A new species of Gastrotrich from KwaZulu-Natal.

Gastrotrichs are microscopic animals of uncertain affinities, reaching at most 3 mm in size, though most species are far smaller. Less than eight hundred species have been described, living between sediment particles on the ocean floor, at the bottom of ponds and rivers and in biofilms covering grains of soil. They have flattened bodies covered in cilia, with a through gut but no respiratory or circulatory system. All gastrotrichs are hermaphrodites, and are eutelic; they have a fixed number of cells.

In a paper published in the journal ZooKeys on 10 July 2013, Antonio Todaro of the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Renzo Perissinotto of the School of Life Sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal and the Faculty of Science at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University and Sarah Bownes, also of the chool of Life Sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal describe a new species of Gastrotrich from the iSimangaliso Wetland Park in KwaZulu Natal.

The new species is placed in the genus Kijanebalola and given the specific name devestiva, meaning undressed, an allusion to the lack of ornamentation of the species. Kijanebalola devestiva is described from thirteen specimens collected from ponds near Charter’s Creek on the Western Shores of Lake St Lucia. The largest of these specimens reach 310 μm in length. Kijanebalola devestiva is barrel-shaped, with a slight differentiation of the head and body. It has five spines at its terminal end, and two club-like tentacles on its head. The specimens were found living among vegetation above a silty substrate.

Kijanebalola devestiva; schematic drawings. (A) Dorsal view. (B) Ventral view, showing some internal structures. a anus alt antero-lateral tuft of cephalic cilia asb anterior sensory bristle ce cephalion ct cephalic tentacle dlvb lateral band of cephalic cilia extending dorsally and ventrally e egg I-IV, first to fourth band of trunk ciliature mvb median ventral band of cephalic cilia pcl proximal canal cell lumen PhIJ pharyngeo-intestinal junction ps patch of keeled scales psb posterior sensory bristle tsp terminal spines vlt ventro-lateral band of cephalic cilia. Todaro et al. (2013).

Light microscope images of Kijanebalola devestiva. Middle specimen is gravid, with a large egg towards its left (top) side. Bottom specimen is a subadult, with a developing egg in the same position (arrow). Todaro et al. (2013).

See also A new species of Rotifer from Thailand, Two new species of parasitic Nematode from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Two new species of Scolecodont from the Early Devonian of the Ukraine, Two new species of Earthworm from Korea and Fossil Tapeworm eggs from the Permian.

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Bone pathology in a Triassic Phytosaur.

Palaeopathology is the study of disease and injuries in fossil remains. The way in which an organism responds to infection can tell biologists a lot about its ecology and lifestyle, and this is more true of palaeobiologists, who are working with fossil organisms that cannot be directly observed in the field.

In a paper published in the journal PLoS One on 15 January 2014, Florian Witzmann, Daniela Schwarz-Wings and Oliver Hampe of the Museum für Naturkunde - Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- und Biodiversitätsforschung, Guido Fritsch of the Leibniz-Institut für Zoo- und Wildtierforschung and Patrick Asbach of the Institut für Radiologie at the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, describe a case of bone pathology in a Phytosaur from the Late Triassic of Halberstadt in central Germany.

Phytosaurs were a group of Archosaurs from the Late Triassic. They were similar in morphology (and presumably lifestyle) to modern Crocodiles, and for many years were thought to be among the earliest members of the Crocodylomorph group, but they are now thought to have branched of much earlier in the history of the Archosaurs, being less closely related to Crocodiles than Crocodiles are to Birds.

The Halberstadt specimens were originally excavated by Otto Jaekel in 1909–1912 and described by Friedrich von Huene in 1922, who assigned it to the species Angistorhinopsis ruetimeyeri. The species name is no longer considered valid, and Witzmann et al. do not reassign the material to another species due to its limited and deformed nature. 

The material compares two pairs of fused vertebrae, the first being a pair of thoracic vertebrae, and the second the last presacral and first sacral vertebra. These were considered by von Huene to be the long-term consequences of trauma, possibly fracture, that the animal had experienced earlier in its life. However modern understanding of bone pathology and development makes this analysis somewhat unlikely.

Fused vertebrae of the Halberstadt Phytosaur derived from the thoracic region. (A, B) Right lateral view. (C, D) Ventral view. (E, F) Dorsal view. Abbreviations: acdl, anterior centrodiapophyseal lamina; ant, anterior; bu, bulge; but, buttress; cdf, centrodiapophyseal fossa; dia, diapophysis; ep, epipophys; nf, nutrient foramina; nsp, neural spine; par, parapophysis; pcdl, posterior centrodiapophyseal lamina; pocdf, postzygapophyseal centrodiapophyseal fossa; podl, postzygodiapophyseal lamina; poz, postzygapophysis; ppdl, paradiapophyseal lamina; prcdf, prezygapophyseal centrodiapophyseal fossa; prdl, prezygodiapophyseal lamina; prz, prezygapophysis; sprf, spinoprezygapophyseal fossa; sprl, spinoprezygapophyseal lamina; trp, transverse process. Witzmann et al. (2014).

Instead of the damage being the result of an injury, Witzmann et al. suggest that it is likely to be the result of spondyloarthropathy, a form of chronic inflammation in which bone is both formed and eroded, and which is known to cause bone fusion of this type. Spondyloarthropathy can arise as a result of a number of rheumatic diseases, but which is not usually associated with injury or infection.

