Avoiding incest by causing male relatives to leave homeScientists at the University of Sheffield in the UK and Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW) in Berlin, Gera number of, have observed that female hyenas avoid inbreeding with their male relatives by giving them little choice but to leave their birth group.
Animals generally avoid inbreeding because it is genetically hazardous. They can either do this by moving away from home or, like humans, by learning who their relatives........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 8/15/2007 9:28:10 PM)
Emerging (disease) marketsInstead of attacking wild birds for our new disease problems, a far more cost effective approach should focus on keeping wild animals separate in the places where they often commingle: in wildlife markets and international trade, as per wildlife health experts from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in a recent issue of the prestigious Journal of Wildlife Diseases.
This is........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 8/15/2007 8:25:02 PM)
New technology reveals seal behaviorNew technology has allowed an international team including UK researchers from University of St Andrews and British Antarctic Survey to witness for the first time the behaviour of the southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina) and how it relates to its physical environment. Small sensors were attached to 85 seals to track their movements and collect data about their marine environment. Results are published this week in the journal Proceedings........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 8/8/2007 9:36:55 PM)
Differing Patterns Of Rainforest BiodiversityRainforests are the worlds treasure houses of biodiversity, but all rainforests are not the same. Biodiversity may be more evenly distributed in some forests than in others and, therefore, may require different management and preservation strategies. That is one of the conclusions of a large-scale Smithsonian study of a lowland rainforest in New Guinea, reported in the Aug. 9 issue of the journal Nature.
Most prior research has focused on........Go to the Biology-blog (Added on 8/8/2007 9:11:41 PM)
What I did for the last year......I've just returned from the GRC: Microbial Population Biology conference where I presented a poster on my work for the past year. In a few installments I'd like to reproduce this poster here.My major question of interest was, "How does molecular stochasticity in the individual cell affect major life history traits?" To address this question, I used the enterobacteriophage lambda strain cI857 as a model. Under normal circumstances, cI857........Go to the Biology-blog (Added on 8/4/2007 9:21:09 AM)
Makes The Mice Less FearfulA University of Iowa study shows that loss or chemical inhibition of a protein, known as acid sensing ion channel protein (ASIC1a), reduces innate fear behavior in lab animals, making normally timid mice relatively fearless. The findings might provide useful insight into anxiety disorders and may even point the way to a new therapeutic target.
For humans and other animals, some fears seem to be, in large part, instinctive and inborn rather........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 8/1/2007 9:33:38 PM)
Monkeys learn in the same way as humansMonkeys seem to learn the same way humans do, a new research study indicates.
Like humans, monkeys benefit enormously from being actively involved in learning instead of having information presented to them passively, said Nate Kornell, a UCLA postdoctoral scholar in psychology and lead author of the study, which appears in the recent issue of the journal Psychological Science. The advantage of active learning appears to be a fundamental........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 8/1/2007 9:16:29 PM)
Chickens dieting to help Delaware's waterwaysDieting to lose weight and improve your health?
Millions of chickens in Delaware--one of the nation's top poultry producers--have been on a diet to reduce their impact on the environment and improve the health of the state's waterways, and it appears to be working.
Extensive research led by William Saylor, professor of animal and food sciences at the University of Delaware, has confirmed that Delaware chickens now digest more of the........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/31/2007 9:41:48 PM)
Zebrafish: It's not your parents' lab ratZebrafish cost about a dollar at the pet store. They grow from eggs to hunting their own food in three days. Adults can lay up to 500 eggs at once and you have more in common with them than you think.
"For all their differences, humans and zebrafish aren't that dissimilar," said Rice University zebrafish expert Mary Ellen Lane. "For every zebrafish gene we isolate, there is a related gene in humans".
In her most recent work, Lane,........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/30/2007 8:19:34 PM)
Presence of wolves allows aspen recovery in YellowstoneThe wolves are back, and for the first time in more than 50 years, young aspen trees are growing again in the northern range of Yellowstone National Park.
The findings of a new study, just published in Biological Conservation, show that a process called the ecology of fear is at work, a balance has been restored to an important natural ecosystem, and aspen trees are surviving elk browsing for the first time in decades.
