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Increase In CO2 Is Turning Prairie Grass Into Junk Food For Grasshoppers

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A grasshopper sits on a branch of a chamomile. (Kerstin Joensson/AP)
A grasshopper sits on a branch of a chamomile. (Kerstin Joensson/AP)

Grasshopper populations have been declining steadily. And now, research in the grasslands may have discovered why. Climate change — the increase of carbon emissions — is causing prairie grasses to grow but making them less nutritious for insects.

Brian Grimmett of KMUW has the story.

A storage room on the Kansas State University campus full of brown paper bags with grass samples from the Konza Prairie. (Brian Grimmett/Kansas News Service)
A storage room on the Kansas State University campus full of brown paper bags with grass samples from the Konza Prairie. (Brian Grimmett/Kansas News Service)

This segment aired on April 28, 2021.

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