 See also Tooth microwear in a Silesaurid Archosaur, Fighting in Pachycephalosaurs, Dental pathology in a Jurassic Theropod Dinosaur, Signs of malnutrition in a 1.5 million year old child's skull from the Olduvai Gorge and A predatory Archosaur from the Late Triassic of southern Poland.

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Rhinoceros teeth from the Early Miocene of Gansu Province, China.

Rhinoceroses are iconic members of the modern Mammalian megafauna, distinguished by their large bulk, thick hides and horns. There are five modern species of Rhinoceros from Africa and Asia, three of which are considered to be Critically Endangered under the terms of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Red List of Endangered Species, with the two remaining being considered Vulnerable and Near Threatened. The earliest Rhinoceroses appear in the fossil record in the Early Eocene in North America. These animals were more Horse-like than Rhinoceros-like in appearance, and the smallest were no bigger than a Dog. 

In a paper published in the journal Vertebrata PalAsiatica in April 2013, Deng Tao of the Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origin and Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences reports the discovery of a number of tusk-like lower incisors attributed to the early Rhinoceros Aprotodon lanzhouensis from the Early Miocene Shangzhuang Formation of the Linxia Basin in Gansu Province in northwest China.

Tusk like lower incisors of Aprotodon lanzhouensis from the Early Miocene Shangzhuang Formation of the Linxia Basin in Gansu Province in northwest China. Deng (2013).

Rhinos of the genus Aprotodon are known from the Late Eocene to Early Miocene of Central, South and East Asia. There are four described species, all known only from their skulls and teeth. The genus is noted for its large tusks, which have been compared to those of Hippos, and it has been suggested that these Rhinos had a similar lifestyle.

Aprotodon lanzhouensis has previously been reported from the Late Eocene of Mongolia, and from the Linxia and Lanzhou Basins of northwest China as well as sites in Pakistan and Kazakhstan in the Oligocene and early Miocene, disappearing by the Middle Miocene. Deng notes that this was a time of falling temperatures and increasing aridity across much of Asia, and that despite its Hippo-like dentition Aprotodon lanzhouensis appears to have been restricted to drier areas; it is notably absent from the several sites in eastern Yunnan, which have produced abundant Mammal specimens (including other types of Rhino) from the same period but a warmer, wetter climate. He suggests that if Aprotodon lanzhouensis did have an aquatic, Hippo-like lifestyle, then it was restricted to rivers in areas of dry, open woodland.

See also A new species of Rhinoceros from the Late Miocene of northeastern Thailand, Three new species of Tapir from the Early Eocene of Pakistan, What a 4.6 million-year-old Three Toed Horse can tell us about the climate of Mid Pliocene Tibet, The Western Black Rhino and Vietnamese Rhino declared extinct and A Woolly Rhino from the Pliocene of Tibet.

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Magnitude 4.7 Earthquake in central Taiwan.

The Taiwan Central Weather Bureau reported a Magnitude 4.7 Earthquake at a depth of 7.4 km in the countries Central Mountain Range, slightly before 0.45 am local time on Wednesday 15 January 2014 (slightly before 4.45 pm on Tuesday 14 January, GMT). There are no reports of any damage or injuries associated with this event, though it is likely to have been felt locally.

The approximate location of the 15 January 2014 Taiwan Earthquake. Google Maps.

Taiwan has a complex tectonic setting, lying on the boundary between the Eurasian and Philippine Plates, with the Eurasian Plate being subducted beneath the Philippine Plate in the South and the Philippine Plate being subducted beneath the Eurasian in the East. Subduction is not a smooth process even in simple settings, with plates typically sticking together as pressure from tectonic expansion elsewhere builds up, then suddenly breaking apart and shifting abruptly, causing Earthquakes.

See also At least one person killed by Taiwan Earthquake, At least one person dead following Magnitude 6.0 Earthquake in Taiwan, Earthquake in eastern Taiwan, Earthquake shakes south Taiwan and Mapping the subductioin zone beneath Taiwan.

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The end of the Little Ice Age.

The 'Little Ice Age' was a prolonged cooling of the climate from roughly 1650 till roughly 1850 (estimates vary). It is well documented in Europe, but does not appear to be global in extent; evidence from glaciers in North and South America and New Zealand suggests that these areas were effected to some extent, but the literate cultures of East Asia have no record of such a chilling. It was clearly not a true Ice Age, which involve glaciers covering large parts of the temperate continents for tens of thousands of years, but was too long for most short term climate effects; for example cooling caused by major volcanic eruptions seldom lasts more than a decade.

Pompenburg met Hofpoort in de winter, showing skaters on a frozen canal in Rotterdam in 1825. Bartholomeus Johannes van Hove.

The Little Ice Age ended as mysteriously as it began, starting with the abrupt withdrawal of the Alpine Glaciers from 1865 onwards, despite the fact that temperatures in the Alps were somewhat cooler at this time than they were in the mid eighteenth century (temperatures did not start to rise in the Alps until around 1910).

In a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America on 17 September 2013, a team of scientists led by Thomas Painter of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology, describe the results of an attempt to model the end of the Little Ice Age, and their conclusions about the cause of this.

Painter et al. conclude that the end of the Little Ice Age was directly linked to the onset of the Industrial Revolution, which started in Britain in the mid-eighteenth century, spread to France at the beginning of the nineteenth century, and the rest of Western Europe by the middle of the century.

