot days in July when the rainforest burned.

Vancouver Island marmot facing a new threat: creeping treeline
Habitat of the endangered Vancouver Island marmot is disappearing as the warming climate allows trees to grow higher up mountainsides, turning alpine meadows into forest. Adam Taylor, executive . . .
Nanaimo Lakes area, British Columbia, Canada
Times Colonist

Changing climate pushes polar bears toward more dangerous interactions with humans
Jim Wilder, the polar bear project leader for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Anchorage, recently published a paper on how climate change is impacting polar bear behavior. The study is the first of its kind, combining research from the United States, Norway, Canada, Greenland and Russia to look at what motivates polar bears to attack humans.
Arviat, Nunavut Territory, Canada

Sun'aq Tribe of Kodiak Starts Crayfish Monitoring Program
In August 2017, Sun’aq Tribe of Kodiak was awarded funding by USFWS Tribal Wildlife Grant (TWG) Program. The two-year project, titled “Distribution, Movement and Diet of Invasive Crayfish Populations in Buskin River Watershed on Kodiak Island, Alaska” focuses on characterizing the distribution (snorkel/scuba diving surveys), movement (radio tagging) and diet (stable isotope analyses) of the Signal Crayfish population within Buskin Watershed.
Bushkin Lake, Kodiak, Alaska, United States
Sunaq.org

ANTHC partners to integrate a holistic community health approach in Oscarville | Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium
On the north bank of the Kuskokwim River, 401 miles from Anchorage, lies the community of Oscarville, Alaska. In December 2014, the Oscarville Traditional Council volunteered the village to serve as the pilot community for the implementation of a holistic approach project, with the goal of creating healthy, thriving and sustainable communities by bringing together important communal pieces, including culture, housing, energy, infrastructure, water/sewer, community health and economic development. Oscarville’s candidacy for the pilot project stemmed from the sanitation, environmental ...
Oscarville, Alaska, United States
Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium

Record-breaking marine heatwave powered by climate change cooks Tasmania's fisheries
Climate change has warmed the waters east of Tasmania at four times the speed of the global average. But the heatwave of the southern summer of 2015/2016 was something exceptional, damaging fisheries and bringing new species to the island. It's a sign of things to come, say the researchers examining these events.
east coast of Tasmania, Australia
ScienceDaily

Ten Alaskans were sickened by raw or undercooked walrus. A parasite was in the meat, CDC says.
Serious and unusual outbreaks of illness from eating raw or undercooked walrus to call attention to the risks.
St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, United States
Alaska Dispatch News

'Seemingly unbelievable' temperatures becoming more common in Arctic winters
Warm periods are bringing the temperature up by as much as 30 C in the middle of winter

How Climate Change is Spurring Wildfires in Alaska and NWT
Longer hot, dry spells in the boreal forests that stretch across Alaska and the Northwest Territories create the conditions for wildfires triggered by lightning strikes.
Elliott Highway, 48km (30 miles) NW of Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
Arctic Deeply

Crowdsourcing capelin: New website to alert biologists to locations of 'key' fish
Keeping tabs on capelin — from the shores of the Atlantic ocean to the world wide web.
Newfoundland and Labrador

A heavy blow for a small community – Greenland rebuilds its communities
Greenlanders struggle to get their lives back together and rebuild the small communities hit by the tsunami earlier this month.
Nuugaatsiaq, Qaasuitsup Kommunia, Greenland
IceNetws

Last Season’s Difficulties for Diomede Auklets May Be a Sign of Changing Climate
An assistant professor at the University of Alaska–Fairbanks suspects that changes seen in the auklet population on Little Diomede may be related to changes in climate.
Diomede, Alaska, United States

In a Bering Sea battle of killer whales vs. fishermen, the whales are winning
In the Bering Sea, near the edge the continental shelf, fishermen are trying to escape a predator that seems to outwit them at every turn, stripping their fishing lines and lurking behind their vessels.
Aleutian Islands, Alaska, United States

