While walking with a metal detector this spring, 22-year-old archeology student Gustav Bruunsgaard uncovered a hoard of silver that dates back to the Viking Age. The sparkly find has links to the British Isles, Ukraine, and Russia.
According to a translated statement from the Moesgaard Museum in Højbjerg, Denmark, the student from Denmark’s Aarhus University was walking in a field in Elsted, north of Aarhus. When the metal detector beeped loudly, Bruunsgaard grabbed a small shovel and uncover
While walking with a metal detector this spring, 22-year-old archeology student Gustav Bruunsgaard uncovered a hoard of silver that dates back to the Viking Age. The sparkly find has links to the British Isles, Ukraine, and Russia.
According to a translated statement from the Moesgaard Museum in Højbjerg, Denmark, the student from Denmark’s Aarhus University was walking in a field in Elsted, north of Aarhus. When the metal detector beeped loudly, Bruunsgaard grabbed a small shovel and uncovered a small silver bangle. He returned to the site a few days later and found six more bangles. Assessment from both Danish and international experts revealed that they date back to the early Viking Age (about 793 to 1066 CE), shortly after the foundation of the Viking Age city of Aarhus or Aros. Experts believe that it was made in Southern Scandinavia, likely Denmark.
Vikings had a fairly complex economic system. Recently, a new interpretation of an inscription on the Swedish Forsa Ring gave economic historians some new insights into how money and debts were handled at this time. Some of these hefty sums could be up to $9,610 today, but it is not clear what offense the fines covered.
During the Viking Age, silver like the rings uncovered in Elsted was a measure of value. The metal was a way to make payments and a type of collateral that demonstrated an owner’s financial means. The seven total bracelets that Bruunsgaard found weigh just over a pound and archaeological experts estimate that they would have had a significant value.
The coiled ring is a type of silver that originally came from present day Russia or Ukraine which was imitated in the Nordics. The three band-shaped, stamped rings are a type of South Scandinavian design that inspired bangles in present day Ireland, where they became very common. The three smooth bangles are a rare form of jewelry, but have been found in Scandinavia and England.
“The Elsted farm treasure is a fantastically interesting find from the Viking Age, which connects Aarhus with Russia and Ukraine in the east and the British Isles in the west,” Moesgaard Museum historian Kasper H. Andersen said in a statement. “In this way, the find emphasizes how Aarhus was a central hub in the Viking world, which went all the way from the North Atlantic to Asia.”
Visitors to the Moesgaard Museum can now see the silver on exhibit.
In the throes of scorching summer and the dead of winter, electric and gas bills get expensive. Climate control is the biggest single power suck, making up more than half of all energy used in most homes. It’s bad for your wallet and the planet, and the cost makes staying comfortable difficult for many. There are lots of ways to make your home more efficient, from switching out old appliances for heat pumps or installing double-pane windows–but these options are big, expensive upgrades. It costs
In the throes of scorching summer and the dead of winter, electric and gas bills get expensive. Climate control is the biggest single power suck, making up more than half of all energy used in most homes. It’s bad for your wallet and the planet, and the cost makes staying comfortable difficult for many. There are lots of ways to make your home more efficient, from switching out old appliances for heat pumps or installing double-pane windows–but these options are big, expensive upgrades. It costs thousands of dollars to replace windows and HVAC systems.
Yet there’s a deceptively easy and much more affordable way to cut back on your heating and cooling costs, and it’s likely accessible even for renters: Reconsider your window coverings. Through insulation and control over radiant heat from sunlight, window coverings have the power to keep heat in or out, depending on the season. There are products to fit most budgets, and lots of what’s out there is likely better than the familiar, plastic or metal Venetian blinds or ill-fitting curtains that hang in most homes. One type of covering in particular, the cellular shade, is an unsung, energy efficient hero, according to multiple analyses from national labs.
Why windows?
First off, some necessary explanation. All the things that separate a building’s inside from the outside are collectively referred to as the “building envelope.” This term encapsulates doors, walls, windows, the foundation, and the roof. Altogether, that barrier is enormously important for indoor thermal efficiency, says Robert Hart, a technology researcher at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL). “An envelope-first approach reduces the need for energy in the first place,” he explains. If you’re able to effectively keep the outside out, then you’ll have to put way less work into making your home comfortable when the weather isn’t.