They assert that the glaciers were melted not by higher atmospheric carbon dioxide levels raising the atmospheric temperature, but rather by soot from industrial chimneys settling on the glaciers and changing their albedo (reflectiveness). Snow and glaciers are normally white, and highly reflective, so that most of the light reaching them is reflected back into the atmosphere. However a glacier coated by a layer of black soot will absorb sunlight as heat, making it likely to melt rapidly.

Coalbrookdale by Night, showing fires and smoke in the Shropshire village in 1801. Philip James de Loutherbourg.

Painter et al. also suspect that the glaciers became particularly vulnerable as steam railways penetrated the Alps,which brought people close to view the glaciers as part of a growing tourism industry in the area, and with them a source of soot emissions closer than any previous development.

See also Massive iceberg breaks away from Pine Island Glacier, Huge iceberg calves from Pine Island Glacier, Huge iceberg breaks away from Peterman Glacier, Greenland, Evidence for a Younger Dryas impact event? Were a string of volcanic eruptions responsible for the Little Ice Age?

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Asteroid 2014 AM29 passes the Earth.

Asteroid 2014 AM29 passed the Earth at a distance of 4 005 000 km (roughly 10.43 times the distance between the Earth and the Moon) at slightly before 3.15 pm GMT on Sunday 12 January 2014. There was no danger of the asteroid hitting us, and were it to have done so it would have presented no threat. 2014 AM29 is calculated to be between 17 and 54 m in diameter, and an object of this size would be expected to break up in the Earth's atmosphere between 25 and 7 km above the planet's surface, with only fragmentary material reaching the ground.

The calculated orbit of 2014 AM29. JPL Small Body Database Browser.

2014 AM29 was discovered on 7 January 2014 (five days before its closest pass of the Earth) by the University of Arizona's Catalina Sky Survey in the Catalina Mountains north of Tucson. The designation 2014 AM29 implies that it was the 737th asteroid discovered in the first half of January 2014 (period 2014 A).

2014 AM29 has an 4.46 year orbital period and an eccentric orbit that takes it from 0.95 AU from the Sun (i.e. 95% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun) to 4.22 AU from the Sun (i.e. 4.22% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun, considerably more than double the distance at which the planet Mars orbits the Sun). It is therefore classed as an Apollo Group Asteroid (an asteroid that is on average further from the Sun than the Earth, but which does get closer). 

See also Asteroid 2014 AZ32 passes the Earth, Asteroid 2014 AW32 passes between the Earth and the Moon on the day it is discovered, Asteroid 2014 AD16 passes by the Earth, Asteroid 2014 AK51 comes closer to the Earth than the Moon is, two days before being discovered and Asteroid 2014 AM51 passes the Earth four days before being discovered.

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Woman killed by West Java landslide.

A woman has been killed and her husband injured in a landslide in the Cisarua Disrtrict in West Java on Saturday 18 January 2013. Ai Toriah (40) and her husband Tatang, were working on their farm in Umur-umuran village when they were hit by the landslide at about 1.30 pm local time. Tatang was only partially buried and was dug out alive by his neighbours. 

The approximate location of the 18 January 2013 Umur-umuran landslide. Google Maps.

The farm is understood to be located on a slope at the base of a hill, and has been cordoned off by the West Bandung Regional Disaster Management Board. January is peak rainy season in West Java, and landslides are a common problem at this time of year. Landslides are a common problem after severe weather events, as excess pore water pressure can overcome cohesion in soil and sediments, allowing them to flow like liquids. Approximately 90% of all landslides are caused by heavy rainfall. This problem has been made worse in West Java as expanding populations has led to people farming higher on hillslopes, in an area where soils tend to be volcanic in action and poorly consolidated (i.e. lack much cohesion), making them more prone to landslides.

See also Landslide kills four in Central Java, Landslide kills nine on northern Sumatra, Landslide kills four people at Paris Beach, north Sumatra, Three killed in Java landslide and Five people killed by landslip at Java brickworks.

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Fossil Lanternfish from the Late Miocene of Los Angeles County, California.

Lanternfish (Myctophidae) are bioluminescent deepwater Fish found throughout the world's deep oceans, where they are thought to make up around 65% of the total biomass. The majority of Lanternfish are thought to migrate vertically at dawn and dusk; remaining below the photic zone during the day, but migrating upwards to feed at night. The Lanternfish have a fossil record going back to the Palaeocene in Eurasia and the Mediterranean Basin, but do not appear in the Americas until the Late Miocene of California.

In a paper published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology in July 2013, John Denton of the Department of Ichthyology and Richard Gilder Graduate School at the American Museum of Natural History, describes three new Lanternfish fossils from the Late Miocene Modelo Formation near Sherman Oaks in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles. All three are placed in modern genera, but none is assigned to a specific species. 

The first new fossil described is placed in the genus Bolinichthys. This is a 45 mm specimen preserved as part and counterpart in white diatomaceous shale. The cranium is largely intact, but preservation of the post-cranial skeleton is poor, and the jaws are partially obscured by another fossil, so the assignment of the specimen to genus level is considered provisional.

Bolinichthys sp. From the Late Miocene Modelo Formation of Los Angeles County, California. Denton (2013).

The second new specimen is placed in the genus Lampanyctus. This is a 72 mm specimen preserved as a single impression in white diatomaceous shale. The cranium and pectoral girdle are partially disarticulated, but most of the post-cranial skeleton is present.

Lampanyctus sp. From the Late Miocene Modelo Formation of Los Angeles County, California. Denton (2013).

