Sunscreens do more harm than good, as they cause bleaching. No, not of hair but of coral reefs. A study, commissioned by the European Commission, used a test group of cream-based UV filters and found that even small amount of a sunscreen lotion causes harmful coral bleaching. The finding was also reconfirmed by a US journal Environmental Health Perspectives study. “An estimated 4,000 to 6,000 tonnes of sunscreen are released annually in reef areas, with 25 per cent of the sunscreen ingredients on skin released into water over the course of a 20 minute submersion.” It estimated that at least 10 per cent of the world’s natural corals are at risk for bleaching!
Fascinated with mummies? Here’s another one to spark your intent. It is a thousandyear- old mummy, discovered in Peru, nicknamed Kiko Rontoy. This exquisitely preserved mummy is decorated with scarlet paint, metal eye plates, and a tattoo. And is loaded with both strange and familiar artifacts like raw cotton balls, slingshots, corn, empty bag, loop of yarn, and a figurine in identical dress.
According to experts, the finding suggests that the Chancay civilisation had a strong hold on the north-central Pacific coast of Peru during its heyday between AD 1000 and 1500.
Madagascar is in limelight again! Not the movie, but the island. Why? Because a new population of ‘critically endangered’ greater bamboo lemurs (Prolemur simus) has been found there. About 30-40 lemurs live in the Torotorofotsy wetland, which is more than 400 kilometres away from the only other place where the species is known to reside. This has raised hopes for their survival.
The discovery was made by a collaborative effort between the Malagasy non-government organisation, MITSINJO, and the Henry Doorly Zoo in the US, supported by the Margot Marsh Biodiversity Foundation and Conservation International (CI). “The greater bamboo lemur is a unique species and the only member of an entire primate genus, making it probably the most endangered primate genus in the world, so this discovery is a real blessing for our efforts to save it from extinction”, says CI President Russell A. Mittermeier.
Climate change may be stopped with a dash of lime. Sounds bizarre? May be not. Scientists say they have found a way to reduce carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, by adding lime to seawater. This would increase the alkalinity of seawater, thus, boosting its ability to absorb carbon dioxide from air and restrict it from releasing back the gas. But what about the carbon dioxide generated during the process of making lime?
Scientists argue that adding lime to seawater will absorb almost twice as much carbon dioxide. So, the entire process would be ‘carbon negative’. “This process has the potential… to reduce carbon dioxide to pre-industrial levels”, says Tim Kruger, the brain behind the plan who is a management consultant in a London-based firm Corven.
It’s got nothing to do with cricket. It is about bats – the mammal. More than hundred bat species have been found in just about five acres of Tiputini Biodiversity Station in the eastern part of Ecuador. They are not new. But, their co-existence marks the highest number of bat species ever recorded in one place. Sounds good? But most of these tropical species may become extinct. How? Because of human interventions, which are leading to rain forest degradation.
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