The research, done........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/26/2007 9:29:15 PM)
Another Natural Wonder in Yellowstone ParkIn the hot springs of Yellowstone National Park, a team of scientists partially funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) discovered a new bacterium that transforms light into chemical energy. The discovery of the chlorophyll-producing bacterium, Candidatus chloracidobacterium (Cab.) thermophilum, is described in the July 27, 2007, issue of Science in a paper led by Don Bryant of Penn State University and David M. Ward of Montana State........Go to the Biology-blog (Added on 7/26/2007 9:21:49 PM)
Humboldt squid on the moveOver the last five years, large, predatory Humboldt squid have moved north from equatorial waters and invaded the sea off Central California, where they may be decimating populations of Pacific hake, an important commercial fish. Ironically, these squid may have benefited from the decline of large tuna and billfish in the Equatorial Pacific, which previously preyed upon and competed with the Humboldt squid for food. This biological shift is........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/25/2007 10:31:45 PM)
Dierama galpiniiI think this is the first plant on BPotD named after a banker; Ernest Galpin (also see Wikipedia) was a South African born banker who had a life-long interest in plants due to his mother's influence. Dierama galpinii is actually one of several species named in honour of this meticulous collector of South African flora. In fact, two genera are named in relation to him: Galpinia and Mosdenia (named after his farm!)........Go to the Plant-science-blog (Added on 7/24/2007 10:05:47 PM)
Steroids, not songs, spur growth of brain regions in sparrowsNeuroresearchers are attempting to understand if structural changes in the brain are correlation to sensory experience or the performance of learned behavior, and now University of Washington scientists have found evidence that one species of songbird apparently has something in common with a few baseball sluggers. Both rely on steroids, birds to increase the size of song production areas of their brain and some players, apparently, to knock a........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/23/2007 6:26:00 PM)
Limpets reveal possible fate of cold-blooded Antarctic animalsA limpet no bigger than a coin could reveal the possible fate of cold-blooded Antarctic marine animals as per new research published this week in The Journal of Experimental Biology.
In comparison to their temperate and tropical cousins, cold-blooded polar marine animals are incapable of fast growth. Until now researchers assumed that a lack of food in winter was the major limiting factor. Studies of the protein-making abilities of........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/23/2007 6:00:50 PM)
Why Humans Walk on Two LegsA team of anthropologists that studied chimpanzees trained to use treadmills has gathered new evidence suggesting that our earliest apelike ancestors started walking on two legs because it mandatory less energy than getting around on all fours.
"When our earliest ancestors started walking on two legs, they took the first steps toward becoming human," said lead researcher Michael Sockol of UC Davis. "Our findings help answer why".
The........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/23/2007 4:54:56 PM)
Cultural Traditions Threaten Echidnas ExistenceFeared to have gone extinct since it is last seen around 60 years ago, the primitive mammal has brought back enough reasons for the conservationists to rejoice. Im talking of the — the native to the island of New Guinea in the South Pacific — one of the world’s rarest creatures
With its meat found to be very greasy and extremely tasty, the egg-laying, spiny mammal proves not just its being alive but also well and healthy.........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/20/2007 6:43:28 PM)
Ice Age survivors in IcelandA number of researchers think that the ice ages exterminated all life on land and in freshwater in large parts of the Northern Hemisphere, particularly on ocean islands such as Iceland. Researchers at Holar University College and the University of Iceland have challenged that belief, at least when looking at groundwater animals. They have discovered two species of groundwater amphipods in Iceland that are the only animals species found solely........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/19/2007 9:43:36 PM)
Mystery Of Wanton Queen HoneybeesWhy do queen honeybees mate with dozens of males? Does their extreme promiscuity, perhaps, serve a purpose?
An answer to this age-old mystery is proposed in the July 20 issue of Science magazine by Cornell scientists: Promiscuous queens, they suggest, produce genetically diverse colonies that are far more productive and hardy than genetically uniform colonies produced by monogamous queens.
"An intriguing trait of honeybee species........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/19/2007 9:36:35 PM)
Decoding mushroom's secretsScientists at the University of Warwick are co-ordinating a global effort to sequence the genome of one of the World's most important mushrooms - Agaricus bisporus. The secrets of its genetic make up could assist the creation of biofuels, support the effort to manage global carbon, and help remove heavy metals from contaminated soils.