Karrat Fjord, Greenland Landslide & Tsunami
huge tsunami occurred in the Karrat Fjord on the west coast of Greenland, resulting in severe property damage and casualties in the tiny fishing village of Nuugaatsiaq. The seismic energy detected prior to the tsunami was so large it was first thought to have been the result of a magnitude 4.1 earthquake. However, the cause was a massive landslide on a steep slope of the fjord where millions of cubic meters of rock plunged into the water below, 32 kilometers northeast of the village. Forty-five structures, including eleven houses, were washed away or destroyed, and four people were killed.
Nuugaatsiaq, Qaasuitsup, Greenland
International Tsunami Information Center

Declining survival of black brant from subarctic and arctic breeding areas
Since the mid 1990s, the number of black brant (Branta bernicla nigricans; brant) nests on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD), Alaska, USA, the historically predominant breeding area of brant, has declined steadily.
Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska, United States
The Journal of Wildlife Management
Leach, Alan G. and Ward, David H. and Sedinger, James S. and Lindberg, Mark S. and Boyd, W. Sean and Hupp, Jerry W. and Ritchie, Robert J.

Climate Destabilization Causing Thousands of New Species Migrations: Plant, Animal, Insect, Bird
In the Arctic, brown bears (Ursus arctos) are expanding their range northward, in some cases competing with and even mating with polar bears (*Ursus maritimus*). Beavers (*Castor canadensis*) have been found as far north as the coast of the Beaufort Sea. The list includes mammals, amphibians, fish and insects.
Beaufort Sea, Arctic Ocean
EnviroNews DC News Bureau

2017-2019 North Atlantic Right Whale Unusual Mortality Event
Since June 7, 2017, elevated North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) mortalities have been documented, primarily in Canada and were declared an Unusual Mortality Event.  In 2017, there was a total of 17 confirmed dead stranded whales (12 in Canada; 5 in the United States) and in 2018, three whales stranded in the United States. In 2019, two whales have stranded in Canada.
NOAA Fisheries

NOAA Is Investigating 70 Gray Whale Deaths Along the West Coast
The whales seem to have died from starvation and washed up on shore from California to Alaska
Smithsonian

'Very, very serious situation': In northern Labrador, it's getting harder to find food
According to numbers in the Food Security in Nunatsiavut survey, nearly 60 per cent of all households along Labrador's north coast struggle with access to food, and most worry about it running out before they have money to buy more.
Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Housing Needs in Oscarville, Alaska: a Holistic Approach to Sustainable Northern Communities
Oscarville, Alaska, United States
YouTube

Walruses at Risk of Extinction in Canada’s North
These big, blubbery beasts are sensitive souls that dislike being disturbed by people. Unfortunately for them, warming Arctic temperatures are bringing more shipping and tourism to their home waters.
Landcaster Sound, NU Canada
Arctic Deeply

After the last Sigluaq
Sixty years ago, around the time when Matthew Rexford's father's father was turning the ground to build his own ice cellar as a proud whaling captain, there were 12 of these such cellars in Kaktovik. Today there is only one left.
Kaktovik, Alaska, United States
The Arctic Sounder

Atlantic currents moving plastic junk into the Arctic, research says
Parts of the Arctic Ocean have become an “important sink of plastic debris,” mainly coming north from the southern latitudes—with 300 billion or more plastic items carried in ice-free Arctic waters.
North Atlantic Ocean
Nunatsiqaq Online
Andrés Cózar, Elisa Martí, Carlos M. Duarte, Juan García-de-Lomas, Erik van Sebille, Thomas J. Ballatore, Victor M. Eguíluz, J. Ignacio González-Gordillo, Maria L. Pedrotti, Fidel Echevarría, Romain T

Migration induced by sea-level rise could reshape the US population landscape
Miami, Florida, United States
Nature Climate Change

Moving Meshik (Video)
This LEO Network video documents coastal erosion impact on the old village of Meshik in Southwest Alaska and the pending lake draining event that will take out the road still used by the residents of Port Heiden. The rate of coastal erosion here is one of the highest in the world. Scientists and community members are working together to document the impacts and develop effective adaptation strategies.
Port Heiden, Alaska, United States
ANTHC Center for Climate and Health

