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•In North Carolina, large stands of wetland forests along the coast have died, giving the areas an apocalyptic appearance, CNET reported.
Salt water from rising seas and storm surges is causing the destruction of tens of thousands of acres.
Researchers at North Carolina State University are studying the "ghost forests" to measure their environmental impact, which includes emitting greenhouse gases -- carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide -- that they call "tree farts."
Graduate student Melinda Martinez acknowledged that the trees don't emit as much as the soils, but, she said, "Even the smallest fart counts." [CNET, 5/14/2021]
•Avid snorkeler Susan Prior of Norfolk Island, Australia, often sees small mullet fish with rings around their middles -- usually plastic rings from juice and milk bottles, she said, according to the New York Post.
"Mullet snuffle through the sand looking for food, making it so easy for a ring or a hair tie to flip over their noses and get stuck," she wrote in a blog post.
But in early May, Prior, who also takes underwater photos, captured a snap of a mullet fish sporting a gold wedding band.
Prior remembered that she had seen a social media post about a lost wedding ring in the bay, but she couldn't catch up to the fish to retrieve the item.
She did, however, remind others to snip any plastic rings before putting them in the trash so that the fish aren't "slowly strangled." [NY Post, 5/14/2021]