The final new specimen is assigned to the genus Myctophum. This is a more-or-less complete post cranial skeleton preserved as a lateral impression in white diatomaceous shale.

Myctophum sp. From the Late Miocene Modelo Formation of Los Angeles County, California. Denton (2013).

See also The new species of Anthia from the Marquesa Islands in French Polynesia, New species of Wrasse from the Unfortunate Islands, Four new species of Angler Fish from New Zealand, A new species of Pufferfish form French Polynesia and Two new species of Sandperch from the South China Sea.

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Using a Coralline Red Algae as a palaeoclimatic indicator in the Gulf of Aden.

Marine organisms with calcium carbonate skeletons are known to vary both their growth rate, and the chemistry of their shells in response to changes in sea temperature and changes in seawater chemistry. Palaeoclimatologists can such shells to investigate ancient climates, and in particular, can use the shells of long-lived organisms that grow throughout their lives to build up detailed records of climate variability in specific areas. Corals have been widely used to this purpose in tropical seas, and large, slow growing Bivalves in cold Arctic waters, but both groups are somewhat restricted in geographical range. Coralline Red Algae (Corallinales) are found in shallow waters in almost all marine environments from the tropics to the polar oceans, and many species are extremely long lived, which leads to the possibility of using such Algae as palaeoclimatic indicators, although their biology is generally less well known than that of Corals and Bivalves.

In a paper published in the journal Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta on 1 January 2014, a team of scientists led by Annalisa Caragnano of the Sezione di Scienze Geologiche e Geotecnologie at the Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, describe the results of a study on the Coralline Red Alga Lithophyllum kotschyanum in the Gulf of Aden, and its potential for use as a palaeoclimatic indicator.

A sample of the Coralline Red Alga Lithophyllum kotschyanum from the Gulf of Aden. Caragnano et al. (2014).

Lithophyllum kotschyanum is known to vary the magnesium/calcium ratio in its skeleton in response to changes in temperature and salinity. Brachiopods and some Corals have been shown to vary the ratio of lithium/calcium in their skeletons in response to changes in temperature and salinity, while other Corals and Foraminiferans have been shown not to do this. Foraminiferans and Corals have been shown to vary the barium/calcium ration in their shells in response to nutrient availability. Lithophyllum kotschyanum is also known to have a variable growth rate, though it is not known what drives this. 

Caragnano et al. examined specimens of Lithophyllum kotschyanum collected from the Gulf of Aden to attempt to determine any relationships between magnesium/calcium ratio, lithium calcium ratio, barium/calcium ratio and growth rate, and whether these could be connected to seawater chemistry or temperature.

The Gulf of Aden is located between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, and receives waters from both sources. Water from the Red Sea is significantly more saline than water from the Indian Ocean. The amount of water from each source is variable, with more water coming from the Indian Ocean during the winter monsoon (November-March) and more water coming from the Red Sea during the summer monsoon (June-September). The seawater temperature is also variable, at its highest (31–32℃) in May-June, then cooling to 29-30℃ in July-August, rising to about 30℃ in September, and cooling again to 24-25℃ in October-January, before rising slowly from February-April.

The Gulf of Aden. Google Maps.

Caragnano et al. found a strong ratio between magnesium/calcium ratio, lithium/calcium ratio, growth rate and temperature in Lithophyllum kotschyanum. The barium/calcium ratio was variable, but not in response to any environmental factor studied.

Lithophyllum kotschyanum grew fastest in warmer conditions, although the temperature was not the only factor affecting its growth; which is also influenced by light levels, nutrient supply and grazing by herbivores.

Histological section of a sample of Lithophyllum kotschyanum from the Gulf of Aden: (A) longitudinal section of a protuberance showing band periodicity (arrowhead) and three growth stages (black arrows). Note the growth interruption (white arrow); (B) magnification of A showing different cell length along the same filament. (C–F) SEM images of the high-Mg calcite thallus of the sample in longitudinal section: (C) shorter cells and longer cells alternate along the growth direction, from bottom to top; (D) magnification of C showing length variability in cells of the same filament (white arrow to indicate the growth direction of one cell filament). Note the secondary pit-connection (black arrow); (E) magnification of the longest cells showing a thin cell wall; (F) magnification of the smallest cells showing a thick cell wall. The double arrow indicates the cell lumen, and the arrowhead the mineralized cell wall. Caragnano et al. (2014).

The rate at which magnesium is absorbed into calcium carbonate (as a replacement for calcium, forming a small proportion of magnesium carbonate) produced by Lithophyllum kotschyanum has been studied at other (cooler) locations, and has been shown to increase with temperature. This remained true in the warm waters of the Gulf of Aden, though the rate at which the increase occurred was significantly higher than predicted from previous studies. This confirms that magnesium in calcium carbonate in the skeleton of this algae is a good proxy for temperature, but also that a better understanding of this relationship is needed; had the origin and temperature history of the algal skeleton not been known, then based on previous data the temperature at which it had grown would have been significantly overestimated.

The rate at which lithium is incorporated into calcium carbonate (again replacing calcium to form lithium carbonate) formed by Lithophyllum kotschyanum has not previously been studied. In this instance the lithium absorption rate closely followed the magnesium absorption rate, suggesting that this is also controlled by temperature, and that lithium ratios can be used to predict temperature in the same way as magnesium ratios.