The biggest and most easily adjusted source of thermal flux within the matrix of materials that make up a building is generally the transparent, glass windows. “Windows tend to be the largest aspect of building envelope that you can focus on,” says Christian Kaltreider, a building energy research engineer at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). Yet most people opt for the window coverings that are already there or go for style over function. By doing so, they miss out on energy savings.
Efficiency researchers and engineers have tested all manner of window coverings, combinations, and use decisions in experimental houses around the country. Though many variables count towards power consumption, the right shades make a big difference.
The benefit of cellular shades
Adding a honeycomb or cellular shade (a style of fabric covering designed with one or more layers of air pockets between the material) can reduce heating costs in the winter by as much as 9 percent, compared with vinyl Venetian blinds, according to a 2018 PNNL report. Given that heating alone constitutes between 25 and 47 percent of home energy use, a 9 percent reduction isn’t trivial. Energy costs vary widely by state, home size, and appliances, but if you live somewhere with cold winters, you can expect to save around $10 a month on gas and electricity. In the summer, the potential benefit is even larger: up to 25 percent reductions in cooling cost in the best-case scenario, and up to 15 percent savings compared with Venetian blinds in a day-to-day use scenario.
“For ease of implementation… and bang for your buck, cellular shades are generally going to be your best bet,” says Kaltreider.
A 2022 analysis from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) found even more promising results. In winter, cellular shades can save up to 20 percent on heating costs, compared with blinds, per that assessment. In summer, ORNL researchers determined cooling savings were also up to 15 percent. Mahabir Bhandari, a co-author on that study and an efficiency and buildings researcher at ORNL, agrees that cellular shades are one of the most affordable and accessible options for boosting home energy efficiency. “You can go to Home Depot or Lowe’s and easily get whatever kind you want,” he says. Most are easily self-installed. The least expensive versions start around $25.
Simple alternatives
Not all cellular shades are created equal. Some are more transparent, others blackout opaque. They come in single and multi-layered versions, are made of different materials, and have variations in how they’re controlled–from fancy, automated kinds to your standard pull-down ones. Choosing one requires balancing personal needs (like privacy and light filtering) with budget and preference. More opaque, multi-layered shades will be more insulating and prevent more heat exchange, but they’ll also keep more light out in the summer. It’s all a trade-off, Hart says. Energy savings “really depend on the specific product,” he notes, and cellular shades aren’t the only option–but they are a good one.
Window quilts are another effective, seasonal alternative, says Bhandari. External shade structures like awnings, if you’re able to install them, can do a lot in the hot months and climates, note Hart and Kaltreider. And storm windows, secondary panes of glass added to existing window frames, are another great way to reduce heating and cooling costs that exist somewhere between the affordability of swapping out your shades and the expense of getting entirely new windows installed. All three efficiency experts recommended storm windows for their ability to minimize air leakage. Even just a simple tube of caulk can help fill gaps and reduce energy losses, says Bhandari.
How to choose the right shade
With so many variables and products to consider, online tools like this one, which Hart helped to develop, can help users narrow it down. You can also search for specific products through the website of the Attachments Energy Rating Council, a non-profit that offers comparable information about different window covering features.
No matter what you choose, the way you use it changes the outcome. “Operating [window coverings] smartly gives you the most benefit, no matter what shade,” says Hart. If you install a blackout cellular shade and then leave it up all the time, there’s no point, he explains. Investing in “efficient” coverings only pays off if you heed the operation advice, which is mostly common sense. And even the coverings you already have can be deployed to good effect.
Let the sun in if you want heat and keep it out if you don’t. Prioritize west and south facing windows, which can be the biggest sources of manipulatable heat gain. If it’s cooler outside than in during summer nights, leaving shades open can help heat to dissipate through the glass. In winter, leave your shades open on sunny days to catch warmth. When the sun isn’t shining, think about drawn shades as a means to keep heat from leaking out.
Your window coverings are more than just home decor; They’re a tool. Use them to slash your energy bill.
A toxin from one of the world’s most venomous animals could one day help treat diabetes and endocrine disorders. The toxin in snails called consomatin is similar to somatostatin in humans, a peptide hormone that regulates blood sugar. In cone snail venom, consomatin’s specific and long-lasting effects help the animal hunt its prey, but it could also lead to the development of better drugs for sometimes fatal diseases–if we can understand how it works. The findings are detailed in a study publish
Scientists have previously experimented with using cone snail venoms for creating less addictive opioid alternatives and new diabetes treatments. In 2016, scientists unlocked the structure of a fast-acting insulin that the snails use to stun their prey; a similar structure could be used to create an insulin that works faster in humans. In the new study, consomatin also exhibited enough precision to target single types of molecules. Researchers hope that drugs could be developed with the same amount of precision.
