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Categories: Biology: Zoology, Offbeat: Space
Published Africa's iconic flamingos threatened by rising lake levels
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source It is one of the world's most spectacular sights -- huge flocks or 'flamboyances' of flamingos around East Africa's lakes -- as seen in the film Out of Africa or David Attenborough's A Perfect Planet. But new research has revealed how the lesser flamingo is at danger of being flushed out of its historic feeding grounds, with serious consequences for the future of the species.
Published New computer vision tool wins prize for social impact
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A team of computer scientists working on two different problems -- how to quickly detect damaged buildings in crisis zones and how to accurately estimate the size of bird flocks -- recently announced an AI framework that can do both. The framework, called DISCount, blends the speed and massive data-crunching power of artificial intelligence with the reliability of human analysis to quickly deliver reliable estimates that can quickly pinpoint and count specific features from very large collections of images.
Published Beautiful nebula, violent history: Clash of stars solves stellar mystery
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source When astronomers looked at a stellar pair at the heart of a stunning cloud of gas and dust, they were in for a surprise. Star pairs are typically very similar, like twins, but in HD 148937, one star appears younger and, unlike the other, is magnetic. New data suggest there were originally three stars in the system, until two of them clashed and merged. This violent event created the surrounding cloud and forever altered the system's fate.
Published Twinkle twinkle baby star, 'sneezes' tell us how you are
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have found that baby stars discharge plumes of gas, dust, and magnetic flux from their protostellar disk. The protostellar disk that surrounds developing stars are constantly penetrated by magnetic flux, and if too much magnetic flux remained, the resulting object would generate a magnetic field stronger than any observed protostar. These newly discovered discharges of magnetic flux, or 'sneezes' as the researchers describes them, may be a vital step in proper star formation.
Published Oxidant pollutant ozone removes mating barriers between fly species
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers show that ozone levels, such as those found in many places on hot summer days today, destroy the sex pheromones of fruit fly species. As a result, some natural mating boundaries maintained by species-specific pheromones no longer exist. The research team has shown in experiments that flies of different species mate when exposed to ozone and produce hybrid offspring. Since most of these offspring are unable to reproduce, the results could provide another explanation for the global decline of insects.
Published Scientists create octopus survival guide to minimize impacts of fishing
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have created a step-by-step aging guide for octopus to ensure fisheries remain sustainable, protecting the longevity of this ancient animal while guaranteeing the world doesn't go hungry.
Published The hidden role of the Milky Way in ancient Egyptian mythology
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Astrophysicists shed light on the relationship between the Milky Way and the Egyptian sky-goddess Nut. The paper draws on ancient Egyptian texts and simulations to argue that the Milky Way might have shone a spotlight, as it were, on Nut's role as the sky. It proposes that in winter, the Milky Way highlighted Nut's outstretched arms, while in summer, it traced her backbone across the heavens.
Published Ants in Colorado are on the move due to climate change
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Ant species living in Boulder's foothills have shifted their habitat over the last six decades, potentially affecting local ecosystems, suggests a new study.
Published New report 'braids' Indigenous and Western knowledge for forest adaptation strategies against climate change
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Forests could also be potential bulwarks against climate change. But, increasingly severe droughts and wildfires, invasive species, and large insect outbreaks -- all intensified by climate change -- are straining many national forests and surrounding lands in the United States. A report outlines a new approach to forest stewardship that 'braids together' Indigenous knowledge and Western science to conserve and restore more resilient forestlands.
Published 3D mouth of an ancient jawless fish suggests they were filter-feeders, not scavengers or hunters
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Early jawless fish were likely to have used bony projections surrounding their mouths to modify the mouth's shape while they collected food. Experts have used CT scanning techniques to build up the first 3D pictures of these creatures, which are some of the earliest vertebrates (animals with backbones) in which the mouth is fossilized. Their aim was to answer questions about feeding in early vertebrates without jaws in the early Devonian epoch -- sometimes called the Age of Fishes -- around 400 million years ago.
Published Cold-affinity algae species are gradually being replaced by warm-affinity ones off the coast of Biscay
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A study has analyzed the impact of the rise in sea surface temperature on macroalgae communities over the last four decades. Points at various depths were investigated in a location off the coast of Biscay, and an increasing scarcity was observed in the number of cold-affinity structuring species, while small warm-affinity ones have proliferated. The researchers are warning that some ecological functions are in jeopardy as a result.
Published What's quieter than a fish? A school of them
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Swimming in schools makes fish surprisingly stealthy underwater, with a group able to sound like a single fish. Engineers working with a high-tech simulation of schooling mackerel offer new insight into why fish swim in schools and promise for the design and operation of much quieter submarines and autonomous undersea vehicles.
Published Birdfeeders are designed to keep unwanted guests away
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The first birdfeeders were made in the 19th century, and their design rapidly evolved during the 20th century. Researchers at the consider the evolution of the birdfeeder to be an example of multispecies design, where unwanted guests have shaped the human-made artifact.
Published Impact of climate change on marine life much bigger than previously known
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Fish and invertebrate animals are far more affected by warmer and more acidic seawater than was previously known. The big gain of the new method is that more details become known about effects of climate change on species.
Published Do some mysterious bones belong to gigantic ichthyosaurs?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Several similar large, fossilized bone fragments have been discovered in various regions across Western and Central Europe since the 19th century. The animal group to which they belonged is still the subject of much debate to this day. A study could now settle this dispute once and for all: The microstructure of the fossils indicates that they come from the lower jaw of a gigantic ichthyosaur. These animals could reach 25 to 30 meters in length, a similar size to the modern blue whale.
Published Inexplicable flying fox found in Hydra galaxy cluster
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source High sensitivity radio observations have discovered a cloud of magnetized plasma in the Hydra galaxy cluster. The odd location and shape of this plasma defy all conventional explanations. Dubbed the Flying Fox based on its silhouette, this plasma will remain a mystery until additional observations can provide more insight.
Published How the moon turned itself inside out
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Linking analyses of the moon's gravity field with models of its earliest evolution, scientists tell a story of the moon turning itself inside out after it solidified from a primordial magma ocean. The process left behind a vestige of dense, titanium-rich material beneath its Earth-facing side that makes its presence known by gravity anomalies.
Published Mediterranean marine worm has developed enormous eyes
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists are amazed at the discovery of a bristle worm with such sharp-seeing eyes that they can measure up to those of mammals and octopuses. The researchers suspect that these marine worms may have a secretive language, which uses UV light only seen by their own species. The advanced vision of such a primitive creature helps to finally settle an epic debate about the evolution of eyes.
Published Telescope detects unprecedented behavior from nearby magnetar
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Captured by cutting-edge radio telescope technology, a chance reactivation of a magnetar -- the Universe's most powerful magnets -- has revealed an unexpectedly complex environment.
Published In the evolution of walking, the hip bone connected to the rib bones
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new reconstruction of the 375-million-year-old fossil fish Tiktaalik -- a close relative of limbed vertebrates -- used micro-CT to reveal bones still embedded in matrix. The reconstruction shows that the fish's ribs likely attached to its pelvis, an innovation thought to be crucial to supporting the body and for the eventual evolution of walking.