Page 28 - ARUBA TODAY

A28 SCIENCE
Wednesday 18 september 2019
Sage grouse numbers stumble in Montana, across U.S. West

By MATTHEW BROWN reached in 2013, DiRienzo Grouse numbers in Idaho
Associated Press said, and likely reflect dry have dropped more than
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — conditions and extreme 50 percent since 2015. Ne-
Montana’s greater sage winter weather that caused vada reported an 8 per-
grouse population has many chicks to die. cent decline this year in lek
fallen more than 40% over Wyoming does not have counts of male birds.
the past three years, mirror- an overall population esti- The bird’s population also
ing recent declines across mate. was down in Utah, with
the U.S. West for the wide- Brian Rutledge with the the 2019 lek count marking
ranging bird species that National Audubon Society a 61% decline from 2015,
federal officials rejected for said the population drops according to state wildlife
protections in 2015. should not be written off officials. Part of that low
State wildlife officials es- just because they are cycli- number was attributed to
timate there were about cal, since ongoing habitat a snow pack that lingered
44,000 ground-dwelling loss makes it harder for the longer than usual, prevent-
sage grouse in Montana bird’s numbers to rebound ing people from getting
this spring. The figure is in- each time they drop. to some of the areas they
cluded in a report to be “We’re not in a position normally count, said Blair
delivered to state lawmak- In this May 9, 2008 file photo, male sage grouses fight for the at- to say this is OK. We have Stringham of the Utah Divi-
ers later this month. tention of females southwest of Rawlins, Wyo. too many things working sion of Wildlife Resources.
Sage grouse once num- Associated Press against us,” he said. The 2015 decision not to
bered in the millions but In Oregon, bird numbers protect sage grouse under
have seen their range that the state in 2017 that had (population) peaks are this year reached their low- the Endangered Species
stretches across portions of prolonged impacts, said getting a little lower and est number since reliable Act came after state and
11 states diminished by oil Catherine Wightman with the valleys are getting a lit- estimates have been re- federal officials crafted
and gas drilling, wildfires, Montana Fish, Wildlife and tle lower. What we’d like to corded beginning in 1996, sweeping conservation
grazing and other pres- Parks. do is stabilize our numbers.” said sage grouse conserva- plans for the birds across
sures. The decline coincides with Wyoming’s population drop tion coordinator Lee Foster their range.
Grouse numbers also con- increased efforts to con- was measured by counting with the Oregon Depart- Under Republican Presi-
tinued to drop in 2019 in Or- serve grouse habitat, in- the number of male birds ment of Fish and Wildlife. dent Donald Trump, the
egon, Idaho , Nevada and cluding by working with pri- strutting on grouse breed- The state counted approxi- Interior Department has
Wyoming. Weather can af- vate landowners to adopt ing grounds known as leks, mately 14,000 grouse, less relaxed restrictions on min-
fect populations from year grazing and other practic- said Sara DiRienzo with Wy- than half the state’s target ing and drilling that were
to year, and wildlife officials es that are more beneficial oming Game and Fish. The of 30,000 birds. included in the original
say those short-term cycles to the bird. number of birds per lek has “I’m very hopeful we’re at plans adopted under his
are most directly responsi- “That doesn’t mean those dropped about 20 percent the bottom this year,” Fos- Democratic predecessor,
ble for the recent declines. plans are not working and since 2018 and more than ter said. “There is cause for Barack Obama. Impacts
Montana’s drop from al- doing the right thing,” said 40 percent since 2016, ac- concern even if the trend from those changes are
most 78,000 grouse in 2016 Wightman. “We’re seeing cording to agency figures. fits within what we would expected to be long-term
was traced to an extreme this overall decline. The This year’s numbers are expect with the population and not reflected in the lat-
drought in eastern parts of analysis shows overall the still above the low levels cycle.” est population numbers.q

Study finds air pollution reaches placenta during pregnancy

WASHINGTON (AP) — A scientists don't understand closest to the fetus, near
new study suggests when a why, something that could where the umbilical cord
pregnant woman breathes affect care for women in emerges.
in air pollution, it can travel highly polluted areas. One That's not proof the soot ac-
beyond her lungs to the theory is that the particles tually crossed the placenta
placenta that guards her lodge in mom's lungs and to reach the fetus — or that
fetus. trigger potentially harmful it's responsible for any ill ef-
Pollution composed of tiny inflammation. fects, cautioned Dr. Yoel
particles from car exhaust, Tuesday, Belgian research- Sadovsky of the University
factory smokestacks and ers reported another possi- of Pittsburgh Medical Cen-
other sources is dangerous bility, that any risk might be ter, a leading placenta ex-
to everyone's health, and more direct. pert who wasn't involved
during pregnancy it's been A novel scanning tech- with the new research.
In this Aug. 7, 2018 file photo, a doctor performs an ultrasound linked to premature births nique spotted a type of And it's a small study.
scan on a pregnant woman at a hospital in Chicago.
Associated Press and low birth weight. But particle pollution — sootlike Still, "just finding it at the
black carbon — on pla- placenta is important," Sa-
centas donated by 28 new dovsky said. "The next ques-
mothers, they reported in tion would be how much of
Nature Communications. these black carbon par-
The placenta nourishes a ticles need to be there to
developing fetus and tries cause damage."
to block damaging sub- Scientists already had
stances in the mother's some clues from animal
bloodstream. The Hasselt studies that particles could
University team found the reach the placenta, but
particles accumulated on Tuesday's study is a first with
the side of the placenta human placentas. q