“Venomous animals have, through evolution, fine-tuned venom components to hit a particular target in the prey and disrupt it,” study co-author and University of Utah biochemist Helena Safavi said in a statement. “If you take one individual component out of the venom mixture and look at how it disrupts normal physiology, that pathway is often really relevant in disease.”
The team looked at the human hormone somatostatin that prevents the levels of blood sugar in the body from rising to dangerously high levels. The cone snail toxin consomatin also keeps blood sugar levels from increasing, but uses that as a way to stun and kill its prey. However, the team found that consomatin is more chemically stable and longer-lasting than the human hormone. This makes it a particularly promising blueprint for new drugs and treatment.
In the study, the team looked at one of the most toxic marine cone snail–the geography cone. They are found along reefs in the Pacific and Indo-Pacific, where the snails stun and eat small fish. The team measured how the cone snail’s consomatin interacts with somatostatin’s targets in human cells in a dish. They found that consomatin mingles with one of the same proteins that somatostatin does. While human somatostatin directly interacts with several proteins, consomatin only works with one. This fine-tuned targeting means that the cone snail toxin can affect blood sugar levels and hormones, but not hit the other molecules around it.
According to the team, the cone snail toxin can hit its targets even more precisely than most specific synthetic drugs designed to regulate hormone levels. However, in its current form, the consomatin’s effects on blood sugar could make it dangerous to use to treat diabetes in humans. Studying its structure could help researchers design drugs for endocrine disorders that have fewer side effects in the future.
Earth’s chemists
Consomatin and somatostatin share an evolutionary history. Over millions of years, the cone snail turned its own hormone into a weapon. Importantly, consomatin doesn’t work alone. A 2022 study found that cone snail venom also includes another toxin which resembles insulin. This lowers blood sugar levels so quickly that the cone snail’s prey becomes unresponsive. Consomatin will then keep blood sugar levels from recovering, and the prey will ultimately die.
“Cone snails are just really good chemists,” study co-author and University of Utah postdoctoral researcher Ho Yan Yeung said in a statement. “We think the cone snail developed this highly selective toxin to work together with the insulin-like toxin to bring down blood glucose to a really low level.”
Since several parts of the cone snail’s venom target blood sugar regulation, the venom may have other molecules with similar functions, including regulating glucose properties. A better understanding of the process at the molecular level could then be used to design better medications.
Want to hunt for black holes, but lack access to a mountaintop observatory or deep-space telescope? There’s an app for that—and you can help out astronomers by using it.
Developed by the Dutch Black Hole Consortium, an interdisciplinary research project based in the Netherlands, Black Hole Finder is a free program available both on smartphones and as a desktop website. After reviewing a quick tutorial, all you need to do is study images taken by BlackGEM, a telescope array in Northern Chile t
Want to hunt for black holes, but lack access to a mountaintop observatory or deep-space telescope? There’s an app for that—and you can help out astronomers by using it.
Developed by the Dutch Black Hole Consortium, an interdisciplinary research project based in the Netherlands, Black Hole Finder is a free program available both on smartphones and as a desktop website. After reviewing a quick tutorial, all you need to do is study images taken by BlackGEM, a telescope array in Northern Chile tasked with searching the skies for cosmic events called kilonovas. Although launched in March 2024, as Space.com noted on August 19, the project’s recently expanded from just English and Dutch to support Spanish, German, Chinese, Bengali, Polish, and Italian.
Due to the sometimes very high number of transients we have in one night we decided to make things simpler. Everyone who does more than 1000 transients will be granted the Super User status. After that you can help us do a follow up. The follow up process has also been updated. We disabled it a while ago as we were requesting a lot of follow-ups. So many that we ran out of telescope time at LCO. We now have new telescope time available and based on the brightness of the transient you will request a different follow up. Once you reach Super User status you will receive a notification, the tutorial becomes available for you and you can requests follow-ups for transients that are less than 16 hours old.
