Page 4 - Erick Lundgren News Today

Riders may get irritated with their horses for pawing the ground but it turns out that equids’ ability to dig can have huge benefits for the ecosystem. Wild equids in the North American desert have been found to dig wells up to six feet deep to access fresh water. These mini-oases provide water for scores of other species, according to a paper published by Erick Lundgren and others in this month’s journal Science (30 April). Burros (donkeys) and horses are introduced species to the American...

A wild donkey digs a well in the Sonoran Desert, in the US. Photo: Erick Lundgren The ability of horses and donkeys to dig for water in dryland ecosystems can provide important benefits to other species, researchers have found. Erick Lundgren and his colleagues, in a study titled Equids engineer desert water availability, noted that large animals play important roles in the biosphere, yet little is known about how they shape dryland ecosystems. “We report on an overlooked form of ecosystem e...

Horsetalk.co.nz Feral desert donkeys are digging wells, giving water to parched wildlife A kulan in central Asia digging a well. (Petra Kaczensky) Researchers Erick Lundgren, Arian Wallach, and Daniel Ramp, all with the University of Technology Sydney, describe the remarkable well-digging abilities of equids in desert environments. In the heart of the world’s deserts – some of the most expansive wild places left on Earth – roam herds of feral donkeys and horses. These are the des...

Heres How Donkeys And Horses Digging Holes Help Desert Species Beat The Heat ISSAM AHMED, AFP 30 APRIL 2021 For thousands of years, horses and donkeys have been some of our species most important partners.  A new study published Thursday shows theyre also friends to desert animals and plants, by digging deep wells that provide a vital source of water, especially at the height of summer.   Biologist Erick Lundgren, lead author of the paper in Science, told AFP he first began noticing the p...

Burros in Arizona. Credit: Bureau of Land Management. The first horses and donkeys came to the Americas on ships during Christopher Columbus’ Second Voyage. Although they were essential to European colonization, the two animals are typically seen as invasive species that are not part of the local wildlife. But rather than harming other animals, wild horses and donkeys in North America may actually help local plants and animals thrive by digging deep wells that provide water in the desert. The...

Frequently cast as invasive pests, the equids may actually be of importance in some ecosystems. Water keeps the rhythms of desert life going, but animals arent often powerless against the whims of weather. Wild donkeys and horses in the American southwest, usually dig into the dusty sediment to get to cool, clear groundwater to satisfy their thirst. (Photo : Helena Lopes) Major Source of Water   A new study reveals this equid innovation has far-reaching importance for the ecosystem. Wells of ...

A kulan digging a well. (Credit: ©Petra Kaczensky) WASHINGTON (AFP) — For thousands of years, horses and donkeys have been some of our species’ most important partners.  A new study published Thursday shows they’re also friends to desert animals and plants, by digging deep wells that provide a vital source of water, especially at the height of summer. Biologist Erick Lundgren, lead author of the paper in Science, told AFP he first began noticing the phenomenon while working in western A...

Tracy Hall/Flickr Contributing Correspondent Cathleen O’Grady joins host Sarah Crespi to talk about a company that stores renewable energy by hoisting large objects in massive “gravity batteries.” Also on this week’s show, Erick Lundgren, a postdoctoral researcher at Aarhus University, talks about how water from wells dug by wild horses and feral donkeys provides a buffer to all different kinds of animals and plants during the driest times in the Sonora and Moj...

Wild horses and donkeys dig wells in the desert, providing water for wildlife Douglas Main © Photograph by Justin Sullivan LAKE MEAD NATIONAL RECREATION AREA, NV - MAY 12: Wild horses walk through dry brush on May 12, 2015 in Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada. As severe drought grips parts of the Western United States, Lake Mead, which was once the largest reservoir in the nation, has seen its surface elevation drop below 1,080 feet above sea level, its lowest level ...

Horses and donkeys engineer water for desert ecosystems Surprise discovery suggests feral animals aren’t all bad. Well-digging donkey. Credit: Erick Lundgren. Well-digging horses and donkeys could provide a valuable service for plants and animals in arid ecosystems, according to a study published in the journal Science. The wells, dug to two metres or more to access the water table, substantially increased water availability in US deserts of Arizona and helped to facilitate diversity of seve...