Arctic Indigenous Peoples Are Leading the Way in Ecological Restoration and Climate Resilience
A major new international study has recognized the crucial role Arctic Indigenous Peoples have to play in ecological restoration efforts that help build resilience to major climate-change driven shifts in the distribution of land, marine and freshwater species.
Näätämö River, Lapland, Finland
TruthOut
By Hannibal Rhoades and Tero Mustonen, IC Magazine

Missing Lynx Return to New England
The Canada lynx, once eliminated from most of New England by forest clearing and unsustainable hunting and trapping, is making a comeback.
Pittsburg, New Hampshire, United States
The Adirondack Almanack

Effects of weather variability on maple syrup production studied
Some farmers in the United States and Canada have noticed that the quantity and quality of their maple syrup is changing with climate variability. Now researchers who are investigating these observations.
United States and Canada, Universal State Boundary, North America

Government and nonprofits shakeup village of Oscarville with clean water and cheaper power
After discussing the difference between what they wanted and what they needed, it became obvious that what they needed was much more basic: water.

Climate change drives Solomon Islands' people of the sea ashore
The inhabitants of Lau Lagoon in Solomon Islands have lived in harmony with nature for generations. Now their entire way of life is vanishing beneath the waves.
Honiara, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
DW.COM

New Rudolphs for Christmas - all 2,349 reindeer killed in anthrax outbreak are replaced
Three separate outbreaks of anthrax this summer in the Yamalo-Nenets region killed one boy, almost 2,400 reindeer, and several dogs. All the new 'Christmas deer' are from Yamal, and unaffected by the infection.
Noyabrsk, Yamalo-Nenetskiy Avtonomnyy Okrug, Russia

How the American bullfrog is eating its way into BC
Like a horde of slimy green zombies, the incredibly invasive American bullfrog is hopping the border into the West Kootenay.
Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area, British Columbia, Canada
Nelson Star

Sargassum seaweed partly responsible for Guyana's reduced fish production
Guyana’s fish production has suffered a significant decline partly due to the adverse impact of sargassum seaweed, local and regional fishery experts said.
Demerara Waves

NASA releases time-lapse of the disappearing Arctic polar ice cap
This visualization begins by showing the dynamic beauty of the Arctic sea ice as it responds to winds and ocean currents. Research into the behavior of the Arctic sea ice for the last 30 years has led to a deeper understanding of how this ice survives from year to year. In the animation that follows, age of the sea ice is visible, showing the younger ice in darker shades of blue and the oldest ice in brighter white. This visual representation of the ice age clearly shows how the quantity of older and thicker ice has changed between 1984 and 2016.
YouTube

So Long and Thanks for All the Fish: Overexploitation of the Regionally Endemic Galapagos Grouper Mycteroperca olfax (Jenyns, 1840)
The regionally endemic Galapagos Grouper, locally known as bacalao, is one of the most highly prized finfish species within the Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR). Concerns of overfishing, coupled with a lack of fishing regulations aimed at this species raises concerns about the current population health. We assessed changes in population health over a 30-year period using three simple indicators: (1) percentage of fish below reproductive size (Lm); (2) percentage of fish within the optimum length interval (Lopt); and (3) percentage of mega-spawners in the catch. Over the assessed period, none of the indicators reached values associated with healthy populations, with all indicators declining over time. Furthermore, the most recent landings data show that the vast majority of the bacalao caught (95.7%,) were below Lm, the number of fish within the Lopt interval was extremely low (4.7%), and there were virtually no mega-spawners (0.2%). Bacalao fully recruit to the fishery 15 cm below the size at which 50% of the population matures. The Spawning Potential Ratio is currently 5% of potential unfished fecundity, strongly suggesting severe overfishing. Our results suggest the need for bacalao-specific management regulations that should include minimum (65 cm TL) and maximum (78 cm TL) landing sizes, slot limits (64–78 cm TL), as well as a closed season during spawning from October to January. It is recognized that these regulations are harsh and will certainly have negative impacts on the livelihoods of fishers in the short term, however, continued inaction will likely result in a collapse of this economically and culturally valuable species. Alternative sources of income should be developed in parallel with the establishment of fishing regulations to limit the socio-economic disruption to the fishing community during the transition to a more sustainable management regime.
Galapagos Island, Ecuador
Plos One
Paolo Usseglio , Alan M. Friedlander, Haruko Koike, Johanna Zimmerhackel, Anna Schuhbauer, Tyler Eddy, Pelayo Salinas-de-León

