Birds Move Nutrients Across Oceans, Forests and Reefs
In short
- Researchers from Cornell and five other institutions reviewed nearly 400 scientific papers.
- Birds move nutrients from land, lake and sea through their waste and bodies.
- The movement affects soil, water chemistry, and plant and animal growth.
Why the Good News Desk likes this one
The review pulls together research on how birds shift nutrients between habitats, from the ocean to inland forests. It shows a role for birds that was often overlooked in studies of how ecosystems work. Understanding this helps conservation focus on the birds that do this work.
From Phys.org
Birds play an outsized, underappreciated role in shaping Earth's chemistry, distributing nutrients across oceans, forests and coral reefs and sustaining life far beyond the nest. Researchers from Cornell and five other institutions reviewed nearly 400 scientific papers to show how birds transport nutrients from land, lake and sea through their waste and bodies. This influences everything from soil and water chemistry to plant and animal growth. The work was published Oct. 19 in Current Biology.
Ask this story
For kids
Birds fly between the sea, the land and the trees. When they poop and move around, they carry food that helps plants and animals grow. Scientists looked at lots of studies to see how much birds help. Talk about it: Which bird have you seen today, and where do you think it has been?
