A herd of Camarasaurus dinosaurs walks through a conifer forest in what will one day be Utah. These giant herbivores tore, pushed, and felled trees, keeping forest structure open, with lots of light reaching seedlings on the forest floor. After dinos went extinct, forests grew denser and darker, driving the evolution of larger seeds and fruits that supplied more nutrients that could fuel a seedling's growth until it could grow in stronger light levels farther away from darker forest floors.

My #sciart for new research that explains how the loss of dinosaurs that kept forests open and sunny drove the evolution of larger seeds / fruits that provided more nutrients for seedlings to grow on darker forest floors news.nau.edu/doughty-dino...

21.02.2025 05:41 — 👍 21    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

woW, as usual :)

14.02.2025 19:58 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

My #sciart illustrates new research on how climate change is promoting spatially-synchronized locust outbreaks: increasing heavy rainfall events in arid regions (which creates new vegetation) is a trigger for locust swarms, which could increase by 25%: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

10.02.2025 19:11 — 👍 18    🔁 2    💬 0    📌 0

illustration showing close up views of various tissues with tumors and associated cancer-promoting / regulating genes and factors

My new #SciArt on the cover of a special Cancer Reviews issue of Genes & Development shows the deep spotlight that new research is pointing at the mechanisms of the disease, from mechanical to developmental: genesdev.cshlp.org/content/39/1...

10.02.2025 18:52 — 👍 9    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

...finally, as permafrost thaws, the ground above it sinks, warping and damaging infrastructure like roads, foundations, bridges, and utilities.

10.02.2025 18:03 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

illustration of a traditional Arctic pulled sled hitched to a snowmobile traveling over sea ice. As the ice thaws, snowmobile eventually breaks through completely

...local Indigenous Knowledge gets undermined as sea ice thaw destroys traditional travel routes over sea ice that have been stable for generations, endangering travelers and cutting communities off from supplies, errands, and activities...

10.02.2025 17:50 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0

In panel b), polar bears lose sea ice as a platform for hunting, eventually stranding them to starve on prey-free land...

10.02.2025 17:44 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0

With loss of sea ice, arctic cod lose the algal-coated underside of sea ice as nursery habitat for fry, as this floating environment provides the ecosystem that hosts tiny crustaceans and other prey for growing fish. Less surviving fry means less recruitment, harming fisheries and ecosystems...

10.02.2025 17:40 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0

My new #sciart accompanies research by @ecoss-nau.bsky.social that outlines drastic changes to come if global warming keeps up and heats up the Arctic: news.nau.edu/arctic-warmi...
These four illustrated scenarios show how (thread) -

10.02.2025 17:28 — 👍 14    🔁 6    💬 2    📌 0

illustration comparing the effects of 2 global warming scenarios: an increase of 1.5 vs. 2.7 celsius. The higher warming scenario will cause loss of all sea ice during Arctic summer, shrinking of Greenland's ice sheet, and thaw of roughly half of existing permafrost by the year 2100

NEW WARNING about ARCTIC WARMING: My new #sciart accompanies research by Ted Schuur, @ecoss-nau.bsky.social et al that carries urgent warnings for the effects that global warming is having on the Arctic: news.nau.edu/arctic-warmi...

10.02.2025 17:25 — 👍 17    🔁 8    💬 0    📌 1