Butterfly

Working to Reverse the Effects of Climate Change, Organic Valley Begins Industry-Leading Program to Create Climate-Friendly Dairy Future

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, September 6, 2023

LA FARGE, Wis., Sept. 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- This week, Organic Valley and its small organic family farms begin working with over 15 technical partners on an ambitious project to help sequester carbon, lower on-farm emissions and turn organic dairy farms into a part of the solution for combatting climate change. With the support of Stonyfield and Nancy's Probiotic Foods, the Organic Valley Carbon Insetting Program (OVCIP) is doubling in size with the aid of a U.S. Department of Agriculture Climate-Smart Commodities grant and is already winning awards, like three placings in Fast Company's World Changing Ideas program.

Key Points: 
  • "We look forward to further supporting their carbon insetting program with funding to be used across the program in the near future.
  • A recent lifecycle analysis of Organic Valley dairy farms by University of Wisconsin-Madison indicates that grazing methods can lower carbon emissions.
  • Organic Valley is the exclusive food program partner of Climate Week NYC, giving the farmer-owned cooperative a voice in the climate discussions.
  • With the Organic Valley Carbon Insetting Program, we're able to take our commitment to sustainable farming to the next level.

A slacker's guide to climate-friendly gardening

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, September 6, 2023

The chemicals we use to kill weeds and bugs rely on fossil fuels, and can disrupt local wildlife.

Key Points: 
  • The chemicals we use to kill weeds and bugs rely on fossil fuels, and can disrupt local wildlife.
  • You won’t single-handedly solve all the world’s woes with your plot of land.
  • But there are several simple things that, if you just stop doing them, will help the environment and wildlife.
  • It can contribute to lowering your garden’s carbon footprint and help to reduce the risk of flooding.

Keep carbon in the ground

    • Exposing soil through digging causes the carbon that is stored in it to be released.
    • There will always be some soil disturbance as you manage your beds – particularly when you first plant your crops.
    • But the use of perennial crops can help to reduce this, with the added benefit of requiring less of your time.
    • Planting soft fruit bushes and strawberries means that, with a bit of effort, you can harvest fruit every year.

Become a wildlife haven

    • But you could opt to extend this practice until much later in the summer for even greater benefits.
    • Allowing your grass to grow longer, and interspersing it with pollen-rich flowers, can benefit many insects – especially bees.

Store more water

    • A more complex root structure encourages water infiltration, helping our gardens manage large deluges of rain.
    • Our unruly, rain-soaked refuges not only hold water when there is too much.
    • This not only keeps water where it’s needed but also maintains the soil’s coolness, benefiting animals like worms that live beneath the surface.
    • And remember, the concept of laid-back gardening isn’t just for summer; it’s equally important during autumn and winter too.

If anxiety is in my brain, why is my heart pounding? A psychiatrist explains the neuroscience and physiology of fear

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, September 5, 2023

These are all phrases many people use to describe fear and anxiety.

Key Points: 
  • These are all phrases many people use to describe fear and anxiety.
  • You have likely felt anxiety inside your chest or stomach, and your brain usually doesn’t hurt when you’re scared.
  • But science has traditionally seen the brain as the birthplace and processing site of fear and anxiety.

Fear and the brain

    • There are a few key areas of the brain that are heavily involved in processing fear.
    • For this reason, the amygdala evolved to bypass brain areas involved in logical thinking and can directly engage physical responses.
    • For example, seeing an angry lion in the zoo and in the Sahara both trigger a fear response in the amygdala.
    • Although the prefrontal cortex is usually seen as the part of the brain that regulates emotions, it can also teach you fear based on your social environment.

Fear and the rest of the body

    • But the body is where most of the action happens.
    • Several pathways prepare different body systems for intense physical action.
    • Sympathetic neurons are spread throughout the body and are especially dense in places like the heart, lungs and intestines.
    • These changes to your gastrointestinal system can be perceived as the discomfort linked to fear and anxiety.

It all goes back to the brain

    • Your already anxious and highly alert brain then processes these signals at both conscious and unconscious levels.
    • The insula is a part of the brain specifically involved in conscious awareness of your emotions, pain and bodily sensations.
    • Emotions take place in both your body and your brain, but you become aware of their existence with your brain.