The ratio at which barium was absorbed into calcium carbonate appeared to be only weekly related to temperature. It also peaked during the summer monsoon, suggesting that it also rose while there was an increased nutrient supply coming from the Red Sea, however there was also other peaks in absorption
which were less easy to explain, notable a sharp increase in an area of the skeleton believed to have been formed in 2007. This corresponds to a period of building on the Yemeni coast close to where the sample was collected, as well as to dredging activities in the sea close to the site, suggesting that either of these actions could have increased nutrient levels in the water. This high susceptibility to localized events probably makes barium ratios in Lithophyllum kotschyanum skeletons a poor palaeoclimatic tool.

See also A hypercalcified Chaetetid Demosponge from the Late Carboniferous of northwest Spain, Two new species of calcareous Sponge from the Weddell Sea, Examining an Ordovician Stromatolite with a tool to look for life on Mars, A new species of heavy metal Tolerant Bacterium from the Dabaoshan Mining Area in Guangdong Province, China and Angiosperm-like pollen from the Middle Triassic of Switzerland.

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Magnitude 5.2 Earthquake on the Caspian Sea coast of Turkmenistan.

The United States Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 5.2 Earthquake at a depth of 45 km on the Caspian Sea Coast of Balkan Province, Turkmenistan, slightly after 6.55 pm local time (slightly after 1.55 pm GMT) on Tuesday 14 January 2013. There are no reports of any damage or injuries attributed to this event, though it is likely to have been felt locally.

The approximate location of the 14 January 2014 Baklan Province Earthquake. Google Maps.

Earthquakes are a common problem in western Turkmenistan, which is located on the southern part of the Eurasian Plate, close to the boundary with the Arabian Plate along the Zagros Fold Belt in southern Iran. The Arabian Plate is moving northwards, creating stress in the rocks around the Caspian Sea Basin, and leading to the uplift in the Kopeh Dagh and Balkan mountain ranges of western Turkmenistan, as well as frequent Earthquakes in Turkmenistan, Afghanstan, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey and the nations of the Crimean Peninsula.

See also Magnitude 5.2 Earthquake in western Turkmenistan, Magnitude 4.0 Earthquake in Van Province, Turkey, Magnitude 4.8 Earthquake in Markazi Province, eastern Iran, Magnitude 4.0 Earthquake in Kars Province, eastern Turkey and Magnitude 4.4 Earthquake in northwest Iran.

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A hypercalcified Chaetetid Demosponge from the Late Carboniferous of northwest Spain.

Sponges (Porifera) are considered to be the most primitive form of animals. They lack differentiated cells, and can reform if disassociated by (for example) shoving them through a sieve. On the other hand they cannot be considered colonies of single-celled organisms, as they have definite structures, bodies with more-or-less set shapes consisting of networks of pores and channels through which water is pumped; the individual cells feeding separately by filtering food from the water in these channels. They are the only extant group of animals with a fossil record that extends significantly into the Precambrian.

In a paper published in the journal Palaeontologia Electronica in August 2013, Diego Corrochano of the Departamento de Geología at the Universidad de Salamanca and Ronald West of the Kansas State University, describe a new form of Chaetetid Demosponge (a group of Sponges that played a major role in reef-building in the Late Palaeozoic; they still exist but play a less prominent role in modern ecosystems) from the Late Carboniferous of León in northwest Spain.

The new species is named Loiscupula bachendensi, where 'Loiscupula' derives from 'Lois' a village close to the site where it was found, and 'cupula' meaning 'cup-shaped', and 'bachendensi' derives from the Bachende Formation, in which the specimens were found. Loiscupula bachendensi has a flattened cup-shape, reaching 5 cm high and 32 cm across. The underside shows a number of concentric rings, possibly reflecting a growth pattern. The upper side is dotted with cylindrical features, which can be simple or branches and reach up to 3.4 cm above the cup. Internally the Sponge has a structure of polygonal or cylindrical tubes.

Loiscupula bachendensi. (2) Side view showing the flat cup-shaped skeleton, with the central part of the specimen lower than the outer edges. (3) Top view, showing the wackestone matrix filling the cup. (4) Underside of the sponge, showing the plate-shape and the concentric rings around a central point; note the projected structures developed within each ring and usually preserved as eroded (truncated) protuberances (arrow). Corrochano & West (2013).

The preserved skeletons of Loiscupula bachendensi are composed of course calcite, with occasional preserved fascicular needles. Corrochano & West believe the original skeleton have been composed of aragonite.

Idealized reconstruction of Loiscupula bachendensi. Note the low conical growth form; (A) presumed attachment point; (P) projections on lower surface; (G) grooves; (R) ridges; (P) plate like skeleton; (C) cylindrical/branching features (extended mamelons/chimneys) on upper surface. Corrochano & West (2013).

See also Two new species of calcareous Sponge from the Weddell Sea, A Chambered Glass Sponge from the Early Devonian of northern Spain, A mysterious Glass Sponge from the Early Cambrian of south-east China, New Glass Sponges from the North Atlantic and The oldest animals - Pre-Ediacaran Sponges from Namibia(?)

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Asteroid 2014 AZ32 passes the Earth.

Asteroid 2014 AZ32 passed the Earth at a distance of 2 391 000 km (roughly 6.22 times the distance between the Earth and the Moon) at slightly after 11.50 pm GMT on Saturday 11 January 2014. There was no danger of the asteroid hitting us, and were it to have done so it would have presented no threat. 2014 AZ32 is calculated to be between 12 and 38 m in diameter, and an object of this size would be expected to break up in the Earth's atmosphere between 30 and 15 km above the planet's surface, with only fragmentary material reaching the ground.