The Agaricus mushroom family are highly efficient 'secondary decomposers' of plant material such as leaves........Go to the Biology-blog (Added on 7/17/2007 10:32:00 PM)
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First all-African GM crop is resistant to maize streak virusThe first all-African genetically modified crop plant with resistance to the severe maize streak virus (MSV), which seriously reduces the continents maize yield, has been developed by researchers from the University of Cape Town and PANNAR PTY Ltd, a South African seed company. The research, published in Plant Biotechnology Journal represents a significant advance in African agricultural biotechnology, and will play an important role in........Go to the Plant-science-blog (Added on 8/15/2007 9:13:20 PM)
Male elephants get 'photo IDs' from scientistsAsian elephants dont carry photo identification, so researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society and Indias Nature Conservation Foundation are providing the service free of charge by creating a photographic archive of individual elephants, which can help save them as well.
The scientists have developed a unique photographic capture-recapture survey method that identifies individual male elephants, specifically by the shape and size of........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 8/15/2007 8:26:22 PM)
Humans fostering forest-destroying diseaseEnjoying your August vacation? Well, (as they say in the summer movies) theres a killer in the woods. Its strike has been consistently quiet, sudden, and deadly. Unknowingly, we have all been playing into its hands But put down that rock -- you personally are not in any danger. Its the woods themselves that are getting axed and you may be an accomplice.
Melodrama aside, the threat is very serious the killer is an invasive, forest-destroying........Go to the Plant-science-blog (Added on 8/15/2007 8:19:52 PM)
tracing genetic history of coconutThe coconut has been popular in lore and on palates for centuries, yet little is known about the history of coconut's domestication and dispersal around the world.
Now, a biologist at Washington University in St. Louis is embarking on the task of understanding the plant's history by exploring the genetics of the coconut (Cocos nucifera L.).
Kenneth Olsen, Ph.D., Washington University assistant professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, has........Go to the Plant-science-blog (Added on 8/7/2007 10:29:50 PM)
Satellite tracking of penguin travels You could understand if a half-dozen Magellanic penguins developed a "big bird is watching" phobia before this month is over, but the surveillance really will be for their own good.
University of Washington researchers will attach satellite tracking devices to the backs of six penguins that have been treated at two centers in northern Argentina after their feathers were fouled with oil. The birds will be released into the........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 8/6/2007 5:28:25 PM)
Molecule of the Month: Anabolic SteroidsAthletes are constantly striving for better performance in their sports. Most athletes stay in top shape through a rigorous training program in fitness and nutrition, giving them the strength and stamina to push their bodies to the physical limit. But some athletes also look to biochemistry to improve their performance even further. There are many ways to give nature an artificial boost. For instance, some athletes artificially increase the........Go to the Biology-blog (Added on 8/4/2007 9:21:04 AM)
Plants and stress Our crops are not doing well these days: too much water, too little sunlight. In short, they are suffering from stress. Researchers from VIB, linked to the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (K.U.Leuven), have revealed a new mechanism demonstrating the intricate ways in which plants deal with stress. The newly discovered control system has a remarkable way of orchestrating the activity of hundreds of genes, forcing the plant into safety mode; the........Go to the Plant-science-blog (Added on 8/1/2007 9:28:32 PM)
Abandoned Eggs Of The Penduline Tit Remiz PendulinusThe eggs of the penduline tit Remiz pendulinus are frequently abandoned as both parents go in search of new sexual conquests, a study reported in the Journal of Evolutionary Biology has found.
Around one in three clutches of eggs are abandoned in this way, making it a puzzling example of childrearing where both parents improve their reproductive success by abandoning the nest.
Males and females can mate with up to seven different partners........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/30/2007 9:49:24 PM)
Where Glass Sponge Reefs Are FoundThirty miles west of Grays Harbor, University of Washington researchers have discovered large colonies of glass sponges thriving on the seafloor. The species of glass sponges capable of building reefs were thought extinct for 100 million years until they were found in recent years in the protected waters of Canada's Georgia and Hecata straits, the only place in the world they've been observed until now.
The discovery in Washington waters........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/30/2007 7:19:46 PM)
Electronic Eggs To Help Save Threatened SpeciesThis is an important summer for kori bustards at the Smithsonians National Zoo. Four chicks of this threatened African bird have hatched in June and July. Along with the bumper crop of baby birds is a bumper crop of new information for researchers working to preserve the species, thanks to an electronic egg that transmits real-time incubation data from the nest.