Unveiling the enigmatic world of moths: from ancient pollinators to whistling wonders

Retrieved on: 
Sunday, September 3, 2023

Or worse, do you have an irrational fear of moths?

Key Points: 
  • Or worse, do you have an irrational fear of moths?
  • Would it surprise you to learn moths are not the poor cousin of butterflies?
  • Moths vary enormously in their size, what they like to eat, how they reproduce and how they live their lives.

Life arising from biological soup


    Remember the story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar? The life cycle begins with a little egg that hatches into a caterpillar, eats its way through a rainbow of food and then builds a cocoon for a complete transformation into a beautiful butterfly. This is complete metamorphosis, where the structure of the caterpillar dissolves into a biological soup and then into an adult that looks nothing like the original.

Are butterflies just ‘flamboyant’ moths?

    • A few defining features separate moths from butterflies.
    • But these features actually don’t separate all moths from butterflies, just night-flyers (nocturnal) from day-flyers.
    • There are 125 families of moths and just six families of butterflies.
    • These are definitely moth features but their genetic code suggests they are most closely related to butterflies.

Moths helped flowering plants evolve

    • That makes moths twice as old as butterflies.
    • This suggests these ancient moths contributed to the success of the first flowering plants.
    • This means moths are not only the night-shift pollinator, they’re also more efficient than the daytime bee pollinators we hear most about.

The big and small of it

    • The largest moth is the Hercules moth from northern Queensland in Australia with a wingspan of 361mm.
    • One common species is thought to hold the world record for the number of eggs carried at around 44,000.
    • The caterpillar growing phase may take many years in the ground and yet the adults only live for around a single day.

Some moths can hear

    • That’s right, some moths can hear sound.
    • These organs can help the moths detect bats, who hunt moths at night, so it is no surprise that three of the largest moths all have tympanic organs.
    • Although most moths use chemicals and pheromones to attract a mate, whistling moths use sound.
    • So next time you’re out for a walk, or spending time in your garden, day or night, look out for moths.

San Diego Canyonlands Awarded $3MM State Grant to Help Restore City Heights’ Manzanita Canyon

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, August 31, 2023

“Climate change is driving hotter and longer heatwaves and more intense rainstorms,” said California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot.

Key Points: 
  • “Climate change is driving hotter and longer heatwaves and more intense rainstorms,” said California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot.
  • “San Diego’s canyons are precious community assets, and a saving grace in the face of climate change,” said Clayton Tschudy, Canyonlands CEO.
  • Kris McFadden, Deputy Chief Operating Officer for the City of San Diego, remarked, “Manzanita Canyon is the perfect location for this type of project because the kids who come here can see what we are doing.
  • And this isn't the only canyon in San Diego where we have similar issues.

Global biodiversity: Why the proposed changes to Ontario's Greenbelt matter

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, August 31, 2023

Political controversy aside, what has become abundantly clear is that Ford’s Greenbelt plans fly in the face of Canada’s freshly funded commitment to halt biodiversity loss.

Key Points: 
  • Political controversy aside, what has become abundantly clear is that Ford’s Greenbelt plans fly in the face of Canada’s freshly funded commitment to halt biodiversity loss.
  • Stretching over two million acres, the Greenbelt is the largest protected area of its kind in the world.
  • So, what exactly is it that we gain from biodiversity — and what does protecting lands like the Greenbelt have to do with it?

Nature’s interconnected benefits

    • Ecosystem services are the benefits we get from the natural environment.
    • These services are usually divided into three main groups: provisioning, regulating and cultural services.
    • For context, the average Canadian is responsible for about 20 tonnes of carbon entering the atmosphere over the same period.
    • With over nine million people living within 20 kilometres of the Greenbelt, it provides a space for nearly a quarter of Canada’s population to enjoy these benefits.

A diverse support system

    • Not all environments will provide the same services and having several types of ecosystems helps to maintain the wide variety of services we need — a type of biodiversity called ecosystem diversity.
    • With many species doing the same job, the ecosystem can keep humming along even if one is impacted by disease, droughts or heat waves.
    • It allows species to evolve and survive in changing environments — something that is increasingly important in a warming world.

The land-use battle

    • Unfortunately, this type of habitat destruction is also exactly what is being proposed for the Greenbelt.
    • The issue is not only about the amount of land that is protected, but also where it is and its connection to other natural areas.
    • The current setup of the Greenbelt helps to prevent fragmentation by connecting landscapes, allowing wildlife to move between different areas.

