New this week:

Salamander’s Hefty Role in the Forest
The top predator in North American forests is the woodland salamander, who lives under a rock, or a log, or any convenient dark and damp forest habitat. Only a few inches long and weighing well under an ounce, they nevertheless eat a huge number of insects termed “shredding invertebrates,” who cause leaf litter to release carbon and methane into the atmosphere more than if it were simply left on the ground to decay and be covered up by further dropping of leaves.

New Insights into the Make-up of Tropical Forests Could Improve Carbon Offsetting Initiatives –
new studies from enhanced satellite imagery shows that not all species of tree store carbon in the same way. This is a key factor in carbon offset schemes, in which trees are given a cash value according to their carbon content, and…