Putting the s-x back into climate change. Call it a lascivious attempt to get more hits: we call it a more titillating take on an otherwise dour topic. Courtesy of New Scientist, we have two new studies that connect the dots between global warming, pollution and s-x — exploring their effects on the size of polar bear p-nis bones and on the potential for Australian central bearded dragons to “switch” their s-x. — Treehugger

Conservationists fear Congo gorilla massacre. Highly endangered mountain gorillas in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo face fresh dangers after renegade troops overran their habitat, forcing rangers to flee, conservationists have warned. Forces loyal to cashiered general Laurent Nkunda, a powerful local leader, attacked Jomba and Bikenge patrol posts in Virunga National Park, Wildlife Direct said in a statement. His troops looted weapons, ammunition and communication equipment. A third patrol post in Bukima was being evacuated pending an imminent attack, leaving the rare primates exposed to massacres. — ABC

Fred’s footprint. My ecological footprint is large. So probably is yours. But can we measure it objectively? Not just our carbon footprint, which is all the rage just now, but our entire impact on the planet. Some scientists warn that we are using the resources of 1.2 planets and will need two planets by 2050. What exactly do they mean? I asked Mathis Wackernagel, director of the Global Footprint Network and one of the gurus of the business. He calculates the average citizen on the planet needs 2.2 hectares of productive croplands, pastures, wetlands, forests and coastal fishing grounds to get by, compared with the 1.8 hectares per head that the planet has available. — Catherine Brahic, New Scientist Evironment Blog

Climate change comes with some positives for agriculture. Warmer temperatures can stress livestock, reducing production in dairy herds, as well as burn fruit and other crops. Bugs and diseases that survive if temperatures don’t drop enough in the winter become a growing concern, particularly for organic growers who don’t use pesticides. At the same time, elevated levels of carbon dioxide generally increase sizes and yields of some crops. More rainfall in the winter raises the potential for flooding west of the Cascades. Less snowpack or an earlier thaw means less water for irrigation in the dry eastern half of the state during the summer and early fall. But longer growing seasons could allow growers to plant new crops and varieties that flourish under different conditions. — Seattlepi.com How green is your beer? Hopped up on Pesticides? Farmers are estimated to spray hops 14 times a year with an average of 15 pesticides and fungicides. One of the two primary ingredients in most beers (the other is barley), hops constitute about 5 per cent of beer’s total volume and account for at least 50 per cent of the taste. Organic beers should have organic hops. Is Your Beer Vegan ? Many beers are clarified with isinglass, which is not an elven village in Middle Earth but collagen made from the bladders of fish. (it is in wine too) See also Warren on organic beer here. Sopinka also recommends bottles over cans, paint-on rather than paper labels and of course, support your local micro-brewery to minimize the fossil fuels needed to ship that beer to your fridge. — Treehugger