Beware of action that would put age-old tundra nomadism at risk in Yamal, says expert
As a debate is underway on culling as many as 250,000 reindeer due to overgrazing, Research Professor Bruce C Forbes warns against some proposed solutions.
Noyabrsk, Yamalo-Nenetskiy Avtonomnyy Okrug, Russia

Work begins on $1M trench to stave off Matanuska River erosion
The 500-foot, rock-filled trench won't be as long as experts advise and wasn't engineered to protect private property.
Butte, Alaska, United States

Alaska to date remains anthrax free
Warming Arctic temperatures can create an environment friendly to bacterial infections like anthrax, an infection spread by contact with bacterial spores, which plant-eating animals may eat or breathe in while grazing.
The Cordova Times

Sea Lice Exploded among Wild Young Salmon near BC Fish Farms
B.C salmon farms last year were besieged by sea lice, according to a new University of Toronto study, which also found a dangerously steep rise of infestation among young wild salmon who swam nearby.
Broughton Archipelago, British Columbia, Canada

Characterization of three novel species of Labyrinthulomycota isolated from ochre sea stars (Pisaster ochraceus)
FioRito, Rebecca, Celeste Leander, and Brian Leander. "Characterization of three novel species of Labyrinthulomycota isolated from ochre sea stars (Pisaster ochraceus." Marine Biology 163.8 (2016): 1-10.
Bamfield, British Columbia, Canada
FioRito, R., Leander, C. and Leander, B., 2016. Marine Biology, 163(8), pp.1-10.
Rebecca FioRito, Celeste Leander, and Brian Leander

Contagious cancers found in bivalves
Contagious cancers occur in clams and other bivalves, and some can even spread between different species of bivalves.
Esquimault, British Columbia, Canada

The secret killer in your garden
Somebody is poisoning the moose of Anchorage. It's probably you. And many of your relatives, friends, and neighbors. Because the entire city is a garden laced with poisonous plants.

Many bird species are on the move
Did you know there are two different species of hummingbirds in the Vancouver area? The rufous hummingbird is a tiny orange-red hummer that visits B.C. each summer and winters in Mexico, while the slightly larger maroon-and-green Anna’s hummingbird is here all year.
Georgia Straight Vancouver's News & Entertainment Weekly

Unusually big pink salmon may be related to smaller coho and kings
The latest research suggests pink salmon could be depriving offshore coho and chinook of squid.
Auke Bay, Alaska, United States
KTOO Public Media

Miami Beach's Tidal Flooding Has Jumped by 400 Percent in the Past Decade
A UM study has found that tidal flooding has leaped by 400 percent in the last ten years thanks to climate change.
South Beach, Miami, Florida, United States
Miami New Times

Sneezes, wheezes, tears: What's in store for this spring's allergy season?
Dust. Trees. Grasses. Mold. How to read the signs about whether 2016 will be gentle or monstrous for allergy sufferers.

Fukushima derived radiocesium in subsistence-consumed northern fur seal and wild celery
Trace 134Cs in northern fur seal tissue suggests that the
population under study had been minimally exposed Fukushima-derived radionuclides. Despite this
inference, the radionuclide quantities detected are small and no impact is expected as a result of the
measured radiation exposure, either in northern fur seal or human populations consuming this species.
Journal of Environmental Radioactivity

Wild Berry Harvests Less Reliable According to Alaskan Local Observers
A new study from USGS, ANTHC, and the Local Environmental Observer (LEO) Network, provides a view statewide trends in wild berry harvests. The authors conclude that monitoring and experimental studies are needed to understand how climate change may affect the species of wild berries that are important to Alaskans. They also recommended that methods by which rural communities can increase their resilience to declining or more variable berry harvests be explored.

Crawdad pie, anyone? In Kodiak, an invasive species proliferates
There's somewhat of a slow motion invasion of a fresh water crustacean happening in Buskin River and Buskin Lake. It has a hard shell, two claws and tastes great in pies.