Monarch Butterfly Festival Takes Flight: A Day of Beauty, Education, and Conservation

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, August 24, 2023

MARLTON, N.J., Aug. 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- As the mesmerizing Monarch butterflies embark on their incredible journey across North America, Chartwell Gardens is proud to announce the upcoming Monarch Butterfly Festival.

Key Points: 
  • MARLTON, N.J., Aug. 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- As the mesmerizing Monarch butterflies embark on their incredible journey across North America, Chartwell Gardens is proud to announce the upcoming Monarch Butterfly Festival.
  • Monarch Lifecycle Exhibit: Delve deep into the fascinating world of Monarchs by experiencing their lifecycle stages firsthand – from eggs to caterpillars, chrysalises to butterflies.
  • Live Butterfly Release: The day will conclude with a heartwarming butterfly release ceremony – a moment of unity and hope for the future of Monarchs.
  • The Monarch butterflies being released will originate from Chartwell Gardens' area designated by the International Audubon Society as a Monarch Sanctuary.

Trees discovered at record-breaking altitudes highlight why we should restore Scotland's mountain woodland

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, August 23, 2023

After centuries of landscape change, particularly deforestation caused by humans, it is easy to forget how well trees can thrive there.

Key Points: 
  • After centuries of landscape change, particularly deforestation caused by humans, it is easy to forget how well trees can thrive there.
  • Since at least 3,000 years ago, trees and shrubs have been harvested for building materials, firewood and charcoal.
  • Woody plants, especially willows, are particularly appetising for these animals in the uplands where nutritious food can be harder to find.

A perilous decline

    • The iconic Scots pine is a feature of remnant treelines, particularly in the Cairngorms.
    • These refuges also include birch, rowan and juniper, as well as arctic-alpine willows which are rare and endangered or vulnerable to extinction.

Reaching new heights

    • Some observations were at least 200m above previous known altitudes.
    • Our discoveries are attributed primarily to increased biological recording, which is valuable for expanding knowledge of the environmental tolerances of plants.

Benefits for a whole ecosystem

    • Once a large enough seed source exists, the trees will also emerge on their own via natural regeneration.
    • Montane willow scrub now flourishes on the Ben Lawers range in the southern Highlands, while Caledonian pinewoods are reappearing on higher ground in the Cairngorms.
    • These benefits are called “nature-based solutions” because they are considered vitally important for reducing threats from escalating climate change, including warming temperatures, extreme weather and soil erosion.

Nature recovery at scale

    • Land managers, policymakers and funding bodies must move forward from focusing on small areas of mountain woodland held behind fences.
    • Those estates already taking such an approach are showing significant capacity for regeneration and nature recovery.
    • Improving the health of all these habitats will allow our environment to nurture a high diversity of life and many associated benefits to people amidst the nature and climate emergency.

Petalfast Welcomes High-End Cannabis Brand binske to Growing Sales and Distribution Portfolio

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, August 16, 2023

binske joins a growing portfolio of brands represented by Petalfast throughout California and nationwide.

Key Points: 
  • binske joins a growing portfolio of brands represented by Petalfast throughout California and nationwide.
  • Founded in 2015 by brothers Jacob and Alex Pasternack, binske was created to set a new standard in the industry.
  • “At binske, we take pride in offering a diverse product line that offers something for everyone,” said co-founder Alex Pasternack.
  • In 2023 alone, Petalfast has also announced new partnerships in California with Ciencia Labs, Hello Again, VetCBD, Lime and Yummi Karma.

JCK 2023 Unveils the Hottest Jewelry Trends

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, August 15, 2023

JCK, the most prominent jewelry industry event globally, unveils the hottest jewelry trends in 2023.

Key Points: 
  • JCK, the most prominent jewelry industry event globally, unveils the hottest jewelry trends in 2023.
  • The editor in chief of JCK magazine and recognized jewelry and watch expert, Victoria Gomelsky, roamed the show floors with her team to uncover this year's trends.
  • "For a jewelry editor, trendspotting at JCK in Las Vegas is the highlight of the year, and the 2023 edition did not disappoint," Gomelsky noted.
  • To learn more about these trends and more of the standout jewelry trends this year, watch this JCK Trend Video .