The calculated orbit of 2014 AZ32. JPL Small Body Database Browser.

2014 AZ32 was discovered on 9 January 2014 (three days before its closest pass of the Earth) by the University of Arizona's Catalina Sky Survey in the Catalina Mountains north of Tucson. The designation 2014 AZ32 implies that it was the 825th asteroid discovered in the first half of January 2014 (period 2014 A).

2014 AZ32 has an 964 day orbital period and an eccentric orbit that takes it from 0.98 AU from the Sun (i.e. 98% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun) to 2.84 AU from the Sun (i.e. 2.84% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun, considerably outside the orbit of the planet Mars). It is therefore classed as an Apollo Group Asteroid (an asteroid that is on average further from the Sun than the Earth, but which does get closer). 

See also Asteroid 2014 AW32 passes between the Earth and the Moon on the day it is discovered, Asteroid 2014 AD16 passes by the Earth, Asteroid 2014 AK51 comes closer to the Earth than the Moon is, two days before being discovered, Asteroid 2014 AM51 passes the Earth four days before being discovered and Asteroid 2014 AY32 passes the Earth before being discovered.

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A new species of Ground Beetle from Mexico.

Ground Beetles (Carabidae) are large, usually carnivorous Beetles, abundant across much of the globe. They are able to defend themselves by secreting noxious or caustic chemicals from glands on their abdomens (Bombardier Beetles are Carabids). Larger species are often unable to fly. Ground Beetles have a fossil record dating back to the Triassic; there are around 40 000 described extant species.

In a paper published in the journal ZooKeys on 4 July 2013, George Ball and Danny Shpeley of the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Alberta describe a new species of Ground Beetle from Oaxaca State in Mexico, as part of a wider study into Ground Beetles in the Americas.

The new species is placed in the genus Coarazuphium and given the specific name whiteheadi, in honour of Donald Whitehead, deceased, who collected some of the specimens from which the species is described. Coarazuphium whiteheadi is described from two female and one male specimens from cloud forest remnants at high altitudes western Oaxaca. It is a small Ground Beetle, 4.13-4.40 mm in length, yellow-white in colour, with an elongate oval body.

Coarazuphium whiteheadi in dorsal view. Scale bar is 5 mm. Ball & Shpeley (2013).

See also Two new species of Jewel Beetle from Central America, Two new species of Sap Beetle from North America, Two new species of Clown Beetle from Madagascar, A new species of Scavenger Scarab Beetle from the Early Cretaceous of Liaoning Province, China and A new species of aquatic Beetle from the campus of the Ateneo de Manila University.

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Magnitude 4.5 Earthquake in northern Sonoma County, California.

The United States Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 4.5 Earthquake at a depth of 2.6 km, 6 km to the north of The Geysers in Sonoma County, northern California, slightly before 12.25 pm local time (slightly before 8.25 pm GMT) on Sunday 12 January 2014. There are no reports of any damage or casualties associated with this event, though people in the area reported feeling strong shaking for 15-20 seconds.

The approximate location of the 12 January 2014 Sonoma County Earthquake. Google Maps.

California is extremely prone to Earthquakes due to the presence of the San Andreas Fault, a tectonic plate margin that effectively bisects the state. The west of California, including Santa Barbara and Los Angeles, is located on the Pacific Plate, and is moving to the northwest. The east of California, including Fresno and Bakersfield is on the North American Plate, and is moving to the southeast. The plates do not move smoothly past one-another, but constantly stick together then break apart as the pressure builds up. This has led to a network of smaller faults that criss-cross the state, so that Earthquakes can effectively occur anywhere.

Witness accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events and the underlying structures that cause them. If you felt this quake (or if you were in the area but did not, which is also useful information) then you can report it to the United States Geological Survey here.

See also Magnitude 3.0 Earthquake in Mendocino County, California, Magnitude 2.6 Earthquake in northeast Sonoma County, California, Magnitude 4.5 Earthquake off the coast of northern California, Magnitude 3.4 Earthquake in northern California and Northeast California shaken by Magnitude 5.7 Earthquake.

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The shape of Kuiper Belt Object 2003 SQ317.

The Kuiper Belt is a region of the Solar System extending from the orbit of Neptune at about 30 AU (i.e. 30 times the distance between the Sun and the Earth) out to about 50 AU from the Sun it contains a very large number of bodies known as Kuiper Belt Objects, which are thought to be left over from the formation of the Solar System, elements of the original proto-planetary disk that were to widely scattered, and had to high an angular momentum, to assemble into planets under their own gravity. Some of these objects are large enough to be considered dwarf planets, notably Pluto (formerly considered to be a planet), Makemake and Haumea.

In a paper published on the online arXiv Database at Cornell University Library on 6 September 2013,  and in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society on 3 December 2013, Pedro Lancerda and Andrew McNeill of the Astrophysics Research Centre at Queen's University Belfast and Nuno Peixinho of the Center for Geophysics and Geophysical and Astronomical Observatory of the University of Coimbra, describe attempts to model the shape of one particular Kuiper Belt Object 2003 SQ317.