Blob of warm Pacific water may have killed dozens of whales
The "unprecedented" warm water in the Pacific caused a massive toxic algae bloom from California to Alaska.
Coastal British Columbia

Lobster population moves north due to warming ocean
The lobster population has crashed to the lowest levels on record in southern New England while climbing to heights never before seen in the cold waters off Maine and other northern reaches — a geographic shift that scientists attribute in large part to the warming of the ocean.
New York Post

Toxic mercury levels are actually declining in Alaskan polar bears—but that's not as great as it sounds
A recent study shows that polar bears' mercury levels are declining as melting ice drives them onshore. But is it all good news? Read on.
Popular Science

Scientists may have solved 2011's mysterious marine die-off along the Pacific coast
Scientists first caught on to the strange event when they found thousands of purple sea urchins and other organisms dead in their laboratory tanks. Their theory: The mass deaths were caused by a huge bloom of algae.
Northern Pacific Coast

Mysterious ocean 'blob' could be behind warmer B.C. temperatures
If you're wondering why British Columbia experienced such a mild winter and early spring, you could maybe blame it on a mysterious "blob" of warm water in the Pacific Ocean.
British Columbia

Oscarville, Alaska: a Holistic Approach to Sustainable Northern Communities

Migrating Birds May Carry Viral Baggage
Right now, a lethal strain of bird flu is wreaking havoc in the Lower 48. It’s clear that migrating flocks have something to do with spreading the illness between farms and across continents -- but exactly what is still fuzzy. A remote spot in Southwest Alaska may hold some clues. Download Audio

Human encounters with cougars are on the rise
Human encounters with cougars are on the rise in Alberta, according to wildlife conservation group WildSmart.
Canmore, Alberta, Canada

Warm weather makes Kotzebue sea wall a community hotspot
The half mile-long sea wall was constructed in 2012 at a cost of $34 million to help offset coastal erosion and protect the community from encroaching sea ice.

Red foxes move into arctic fox territory on North Slope - with help from people
Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, United States

Inundation, sedimentation, and subsidence creates goose habitat along the Arctic coast of Alaska
Since 1976, the distribution of molting Black Brant ( Branta bernicla nigricans ) on the Arctic Coastal Plain has shifted from inland freshwater lakes to coastal marshes, such as those occupying the Smith River and Garry Creek estuaries.
North Slope, Alaska, United States
Environmental Research Letters
Ken D Tape and Paul L Flint and Brandt W Meixell and Benjamin V Gaglioti

Tar ball deposition on Goa's beaches affecting marine life, says NIO study
Tar ball deposition on Goa's beaches affecting marine life, says NIO study on Business Standard. To carry out study the NIO also collected samples from Baga, Candolim, Calungute and Mandrem beaches from North Goa and Velsao, Betalbatim, Colva and Benaulim from South Goa.
Goa, India
Press Trust of India

Lucrative crab industry in danger
For decades, the crab piled up in fishing boats like gold coins hauled from a rich and fertile sea. But the very ocean that nursed these creatures may prove to be this industry’s undoing.Scientists fear ocean acidification will drive the collapse of Alaska's iconic crab fishery.
Dutch Harbor, Alaska, United States

Archaeologists uncover pre-contact Inupiat village near Kiana, Alaska
The village is one of the biggest archaeological sites discovered in the Arctic. Local residents hope the research will tell them more about their ances
Kiana, Alaska, United States

Miami: How Rising Sea Levels Endanger South Florida
By century's end, rising sea levels will turn the nation's urban fantasyland into an American Atlantis. But long before the city is completely underwater, chaos will begin
Miami Beach, Florida, United States
Rolling Stone

Suspected Link Between Eastern Equine Encephalitis and Climate Change
Add the deadly eastern equine encephalitis virus to the list things we
might find more of in our climate-changed future.
Provincetown, Massachusetts, United States
ecoRI News

Pink salmon evolve to migrate earlier in warmer waters
Study finds genetic evidence of climate-change adaptation.
Nature News

Climate change in Arctic Alaska threatens fish stocks, drinking water
Threatening the Inupiat village of Selawik, Alaska, are sinkholes that have formed beside the river that provides the community its drinking water, as well as an important food source.
Selawik, Alaska, United States

