Decline of la dolce vita

grasses in New Zealand suggests that some adapted to low grazing pressure as a result of no major herbivores with a distinctive habit — the shedding of old leaves by abscission. The feature of leaf shedding occurs in only about three per cent of the world’s estimated 11,000 grass species, writes Alexandre Antonelli at the University of Zurich and colleagues in Switzerland and New Zealand in the Proceedings of the Royal Society (published online). “This seemingly anachronistic adaptation may represent an overlooked factor contributing to the severe decline in the geographical extent and species diversity of New Zealand’s indigenous grasslands following the introduction of herbivorous terrestrial mammals in the nineteenth century,” they write. During prehistoric times, no terrestrial mammals existed, except for a mouse-sized species that went extinct, and birds were the dominant herbivores. The historical absence of mammals could thus have resulted in the evolution of different grass adaptations in New Zealand, compared with those that evolved in the mammal-dominated savannas of Africa and the pampas of South America. Leaf abscission increases biomass production but also makes grasses more palatable, the authors write. New Zealand grasslands are dominated by long-lived tussock species, a major component of which are the snow grasses and allied short tussock species. Both belong to genera in the grass subfamily Danthoniodeae, a clade of around 280 species found on all continents except Antarctica. “There is strong evidence that endemic grasses are inherently susceptible to mammalian grazers,” they say. New Zealand is also bolstering its protection of land from foreign investors seeking to gain control of major farming interests, which often also include some of the sensitive environments, and potentially adding further threats to the country’s biodiversity. While New Zealand’s unique avian fauna is the focus of substantial conservation efforts, there may be many more species, including plants, worthy of further study. Giulo Meotti, writing in The Wall Street Journal estimates that by 2050, 60 per cent of Italians will have no brothers, no sisters, no cousins, no aunts, and no uncles. “In the fourteenth century, the plague wiped out 80 per cent of the Italian population. In the twenty-first century they are disappearing by choice.” The lack of births threatens to have catastrophic social and economic consequences. Already, 22 per cent of Italy’s population is on a pension, one of the highest rates in the world, and the country devotes 15 per cent of its gross domestic product to pensions — more than any other European nation. And many believe the Italian situation is irreversible. Demographic forecasts suggest that the number of people under the age of 20 will never again exceed the number of people over 60. According to the US National Institute on Aging, within 20 years just under one third of the Italian population will be over the age of 65. Surprisingly, it is the most religious European countries, such as Italy, that have the continent’s lowest fertility rates. While Europe dwindles, China is now reviewing its ‘one child’ policy which has significantly held back population growth. Affluent urban Chinese are increasingly frustrated, but any change could have global consequences.