2003 SQ317 was discovered in September 2003 (the designation 2003 SQ371 indicates that it was the 7941st object discovered in the second half of September 2003). It has an eccentric 279 year orbit inclined to the plane of the Solar System, with an average distance of 42.7 AU from the Sun. It is considered to be a Haumea Family Object, a body with a similar orbital path and albedo to the dwarf planet Haumea, possibly formed by an ancient collision involving the proto-Haumea and another body, though modeling a scenario that could start in such a collision and end with the current pathways of these objects has proved elusive. In 2010 it was noted that 2003 SQ317 had a notably variable albedo, dimming and brightening by a factor of 14 over a period of 3.7 hours, suggesting that it might have a highly irregular shape.  

The calculated orbit of 2003 SQ317. JPL Small Body Database Browser.

Based upon additional observations of 2003 SQ317 using the ESO New Technology Telescope located at the La Silla Observatory in Chile, Lancerda et al. attempted to build a model of the object that fit with the observed pattern of brightening and darkening. 

They were able to come up with two, equally plausible models to account for this. Firstly 2003 SQ317 could be an flattened elongate body (Jacobi ellipsoid) spinning so that the body alternatively presents long and short sides to the Earth. Secondly the object could in fact be a pair of gravitationally bound bodies (a Roche binary pair), rotating one in front of the other, so that alternately one and two bodies can be seen.

Jacobi ellipsoid model that best fi ts the lightcurve of 2003 SQ317. Lancerda et al. (2013).

Roche binary model that best fi ts the lightcurve of 2003 SQ317. Lancerda et al. (2013).

2003 SQ317 is too small and too distant for its shape to be resolved visually with any current telescope. It would in theory be possible to differentiate between the two models it the mass of the object were known (the binary pair would need to be considerably more dense than the Jacobi ellipsoid), though there is no easy way to do this at the current time. 2003 SQ317 is likely to be a rubble pile type object rather than one or two large rocks, which would allow it quite a range of possible densities, and make it hard to determine its density based upon its mineralogy (which can sometimes be assessed from albedo).

See also Asteroids in retrograde orbits, Four more asteroids found to be co-orbitals of Neptune, Neptune's Trailing Trojans, The stability of Neptune's Trojan Asteroids and Pluto gains a fourth moon.

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Worker killed at Tasmania copper mine.

A worker has been killed at the Mount Lyell Copper Mine at Queenstown, Tasmania, at about 8.00 am on Friday 17 January 2014. George Welsh (53) of Queenstown was buried by a mud discharge while working at a lower level in the mine. A mud discharge in a mine typically happens when excavation exposes a pocket of mud (a mixture of clay and water), which then flows into the shaft.

The Mount Lyell Copper Mine. The Advocate.

This is the third fatality in six weeks at the Mount Lyell Mine. on 9 December 2013 Craig Gleeson (45) and Alistair Lucas (25), died after falling over 20 m down a shaft during maintenance work, prompting a two week closure at the mine while an investigation was carried out. The mine will now be closed again while a fresh investigation is carried out by WorkSafe Tasmania and the Tasmania Police. 

See also Two workers killed in accident at Tasmanian copper mine, Worker killed at Western Australia ore mine, Mining company fined for desecrating sacred site in Australia's Northern Territory, Acid spill from gold mine adds to Edith River's woes and Copper spill causes pollution alert on the Edith River in the Northern Territory, Australia.

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At least 16 dead after landslides at Tomohon in North Sulawesi.

It is feared that at least 16 people have died after a pair of landslides hit the Tomohon-Manado road close to Tomohon in North Sulawesi Province, Indonesia on Wednesday 15 January 2013. One of these is understood to have hit a house where at least a dozen people were sheltering from the rain, sweeping it down a 50 m ravine. So far one person has been pulled from the debris alive and two bodies have been recovered. The second landslide is understood to have hit traffic on the road, sweeping several cars and motorbikes into a ravine.

Rescue workers searching for survivors after a landslide on the Tomohon-Manado Road. Fiqman Sunandar/Antara News.

The incidents followed 11 hours of continuous heavy rain. Landslides are a common problem after severe weather events, as excess pore water pressure can overcome cohesion in soil and sediments, allowing them to flow like liquids. Approximately 90% of all landslides are caused by heavy rainfall. December and January represent peak rainy season on Sulawesi, and landslides and flooding are common at this time of year. This has been made worse by a tropical depression that moved over the island this week, having caused problems on Mindanao in the Philippines the week before. Over 40 000 people have had to leave their homes on Sulawesi, with floodwaters reaching 2.5 m in places.

Rescue workers evacuating people from flood hit areas of Mandano. Yudi Makka/AFP/Getty Images.

See also At least nine dead following flash floods and landslides on Mindanao Island, Philippines, At least two dead following landslides at mining site on Dinagat Island in the Philippines, Landslide kills four in Central Java, Family has close escape as landslide hits house in Penampang, Malaysia and Miner killed in landslide on Mindanao Island, the Philippines.

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Asteroid 2014 AW32 passes between the Earth and the Moon on the day it is discovered.

Asteroid 2014 AW32 passed the Earth at a distance of 186 500 km (slightly under half the distance between the Earth and the Moon) at about 9.40 pm GMT on 10 January 2014. There was no danger of the asteroid hitting us, and were it to have done so it would have presented no threat. 2014 AW32 is calculated to be between 5 and 19 m in diameter, and an object of this size would be expected to break up in the Earth's atmosphere between 40 and 23 km above the planet's surface, with only fragmentary material reaching the ground.

The calculated orbit of 2014 AW32. JPL Small Body Database Browser.