Growth Rate of the California Sea Cucumber Parastichopus californicus: Measurement Accuracy and Relationships between Size and Weight Metrics
Management of the fishery for California sea cucumbers *Parastichopus californicus* in the Pacific Northwest is limited by a lack of natural growth rate estimates.These findings are an important addition to the knowledge of California sea cucumber biology and are valuable for the stock assessment, fisheries management, and aquaculture of this species.
Pacific Northwest, United States
North American Journal of Fisheries Management

A century later, the wild wolf returns
Kays, along with fellow curator Robert Feranec, developed a new kind of carbon isotope test on hair and bone that proved the Sacandaga Lake wolf lived on a diet in the wild, and had never been a pet or zoo specimen fed by humans. Seeing the animal was not a coyote, the hunter gave the wolf carcass to the state Department of Environmental Conservation, which called in federal wildlife officials, who confiscated it. The DEC issued a statement saying the study shows federal U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials need to reverse efforts to remove endangered species protections for wolves in the Northeast. Said Christopher Amato, assistant commissioner for natural resources, "We continue to believe that natural recovery of wolves in the Northeast is possible and urge the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reconsider its recent proposals and to update its wolf recovery plan to reflect this new scientific information and support the natural recolonization by wolves." In July 2004, federal officials proposed removing the wolf from the endangered species in the east, due to growing wolf populations from recovery efforts in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan.
Great Sacandaga Lake, New York, United States
Times Union

Big Arctic ozone 'hole' last winter may be linked to warming
Residents of northern Russia, Norway and Greenland were exposed to greater than usual ultraviolet radiation last winter when the Arctic stratosphere experienced its largest ozone hole on record, scientists reported in the journal Nature this week. According to Washington Post science writer Andrew Freedman, the news is surprising -- in part because it may for the first time indicate a link between ozone holes and global warming.

Massive ozone hole yawned over Arctic, but Alaska avoided damaging rays
A big chill in the Arctic stratosphere ripped open the biggest ozone hole in Arctic history last winter. But nice blanket of UV-blocking ozone kept Alaska covered up — this time.

From common to rare: The case of the Mediterranean common dolphin
Our results showed that local fisheries have negatively impacted the marine biodiversity of the ecosystem causing sharp declines of common dolphins and major fish stocks and weakening the robustness of the marine food web.
Nydri, Ionian Islands, Greece
Biological Conservation
Piroddi, Chiara, Giovanni Bearzi, Joan Gonzalvo and Villy Christensen

Shark aggregation in coastal waters of British Columbia
A concentration of pelagic sharks was observed in an area of western Queen Charlotte Sound, British Columbia, during systematic shipboard line-transect surveys conducted (2004 to 2006) for marine mammals throughout coastal waters of British Columbia. Surveys allowed only brief observations of sharks at the surface, providing limited opportunity to confirm species identity. Observers agreed, however, that salmon sharks *Lamna ditropis* (Lamnidae) were most common, followed by blue sharks *Prionace glauca* (Carcharhinidae). Both conventional and model-based distance sampling statistical methods produced large abundance estimates (similar to 20000 sharks of all species combined) concentrated within a hotspot encompassing similar to 10\% of the survey region. Neither statistical method accounted for submerged animals, thereby underestimating abundance. Sightings were made in summer, corresponding with southern movement of pregnant salmon sharks from Alaska. The previously undocumented high density of these pelagic sharks in this location has implications for understanding at-sea mortality of returning Pacific salmon *Oncorhynchus* spp. (Salmonidae) and for assessing conservation status of sharks in Canada and beyond. We recommend that a dedicated Canada-US sightings and biological sampling programme be considered, perhaps under the UN Transboundary Species Fishery programme.
Queen Charlotte, British Columbia, Canada
Mar Ecol Prog Ser 414:249-256
Williams R, Okey TA, Wallace SS, Gallucci VF (2010)

Shark aggregation in coastal waters of British Columbia
Moresby Trough, Queen Charlotte Sound, British Columbia
Marine Ecology Progress Series
Rob Williams, Thomas A. Okey, S. Scott Wallace, Vincent F. Gallucci

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