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Categories: Ecology: Nature, Offbeat: Plants and Animals

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Biology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Mice pass the mirror test, a classic indicator of self-recognition      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers report that mice display behavior that resembles self-recognition when they see themselves in the mirror. When the researchers marked the foreheads of black-furred mice with a spot of white ink, the mice spent more time grooming their heads in front of the mirror -- presumably to try and wash away the ink spot. However, the mice only showed this self-recognition-like behavior if they were already accustomed to mirrors, if they had socialized with other mice who looked like them, and if the ink spot was relatively large.

Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Nature Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Climate Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: General
Published

More than a meteorite: New clues about the demise of dinosaurs      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

What wiped out the dinosaurs? A meteorite plummeting to Earth is only part of the story, a new study suggests. Climate change triggered by massive volcanic eruptions may have ultimately set the stage for the dinosaur extinction, challenging the traditional narrative that a meteorite alone delivered the final blow to the ancient giants.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

More than 100 'magic mushroom' genomes point the way to new cultivars      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have amassed genome data for dozens of 'magic mushroom' isolates and cultivars, with the goal to learn more about how their domestication and cultivation has changed them. The findings may point the way to the production of intriguing new cultivars, say the researchers.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Nature Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Earliest-known fossil mosquito suggests males were bloodsuckers too      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have found the earliest-known fossil mosquito in Lower Cretaceous amber from Lebanon. What's more, the well-preserved insects are two males of the same species with piercing mouthparts, suggesting they likely sucked blood. That's noteworthy because, among modern-day mosquitoes, only females are hematophagous, meaning that they use piercing mouthparts to feed on the blood of people and other animals.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Ecology: Sea Life Ecology: Trees Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Climate Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Crocodile family tree mapped: New light shed on croc evolution      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Around 250 million years ago, 700 species of reptiles closely related to the modern-day crocodile roamed the earth, now new research reveals how a complex interplay between climate change, species competition and habitat can help explain why just 23 species of crocodile survive today.     

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Molecular Ecology: Invasive Species Geoscience: Geochemistry Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Unlocking the secret strength of marine mussels      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

How do you create strong, yet quick-release connections between living and non-living tissues? This is a question that continues to puzzle bioengineers who aim to create materials that bond together for advanced biomedical applications. Looking to nature for inspiration, this research zeroed in on the marine mussel byssus, a fibrous holdfast, which these bivalve mollusks use to anchor themselves in seashore habitats.

Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: General Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Environmental: Water
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Snake skulls show how species adapt to prey      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

By studying the skull shapes of dipsadine snakes, researchers have found how these species of snakes in Central and South America have evolved and adapted to meet the demands of their habitats and food sources.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Marine Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Sea fireflies synchronize their sparkle to seek soulmates      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In sea fireflies' underwater ballet, the males sway together in perfect, illuminated synchronization, basking in the glow of their secreted iridescent mucus.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General
Published

Rare ant species rediscovered in North Carolina trees      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

There's a species of ant that is so rare, only a handful of records exist from across the entire eastern United States. North Carolina State University researcher Michelle Kirchner not only found these ants in the Triangle region of North Carolina, she is the first to document an entire colony for scientists, taxonomists and ant-thusiasts everywhere. It is the first time males of the species have been collected or photographed.

Biology: Zoology Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
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Broadband buzz: Periodical cicadas' chorus measured with fiber optic cables      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Through an emerging technology called distributed fiber optic sensing, cables bringing high-speed internet to American households can be used to detect temperature changes, vibrations, and even sound. And periodical cicadas -- the insects that emerge by the billions every 13 or 17 years and make a racket with their mating calls -- are loud enough to be detected. A new study shows how fiber optic sensing could open new pathways for charting populations of these famously ephemeral bugs.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Zoology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: General Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

how far can the wind can carry a plant's seeds? New model      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Playing an essential foundational role in an ecosystem, plants contribute to the well-being of human health by helping create resources like food and medicine. Therefore, to better understand how plants can maintain resiliency in the face of challenges like climate change, researchers recently developed an innovative mathematical model that can provide fast and reliable predictions of how far wind can carry a plant's seeds.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Nature Environmental: General
Published

Identifying Australia's most elusive birds      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have analyzed more than 3.8 million volunteer hours of birdwatching data to identify Australia's most elusive species.

Biology: Evolutionary Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: General
Published

How shifting climates may have shaped early elephants' trunks      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have provided new insights into how ancestral elephants developed their dextrous trunks.  A study of the evolution of longirostrine gomphotheres, an ancestor of the modern day elephant, suggests moving into open-land grazing helped develop their coiling and grasping trunks.