2014 AW32 was discovered on 10 January 2014 (the day of its closest pass of the Earth) by the University of Arizona's Catalina Sky Survey in the Catalina Mountains north of Tucson. The designation 2014 AF16 implies that it was the 822nd asteroid discovered in the first half of January 2014 (period 2014 A).

2014 AW32 has an 386 day orbital period and an eccentric orbit tilted to the plane of the Solar System that takes it from 0.78 AU from the Sun (i.e. 78% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun) to 1.30 AU from the Sun (i.e. 130% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun). It is therefore classed as an Apollo Group Asteroid (an asteroid that is on average further from the Sun than the Earth, but which does get closer). The closeness of this orbital period to our own means that it is thought to make frequent close passes of the Earth, the most recent having been on 27 December 2012 and the next predicted for 15 December this year.

See also Asteroid 2014 AD16 passes by the Earth, Asteroid 2014 AK51 comes closer to the Earth than the Moon is, two days before being discovered, Asteroid 2014 AM51 passes the Earth four days before being discovered, Asteroid 2014 AY32 passes the Earth before being discovered and Asteroid 2013 UB1 passes the Earth.

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Three giant exoplanets in very wide orbits around young stars.

In the past two decades a large number of planets have been discovered orbiting other stars (exoplanets). The vast majority of these have been large planets orbiting close to their host stars, such planets being easier to detect due to the influence that their gravity has on the star. Planets further from their stars are harder to detect, as their gravity has less effect upon the star, and they have long orbital periods which will tend to mask this anyway. Such planets are more likely to be detected by direct imaging, though this will require separate observations over a long period of time to confirm the relationship with the host star.

In a paper published on the online arXiv database at Cornell University Library on 29 November 2013 and accepted for publication in The Astrophysics Journal, a team of scientists led by Adam Kraus of the Department of Astronomy at the The University of Texas at Austin and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics describe three giant planets orbiting young stars at distances in excess of 100 AU (i.e. more than 100 times the distance at which the planet Earth orbits the Sun). All three bodies had previously been noted as potential planets over a decade ago, but can only now be confirmed as objects in orbit about their stars, due to follow-up observations that have tracked their movement. 

Large planets in very wide orbits about young stars presents a considerable challenge for conventional models of planet formation, since it should in theory take far longer for a planet to form this far from a star, potentially never accreting into a large body at all. Our own system contains considerable material beyond the orbit of Neptune (30 AU from the Sun), but this has apparently never accreted into a large planet, despite the 5 billion year age of the Solar System.

The first of the three new planets orbits the binary system FW Tau AB near the center of the Taurus- Auriga complex, 473 light years from Earth. The FW Tau system comprises two red dwarf stars  (FW Tau A and FW Tau B) each though to have a mass 28% of our Sun's orbiting one another at a distance of 11 AU (11 times the distance between the Sun and the Earth). The system is thought to be about 1.8 million years old. The planet, FW Tau b (when naming objects in other stellar systems stars are given upper case letters and planets lower case letters), is calculate to have a mass 10 times that of Jupiter and orbit at a distance of 330 AU (over 10 times the distance at which Neptune orbits the Sun). 

Infrared image of the FW Tau system. The image is not coronagraphic; most of the image is shown with a linear stretch that saturates at 110% of the peak brightness of the wide companion, while a box of size 0.5′′ is instead shown with a linear stretch that saturates at 110% of the peak brightness of the primary star in the close binary. North is up. The scale bar is 1 arc inch; i.e. 1/21 600th of the circumference of an imaginary sphere around the Earth. Kraus et al. (2013).

The second new planet orbits the binary star ROXs 42B, 440 light years from Earth in the constellation of Ophiuchus. The binary system comprises two stars with masses of 89% that of the Sun and 36% that of the Sun, orbiting at a distance of less than 10 AU. The system is thought to be 6.8 million years old. The new planet, ROXs 42B b is calculated to orbit this pair at a distance of 140 AU and have a mass 10 times that of Jupiter. A second, potential body in the system, provisionally dubbed ROXs 42B cc1, is thought to be a background star.

Infrared image of the ROXs 42B system. The image is not coronagraphic; most of the image is shown with a linear stretch that saturates at 110% of the peak brightness of the wide companion, while a box of size 0.5′′ is instead shown with a linear stretch that saturates at 110% of the peak brightness of the primary star in the close binary. North is up. The scale bar is 1 arc inch; i.e. 1/21 600th of the circumference of an imaginary sphere around the Earth. Kraus et al. (2013).

The third new planet orbits ROXs 12, another star in the constellation of Ophiuchus, 391 light years from Earth. ROXs 12 is thought to have a mass 87% of that of the Sun and to be 7.6 million years old. ROXs 12b orbits this star at a distance of 210 AU, and has a mass 16 times that of Jupiter.

Infrared image of the ROXs 12 system. The image is not coronagraphic; most of the image is shown with a linear stretch that saturates at 110% of the peak brightness of the wide companion, while a box of size 0.5′′ is instead shown with a linear stretch that saturates at 110% of the peak brightness of the primary star in the close binary. North is up. The scale bar is 1 arc inch; i.e. 1/21 600th of the circumference of an imaginary sphere around the Earth. Kraus et al. (2013).

See also Kepler 63b; a giant planet in a polar orbit, A superjovian exoplanet directly imaged orbiting the A-class pre main-sequence star HD 95086, A fourth body in the KOI-13 system, Wasp-12b; slowly boiling away... and KOI-13b, a big, hot planet not a Brown Dwarf.

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