Examples of verified kilonova images. Credit: Dutch Black Hole Consortium
Formed during the collision of a neutron star and a black hole, kilonovas generate a blinding—but brief—burst of electromagnetic radiation, which sometimes also results in the creation of a stellar-mass black hole. Although 1,000 times brighter than a regular nova, kilonovas are between 1/10th and 1/100th the brightness of their much more well-known relatives, supernovas. This can make them difficult to spot, especially given their comparatively short lifespans. Each accurately identified kilonova offers astronomers a potential location to study further for evidence of newly formed black holes. But given there are thousands of images to peruse and less than 40 people in the Dutch Black Hole Consortium, the organization could use some citizen scientist volunteers.
After loading up the app, users are presented with a trio of grainy, black-and-white images of a single focal point—the newest available photo, a reference picture of that same region, and an overlay image displaying the difference between the first two photos. A real kilonova is characterized by a few key details. First off, they are round, extremely white shapes roughly 5-10 pixels in diameter. Comparing the new and reference photos, each kilonova’s brightness can vary in either image, such as fading, growing brighter, completely disappearing, and becoming newly visible.
False positives, however, are pretty identifiable based on their tells. No matter their cause—cosmic-ray interference, reflections, or data processing error—they aren’t rounded like kilonovas, don’t fall within the 5-10 pixel range, and often appear stretched or distorted. After examining each set, users then click whether or not their potential kilonova is “Real” or “Bogus,” and move on to the next entry. Don’t worry, though, if you’re stumped on a particular example, you can simply select “Unknown” to hedge your bets. Black Hole Finder even debuted a new phase on August 1 that opens up the possibility of becoming a “Super User” after reviewing 1,000 or more image sets. Once attained, Super Users can request the newest obtained follow-up images to review.
There’s no high score or prize payout to using the Black Hole Finder, but the knowledge that you are contributing to humanity’s understanding of astrophysics and the cosmos arguably beats bragging rights any day of the week.
Among the numerous snakes on planet Earth, pythons are well known for their incredible ability to swallow their prey whole. Some python species have been spotted taking down deer, cows, and even alligators, but they don’t generally eat every single day the way that most animals do. While scientists have observed their eating patterns for decades, less is known about how this affects their hearts. It turns out that to eat this way, pythons rapidly increase their heart rate, body mass, and energy
Among the numerous snakes on planet Earth, pythons are well known for their incredible ability to swallow their prey whole. Some python species have been spotted taking down deer, cows, and even alligators, but they don’t generally eat every single day the way that most animals do. While scientists have observed their eating patterns for decades, less is known about how this affects their hearts. It turns out that to eat this way, pythons rapidly increase their heart rate, body mass, and energy output just for a meal.
In the wild, pythons must often go for months at a time without eating due to food scarcity. When they do eventually find food, they will really go for it and often eat a meal that can equal their body mass.
“It [is] crucial to their survival to be able to have long fasting periods that are not harmful to them and to be able to consume these large meals intermittently,” study co-author and University of Colorado biologist Leslie Leinwand tells Popular Science. “One adaptive response to such a lifestyle is that almost all of the organs in their body get much larger in the first week after such meal consumption and after the meal is consumed, their organs shrink back to a little bigger than their fasting size.”
To learn more about the effects that their feeding style has on their bodies, Leinwand and the team compared the hearts of ball pythons (Python regius). One group of pythons had fasted for 28 days. The other group ate a meal of whole rats that were equivalent to a quarter of the snake’s body mass.
A ball python from Leinwand’s lab. CREDIT: Yuxiao Tan.
In the fed pythons, the cardiac myofibrils–individual units in cardiac muscle cells that help the heart contract–had generated more force to eat. The cardiac myofibrils also relaxed more slowly and were less tense than myofibrils in the hearts of fasted pythons. The chromatin in the heart muscle cells that alters how genes respond to physiological stress in the fed pythons was also less condensed in the fed pythons compared to fasted pythons.
The cardiac ventricle tissues that help the heart pump blood were also less stiff in the fed pythons than the fasted ones. According to the study, it only took 24 hours after eating a large meal for the python heart to become much less stiff.
Stiffness in the heart can be troublesome in animal hearts because it can prevent blood from flowing properly. In humans, cardiac amyloidosis or “stiff heart syndrome” can lead to abnormal heartbeats and faulty heart signals. For pythons, their hearts appear to be avoiding the pitfalls of a stiff heart. Their hearts become much more stretchy while still producing the immense forces required to eat their prey.
“We have shown that this organ size increase is what we call physiological–or healthy,” says Leinwend. “In the heart, such an increase is what is seen in highly conditioned athletes.”
