Found a nice vitricolous lichen yesterday in New York. I'm assuming it's some sort of rock shield (Xanthoparmelia) but not sure which one. Per Harris (2004) there are 15 different species in the state. #lichen #glass #nature #fungi #algae #inaturalist https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/269613876

#Crisis On The Coast: #DomoicAcid Poisoning Strands 140 #SeaLions & 50 #Dolphins On #California Beaches
The recent influx of #marine #wildlife affected by domoic acid poisoning off the coast of Southern California underscores a critical #environmental crisis, w/≧140 sea lions suffering from this debilitating poison & reports of at least 50 stranded dolphins along local beaches.
#ClimateCrisis #climate #MarineLife #ocean #wildfires #ecosystems #algae #OceanWarming #science
https://worldanimalnews.com/crisis-on-the-coast-domoic-acid-poisoning-strands-140-sea-lions-and-50-dolphins-on-california-beaches/

600M years of shared environmental stress response found in algae and plants

https://phys.org/news/2025-03-million-years-environmental-stress-response.html

Pink snow tints the edges of Antarctica https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2025-03-24/pink-snow-tints-the-edges-of-antarctica.html

"The #algae that covers Mount Reina Sofía in patches is Sanguina nivaloides, a species first described in 2019. The meaning of its scientific name in Latin is eloquent: blood in the snow. Each creature has a single cell, about 20 thousandths of a millimeter in size, with a molecule inside that gives it its characteristic red color: #astaxanthin... the same pigment that produces the color of salmon"

The Secret Sex Lives of Deep, Dark Corals
https://www.biographic.com/the-secret-sex-lives-of-deep-dark-corals/

"A unique fjord in Chilean #Patagonia gives scientists a chance to unlock the reproductive secrets of cold-water #corals that typically live thousands of meters below the surface... Instead of partnering with #algae within its cells for food, #Desmophyllum catches #plankton with stinging tentacles... cold-water corals live throughout the world’s oceans, providing habitat at least as critical as that of tropical #CoralReefs"

Scientists Just Uncovered a Hidden Force Behind Faster Ice Melt…

A recent study finds that #algae can store nutrients, potentially allowing them to spread across more of the #icesheet  accelerating its darkening and melting...

https://formuchdeliberation.wordpress.com/2025/03/09/scientists-just-uncovered-a-hidden-force-behind-faster-ice-melt/

Yeah, I said I was going away, but this was too weird to not to post.

Wandering in the field north of the greenhouses, I spotted this blob of jelly on the ground. One big blob, probably a half liter or so. It's in a fenced in area, nobody is around to have dumped Jello. No large animals can get in the area either, so I doubt it is some sort of, uh, excretion.

This is in midwinter in the Willamette Valley of Oregon.

I don't know what this is. Anyone have any idea?

#algae ? #slimemold ?

Maybe some Gonium and Dinobryon, among other algae?

Mapping #Antarctica's hidden ice-free lands: A blueprint for conservation https://phys.org/news/2025-01-antarctica-hidden-ice-free-blueprint.html paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41597-025-04424-y

"The ice-free lands are home to uniquely adapted flora including micro-forests of #lichens, #moss, and two flowering plants, Antarctic hairgrass and pearlwort. They also sustain a variety of #mites, #springtails, #tardigrades, #nematodes, #algae, and #microbes. #Seabirds have established breeding colonies in these areas too."

How Does Life Happen When There’s Barely Any Light? https://www.quantamagazine.org/how-does-life-happen-when-theres-barely-any-light-20250129/

Photosynthetic light requirement near the theoretical minimum detected in Arctic #microalgae: Clara Hoppe et al. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-51636-8

"Under the sea ice during the #Arctic’s pitch-black polar night, #algae power #photosynthesis on the lowest light levels ever observed in nature."

Most of life’s engines run on sunlight.

Photons filter down through the atmosphere and are eagerly absorbed by light-powered organisms such as #plants and #algae.

Through #photosynthesis, the particles of light power a cellular reaction that manufactures chemical energy, which is then passed around the food web.

But uder the sea ice during the Arctic’s pitch-black polar night, cells power photosynthesis on the lowest light levels ever observed in nature.

#biology
https://www.quantamagazine.org/how-does-life-happen-when-theres-barely-any-light-20250129/

#Postdoc opportunity (2y) studying metabolism of #polysaccharides in brown #algae
in the Brown Algal #Glycans group at #Roscoff Marine Station

https://emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/UMR8227-CECHER-004/Default.aspx?lang=EN

How tiny algae shaped the #evolution of giant clams https://phys.org/news/2025-01-tiny-algae-evolution-giant-clams.html https://www.nature.com/articles/s42003-024-07423-8

"T. maxima have evolved more genes for sensors to distinguish friendly #algae from harmful #bacteria, #viruses... it has tuned down some of its immune genes in a way that likely helps the #animals tolerate #microbes... As a result of the weakened #ImmuneSystem, its genome contains a large number of #TransposableElements left behind by viruses. These aspects highlight the tradeoffs of #symbiosis"

In search of red snow https://microscopesandmonsters.wordpress.com/2025/01/26/in-search-of-red-snow/

"#SnowAlgae have been known for a long time – the earliest records of #RedSnow are from the alps in the late 18th century, and they were first recognised as #algae about 40 years later when an expedition was exploring the North-West passage. There have since been records from all over the world... snow algae have a window of opportunity in spring when the snow starts melting, and there is both sunshine & water which they can use to photosynthesise"

Las algas verdes Monactinus viven en el agua dulce agrupadas en números pares como cenocitos, en forma de estrellas o anillos, con las células marginales con una estrecha proyección. Cada célula contiene un enorme cloroplasto. #algas #algae

Candlesnuff fungus