The Amazon rainforest has long been a haven for biodiversity, but recent research has revealed a previously unknown scale of turtle populations in one of its most remote regions. A University of Florida research team, led by post-doctoral researcher Ismael Brack, has developed an innovative method to count wildlife using drones that has confirmed the world’s largest known nesting site for the threatened Giant South American River Turtle.

The researchers used a combination of aerial imagery and statistical modeling to document more than 41,000 turtles gathered along the Guaporé River. Their findings were published in the Journal of Applied Ecology and offer a new tool for conservationists seeking to monitor vulnerable animal populations with greater precision.

“We describe a novel way to more efficiently monitor animal populations,” said Brack. “And although the method is used to count turtles, it could also be applied to other species.”
The project began with researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in Brazil, Colombia, and Bolivia, who are monitoring the Giant South American River Turtle, which is threatened by poachers who sell its meat and eggs. The turtles are exceptionally social creatures, and females congregate each year in July or August to nest in the Guaporé River sandbanks between Brazil and Bolivia.

Brack met WCS scientists at a conference, where they shared how they use drones to count the turtles. They create orthomosaics, highly detailed, high-resolution composite images made by stitching together hundreds of overlapping aerial photographs. Counting animals shown in orthomosaics is a quicker, more accurate, and less-invasive approach than counting animals from the ground.

However, the method alone doesn’t account for the fact that animals sometimes move during observation. Together, researchers from UF and WCS developed a method that improves counting accuracy by eliminating multiple sources of error, including double counts (the same individual counted multiple times) and missed individuals.
Researchers used white paint to mark the shells of 1,187 turtles gathering on an island sandbank within the Guaporé River. Over 12 days, a drone flew overhead on a meticulous back-and-forth path four times a day and snapped 1,500 photos each time. Using software, scientists stitched the photos together, and researchers reviewed the composite images.
They recorded each turtle, if its shell was marked and whether the animal was nesting or walking when photographed. Equipped with this data, they developed probability models that account for individuals entering and leaving the area, observed turtle behaviors, and the likelihood of detecting an identifiable shell mark.

The models revealed several potential sources of error that could arise from traditional orthomosaic-based counts, according to the study. Only 35% of the turtles that used the sandbank were present during drone flights. And on average, 20% of those detected walking appeared multiple times in orthomosaics – some as many as seven times.
Observers on the ground counted about 16,000 turtles, according to the study. Researchers who reviewed the orthomosaics but didn’t account for animal movement or shell markings counted about 79,000 turtles. When they applied their models, however, they estimated about 41,000 turtles.

“These numbers vary greatly, and that’s a problem for conservationists,” Brack said. “If scientists are unable to establish an accurate count of individuals of a species, how will they know if the population is in decline or whether efforts to protect it are successful?”

The study describes ways to adapt and apply the approach to conservation efforts involving other species surveyed by drone-derived orthomosaics. Past monitoring studies have involved clipping seals’ fur, attaching high-visibility collars to elk, and marking mountain goats with paintball pellets to keep track of animal movement during counts.

The research team plans to perfect monitoring methods by conducting additional drone flights at the Guaporé River nesting site and in other South American countries where the Giant South American River Turtle gathers, including Colombia and possibly Peru and Venezuela. “By combining information from multiple surveys, we can detect population trends, and the Wildlife Conservation Society will know where to invest in conservation actions,” Brack said.

Deep-sea fish have long been a mystery, but new research is shedding light on their importance in Earth’s carbon cycle. Scientists at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science have discovered that deep-dwelling mesopelagic fish, which account for up to 94% of global fish biomass, excrete carbonate minerals at rates comparable to shallow-water species.

The study focused on the blackbelly rosefish (Helicolenus dactylopterus), a deep-sea species living at depths of 350-430 meters. The researchers found that these fish form and excrete intestinal carbonate, also known as ichthyocarbonate, which helps maintain internal salt and water balance in saline environments. This process plays a critical role in marine carbon cycling.

The study’s lead author, Martin Grosell, explained that it was unclear whether mesopelagic fish produced carbonate like shallow-water fish do or at what rate. However, the research confirms that they do produce carbonate at rates similar to those of shallow-water species. The blackbelly rosefish was found to excrete approximately 5 milligrams of ichthyocarbonate per kilogram per hour, aligning with predictions from thermal and metabolic scaling models.

This study fills a major gap in our understanding of ocean chemistry and carbon cycling. With mesopelagic fish playing such a significant role, their contribution to carbonate flux – and how it might change with warming oceans – deserves greater attention. The findings also underscore the importance of ichthyocarbonate in the ocean carbon cycle, especially given the vast, underexplored biomass of the mesopelagic zone.

The study’s authors say that these results offer strong support for global models of fish-derived carbonate production, which had assumed but not verified that mesopelagic species contribute at similar rates. Mesopelagic fish aren’t just prey; they’re chemical engineers of the ocean.

This research opens new avenues for studying deep-sea carbon dynamics and may improve Earth system models, which are sophisticated computer models that incorporate interactions between physical, chemical, and biological processes, such as biological carbon production and export. The study was published in the Journal of Experimental Biology on July 15, 2025.

The discovery of jadarite, a rare and fascinating mineral, has been hailed as “Earth’s kryptonite twin” due to its similarities to the fictional substance from the comic books. Found in the Jadar Valley of Serbia by exploration geologists from Rio Tinto in 2004, this sodium lithium boron silicate hydroxide mineral has immense potential for Earth’s energy transition away from fossil fuels.

Initially, jadarite didn’t match any known mineral at the time and was identified after analysis by the Natural History Museum in London and the National Research Council of Canada. It was officially recognized as a new mineral in 2006. While it shares some similarities with kryptonite, including its chemical formula LiNaSiB₃O₇(OH), jadarite is a much less supernatural dull white mineral that fluoresces pinkish-orange under UV light.

According to Michael Page, a scientist with Australia’s Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), “the real jadarite has great potential as an important source of lithium and boron.” In fact, the Jadar deposit where it was first discovered is considered one of the largest lithium deposits in the world, making it a potential game-changer for the global green energy transition.

The work that ANSTO does focuses on how critical minerals like jadarite can be utilized to support Australian industry in a commercial capacity. They have produced battery-grade lithium chemicals from various mineral deposits, including spodumene, lepidolite, and even jadarite, ensuring that Australian miners receive the support they need to meet the challenges of the energy transition.

As the world continues to transition towards renewable energy sources, jadarite’s potential as a key component in this process cannot be overstated. Its discovery is a testament to human ingenuity and our ability to find innovative solutions to complex problems.