However, there is still more research needed to determine how this can be used to help human hearts.
“If we could apply the biology of pythons that do this healthy thing in their hearts, it could be very helpful to people with heart disease,” says Leinwend. “There is a lot of fascinating biology in the world that can lead to better understanding and treatment of disease.”
The dodo is one of the most iconic—and misunderstood—extinct animals. Four hundred years after its extinction, the popular narrative remains that the flightless bird was simply too dumb, slow, and ungainly to withstand modern society’s arrival to its native island of Mauritius. But researchers are seeking justice for the unfairly maligned dodo and its extinct relative, the solitaire, by synthesizing centuries of scientific literature, historical accounts, and biological information into a single
The dodo is one of the most iconic—and misunderstood—extinct animals. Four hundred years after its extinction, the popular narrative remains that the flightless bird was simply too dumb, slow, and ungainly to withstand modern society’s arrival to its native island of Mauritius. But researchers are seeking justice for the unfairly maligned dodo and its extinct relative, the solitaire, by synthesizing centuries of scientific literature, historical accounts, and biological information into a single work providing clarification and revised taxonomic records.
In a study published in the August 2024 issue of Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, a team collaborating between the University of Southampton, Oxford University, and the Natural History Museum attempted to correct the record for Raphus cucullatus. According to an accompanying August 16 announcement, the paper represents “the most comprehensive review of the taxonomy of the Dodo and its closest relative, the Rodriguez Island Solitaire.” Neil Gostling, the study’s supervising author and University of Southampton professor of evolution and paleobiology, argues that most people’s idea of the dodo isn’t simply inaccurate—it ignores the larger issues behind its extinction.
“If you picture the dodo, you picture… this dumpy, slightly stupid bird that kind of deserved to go extinct. That’s not the case,” Gostling says in a university video profile. “It was neither fat nor stupid, it was adapted to the ecosystem in the isle of Mauritius that it had been living in for millions of years.”
What the dodo and its sister species, the Rodrigues solitaire, were not adapted for, however, was the violent, colonizing force of modern society. Dutch sailors first encountered the dodo in 1598 after arriving on the island, located roughly 705 miles east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. Having evolved without any significant predators, the birds had no instinctual wariness of humans, making them easy prey for both hungry ship crews and international trade. In less than a century, the dodo was wiped out—but not due to their popularity on menus or in zoos.
The dodo’s main enemies weren’t humans themselves, but everything they brought with them while establishing a provisioning port for the Dutch East India Company on Mauritius. Livestock such as pigs trampled the ground birds’ nests, while rats devoured their eggs and small chicks. Meanwhile, dogs, cats, and other invasive animals preyed on the birds themselves while also competing for the island’s limited food sources. By 1662, the dodo was done. Barely a century later, the Rodrigues solitaire followed it into extinction. And with just 64 years of human documentation of the former, it didn’t take long before bird fact blended with bird fiction.
The dodo was critical to its native ecosystem. Credit: Julian Pender Hume
“The dodo was the first living thing that was recorded as being present and then disappeared,” Gostling said, adding that before their extinction, “it hadn’t been thought possible” that human beings could exert so much influence on the environment.
By the early 19th century, some circles even considered both the dodo and the solitaire “mythological beasts,” added Mark Young, a University of Southampton professor specializing in human transport and paper lead author. During the 1800’s, however, Victorian scientists finally proved both bird species did once exist. But over time, the dodo’s image transitioned largely from an emblem of humanity’s often disastrous environmental impact, to an inaccurate, misunderstood example of “survival of the fittest.”
Meanwhile, more than 400 years of subsequent taxonomic confusion led experts to debate just how many dodo and solitaire species originally existed—some biologists argued in favor of three separate variations, while others contended as many as five once roamed the region. These possibilities included the Nazarene Dodo, the White Dodo, and the White Solitaire, among others.
But after a painstaking review of four centuries’ worth of scientific writings and physical remains—including the only surviving dodo soft tissue—Gostling, Young, and their teammates believe they have some answers. Most notably, there were only ever the two species, dodo and solitaire, and they belonged to the columbid family along with pigeons and doves.
As for its “dumpy” reputation, a closer look at its anatomy indicates the dodo was far from a clumsy, slow-moving bird. Skeletal remains studied by the team show that the dodo possessed a tendon in its leg almost the same diameter as the bone itself. This feature can be found today in other avian species known for their speed and climbing agility, indicating the dodo was actually an incredibly fast and active animal.
