Observations from the Little Bunker
A systematic observation of climate change, extreme weather events, and their cascading effects on society
🌍 Latest Environmental Observations
Oxidizing pollutants can disrupt nestmate recognition in ants
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceAnts make up to two-thirds of the biomass of all insects and...
Diets, dominance hierarchies, and kleptoparasitism drive asymmetrical interactions between wolves and cougars
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceTheory of carnivore interactions has focused on apex carnivores suppressing and facilitating...
N.C. Judge Upholds the State’s Limits on 1,4-Dioxane Pollution in Utilities’ Wastewater
The chemical, used in solvents, degreasers and some consumer products, is a likely carcinogen that can harm the liver and kidneys.By Lisa SorgA Wake County...
Transmission through muscle tissue shapes polarization signals during cuttlefish courtship
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceMany animal tissues (e.g., muscle fibers and collagen) are translucent yet exhibit...
Ancestral and local adaptation contribute to dispersal out of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau in a bumblebee
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceMost species are confined to narrow climatic niches, yet a bumblebee,Bombus pyrosoma,native...
Pre-Incans collected seabird poop from remote islands to use as fertilizer
Guano-based agriculture became highly prized in the Inca empire
The Japanese Archipelago sheltered cave lions, not tigers, during the Late Pleistocene
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceLions and tigers were widespread apex predators during the Late Pleistocene and...
Microraptor reveals specialized gliding capabilities in multiwinged early paravians
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceMicroraptorwas a Cretaceous theropod dinosaur hypothesized to be a glider or a...
Universal relation between spectral and wavefunction properties at criticality
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceAn important role in physics research is to uncover universal properties of...
Evidence for the earliest hominin use of wooden handheld tools found at Marathousa 1 (Greece)
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceThe specimens presented here represent the earliest known handheld wooden tools, recovered...
India has big plans to remove silt from rivers—and scientists are alarmed
Dredging and mining sediments increases flood risks and threatens infrastructure, researchers say
Early-life heat exposure increases risk of neurodevelopmental delay in preschool children
Nature Climate Change, Published online: 11 February 2026; doi:10.1038/s41558-026-02560-wThe authors use data from over 100,000 children (3–5.5 years old) across 551 Chinese cities, to show...
Discrepancies in national inventories reveal a large emissions gap in the wastewater sector
Nature Climate Change, Published online: 11 February 2026; doi:10.1038/s41558-025-02540-6The wastewater sector is a major source of non-CO2 emissions, but accurate emissions accounting remains challenging, despite...
Stephen P. Long: Visionary, teacher, and doer
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. Stephen Long pioneered a multidisciplinary approach to advance our knowledge of photosynthesis,...
How earthquakes organize stress
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceEarthquakes organize the stress in the crust by redistributing it through slip...
Inconsistent national reports undercount wastewater emissions
Nature Climate Change, Published online: 11 February 2026; doi:10.1038/s41558-026-02555-7National greenhouse gas inventories systematically undercount methane and nitrous oxide emissions from wastewater due to outdated methods...
Heat exposure disrupts brain development
Nature Climate Change, Published online: 11 February 2026; doi:10.1038/s41558-026-02564-6Early life stages are particularly critical for human brain development. A large-scale study in China shows that...
Point of no return: a hellish ‘hothouse Earth’ getting closer, scientists say
Continued global heating could set irreversible course by triggering climate tipping points, but most people unaware The world is closer than thought to a “point...
Accelerated Global Warming Could Lock Earth Into a Hothouse Future
Scientists say warming is increasing faster than at any time in at least 3 million years. There is no guide for what comes next.By Bob...
Cropped 11 February 2026: Aftershocks of US withdrawals | Biodiversity and business risks | Deep-sea mining tensions
We handpick and explain the most important stories at the intersection of climate, land, food and nature over the past fortnight. This is an online...
Projecting nitrous oxide over the 21st century, uncertainty related to stratospheric loss
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026. SignificanceProjecting atmospheric nitrous oxide (N2O) abundance is critical for climate and ozone...
In This Issue
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 6, February 2026.
Stay Updated
Subscribe to our RSS feed for the latest climate observations and environmental news.