The telemetric egg, placed in the nest after the mother has laid her eggs,........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/26/2007 9:23:49 PM)
Rubus Tayberry GroupFollowing the convention of the Royal Horticultural Society, I've used the name Rubus Tayberry Group for this hybrid. The original tayberry, a cross between the early-ripening Rubus 'Aurora' (a blackberry) and a large-fruited tetraploid raspberry (tetraploids have 4 sets of chromosomes instead of the usual two and tend to be more robust), was hybridized at the Scottish Crops Research Institute in Invergowrie, Scotland (sources: Plants for a........Go to the Plant-science-blog (Added on 7/26/2007 7:14:03 PM)
Live broadcastsTo help molecular biologists in the difficult task of keeping abreast of current events in the world of cells and organisms, they employ reporter genes to 'broadcast' specific happenings. For example, if a scientist is interested in the whereabouts and activities of a certain gene, the reporter 'follows' it, and when this gene is activated in any way, the reporter gene produces an easily detectable protein, such as green fluorescent protein........Go to the Biology-blog (Added on 7/26/2007 4:50:02 AM)
Proboscidea louisianica subsp. fragransToday's image is again courtesy of our “BPotD correspondent in Mexico”, David Tarrant
This plant was growing along the roadside in the freshly disturbed earth near a building site, a typical locale for this plant of weedy areas, cattle pens and other degraded sites in Texas and Mexico. In Mexico, the common name is toritos or “little bulls”, while in Texas it is variously known as unicorn plant, common devil's claw,........Go to the Plant-science-blog (Added on 7/24/2007 10:05:52 PM)
Bumblebees make bee line for gardensBritain's gardens are vital habitats for nesting bumblebees, new research has found. The results come from the National Bumblebee Nest Survey, which are published online in the British Ecological Society's Journal of Applied Ecology, and the findings will help conservationists understand and hopefully address the factors responsible for declining bumblebee populations.
During the National Bumblebee Nest Survey, more than 700 volunteers........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/23/2007 6:29:59 PM)
Killing only a few animals won't do any harm - or will it?Using advanced mathematical modeling, scientists from Sweden and The Netherlands show in an article in the recent issue of the American Naturalist that this statement is sometimes true.
Sometimes though, killing even a few individuals can have dramatic consequences, causing populations to fluctuate wildly. The important question is: who gets killed" The effects of killing individuals crucially depend on the size of the victims, says Tobias........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/23/2007 5:09:34 PM)
Fruit fly gene from 'out of nowhere'Researchers thought that most new genes were formed from existing genes, but Cornell scientists have discovered a gene in some fruit flies that appears to be uncorrelation to other genes in any known genome.
The new gene, called hydra, exists in only a small number of species of Drosophila fruit flies, which suggests it was created about 13 million years ago, when these melanogaster subgroup species diverged from a common ancestor.
And........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/23/2007 3:16:33 PM)
Charting ever-changing genomesInstead of immutable proprietary software, any species genetic information resembles open source code that is constantly tweaked and optimized to meet the users specific needs. But which parts of the code have withstood the test of time and which parts have undergone rapid evolutionary change has been difficult to assess.
An international collaboration by scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, the University of Chicago, and........Go to the Biology-blog (Added on 7/19/2007 10:38:32 PM)
Probing biology's dark matterA typical human mouth teems with as a number of as 700 different species of microbes. A handful of these have been specifically implicated in promoting gum disease, dental cavities, and bad breath, but for the most part, the make-up of this complex ecosystem and its impact on human health remain largely unexplored. A new device created by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) researchers, however, may make some of the most reclusive members of........Go to the Biology-blog (Added on 7/19/2007 9:40:29 PM)
Suitable Habitat Helps in Comeback of WoodlarkThe sight of woodlark in England has brought back smiles on the environmentalists and bird lovers as they are returning to the countryside. Once declared most critically endangered birds of the region the bird is now seeing its comeback with its number going up to 3,084 pairs from 1,633 pairs in ten years
Though it is great news but conservationists also fear that this comeback may be short lived as the birds nest on the ground and lay upto........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/18/2007 6:39:30 PM)
Monkeys don't go for easy pickingsAnimals' natural foraging decisions give an insight into their cognitive abilities, and primates do not automatically choose the easy option. Instead, they appear to decide where to feed based on the quality of the resources available and the effect on their social group, rather than simply selecting the nearest food available. These findings¹ by Elena Cunningham and Charles Janson, respectively from the New York University College of........Go to the Animal-science-blog (Added on 7/17/2007 10:26:14 PM)
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