“Even four centuries later, we have so much to learn about these remarkable birds,” Young said. “The few written accounts of live Dodos say it was a fast-moving animal that loved the forest.”
Researchers believe that further reevaluations of the dodo and the solitaire will not only help dispel inaccurate myths, but refocus their legacies. Ultimately, their extinction isn’t the result of any evolutionary failings, but rather the effects of humans when we are at our most environmentally reckless.
“Dodos held an integral place in their ecosystems. If we understand them, we might be able to support ecosystem recovery in Mauritius, perhaps starting to undo the damage that began with the arrival of humans nearly half a millennium ago,” Gostling explained, adding that, “There are no other birds alive today like these two species of giant ground dove.”
As the insect sentinels of summer, fireflies use their glowing bellies to communicate to other fireflies. Males from the species Abscondita terminalis use multi-pulse flashes with both of their lanterns to attract females. The females use single-pulse flashes with their one lantern. However, a new study found that some spiders may have decoded this signal and are using it to its advantage. This mimicry is detailed in a study published August 19 in the journal Current Biology.
When orb-weaving
When orb-weaving spiders (Araneus ventricosus) trap male fireflies in their webs, they manipulate the flashing signals to mimic the typical flashes made by female fireflies. These feigned flashes then lure other males into the web where they become the spider’s next meal. However, we still don’t know if the spider’s venom or a bite itself is manipulating the firefly’s signal.
The discovery arose after Xinhua Fu, a study co-author and entomologist at Huazhong Agricultural University in China observed several male fireflies entangled in orb-weaving spider webs while working in the field. He rarely saw a female firefly trapped in a web and additional field trips revealed this sexually skewed pattern. Fu hypothesized that the spiders may be somehow manipulating the fireflies’ behavior to attract others.
To test this hypothesis that the spiders are manipulating the firefly’s signal, he recruited behavioral ecologists Daiqin Li and Shichang Zhang from Hubei University. The team conducted field experiments where they observed the firefly signals and spider behavior. The observations showed that the spider’s web captured male fireflies more often when the spider was there, compared to when it was away from the web.
After further analysis, they found that the signals created by male fireflies in webs with spiders present looked more like the signals made by free flying females. The trapped males used single-pulse signals that use only one lantern and not both.
An orb-weaving spider (Araneus ventricosus) with two ensnared male fireflies (Abscondita terminalis), one of which has a luminescent lantern (right). CREDIT: Xinhua Fu.
Interestingly, the ensnared male fireflies very rarely lured other males when they were alone in the web and the spider was not around. This suggests that the males were not altering their flashes as a kind of distress signal. The team believes that the spiders are altering the firefly’s signal.
“While the eyes of orb-web spiders typically support limited spatial acuity, they rely more on temporal acuity rather than spatial acuity for discriminating flash signals,” Li said in a statement. “Upon detecting the bioluminescent signals of ensnared male fireflies, the spider deploys a specialized prey-handling procedure involving repeated wrap-bite attacks.”
According to the team, the experiment reveals that some animals are capable of using indirect yet dynamic signaling to go after a very specific category of prey in nature. The team also believes that there could be many other undescribed examples of this kind of mimicry in nature waiting to be uncovered. Predators could be using sound, pheromones, or other means, and not just visual signals to fool their prey. This deceptive ability is not exclusive to the animal kingdom either. The South African daisy appears to trick flies into mating with it and depositing pollen.
“We propose that in response to seeing the ensnared male fireflies’ bioluminescent signals, the spider deployed a specialized-prey handling procedure based on repeated wrap bite attacks,” the team wrote in the study. “We also hypothesize that the male firefly’s neurotransmitters may generate a female-like flashing pattern.”
However, additional study is needed to determine what exactly is changing in the trapped firefly’s flashing pattern.
Kristy Murray was there at the very beginning. In 1999, the epidemiologist and tropical medicine expert, now a professor of pediatrics at Emory University, was part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) team responding to the initial U.S. outbreak of West Nile virus in New York City. “It was my very first outbreak assignment,” Murray tells Popular Science. Thirty cases of unexplained encephalitis had been reported in the city, and it was up to Murray and her colleagues to figur
Kristy Murray was there at the very beginning. In 1999, the epidemiologist and tropical medicine expert, now a professor of pediatrics at Emory University, was part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) team responding to the initial U.S. outbreak of West Nile virus in New York City. “It was my very first outbreak assignment,” Murray tells Popular Science. Thirty cases of unexplained encephalitis had been reported in the city, and it was up to Murray and her colleagues to figure out why. The cause was initially baffling. People had symptoms of paralysis, “which is very unusual to see in encephalitis,” she explains, and older adults comprised the majority of those worst off, despite viral paralysis often being most common in children. None of the patients had any relation or apparent connection to one another.
To figure out what was happening, Murray says she and the rest of the CDC team acted as “disease detectives.” The first clue came from interviewing family members of those who were sick. “The one thing that kept coming up is that many of them were active, and spent a lot of time outside,” says Muray. From there, and through home visits, a CDC entomologist narrowed the potential sources down to Culex mosquitoes. More false leads and confusing test results finally gave way to a West Nile virus identification, after birds in the Bronx Zoo also began to fall ill with encephalitis. In total, the investigation took about three weeks, says Murray.
Though the initial mystery was resolved relatively quickly (“especially for 1999,” notes Murray), uncertainties surrounding West Nile have lingered. When and where the worst outbreaks will occur remains unpredictable. Exactly why some people have no symptoms, while other infections prove deadly is unclear. There’s still no available vaccine or proven treatment.
It’s been 25 years since the mosquito borne virus was first found in the U.S.. In that quarter century, the disease has spread from New York City across all 48 contiguous states. “It’s everywhere–all over the map, literally,” says Murray. “There is no place in the [lower 48] where you can really hide from this pathogen.” Each year, 2024 included, West Nile virus cases are reported, with a peak between late July and October. Here’s what to know as this year’s season unfolds, what we still don’t know, and how experts recommend you protect yourself.
How does West Nile virus spread?
Birds are the primary host and reservoir for West Nile virus. The pathogen is mainly passed from host to host via mosquito bites. Culex mosquitos, a genus found worldwide and especially common in major cities, are the primary vector, transmitting the virus between birds or from birds to humans or horses. People and other mammals infected with the illness don’t produce a high enough concentration of viral particles to act as a reservoir and subsequently infect additional mosquitos. “Humans are what we call a dead end host,” says Gonzalo Vazquez-Propkopec, a disease ecologist and professor of environmental science at Emory University. Only a small proportion of cases are transferred between humans through blood transfusions and organ transplants.
Yet though we can’t generally pass the virus on to each other, mosquitos do plenty of work to spread it themselves. “It’s the most widespread viral vector borne disease in the United States, without a doubt,” says Murray. “It far surpasses any other.” Other non-viral vector-borne illnesses, like tick-borne Lyme’s disease, may affect more people each year. But Lyme is a bacterial disease with an effective antibiotic treatment. There is no approved therapeutic for treating West Nile.
Is 2024 a bad year for West Nile?
The CDC tracks West Nile cases, along with other arthropod-borne illnesses, through ArboNET. As of August 13, the federal agency has confirmed 174 West Nile cases in 30 different states, with double digit numbers in Texas, Louisiana, Nebraska, Nevada, and Arizona. Of these, 113 have been “neuroinvasive,” or the more severe variant of infection that causes neurological symptoms like encephalitis (brain swelling), or meningitis, which is swelling of the membrane surrounding the brain. So far, eight of those reported cases have proved deadly.
If you look at past years’ West Nile case numbers, fewer than 200 cases nationwide may not sound like much. However, it’s relatively early in the season and each confirmed case at this point likely represents many more hidden ones, says Murray.
In general, cases are vastly underreported because many cases are asymptomatic and many symptomatic infections are mild and difficult to distinguish from other viral infections, she explains. Fever, a rash on the torso, fatigue, aches, and malaise are how the majority of symptomatic West Nile cases present. Often, those infected don’t seek any treatment or testing. A small proportion of infections, less than one percent, turn more serious, affecting the brain and nervous system and becoming “neuroinvasive.” These cases can be life threatening. Survivors of neuroinvasive illness often end up with lifelong disabilities, says Kiran Thakur, a neurology professor at Columbia University who studies neuroinfectious disease.
Yet even those severe cases are undercounted because providers don’t always test and tests don’t always come back positive, she says. In 2022, 827 confirmed neuroinvasive cases were reported to the CDC, but the agency estimates that between 24,810 and 57,890 neuroinvasive infections occurred. Up to 15 percent of neuroinvasive cases are estimated to be fatal, notes Thakur.
Delays in testing and reporting also mean that it takes time for the CDC to learn about a confirmed case. “There’s a lag in reporting cases, typically by about two weeks,” Murray says, and we’re just getting into the peak transmission time now.
Given those caveats, “we are seeing a few more cases than we [usually] would at this time of year, and some earlier cases,” says Erin Staples, a physician and medical epidemiologist with CDC’s Division of Vector-Borne Diseases. The biggest wave of illness onset tends to come at the end of August and beginning of September, Staples says.
However, that doesn’t mean we’re guaranteed to have a terrible West Nile season nationwide. Predicting how this year’s season will progress over the next couple of months “is very difficult,” Staples tells Popular Science. Trends can shift rapidly and lots of variables contribute to an outbreak’s severity.
Year-to-year, West Nile levels and epicenters vary a lot. The virus may spike in the Northeast one season and then the Southwest the next. In 2003, there was a major outbreak, another came in 2012. As a result, experts consider it “cyclic”, peaking in waves that come about once a decade, says Vazquez-Prokopec. “It seems, roughly, that we’re due for another spike,” he adds.
Climate and rainfall are important. Warm temperatures and the right level of moisture can contribute to a mosquito boom. Bird immunity levels also play a role, he says. If most birds in a region have antibodies and are avoiding illness in a given year, then there will also be fewer human cases, as the reservoir is smaller, Vazquez-Prokopec explains. “It’s a very complex cycle,” he adds– which makes accurate forecasting hard.
Regardless of what unfolds in the next couple of months, Staples notes that right now is a critical time to take preventative measures.
How can we manage West Nile virus?
Through surveillance of mosquito populations and birds, cities keep tabs on the viral threat year to year. In addition, many municipalities also treat for Culex mosquitos with pesticide sprays dispersed from fogging vehicles and by targeting the aquatic larvae. Mosquitoes need water to breed, so applying insecticide to drainage ditches and catchment basins can help reduce their populations without inadvertently killing beneficial insects like pollinators, says Vazquez-Prokopec.
The CDC is researching preventative vaccines and antiviral treatments (and has been for years), says Staples–though the development process, which requires large scale human trials to prove efficacy, is challenging for such an unpredictable virus. A silver lining of the Covid-19 pandemic is that it made alternate pathways to FDA approval and licensure clearer, she adds.
But in the meantime, without a vaccine or medication to rely on, iIndividual people can mitigate their own risk by eliminating sources of standing moisture around their homes (ex: emptying buckets and kiddie pools). Then, there’s behavioral interventions.
“We have to exercise–not panic, but caution,” says Vazquez-Prokopec. Mosquitoes are more than a nuisance, they’re a public health problem, he says. So, he advises that people take earnest steps to avoid bites.
Insect repellents, specifically ones registered with the Environmental Protection Agency and recommended by the CDC, are a critical tool. Wearing loose fitting long sleeve shirts and pants helps to prevent bites as well. And people should be particularly mindful when going out around dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active. “I have a can of repellent by my front door and another by my back door, so I remember to [apply] before I walk outside,” says Staples.
It’s still not completely understood why some people become very sick while others have asymptomatic infections. However, some trends are clear and certain groups are known to be more vulnerable to severe West Nile virus. People who are immunocompromised, including those who take medications for autoimmune diseases, should be more vigilant, says Staples. People over the age of 50 are also at higher risk, says Murray. Severe neuroinvasive illness is more commonly reported among men, though that could be because men share a higher level of other risk factors, like working outdoors or comorbidities such as diabetes, notes Thakur. And ultimately, anyone can end up with a severe case.
West Nile virus may be benign for most people, and the worst consequences may be rare, but preventative steps are simple and accessible. When the stakes are so high, it’s best to take the risk seriously, says Thakur. Plus, the same strategies for avoiding West Nile will also help to minimize exposure to other vector borne diseases like Dengue or Powassan, Staples adds. ” “Another great reason to use your repellent,” she says.
Getting in the habit now will be good practice for our warming future, where we’ll all want to take biting bugs more seriously. Under climate change, mosquito seasons are likely to grow longer, and vector–borne illnesses, including West Nile, are set to spread into new regions where people have no prior exposure or immunity. As global warming progresses, “it’s a disease category I worry about a lot,” says Thakur.
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